One of my favorite “game moments” of recent memory is parachuting blindly into a firefight in Electronic Arts’ Battlefield 2: Modern Combat. The adrenaline rush while falling slowly to the ground while bullets whiz by and ant-sized targets scurry below is unmatched in any other battle scenario. Sadly the moment is brief and only available in a handful of missions.
This upcoming Winter I’ll get the chance to pick my landing zones in every mission of EA’s newly announced Medal of Honor Airborne, the latest entry in their fabled World War II first-person shooter series, Medal of Honor. Unlike typical FPSers, Airborne puts you in the shoes of a member of the 82nd Airborne Division who is repeatedly dropped behind enemy mines. EA is touting the drop as being “fully interactive,” so we expect the ability to steer the parachute through winds and gunfire to either a safe or hazardous landing below.
Patrick Gilmore, VP and Executive Producer at EALA, adds:
“Medal of Honor Airborne is a step in a new direction for the franchise. While integrating our state-of-the-art, next-gen technology into every aspect of the game, we are introducing innovations that will redefine the series and impact the genre as a whole. By fully controlling the airdrop from your very first step through landing, Medal of Honor Airborne adds a new dimension of player choice by letting you decide where every mission begins and how it plays out.”
As long as the story-driven gameplay on the ground matches up to the intensity of the drop and EA can surpass the accomplishments of Call of Duty 2, this new direction for the series is a welcome one. And with the announcement of both Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 availability, Winter 2006 is the first official confirmation launch for a Playstation 3 game. More as it develops.
