Result : 8 - absorbing WW2 1st person shooter.
 | Graphics: 7 - Moody. |
| FMV : 8 - Historical (they trying to make us learn?). |
| Sound : 10 - Achtung! |
| Music : 7 - 1940's style. |
| A.I. : 8 - Good for a difficult genre. |
| Lifespan : 6 - Short - MGS length. |
| Gameplay : 9 - Better than Quake 2? |
| Adrenaline : 8 - Die Englander. |
Medal of Honour has the premise of one Jimmy Patterson, a noted soldier/pilot, joining the OSS and going behind German lines in WW2. Much skulking and shooting follows, along with other usual 1st person shooter gameplay elements. There are multiple missions, all with widely different gameplay styles, if you want to unlock the secrets however, you will have to kill 95% of the enemy per level, so some of the stealth missions end up quite brutal as well.
The graphics are mostly dark and moody, with many missions at night, or in tunnels. The walls can get a bit pixelated up close, but it isn't something you normally notice. There is the slightest bit of clipping, and more annoyingly, sometimes you "stutter" on objects that you walk into. The sound is one of the best. Weapons are almost perfect, spent shell ejecting noises, loads of dialogue (in German too), and is one of the things that greatly enhances the atmosphere. The music feels 1940s, but most has been composed for the game. The menu screen is always completely clear, but it is also flavoursome, and this Medal of Honours best selling point; you can feel that WW2 tension. The two player mode takes another hit in graphical degradation, but will probably add to the lifespan, and provide some after pub humour.
Sure Quake 2 may look better (and runs smoother too), but this is an absorbing game, that feels more interactive movie than "just a game". Arguably the best single-player, 1st person shooter I have played on my playstation. The main quibbles are the stuttering that happens occasionally, the linear nature of the levels, and the comparative shortness of the overall game. It is definitely more sedate than Quake 2, but doesn't really suffer because of this, the game is more holistic, and maybe nostalgic too. Medal of Honour deserves a Distinguished Service Cross.
Enter the following passwords to enable the following codes. The Enigma machine will flash to confirm entry.:
Multiplayer Characters FINESTHOUR Winston Churchill WOOFWOOF Bismarck the Dog HOODUP Wolfgang ROCKETMAN Werner von Braun PAYBACK William Shakespeare SSPIELBERG Velociraptor BIGFATMAN Col. Muller HERRZOMBIE Otto Miscellaneous Codes MOSTMEDALS Invincibility (Audie Murphy mode) TRACERON Wire frame graphics AJRULES Designer picture COOLCHICK Designer picture BADCOPSHOW Infinite ammo ICOSIDODEC Rapid fire GOBLUE Reflecting shots DENNISMODE Special multi-player powerups SPRECHEN American movie mode CAPTAINDYE Captain Dye mode (health stays same from level to level) INVASION Making of level 1 BIGGRETA Making of level 2 DASBOOT Making of level 3 STUKA Making of level 4 KOMET Making of level 5 TWOSIXTWO Making of level 6 MISSLEAGUE Making of level 7 VICTORYDAY Making of level 8 Password Mission # and Name RETTUNG 1 Rescue The G3 Officer ZERSTOREN 2 Destroy The Mighty Railgun Greta BOOTSINKT 3 Scuttle Das Boot U-4901 SENFGAS 4 Attack Impenetrable Fort Schmerzen SCHWERES 5 Sabotage the Rjukan Hydro Plant SICHERUNG 6 Capture the Secret German Treasure GESAMTHEIT 7 Escape The V2 Rocket Plant
