Favourite Video Games #10 - Commandos 2: Men of Courage

First on my list is this squad-based stealth game from Spanish developer Pyro Studios. Based heavily on the works of Alistair MacLean (specifically The Guns of Navarone), Men of Courage follows a team of eight British Commandos during the Second World War as they carry out numerous missions behind enemy lines: a hand-to-hand expert, a frogman, a sniper, a driver, an explosives expert, a spy, a thief, and a seductress.

You have to make use of the team's different skills in order to fulfil the different objectives while trying to avoid direct combat. One of my favourite characters is the spy, who has the ability to walk around unmolested if he's wearing a uniform. And if he's wearing an officer's uniform, he can order guards to look the other way while the rest of the team sneaks past. It's what I like best: there's not always a clear solution to fulfilling the mission goals, and there's a lot of trial and error.

If there's any issue with the game, it's the notorious difficulty curve - even on the tutorials. I recommend having multiple saves when you carry out a mission. Nonetheless, once you get used to it, there is a fun challenge factor which provides excellent replay value. I'll be using that term a lot during this countdown, but I'd make the argument that it's why these games are my favourites.

The game is available on Steam for a pittance, and I do recommend that you buy it. If you have a headset with a mic, there's even a co-op mode in which the different players control different commandos.