| ==GRAPHICS==
The graphics is some of the best you get to see on not
only a FPS game but any genre on the PS2. With some much going
on around you its pandemonium which bullets whizzing pass you
and hitting others all round you, dropping like flies. Big explosions
going off, ruins all around with rumble of the building everywhere,
that was probably once a quite little town. Everything seems to
be to a very good standard of detail from the worn out, dirty
and muddy soldiers to the planes that fly over very close with
its mini guns blazing away hitting the water making big splashed
as if there were small bombs along the dust it flicks up when
the bullets hit the ground.
==SOUND/MUSIC==
The sound is excellent which is what you want when it comes to
a war game as its part of the main atmosphere and makes the game
feel real. Bullets whiz pass hitting your men and other objects
gives you any panicking feeling as it feels so real then the grenades
and explosions go off all around you, coming closer as you trying
to get to cover. Explosions hit right near you, the sound suddenly
and blurs as you ears drums take damage from the loud bangs. The
sound then zips in as you hearing come back and you can now hear
the screams of injured solders and orders shouting at each other.
Throughout the whole game if it's the cut-scenes
or the actual gameplay the sound is amazing, even when a plane
fly's pass though you can't see it, you try to hit the ground
or find cover thinking that they maybe shoot or dropping bombs
on you. The voice acting is also brilliant with the leaders given
firm and positive orders to the rookies messing around and having
a laugh until all that changed when everything goes insane and
the chaos starts.
==CONTROLS==
The controls is the same as the last game and very much
like any other FPS game, where as R1 is to fire and R2 can be
used to hit enemies with the end of your gun if they get to close.
L2 is to throw your grenades and by holding it down will shorten
the timer. Its ease enough to change stances with circle button
lets you knee or lay down and triangle being to stand up and jump.
A cool thing you can do which not many games have but should do
as it's very simply is that by pressing left or right on the d-pad
lets you lean to the side which is great for taking shots when
behind cover.
==GAMEPLAY==
The gameplay follows "The Big Red One" squad,
being a member of them you will always have your men around you
and moving forwards fighting as a team. Each level is well designed
with great set pieces and action from the Omaha Beach level where
everything seems calm with you and your squad on a boat and a
load of others filling the waters. If I may add a guy puwking
up over the side from see sickness just adding to the realness
and atmosphere of the game when cannon fires starts firing from
the distance hitting the boats, one hits yours toughing you up
into the air. Next thing you know your sergeant is pulling you
onto the sand, waking you up and shout though you can't hear from
the deafness of the explosions.
Many great missions like the one above
follows that includes jungles, cities, attacking bases, taking
out AA Guns and even capturing them and using them to shoot down
there own places.
As before there are levels where you take
control of a tank and shoot your way though the levels, just like
the last CoD I did not find them great or as good as the on-foot
parts, although you only play parts of a level in a tank where
as before it was a whole level and there is less of it in the
Big Red One. A new cool level they add which is one of my favorites
is where you are in a bomber plane high up in the clouds, you
must move back and forth the plane to different machine turrets
to shoot the fighter planes that are shooting at you and also
the other convoy transports you are protects. You also get to
use bombs and a big huge battleship below you but the thing that
blow me away me was, no really it did was the when your bomber
takes damage the glass cracks and then breaks which lets in a
load of wind, the metal plates that makes up the plane breaks
off and fly's away. Once it taken a lot of damage and is on its
last legs or should I say wings, when walking from one end to
the other, all there is in the center is a narrow metal bar to
walk across. It's pretty scary as you can see clouds all around
you and all is really left is a ruin of metal some how still managing
to stay flying.
==REPLAY VALUE==
-Online-I feel that they have gone to steps forward but
also taken a step back. By which I mean the offline single player
has improved and is one of the best world war experiences but
where as the online mode was very good in the last series its
not so good now.
There are 11 maps to play on that are based
on the single player mode but are badly deigned, you have no designated
bases so when you spawn in, you can be very far away from the
action and can get loss sight of direction to go in.
The online modes have the 3 most commune modes which are Deathmatch,
Team Deathmatch and Capture the Flag, plus a new 4 mode called
Domination where you must capture as many different points in
the level and then defend them.
The only thing I think they have made an
effort in the online mode is that in each game you play the more
kills you do you will go up a rank. Once you gone up a rank you
will get extra weapons depend on which person you are which some
of them includes a rocket launcher, dual pistols, air strike,
medic-kit and satchel bombs plus one you go up the next rank you
will get extra ammo for all of your new items. Although it gives
you something extra to aim for, your rank does go back to rookie
after each game which I guess is easer for newbie's as this would
give other to much of an advantage.
As being a sequel I was disappointed that
they have not added any new features to online like chat rooms,
forums, friends list, clans and so on, there's not even a stats
screen to show you your data like kills or the total time played,
so as you can see it can be boring and is behind many other online
games.
-offline- The single player is excellent
as I said so there is so reply value there if you want to play
again but there are no secondly routes, so it be pretty much the
same. I played it on the middle difficulty out of the easy, normal
and hard, which I found a few parts hard and toke me one week
to complete the 13 level. All the unlockables you will get as
you progress but you will have them all ones completed, there's
only images of the concept drawings of all the weapons, vehicles
and levels. These are nice to look at but there could off been
better unlockables.
==BUY OR NOT TO BUY==
If you into your world war games of this time period
then the single player is amazing and there's not much that can
beat it but for the online play there's many better games to get
even if it's the previous game Finest Hour. What ever you going
to buy it for, aim for £10, but £15 at the most. |