Task Force Dagger (TFD) takes you to the front lines of Afghanistan. You can play any one of 10 Special Operations. These forces are the actual Special Forces units deployed in Operation Enduring Freedom. Each special op team has a special role. For example Seal Team 6's role is that of medic, Green Berets are heavy weapon specialists, CIA SOG's are snipers, you get the idea. Though they have preferred weapons, you can outfit yourself with whatever weapons you choose.

There are 25 new missions in this new edition to a successful series. Though some of the missions were quite fun, there are still a few that had me yawning a bit. Typical search and destroy, find this, blow up that, escort him to safety… blah blah blah. There are some nice toys at your disposal. Thirty weapons in all, with 17 being new to the series. Amongst this new arsenal is a UAV or Unmanned Aerial Vehicle in which you can spy on the enemy or call in a devastating air strike. A couple new guns to mention would be the M60 Machine Gun, M24 sniper rifle, and the Glock 19.

TFD uses a slightly modified DF3 Land Warrior engine still using the voxel technology. TFD has not changed much from its predecessor, in all honesty its more like an expansion pack. Not that this is a bad thing! The new missions are fun, but a bit easy if you know how to play the game. The multi-player games are a blast! You can test out your creativity and generate countless multi-player maps with the mission editor.

The MP games are still the same, Flag ball, Death Match, Team Death Match, Capture the Flag, Search and Destroy, King of the Hill, and Team King of the Hill. This is where the game truly shines. You can play on the Novaworld server, which takes only a few moments to sign up. There you will find games that keep track of player stats, non-stat games, public and private games, and games that do not require you to sign up. Novaworld overall has done a decent job with their MP games, but as in DF games past, there tend to be some lag issues when there is a lot of grenade wielding players who are not skilled in primary weapons. YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE!!! Also, on stat hosted games there is sometimes a 5-10 minute wait to join when the game is full, but you do not have to keep refreshing the page and hope you can double click faster then the next guy to get in. You get tossed on a queue that updates you where you stand on the list. This is an outstanding feature, though us cable guys now don't have the advantage anymore, but you can walk away, grab your beverage, a snack, let the dog out, etc without having to stare at the monitor. Very nice!

Overall and despite a few shortcomings, I would recommend this title to any military FPS fan!

Reviewer's Scoring Details



Gameplay: 8
Interface and key commands are quite easy to get used to. You can tweak them to your liking. I was a bit frustrated with the enemy AI, some of the same old problems.

Graphics: 8
An updated version of the LW engine, but nothing really noticeable. Using the voxel technology you can still pick out players trying to hide on the other side of the map with a well-placed sniper shot.

Sound: 8
Some of the sound effects had a noticeable difference with special attention to the LAW and grenade launcher and explosions. New effects were audibly stimulating

Difficulty: Medium
Missions are a bit on the easy side if you’re a DF veteran, some of the same enemy AI problems, guys running in place, not reacting when the guy next to him gets one in back, etc. Not all the time, but enough to notice. Once you play MP, it’s a whole new world

Concept: 7
What could easily have been an add-on pack is actually a stand-alone game. If you are new to the DF series this is a must have. If you are a fan of series, this is a must have just for the MP options alone.

Multiplayer: 8
This is where the game shines. Playing on Novaworld still has its problems with lagging. When everyone is throwing grenades, you see a noticeable lag. Experienced players know how to compensate and still can rack up the kills.

Overall: 8
Though, I may have cited some downfalls, I still recommend this title. This is still one of my favorite MP games despite a few of the shortcomings I have mentioned.