Call of Duty

Sam ponders the merits of this MoH sequel (in all but name).

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This is the most enjoyable pure shooter available for the PC right now. If you like extremely well designed, very well programmed and supremely entertaining shooters then go and buy yourself a copy of this right away. Go on, you know where the shops are. Put thirty quid in your wallet and pay them a visit.

Still here? Then you must be curious as to why I make this bold claim. Well I'll break it down for you.

Programmed by Infinity Ward, a new team formed up form the majority of 2015, coders of Medal of Honour: Allied Assault, Call of Duty is the sequel to that game in all but name. Once again reprising the role of a soldier on the side of right in World War II Call of Duty will take the player on an exciting blast through some of the major battles and lesser known incidents all the while presenting you with the most visceral, cinematic representation of combat yet committed to silicon.

Opening up the front by giving you progressive control over first American, then British and finally Russian troops you will fight in the frozen mountains of Norway, the broccage of Normandy and the killing fields beside the Volga while taking in a few of the other locations where conflict raged over those dark years. It makes a pleasant change to have access to a side of the story that is not purely American, although I am waiting for Canadians, Aussies, Indians and other allied countries to clamour for fair representation in the next WWII game. The changes are not just cosmetic either. Weapons, tactics and voices will change according to the flag you are fighting under. For example the Brits go around in smaller, clandestine forces wielding the stubby Sten gun while the Russians mount massive assaults with sheer weight of numbers as their primary factor. This is a nice touch and indicative of the level of thought and planning that has gone into CoD as a whole.

Control of your trooper is very satisfying as minor obstacles are surmounted with ease and the lean controls give you a good chance of scouting round corners without greeting instant death between the eyeballs. There are three stances which can be toggled and while standing straight is the fastest way to make a dash you present a nice big target for enemy marksman, a foe blessed with the skill to punish any reckless posturing and foolish exposure on your part. Most of the time you will be dashing around in a low crouch only to fling yourself to the ground as the unmistakable mechanical farting of an MG42 opens up. On the harder difficulty levels you will really need to make the best use of the stances and the desperation of an instant belly flop or the terror of making a bold sprint across a debris ridden street is conveyed all too well. This is such a good game that the controls in themselves do a great job of drawing the player into the game.

While you will often be accompanied by other soldiers on your mission you have a very limited control over their actions. Basically you can order them to guard you or leave them to press ahead as they see fit. They will lay down covering fire so you can sprint across a gap, fall back when under heavy fire, and call out when in difficulty, generally looking after themselves so well that you feel confident in their abilities. This keeps things nice and simple and while there is the occasional sticky situation where some additional command control would have been nice the AI that your buddies exhibit is convincing in the extreme.