Hands-on: Medal of Honor

Electronic Arts held a special event this morning in conjunction with Dreamworks Interactive to show off their latest title in development, Medal of Honor.

The first person WWII shooter inspired by Steven Spielburg is nearly complete - only minor tweaking and bug fixing are left to be dealt with. On hand at today's presentation was Captain Dale Dye, USMC (retired), who served as consultant on the game and has appeared in and also consulted on such films as Saving Private Ryan. The Captain told us that he worked with the development team early on to help give them an idea on how the game should feel. Once the development team got the game running Captain Dye would, as he said, "Vet it" and give the team feedback on certain aspects of the game like weapons and enemy reactions.

Dye went on to say, "When they would show me the game and they'd see me wrinkle my brow - they would instantly say, 'what is it', what should we change?” Captain Dye went on to say that he was very impressed with the game in its nearly completed version, as were we.

Medal of Honor looks impressive and adds a high level of authenticity that will make it fun for WWII buffs but also slightly educational for those who may not be readily interested in the largest worldwide conflict in history. And it emphasizes that historical perspective with FMV sequences featuring actual WWII footage.

The game totally utilizes the Dual Shock analog controller; one stick moves your character while the other controls his view and aiming. It also features 30 different levels, 15 weapons, and three different two-player modes.

Medal of Honor also features a full-blown orchestrated soundtrack fit for a movie featuring 16 tracks composed and produced by the award winning musician, Michael Giacchino.

Due out this fall, Medal of Honor is definitely a game to keep your sights on. For more information and screen shots check out our preview for Metal of Honor.