CALL OF DUTY
This will be part of a series of reviews concerning video games, video game consoles, movies and TV shows. Try to imagine me as a kinder, gentler version of the Angry Video Game Nerd -with apologies to James Rolfe.
When the movie Saving Private Ryan hit the big screen in 1998, it paved the way for First Person Shooter games for the Playstation and Playstation 2 consoles. Electronic Arts came out with Medal of Honor franchise, which in turn was a blueprint for other video games to follow. Among the video games was Call of Duty: Their Finest Hour from Activision for the Playstation 2. What set this video game apart from Medal of Honor is it does not involve covert, behind enemy lines action, but direct involvement in a combat zone just like regular soldiers.
This game is seen though the eyes of Russian, British, and American soldiers fighting the Germans. The Russian segment of the game takes place in the battle of Stalingrad. Your first level finds you aboard a boat full of Russian conscripts that are heading towards Stalingrad. At the head of the boat is the Russian political officer that is giving a stern pep rally talk about why they -and you- should give your lives to Mother Russia and so on. He would shoot two of the conscripts that would try to desert. Upon making it to the dock, there is a shortage of rifles. The other political officers have given you some ammunition and a have instructed you that if you see a fellow soldier with a rifle get killed, you grab that rifle and fight. Along the way, you dodge bullets and artillery barrages and finally take on the Germans. All around you is total mayhem. This level was actually based on the movie Enemy at the Gates. You also get to snipe at the Germans, just like in the movie.
The British segment takes part in North Africa and is inspired by such movies as Raid on Rommel and Play Dirty. The American segment takes place in Germany. In the last three levels, you play a platoon leader that leads his troops on the assault on the town of Remagan and the bridge across the Rhine. This was obviously inspired by the movie The Bridge at Remagan. You actually fight your way across that bridge, just like in the movie starring George Segal and Ben Gazzara. The video game would soon be followed by Call of Duty: The Big Red One.
Call of Duty: The Big Red One chronicled the battles fought by the 1st Infantry Division from North Africa to Germany. From there, Call of Duty would become something of a franchise with more video games being developed for not only the Playstation 2, but also X-Box 360 and Playstation 3. Activision will apparently not rest on their laurels -yet.
Following Call of Duty: The Big Red One, there was Call of Duty 3 for the Playstation 2 and X-Box 360. This video game takes place in France between D-Day and the liberation of Paris. The war is seen through the eyes of American, British, Free-Polish, and Canadian soldiers. The battle scenes in this video game were so intense; it was enough to leave someone with a bad case of shell-shock. I actually felt ragged, after going through a firefight with the Germans. It was like going through Hell -literally. This is the way First-Person Shooter video games should be. Video game buffs will no longer be content with just watching war movies, they just have to be a part of the action -even if it’s make believe. There is a Walter Mitty complex in all of us.
Following Call of Duty 3, more sequels followed and would be made available for the Playstation 3 and X-Box 360. There are no plans for Activision to rest on its laurels.
Sample video game clips:
http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=D5050B7C40F6196E
Sample video game clips:
http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=BD55605331A3908C
Sample video game clips:
http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=A556E6FA6A3B8248&search_query=call+of+duty+3+ps2+gameplay
