While the previous PS2 and PSP iterations of popular tactical team-based shooter 'SOCOM' could hold its own in the single-player campaign, it was the online component that hooked fans, creating a rabid loyalist niche in a market saturated with the run-and-gun first-person-shooter.

I suppose it's understandable then that it was decided to forego the single player campaign completely in this latest version, allowing the developers to focus on what made the 'SOCOM' franchise such a cult classic amongst the online shooter communities.

Development of 'SOCOM: Confrontation' was transferred from series-regulars Zipper Interactive to Slant 6 Games and, while they did a fairly admirable job, this latest flavour is still an amazingly competent tactical shooter. But some limitations keep it from being great and in these competitive times in the gaming industry, you need to offer something fantastic to lure gamers away from whatever it is they're currently playing.

Firstly, the omission of a single player campaign: Sure, online multiplayer is where it's at for a very large portion of gamers, but I couldn't help the feeling that gamers were getting a bit short-changed with 'Confrontation'.

It suffers from the same problem that another popular online-only shooter, 'Warhawk', had: You're thrown into these games with zero back-story, very little motivation for each faction in what ends up being nothing more than a jump-in jump-out game mentality. A fairly competent single player campaign would have helped to flesh out the world you're playing in, creating a sense of purpose and add a layer of authenticity that's severely lacking.

With that little niggle aside, 'Confrontation' is still a very enjoyable online game. The latest downloadable patch solves a fair amount of the network issues the game has been plagued with since its launch, and you'll be in for a fairly stable multiplayer experience most of the time.

So the real problem then, is the lack of innovation.

When you launch the game you can choose Quickmatch to immediately jump into the action, or you can set up a game with friends only, or open it to anyone willing to join.

The gameplay is still very much entrenched in being the thinking man's shooter. Tactical and squad based, 'Confrontation' offers a steep learning curve for newcomers and, as with the previous games, there are no respawns. So waiting out the outcome of a match will inevitably garner criticisms or applause, depending on which camp you're sitting on.

It forces you to take things slowly, to know your environment and to take the time to get to know the maps like the back of your hand. Teamwork is essential and you'll be working hard for your victories. So yes, realism is still very much part-and-parcel of the experience, but personally I would have liked a respawn option, simply for those moments when you're pressed for time and want to work in a few games.

Setting up your soldier is still quite varied, with armour, grips for recoil, scopes, etc. to be added. Levelling up is again your most important goal as your chances of survival can be seriously improved with an update in your chosen gear. There are only seven maps, although I'm sure more will be made available as DLC somewhere down the line.

The maps are all very well designed, well rendered and draw distances are very impressive, so all-in-all it's a pretty polished experience. But I still think that 'SOCOM' will remain very much a game that plays towards a very specific gamer, while everyone else will still wonder what all the fuss is about.

Removing the single player campaign won't do it any favours, and some respawn options and more variety in game-types would have been a very welcome addition.

Again, these might become available down the line as downloadable content, but as it currently stands, 'Confrontation' is underwhelming, feeling rather like an expansion pack that should have been added to an already-released game.

6.8/10

Buy this game: PS3