See GRAW's MULE of hard knocks

Thursday 14 December
As we reported in our exclusive preview of Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2, players will have access to a new ground-based support vehicle called MULE, and now we've captured the first shot of the rugged rover in action.

A multi-purpose armoured vehicle, players can take control of MULE and drive it around, safe in the knowledge that it's impervious to attacks from assault rifles. Its resilience also makes it an ideal place for the ghosts to take cover behind when trading spicy gun salsa with Mexican rebels.

The MULE's onboard camera relays images back to the new Cross Com 2.0 system, allowing players to view the environment and spot any lurking enemies in Full Control View mode, which displays data on the entire screen.

In addition, MULE is also used to lug equipment about, although the gear it carries in its belly on to the battlefield is predetermined and this function doesn't supersede the pick-up points that were used in the previous game.

Above: The MULE might be able to withstand rifle fire, but we doubt it'll survive a direct hit from a tank

The handy-for-every-occasion MULE can also be used for another, more deadly purpose, as the game's associate producer, Olivier Dauba, revealed to GamesRadar when we visited Ubisoft's Paris development studio recently:

"We are working on a new explosive pack that you can throw or drop on something and, during play tests, quite a few guys liked to drop their explosives on top of this vehicle and drive it around and detonate the explosives."

So, equipment donkey, recon vehicle, cover provider and makeshift bomb carrier - the MULE is the perfect Christmas gift for every discerning soldier of the future.