Call of Duty

This article is about the first game in the series. For the series as a whole, see Call of Duty (series). For the GameCube, PS2 and Xbox game, see Call of Duty: Finest Hour.
Call Of Duty

Windows cover
Developer(s) Infinity Ward
Publisher(s) Activision
Designer(s) Keith Arem
Writer(s) Michael Schiffer
Composer(s) Michael Giacchino
Justin Skomarovsky
Engine id Tech 3
Version 1.5
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, N-Gage, Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network
Release date(s) NA October 29, 2003[1]
EU November 7, 2003
JP December 18, 2003

Genre(s) First-person shooter
Mode(s) Single player, Multiplayer
Rating(s) BBFC: 15
ESRB: T
OFLC: MA15+
PEGI: 16+
USK: 18+
PEGI: 15+ (Finland)
Media CD (2), DVD or Steam download
System requirements 600 MHz CPU, 128 MB RAM, 1.4 GB Hard disk space, 32 MB GPU

Call of Duty is a first-person shooter video game developed by Infinity Ward and published by Activision.[2] The game simulates the infantry and combined arms warfare of World War II. The game is based on the Quake III: Team Arena engine. It was accompanied in September 2004 by an expansion pack, Call of Duty: United Offensive, which was produced by Activision, and developed by Gray Matter Interactive, with contributions from Pi Studios.

Call of Duty is similar in theme and gameplay to Medal of Honor, as it is made out of single-player campaigns and missions. However, unlike Medal of Honor, the war is seen not just from the viewpoint of an American soldier but also from the viewpoint of British and Soviet soldiers.

The game is somewhat unusual in that throughout the single-player mode, the player is joined by computer-controlled allies who range in quantity from two infantrymen (in some of the British missions) to an entire regiment of tanks (in the Soviet missions). The computer-controlled allies will support the actual player during the missions (notable in this is the AI's effectiveness compared to other games like Medal of Honor). They also further the game's goal of providing an immersive and realistic experience; that is, soldiers in World War II were usually part of a larger group, as opposed to the "lone wolf" seen in video games such as Wolfenstein 3D. However, there are some missions where the player is alone.

Call of Duty also featured "shellshock" (not to be confused with the psychological condition of the same name), where when the player is close to an explosion, his vision is blurred, the player and time moves slower, and sound is muffled.

Re-Enactments
This game re-enacts the following battles:

Battle of Normandy
Battle of Hurtgen Forest
Battle of Stalingrad
Battle of Warsaw
Battle of Berlin
Special Operation on Eder Dam
Special Operation on Bavarian Alps
Special Operation on Dulag 183
Special Operation on Siegfried Line

[edit] Story

Clearing out a German bunker near Bastogne.The player starts out as Private Joey Martin of the 101st Airborne in Camp Toccoa, who is ordered to do weapons and movement training with Captain Foley, Sergeant Moody and the rest of the squad. Afterwards, the team takes part in Operation Overlord as a pathfinder, where Martin sets beacons ahead of the rest of the force to guide in the paratroopers. The team fights their way through the country side and secures Sainte-Mère-Église. There they hold off several counter-attacks, until Martin is ordered by Foley to travel across enemy territory with Moody and Private Elder in a French Tin Can to call for reinforcements. The three drive from Ste. Mere Eglise to their battalion headquarters, after dodging enemy fire and hotwiring a German Kubelwagen to escape the pursuing Germans. Later, the team receives orders from Major Sheppard to attack a nearby Nazi Gun Battery at Sainte-Marie-du-Mont, with other soldiers of the 101st Airborne. The team advances through the trenches, destroying several Flak 88's, until they reach a small area of the town to destroy the last Flak gun. The company is reserved for special operations, after which the team rescues Captain Price and Major Ingram from captivity in the German Alps and Austria.

In the British campaign, the player takes control of Sergeant Jack Evans of the British 6th Airborne NCO, who takes part of Operation Overlord in the capturing of Pegasus Bridge. The team rushes the bridge and take out a tank counter attack, securing it minutes later. The next morning, the British team uses German supplies to hold out against a large enemy counter-attack until being relieved by men from the 7th Parachute Battalion. Evans is reassigned to the SAS and takes part in the disarment of the Eder Dam in Germany. Evans escapes by truck to an airfield, where the rest of the team captures a Focke-Wulf Fw 200 to escape German territory. Later, Evans, Sergeant Waters and Captain Price destroy the boilers and capture documents from the German battleship Tirpitz off the coast of Norway, but Price is lost during the operation.

In the Russian campaign, the player assumes the role of Private (later Sergeant) Alexei Ivanovich Voronin, who is rushed into the Battle of Stalingrad. Alexei crosses the Volga River by barge with fellow Russian soldiers, under intense fire from the Luftwaffe. Alexei becomes the sole survivor of the flaming barge (destroyed by Luftwaffe), and works his way up the bluffs of the riverbank. He assists a sniper in taking out German machine gunners and eventually calls in an artillery strike on the remaining machine gun nests. After, Alexei then rushes up the bluffs and regroups with comrades preparing to attack Red Square. After assisting in the destruction of the German blockade, Alexei fights his way through an old railroad station and parts of Stalingrads residential area to regroup and debrief with Major Zubov. Two months after, Alexei travels through the sewers of Stalingrad to reinforce Sergeant Yakov Pavlov's unit attempting to retake an apartment building near the Stalingrad flour mill. He fights his way through the sewers, encountering numerous German patrols and eventually regrouping with a squad of Russian soldiers to continue fighting through the underground tunnels. Shortly after, Alexei finds Pavlov and his squad, after sniping down German snipers in the building, the Russians charge. After recapturing the building, they hold out until T-34-85 tanks and additional infantry support arrive. Two years after, Alexei attacks a tank factory in Warsaw, Poland and clears out the structure. Afterwards, Alexei is reassigned to the 2nd Guard's Tank Army, and must fight through the German countryside and a small German town near the Oder River.

Epilogues
After completing all the campaigns, there are three epilogue missions where the player participates in a final mission, one for each country. The first, Joey Martin and the Americans led by Captain Foley must assault two bunkers, and destroys two German tanks in the process. Next, Jack Evans and his squad led by Sergeant Waters, must advance to a German V-2 launch site to destroy the enemy rockets. The last mission features Alexei Voronin, where the Russians are in Berlin making their way to the Reichstag building. They engage numerous German positions, then plant the Soviet flag on top of the Reichstag, declaring victory for the Soviet Union.(also the last mission in call of duty waw)


[edit] Playable Characters
Private Joey Martin - Martin volunteered for the 101st Airborne in 1942 and was placed in Baker Company, 506th PIR, 101st Airborne Division. He sees action in France, Germany, Austria and Belgium.
Sergeant Jack Evans - Originally part of the 6th Airborne Division, Evans gliders in with the rest of the unit on D-Day to capture Pegasus Bridge in Normandy just behind the flank of Sword Beach. After the battle he is reassigned to the SAS and sees action in Norway and Germany.
Private-Sergeant Alexei Ivanovich Voronin - This Russian conscript fights with the 13th Guards Rifle Division, 2nd Guards Tank Army and the 150th Rifle Division. He sees action in Russia, Poland and Germany.

[edit] Reception
[show] Reception

Aggregate scores
Aggregator Score
GameRankings 91.52%[4]
Metacritic 91%[3]


Review scores
Publication Score
Allgame [5]
Edge 7.0 of 10[6]
Game Informer 9.0 of 10[7]
GamePro [8]
GameSpot 9.0 of 10[9]
IGN 9.3 of 10[10]
X-Play [11]



Call of Duty received critical acclaim upon its release, with a 91% average on Metacritic[6] and GameRankings.

Call of Duty won "Game of the Year" for 2003 from several reviewers. It was the recipient of the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences 2004 "Game of the Year" award, defeating games including Command & Conquer: Generals, Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne, and Rise of Nations. The game also received "Computer Game of the Year" and "Computer First Person Action Game of the Year", and was nominated for "Outstanding Innovation in Computer Gaming", "Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition", and "Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design" in the Interactive Achievement Awards.[12]

Call of Duty was also nominated for "Best Game" at the 2004 Game Developers Choice Awards. While it did not receive that award, it did win Infinity Ward the "Rookie Studio of the Year". Chuck Russom was also presented with the "Excellence in Audio" award for his work on the game.[13]

Review website IGN rated Call of Duty 9.3 out of 10, with reviewer Dan Adams saying "You have to love a game that glues you to your seat and keeps you interested... A thrilling piece of software that action fans should grab a hold of and love fiercely." His only negative critique was on the short length of the game, which many reviewers pointed out.[14]

Spinoffs
Because of Call of Duty's success, it spawned numerous spinoffs and sequels. Call of Duty 2, was developed by Infinity Ward and was released in October 2005. Some Call of Duty spinoffs were developed exclusively for consoles, such as Call of Duty: Finest Hour by Spark Unlimited and Call of Duty 2: Big Red One by Gray Matter Interactive and Treyarch. Call of Duty 3, the first sequel to appear on consoles only, was released in November 2006 and developed by Treyarch and Pi Studios. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare was released for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and the PC. A handheld version was also produced for the Nintendo DS. Another handheld game, Call of Duty: Roads to Victory was released March 14, 2007 for the PlayStation Portable, the N-Gage, and the Pocket PC. On December 3, 2007 it was announced that Call of Duty: World at War would be developed by Treyarch. It was released November 11, 2008 in the US, and on November 14, 2008 in Europe.[15] A sequel to Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare called Modern Warfare 2 is in production and will be released November 10, 2009. It is worth noting that Modern Warfare sub series will become a separate IP, and lose the "Call of Duty" moniker.[16]


[edit] Other versions
The Mac OS X version of Call of Duty was ported by Aspyr Media. In late 2004, the N-Gage version was developed by Nokia and published by Activision.[17] Other versions were released for PC, including a collector's Edition (with soundtrack and strategy guide), Game of the Year Edition (includes game updates), and the Deluxe Edition (which contains United Offensive expansion and soundtrack in the USA. In Europe the soundtrack is not included). Xbox Live Arcade and Playstation Network versions were recently certified. [1]


[edit] References
1.^ "Call of Duty release date announced". Gamershell. http://www.gamershell.com/news/9524.html. Retrieved on 2007-10-18.
2.^ Gamespot - Call of Duty Retrieved on September 23, 2007
3.^ http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/callofduty?q=Call%20of%20Duty
4.^ http://www.gamerankings.com/pc/914586-call-of-duty/index.html
5.^ "allgame ((( Call of Duty > Overview )))". Allgame. http://www.allgame.com/cg/agg.dll?p=agg&sql=1:43365. Retrieved on 2008-05-15.
6.^ a b "Call of Duty (pc: 2003): Reviews". Metacritic. http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/callofduty?q=call%20of%20duty. Retrieved on 2007-09-23.
7.^ http://gameinformer.com/NR/exeres/DEF15DE0-547E-48B8-AEBD-3BFBEF400C4F.htm?CS_pid=645313
8.^ "Review: Call of Duty for PC on GamePro.com.". GamePro. http://www.gamepro.com/computer/pc/games/reviews/31578.shtml. Retrieved on 2008-05-15.
9.^ "Call of Duty for PC Review - PC Call of Duty Review". GameSpot. http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/callofduty/review.html. Retrieved on 2008-05-15.
10.^ "IGN: Call of Duty Review". IGN. http://pc.ign.com/articles/456/456776p1.html. Retrieved on 2008-05-19.
11.^ "X-Play review Call of Duty PC - PC Call of Duty review". X-Play. http://g4tv.com/xplay/reviews/222/Call-of-Duty.html. Retrieved on 2009-03-13.
12.^ "7th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards". Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. http://www.interactive.org/awards.php?winners&year=2004. Retrieved on 2007-09-23.
13.^ "4th Annual Game Developer Choice Awards". Game Developers Choice Awards. http://www.gamechoiceawards.com/archive/gdca_4th.htm. Retrieved on 2007-09-23.
14.^ "Call of Duty Review". Dan Adams. IGN. http://au.pc.ign.com/articles/456/456776p1.html. Retrieved on 2007-09-23.
15.^ "Call of Duty Headquarters". http://www.callofduty.com/CoDWW. Retrieved on 2008-11-02.
16.^ "MTv Multiplayer". http://multiplayerblog.mtv.com/2008/12/03/activision-announces-guitar-hero-5-new-tony-hawk-call-of-duty-modern-warfare-2-more-at-in-game-ad-conference/. Retrieved on 2009-01-10.
17.^ "Call of Duty (N-Gage) Review". http://gamefreaks365.com/review.php?artid=269. Retrieved on 2009-04-14.