Medal of Honor: Allied Assault War Chest

Spectacular history, context, narrative, graphics, mechanics, music, sound, interface, is the best

You play as an American soldier in World War II, assigned to a series of missions set in different parts of the world during the conflict, starting in North Africa, then Norway, later entering occupied France - where most of the game plays out - and finally reaching Nazi Germany. The selection of guns, while not huge, is varied enough to keep things interesting all the way through the campaign. The enemy AI is responsive and offers a good challenge, although it does show some predictable and very exploitable behavior patterns. The level design is for the most part very linear. Only on a few occasions is it even possible to perform the tasks you need to complete the objective out of order. There is a lot of variety in the missions and a few different play styles present in the levels. Some pit you against the Axis forces with a team, others send you alone, a few levels ask you to defend your position from incoming waves of enemies, there are also undercover levels where you get the opportunity to move around disguised as a Nazi officer and don't actually have to shoot anyone - at least not until you blow your cover - as well as vehicle and turret sections to break up the pace. Built on a modified version of the Quake 3 engine, the game isn't particularly ugly but it doesn't impress. Character models are fine and some interiors have a lot of detail to them, but natural landscapes look blocky and excessively geometrical. Sound design is very authentic and the game makes use of many sound cues to enhance the gameplay. Enemies speak in their native languages and have a decent number of lines to shout at you. The original soundtrack is very, very good and really pumps you up, driving home the feeling of playing a Hollywood blockbuster World War II epic. My personal favorite mission in the game is the fourth one, Behind Enemy Lines, especially the last level where you have to infiltrate a Nazi command post and steal some intelligence.

It's tricky to play it on modern configurations, but worth having on the list and maybe play once in a while.

Firstly, I have many fond memories of the Medal of Honor series and Allied Assault is perhaps one of the finest examples of the franchise. The theming, aesthetics and atmosphere are remarkable considering the games age. Very few games, and even more modern takes on this genre fail to really capture the feeling of 1940's warfare. With an excellent ambient soundtrack, solid sound design and surprisingly good voice over and acting work, this title excels at delivering the look and feel of WW2. . With a mix of run and gun combat, stealth and espionage as you steal documents and sabotage tanks, guns and ammo caches and even the epic set piece of D-Day, these are timeless monuments to what PC gaming and FPS games had achieved back in the day. Disguising as a German officer and sneaking aboard a submarine, sneaking through in the darkness of night and avoiding spotlights while you weave your way deep into enemy territory. These were outstanding gaming memories when I was a youth and a lot of it holds up shockingly well even today. However, even nostalgia and the memories of my most formative experiences with gaming can not hide some of the issues of a game that has aged well in some areas and very poorly in others. By the time Mission 5 rolls around and you're in the last half of the game, the issues become too frustrating to be considered fun, even from a gaming veteran who prefers old and difficult games. The infamous "Sniper Town" level will lift the veil and the game will cease to have much fun left in it. The enemies carry snipers, do not miss, and know where you are 100 percent of the time. The games limited draw distance and graphical fidelity means it is nearly impossible to progress without quicksave cheesing and memorization of enemy locations. Combine with the fact that some sections have teleporting and infinitely spawning troops means that any sort of fun and engaging difficulty has been replaced with cheap shots and frustration.

I love this game a lot. It's one of my favorite childhood games. But unfortunately, given how classic games like this one just get older and technology only goes forward, it is becoming harder to run games like this without its set of technical issues. While I do have the patience to troubleshoot my old games, I'm sure many will find it frustrating to play and find out that something may be wrong graphically or sound wise. I just hope you give it a chance if you have not played this gem of a game yet.