Medal of Honor: European Assault releasing to all consoles and PC

[Romier S]

IGN posted a small hands on preview with the latest Medal of Honor title. Given the recent release of Brothers in Arms which seems to handle many of the features EA's recent MOH is touting, I think it's a good time to start a discussion on the game.

 

The game looks to integrate squad commands in an effort to add more strategy to the firefights you'll experience:

 

Showing us isometric and top-down maps, Winters demonstrates how the wide open areas enable players to engage in combat in several locations on one map. In one war-torn manufacturing plant location, your man Holt can step into a secret underground lab, stay on the ground floor and hurl grenades, or send in his troops to fight in one battle while he attacks another one. The squad commands are simple; they're not at all as sophisticated and integral here as they are in Rainbow Six. Instead, they're more like Half-Life 2's simple commands -- go there, fight, return.

 

EA is also focusing on larger scale battles that incorporate more open endedness than the linear levels found in the previous games. More than 50 soliders can appear on screen at once with the newly created engine. The developers say:

 

Using the analogy of a theme park, Winters said that if the previous MOH games took gamers on a singular track, like a roller coaster, then European Assault will be like a theme park. The environments are filled with enemies and warring soldiers, and they're created so you can approach them from multiple angles, not just one. You'll have multiple rides. Adding to the theme, Designer Chris Cross explained there are so many people on a single MOH: European Assault level, 50 on screen simultaneously, they tally more than all of the other MOH games combined.

 

EA is also working in what it has dubbed "Rally mode" into the game which sounds very much like "bullet time" in games like Max Payne. A small tidbit on that:

 

In this mode, you reach a state of war supremeness - you're invulnerable, your shots delivery one-hit kills, and while everyone moves in slow motion, yours is heightened.

 

Taking a page out of the Halo book of design, your soldier can now only carry two weapons along with grenades. They can also pick up any weapon they seeon the ground. Characters can also use melee strikes and combos to take out the enemy as well as lean around corners now to get a quick look at what's ahead.

 

The game will also allow you to kick grenades back at enemy soldiers and shoot grenades out of thier hands. EA has implemented the Havok Physics 2.0 engine so expect to see some quality ragdoll effects. Also, from reading the preview it seems all version of the latest Medal of Honor will support progressive scan and widescreen displays.

 

On the AI font:

 

Speaking of the AI (or was I just talking about lifeless flesh puppets?), all of the NPC AI reacts to its environment on three levels - reflexively, tactically, and globally. There are different kinds of AI, some crazy aggressive, others preferring to snipe; they use tactics, so they'll use cover and hide; and they perform according to a bigger cause, not just because they see you. Also, the enemy comprises nemeses, not quite like mini-bosses, but especially strong enemy characters showing guile and the ability to survive. EA wouldn't elaborate, but we're intrigued.

 

Finally, and you best sit down for this one; European Assault will NOT include any type of online functionality. Noting the crappy implementation of such features in Rising Sun, they felt it best to not have any online at all instead of including something that was not up to quality.

 

You can read the rest of the article here .

 

Here's some screenies to whet your appetite:

 

 

You can see more here .

[exile]

Looks pretty but there are some issues I saw:

 

1. No online play. Though I"m sure the PC multiplayer will be adequate.

 

2. This:

EA is also working in what it has dubbed "Rally mode" into the game which sounds very much like "bullet time" in games like Max Payne. A small tidbit on that:

 

 

Quote:

In this mode, you reach a state of war supremeness - you're invulnerable, your shots delivery one-hit kills, and while everyone moves in slow motion, yours is heightened.

This sound pretty frickin stupid IMHO. No need for this in a WW2 game. I hope they leave this crap out.

 

Taking a page out of the Halo book of design, your soldier can now only carry two weapons along with grenades.

Annoyed with this but I can live with it.

combos to take out the enemy

COMBOS???? in a WW2 game?

The game will also allow you to kick grenades back at enemy soldiers and shoot grenades out of thier hands

So much for the realism.

 

This doesn't bode well for this franchise.

[Romier S]

Pretty much agree with most of your points Exile. The "Rally" mode is the most bothersome to me. Some "bullet time" style gameplay mechanic in the middle of a WWII game is about the last thing I want to see to be honest. The melee stuff I'm kind of at a wait and see phase. I'd like to see the implementation before really giving any thoughts as it could end up being pretty nifty in the end.

 

The two weapon system is fine by me and the kicking back of granades is something else that I'd like to see the implementation on. The lack of online in the game pretty much floored me. I don't expect online out of every FPS that gets released but Medal of Honor is one of those games you just kind of KNOW will have a multiplayer mode of some kind. EA ignoring it all together was a big suprise.

[EnemaEms]

I so cannot wait to pass on this game.

 

After Brothers In Arms, EA would have to basically have a videgame version of the parting of the Red Sea for me to play let alone buy another Medal of Honor game. My dogs crap doesn't stink as bad as Rising Sun does.

 

-Dean-

[exile]

EA must be really feeling the pinch from the Call of Duty series.