DriverHeaven.net: Call Of Duty 2

Introduction

Two years ago when Call of Duty was first released, the game stunned many with its unique approach to the FPS genre. Whether it was the ability to play through three of the major armies involved in the conflict, the dreadful atmosphere of war or simply the eye catching presentations that urged its players to understand the history of WWII, any gamer would be pleased with the title.

After an expansion pack was released, it was time for a sequel; a sequel with ideals to not only improve on nearly every single aspect of the game, but to also enhance small features that should in theory make the game a more enjoyable and realistic experience.

System Performance

With breathtaking visuals and effects being presented throughout the course of the game, many people wondered what kind of system would be required to get the best out of Call of Duty 2. The minimum system requirements of the game are:

• Pentium IV 1.4GHz or AMD Athlon XP 1700+ processor or higher
• 256MB RAM (512MB RAM recommended)
• 3d Hardware Accelerator Card Required – 100% DirectX 9.0C compatible 64MB

And the system that the game will be tested on:

• Pentium IV 3.0GHz (Northwood Core)
• 1GB Kingston V.R
• Sapphire ATI Radeon 9800PRO 128mb

I wasn’t expecting to encounter any major problems, but to my amazement, things did not go as well as I would have liked. First and foremost, the game had a slight tendency to randomly relinquish uneven frame rate drops. Although it did get quite annoying to have to tweak the game settings occasionally to get the ideal performance, the marvelous gameplay redeemed the game. Also, Call of Duty II is quite a bulky release. Packed with 6CDs, be ready to wait a good 10-15 minutes before getting the game up and running. Infinity Ward thought of this though and included calm, yet motivating music in the background while proceeding with installation, which invoked memories of those endless winter nights when the original Call of Duty was initially released.

Gameplay

Getting familiar with the game will be no problem for newcomers to the franchise. Call of Duty is the quintessential FPS title. The game composes itself with 11 major missions spread out across three campaigns that put you in the hands of the Russians, the Americans and the British. Occasionally, you’ll be granted the ability to control a vehicle such as a tank or even man a canon on the roof of an armored vehicle.

The game has clearly established several differences from its predecessor. First of all, you no longer have a health bar. Instead, you’ll be prompted to always keep cover during a firefight and to never unrealistically rush into dozens, if not hundreds, of Nazi soldiers. If you do not respect this, then the contour of your screen will gradually turn red until you finally get the “Take Cover” warning that will eventually lead to your death if you do not cooperate accordingly. Grenades are also more effective; whenever an enemy soldier throws one at you, an indicator will pop up on your screen pointing to the direction of the grenade. If you’re too close, then get ready to read one of the many quotes the game offers once you’ve died.

Another thing that has changed is the order of combat. Your first campaign will allow you to control the Russians, and after finishing two of its three major missions you’ll have unlocked the British campaign, and the American campaign will be unlocked shortly after. This is a great addition for those who would like to play the biggest advertised missions of the game (D-Day, for example) as quickly as possible.

The weapons in the game remain practically identical to the original Call of Duty. Smoke grenades are one of the highlights of this title, not only do they look incredible but they have a realistic effect on the computer AI, in some situations it is hard to progress without using them.

Where will you be fighting?

As the name of the war suggests, World War II was fought throughout many locations worldwide. When the most popular battles took place in Call of Duty & Call of Duty: United Offensive, many people wondered what Infinity Ward had in store for us now.

For the British campaign, you’ll be fighting in the North of Africa. Combating against the infamous Desert FOX, you’ll be making your journey all the way from Egypt to Tunisia. Throughout this campaign, aside from the usual mind-blowing facts the Call of Duty franchise has to offer, I thoroughly enjoyed driving a tank in the desert; another one of the many features Call of Duty II includes.

The Russians, on the other hand, delivered the least exciting campaign. With the ability to only play through the shivering battles of Stalingrad, I found the Russian campaign a tad dull. However, I’ll admit that the presentation to the journey you’re about to embark into is fabulous, especially when you are introduced to Mr. Commisarek.

After completing the Russian and British campaign, it’s now time to go take control of the real deal; The Yanks. The original Call of Duty put you with the 101st Airborne division on the night landings on the eve of D-Day. This time, you’ll be teamed up with the Rangers at Pointe du Hoc, Normandy, climbing the disastrous hills. What makes the US campaign so fun is the presence of teamwork. Throughout your first mission for instance, when you are given a task a bunch of friendly soldiers will accompany you, taunt the enemy, and make it feel like you’ve really made it in war.

A.I

Because of its appeal to arcade gamers, most people thought that Call of Duty II would lack realism. But after playing, you’ll notice the complete opposite. It seems that Infinity Ward worked hard on delivering some of the key facts of WWII, including fire fights. To this date, I had yet to see a game that would deliver solid and realistic fire fights, but Call of Duty II easily changed this. The strategy embraced by the makers of the game is relatively simple. Instead of only having 5-6 enemy soldiers when you run into a hot zone, you’ll have a large opposition to face. If you simply run into them and spray your Thompson you will surely be killed. Instead, it is now necessary to always establish cover, work with your teammates, and neutralize every single enemy. Even if a soldier appears to be seconds away from his death, sometimes they’ll be able to muster up enough strength to get a few final shots off with a pistol.

The computer A.I. is also significantly smarter now. They’ll no longer fire at you in the clear open, which makes the game slightly more difficult. Another characteristic gamers will need to work on is vigilance. For example, if you take out an MG42 from a long range and wait too long to actually clear the building, another soldier will actually man the machine gun and continue suppressing fire. I also didn’t noticed any A.I bugs, such as instances where enemies will make it seem as if they are taking cover behind random objects, but in reality they are in the clear open; something that was occasionally seen in Call of Duty I. Your teammates are also well trained, so they’ll never get in your way and they can even help you flank those pesky Nazis when necessary.

All in all, Call of Duty II’s A.I is a clear success. The only thing I would have liked would have been the ability to have control over your comrades. Your team does a good job on its own, but with games like Brothers in Arms offering control over your squad, the inability to give commands made certain points in the game much harder than they had to be.

Sound & Graphics

Visually, Call of Duty II contains many noticeable graphical features. The thing I enjoyed the most were the enhanced environments with new weathering effects. For instance, in the last British mission you’ll be fighting the Germans at night in the city of Caen while combating with the rain as well. Other great special effects, such explosions, flying bodies, and damaging tank shrapnel are all still as beautiful as ever. Don’t also forget the fearsome sound of diving RAF Spitfires getting ready to provide close air support.

Also, every one of your major missions will be introduced by real footage of the battle you are about to fight in provided by the Military Channel.

When it comes to sound, this might be Call of Duty’s strongest point compared to other First Person Shooters. Your friendly soldiers will develop a habit of taunting the enemy and screaming insults to show their rise of adrenaline. Gun and explosion sounds are also very realistic, some of the best I’ve seen in any game. You also have that distanced fire fight sound always playing, giving you a slight shiver of creepiness.

Conclusion

To conclude, I had a great time playing Call of Duty II. While some gamers may notice a bit of repetitiveness towards the final missions, Call of Duty II combines improvements from its predecessors with the intense combat scenes that we all fell in love with in order to deliver a truly rewarding WWII FPS experience.

Game play	18/20
Graphics	17/20
Sound	18/20
Value	19/20
Preference	19/20
Overall	91/100

Contacts: Reviewer: Rammy "Rammy" Eldaly
Editor/Designer: Allan "Zardon" Campbell

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