Medal of Honor European Assault

Medal of Honor: European Assault is an interesting game. It lies somewhere between Frontline and Rising Sun, having moments of unbelievable excitement, and moments where the experience isn't quite right. This isn't the Frontline killer we've been waiting for, or the game that'll put Medal of Honor back on top as the premier war/combat game. It is, however, the closest thing we'll get to a Frontline sequel, and is one of the best excuses to stay indoors during the hot summer months.

Starring a fictitious soldier with very bad voice-acting skills, European Assault takes gamers to – where else? – Europe. The story sequences are pretty useless and can be skipped at any time. I liked how they had [a real?] veteran speak about his experience in the war, but once it switched over to his young counterpart (the voice actor), I lost all interest.

Never fear, gamers. European Assault may be disguised by a story but in reality the game was made for one purpose: to enable us to kick some major military butt. We do that with authentic weapons, clever bomb deployment, and a great duck-and-cover aiming system. As Tony the tiger might say, "These are mechanics Medal of Honor fans have grown to love. They're grrrrrrrrrrreat!"

One new feature is there to be explored: Adrenaline Mode. Fill the Adrenaline meter not by firing your weapon, but by successfully hitting your target when the trigger is pulled. Unleashing the full power of Adrenaline means brief invincibility! Ammo does not deplete during this time, so you can pass through dangerous areas, take down a few enemies and not think twice about it. On the downside Adrenaline Mode does slow the game down to create the intense effect of a war movie. (Additionally, there are moments when the action slows down and the sound becomes muffled. This occurs if you stand too close to a bomb before it goes off, or if you're near a vehicle when it explodes.)

It may seem like there's a lot of diversions, but European Assault is primarily about killing the enemy, and that's where you'll derive the most fun. I had a blast running through corridors, exploring new territory, which leads to bonus objectives. One of my favorite things to do when moving through a tight area was to throw a grenade ahead of me. I'd inch forward before the explosion, then after the grenade went off I'd move in for the kill, shooting any enemy that remained.

This backfired 70% of the time. Medal of Honor's enemies are no longer considered the most intelligent adversaries in a console game, but they're far from stupid. If a grenade is thrown and they think they have time to pick it up before it explodes, watch out! They'll grab it, throw it your way, and wait (with guns ready) to see what you're going to do about it.

That's why I like to throw three grenades at a time. It's costlier. Grenades don't grow on trees, and finding them isn't always easy (though sometimes it is). But if you throw three, one will be picked up. One might be out of range. And the other - it's practically guaranteed to hit.

If you think that's bad, wait till you see what happens when the clock strikes 12.

This is the best of what the game has to offer. When you think it's getting easy, when you think you've got it beat, more enemies start to appear. They get faster, increasingly better weaponry, and find the most inconspicuous places to hide.

Most challenging of all are the super soldiers. They're so strong they get a life meter! Gunning them down isn't always difficult. If they see you coming, however, or if their comrades are watching, you're doomed. Super soldiers are equipped with machineguns and other weapons that aim to please the user, not the recipient. It's next to impossible to deal with that kind of pain plus the gunfire of four or five stragglers at the same time.

Numerous soldiers have been ordered to give you a hand during these tough times. A few of them will even travel through the game with you, but like you they have limited health and will be killed if you don't protect and heal them whenever necessary. Only eight health packs can be stored at a time, so it's not a bad idea to pass them out to your fellow troops every now and then.

The worst part of waking up is fire in your cup.

If there is any aspect where the game really falls short it's the overall feel of the gameplay. It isn't quite at the level where you expect it to be. The controls are good, not great. The combat is exciting, not mind-blowing. The sound effects are intense but not any more intense than Frontline and Call of Duty. It's like every necessary component is there ... they just haven't been screwed in right.

These flaws are not so huge that you should say farewell to the Medal of Honor series. Just beware of the content before you give up $50 for it. European Assault is a fun, thrilling shooter that rarely has a boring moment.

Gameplay: 8.3
Carnage, carnage, carnage. That's what you get when you open the box. Medal of Honor: European Assault may not be the most challenging game in the series, but it's certainly the most brutal. The early levels are reminiscent of Frontline in that there are times when you have to search for someone to shoot. That's annoying until you reach the missions where opposing forces are everywhere in sight. Kill them and more will rush in. The irony is that now you almost wish you could go back to the days when you had to search for enemies.

Graphics: 7.0
Is it me or does Frontline look more realistic? I think it appears to be that way because our expectations were at a different level back then. Graphics suffer from depreciation. Off the lot the car is shiny and new; years later the color fades and the paint chips. Visually, European Assault is the car you bought several years ago. It’d be considered a graphically impressive game … if this was 2001.

Sound: 6.9
If this was my first Medal of Honor I’d be bursting with praise. It’s got emotion, and it sounds like deep war music that’s appropriate to the scenarios. For most people (including myself) this will be the fourth or fifth Medal of Honor. These new, less original themes cannot compare to Frontline’s unforgettable soundtrack.

Difficulty: Medium
EA could promote this game like a kids’ cereal: “Same crunchy taste, now with MORE soldiers!”

Concept: 7.0
Steps ahead of Rising Sun but not as articulate as Frontline, European Assault is, creatively speaking, another version of the same game. Don’t expect much innovation from this series till it makes its PlayStation 3 debut (whenever that is).

Multiplayer: 7.9
No online features means limited fun for multiplayer enthusiasts. It does have a fairly expansive four-player split-screen mode though, and it is definitely worth checking out.

Overall: 8.0
An honorable end to the current generation of Medal of Honor games. Most of European Assault’s flaws are fought and defeated by the constant flow of bullets being shot at your head. That kind of thing tends to cause memory loss, or at the very least it makes you forget about little things like “the music isn’t as good” or “the graphics are dated.”