After the highly acclaimed, award-winning, "the-best-game-ever" experience that was Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare many people were wondering what in the hell Activision were playing at when they decided to hand over the Call of Duty series back to Treyarch for development, who swiftly decided game ought to be taken back 60 years or so to the World War II era once again. This, to be brutally honest, caused absolute outrage amongst some of the more serious fans, which resulted in the anger of even the most casual Call of Duty 4 player. This was swiftly followed however by a statement from Activision, outlining that the next instalment in the Call of Duty would be carefully monitored and developed using the same engine used for Call of Duty 4, guaranteeing quality to all of the fans. This was followed by a long, long wait until November 11, 2008 when Call of Duty: World at War crashed onto our shelves.
-------- Story --------
The story of Call of Duty 5 is played largely from two character’s First Person view points. One such perspective is that of Dimitri of the Soviet Red Army and the other being that of Private Miller, a recruit of the American Marines. The story takes us on the winding path that led us to the finale of World War 2, which throughout is an involving, emotional experience, even if it has largely been seen before in the other Call of Duty games. World War 2, with all due respect has become a little bit boring and clichéd when featured in video games and for these reasons I would rate the story as being fairly average. Notable levels to look out for however, without giving too much away, are levels putting you in the position as a on-the-run sniper and later on as the gunner in a plane attacking a convoy of Japanese merchant
ships.
-------------- Gameplay -------------
The game uses the same engine that the famous Call of Duty 4 did, thus it handles in a very similar way, with all of the sluggishness that was often experienced in Call of Duty 1, 2 and 3 being eradicated. The campaign when played on Recruit and Normal difficulty is challenging at certain points, but a decent player would probably be able to blast through in 6-8 hours play. This is not to say that they would not have a great time doing so, as they would almost certainly. The real challenge and rewards lie in playing Veteran mode- the hardest, most challenging and infamous difficulty available amongst gamers. This game mode takes real planning, ingenuity and skill but moreover it really does force the player to put in a great deal of effort if he wants to stay alive for more than 20 seconds. This may not sound like many people’s cup of tea, yet it is a completely addictive experience, which despite hours (and hours) of play I’m still only about a 3rd of the way through.
The achievements of the game are very rewarding and serve as a good guide as to how far you have progressed through the game. They also take a lot of hard work, there are many achievement guides on the internet however this does not detract from the hard work you will have to put into unlock them, nor the kudos you will gain for having a high Gamerscore out of the possible 1000 points.
One fun thing that is involved within the gameplay is the “new” weapons that have been added to the engine. This gives us something new to play with, and a new challenge to master. Be sure to master the Thompson as well as some of the very rewarding bolt action rifles. However the absolute highlight has to be introducing the Japanese’s very dry forest to your very hot flamethrower, and showing them what-for.
The controls are as easy to master and precise as they ever have been in the Call of Duty series, and if you want something to relate having never played the Call of Duty series then you could perhaps compare them to that of Halo 3, or maybe the Orange Box.
---------------- Multiplayer ----------------
The multiplayer, if I’m going to be honest is the selling point of this game; it is completely and utterly addictive, challenging and rewarding no matter how you choose to play.
There are around 15 maps for the player to play on, with recent addition of one free (that’s right Xbox gave us something for free!) map. They are all extremely well designed, even if there are a few weaker links in the chain they are all very playable, and will each require a very different playing style, which is possibly why I dislike some of the larger maps. There has also been the reintroduction of vehicles into the multiplayer, this doesn’t unbalance the experience however it can be a huge nuisance when the whole of the enemy team have stolen all the tanks, even if you are suitably equipped to take them out.
Each player begins at Level 1 and has to work their way up to Level 65 in order to unlock all of the cool weapons and “Perks”. Perks are basically just special abilities that your character can use to increase their chance of killing things and surviving. Notable additions to the multiplayer from last time include a double barrelled shotgun, the flame thrower and some extra perks such as “Reconnaissance” which boosts the ability of the radar. A really, really cool point of the multiplayer is that if you get 7 kills in a row you get to call in some vicious dogs to do your dirty work (they’re the most infuriating thing ever when you’re on the opposite team though!). One of the great points of multiplayer are “Challenges” these serve as optional goals which aid your progression up the ranks with their completion, bring bounties of experience points your way. Challenges include getting so many kills with certain weapons, as well as some of the simpler challenges such as kill yourself by falling.
Once you’ve reached Level 65 you choose to repeat the process over and over again to let people see your new shiny badge that you get rewarded with, even if you do lose all of your weapons.
------------ Graphics ------------
The creators Treyarch have really captured a sense of power and destruction in their game visuals. There are scenes in burning buildings, trenches, fields and also an epic tank battle all of which are portrayed fantastically. The attention to detail is really great, there are some nice touches such as empty bottles, cracks in walls and broken furniture which gives the game a really good look, and despite the landscape being very grey and dark throughout some of the game it manages to keep you interested by the varying style of battles which occur in each different setting.
--------- Sound ---------
The sound of the game, whilst not being a main selling point for most people is of a very high quality. The game provides sound effects that make the player feel as if they are only part of a battle that takes part on a much larger scale even if there are only 20 or so NPCs on the screen at the time. The sound effects provided by the various different types of weapon are satisfying, and really do give the player a feeling of the dirty, war-torn essence of the game, even if it is simply just a few gunshots. One of the main highlights for me in the game was actually the absence of sound during the previously mentioned sniper level. It is, to say the least, a very tense piece of gaming which actually does have the player on edge throughout. Solitary gunshots occasionally fire leaving the player hoping that he or she won’t have to reload all the back to the previous checkpoint.
The music of the game has a similar feel to it as with all of the previous Call of Duty games, with sombre orchestra music at certain points as well as some faster paced compilations during some of the more fast paced battles. What I personally believe is very important though however is that music of a game blends into the gameplay and isn’t so obvious it distracts the player. Treyarch have captured this perfectly, and the music really adds to the fierce battles and the tension and many points all the way through the game.
--------------- Conclusion ---------------
This game did not disappoint the vast majority of fans, as it is quite simply a brilliant game. My advice to you would be buy it and just leave out the first three instalments of the Call of Duty series, as they are absolutely nothing compared to this game however you should make sure to pick up a copy of Call of Duty 4 as it is still this games superior. Sure we were all hoping for “Call of Duty 5: Future Warfare” but we got this instead- and you don’t see me complaining.
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Le nouveau Call of Duty débarque avec un nouveau moteur COD4 amélioré, un nouvel ennemi et ... more
de nouveaux environnements pour des missions encore plus intenses au coeur des combats !Affrontez un ennemi aux techniques de combats inédites : les soldats de l...
Postage & Packaging: free Super Saver Delivery Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
Le nouveau Call of Duty débarque avec un nouveau moteur COD4 amélioré, un nouvel ennemi et ... more
de nouveaux environnements pour des missions encore plus intenses au coeur des combats !Affrontez un ennemi aux techniques de combats inédites : les soldats de l...
Postage & Packaging: £1.94 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Advantages: Awesome graphics and sound, cool gameplay modes, zombies! Disadvantages: lacks development from COD4, multiple glitches and mutiplayer issues.
Advantages: Great single player campaign, nice graphics, decent online experience Disadvantages: Historically innacurate at times, animation a bit clunky, addition of vehicles
Advantages: flowing gameplay with a switch of character, good options in game modes Disadvantages: lacks in a real kick and challenge when on normal difficulty.
Advantages: Famaliar and fun gameplay with nice visuals and audio to boot Disadvantages: Doesn't bring too much new stuff and the people look like plastic
Mar 2nd, 2009
very helpful by (100%):
