Call Of Duty was developed by Infinity Ward and released in 2003.
This was the first episode in the franchise, which quickly became one of the best games of its genre.

The developers at 2015 Inc worked on Medal Of Honor Allied Assault, which was published by Electronic Arts.
A mysterious disagreement between the developers and publisher EA prompted 22 former 2015 Inc employees to found a new studio. Its name, Infinity Ward, quickly became inseparable from their flagship game, Call Of Duty.
It is one of the most cult WWII-based FPSs to date.

The game features three distinct campaigns, in which the Allies fight with strength,
honor and courage in the hope of annihilating the Third Reich.

In the American campaign, the player controls Private Martin of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment.
He is accompanied by Captain Foley,
whose name will recur in Call Of Duty Modern Warfare 2.
After a successful parachute drop in the Normandy region of France,
he will gradually advance towards Eastern Europe, through Belgium, Germany and on to Austria.

In the British campaign,
the player controls Sergeant Evans of the 6th British Airborne Division.
He takes orders from the charismatic Captain Price,
who would later become the figurehead of Call Of Duty 4 and its sequels.
The British will be transferred to the SAS (Special Air Service) for large-scale operations in France, Germany and Norway.

In the Soviet campaign, you're the soldier Alexei Ivanovich Voronin of the 13th Guards Division of the Red Army.
You'll have to endure the tragic yet mythical Battle of Stalingrad,
then continue westwards to drive the Nazis out of the Soviet Union.
The Russians even chased the Nazis out of Poland and drove them back to their last stronghold in Berlin, Germany.
Victory would be sealed once the flag of the Fatherland was raised to the top of the Reichstag!

Funnily enough, in addition to the introduction of Price and Foley,
you meet various soldiers of varying ranks with names that will become famous later on.
I noticed, for example, someone called Woods, who we'll see again in Call Of Duty Black Ops,
a guy called Sheppard, very reminiscent of Shepherd from MW2,
and even a guy called Makarov,
who would come to prominence in MW2 and Call Of Duty Modern Warfare 3.

COD's armed combat is realistic, and the action is intense.
Enemy soldiers know how to shoot by bending over, lying down, and hiding behind walls or under windows.
Allied bots have rather limited AI, but they know how to defend themselves against the enemy.
They can even throw back grenades thrown by the Krauts, something we can't do ourselves in the first COD.
The missions are diverse and varied, and basically quite classic.
For example, you'll have to:
Sabotage or destroy enemy equipment and infrastructure,
Dislodge mortar shooters, Capture enemy positions,
steal strategically important documents, free prisoners of war,
Hold a siege until reinforcements arrive, Snipe distant enemies,
shoot down Stuka planes with an anti-aircraft gun, drive a Tank and fight against German Panzers, etc...
The missions are numerous and exciting, but they are also a little too short, linear and often end abruptly.

To fight the Nazis, you'll have a wide choice of weapons at your disposal, all of which offer excellent shooting sensations.
Here's a list of those I was able to use on the battlefield: M1A1, M1 Garand, Kar98k, BAR, Lee-Enfield, Mosin Nagant, Springfield, FG42, Bren, Thompson, MP40, MP44, Sten, PPSh-41, Colt 45, Luger, Panzerfaust. You'll also have Grenades, and you can use field-deployed Machine Guns like the MG42.

Unlike all episodes from 2005 onwards, in the first Call of Duty, health doesn't regenerate on its own.
You'll have to find first-aid kits to heal yourself.
Another distinctive fact is that it's not possible to run in the game,
no doubt because the pack carried by the soldier is too heavy.
My Brother and I have noticed that the crosshair turns red when aiming at an allied soldier, to indicate that you can't shoot at them, while it remains white when aiming at a Wehrmacht soldier, which sometimes is counter-intuitive during the battles.
Allied soldiers' names gradually change from green to red when they are wounded.
There's no visual indicator of when grenades have been thrown, so you'll have to rely on their distinctive metallic sound.

The atmosphere is highly successful and realistic, perfectly conveying the horror and cruelty of World War II.
Flakpanzers pound the battlefield, mortars bomb relentlessly, bullets whistle in all directions, MG42 snipers spray Allied positions, while aerial combat and parachute drops take place overhead. Buildings are in ruins and in flames.
The fear of being hit by a missile or a stray bullet is omnipresent...

The music is very 1940s, some of it brilliantly underlining the action moments,
as in a great movie paying tribute to valiant soldiers.
At times, listening to them gives you an indescribable sense of nostalgia,
especially when you're about to get reinforcements from the allies.
The game may be graphically outdated, using the Quake III engine,
but it's not without its charm.
Character animations are fairly robotic.
There are a few minor visual bugs to be deplored.
The absence of swastikas in favor of iron crosses is a pity.
The game is fairly easy even on the highest difficulty levels.

The Call Of Duty franchise is making a stunning entrance onto the war FPS scene.
Its realistic gameplay and great atmosphere make it one of the classics of the genre.
It's a safe bet that should be recommended to as many people as possible.

this game is very thought through and feels very original, people dont know about this game and its dissapointing. Its very good for how old it is.. There is even people still playing multiplayer! Its nice to play casually and as a bonus it has improved my aim, LOL

Good, even now. The missions in Stalingrad are breathtaking. Excellent game, I recommend buying it, although the game from 2003 is too expensive