Review: Medal of Honor

Medal of Honor brings the venerable franchise into the 21st century – specifically the war in Afghanistan.

Previous iterations of the series were set in the middle of the last century – World War II.

This reboot updates the time and place, but retains much of the gameplay that drew fans in the first place.

The game draws players into the world of the Tier 1 Operators – small groups of elite commandos sent into dangerous areas as precision strike forces.

In the single-player mode, you start the game playing as Rabbit, one of a four-man Tier 1 team in the mountains of Afghanistan. Fighting alongside Mother, Voodoo and Preacher, you fight large groups of Taliban militia over mountains, through snow and in caves.

The single-player action exudes gritty realism, with the sounds of gunfire, constant chatter between squadmates and many of the actual difficulties of fighting such a war.

Adding to the realism is the weapons that give the impression of heft, with bullets carrying both velocity and purpose.

As with each previous Medal of Honor game, the subject matter is treated with respect and dignity, although it doesn’t shy away from the frustrations and horrors of fighting a modern-day war.

The visual quality of the game is unmatched. Presenting a combat scenario in mountains, with snow and haze and with changing weather conditions is difficult but accomplished here.

Further into the game, you switch to other combat situations, playing as an Army Ranger and a Delta Force commando. These shifts in action offer additional scenarios to play out and more storyline to unfold.

The game also offers what’s called “Tier 1 mode” in single player. This mode is more hardcore, with players competing for high score while being timed as they play through single player campaign levels.

Players can track how their friends are doing in Tier 1 mode, with markers showing up onscreen tracking progress. From these markers, players can post messages to their friends.

But, as with most first-person shooters, the real proof of the game is in the multiplayer experience.

Medal of Honor brings it, with 12-on-12 battles in several modes. As with previous MoH games, the action is more on the arcade (non-realistic) side, with small maps, frenetic interaction and strategy mostly non-existent. It’s pretty much kill or be killed, with little planning or forethought.

This type of multiplayer action has its place and its fans and is served well here.

Multiplayer is limited to three classes of soldiers:

Rifleman – basic GI using rifles, machine guns and smoke.

Special Ops – machine guns, shotguns and rocket launchers.

Sniper – long-range sniper rifles.

Each of these classes can upgrade armor and weaponry as they work up the ladder.

The object in multiplayer, of course, is to kill opposing players. As players string together scorechains by killing enemies and obtaining objectives, support actions become available. The most basic is a mortar strike, which can be called when a scorechain of 50 is reached.

Stringing together longer scorechains unlocks missile strikes, strafing runs, Cruise Missile strikes and others. Dying during battle ends a scorechain.

Multiplayer game modes are Combat Mission, where forces must clear five objectives to win; Team Assault, pitting two teams of 12 against each other; Sector Control, where each team vies to control areas of the map for as long as possible; and Objective Raid, where forces must sabotage two objectives with explosive devices.

Hard core difficulty is also available for Team Assault, Sector Control Objective Raid.

Medal of Honor makes a very nice transition to current-day warfare. The newer weapons and technology up the action and the sterling visual appeal of the game make it a must play this fall.

While the smaller maps and arcadey feel may turn off some gamers, I found them concise and satisfying. Those who are looking for a grittier, more strategic online experience can look ahead to Battlefield 3 next year.

As it is, Medal of Honor is a stand-out FPS in a season of such games.

Platform: PS3, Xbox 360 Rating: Mature Manufacturer: Electronic Arts Score: 9 Tier 1 chilies