This week we feature a special guest as Inadub prepares to try and Test the waters:

• Sam “Doc” Castanon III from Season One of the Tester tells how it is
• Prize Packs prepare to ship
• Sit Rep
• and so much more…

Part 2 is loaded with info about the South Hall at E3 including:

• An exclusive interview with Craig Owens of EA
• An exclusive interview with “Doc” of the Tester Season1
• A round table with Owners Shane, AC and John along with special guest Bill F’kn Murray
• How I owned the Devs of Medal of Honor
• And a Prize Pack beyond any ever done with the new command at Urgent Fury

It was August 27, 2002. The day that changed my life as a gamer. The day that my mysterious lady was born.
She was so mysterious in fact, that her name was an abbreviation. Special Operations COMmand or SOCOM, as I like to call her, was magnificent. And, she had everything.

Thanks to the PS2′s nifty Network Adapter, I could play online with 15 of my closest friends (that I’d never met). Her COMs featured a fancy-schmancy voice command system, that was so unique, she came with her very own USB headset. Her COMs also allowed me to voice chat with my team mates during the game, and in the lobby (the first game on the PS2, to do so).

I’m talking complete clan support. I could create, and name my clan. And could actually manage my clan (and my Socom friends) online, all with the press of a few buttons.

I could even create, customize, and name private rooms. All that, and her crazy third person POV, which allowed me to see how cool I looked as a Navy SeAL, was a match made in Heaven.

Every night, for hours at a time. Sometimes until daybreak. I would become a US Navy SeAL. One of the most elite war fighters in military history. And I would hang out with people from all over the world, and play a game that would eventually, become a part of my life.

Then, as the years passed, she changed. My mysterious lady had become something else. And, the more she changed, the further I felt from her. Eventually, she became impossible to enjoy.  And our relationship became a string of broken promises. It was over (or so it seemed), and I was heart broken.

Don’t get me wrong, I tried to forget her. To just move on.

Like others, I was tempted by Modern Warfare. I mean, let’s face it…she was beautiful, with a control scheme & Singleplayer story to die for. But, no matter how great she was….she was no SOCOM.

Then, in June, I went to Los Angeles to see her (SOCOM 4 @ E3). I had heard that she was back in good hands (Zipper Interactive), and that she was looking much better. But, I had to see for myself.

As soon as I grabbed the DualShock, it was obvious that this was not the SOCOM that I’d grown to hate over the last 2 years.  This was familiar to me. Very close to the game that I fell in love with. The controls just felt like SOCOM.

Gone was that #!@%* circle menu. I wasn’t tripping over propane tanks. And there weren’t 9000 birds flying around in a circle (BTW…I never did get that Slant 6…you went through alot of trouble to make those birds, and to make them destructible…but why?). There were stealth kills, air strikes, and “iron sights“. Yes, I said  “iron sights” (finally) in SOCOM 4.

In the Singleplayer campaign, you play as Commander Cullen Gray, a NATO Spec Ops officer in command of a 4 person fireteam. The team is comprised of 2 American operators named Schweitzer and Wells. And 2 South Korean operators named Chung and Forty Five. Veteran SOCOM players will recall that Forty Five is one of the original female combatants from the original SOCOM. And, Zipper was sure to point out, that the character is “vital to the story“. The plot of the Singleplayer story plays out over a 6 day period, somewhere in southeastern Asia.

With a revamped reticle/crosshair, and a more natural gameplay mechanic, I felt like I had more control over my commando. And, with all-new squad commands (via a very simple D-pad configuration), I felt like I was actually in control of my team, as well.

I mentioned the addition of  “iron sights” (classic FPS view, where you actually look down the sights of your weapon while aiming) to SOCOM 4. With this very basic addition, my aim was almost flawless.

The cover system took me a second to figure out, but once I did, it was quite helpful overall. While in cover, you can peek and fire, which really helps when you encounter more than one enemy. There was also a noticeable improvement in the accuracy & hit detection departments. For instance, if I shot a tango in the foot, he fell to the ground, holding his foot. If I shot him in the arm, he lost use of that arm. If I scored a headshot, he didn’t do anything else, ever.

A new “single button” grenade mechanic (again…finally), with an improved “arc” & blast radius, make frag grenades user friendly again.
And of course, Sprint & Melee’ are still part of the control scheme, with the buttons mapped out a la’ COD/MW (L3/R3 respectively) .

Visually, the game looks wonderful. While COD/Modern Warfare still wears the GFX crown, SOCOM 4 gives the franchise a noticeable (and much needed) face-lift. The lighting seemed much more natural. Textures & backgrounds looked much deeper, and the cutscenes came off like “reality television“, complete with the live feel of a “shaky” cam.

Sonically speaking, the audio in the demo was spectacular. Authentic “battle chatter“, and combat SFX only add to the robust gunplay.

Apart from the single-player mode, the game will also feature an online mode which supports up to 32 players, and has been described as an “an all new experience” by Zipper. But, we’ll just have to wait, as no further details about the Multiplayer mode were made available by Zipper @ E3.

All in all, I know that there will be SOCOM purists, who will still try to find eveything wrong with SOCOM 4. But, the one thing I took from this brief encounter with my old flame, is that she seems to be back, and maybe…just maybe…a little better. And, while any intel regarding Multiplayer is still tightly under wraps, if the Singleplayer mode is any indication….there just might be a future for me & my beloved SOCOM after all.

~V~

So as many have been waiting for, we spent E3 gathering intel for all of you guys and well instead of spoiling it for you, I just will let you start with Part 1 of our 2 part series for the E3 Debrief…

Audrey Cleo with Commander Fury and Shane Bell of Urgent Fury

Commander Fury and Kevin discover the pleasure of the Move

The Urgent Fury Crew with Travis Steiner

Heads up guys we got so much intel, its going to take a few podcasts to do it… Ohh and there are prizes too…

Happy Mother’s day all you Tad Polls!!!

In this week’s episode:

• Black Regular Season Ends, Playoffs begin
• Summer Boom on the Way
• Medal of Honor
• Greg Goodrich interview by Game Trailers

In this weeks Episode:

• UF 141 Sitrep and it’s a doosey
• Tale tucked between their legs, a clan runs away from the deadly rockets
• Game Trailers Visits Battlefield: Bad Company 2
• We welcome a new sponsor to Urgent Fury

Boy did Commander Fury Go all out this week, in this episode:

• UF 141 Sit Rep
• Spoof Flash Back
• Playstation’s Qore Host Audrey Cleo Stops by the Studio
• We pay tribute to our fellow Fallen Shooter [cBF] TheHulkster
• and so much more!!!

Don’t forget to email show ideas, questions and more to comm...@urgentfury.com

In this eventful episode:

• UF: 141 Sitrep
• UF: Black right around the corner
• A Puddy Tat Flashback
• An off the cuff roundtable with Commander Fury, UF Director Shane, SgtJoeFriday and Glen (Torgo) from www.psnation.org
• And a sneak peak on God of War III

In this episode:

• Week One Update for 141
• Alien vs. Predator
• Mail Bag – CommanderFury@urgentfury.com

This week’s podcast includes:

• UF: 141′s List of Invited Clans
  • Its Frist Come First Server, the First 16 to respond get their Ticket, all others will be on stand by
• Special interview with Don Westbrook of www.hlxgaming.com
• Just the Facts by Sgt. Joe Friday

In this special podcast:

• Special interview with LPK’s Meauxpack and MikeJaxon from Uprising
• Holiday Greetings from all
• UF: 141 breaks ground
• Socom DLC
• Modern Warfare 2
• and more…

This started out as an exciting Podcast with a tribute to Pearl Harbor and an exciting announcement to the Community, but ironically Urgent Fury suffered an attack of its own kind, you will need to listen to hear more.

This weeks Episode includes:

• Remembering Pearl Harbor
• The Attack on Urgent Fury
• Chosin Update
• Black Update
• Annoucements of a New Urgent Fury Partner
• and more

This week on Urgent Frequency, Commander Fury gives us a recap on UF Chosin, talks about Black Playoffs and Announces the Clans in the First Boot Camp for PS3: Modern Warfare 2. He also give thanks to the troops and requests your clans season greatings, see the forums for more information. We get a glimpse of Bad Company 2 and a little Thanksgiving Special to.

Listen via iTunes or www.urgentfury.com/podcast

It was the biggest electronic entertainment release of 2009, and Urgent Frequency was there!

In this week’s transmission, Commander Fury teams up with Gamestop, Infinity Ward, and 500 of his closest friends, for a very special Midnight Warfare Nationwide Launch episode.

Recorded live, on location at one of the 4500 Gamestop stores nationwide hosting live events.
This unscripted, unedited broadcast captures the excitement surrounding the release of Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, the highly anticipated sequel to the former Game Of The Year, Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.

Despite the madness of a “live” transmission, Fury also manages to give us a fairly detailed Urgent Fury SITREP, while he eavesdrops on UF Co-Director AC.

All that, plus a giant TV, makes this a must hear Episode!

Check out the hottest podcast with Commander Claymore Fury now on ITunes… You can download the episodes directly to your IPod, IPhone and more. We have spent this past weekend archiving every podcast since day one and you will be able to get all of the episodes by the end of this week.

http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=338492908

And remember as Commander Fury always tells us, Keep your Feet Wet and your Powder Dry, Tadpoles!

A special Halloween episode, Commander Fury sits down with the new Directors of Urgent Fury, featuring AC, John and Shane in the studio.

This episode of Urgent Frequency

• TacMap Arithmetic
• Black Update
• Code Masters
• Email Polls

This week on Urgent Frequency:

• Happy Birth Day to Commander Fury
• An update from the Chosin Battlefield
• Urgent Fury Black
• Horsemen
• Modern Warfare 2 is coming

Commander Fury returns under a new command, change is in the air and some clans are looking at UF Chosin it’s Invite Night!!!! And a special tribute for 9/11… Urgent Fury will always remember.

This episode of Urgent Frequency includes:

• 50 Episode Special
• Chain Reaction
• Hostile Takeover Contest
• They just keep borrowing…
• and more…

From the studio of Urgent Frequency:

• Recap Black
• Horsemen
• Hell Week
• Chain Reaction
• Warning!!!

Merry Christmas from Urgent Fury and Commander Fury.

This week’s episode:

• Black Playoffs
• Hell Week
• Blogs
• and more…

Our 2008 Thanksgiving Special

This week on Urgent Frequency:

• Black Update
• Horsemen
• Chain Reaction
• Smack Talk’n

This week on Urgent Frequency:

• The Greatest Hits

This week at Urgent Fury:

• Updates
• America Remembers

This week on Urgent Frequency:

• Special Report from UnderTow