The graphics throughout are wonderfully atmospheric (atmospheric, geddit? Oh never mind)

Commandos was a surprise hit on the PC last year that saw you controlling a platoon of rock hard fighters through some marvellously designed missions. Viewed from above, the action worked, but what if it was in glorious 3D? Enter Hidden and Dangerous...
Andy Smith

Commandos was fab! Even the add-on mission pack was great! Is this like that?
Certainly is, but in full-on polygon 3D. You're controlling a bunch of up to eight soldiers and must guide them through a number of campaigns each divided into several missions.

Cool. So how does it play then?
The preview version we've been absolutely hooked on plays splendidly. You equip your team, are given a briefing and then it's down to you how you achieve the mission objectives. You can only control one soldier at a time (though you can issue orders to other team members via the map screen), and instead of viewing the action from above you've got either a first or third-person view and switching between them is achieved with a simple key press, as is switching between soldiers.

And so what are the missions like?
Tough. As in Commandos the levels have been extremely well designed, with enemy guards placed at strategic places making the player think long and hard about how to take 'em out. If you thought sniping in GoldenEye was tremendous fun you'll love the stealth and cunning required for Hidden and Dangerous. Those heavy machine guns are a blast too.

Oh cool. Deathmatch?
There are multiplayer options certainly but they weren't working on the version we've played. Looks like you'll be able to join platoons though, where each person takes control of a character through a mission, which would be excellent. We're sure Take 2 are aware of the popularity of deathmatches too, so we'd expect to see something like that in the final game.