Call of Duty: Finest Hour

"Relive the nightmares of World War II. I mean, in frustration."

Call of Duty: Finest Hour was released to the public in the year 2004. The intense action and heated gameplay is very nice, however, a game can't be without its flaws. Let's take a look why...

Now, if you've seen the cover of this game, you'll probably notice that there are guns, tanks, explosives, and people. All of this mixes together into one word. War. World War II to be exact. Seriously, these first-person shooters are overusing World War II and most of them stink. Fortunately, this is one of the gems. The whole game revolves around World War II and you'll be fighting as soldiers in different armies and countries, depending on paths you choose. This is not a free-for-all game, but rather a team game. Your comrades will be helping you fight your enemies as you progress further and further into the game. However, the A.I. is really stupid, and they'll make horrible mistakes that'll cost their lives. So usually, you'll be doing 90% of the work, while the others randomly shoot aimlessly to nothing in particular.

The way the game works is that you'll have missions and objectives to complete, and you'll have to fight your way to it. You'll have to do a variety of actions, such as run (duh), shoot guns (another duh), control tanks, punching and so on and so forth. Some problems that take place is that you'll have an overabundance of the same weapon, that you'll never need, and never use. Also, the controls aren't very fitting, and I usually have to look down onto the controller to remember which button to press to do a certain action. This messes up the "war technique", because you're supposed to shoot with ease and kick people's butt, but if you're not familiar with the controls, you'll have to take the time to remember what button to press, and by that time, your opportunity will probably have vanquished, anyway.

The frustration detector is beeping. And it's beeping fast. Finest Hour is a tough game to beat and with frustration included. First of all, the overall gameplay is tough to master and long. Secondly, they are long and hard to beat in one sitting. Usually, you'll be doing a long mission and almost finish, until you die at the last second. Unfortunately, you'll have to start all over. Yes, that does mean killing hundreds of enemies. Just typing this makes me squirm. Don't expect any mercy from this game.

Let's see, you want to know about the sound? Well, good for you, because by buying this game, you'll get great sound included, ABSOLUTELY FREE!!!! Ahem, this game has terrific sound that can really be used in real life if you wanted to play a "gun game". The commanding orders of the sergants and the explosions and gunshots are too much to resist holding back. You'll relive what it's like to be a soldier in World War II.

Graphics are above mediocrity, but aren't great. The images aren't sharp enough and the items and guns are hard to see without squinting your eyes. Heck, even the people that you try to kill look like tiny specks of pepper. Also, everything looks like one big blur, since barely any color is used to create what WWII really looked like, and not just make it look like a flashback. Overall, the graphics are solid, but not fantastic.

There is no replay value at all, since multiplayer is not included. Well, maybe a little bit, some of the missions are nice to play a second time, but you'll get bored of them after that.

Scores:
Gameplay: 8/10
Graphics: 6/10
Story: 9/10
Sound: 10/10
Replay: Bottom of the Charts
Fun Factor: Above Average
Difficulty: Top of the Charts
Final: 7/10

Call of Duty: Finest Hour is a great game to spend a lazy summer weekend playing, but don't expect a shocker. It's not ground-shaking, but somewhat better than the other WWII games. So I guess if you're really a fan for fighting/shooter games, you can buy it, but for others, I suggest a rent.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 06/08/05