I am Jimmy, and I am a Playstation guy! :D I have always been a Playstation fan and always will. None of that Microsoft crap... We all know that Playstation is the superior console right. Yep, yep.....yep. Thought so! Now that is out the way I just thought I would say that I play a variety of different games but mainly the shooting and adventure games (Uncharted, Unreal Tournament, Ratchet and Clank, Monkey Island, Grim Fandango and Metal Gear Solid). I love my retro games and I like to play them now and then and swim in a nice pool of nostalgia :P Yum! Also, I one day hope to own a copy of Tombi! A great game it has to be said :) All of my blog posts and reviews will be in green, now for my first review, enjoy!
Medal Of Honor: A game from the past? I think not!
That’s right, the original war time first person shooter is back but with the shift from the world wars of old to the modern battlefield of Afghanistan. This game has been hyped for the past year and people have gone as far to say that it’s a potential COD killer. But does it deliver?
For the most part, yes. The single player campaign is exciting though a bit stale but is very enjoyable nevertheless (besides, when was the last revolutionary FPS?). The graphics look great as it uses a modified version of the Unreal Engine 3 which we all know and love. However, this engine brings with it odd graphical issues like bits of pop-in and rendering issues, and I have encountered various frame-rate issues. Luckily there aren’t any game breaking glitches such as freezing or getting caught in the environment (unlike a certain *cough cough* Fallout 3 *cough cough*).
Each mission is varied and includes something new to keep you entertained rather than having repetitive levels of shooting the same enemies in various dusty locations. Some missions are stealthy which require you to think before shooting, some are vehicle based which brings a breath of fresh air to the game no matter how simple they are, and some missions are all out guns-blazing, shooting the shit out of the enemy for the 30 or so minutes it takes you to complete each mission. The story in the game is almost nonexistent, it is pretty much a “killing terrorists because its your job” kind of plot so if you are after a big complex plot with plenty of twists, you won’t be happy. At least EA attempted to make a plot as they have thrown in some pretty cutscenes, however these aren’t to be much cared about as they aren’t very interesting and are mainly talking between two boss men. BORING! However (and don’t call me a pussy for this), I did find the ending of the story to be very emotional, especially when it talks about the actual soldiers that are fighting for us day after day.
I only have a few problems with the single player campaign with my first being that it is all too easy. I managed to complete the game on hard on my first play through and only died a few times. I was after a challenge and all I got was a walk through the park. Secondly, the story mode is far too short. I managed to complete it in just over 4 hours. Though, I did enjoy those 4 hours of my life and I will replay the story I few more times. Lastly, the enemy AI is patchy. Sometimes it offers a small challenge but for the most part it is bad and just won’t know that you are there despite you firing off a couple of bullets behind an enemy’s head.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the campaign despite its short comings. It was exciting for me and incorporated enough variety and set pieces to keep me on the edge of my seat, especially one certain mission that involved a huge ambush on your small group of troops. I feel as though it has a fair bit of replay value though I don’t think a second playthrough would give me the same amount of excitement. All in all, it was fun singleplayer experience!
Now onto the multiplayer, the same multiplayer that has been said to kick CODs ass. Is it really that good? Well the answer is...yes! After all, COD is a skid mark on the shreddies of online FPS games.
First off, this game is NOT revolutionary neither does it include a unique feature for online gaming that will make it stand out from the rest. So now that we have got that put out there, let’s have a look at the multiplayer. The first thing that is noticeable is that it is near identical to Battlefield Bad Company 2 (which is understandable due to the fact that DICE have developed it). While I was never a battlefield fan, I have enjoyed MOH multiplayer. I don’t know what it is about it, but it’s just a bloody good game. The graphics are great as the multiplayer utilises the Frostbite engine (found in the Battlefield: Bad Company games). Everything looks realistic which is a great feel to have as the game makes you feel as though you are in the middle of a battlefield. Guns look great as do character models so the multiplayer aspect ticks all boxes for presentation.
There are 4 game modes online: Team Assault – basic team deathmatch, Sector Control – controlling various places within the map to gain points, Combat Mission – carrying out various objectives against the enemy, Objective Raid – where two objectives have to be defended/attacked depending on your team. As well as these, there is an alternative mode called Hardcore which gives the player certain game modes to play but with added realism (no HUD, crosshairs etc.). All these game modes are fun and I don’t have complaints with any of them.
Upon spawning in a match, you are given the option to play as a ‘Rifleman’, ‘Special Ops’ or ‘Sniper’. Each class has its own set of weapons and so your choice of class all depends on your playing strengths. There is the ability to customise each class so you can change weapons as well as add-ons to your guns in order to create your perfect weapon choices. However, these weapons and add-ons have to be unlocked through levelling up within each class. The more XP you get in a match as that class, the more you level up so there is a point in the levelling up system. XP is gained from doing various actions during a match such as killing an enemy, controlling a sector, getting a headshot etc. so there is never a problem getting XP (unless you awful at playing the game). When earning XP in matches, your support action score goes up too. The more score you get, the more killstreaks you unlock to help you and your team win the match. You always have a choice of two killstreaks so it all depends on your personal choice. Killstreaks range from mortor strikes, to UAV’s to Rockets. Killstreaks get better the more action score you get so if you have a long killstreak, you will be greatly rewarded.
The level design is excellent in this game. Each map is fresh and new and offers various playing tactics and styles to suit each one. There is never really any camping spots as there is always a way to reach the camper which is very good news (unless you are a dirty camper >_> ). There is a clear difference between each map and no samey environments that look like they have been copied and pasted.
Like with the singleplayer, I have a few problems. Spawn trapping is a big problem. This can happen all too often and it really pisses you off if you are part of the team who are getting blown to shit the second you spawn. Though if you are on the team who are blowing the team to shit, it’s very good and gives easy XP. But alas, nobody likes a cheater. Hopefully this will be sorted in the near future via an update. Another problem is that I would have liked a few extra game modes to add more longevity to the multiplayer. While I don’t think I will be affected much by the lack of game modes, it would just be nice to have a wider variety of matches to spice up my gaming session. My other problem is that there is usually a delay when being killed. You might be getting shot and then you run away thinking you’re out of the clear only to find out that you were killed before you became safe. This annoys!
Though I do have these problems, they are only minor and don’t stop the multiplayer from being fantastic and fun every time you play. I haven’t been able to put it down once I have started playing and I can definitely see myself playing this a lot over the coming months.
Medal of Honor certainly gives the series the boost it so desperately needed and I really hope that a sequel comes along in the not so distant future, though I do believe that one is on the cards gathering from the ending of the singleplayer. I am excited to see what a sequel will bring and I am hoping that it will improve on the odd niggles that I have with it.
I give this game 8.5/10
gonna follow you bro.
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