It may seem strange that I'm recommending a game even after rattling off such a laundry list of flaws. Spec Ops' story is its greatest strength, but even that is maddeningly flawed, bombastically unsubtle, ambiguous when it should be explicit, and often explicit when it should remain ambiguous.

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Furthermore, as a video game exploration of Heart of Darkness, Spec Ops pales in comparison with Ubisoft's Far Cry 2, just as I mentioned last week that I suspected it would. Far Cry 2 presented a much more sophisticated, satisfying take on similar subject matter, and it did so while being wicked fun to actually play, while the action in Spec Ops: The Line rarely moves beyond rote competence.

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And yet when the closing credits rolled, I found myself thinking, wondering, analyzing. I wanted to talk to people about it, I was engaged and invested. For that alone, Spec Ops: The Line is worthy of your time.