Sloppy Potatoes

Call of Duty 3 Review (Xbox 360)

‘Overall (Call of Duty 3) was great fun, but I think there were more glitches here than there were in the other two episodes.’

Call of Duty 3 is not just “another World War II game.” There are lots of World War II games out there, but if companies like Treyarch and Activision keep putting out gems like this, keep’em coming.

Much like the exquisite Call of Duty 2: Big Red One for Xbox and Call of Duty 2 for Xbox360, COD3 delivers and awesome, action-packed thrill ride. The shootouts can be intense and there are moments where you’re not sure if the waves of Nazi’s will ever end.

After beating the game, over the course of a couple months, I went back to just to play a random level. I chose the second one and was impressed with how much fun it was, even though it was the second time I played through it.

There are multiple difficulty settings and the default normal setting is a fun playthrough. If the veteran setting is anyhing like Call of Duty 2, be prepared to die often.

The fact that most every level involves entering an area, clearing it of Nazi’s and moving on, this game should get boring and repetitive. But with a good story, told better than Big Red One or COD2, and somewhat smooth controls it’s a fun ride.

I only have one complaint about the controls. Why am I still getting hung up on things while walking and why can I only hop over obstacles when the developers say I can. One cheap thrill in this game comes from having to enter into a building when the other soldiers hop over a stone slab.

Many of the glitches came late in the game, when I had to clear out some buildings and was stuck inside while my not-so-dead-eye teammates tried in vain to shoot an enemy right in front of them. Eventually the killed him but I spent about 15 minutes trying to figure out a way out of the house. After those crack shots killed the last Nazi in the section one of my guys jumped in the house and kicked down a door in a scripted scene.

Overall it was great fun, but I think there were more glitches here than there were in the other two episodes.

Like the other two episodes I’ve played, there are countless unlockable history lessons for every weapon and vehicle you commandeer/use, which is a nice bonus for history buffs and completists.

Speaking of completists, as with every Xbox360 game, there are achievements to be unlocked. I unlocked 380/1,000 through a playthrough on normal and by completing some objectives, like completing a level using only rifles, etc. Several of the points are online only.

I tried getting online to test out what seem like some cool gametypes but ran around an empty battlefield capturing bases from myself. My online avatar did take some fire at one point though. I grenaded myself one time because I wanted to change into a different soldier class. There was noone to be found anywhere. I’ll try again sometime soon and if there’s a change I’ll note it here. Until then, don’t expect to find much competition over Live.

SP’s recommendation: Rent it.

(This review originally posted in February 2007)