Medal of Honor

Written by Tom Clare in PSOne Game Reviews, Saturday 20 August, 2005

Achtung Baby!

Few would argue that, over the past decade or so, Electronic Arts have become the biggest publishers in the gaming world. Building on the success of some fabulous Mega-Drive and SNES titles in the early nineties, EA used some crafty advertising campaigns and bucked a trend for 'annual updates' - relatively unheard of techniques that they quickly made their own, and ones that continue to ensure that their yearly FIFA, NBA, NHL and Madden games rake in the cash come Christmas time.

EA are masters of drumming up hype and interest - their yearly FIFA football games are in reality very similar to each other, though people keep coming back year upon year because they want all the up-to-date teams and licences that each new edition brings. So the chaps at EA don't usually miss a trick, except in the case of Medal Of Honor; surely their best release ever to grace the PSOne format, this first-person shoot 'em up didn't receive so much as a whisper from its promoters prior to its release, though that would all change when the gaming press got their hands on it…

First released in late 1999, Medal Of Honor is a quite excellent first-person shoot 'em up that is set in the closing stages of World War 2 in 1944. You assume control of an American Lieutenant named James Patterson (no, not the author) and must single-handedly take on the might of the Nazi Empire in seven daring and ridiculously dangerous missions that span an impressive twenty-four levels.

There are so many superlatives that can be directed at Medal Of Honor (MOH) that it is difficult to know quite where to begin. Within the first few minutes of play it becomes clear that it is a cut above the competition; picture the scene - it's night-time, you are deep within Nazi territory and hidden amongst the hedgerows, crouched low with only your rifle for company. You start to shuffle forwards cautiously, hearing the vicious cracks of gunfire in the distance, as well as the indistinguishable shouts of nearby German's. Before you have even encountered your first enemy, the game has managed to create such a sense of atmosphere and authenticity around the experience that you can't help but feel a part of the action, and things just keep getting better from here on in.

Level objectives are, in essence, extremely simple. Whether you are radioing coordinates from a submarine, shutting down valves in a chemical plant or disabling charges in a mine, all is required in each instance is a simple tap of the 'action' button. Fortunately for Medal Of Honor, such simplicities are fully compensated for by its rather stronger shoot 'em up elements.

On release, MOH was (and by PSOne standards, still is) a technical wonder. Enemy soldiers are highly intelligent, and act in a variety of different ways to your presence, and tend to become more efficient and deadly as you progress through the game. Throw a grenade the way of a Nazi and, rather than haplessly meeting his doom like in many other games of this ilk, he will try his best to throw or kick it back to you! Dogs on the other hand pick grenades up in their mouths and will even deliver the explosive surprises to their unsuspecting masters. Whilst in disguise, you have to stay alert as to some of the cleverer officers, who become easily suspicious, often seeing past your stolen I.D. and are then quick to raise the alarm if they feel something is amiss.

Better still; enemies have clearly defined damage parameters attached to the various points on their bodies. So, if you shoot a baddie in the leg for example, he will hop around for a few seconds, whilst a blast to the arm may incapacitate his ability to return fire for a short while. This system is brilliantly implemented, and ultimately rewards more accurate, patient players who go for head-shots and silent kills.

The developers have gone to great lengths to ensure the absolute authenticity of the Medal Of Honor package. Weapons, an integral part of any first-person shoot 'em up, are one such example. You won't find any Laser Cannon's, BFG's or Chainguns in here - authentic 1940's artillery is on the menu instead. Because of the aforementioned damage parameters, each weapon has its own assets and failings - pistols are quiet, though not very powerful; rifles prove accurate and dependable, but loud enough to wake all of Berlin, and the Bazooka harbours devastating power, but is more likely to harm yourself if fired at close-quarters. Because each and every weapon has its own distinct advantages in specific situations, you'll be constantly switching between your guns as you progress through the levels, rather than simply upgrading and discarding as you move along.

Graphically, first-person shoot 'em ups are among the most difficult games to design for consoles, perhaps due to the levels of detail and depth that must be achieved to create believable 3D playing areas. Of the genres big-hitters that have appeared on the PSOne, only Doom and Quake 2 have made what can be considered completely successful ports from the PC format. The biggest complement I can find for Medal Of Honor is that it runs as smoothly and as easily as if it were originally designed to run on a PC. Environments are varied and well-designed, and visually tend to lie between good and outstanding. Levels, objects and enemies are all solid and nicely animated, though the viewing distance is slightly shorter than ideal due to the limitations of the hardware.

Medal Of Honor's music often reminded me of the Indiana Jones films; the tunes for the most part play along in a quiet and mysterious manner, though occasionally kick into life with louder, more frantic melodies which are enough to get the pulse racing on their own. Then there are the first-rate sound effects - the lovely clunks and cracks from the antique weaponry coupled with the frightening German battle-cries, make for a stunning all-round audio effect.

The level-design seems to have gone hand-in-hand with the rest of the package - capitalising on the ability to build tension, the developers have decided to include a smattering of nerve-wracking T-Junctions that refuse to allow the player to see what is awaiting them around the next corner, as well as the pattering of footsteps that grow ever-louder as the German's move in on your position. Lighting is also key; all the missions are either set outside in darkness or inside in dim-light, which brings a feeling of tension in itself, and with many snipers perched either on rooftops or in trees, you remain constantly on edge, looking for the slightest hint of movement in your surroundings.

Most importantly though, it scores well in the gameplay stakes. Whether you choose to use the D-Pad or Analogue sticks as a means of control, the responsiveness is just right, and helps to create an often-frantic but always playable gaming experience. The level of challenge is also well-judged; the opening levels aren't too taxing though serve to sharpen the reflexes and give the player time to acclimatise to Medal Of Honor's way of doing things. Once missions have been polished off, medals and secret codes are introduced as an incentive for the player to return to old levels, to try and improve efficiency ratings (marked out of three stars), though in truth it would have been better if the guidelines for these were more clearly defined - getting top marks in some missions is ridiculously easy, whilst others prove nigh-on impossible to achieve.

Still, 24 decent-sized levels certainly can't be argued with. Even more experienced gamers should find a solid amount of longevity lying in the one-player mode, and after that has been polished off, there is a passable multi-player deathmatch option to prolong things a little further - though in this department, Medal Of Honor is far less exciting than rival Quake 2, which allows for a four-player split-screen option.

ELSPA have unsurprisingly rated MOH as 15+, due (I would imagine) to its war-based narrative and violent content. There is no denying that there is an ample amount of shooting and killing in Medal Of Honor, though I would otherwise still consider it a perfectly acceptable game for the youngsters - EA choose not to add any blood, extreme content or swearing into the equation and the game is all the better for it.

Overall, Medal Of Honor is an atmospheric, clever, adrenalin-fuelled treat. Supreme use of weaponry, settings and sound lift it above the competition in terms of authenticity and presentation, but it's the unrivalled technical-efficiency that puts the icing on the cake, with the end result being a groundbreaking and superbly playable first-person shoot 'em up that is the best in its field.

Leave a Reply