Medal of Honor: Warfighter

This review is based on the Xbox 360 version of the game, which comes with two discs, not to mention a suggested 1.7 gigabyte texture pack install file. That means those who wish to experience the game at its best will need to clear up some space on their console’s hard-drive, as a result of a rather annoying tactic that Electronic Arts has used in the past. Though, it must be said that Warfighter does look noticeably better with the pack than it does without it.

Although the last line does ring true, this first-person shooter’s overall look is rather dull. There are a lot of dark rooms filled with enemies, not to mention a definite lack of variety. In fact, one of my favourite parts of the 2010 reboot was a unique, gameplay changing desert stage, where the sun’s blinding reflection made for a challenging close-quarters battlefield. There’s nothing like that in this game. The stages are predominantly forgettable, and they feel like they’ve been borrowed from previously released games.

When it comes to the aforementioned textures, there are hits and misses. Generally speaking, Medal of Honor: Warfighter lacks the polish its competitors boast, even in the visual department, and that fact is further marred by brief frame rate dips. It looks OK, but presents digital landscapes that are certainly not worth writing home about. The over-use of darkness also doesn’t help. Though, it must be said that the lighter scenes – especially some of the family focused cut scenes – do look pretty good. The characters’ faces look quite realistic, and they animate relatively well.

Last time around, D.I.C.E. developed the multiplayer content, while EA Danger Close crafted the single player part of the experience. This time, EA Danger Close developed both modes. Unfortunately, Electronic Arts’ decision to let them try their hand at creating an appealing multiplayer option wasn’t a great one, but we’ll get to that shortly. For now, it’s important to note that the competitive arenas don’t look all that appealing, with decent but forgettable designs, dated visuals complete with jaggies and bland character models.

Audiophiles will be happy to hear that the most impressive part of this entire experience happens to be its sound effects. Those who worked on that particular facet of the game deserve applause, because their work speaks for itself. The created effects are both realistic and impressive, adding immersion to a game that is otherwise lacking in that department.

While there are quality effects to be found within this iteration, their use is sometimes flawed. For example, there were times where I’d breach a doorway and would choose to use some sort of melee weapon to break the handle. It would usually take two or three swipes, with each one offering a metallic ring. That would’ve been fine if everything had been presented in seamless fashion, but there was a noticeable and off-putting delay that would push the first hit’s ring to the second hit and so on, making it so that the last effect wouldn’t occur until after the door had been broken into.

Going further, there were other audible issues. For one, certain explosions, shots and melee attacks would occur without a whimper. Additionally, the characters’ voice acting was recorded at a much lower volume than the effects, creating an unfortunate juxtaposition. Those unfortunate issues marred what should’ve been a high quality audio presentation.

These days, multiplayer is a major selling factor, especially when it comes to the first-person shooter genre. As a result, the majority of the industry’s most popular franchises now include at least one competitive mode. To some, that’s a great thing, though I believe that only certain types of games benefit from having online functionality where players can compete against each other. Not all gun-toting games should include it, though Medal of Honor: Warfighter and its war-centric peers are prime candidates.

As mentioned earlier in this review, EA Danger Close took the time to develop both the single player portion of this experience, as well as its multiplayer offering. That choice ended up affecting the game’s quality, because neither mode excels. The campaign is mediocre-at-best and won’t inspire gamers to return unless they’re achievement or trophy addicts who want to test their mettle against the unlockable hardcore and Tier-1 difficulties. Adding onto that, the multiplayer modes will surely become forgotten ghost towns in a short amount of time.

Disappointingly so, the included multiplayer options are easily the most dated of all of the on-disc content. Although a variety of modes – from team deathmatch to domination and objective based conflicts – are included, they don’t feel inspired. It also doesn’t help that the core gameplay feels like it was taken out of yesteryear, creating something that truly does feel like a first attempt.

What was a great opportunity for Electronic Arts’ previously beloved Medal of Honor franchise to regain its lost popularity has resulted in an uninspired and rather forgettable final product. There are some enjoyable moments to be found within its brief campaign, but its bland and dated multiplayer content won’t appeal to most folks. As a result, this is a game that is better served as a short rental or a bargain bin pick-up.