When EA games released Medal of Honor: Frontline for the PS2 it was an instant hit. Using the popular world war 2 theme, combined with amazing graphics, a cinematic musical score and plenty of action it was one of the most immersive first person shooters ever. While the game mostly lived up to the hype, it was not without its faults. Recently the game was re-released on the gamecube with an extra four player multiplayer option.
Gameplay:
Medal of Honor: Frontline is all about making the player feel like they are taking part in a battle in a world war two movie, and it is done very well for the most part. The first level is the most impressive having players storm the beaches on June 6th 1944 (D-Day). Playing the role of Lt. Jimmy Patterson, you find yourself on a transport ship, heading towards the beach head. The soldiers around you are obviously nervous, shaking, tapping the butt of thier guns on the floor, vomiting. Suddenly a german aircraft swoops down on your's and other ships, firing guns, and destroys the ship next to you. Its wrecked hull smashes into your craft and shakes everyone up. Soon after reaching the beach and the door is about to open, a shell strikes your ship and sends you and your fellow soldiers into the water. Here you see pretty much everyone who was just with you get whiped out in a matter of seconds, before even coming up for air. You arise from the water and rush to your commander who is taking refuge behind the wrecked ship. He tells you to assist other soldiers and to get up the beach under constant and endless MG-42 gunfire. Its an experience that few games can give you. Steven Spielberg (director of Saving Private Ryan) also has a major role in the creation of the Medal Of Honor series so some similarities are obvious.
Control:
This is where the game takes it only major fall. For the most part everything is ok, Changing weapons, navigating tight areas, taking cover. Its all easy to do with a good control set-up. The only problem I have is with the aiming system and this puts some hurt into the games challenge and overall ease to play. Aiming, like in most FPS games is handled by the analog stick. The problem is that its way too twitchy when you need to aim at a soldier thats right in front of you. Push the stick towards him and your crosshairs slowly crawl towards him while he shoots you a few times, push it a little harder and the crosshair takes off and goes right past him. Every gun fight feels like your adjusting a dial and can be very annoying. I usually found myself strafing left and right to move the cursor instead of the usual aiming mechanisms. After a few levels you do get a bit used to it and it becomes less of a problem. Its a shame that this wasnt tweaked since EA games had months fix it between the PS2 and gamecube release. Even with this major flaw, I still found the game to be enjoyable and I dont regret the purchase.
Aesthetics:
Being a nearly exact port of the PS2 game, the graphics are a little less than what could have been done on the Gamecube, but are impressive anyway. The textures are very highly detailed and the polygon count is high. The resolution looks very sharp as well. The framerate does seem to take a hit from this, running at anywhere between 30-60 fps and sometimes taking an occasional dip to 15. But oddly enough it doesnt hurt the flow of the game at all, and it never causes problems when your in the thick of a battle. There are plenty of great special effects and eye candy throughout the game. There is also very little distance fog and no pop-up.
Sound:
This is another amazing example of how sound and music can make a game great. The musical score is top notch with movie-like tunes that play at just the right moments. Sneaking down an alleyway plays a low key tension builder and then upon being discovered the music picks it up and starts to play a more action/desperation tone, like the gunfire thats breaking out. Very well done. The sounds are also wonderfully portrayed here, with original German language and recordings of the actual weapons being fired. The voice acting is nicely done for all characters.
Multiplayer:
The major add-on for the gamecube version is the four player splitscreen mode, which is a pretty welcome extra, but feels like it was just slapped on at the last minute. There are enough options, maps and weapons to make things fun and interesting, but after two weeks, my freinds refused to play it with me. Probably because there was no way they could ever beat me, even in a three on one match. Besides the usual aiming problems, this is a fun mode when your done playing the single player game.
OVERALL:
While it does have one annoying hang-up, the action, graphics and sound make up for it and keep this one as a must buy title. The game has lots of levels which are all varied and keep the graphics and gameplay fresh. If you already have the PS2 version you may want to save your money as the addition of the multiplayer mode alone isnt worth buying the same game again.
The Lowdown on  Medal of Honor: Frontline
| Aesthetics: Very Good |
Control: Below Average |
| Gameplay: Very Good |
Multiplayer: Average |
| Sound: Awesome |
Innovation: 4/6 |
| Lasting Appeal: 3/6 |
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Overall: Very Good!
"A Must-Buy"
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Medal of Honor: Frontline
