Mercenaries 2 Dated for Autumn

It seems that game developers have a habit of making the protagonist and the player battle foes that are likely to become annoyed as they are mentioned in videogames. When Russia is an enemy from which you can expect some sharp replies about how it is now changed and no longer an evil empire. Mercenaries 2 is set in Venezuela, a country that didn't really gain many friends over the last few years. So expect a PR backlash when the game launches.

A trailer recently available from Pandemic, the developers of the game, has revealed that the release date for the United States market would be August 31, while Europe would get the game on September 5. Initially, the game was set to hit stores sometime in February 2008, but Electronic Arts urged developers at Pandemic to take another look at the game and polish it up for an Autumn release, as part of its newly developed policy of going for better quality in the game it launches.

Features new to Mercenaries 2 include some completely destructible environments, co-operative mode for the single player game, a specialized fire effects engine that allows the player to ignite things such as oil or foliage and some improved artificial intelligence for non-player characters. Also to be expected are new vehicles running around and a fresh batch of weapons to chop off enemies' limbs.

A host of armies will battle for Venezuela's petroleum in the game and the player can become an ally of which ever faction he likes. The PLAV or the People's Liberation Army of Venezuela are the rebels of the game. The Universal Petroleum Corporation has a private military with new high-tech weapons while the Rastafarian Pirates rely on hit-and-run. China's armed forces also make an appearance along with the AN which are a United Nations look alike.

The game is developed for PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360; the producers are expected to launch a demo sometime in August.