For the GameCube, PS2 and Xbox game, see Call of Duty 2: Big Red One.
| Call of Duty 2 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Infinity Ward Aspyr Media (Mac Conversion) |
| Publisher(s) | Activision |
| Designer(s) | Keith Arem, Jason West, Vince Zampella (exclusive) |
| Composer(s) | Graeme Revell |
| Series | Call of Duty |
| Engine | IW engine 2.0 |
| Version | 1.3 |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows Xbox 360 Mac OS X Windows Mobile |
| Release date(s) | |
| Genre(s) | First-person shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | |
| Media/distribution | CD (6), DVD or Steamdownload |
| System requirements Platform:
| |
Call of Duty 2 is a first-person shooter video game and the second installment in the critically acclaimed Call of Duty series. It was developed byInfinity Ward and published by Activision. It was released on October 25, 2005 for Microsoft Windows and on November 22, 2005 for the Xbox 360 in Europe, Australia and North America. Other versions were made for mobile phones as well as Pocket PCs. It was published by Konami in the Japanese market and released on the PC on March 24, 2006 and on the Xbox 360 on June 15, 2006 in Japan.
The game is set during World War II and is experienced through the perspectives of four soldiers, one in the Red Army, one in the United States Armyand two in the British Army. The game was met with a positive public reception, receiving mostly positive reviews from critics.[1][2] The Xbox 360 version sold over 250,000 copies in its first week, and had sold 1.4 million copies by October 2006.[3][4]
Contents[hide] |
[edit]Gameplay
The player can crouch and lie prone, and is able to scale low walls and other obstacles.[5] Two firearms can be carried, which can be swapped with those left on the battlefield, and both fragmentation and smoke grenades can also be carried. A gun's iron sights can be used to aim more accurately. A compass on the head-up display (HUD) shows both allies and enemies, and objective markers to indicate locations the player must reach, areas to defend, or enemy cannons or tanks that the player must plant explosives on to disable. Emplaced weapons such as machine guns and flak cannonsare available in some locations to take out enemy forces. In addition, some missions place the player in control of a tank.[6]
The player has a set of binoculars. While it is generally ignored during infantry-limited gameplay, it is vital to the long-range use of the 88 mm guns,Crusader tanks and one of the missions in which the player must direct artillery fire to defend a town. It is also important for scouting, though most of the game takes place in personal, close combat situations reducing the importance of this tactic.[7]
Should the player take severe damage, the screen will turn red and the sound of the character's heartbeat will become loud; this indicates the player'shealth is low. The player must find a way to stay out of fire to recover before entering battle again or else will die and restart from the last checkpoint. Health is only restored through automatic recharging when the player is not taking fire. Some attacks, like explosions from grenades or shells, will kill the player instantly if the player is too close.[8]
In April 2006, Infinity Ward released the Call of Duty 2 Radiant, which allows a player to create their own multiplayer or single player maps. Along with Radiant, the mapmaker includes Maya plug-in support, an effects editor, and an asset manager which allows custom models to be made and imported into the game, as well as custom effects.[9]
[edit]Multiplayer
Each PC multiplayer server can hold a maximum of 64 players, while the limit is 8 players on the Xbox 360.[10] In the Xbox 360 version, players can play on Xbox Live and get new map packs. There are a total of 13 official maps, and three of these are remakes from the original Call of Duty. There are also three extra map packs named Bonus Pack, Skirmish Pack, and Invasion Pack, adding a total of eight maps.[11] Additionally PC players have introduced custom mods such as tactical realism enhancements.
The maps include Normandy, Africa, and Russia. Each team can choose a variety of weapons, depending on the map. Players can choose between American soldiers, Soviet soldiers, and British soldiers for the Allied forces, while the Axis forces must play as German soldiers.[12]
Call of Duty 2 features several game types: Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Search & Destroy, Capture the Flag and Headquarters.[13] Many of these game types are retained from the original Call of Duty and its expansion, United Offensive.
[edit]Campaign
Call of Duty 2 contains four individual campaigns, split into three stories.[14] Each story concerns a World War II soldier overcoming the odds in the war.[15]
[edit]Soviet campaign
The player controls Private Vasili Koslov of the 13th Guards Rifle Division, initially involved in the defense of Moscow from the advanced German forces. The next level involves the destruction of a German stronghold in Stalingrad during September 1942. The next objective involves battling for strongholds throughout Stalingrad throughout December 1942, including re-connecting cut telephone wires and re-capturing the rail-yard and train-station. The final mission takes place during the final Soviet offensive in Stalingrad in January 1943, which involves the re-capture and defense of city blocks and Stalingrad city hall.
[edit]British campaign
The player takes control as a British soldier, Sergeant John Davis of the 7th Armoured Division. The first level has the player taking part in a sneak attack on German troops, ending with the destruction of a German supply station. The next level has the player defending a town from overwhelming numbers of Germans, finally achieving victory by destroying much of the German tank force using artillery. This is followed by the Second Battle of El Alamein, during which the player has to fight through several trenches, machine gun nests, 88mm guns and finally taking the German's field headquarters. The assault on El Daba to intercept the remaining Germans in Egypt and destroy several 88mm guns soon follows, ending the first British campaign.[16] An addendum to the second set of missions has the player taking on the role of a British tank commander, David Welsh. The first mission of the third campaign in Toujane,Tunisia, has the player immediately under fire, holding a house with a single machine gun and then wreaking havoc with an armored car. They soon break out and rendezvous with the second squad. The final British campaign takes place during the Battle for Caen as part of Operation Overlord.
[edit]American campaign
As Corporal Bill Taylor of the 2nd Ranger Battalion, the player starts off by playing a part in D-Day, at the assault of Pointe du Hoc, to destroy a Germanartillery battery, and hold it against a massive German counter-offensive in the following mission. Soon after, the player captures a nearby town and serves as a sniper against mortar crews until reinforcements arrive. The second objective is focused on Hill 400, involving the capture of Bergstein, a disastrous charge at Hill 400's bunkers and the defense against the German counterattack, with the player again performing sniper work against German mortar teams, destroying enemy armor, and generally holding the hill against the counter-offensive, all the while burdened by artillery and overwhelming numbers of German soldiers. The final mission is set amongst the Americans in the Rhine River crossing into Germany. It begins as one of the few missions with the player immediately under fire, providing cover fire against the Germans until reaching the river banks and then fighting through most of the town. The final fight has the player defeat two German Tiger I's.
[edit]Ending
The end credits depict the dramatic rescue of Captain Price from the Germans by a group of American soldiers. After the credits end, the words "No cows were harmed in the making of this game" appear, as in the original Call of Duty. This is a reference to the dead cattle visible in the Normandy missions.[5]
[edit]Development
On April 7, 2005, Activision announced that Infinity Ward was officially developing Call of Duty 2, set for release in Fall 2005. It had been speculated that Infinity Ward was developing the sequel at the same time as Gray Matter Interactive developed Call of Duty: United Offensive. Infinity Ward president Grant Collier stated:
"Our team at Infinity Ward is committed to thrusting gamers into the heat of battle like no other, taking players on a thrill-ride of adrenaline that leaves everyone gasping for air. In Call of Duty 2, we are creating the most intense and realistic action game imaginable with a stunning visual atmosphere and an advanced technology that delivers an unprecedented level of authenticity."
According to the press release, players will now be able to engage the enemy in a more non-linear battlefield, tackle the major battles chronologically, and use squad tactics not available in the previous Call of Duty games. There's also the "Battle Chatter System," similar to Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault, where squad members use dynamic dialogue to create situational awareness in real-time.[17]
The game engine, proprietary IW engine 2.0, is a modified version of id Tech 3, which was used in the first Call of Duty game. With the new game engine, Infinity Ward expanded the scope of combat to try and deliver a realistic battlefield experience and enhanced the visuals. The developers were able to make smoke from smoke grenades cloud visibility and create weather effects like dusty sandstorms and whiteout blizzard. Infinity Ward also confirmed and made a Battle Chatter System, where squad-mates bark out context-sensitive updates in real-time to players through an advanced A.I. system.[18]
According to IGN, the game was known to "let players experience four individual soldier stories as they overcome insurmountable odds in multiple campaigns. Players have the freedom to follow each of the four storylines through for the ultimate character-driven experience, or they can engage in the historic battles chronologically for quick hitting action. Squads now have the freedom to take on a variety of mission objectives, on expansive battlefields that allow for multiple paths and the ability to utilize actual combat tactics like outflanking and fire and maneuver capabilities."[19]
[edit]Reception
| [hide] Reception | |
|---|---|
| Aggregate scores | |
| Aggregator | Score |
| GameRankings | 89.82% (Xbox 360)[20] 87.73% (PC)[21] |
| Metacritic | 89/100 (Xbox 360)[22] 86/100 (PC)[23] |
| Review scores | |
| Publication | Score |
| Game Informer | 9.75/10[24] |
| GamePro |   (PC)[25] (X360)[26] |
| GameSpot | 8.8/10 (Xbox 360)[27] 8.8/10 (PC)[28] |
| IGN | 9.0/10 (Xbox 360)[29] 8.5/10 (PC)[14] |
| Official Xbox Magazine | 9.0/10[30] |
| X-Play | [25] |
Call of Duty 2 was generally received well by reviewers, with the Xbox 360 version (89/100) scoring slightly higher than its PC counterpart (86/100), according to Metacritic.[31][32] The graphics and sound were widely praised, and the reactions to the regenerating health system were mostly positive, with reviewers such as Gamespot and Gamepro receiving it as an improvement over the previous health bar system.[33][34] The PC version multiplayer was criticized as being a step back from that of Call of Duty: United Offensive.[35][36]
IGN gave the Xbox 360 version 9/10, calling it "outstanding". Reviewer Douglass C. Perry described the presentation as "classy and well-produced", and said the graphics were some of the best on the Xbox 360 at its launch. He called the sound effects "unbelievable", whilst the gameplay was described as containing an "enormous amount of action". [37] GameSpot reviewer Bob Colayco gave the Xbox 360 version an 8.8/10 rating. He summarized his review by stating that Call of Duty 2 has "smooth, detailed graphics and great sound", as well as praising the artificial intelligence, realism, and variety in the campaign. However, he was critical of the game's pricing, stating it had a "higher pricepoint than its PC counterpart". He also complained that the multiplayer aspect could only support eight players.[38]
IGN's review of the PC version was less generous, only giving the game a score of 8.5/10. Reviewer Tom McNamara was impressed with the presentation and graphics, describing them as "Excellent" and "smooth" respectively. He also said the graphics did not suffer "from also being developed for the 360". McNamara also praised the sound, describing it as "awesome music, encompassing battle noise, and excellent voice work". The biggest criticism was for the gameplay, where McNamara said "the hard-to-swallow regenerating health makes things a little too easy too often". [39] Bob Colayco of GameSpot also reviewed the PC version of the game, and gave it a score of 8.8/10, as he did its Xbox 360 counterpart. Colayco again commended the sound, calling the presentation of the game "excellent", as well as praising the aggression of the artificial intelligence. Unlike in his review of the Xbox 360 version, Colayco felt the multiplayer aspect was "fun". His main critique was for performance, stating "performance can chug at times".[33]
Call of Duty 2 was the most popular launch title on the Xbox 360, with 250,000 units sold in its first week of availability.[3] 77% of people who purchased an Xbox 360 also purchased the game, which contributed to its high sales.[40] As of July 2006, 1.4 million copies of the game had been sold on the Xbox 360.[4] By January 2008, the game had sold 2 million copies.[41]
[edit]Advertisement controversy
A television advertisement for Call of Duty 2 was the subject of some controversy in 2006. The commercial, created by Los Angeles animation studio Rhythm and Hues, depicted a first-person view of events that were supposed to transpire during the game, rather than scenes from the game itself. Some consumers felt that the advertisements were misleading, and in February 2006 the United Kingdom's Advertising Standards Authority demanded that networks remove the advertisements after three consumers filed complaints of false advertising. According to ASA spokesperson Donna Mitchell, "Viewers felt that the ad was misleading because the quality of graphics was superior to that of the game's".[42] Activision denies that the scenes were meant to give an impression of gameplay, stating in a press release shortly after the ASA banning that "The footage was intended purely to communicate the subject matter of the game rather than to represent actual gameplay."[43]
[edit]Other versions
[edit]Collector's Edition
A Collector's Edition of the game was released for Windows on October 25, 2005 and for the Xbox 360 labeled as the "Special Edition". It features the game and a bonus disc, which includes interviews, a making of movie and two mission walkthroughs.[44] On 17 May 2006, Activision announced a Game of the Year Edition for the Xbox 360, which includes material from the Special Edition, plus a token to download the Skirmish Map Pack. [45]
[edit]Mobile version
In January 2006, MFORMA (now Hands-On Mobile) released Call of Duty 2 for mobile phones.[46] The Pocket PC and smartphone versions were developed by Aspyr Media and released January 2007.[47] The mobile version is a 2D top-down shooter. It received a favourable review from IGN, praising its length and storytelling.[48]
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