Exciting. Memorable. Entertaining. These are a few words you could use to describe Big Red One.
Call of Duty 2: Big Red One is another entry in the Call of Duty franchise and it's a really good game that's worth everyone's time. This game follows the Big Red One, the US Army's 1st Infantry Division. You play as a nameless private, who doesn't even talk. You have several teammates going along with you through the 14 mission campaign. I like the characters here, which hasn't been the case for a lot of other shooters. The storytelling is good, and immersive. You really feel like you're in a war. When a teammate dies, you'll definitely feel sad. One minor annoyance is that you can't skip cutscenes. Overall,the story is surprisingly good and engaging.
If you've played more recent Call of Duty's, then the gameplay is going to feel pretty similar, but that's not a bad thing at all. The action is fast and intense, except you can't sprint like in recent Call of Duty's. The controls feel great, and the weapons have a good feel to them. You can aim down the sights of every weapon so you can accurately hit an enemy. There's a good variety of weapons, from the Thompson and MP40 to rifles and sniper rifles. The AI is actually pretty good, but that'll depend on the difficulty. On normal, they're pretty decent, but will occasionally do stupid things. On hard, they're pretty good, and can kill you pretty quick Your health also doesn't regenerate, so you need to find health packs. This basically tells you to think smart, and not go out running and gunning. The campaign is fairly linear, but that's not necessarily a bad thing as the campaign has lots of variety and is very fun. The campaign is a little short at around 7 to 8 hours, but it's never dull, so you'll play through it again after beating it. The gameplay is very fun and will make you play through the campaign more than once.
The graphics are very good, save for some fairly minor issues. The characters and soldiers are well detailed and animated. The weapons look great, and the reloading animations look good. The environments are varied and make you feel like you're in a war. The main menu and other menus are very nicely done. The death animations look very good, and the soldiers will die in very convincing ways. However, the animations for characters aren't as smooth as they could've been, as they're a little choppy. The lip syncing is occasionally off, but that's never a issue in cutscenes. The frame rate occasionally slows down, but it's so minor that it's not even worth mentioning.
The sound is top notch, and really helps immerse you in the game. The music is very good and hits the right notes. The weapons sound great, but they don't sound as powerful as they probably should. The voice acting is top notch and really help the story become engaging. This is what you except from a World War II game.
There's a decent amount of replay value here. The campaign is a decent length, at around 7 to 8 hours, and you have three different difficulties that actually mean something.There is online multiplayer, but I never got to play it, and it's probably dead. Even after you finish the campaign, you'll want to play through it again and again.
Story: Entertaining and engaging. I like the characters too, and the voice acting is excellent. Not much to complain about. 9/10
Gameplay: Fast, intense, and very fun. The AI is solid too, which I haven't seen very often in shooters. 9.5/10
Graphics: Characters look great and the animations look good. Nice death animations, as well. Detailed weapons. The main menu looks very attractive. Animations look a little choppy at times. 9/10
Sound: Basically what you except from a World War II game. Excellent voice acting, great sound effects and satisfying music. 9.5/10
Value: A great campaign around 7 to 8 hours. Unlockable concept art and more. 8/10
Call of Duty 2: Big Red One is a great game. If you love Call of Duty, then you owe it to yourself to buy this. It has an immersive and highly entertaining campaign with never a dull moment. The graphics and sound are excellent as well, which help immerse you. You can get the Call of Duty Legacy for $20 now, which is a great deal. Call of Duty 2 Big Red One is a must buy.