This game is such a wasted opportunity. They've taken an interesting setting and reduced it to a cringeworthy adolescent romp. The gameplay is fun. Utterly derivative of similar titles such as GTA, but fun none-the-less. Driving around Paris is a hoot. The gun-play and stealth are satisfying. The atmosphere is also really nice to be in. The music and aesthetics construct a solid sense of place that drews you in to the setting. What a shame about the writing and treatment of women. Characterisation in the game is mostly based on lazy stereotypes. The player-character (though based on a real life Brit) is an Irishman who loves drinkin', fightin', fuckin' and blowin' things up, all whilst speaking in a very dodgy attempt at an Irish accent. At one point he says "that's how we do things in Belfast" whilst sounding so far from Belfast it's ridiculous. The French are rude, the Brits shady, and the Germans cartoonish villains (I prefer it when depictions of Nazis explore the banality of evil, that's the real insidious thing about them). Yawn. There's no regard to historical accuracy in the slightest. For example, the Germans begin the war with a surprise invasion of France, which is obviously way off the mark to anybody with a passing familiarity of the war. But whatever, let's just pretend it's an alterate universe. This is not the worst offence of the game. But the real icing on the cake is how women in game exist as nothing more than sexual objects. You've a faceful of bottom before even reaching the title screen, then once again when starting the actual game. It is relentless, helped in no small part by the homebase being a strip joint. And of course, they all throw themselves at the player. It's such a pathetic adolescent fantasy that it ruins what could have been a fun delve into a fascinating era. It cheapens the whole game.
