Call of Duty

Not as superior as the Medal of Honor series but still an excellent game!

The most original thing about "Call of Duty" is the story. The story gives you the feeling you're watching a movie were you are in control of. The levels aren't just levels were you have to go from point A to B and shoot everything and everyone on your way. The levels are scenario's in which there is always something going on and surprises wait around every corner. The levels are filled with great many moments and surprises in which you have to fight for your live and that of your buddies. It really gives you a movie feeling, it's no wonder once you know that the story was written by professional movie writer Michael Schiffer who also wrote the screenplay for "Crimson Tide", "The Peacemaker" and the recent movie "The Four Feathers".

The amazing soundtrack by the excellent Michael Giacchino also add to the movie feeling of the game. The music is written like it's made for a movie scene instead of for a game level. Some tracks even surpass the music Giacchino did for the Medal of Honor games. The music is not spectacular or exciting (like he did for the Medal of Honor games) but emotional instead, which is probably one of the reasons why it gives the game an extra movie like feeling. The music for when you have to hold the Pegasus bridge until reinforcements arrive and the music when you storm the Reichstag in Berlin especially stand out. Giacchino isn't called the new John Williams for no reason.

The levels like I said before are excellent. There is a high variety of levels in which you don't only play as Americans but also as British and Russian soldiers. Some of the levels uses elements and moments from the HBO mini-series "Band of Brothers" and especially from the movie "Enemy at the Gates".

And then the sound. My God the sound! The game has probably the best sound I ever heard done for a game. It really gives you the feeling like you are in the middle of WW II and need to dodge bullets and mortars all the time.

The gameplay however isn't that good, especially not once you're used to games like Medal of Honor. And the fact that you can only carry 2 weapons at the time (+ pistol and grenades) surly adds to the realism of the game but not to the fun of it.

It's not a game you quickly play over and over again once you have finished but luckily the multiplayer option gives the game an high play-ability level. The maps are fun and you can choose between many play options such as SD (search and destroy) and DM (death match) or the original BEL (behind enemy lines) option.

I even liked the game better once I found out that Giovanni Ribisi and Earl Boen were part of the voice cast. I'm eagerly awaiting the first add-ons!

9/10

http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

If you played Return To Castle Wolfenstein and all the way through Medal Of Honor and occasionally wished there were a few good men to give you fire support, this game is the answer. After playing the two games mentioned above I was really bored of the "average-shooter-concept": -one against all super evil stupid enemies-. Suddenly there was CoD and amazed me not only with fresh graphics, great facial animations and lip sync, as well as a quite clever AI; it finally brought in something the 1st person shooter genre had been missing for so long - AI comrades for your support. That's what makes CoD so special, and as the tagline promises, you're never alone. But unlike one might believe on first hearing this, friendly AI isn't stupid cannon fodder. They take and give cover, flank and even secure corners around which the enemy might be lurking. Of course they're no replacement for real human players in a multiplayer deathmatch, but for the single player experience, they're the best by far and they're with you all the way through the game (not like in MoH, where you get that mincemeat in uniform to support you ;-)) The storyline is based on historical battles, the tension while playing never gets too stressy (though sometimes hectic), never giving you the impression the developers overshot their aim. For the ego-driven "lone wolf" "rush-rush" players, games like MoH & RTCW might be first choice, while the more cautious "tookmethreehourstokilloneguy" players might choose Brothers In Arms (I call it the "lame" version of CoD/UO/CoD2 ;-))), or something like Splinter Cell, Call Of Duty stands right in the middle, giving you the best of both worlds, and this also applies for the expansion pack "United Offensive" and Call Of Duty 2.

If you love world war II movies, you will love this game. It's like being part of the best world war II movies I've seen... everything is absolutely stunning in terms of presentation, and you can knock your house down with the rumblings of gunfire if you have a decent set of speakers on your computer- I've seen high budget movies that don't capture the chilling snarl of gunfire in the same manner.

The voice acting is excellent... yes, that IS Jason Statham of "The Transporter" and "The Italian Job"! Everything is put together in a manner deserving of a high-budget movie. The charge on Stalingrad in tha later parts of the game seems eerily familiar if you've seen "Enemy at the Gates"... only, this is better because *you're* part of the action!

They really went all out on this game, and it shows. Highly recommended!

I must say,this game really captivated me.and not just for the shooting part but from the fact that it has copied some fantastic movies like "Saving Private Ryan" and "Enemy at the Gates" and by doing this ,it has made me very happy,finally a game from the movie not the other way around.and the sound...ahhh the sound..keep your head down,'cause i kept mine ..:))).Very good game indeed,the guns are accurate,the faces are nice,even the AI is pretty good.like..they are thinking:"let's kill the sniper first" and that's good game-play. The bad part is that is very short game..almost 9 hours of continuous play and that's it. A good solid performance by the actors giving voice to characters too. Let's hope there will be some more games like this!

Call of duty takes first person WWII games to the next level. If you like Medal of Honor: Allied Assault, then you will appreciate this game even more. COD was made by Infinity Ward (the original MOHAA team.) That's were many see the similarities. The textures, maps and character models are well done. For example character models in the game have different faces, unlike MOHAA where the clone element is apparent. (for the exception of hair color). You get a sense you are a part of the game. The stories are a lot more realistic then MOHAA. Most of the missions you participate in are actual events that took place in WWII. Yes, MOHAA had Omaha beach, COD has Brecourt manor, Red square, Pegasus Bridge, The Russian advance on the Reichstag and if it's not famous battles its locations such as Eden dam or the legendary Nazi battleship Tirpitz.

Any WWII buff can appreciate the authenticity that Infinity Ward tried to bring to the game. The controls are a lot better considering you have 3 prone positions to choose from, unlike MOHAA which only has two, stand and kneel. Not to mention on your weapons you can aim and look down the barrel which provides some zoom and a more accurate shot. Its not just the authenticity of the maps, the AI in the game is far more intelligent then MOHAA. For example your enemy will try to take cover from avoid being shot. But the AI is much more appreciated in your team mates, which is very rare in the game to fight alone. Your team mates will stay with you and will not advance to far from your position and do put up a good fight. This is a much more realistic approach, compared to the lone wolf and I will even go as far as saying Rambo style that MOHAA portrays. I also enjoyed playing through the eyes of American, British, and Russian soldier. I would say that was a great move on Infinity wards part, an advantage of MOHAA. Cause I know gamers who are playing MOHAA in Europe are probably disappointed that they have to play as American servicemen and not as there own servicemen. Now I love MOHAA guys, but the series has fallen short in the last couple of expansions, Spearhead was great. But its time to make room for a new series and give it the credit it deserves. Call of duty gives the graphics, realism and replay value that MOHAA didn't have.