Conflict Desert Storm II: Back To Baghdad is a third person Tactical Shooter game developed by Pivotal Games and published by Gotham Games for North American countries, SCi Games for European countries and by Capcom for Japan and Asian countries as the second game of the Conflict Series. The game served as the sequel of Conflict: Desert Storm. It was available for the Microsoft Xbox, Nintendo Gamecube, Sony Playstation 2 and Windows. The game was released in September 2003 (October 2003 for North American release) for all systems except for the Gamecube, which had a January 2004 release, while North American gamers received it on February 2004.
The game takes place during The Gulf War, like the first game. This time, it does center on military operations set throughout Kuwait and parts of Iraq under Operation Desert Storm. Bradley, Foley, Conners and Jones come back to the game, but operate under the Alpha-One callsign.
The next game in the series is (chronologically) a prequel, Conflict: Vietnam.
The game provides examples of the following tropes:
- America Saves the Day: While you have the option to play as Delta Force, the British SAS is available as an option. Also in the context of the actual Gulf War, multiple countries heeded the UN's call to help liberate Kuwait from Iraqi occupation.
- Been There, Shaped History: Alpha-One has participated in many special forces missions that eventually led to the liberation of Kuwait.
- Big Damn Heroes: Alpha-One gets called in to assist a Delta Force unit known as Delta-Two during a rescue op in Al-Hadar.
- Blatant Lies: After Alpha-One get captured in front of the very Iraqi base they just destroyed resulting in the deaths of over 50 Iraqi soldiers, Bradley has the audacity to tell the Iraqi interrogators that they were a search-and-rescue team.
- When asked about the laptop which clearly shows they were Special Forces, Delta Force Bradley replies that he "won it in a card game." while SAS Bradley says "Dunno, just got lucky." when questioned why he has it, The Iraqis aren't having it either way.
- Boom, Headshot!: Killing enemies by shooting them in the head is a guaranteed move to use.
- Bottomless Magazines: Averted. You need to reload your weapons if they run out of ammo.
- Death from Above: Like the first game, you can have the option of using airstrikes to give the team an advantage.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: Alpha-One is able to secure Kuwait City and live to tell the tale.
- Elites Are More Glamorous: The player can choose either to play as Delta Force or British SAS commandos. Both forces have actually participated in said conflict. Unlike the previous game, where the team is known as Alpha-Two, the team operates again under the callsign Alpha-One.
- Foregone Conclusion: Since the game is based on what happened in Operation: Desert Storm, the Coalition would eventually kick the Iraqis out of Kuwait.
- Market-Based Title: The game is known in Japan and Asia as Conflict Delta II: Wangan Sensou 1991 (コンフリクト・デルタII 湾岸戦争 1991), which means Conflict Delta II: The 1991 Gulf War.
- Meaningful Name: The game's titles in English and Japanese should already give you an idea on the story's setting.
- In Europe, it's known as Conflict: Desert Storm II.
- Never Trust a Trailer: One trailer for the game (which also plays if you idle in the main menu long enough) shows a cutscene of an Iraqi military officer (evidenced by being surrounded by Iraqi soldiers at a table and wears neither an American or British uniform) whose face is covered by the shadow of a ceiling fan, indicating he was going to be a major antagonist. In the final game, the cutscene is absent, and there is zero reference to him.
- Non-Standard Game Over: In the 7th mission "Chemical Warfare", the game warns you not to shoot the sarin gas tanks to prevent a leaknote . However, if you go out of your way to shoot them, you will watch as your team slowly suffocates and dies to the gas. And if there are Iraqi soldiers nearby, they will suffocate as well.
- Oh, Crap!: Alpha-One is tasked to take down two Superguns inside Kuwait City in order to slow the advance of Coalition forces.
- Salt the Earth: Iraqi forces were ordered to set Kuwaiti oil fields ablaze just to give Coalition forces a hard time in establishing a foothold. This has actually happened.
