Full Review of Call of Duty® 2. Straight into the Heat of the Frontlines

Call of Duty 2 is an FPS war buff’s little piece of bliss. You never get tired of playing this game, and it picks up right where COD left off. New additions such as smoke grenades, an expanded landscape, and improved armor make this game quite superior to its predecessor.

Graphics: 4.5

The graphics on COD2 are not over the top but capture the war accurately. The combat is deadly, and you’ll always be pulsating like an adrenaline shot was just injected into you as enemies rain down on your position in different lands. FPS issues do occur, but this is taken care of by the fast-moving action and the constantly changing landscape. The WW2-inspired narration at the beginning of each new stage and the commentary also add to the war feel.

Gameplay: 4.5

Just like in the first campaign, you are fighting Axis forces from the perspectives of soldiers in various Allied factions, namely the US, Britain, and Russia. The Russian campaign comes first, with levels involving the defense of Moscow and recapturing enemy positions in Stalingrad. The British campaign is next in North Africa, where you play the role of Sergeant John Davis fighting against the German Africa Corps, with levels ranging from battles in El Alamein, El Dabaa, and missions in Tunisia. The final American campaign involves among other missions, a battle at Pointe du Hoc and the last at the Rhine River crossing.

Playing each mission unlocks subsequent levels. Weapons include anti-aircraft weapons, ballistic guns, tanks, armored vehicles, machine guns, and cannons. A grenade indicator integrated into this game lets you know where an explosion is about to come from. Smoke grenades are a particularly great addition and essential to escaping heavy combat. A compass will help ensure that you don’t get lost in the game.

Controls: 4.5

The controls are fluid, and it’s easy to shift between different weapons and advance even when the battle is getting really heavy. Playing with an Xbox controller makes the tough game easy as you can choose what controls suit you best. The health bar in COD has been replaced by a glowing red screen, which means one less thing to worry about when you are fixated on a fierce on-screen battle.

Replay Value: 5.0

The game has managed to break up a linear campaign by providing different mission objectives and also giving you perspectives of the same war from different sides and roles, thus allowing you to experience different locations and weapons. Unlike other free-roaming FPSs, you at least have a compass to guide you, making movement manageable. Setting up demolitions and riding in a tank was particularly exciting. Both offensive and defensive strategies keep this game fresh.

Conclusion

Though the WW2 FPS genre has been exhausted by now, COD2 set a precedent for many of these games with its exhilarating gameplay and realistic capture of the war scenes. The fast-paced action and the changing landscape from Russian to British and American soldiers gives great perspectives on the battle, whether fictional or not. The broken down objectives from different country standpoints make this game fun to play and educative.