Medal of Honor: Allied Assault (2002)

Medal of Honor: Allied Assault (MOHAA) is a classic. As a spectacle, this was unmatched upon its release in 2002. Assaulting the beach at Omaha in the style of Saving Private Ryan is something I will never forget. When I was younger, it blew my mind.

I dusted off the old discs and installed the game only to find it incompatible with my PC. That's fine, it's available on GOG with both expansions, Spearhead and Breakthrough, for a very reasonable price. So I bought the game and readied myself to dive into a world of nostalgia.

First thing first, that theme hits you like a ton of bricks. It sends shivers down my spine. It is simply, like many things in this game, unforgettable.

I'm going to take an in-depth look and break it down a bit.

Graphics

Okay. It's not pretty. But this is 2019 and a 17 year old game. Generally, I can live with the graphics and for the most part they don't deteriorate from the gameplay. The only irritating aspect of this is the fog of war, which bothered me on a few levels by being unable to see enemies. There are fixes for this and I recommend giving it a go.

For its age, they're spectacular.

Sound

I've already mentioned the theme, which does a great job in making you feel like a war hero. Sounds are generally good within the game. Voice acting is stellar, and gun noises are satisfying. Explosions have a suitable boom. Not much wrong here.

Story

This is a WWII kill-every-nazi-in-sight game. There's not much going on. You are Lt. Patterson, an OSS badass out to stick it to the Nazis. There's no real story but I don't think that it's particularly necessary. If you're looking for a hair-raising dive into mystery, you won't find it here. "Go here, kill everyone". Sir yes Sir!

Gameplay

MOHAA's shooting stands the test of time for me. There's a satisfying feel to every kill. Enemies will swarm you and in the later parts of the game especially, it becomes difficult. Enemies have pinpoint laser accuracy and there is one particular mission where you crawl through a sniper infested town that was infuriating. A lot of the time, you are sent out by yourself. Other times, you have to protect team mates and as expected, these parts are annoying, especially when your team mates are absolutely useless. There are a number of stealth sections which I found were quite well done.

There're a number of highlights within the game, including sneaking into a U-boat facility in Norway in disguise. The tension is palpable and I loved this. Of course, you can just Rambo your way through it. This tended to be my preferred and most effective strategy. When stealth goes wrong, just kill everything that moves.

Missions are varied, as are the environments. I personally loved this aspect of the game. A lot of WWII shooters can get bogged down in Overlord and Russia. Here, we explore some of North Africa, some of Scandinavia, a lot of France and, if you fancy getting the worthwhile expansions, some other interesting areas. Absolutely fantastic.

There are some rail shooter sections. These can be a little annoying but are thankfully brief and not too difficult.

Summary

It is what it is. It's an ageing WWII shooter from another era. If you come in expecting the latest COD, then expect to be disappointed. It's worth noting that a core section of the development team left to create Infinity Ward, and indeed there are many similarities here between this and the original Call of Duty from 2003.

I recommend that everybody play this to appreciate what it is, in my opinion, one of the most influential shooters of all time. This was my first introduction and I've been hooked ever since.