Soldier of Fortune 2: Double Helix (SoF2) is a sequel to the Raven's "ultra-bloody" first-person shooter. While Soldier Of Fortune was a controversial hit due to its addicting gameplay and its massive amounts of blood, violence and explicit gore, SoF2 takes it to the next level.  The plot is not most important part of this game, but you reprise the role of John Mullins: Weapons Specialist, Anti-Terrorist Mercenary, and "Military Consultant." A new and insidious threat has arisen in the form of a bio-terrorist organization and their two-pronged Gemini Virus. Now, you're off on a transcontinental mission to stop the terrorists and destroy the virus before it's unleashed on humanity. Simply, you're still John Mullins, and every other character is someone trying to kill you :]

Well, there is no doubt that SoF2 is even more bloodier and gorier than SoF1. While the game now utilizes the Quake III engine (SoF1 , it also implements its own terrain engine, ROAM, for massive in-game environments. The Quake III engine was definitely a big leap from the Quake 2 engine used in SoF1. Also GHOUL modeling technology has been pretty improved, the new "36-point damage system" allowing you to target even more parts of your enemies' bodies. So be prepared to see plenty of hands, feet, shins, legs, chunks of bodies/faces/heads, halves of bodies, chunky blood splats, decapitation, squirting holes, gaping wounds, bone fragments, brain globs and goodies like that :) Yeah it's pretty disgusting for some people, but trust me after one hour of playing, you won't be shocked, you will be rather bored (of course I mean single-player). It's nice to see plenty of violence in FPS, I always want it, but SoF2 provides sometime very unrealistic violence. For example, If I hit bad guy into both his hands or both his legs with M1911A1/MSG90A1, he is still able to run/fight. Simply he isn't really crippled. When I hit him into the same limb four/five/six times (I didn't hit his body or head), it killed him. It's kinda weird to see dead body on the floor with injured limb, but the body bleeding from its back (I mean pool of blood). I don't think it's problem the GHOUL engine or scripting, but it seems to be minor problem with some balance settings for some weapons, especially for MSG90A1 and M1911A1.
You can choose from various scale of weapons from your combat knife, pistol to the pump action shotgun, automatic shotgun, different types of grenades (include  M15 Smoke grenade, ANM14 Incendiary grenade etc), MSG90A1 Sniper rifle, M60 Machinegun, Twin Micro Uzi, AK74 Assault Rifle, M4 Assault Rifle (with grenade launcher), MM1 Grenade Launcher, Infrared goggles, US Socom pistol, M590 Shotgun, USAS12 Auto Shotgun and plenty more. My favorite weapons was the AK-74 (one of the quickest reloads and it's pretty accurate), Sniper rifle, Uzi and of course incendiary grenades.

Single player:

SoF2 begins in Prague where you have to get to that Hotel Prague, enter it and once with the doctor, follow him and he will take you to the exit point. It should be pretty simple and quick, but it isn't. In your way to the hotel you will encounter plenty of enemies which will be pretty tough to kill, especially if you choosed harder difficulty. Despite the first mission of the game was set in Prague (I live close to Prague, so it's my region), I didn't like the Prague levels - it's probably worst part of the game. I think Raven's designers should go back to school to learn where is Czech republic on the world map, because Prague in the game looks more like a city in east central Afghanistan :( Even people in SoF2' Prague (such as train dispatcher) didn't speak Czech. It's crap. Well, don't trust Raven. Prague the capital of the Czech Republic, is our most valuable historical city reserve. Since the Middle Ages Prague has been famous as one of the most beautiful cities of the world, and has been attributed adjectives such as "golden", "hundred-spired", "the crown of the world", "stone dream". Throughout centuries prominent personalities paid homage to it. W. A. Mozart, L. van Beethoven, F. M. Dostojevsky, A. Rodin, G. Apllinaire, P. I. Tchaikovsky, O. Kokoschka and also the Brittish Queen Elizabeth II and Pope John Paul II professed their beguilement by its attractiveness and architectural beauty. Sorry for this lesson of history. But seems Raven's designers never been in Prague, it's sad. I hope they won't create Berlin with igloo and Eskimos next time ;) Fortunately all other locations are much better done, especially Columbian jungle, Kamchatka and Hong Kong  levels quite rocks. I must say that fighting through a jungle has to be one most memorable moments while playing SoF2 single-player. Playing along side of friendly marines (NPCs) was pretty interesting, though snowy levels at Kamchatka wasn't bad too.

SoF2 is quite long, the single player will take you over 20 hours to finish - of course depend what difficulty level you choose. The harder difficulty levels allows you only a set number of saves (unfortunately). I don't think it was good idea to limit saves with harder difficulty. After you will finish all single-player maps it's not game over yet. You can use built-in random map generator to generate endless "goal-oriented" single-player maps based on a series of settings (Assassination, Demolition, Jail Escape, Infiltration).  I'm sure the random map generator is most exciting feature of the single-player mode and it adds very big replayability.

Multiplayer:

While single-player part of the game was mostly uninspiring/mediocre for me, the multiplayer component is surprisingly one of the most stable and addictive multiplayer modes ever. The maps (only 10 maps but also here you can use also the random map generator) are well designed and the action is fast, furious and incredibly satisfying. The currently available options are Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Capture The Flag, Infiltration and Elimination, and over 50 different character skins.

Overall:

I loved SoF1, but now after years am quite disappointed from single player mode. I expected something different, something more realistic, less frustrating, with better plot and better hero :) Well, it's just my opinion, I can be wrong :) Anyway the best part of the game is multiplayer especially the Infiltration mode which is similar to Counter-Strike. If you like first person shooters and violence, it's game for you :) Download playable demo (136MB).