Call of Duty 3 (EN)

The story begins in an American training camp, where the player has to shoot at helmets, when this is done, the high-ranking officer of the camp says several times "shooting at helmets is better when there are Krauts underneath", the Germans will only be referred to by this name throughout the game.

The first mission take place just afterwards and the justification for it was the fact that the Germans had stolen the Americans' food reserves: it was therefore necessary to take revenge and recover their supplies. The scene leading up to this mission let the voice-over explain that the French were waiting for the Allied landings to liberate the city of Paris.

This complicated relationship with the French people emerges throughout the game, even when they are not present: the game is swarming with remarks such as "we could stay at the barracks to eat croissants" or even "the French only know how to do two things: surrender and french kiss".

The mission is therefore to take back a territory from the Germans who are occupying it: during the crossing of the road all the companions of the training camp, who all had a name and a rank specified during the previous sequence of training, die except the corporal and the player (is this pattern systematic?) and the battle begins in a cemetery. Very quickly during the progression one finds oneself facing a raging German in hand-to-hand combat, and if one does not react immediately death is assured. Once again we find the principle of "kill or be killed".

In the middle of the mission, one of the American soldiers picked up along the way threatens to desert and is pointed at by the corporal who reminds him that the death penalty awaits even deserters fleeing critical fighting: this moment will be played down a little later, but the threat will still be recalled as what awaits deserters and the only reason they laugh about it later is because the soldier has changed his mind.

The cinematic before the second mission offers a fast-paced history lesson on the retaking of the cliff pocket, a place that has seen "the bloodiest, fiercest fighting of World War II", the fact that this battle is not known is countered by what the narrator explains and it gives the impression that the references to the cruelty and the difficulty of winning this battle are only there to currently make the player want to participate in it.

One dies very easily, after about three bullets (but only one can be enough if shot in the head), which forces one to adopt a reflex behaviour and kill without thinking, in order not to be killed first. When you resume the game after turning off the console, you are forced to watch again the animated sequences explaining how merciless the battles were, this one is impossible to pass, even if you were in the middle of the mission.

Moreover, the Germans always shout inconsistent things when they die, such as "ein, zwei, drei" or "ein schildkröte" (which means turtle) and the objective is indicated on the map at the bottom left of the screen by a yellow star. We often have to chase after them at the end of the missions to kill them all (they call it "clearing the area") because they run away ("like cowards" says the corporal before sending us after them).

All in all, being a good soldier requires the same parameters as in MW3: having good reflexes and following orders to the letter. The red thread of the behaviour to have is slightly less present (one can vaguely visit the surroundings as long as one doesn't reach the point triggering the sequence of events).

The ideology is on the other hand much less subtle, whether in the treatment of the enemy: the Germans hide behind Gatling guns to attack, retreat easily, attack by surprise (the Nazi-zombie mode that appeared later in the franchise already seems not far) and Americans without whom, according to the game, we would never have won the war, each of their lives is important even if some sacrifices are "mandatory" and they fight only for the honor of their country.

The second mission of the game sees the character of Pierre Laroche, a member of the resistance accompanied by a few comrades, they are automatically taunted by the American corporal "ah, at least you're not like the other French assholes". Of course they have berets. They will be present during most of the game but they will be considered entirely apart from the Americans, their names do not appear in the same colour as those of the members of the player's team and they will not exchange with him at any time. The woman who is part of the resistance fights in a skirt.

At no time do we meet civilians, when we are only passing through normally inhabited places (villages, factories...).

We feel a certain will to reproduce the environment of the battles, the anxiety-provoking atmosphere, for a constant rise of tension but the gameplay never really changes: combat phases/advance on the ground/cinematic/phases in the car to go from a point A to a point B/ infiltration.

In short, we feel the basis of the big game Call of Duty has become, it's nice to visit France during the war but hey... They've done much better since then.