The skinny:
Full Spectrum Warrior is the commercial evolution of a game originally commissioned by Uncle Sam as a way to educate grunts. It combines a diverse range of game mechanics into a single unit. Like the first sweet taste of a roasted turducken, it simultaneously inspires and mystifies. You run the show as a squad leader controlling two four-man units. The tactics follow Army MOUT (Military Operations in Urban Terrain) doctrine, which means using genuine Army-approved moves such as stacked formations to cover multiple fire zones, laying down cover fire, flanking maneuvers and, if you find a working Slushee machine, drinking all you want. Brain-freeze be damned!

If you liked this game, you'd like:
America's Army, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3, unnerving everyone at a bar by flatly stating you can defend better from the high ground.

Hours to complete:
The supplied missions provide the standard 40 hours or so of play. Online cooperative play with strangers will extend the game further. And to think, we used to troll the Barnes & Noble self-help section to make new friends. (Still do!)

Tantalizing tidbits:
All the action takes place in downtown Zekistan, the fictional capital city of a Middle Eastern country. You advance by completing objectives such as taking down snipers and securing certain areas of the city. Instead of all-out combat, the game emphasizes the use of cover and coordinated movement on the battlefield. When directing your squad's concentrated fire, you don't pick specific targets so much as whole areas of the screen to hose down with lead. The game has incredible graphics and sound, as well as clever AI that doesn't require you to baby-sit each squad member and incessantly scream inanities like "Incoming!" or "Put that juice box down, soldier; it's not lunchtime yet!"

Buy, rent or run away screaming?
Get your dog tags stamped immediately.