It takes a bold developer to follow in the footsteps of Apocalypse Now and base its work on Joseph Conrad's classic novella Heart of Darkness. Apparently that's not challenging enough for Spec Ops: The Line developer Yager, as a new trailer also eyes up media portrayals of violence--within a genre where the core actions are "crouch behind cover" and "shoot a face." You have to admire Yager's spunk.

Spec Ops: The Line sends players into a Dubai ruined by almighty sandstorms. You see, Delta Force member Captain Walker is on a mission to rescue US Army Colonel John Konrad and his infantry unit, who had stayed behind to protect civilians but went MIA. It's all gone a bit Heart of Darkness, you see.

Publisher 2K Games also revealed today that the PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3 game is slated for a spring 2012 launch.

"With all of its grandeur and opulence, Dubai provides the perfect backdrop to play out Spec Ops: The Line's deep and complex narrative. This bold endeavor harnesses 2K’s pedigree of creating fascinating stories, settings and worlds to create an aggressive narrative and environment that you won't find in other games on the market," 2K president Christoph Hartmann said in the announcement. "Wartime narratives evoke emotion like few things else in our culture."

Flashing a little of the intellectual underpinnings in marketing certainly didn't harm 2K's BioShock, and Spec Ops: The Line does at least have top-notch source material. Come spring, we'll see whether it actually backs that posturing up in-game.