Call of Duty 3

In the first-person shooter genre, World War II is a subject we have covered frequently on the Xbox whether we’re storming the beaches of Normandy in the Medal of Honor games or kicking the Germans out of quaint French villages in the Brothers in Arms games. No matter how many times we’ve come face-to-face with Hitler’s loyal forces, gamers still enjoy participating in the war effort and even more so if the game offers new ideas. Call of Duty 3 takes us back to the frontlines but before you roll your eyes at the thought of picking up the controller for yet another WWII shooter, this third outing is actually a tour of duty you’ll want to take.

Last year’s Call Of Duty: The Big Red One was another surprisingly enjoyable first-shooter for the original that just as easily gave the next-generation Call of Duty 2 a run for its money (and at a cheaper price tag, it was money well spent). This third chapter concentrates on the Normandy Breakout as soldiers from different countries and divisions push back the German forces from France. We are actually given a glimpse of the war through the eyes of the American and British forces as well as the Canadians and - a video game first - the Polish. The game is told in a series of chapters that take the Allied side from St. Lo to a crucial location that secured a very important victory in the war effort as well as leading to the liberation of France.

The game begins with the American side and having already stormed the beaches of Normandy and secured the surrounding area, you quickly find yourself traveling into dangerous territory where the Germans attempt to fight back American troops attempting to secure St. Lo. Like most Call of Duty games, the fighting is fierce and you are thrust into battle with the equipment issued to you but you can also grab weapons left behind by fallen enemies. Once again, historical accuracy means these weapons fire they way they did during the war.

The game also quickly introduces a new gameplay feature that comes in the form of close-quarter combat. Occasionally an enemy would spring out and attack you with a knife or would attempt to strangle you with his rifle as you grapple with him. It is here that the game will prompt you to push the right and left triggers in time with the flashing trigger icons on the screen. I’ll admit, it’s jarring the first two times it happens and it does take you by surprise but you’ll start wishing there was more to this frantic struggle than just knocking out your enemy. At one point in the game one struggle does end in a satisfyingly dramatic way but wouldn’t it have been more exciting (and more realistic) if one such struggle resulted in the other being stabbed or strangled to death? Yes, it’s brutal but these are the kinds of things that happened during war.

Call of Duty 3 does manage to sneak in a number of great elements that keep the game pretty fresh. Early in the game, you get to ride on the back of a tank and use your binoculars to locate enemy gun nests for the tank to destroy. You’ll even get to drive a jeep and later on even a tank. It’s also great to see some variety to things like placing C4 on a Flak gun (buttons pop up and you have to press them on time) or using mortar (you have to turn the analog stick to mimic rotating the wheel to position the mortar. Aside from these cool little distractions, the shooting elements come together nicely and there’s hardly a moment where you’re wandering around with nothing to do.

Even the game’s controls are handled right and there’s hardly a moment where the framerate dips enough to interrupt the flow of intense action. The level design is also pretty sharp and there are a nice number of objectives to complete for each campaign. For example, one mission you take as the British side has you driving from mansion to mansion freeing members of the French resistance while another has you defending a hill as you wait for reinforcements to arrive. Unfortunately, the game does suffer from just a few annoyances. Oftentimes it will feel like your squad won’t lift a finger to help you and thus making you feel like a one-man army. Then there’s the times when grenades you throw (whether it’s your own or the ones you return after an enemy tossed it) simply vanish without a trace. It’s a good thing these things don’t pop up very often but their presence is certainly felt.

There is also online as well as System Link support for when you want to play a huge multiplayer battle against a total of 16 players. Online is where the action really shines and it’s great to find some fun game modes and a good number of playable maps. I’ve discovered some lag but it’s nothing that cripples the game in any way and believe me when I say that this is the mode that will have you playing this game for a long time to come.

Call of Duty 3 is also an amazing-looking Xbox game that delivers some sharp visuals that do a great job of mimicking the Xbox 360 version. There are moments when the character models share the same shiny cloth in their uniforms and detailed facial expressions during the cutscenes as well as during the action. There does seem to be more clipping problems here and the smoke effects, while still pretty good, just pale in comparison to the 360 version. Still, when all is said and done, the graphics are still just as impressive on the original Xbox.

The sound is also a major achievement mainly because there are some magnificent detailed sound effects mixed in with one beautiful score that plays throughout the game. You’ll want to play this game with a great sound system because the explosions, gunfire and soldiers crying out feel straight out of a movie. Speaking of the cinema, the score belongs in a movie and it wonderfully blends in with the action and the cutscenes perfectly. Even the voice acting is good so there’s very little to complain about in this department.

Call of Duty 3 for the Xbox deserves a place in your gaming library if you loved the previous Call of Duty games or if you like your WWII first-person shooters with plenty of bullets and extraordinary battles that make you feel like you‘re truly behind enemy lines. With an outstanding multiplayer mode, great graphics and a single-player campaign mode that is actually lots of fun to play, Call of Duty 3 is a game you might not want to miss.

Gameplay: 8.6
Seeing the war through the eyes of different soldiers from different countries gives this game a unique perspective much like Call of Duty 2. There are vehicles to drive and the missions are actually pretty fun thanks to intense action. The close-quarter combat feature is a great idea on paper but it’s implemented poorly here.

Graphics: 8.5
The game looks excellent on the Xbox and while it does lack the Xbox 360’s overall visual presentation, this game still manages to pull off some spectacular effects, great character models and detailed environments.

Sound: 9.5
As far as soundtracks are concerned, Call of Duty 3 possesses one of the most cinematic and beautifully composed scores that make the game such a treat to listen to as well. There’s also some pretty decent voice acting and the sound effects deserve to be heard through a good sound system.

Difficulty: Medium
The enemy forces can certainly put up quite a resistance and many of them are smart enough to take cover when your squad is taking shots at them. They can also throw a mean grenade you way so you’ll often have to quickly find cover in this game.

Concept: 9.0
This third game in the series isn’t low on massive battles that are not only jarring but filled with moments that will leave you wanting more. It’s interesting to get a different perspective of the war and it’s great to see the Scots in action in a video game. There’s also a great online multiplayer mode that will surely be a fan favorite.

Multiplayer: 9.0
The Xbox version’s online multiplayer mode certainly isn’t as smooth as the Xbox 360 version but then again it isn’t entirely bad either. In fact, gamers will be spending a good deal of time with this game thanks to the 16-player game modes like Headquarters. There’s no split-screen so you’ll have to be content with Xbox Live play or System Link.

Overall: 8.9
While not as breathtaking as the next-generation version of the game, Call of Duty 3 for the original Xbox will still not fail to impress with its great visuals, intense action and great multiplayer mode. While World War II shooters are a dime a dozen these days, this third entry in the Call of Duty series for the Xbox is an entertaining ride well worth taking.