Call Of Duty 3 Review

A real highlight of the Xbox 360 launch line-up, Call of Duty 2 stormed to victory on the beaches, the dunes, and the fallen walls of Stalingrad, on its release at the end of 2005. An enthralling and immersive experience that really took the already esteemed Call of Duty series to the next level, it continues to be one of the most played games on Xbox Live to this day. Twelve months on and the World War II shooter is back for a third outing, this time missing the traditional PC format and sticking firmly with the consoles with Call of Duty 2: Big Red One developer Treyarch at the helm (what could Infinity Ward be up to???). Available for Xbox 360 and current-gen consoles, with Wii and PlayStation3 versions coming shortly, how does the game create the all-important post-D-Day events of the equally decisive Normandy Breakout?

Breaking away from the 'traditional' Call of Duty structure, Call of Duty 3 jumps between the different campaigns as the Americans, Canadians, British, and Polish, squeeze German forces towards a final assault at Chambois, closing the so-called Falaise Gap. What results is a patient build-up towards intense climactic battles that rival Call of Duty 2's infamous D-Day Landings mission.

Although the game begins with the obligatory tutorial, events quickly take a turn for the worst for American forces as they attack the German line; from there, you're back in the swing of open and urban warfare with a range of contemporary weapons such as the BAR, M1 Garand, Thompson M1A1, and Panzerfaust, available to use. Away from the near-constant fire-fights against German forces, Call of Duty 3 of course features the trademark driving sequences, with high-octane escape routes taking players across fields, dirt tracks, and even railway platforms. Though relatively few in number, the sequences do offer a short-lived breather from looking down a gun sight, and continues to pay homage to war movies of old, especially when explosions and bullets rain around the SAS 4x4, affectionately called "Vera". Additionally, as the Polish forces in the game are a tank squad, players will also find themselves behind the wheel of a Sherman chasing the Desert Fox of Normandy, the "Black Baron", through the narrow streets of one French town. Breaks in the intensity are also evident in several missions where the player has to set and detonate explosive charges; a series of button taps and analogue stick twists later, the timer races to zero, and it's back to the action.

Whilst the gameplay follows a more than familiar path, Call of Duty 3 stands out during the 'backs to the wall' missions, most notably the frantic and desperate defence of Hill 262 (Mont-Ormel) and Chambois itself, when the level of intensity ramps up beyond pretty much everything that has gone on before in the game. Playing as the Poles at Mont-Ormel for instance, the mission begins with an assault on enemy Panzers before ramping up to a German counter-attack that forces the now defending players further and further back, desperately holding out for help from the Canadian forces. The feeling of desperation by the end of the mission (when German infantry progressively makes clear headway up the hill) is so intense, that the sense of relief at seeing the green flares signalling the arrival of Canadian reinforcements is utterly palpable. That said, there isn't the same rise and ebb of intensity that featured in Call of Duty 3's predecessors, which can wholeheartedly be attributed to the new structure of the game. Relying more on sustaining a smooth level of intensity with a dramatic rise towards the end of the game as the route to Chambios gets ever closer, it's a structure that perhaps some fans will find too much of a change. To be honest however, the structure actually allows a greater sense of foreboding to gather as the game goes on.

Certain missions also allow players to choose a particular path, whether that's to take a sniping role whilst a second group of characters storms the enemy base, or choosing which part of an offensive pincer movement to belong to during the battle at Le Bourg St Leonard. Whilst opening up the path to players a little bit, such decisions are few, instead focusing on creating a very focused and cinematic single-player experience.

Call of Duty 3 throws in a couple of new ideas into the mix, most notably the ability to throw back grenades, something long desired by fans of the series. Warned that a grenade is in a dangerous proximity to your character thanks to a icon on screen, it's a desperate hunt for the 'hot potato' before it blows up next to you...or in your hands. Whilst it may not seem like such a big deal, the ability does make the gameplay more rounded, getting the player more involved in taking the decision to run away to cover, or do the heroic thing and throw it back. The scripted hand-to-hand "Battle Actions" however, don't quite work as well as they might; feeling quite contrived on a regular control system since pulling on the control triggers doesn't make it feel like a desperate struggle, they do however fit in more successfully on the upcoming Wii version thanks to the accelerometers built into the Wii-mote and nunchuk. We'll have more on Wii's take on Call of Duty very shortly on TVG. It's difficult to blame Treyarch for experimenting with something that's a little different, and it always comes as a bit of a shock when the game does launch into one of the hand-to-hand combat sequences, it's just a slight shame that the mechanic isn't as developed as it could be.

Taking advantage of the power that the Xbox 360 has to offer, Call of Duty 3 of course features everything expected of it as a next-generation title such as volumetric smoke, improved lighting effects, higher-quality textures and detailing, and a degree of destructible objects (though this is one area that has plenty of room to develop in future instalments). Franchise trademarks such as 'shell-shock' effects when standing close to explosions, and dramatic scripted events also make a return, helping to create the impact of war - at least in the way portrayed in countless movies over the years. The Battle Chatter feature, first implemented in Call of Duty 2, also makes a welcome return, adding to the solid audio experience of the game. The ability to hear warnings from comrades when grenades are thrown, or the raised voices of the Germans as they try to warn others of your appearance, really helped to create a believable world in the previous title, and continues to do so here. A rather sparse use of dramatic music in the background of some of the game's more intense moments further adds to the immersion on offer.

The multiplayer modes of Call of Duty titles have always been a strong point for the franchise, and one or two bugs aside, the same can be said of Call of Duty 3. Nine maps from the industrialised Fuel Plant to the towns of Poisson and Rouen are available at release, though expectations for more to become available in the coming weeks and months aren't too much of a stretch of the imagination. Besides long-term gametypes Battle and Team Battle (Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch respectively), Headquarters, and two variants of Capture the Flag, Call of Duty 3 also sees the introduction of a new gametype for the franchise. Called "War", the gametype plays fairly similarly to the Battlefield format of capturing and holding a number of 'bases'; with such a familiar concept proving exceptionally popular already in other multiplayer games, War is sure to follow suit amongst Call of Duty 3 players. It would be great however if the Call of Duty series bit the bullet (so to speak) and introduced a co-operative mode in future instalments. There does seem to be a slight bug in the online game on Xbox 360 however, which identifies rooms in a lobby before blankly stating that no online game can be found. Such occurrences were rare however, but hopefully an update won't be too long in coming.