This review was originally published on Gaming Horizon, GameBump's predecessor. Its format does not match our own but we support its content. It was written by Matthew Call.

The Call of Duty series began in 2003 when members of the team that designed Medal of Honor: Allied Assault began their own game company, Infinity Ward.  Now, only two years later, Infinity Ward has churned out a full blown sequel to the original Call of Duty with Call of Duty 2.  The Call of Duty games put gamers in the shoes of Russian, British, and American soldiers in World War II.  Details on the identity of the protagonist are intentionally scarce since the game’s intent is for the player to be an “Everyman” of sorts, a small soldier in the middle of an enormous conflict.  Enormous conflicts are what the Call of Duty games excel at and Call of Duty 2 somehow manages to create even larger-scale battles than the original.  Every so often in video games, developers create a sequel that somehow manages to keep everything that made the original game great while also improving upon it.  Call of Duty 2 manages to do just that, and is certainly one of the best games of 2005.

The first thing most gamers will notice upon seeing Call of Duty 2 in action is how impressive the graphics are.  Call of Duty 2 features what are likely the most detailed game environments ever seen in a game.  Stones on houses jut out and feel distinct from each other, cloth contains visible threading and texture, and weapon models have metallic imperfections and legible writing on them.  Fellow soldiers look highly realistic, down to the creases on the Russian commander’s aged face and the rank insignia on their uniforms.  Soldier’s animations in combat are particularly well done and are highly convincing, especially when reacting to being shot.  What steals the show visually, however, is the smoke from smoke grenades; it billows about realistically and effectively obscures the area, which comes in handy when trying to flank a German machine gun nest. 

The sound is equally impressive.  Each weapon in the game has its own distinct sound, and players can tell what type of weapon the enemy is shooting at them simply from the sound of the shots.  Artillery rounds buzz overhead and grenades explode with a satisfying punch.  The orchestral score is brilliant and is usually fairly subtle except for key moments in the game where it swells dramatically to reinforce the action happening on the screen.  The voice acting is believable, both from main characters in the game as well as from fellow soldiers shouting in the trenches.  EAX and 3D directional audio function properly and immerse the player in a realistic World War II soundscape. 

The levels in the original Call of Duty felt large but were also very linear.  Call of Duty 2 ups the ante by having large levels that allow the player more room to approach situations the way they want.  Often objectives can be completed in the order the player wants to complete them, instead of along a predetermined path. A mission in the American campaign requires the player to clear the Germans out of eight buildings, which can be attacked in any order.  This level of freedom is a refreshing change in a first person shooter; even when the levels are linear, they are usually so large that the player doesn’t feel trapped into going a certain way.   

The biggest addition to Call of Duty 2 is the new health system.  Instead of searching for health packs or backtracking for health because the autosave kicked in when you had only a handful of health points left, the game abandons the health point system entirely.  Instead when players take damage a red tint fills the screen indicating the need to get behind some cover, or face certain death.  Once the player ducks out of combat for a moment the screen clears and the player is free to rejoin the fight.  While this may seem to make the game slightly less realistic for some, the higher difficulty levels more than compensate for the game’s regenerating health system. 

The game features five multiplayer modes: death match, team death match, capture-the-flag, search-and-destroy, and headquarters.  All of these are identical to their counterparts in the original game except for headquarters, which is a new addition in Call of Duty 2.  Headquarters games assign each team a random location on the map to set up and defend a headquarters.  Once the headquarters is created the defending team will no longer respawn when killed but will also begin accruing points.  This will continue until the headquarters is destroyed or until the defending team is dead, at which time the map will rotate the locations of the headquarters and the teams begin again until the point limit is reached.  Online players quickly adapt and react to new situations and tactics, ensuring that no multiplayer match ever plays out exactly the same, adding to the replay value of the game.  All of the multiplayer games are fast and furious and allow the players to continue to enjoy the frantic action of the game long after the single player game is done. 

Call of Duty 2’s biggest weakness and greatest strength is that it sticks to the tried and true formula of the original game.  World War II shooters are a dime a dozen now, and Call of Duty 2 is little more than a bigger and prettier version of the original game.  Some gamers are doubtlessly tiring of the genre, although Call of Duty’s amazing production values certainly merit a closer look.  Looking through my personal game collection I found six World War II shooters and only a handful from all other wars combined.  It might be time for developers to leave the 1940’s alone and move on to another conflict: Korea, Vietnam or the Gulf. 

The Call of Duty 2 multiplayer community is also up in arms at the moment over the lack of anti-cheating software in the game.  Unlike Quake 4, Call of Duty 2 does not support PunkBuster or any other anti-cheat program.  This may be fixed in a future patch, but if it isn’t, cheating could become serious problem in multiplayer games.  If the game’s community complains loud enough these issues will probably be resolved soon.

My last complaint is that the game’s physics don’t approach the level of realism seen in F.E.A.R. or Half-Life 2.  Boxes and vases shatter when shot or blown up by grenades, but the pieces don’t fly about realistically.  Furniture and other objects don’t budge even when grenades detonate right next to them.  If players took cover behind a desk, only to have the desk gradually disintegrate or be destroyed or moved by a grenade, the combat would have felt more realistic and exciting.  I realize I’m being a bit nit-picky, but physics in recent games have dramatically changed the way players approach first person shooters, and it is unfortunate that physics weren’t implemented to a greater extent in Call of Duty 2.

Call of Duty 2 is a must have for anyone who enjoys first person shooters.  World War II buffs will enjoy the documentary film footage scattered throughout the game as well as some of the most realistic depictions of World War II environments ever seen in a computer game.  Even if gamers have grown tired of World War II, Call of Duty 2 features the largest battles and most detailed environments of any game to date, making it worth a look.  The battles are entertaining and capture the same run-and-gun feel of the original Call of Duty and the multiplayer modes are a blast.  Call of Duty 2 somehow manages to be an even bigger and better version of the original game, and that makes it one of the best titles of 2005.

Same hectic action of the original game, only on an even larger scale.

The most realistic textures and environments seen in a game to date.

Big explosions, realistic gunfire, and a superb soundtrack make this game’s audio shine.

Feels a bit been-there-done-that, but still highly entertaining.

No unlockable content, but multiplayer games are enjoyable.