Call of Duty 3 Member Review for the Wii

Call of Duty has taken over the reigns of the quitesential WW2 shooter from Medal of Honor some years ago. Bigger battles, bigger stories, more squad based action, and great cinematics are hallmarks of this growing franchise. But, like in growth and development, sometimes growing is not a good thing. Case en point, Call of Duty 3.

Now I only have the Wii version of COD 3, and the only difference is the controls on the game. Let me make one thing clear, I doubt that one version is superior or inferior to the other, despite the control differences. People can agree to disagree for multi-platform release games, but in the end, the game is the same, only playing it has changed.

Graphics-

Graphically, the game is good. Defeinitly reminicent of the gamecube in terms of graphical quality. Most critics would call foul on me here, saying that they are not "next-gen" graphics, and they are essentially right. But you have to remember, control is the make or break deal here, not graphic power on the Wii. Will it ever look as good as the 360 version, of course not, but in the end if the game is fun, it should not matter.

That said, there were some clipping problems in some scenes, and a lot of slowdown at big battle sections, particularly the beginning raids and the final battle in Chambois. This could of been cleared up, but launch title= rush job in 9/10 cases.

Final Score- C+

Gameplay-

The Wiimote works decently here. It is not as tight as in Zelda, or precise as in Trauma Center, but I will say that it has slightly better shooting mechanics then Red Steel. One thing going for COD 3 is precision aiming, something that, if you think about it, was required during WWII, in particular if you were stuck behind cover. Aiming with the wiimote is very powerful, and this becomes your best friend in most missions.

Now, the drawback is that automatic guns are not as useful, as turing and strafing are cumbersome still. Within this year that mechanic in FPS will probably be solved, but for now it is a big burden, in particular if you have numerous enemies gunning you at once.

Driving is also a pain to do. It is very tough to navigate, even harder to steer correctly, and any missions involving driving, or using the Polish tank, are fustrating. They could of been implamented better.

Also added are little interludes where you fight in scripted hand to hand combat with an enemy. Like red steel, they come at certian moments and are very fun to manipulate the controls, but it would be nice to do this any time. Another problem is the AI of both the NPC allies and the enemies. Essentially, they stay in one place and shoot at you that way. Effectively making this a point and shoot battle. At the very least, they do backup and find cover half the time, the other half they are out in the open, making them easy pickings.

Overall, the game is essentially unpolished, and really suffers from a lack in tight controls. It is easy to get knocked by a tank or grenade, because turning and strafing are very hard to do, and you will likely be facing the wrong direction and shoot your own mates in a firefight if you attempt this on the onset.

Final Score- C-

Sound- The Voice overs work for the most part, and music is patriotic and "World Warsy" as ever, but  are forgettable. Fourtanatly the sound of the guns and bombs and tanks are still sharp and realistic, making any firefight great in the end.

Final Score- C+

Overall-

COD 3 is all over the place in everything, which results in a mediocre game to begin with. The franchise is starting to fall the way Medal of Honor has, some great things on the onset, mired by more of the same, bigger battles, more NPC'S and larger campaigns. This, mired with lackluster graphics and loose controls, makes COD 3 a purchase for really only hardcore fans. If you like WWII, go for it, but expect more of the same.

And on a sidenote, I kind of am sick of the WWII shooter, lets move on to something more challenging, the Civil War or Vietnam. That would be fun.

Final Score- C

Overall Score- C+