European Union

Game: Call of Duty
System: Microsoft Windows
Release date: October 29, 2003
Developed by: Infinity Ward
Published by: Activision

Although not nearly as revolutionary as titles like GoldenEye 007, Half-Life and Halo: Combat Evolved, the original Call of Duty was a milestone first-person shooter, one which arguably popularized the WWII shooter more than any other similar franchise, including Medal of Honor.

Call of Duty is divided into three campaigns: American, British and Russian. The game follows infantrymen from each national army as they march across the occupied territories toward their ultimate destination, Berlin. Each campaign has a set of missions: rescue missions, tank battles, sabotage, infiltration, nerve-shredding escapes. Rarely does an individual soldier enter the battle alone; usually each infantryman is flanked by several friendly soldiers.


Call of Duty, mercifully, begins with a training session, which familiarizes the player with the control scheme, the function of weapons and the basics of long-range and close-quarters combat. Because the game strives so resolutely for realism, each soldier can carry only two weapons at a time in addition to a sidearm and grenades.

Unlike its immediate successors, which introduced a regenerative health system, Call of Duty gives soldiers a health bar which can only be refilled with health packs scattered around the game environments. This results in very challenging and sometimes frustrating levels which can be cut short by a stray bullet.

Call of Duty Classic, a graphically enhanced port of the original Call of Duty, was released for Xbox Live Arcade earlier this month.

Score: 91/100