There’s no denying we have a fond spot for Medal of Honour Vanguard. Its a little like bumping into an old flame and realising you still fancy her after all these years. Everything about this game – from is join the dots formulaic plot to its obligatory battle scorched setting and authentic World War 2 weapons, everything is so familiar here that you’ll swear Medal of Honour has never been away.

Just five years ago, the franchise struck a responsive chord with gamers all over the world with Medal of Honour Frontline. That opening level, borrowed straight from Saving Private Ryan, was probably the most impressive battle scene ever staged on a console. It helped to define what would become one of the largest selling WW2 franchises ever. But that was nearly half a decade ago and since then MOH’s claim to the first person shooter throne has been usurped. Ironically by the team behind the magnificent Call of Duty – some of the very same people who had previously worked on the Medal of Honour series.

With Vanguard, EA have gone back to basics and produced a game that is neither revolutionary nor radical but still manages to be compelling and fun.

Set over four campaigns which are subdivided into around 4 missions, Vanguard casts you in the role of Frank Keegan, a paratrooper with the experimental 82nd Airborne.

Keegan also ties the missions together through well scripted narration. Over the course of the game you’ll be taking part in real-life battles (operations Husky, Neptune, Market Garden and the single largest airborne drop in history, Varsity in Germany) and helping the Allies defeat the forces of fascism.

As we mentioned before, there are very few surprises in Vanguard. In fact, the game plays like a check list of previous WW2 shooters. The missions comprise of the familiar blowing up tanks and exploding AA guns, clearing out tunnels, collecting documents, storming enemy strongholds. The game also offers slick cut scenes interwoven with the live action which helps to keep you informed of what’s going on around you.

Graphically, Vanguard is far from the prettiest PS2 game we’ve ever played. The levels are, for the most part, bland with very little in the way of eye candy on offer. Although boasting a stable frame rate with just a hint of slow down during the busier battle scenes, the textures are, on the whole, flat and uninspiring. It doesn’t help that many gamers have, if not played, at least seen Call of Duty on the 360. With that in mind, expectations of what a FPS should – or could – look like have gone way beyond what Medal of Honour Vanguard has to offer.

On the upside, the audio – as in previous instalments of the franchise – is top drawer. Everything from the voice acting to the sound of bullets whizzing past your head or buildings being rocked by mortar fire, have been recreated with perfect authenticity.

Vanguard is, however, a very short game. Whereas the original Medal of Honour took some where close to a month to complete, the average gamer will have this title wrapped up in less than ten hours. The lack on online multiplayer also does little to extend the games re-playability.

Although a worthy addition to the series we kind of hoped that EA’s last Medal of Honour on the PS2 would have bowed out on a higher note. We’ve already heard rumblings that Medal of Honour Airborne which debuts on the shiny PS3 will feature the same battlefields and locations, making this offering something of a testing ground for the real thing.

None the less, Medal of Honour Vanguard is a fairly pedestrian yet still enjoyable game for FPS shooter fans. Just don’t expect any surprises.

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