Hell Let Loose: Vietnam

I fucking hate Hell Let Loose. I wanted to get that out of the way because pretending otherwise would make this entire review pointless. The original has never clicked with me and Vietnam does not suddenly change my mind. I understand exactly why some people love these games. The realism, huge battles, communication, squad structure, and slower tactical movement are the whole attraction. Those are also most of the reasons I find them miserable. A normal session for me involves running for far too long, trying to figure out where the actual fight is, getting shot by somebody I never saw, and then repeating the process. That does not make Hell Let Loose: Vietnam badly designed. It makes it a game designed around things I personally do not find fun. The Vietnam setting at least gives this entry a very different atmosphere. Dense jungle changes how sightlines work. Helicopters are now an important part of moving troops around. The North Vietnamese side can use tunnel systems while the US side approaches movement and reinforcement differently. Patrol boats add another layer on maps with water. There is plenty happening mechanically. The problem for me is that all those systems still exist inside Hell Let Loose. The game wants people communicating constantly. A good squad leader matters. Spawn placement matters. Knowing when to move and when to stay completely still matters. If everybody actually does their job then I understand why the people who love this series describe matches like stories instead of normal multiplayer rounds. I am just rarely having fun long enough to reach that point. Vietnam can be even worse for visibility. The jungle looks appropriate but spotting someone before they spot you becomes incredibly difficult. That creates tension for the right player and frustration for everyone else. I am firmly in the second group. The gunplay itself has weight and the sound design is excellent. Rifles crack loudly enough that firefights feel dangerous and explosions have a proper punch to them. I actually think the audio does more to sell the battlefield than the graphics. The current technical condition is harder to defend. Players have been complaining about frame drops, blurry foliage, audio glitches, party problems, and strange visual artifacts since launch. The PS5 reception in particular has been rough. When a game already requires patience just to get into a good fight the last thing it needs is technical issues making the experience harder. Public opinion is split enough that I know I am not alone. Critics generally respect what Expression Games built. The people who already loved Hell Let Loose seem much more likely to appreciate Vietnam than I do. Normal player reception has been much harsher. That feels right. This is not some terrible shooter that nobody should buy. It is an extremely specific type of shooter that does almost nothing to appeal to people outside that audience. If you love tactical communication and realism you might get hundreds of hours out of this. I would rather load Battlefield and actually shoot somebody before I forget why I turned the game on.