Let me state that I have simply adored almost all the home console games with the words Ubisoft and Tom Clancy on the front of the box.  Unfortunately when it comes to the handheld versions of those titles, I always seemed to be more than a little disappointed.  There were titles like Splinter cell essentials, and most recently Rainbow Six Vegas for PSP neither of which I thought stood up to the standard of its console brothers.  But maybe that was my problem; maybe I was expecting too much from a portable Tom Clancy creation.  So knowing that I might just have the bar set too high when it comes to a  handheld Tom Clancy title, would that change my overall impression of GRAW 2 for the better or worst?  Let's find out...

Story:
Once again you are thrust in to the ever capable boots of Capt. Scott Mitchell, this time you are in South America supposedly the source of where all those illegal weapons are making it to Mexico.  You are to eliminate Columbian guerrilla forces believed to be trafficking high-tech weapons and equipment to rebel forces in Mexico Of course you will recall that Mexico is where you do most of the fighting in the console versions.  Unfortunately the story is a bit inconsistent, being that Capt Mitchell is supposed to be in Mexico during this same time frame, but who pays attention to that stuff anyway.  The plot is pretty forgettable at best especially since most of the missions in it are way too familiar.  It revolves around being deployed again in harms way to take out as many bad guys and destroy as many of their facilities as you can.  The monotony is broken up occasionally by an occasional search and rescue mission thrown in here and there.  Simply put it just works and there is nothing here that you haven't seen before.

Graphics:
I have to admit I was very pleasantly surprised when I booted the game up, the game actually looks great.  GRAW2 for PSP will take you through jungles, swamps, towns, and military bases and they all look surprisingly good on the PSP.  The action is smooth and there is loads of detail in all the environments previously mentioned.  Little details in things like Capt. Mitchells' uniform and weapons really impress, the developers definitely took their time where the graphics are concerned.  No, these are not some of the best graphics you'll see on the PSP, but GRAW 2 certainly is not ugly.

Sound:
The audio is fairly standard for Ghost Recon, like the chatter over you voice comm., weapons sounds, enemies yelling "GRANADAS", etc.  There is nothing new here nor will it disappoint.

Control/Gameplay:
Immediately what I knew would be disappointing to most is, you no longer have the ability to command other soldiers and vehicles. But I have to honestly say for me this was a plus, mainly because I enjoyed Capt Mitchell's single player missions on the XBOX360 version more anyway.  Sometimes if the AI isn't done right extra soldiers to command just get in the way anyway.  Don't think that this means there aren't tactics involved to getting through this game.  There definitely are opportunities to use tactics here, because of different ways to take out the enemy. I might also mention that enemies are pretty smart most of the time.  Shoot at them and they will drop to a prone position, maybe even run for cover. You can call in the infamous hovering drone to drop bombs on enemies or laser tag a site for the naval artillery to drop some hot stuff on your target. Additionally if you don't position Capt Mitchell in the right place at the time with the appropriate weapon your mission will end abruptly and frustratingly.

This brings me to my first big negative, which is the extremely frustrating ambush mission.  I actually had to restart a whole level because of an ambush mission.  I almost went through a whole level only to find out I had to equip a rocket launcher to ambush an oncoming convoy of trucks carrying troops.  Here's why they gave me an ammo box at the beginning of the level but I opted not to grab the rocket launcher.  You can only carry a limited amount of weapons and ammo on your person at one time.  So several saves and checkpoints later I needed that rocket launcher to ambush the convoy.  I became so frustrated, as I repeatedly tried to attack the convoy with my machine gun or multiple mistimed grenade throws, only to have those trucks keep right on rolling.  Basically I would be sitting there watching the convoy roll away as my bullets bounce off, and grenades miss, with the game ending shortly thereafter.  I was so upset I almost traded this game in, but because I am a pretty diehard fan of the series I decided to start back from the beginning and make sure I had the right equipment this time and I proceeded flawlessly.  Good rule of thumb, always carry a weapon that can shoot grenades when available.

My second big negative is the frustrating escort missions.  If you have a very low patience level and get frustrated easily, please pack your UMD, Manual and case back up take to your nearest game store and trade it in.  Let me explain...Capt Mitchell is sent on a mission to escort a truck through a well guarded enemy infested town.  The truck you are escorting never stops moving, so you have to be sharp and take out key enemies first.  So pay attention to what gets thrown at you and apply it the next time through, because you will restart the escort mission several times.

Another thing I think die hard GRAW fans may really miss here is its lack of any type multiplayer, especially since the Ghost Recon series is pretty well known for its great multiplayer system.  You can play in two player Co-Op but that is about it.  Fortunately this doesn't have a very big impact on my review of the game since I am not a big fan of multiplayer anyway.  Give me a good single player experience and I am pretty happy.

Bottom Line:
Plainly put GRAW2 will give you about a 5 hour campaign and is actually pretty solid shooter as far as the PSP is concerned anyway. With familiar weapons like the SCAR assault rifle and the OICW (which can spit out everything but the kitchen sink), you can actually have some fun here.  Unfortunately though don't go into this one expecting to get a console experience or you will be sorely disappointed.  With that said I actually had a pretty good time, but I am also a diehard fan of the GRAW series and that is who I recommend purchase this game.  For all others I would recommend you rent this one to see if you are patient enough to deal with some of the frustrations presented in this title.
Let me state that I have simply adored almost all the home console games with the words Ubisoft and Tom Clancy on the front of the box. Unfortunately when it comes to the handheld versions of those titles, I always seemed to be more than a little disappointed. There were titles like Splinter cell essentials, and most recently Rainbow Six Vegas for PSP neither of which I thought stood up to the standard of its console brothers. But maybe that was my problem; maybe I was expecting too much from a portable Tom Clancy creation. So knowing that I might just have the bar set too high when it comes to a  handheld Tom Clancy title, would that change my overall impression of GRAW 2 for the better or worst? Let's find out... Story:
Once again you are thrust in to the ever capable boots of Capt. Scott Mitchell, this time you are in South America supposedly the source of where all those illegal weapons are making it to Mexico. You are to eliminate Columbian guerrilla forces believed to be trafficking high-tech weapons and equipment to rebel forces in Mexico Of course you will recall that Mexico is where you do most of the fighting in the console versions. Unfortunately the story is a bit inconsistent, being that Capt Mitchell is supposed to be in Mexico during this same time frame, but who pays attention to that stuff anyway. The plot is pretty forgettable at best especially since most of the missions in it are way too familiar. It revolves around being deployed again in harms way to take out as many bad guys and destroy as many of their facilities as you can. The monotony is broken up occasionally by an occasional search and rescue mission thrown in here and there. Simply put it just works and there is nothing here that you haven't seen before. Graphics:
I have to admit I was very pleasantly surprised when I booted the game up, the game actually looks great. GRAW2 for PSP will take you through jungles, swamps, towns, and military bases and they all look surprisingly good on the PSP. The action is smooth and there is loads of detail in all the environments previously mentioned. Little details in things like Capt. Mitchells' uniform and weapons really impress, the developers definitely took their time where the graphics are concerned. No, these are not some of the best graphics you'll see on the PSP, but GRAW 2 certainly is not ugly. Sound:
The audio is fairly standard for Ghost Recon, like the chatter over you voice comm. , weapons sounds, enemies yelling "GRANADAS", etc. There is nothing new here nor will it disappoint. Control/Gameplay:
Immediately what I knew would be disappointing to most is, you no longer have the ability to command other soldiers and vehicles. But I have to honestly say for me this was a plus, mainly because I enjoyed Capt Mitchell's single player missions on the XBOX360 version more anyway. Sometimes if the AI isn't done right extra soldiers to command just get in the way anyway. Don't think that this means there aren't tactics involved to getting through this game. There definitely are opportunities to use tactics here, because of different ways to take out the enemy. I might also mention that enemies are pretty smart most of the time. Shoot at them and they will drop to a prone position, maybe even run for cover. You can call in the infamous hovering drone to drop bombs on enemies or laser tag a site for the naval artillery to drop some hot stuff on your target. Additionally if you don't position Capt Mitchell in the right place at the time with the appropriate weapon your mission will end abruptly and frustratingly. This brings me to my first big negative, which is the extremely frustrating ambush mission. I actually had to restart a whole level because of an ambush mission. I almost went through a whole level only to find out I had to equip a rocket launcher to ambush an oncoming convoy of trucks carrying troops. Here's why they gave me an ammo box at the beginning of the level but I opted not to grab the rocket launcher. You can only carry a limited amount of weapons and ammo on your person at one time. So several saves and checkpoints later I needed that rocket launcher to ambush the convoy. I became so frustrated, as I repeatedly tried to attack the convoy with my machine gun or multiple mistimed grenade throws, only to have those trucks keep right on rolling. Basically I would be sitting there watching the convoy roll away as my bullets bounce off, and grenades miss, with the game ending shortly thereafter. I was so upset I almost traded this game in, but because I am a pretty diehard fan of the series I decided to start back from the beginning and make sure I had the right equipment this time and I proceeded flawlessly. Good rule of thumb, always carry a weapon that can shoot grenades when available. My second big negative is the frustrating escort missions. If you have a very low patience level and get frustrated easily, please pack your UMD, Manual and case back up take to your nearest game store and trade it in. Let me explain... Capt Mitchell is sent on a mission to escort a truck through a well guarded enemy infested town. The truck you are escorting never stops moving, so you have to be sharp and take out key enemies first. So pay attention to what gets thrown at you and apply it the next time through, because you will restart the escort mission several times. Another thing I think die hard GRAW fans may really miss here is its lack of any type multiplayer, especially since the Ghost Recon series is pretty well known for its great multiplayer system. You can play in two player Co-Op but that is about it. Fortunately this doesn't have a very big impact on my review of the game since I am not a big fan of multiplayer anyway. Give me a good single player experience and I am pretty happy. Bottom Line:
Plainly put GRAW2 will give you about a 5 hour campaign and is actually pretty solid shooter as far as the PSP is concerned anyway. With familiar weapons like the SCAR assault rifle and the OICW (which can spit out everything but the kitchen sink), you can actually have some fun here. Unfortunately though don't go into this one expecting to get a console experience or you will be sorely disappointed. With that said I actually had a pretty good time, but I am also a diehard fan of the GRAW series and that is who I recommend purchase this game. For all others I would recommend you rent this one to see if you are patient enough to deal with some of the frustrations presented in this title.