I started playing Call Of Duty (2003) recently, mostly in some strange attempt to play through another shooter of This Era after playing Halo: CE not that long ago. Unfortunately it is... way more boring? I don't know what I expected

Halo: CE, while not without its quirks of the era, feels remarkably more modern! The UI, level design, and encounter design all feel far more approachable and interesting. In contrast, CoD feels like someone really wanted to do another Wolfenstein 3D but with a Spielberg OST

Which is... fine? I suppose? I mean, I suppose it nails what it was going for. There's just no real affection for characters (partially due to the game's ensemble storytelling, partially due to the historical setting, i think) and due to the setting, not a lot of enemy variety

It definitely feels "novel" in the sense that it was made with a remarkable attention to historical detail, but that coupled with the auto-respawning enemies & multiple "hold the point" levels (both of which would become series hallmarks) feel completely at odds with one another

It's obsessed with historical detail & Band Of Brothers-style cinematic framing, but also a game where in the first level you singlehandedly blow up four tanks. That the early entries in CoD are generally considered more tame than the later entries is v funny in retrospect

Anyway this thread brought to you by a bout of sudden & intense insomnia tonight!! So I'm awake at this hour