There seems to be a lot of World War II games coming out, and while some of them aren’t worth your time, Call of Duty definitely is. Brought to us by Activision, Call of Duty is based on the American, British, and Russian armies as they fight German forces in Europe.

The game has a good length for its genre. To keep it from feeling too long, they split it up into campaigns that follow different soldiers from different countries. This allows you to see more battlefields, use more weapons, and experience a variety of events. While the first two campaigns are mediocre and offer nothing too new, the final campaign is amazing. It follows a Russian soldier as him and his comrades try to take back Red Square. The entire campaign is breathtaking and quite emotional.

Before each mission you are treated to a short briefing as it loads. Each campaign’s briefing is done differently depending on the country which is nice. These reading breaks usually offer more background on what you’re about to do, so reading them is beneficial. Also, there are a few video briefings featuring footage from World War II that are very interesting.

The nice thing about Call of Duty is the variety to the missions. You never feel like you’re doing the same thing over and over, and each mission is just the right length to where it doesn’t feel too long. Also, the missions flow really well together, so nothing ever seems out of place.

The controls are great. As with any other First Person action game on the PC you can set up the keys any way you wish, although the default settings are very well mapped out.

The graphics are some of the best I’ve seen in a First Person Shooter (FPS). Realistic models, lighting, and textures make up each level. The wonderful sound and graphics, along with the great script and AI, really make you feel as if you are there. Your AI teammates will go back for wounded allies, dive to the ground to avoid mortars, provide cover fire, and work together to open up a tank and drop a grenade into it. Aside from very little gore, Call of Duty is the most realistic World War II experience out there.  

The soundtrack and sound effects are wonderful. The constant gun fire and explosions make you feel as if you’re actually fighting in a war, and during emotional or epic moments the appropriate music will start up.

I sometimes had a problem with the weapons; a lot of times they seemed very inaccurate. Otherwise, the amount of damage they dealt was very realistic, depending on where they were shot. There’s even a level where you control a tank, and shooting buildings with the cannon puts holes in them. Grenades are useful as well, spraying shrapnel that do great damage within a certain radius of the blast.

Call of Duty offers traditional Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, and Capture the Flag game modes, but it brings two new ones to the table as well. Behind Enemy Lines and Search and Destroy are the new game modes that offer a unique way to play. In Search and Destroy one team protects an object that the other team needs to plant explosives on and destroy. Behind Enemy Lines takes a handful of Allied soldiers and puts them right in the middle of tones of Axis players. If an Axis player is able to kill an Allied soldier, he then spawns as an Allied soldier and the Allied soldier comes back as an Axis soldier. It’s a lot of fun since the Allies are greatly outnumbered. Call of Duty also has a feature called the Kill Cam. If you are killed in a multiplayer game, you will be able to watch the last few seconds of your life through your killer’s perspective.  

I didn’t think Call of Duty’s multiplayer was that great. The game’s engine seems to be built really well for the single player experience, but it just doesn’t feel right as a deathmatch game. Team Deathmatch and Behind Enemy Lines are really fun, but I would still rather play Medal of Honor or Battlefield 1942. It feels a little slow, and the weapons are extremely inaccurate unless you’re using a sniper rifle like everyone else.

Overall, Call of Duty is a game not to be missed. The single player missions are amazing, and if you don’t think so right away keep playing - the Russian campaign is like nothing you’ve ever played. Activision has even made it easy to mod, so we can expect multiplayer mods to lengthen the replay value in the future. If you have a PC capable of running Call of Duty, don’t miss out.

Gameplay: 9.3
The level of realism make the gun fights in this game pretty theatrical. The scripted moments only added to the realism as comrades help fallen friends or check ahead for danger only to get sniped. My only gripe is that weapons seemed pretty inaccurate, and the aiming animation made it harder to see than without it.

Graphics: 9.8 
This will vary depending on your PC setup, but on what I have (which isn’t much) it looks wonderful. Easily one of the best looking games of its genre, character model animations, and textures are very real - you can even see facial expressions on fellow soldiers. The environments are so well mapped and the level design is creative while still looking like the actual locations.

Sound: 9.0
I’m not sure what sniper rifles, machine guns, flak cannons, etc actually sound like, but I’m sure Call of Duty got them sounding pretty close to what they really sound like. Not only the sound effects and voice acting, but the music is also done very well.

Difficulty: Medium
There are four different difficulty settings that you can choose. The harder the difficulty, the more damage you receive and the less health packs are offered. Even on the easier two difficulties it’s easy to get yourself in a pickle, but overall it has its hard moments and its easy ones.

Concept: 6.0 
War games are coming out left and right these days, so they had to do something special to make Call of Duty stand out. Well, they did by offering epic battles and three different countries to play as.

Multiplayer: 8.0
Aside from the accuracy gripes, Call of Duty is an entertaining multiplayer game. The new game types are really fun, especially Behind Enemy Lines. The Kill Cam also offers something no other game has.

Overall: 9.4
Call of Duty offers an experience you can’t find anywhere else. During some of the battles it’s hard not to get emotional since some of the writing and voice acting is so well done. Plus with good graphics and sound, it all comes together as an epic battle not to be missed…and on time for the Holidays.