Call of Duty: WWII ditches all the wall-running/jump-boosting/future-parkour stuff from the last few entries. But I found myself playing and actually enjoying WWII over the weekend in a way I haven’t since maybe… Black Ops? I don’t typically spend much time talking about Call of Duty’s multiplayer, in part because the last few iterations just haven’t appealed to me much at all. Multiplayer feels just as retro, at least by 2017 standards. In terms easier to grasp, that means it’s the first time Call of Duty has used medkits for health since before the release of the Xbox 360. Hell, Sledgehammer’s even taken this throwback one step further, eschewing rechargeable health in favor of medkits-the first time since Call of Duty 2. Side note: WWII also features Call of Duty’s best behind-enemy-lines stealth mission since Chernobyl. Hearing the ping of an emptied M1 Garand, seeing that familiar gray-green color grading, hearing the rumble of Panzers coming over a hill-I missed it. As I said, it’s content to be a sort-of “World War II Video Game Greatest Hits Collection.”Īnd for those of us who were there, the nostalgia is still real. It doesn’t even feel like it’s trying to say something more interesting. Pierson is the absolute worst when it comes to hoary old “soldiering life” cliches.Ĭall of Duty: WWII has nothing to add to our understanding of World War II, nothing to say that hasn’t been said by dozens of its predecessors. Your friend Zussman ends up being the most fleshed-out character, and that depth literally goes as deep as “He’s part-Jewish and fighting Nazis.” IDG / Hayden Dingman He wants to head home to her but- spoilers! -decides duty comes first! Sergeant Pierson has a dark past involving Tough Command Decisions. Davis and his pals breeze through Normandy on the backs of the most generic platitudes. So if you played games between 19ish, this’ll feel very familiar.

We’ve seen it in Allied Assault, in multiple Call of Duty games, in Gearbox’s underrated Brothers in Arms series, and so on. Dredging up the ol’ D-Day to VE-Day storyline once again, from June of 1944 through to April of 1945, it’s the same Band of Brothers/ Saving Private Ryan story video games love to focus on. And if Call of Duty: WWII is the start of a World War II renaissance, it’s about the safest bet you could make.

Call of duty world war ii