The computer game industry is up to its eyeballs with WWII-themed games, but it is truly significant when a game stands out as one of the best. The original Call of Duty is widely recognized as one of the most immersive shooters of its time. Now Infinity Ward is out to do it again with the sequel, Call of Duty 2, and to this end, they are very successful.

Above all, the graphics have been significantly upgraded with the latest technologies. So, all the characters look fantastic with very life-like animation. The attention to detail is fantastic, including planes battling it out in the skies. But we're not just talking about a fresh coat of paint here. This sequel successfully continues the Call of Duty experience by placing players in exciting situations where they have to act as part of a unit, because the war was not won by one person alone. There will be plenty of computer controlled soldiers by your side, and if you're feeling a little timid, they will aggressively push forward against the enemy to encourage you. The computer AI is pretty decent and there is never the feeling that they're just their as props while you do all the real work, although we did see the enemy throw a grenade at one his own units once. Enemies will spawn and generally attack in waves, but never in ridiculous numbers. The computer makes great use of cover and will often poke only their heads out to assess their surroundings before firing. Infantry and snipers can have their vision obscured with well placed smoke grenades.

The interface is pretty straightforward. The player can only carry two guns at any given time, even if one of them is a pistol, which makes the game somewhat reminiscent of the Halo engine. What furthers this is the fact that there is no health bar. As you are injured, the edges of the screen start to turn red, your visions blurs, and your heart rate increases. There are no health packs, but if you'll return to normal if you avoid further injury and sit still until everything resets. Those who like more traditional styles of gameplay might not take quickly to this method, but it's very easy to get used to. Also helpful is the little icon that pops up to let you know that there is a grenade nearby, giving you a few seconds to jump to safety.

Call of Duty 2 starts things off by putting you in the shoes of a new recruit for the Russian army who must defend Moscow and Stalingrad against invading Germans. Completing the first Russian mission unlocks the British ones, where you will switch from the snow-covered Russian streets to the sand swept deserts of North Africa, where you fight with the Desert Rats against Rommel's Afrika Corps. You won't be staying in the desert forever, though. You will eventually make your way to a bombed out Europe, however you will not be re-playing old classics like Omaha Beach again (which has been covered in numerous other games). No, you'll be experiencing D-Day from a new perspective... scaling cliffs with some heavy artillery dangling by your side as you assume the role of an Army Ranger. After the British campaign is completed, the American campaign is then unlocked. All this body switching, of course, makes it almost impossible to tell a coherent story. However Call of Duty isn't necessarily about storytelling - it's about experiencing. So, the game puts you in numerous scenarios that you have use your wits to work alongside your reflexes to get out of. One memorable sequence includes crawling through an old rusty pipe behind enemy lines. You can snipe Nazis through holes in the pipe, but nearby enemies will retaliate by firing back - filling your pipe full of holes, each with their own dynamic lighting. This is both an exhilarating and frightening experience!

The multiplayer is just as fun and fast paced as the first game. As to be expected, the usual deathmatch and capture the flag modes are included along with "search and destroy" from the original title, where one team has to plant a bomb and destroy an objective while the other team defends. Newly included is Headquarters mode. The map has two capture points where either team can set up headquarters. From there, points start accumulating. Players have to work to overrun the enemy bases to prevent them from getting more points. Killed players cannot respawn until their HQ is overrun or the time limit runs out. Once either happens, the control points move and both teams have to set up again. The shifting control points constantly keep players on their toes and maintains a swift pace for the game.

Call of Duty 2 is a fantastic game, but aside from graphics, doesn't offer much more of gaming experience than the first game. To be fair, the original title set the bar pretty high. Call of Duty 2 is a sequel that works more to continue and extend the original experience rather than try to reinvent the wheel. Still, with awesome graphics, superb sound design (with a moving orchestral soundtrack), and exciting gamplay - more of the same isn't too bad. Fans of the original will definitely have a good time with this. However, though the game runs pretty smoothly overall, there are a few places (particularly where fighting becomes very heavy) where game performance will start to sputter, even on high-end systems.

So, if you enjoyed CoD and wish to move to continue to the next phase of the experience, definitely pick up this game. Just be sure that you have a computer that is strong enough to back up the fantastic graphics and sounds. It's been said many times before, but it worth repeating... if you're not playing this game with surround sound, you're missing out! So, if you're ready for a great game experience, lock and load, because it's time to jump into the WWII fray yet again!