It has had countless movies made about it, from Honeymoon in Vegas to Leaving Las Vegas, but rarely has a game been made about the city of sin if any at all. Sure enough, leave it up to Ubisoft and Tom Clancy to deliver a tactical shooter set amongst the glitz, the glamour, and the slot machines as Rainbow Six heads out to do what they do best – take down terrorists.

Immediately into the preview, you get a sense of how immersive the game will be, as it features a storytelling mechanic taken straight from Ghost Recon Advanced Warrior, as you start the game out flying in a helicopter, overlooking looking Vegas as it looks like some apocalypse has befallen the city, because though you notice all the famous landmarks, what isn't so famous are the rampant plumes of smoke rising into the air. What has happened to Vegas? After your ride gets to the casino still being built, you get word you have to save a reporter who got taken hostage during an interview with the terrorists, and so you slide down the rope (third person action here) and then when you land it is back to first person.

Rainbow Six: Vegas is very much a thought based game, as you can't go running in guns blazing and expect to emerge without a scratch. Instead, you must hop from cover to cover, analyzing the situation, the best place for entrance, etc. For example, as soon as you descend from the helicopter, you'll find yourself on a double platform. Now, you can take your team and head down, jumping from box to box, but you'll have a hard fight to fight by being on level ground. However, should you send your teammates on down while you stay up, you'll suddenly find yourself with a great observation point, giving you the high ground, and letting you angle some shots downward to hit enemies hiding behind boxes, while your squad takes out the guys on their level and in their direct sight.

And though worrying about your own butt might be difficult enough in a normal FPS, in Rainbow Six: Vegas you have to think about your squad as well. Thankfully, the mechanics you use to issue commands, and the ways that you do so, make it so that your team moves how you want and it is never tedious. If you want to have your team advance, simply point your vision to your destination of choice and click the A-button, then all you have to do is watch as they break for cover, watching each other's backs. If you get them too far ahead of you, regroup them by pressing down on the D-pad. You can also set the rules of engagement they must follow, such as full out assault or to only return fire when fired upon; of course you'll choose the rules based on what situation you are looking at.

You'll also control your team for door breaches, but in a way new to the series. Taking the snake cam from Splinter Cell, you'll move up to a door and peer underneath, analyzing everything you see. For more exact precision, you can choose to mark every enemy in the room, or at least the ones you want to take out. Once you've left the snake cam and gave the order, your team will pounce like lionesses and kill everyone you told them to focus their attention on. It is a pretty difficult maneuver to work properly the first time when you don't know what to do, but it becomes easier as you use the maneuver more and more.

One thing also new to the Rainbow Six franchise is the cover mode, which is easy to go in and out of by clicking the left trigger. By clicking the left trigger next to objects such as walls, pillars, and boxes, you'll be able to take safety behind them, to not just allow you to see what is around, but to also give cover fire. For example, if you find yourself hunkered down behind a low wall, your character will shove their weapon over the top and blindly spray gunfire. If you are close to the edge of a column, however, you'll be able to more accurately take aim at an enemy barely peeking around the corner.

With these two new mechanics in particular, the game manages to blend arcade action like a Halo with the strategy of the old Rainbow Six games; in other words, gaming nirvana. Combat as a whole is extremely exciting and tense, as you always worry if your next move is your last, and wondering just where the enemy will come from. The enemies aren't stupid either, as they'll hide behind cover a great deal, and react very well based on how you are performing. Each gunfight seemed like a more action oriented game of chess, as you had to be conscious of where you placed your team, when to pop out, and when to full on charge at the bad guys, hoping for the best possible outcome.

The game is also very cinematic, and not from a "cutscene heaven" Metal Gear type of way, but just the way in which the action unfolds as you move on. At one point, for example, you have to descend the side of a building, and you can military jump all the way down to your window where you see two terrorists talking. Now, from this point, you can pull out your weapon and shoot through the glass, hopefully hitting them, turn upside to shoot, or the more preferred (and very cool) method of jumping away and crashing through the glass, surprising your would be foe. Good times, good times. Another great moment comes from when after you save the reporter, only to find yourself in a closed off room with the lights being shut off. As you turn on your heat vision, you start to see bad guys flooding the room from every direction, and you must quickly work to deploy your guys and find some semblance of safety.

The game is also a beauty, as character models are really well done, but what succeeds the most are the environments and effects, such as the screen rumbling and the dirt being kicked up from a giant bell smashing to the ground. The bright flames of a fire and bullets whizzing by are also gorgeous to look at, even if they are trying to hurt you.

It isn't long now before Rainbow Six: Vegas hits stores, and frankly it can't come soon enough. If the small slathering of gameplay evident in the preview are any indicator, be prepared to take a tour of Sin City of the likes you've never seen before.