Call of Duty 2

To this day beating COD2 on Veteran I still consider to be my life's crowning achievement...
This game was more fun than all the new COD’s........ they made men's childhood good, meaningful.
MacGreggor! My boy MacGreggor. "It was beautiful the day that I lost you."
COD2 means a lot of firsts for me. It was the game I played at a friends house that finally convinced me to get my own PC with a good Graphics Card (for the time) to allow me to play it. It was the first time a game made me feel part of a battle field as just another guy in the middle of a chaotic battle. The sound design was such a step forward in terms of immersion. The constant distant crackle of gun fire, the loud explosions and weapon fire. The AI team mates pushing forward in the fields around you.It was incredible. All these things are so commonplace in FPS campaigns today, but back in COD2 they felt like "holy sh*t!" levels of good.
Longest campaign and probably the most open COD experience before they went all scripted spectacle. Those missions like The Tank and Silo where you have a big part of the city with several objectives that you can tackle in any order while constant unscripted mayhem erupts around you is the most fun I ever had in any COD game ever. Definitely most repayable game because how open level are you are guaranteed to not have the same gunfight twice.
I can never scrub the line "Krauts! By the 88! South-East of the telephone poles!" from my memory, so hilarious was its hammy voice actor in El Alamein, or having a laughing fit when 'Comrade Commissar' told us "these potatoes are worth more than you are" during the tutorial in Russia. And the multiplayer, whew. I was so darn addicted to the multiplayer. Played it so much I remember each and every corner in some of the maps and doing all those epic parkouring to get there just to have an advantage. Such good memories.
Call of Duty 2 is to this day peak WW2 FPS to me. The sincerity in the portrayal of the war and the combat is something I don't think any newer game can replicate. The campaigns were epic, multiplayer was fantastic. It's disappointing that COD moved away from the big set pieces and the general vibe of playing a small fry in a big war (which made it special to begin with) to a generic "you're the hero" narrative of basically every other fps.
It's completely iconic. Every single entry after this game can be attributed to the story, multiplayer, and gameplay mechanics of this one. This was THE Call of Duty game that made Call of Duty what it is today. Such a simple yet mechanically solid game, with amazing maps and gameplay. Even if somewhat dated nowadays I'd go back to it just so I don't have to be subjected to the quite frankly exhausting war crime masturbation of later installments. Glad to see there are still folks who appreciate COD2 for the masterpiece it is.
10/10

It's been close to 20 years since Call of Duty 2 released. I was working at EB Games and this game was on display and available to try out for the customers. The evenings were often dead, and I would spend much of that time working my way through this game, often in awe at the impressive gameplay, visuals and scripted events throughout the campaign. The action is intense and the sound effects really added to the immersion of fighting for our lives as either American, British or Soviet soldiers. The allied and enemy AI were quite advanced for the time, adding to the excitement of getting through a level. I replayed this game recently and it still holds up as one of my favourite Call of Duty games.

I miss 2006, I miss 800x600 resolution, I miss 60 HZ LCD monitors, I miss endless Friday nights on teamspeak learning nades, I miss finding matches on mIRC, I miss quality games requiring skill, I miss trashtalking enemies and buggy punkbuster, I miss always searching for the best config....FXCK.... :

This game holds up surprisingly well in a few areas. The audio design still works — rain, machine guns, debris — all make you feel present even with outdated graphics. Explosions and smoke effects are better than expected from 2025. Level design and enemy pacing stay solid, especially noticeable on higher difficulties when you know exactly where and when the next wave hits.
The real reason I bought it wasn’t the gameplay though (and I’m not a fan of the series, or of military shooters in general). It’s tied to childhood: summer breaks in the countryside, an old laptop overheating on my knees, endless evenings replaying the same missions. At full price it’s a rip-off, but for a few dollars on sale, it’s a piece of personal history, another brick in a Steam collection.

If you're a gamer you don't need me to tell you that Cal of Duty 2 is the best call of of all time, you already know that and if you're a young and/or cheater you don't want to listen to me when I tell you.
Gameplay:
Call of Duty, the real legend.
Today we have story modes of 6 hours maximum, and it's clear that the devs don't give a damn, they're just doing it for the license, but they don't want to do it, and not only don't want to do it, they don't know how.
Call of Duty 2, a complete story mode that sends us right into the conflict and offers us the chance to experience a real story, not just 6 hours of blah, blah, blah that goes nowhere.
A little blah, a lot of fighting and conclusions, everybody is dead! Everything you need for a good WW2 story.
Memorable gameplay, the likes of which you don't see any more.
Today, when you approach a battle, you don't think about whether you're going to live or die; you just move forward and head-shoot isolated AIs.
In the real Call of, you come to a village and see enemies everywhere, you don't wonder whether you're going to live or die, you don't have time, they're everywhere.
THEY'RE EVERYWHERE AND I DON'T HAVE ENOUGH BULLETS IN MY GUN!!!!
And when you've killed them all, THEY COME BACK!!!
You step on them, but it doesn't matter, it makes less noise. They disappear when there are too many of them.
That's call of, a story that lasts, you get your money's worth and you get a real kick out of it.
You don't get harassed by cheaters and kids who insult everyone as soon as they get killed by another cheater.
kids don't know what call of is, activision devs don't know what call of is because when the real call of came out, they weren't born.
Today, they don't want story mode, they want multiplayer, and that's a shame. Rather than create another license for kids and cheaters, they'd rather send gamers packing, trashing our license to make money.
R.I.P Call of Duty
If you like war games, come and discover what's available on steam.

Call Of Duty 2 is developed by Infinity Ward and released in 2005.
It is the second major installment in the franchise, released two years after the first.
This second opus is faithful to its predecessor, and features three campaigns set during the Second World War.
The Soviets, the British and the Americans are playable in very different but equally apocalyptic settings.
Your war journey will be the most heroic and brutal yet.
During the Russian campaign, you'll take on the role of soldier Vasili Koslov of the 13th Red Army Rifle Division.
You'll have to defend glorious Soviet Russia against the relentless onslaught of the Wehrmacht.
In addition to the Russian cold, the Germans will face the formidable Soviet army, inexperienced and ill-equipped, but valiant and ruthless.
You'll take part in the merciless Battle of Stalingrad to liberate the country from the Germans by advancing eastwards.
Glory to the Motherland and Comrade Stalin!
In the British campaign, you'll play Sergeant John Davis of the 7th Armored Division.
You'll have to survive the terrible "Desert War",
fighting against the Afrikakorps troops of General Rommel.
In addition to the great Battle of El Alamein in Egypt,
the "Desert Rats" will fight the Germans in Libya and even Tunisia.
Finally, in the American campaign, you'll be Corporal Bill Taylor of the 2nd Ranger Battalion.
After surviving the D-Day in Normandy,
you'll have to reconquer France, then push the Wehrmacht back to Germany,
scene of the appalling Battle of Hill 400...
Taking on Nazi Germany's dreaded Wehrmacht is no easy task.
You'll need to complete a number of objectives in order to weaken the Third Reich.
For example, you will have to blow up tanks with explosive charges,
exterminate waves of enemies with a sniper rifle or a machine gun,
hold a siege while awaiting reinforcements,
destroy fuel and ammunition depots,
find strategic enemy documents,
fight from a tank or the turret of an armoured vehicle,
combat the Luftwaffe with a Flakvierling...
The campaigns are very well made, but leave a taste of unfinished business, as if each one lacked a grand finale.
COD2 marks the return of the charismatic Captain Price, who will be seen again in Modern Warfare.
A certain Miller is also on board, and will be seen again in World At War.
The allies include a man named Weaver, like in Black Ops.
There's even a fighter by the name of Pearson, as in COD WWII.
The soldiers West & Zampella are an obvious reference to the co-founders of Infinity Ward.
Weapons suffer from a much more pronounced recoil than in previous games, but this in no way detracts from the thrill of shooting, which is as exhilarating as ever.
A minor drawback, however, is that when you're being shot at, the character you're playing is systematically aiming too high in the air, making it difficult to shoot back.
COD2 features a wide range of period weapons.
Several rifles can be used, some with scopes: Kar98k, Mosin Nagant, SVT40, Gewehr 43, Lee Enfield, Springfield, M1 Garand, BAR, M1A1, Bren...
You'll need to hold your breath when using Sniper Rifles to aim as accurately as possible, rather like Sniper Elite.
A number of secondary weapons are also included, making them ideal for indoor combat: PPSh-41, PPS-42, MP40, MP44, Thompson, Sten.
COD2 is more beautiful, spectacular and scripted than its predecessors.
The game's atmosphere is breathtaking,
and brings to life the atrocity of the Second World War with panache.
The music is very typical of the period, but is sparse and emphasizes moments of bravery and victory.
The actor who voices the soldiers deserves an Oscar for his dedication to the role, and for his insane voice.
This second COD is full of small improvements:
enemies can be seen on the compass, and a grenade indicator makes it easier to spot them.
Unfortunately, however, it is not possible to throw back enemy grenades,
which would be very practical, given the Krauts' penchant for throwing them with surgical precision.
Allied soldiers, on the other hand, can return grenades to the sender.
If you're playing on Veteran difficulty, your patience will be sorely tested.
Some sequences are insanely difficult, beyond the point of absurdity,
making COD2 one of the most difficult games in the franchise,
alongside World At War and COD MWII 2022.
Progress is slow, the Germans are numerous, they react quickly, aim well and are very tough on the battlefield.
The fact that you can't save manually further complicates the task, and the auto-regeneration of health just makes the game playable.
Call Of Duty 2 is an excellent war game, almost as good as its predecessor.
It is, however, less realistic and much more brutal and action-oriented than the first game.
Beware of its high difficulty, which may put off inexperienced players.

Game looks amazing, even after all these years. And who would have thought that it's been 20 years already. Still works flavlesly, even on windows 11.