Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter

Plot

In 2013, U.S. President Ballantine, Mexican President Ruiz-Peña, and the Canadian prime minister meet in Mexico City to sign the North American Joint Security Agreement (NAJSA). Ghost team leader Captain Scott Mitchell is deployed to recover Guardrail IX, an American communications disruptor stolen from a spy plane shot down in Nicaragua. A coup d'état occurs, militants attack the NAJSA conference and kill the Canadian prime minister, prompting General Joshua Keating to reroute Mitchell's team to extract Ballantine and Ruiz-Peña.

The Ghosts rescue them, defeat anti-air emplacements at Mexico City International Airport, and thwart an assassination attempt on Ruiz-Peña at the U.S. embassy. News reports reveal the coup is led by Aguila 7, a rogue special forces unit under General Ontiveros and his son Colonel Carlos Ontiveros. Ballantine and Ruiz-Peña authorize U.S. military intervention. Mitchell's team clears a route to Mexico City, defeats artillery and anti-air batteries, assaults Chapultepec Castle, and secures M1A2 Abrams tanks.

Aguila 7 kidnaps Ballantine, but the Ghosts rescue him, though the nuclear football is missing. Aguila 7 uses Guardrail IX to disrupt U.S. communications. Mitchell's team destroys most of Guardrail IX, supports a joint advance into Zocalo Plaza, and rescues Major General Martin. Keating and Ballantine learn Aguila 7 is using the nuclear football and Guardrail IX to hack NORAD and control American ICBMs.

Mitchell's team assaults Palacio Nacional, destroys the last Guardrail IX elements, and captures General Ontiveros, but Carlos flees with the nuclear football. The Ghosts pursue, kill Carlos, and recover the football. Barnes confirms a retired U.S. Army general who opposed NAJSA betrayed the U.S.

Reception

The Xbox 360 edition was shown in trailer form at E3 in May 2005. It was released on March 7, 2006 to multiple rave reviews, scoring 90.47% on GameRankings and 90 out of 100 on Metacritic. Electronic Gaming Monthly gave it an average 9.5 out of 10, praising its next-generation presentation and entertainment value. The game was noted for immersive atmosphere, smart but flawed AI, weapon variety, action scenes, and believable storyline, with the Xbox 360 version praised for realistic graphics.

GameTrailers gave it a 9.9 out of 10, calling it a landmark next-gen game. TeamXbox scored it 9.3 out of 10. Reviews for other platforms varied: PC version scored 80.07% and 80 out of 100; Xbox version 64.57% and 66 out of 100; PlayStation 2 version 50.67% and 44 out of 100. On October 5, 2006, it won two BAVGA awards: Best Technical Achievement and Best Game.

At the 10th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, it was nominated for Outstanding Achievement in Online Gameplay and Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design. The game sold over 1.6 million copies by March 2006, with the Xbox 360 version accounting for 800,000, making it the console's fastest-selling title. The Xbox 360 version sold 360,000 units in its first week. Sales rose by another 560,000 copies between April and June 2006, surpassing 2.4 million units by September. It sold 1.2 million in the United States, 8,903 in Japan, and 200,000 in the United Kingdom.