• Publisher: EA Games
  • Release Date: Nov 4, 2004
Metascore
80 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 43 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 34 out of 43
  2. Negative: 0 out of 43
  1. This game is a must for fans of history or gaming, offering up a blend of both in a package worthy of Medal of Honor's excellent reputation.
  2. There are a few places where the game falls short (drivable vehicles would have been nice), but excellent A.I., solid gameplay, and fairly deep multiplayer battles make Pacific Assault worthy of the Medal of Honor name.
  3. The gameplay is great! Few controls to memorize and the game flows nicely while you are playing. The only down side is the load time between sequences and battles. [Director's Edition]
  4. 90
    What this FPS game lacks in antagonistic aliens and demons from hell, it more than makes up with good old-fashioned gunplay and an unbeatable theatric presentation.
  5. It's got frenzied action, a thoughtful storyline, and gameplay that will swallow you whole.
  6. This game is truly all about the cinematic, dramatic single-player campaign, and it is there that it shines, often brilliantly, but a little too briefly. [Jan 2005, p.92]
  7. The incredible graphics and storyline combined with destructible objects create a powerful cinematic feel that completely draws the player in.
  8. We haven't heard more moving music in a game before. EA hired a real orchestra to play the songs and the results are very well done and help fit the somber mood most of the missions you go on.
  9. Wild, desperate battles, a cohesive storyline resplendent with authentic characters, stunning visuals, and a superb soundtrack-Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault is one of the best shooters on the market.
  10. On the plus side the Pacific theatre of WW2 is a fresh view of that same old war, everything is about as authentic as it can get without sacrificing playability, and the new features do well to break up what easily could have been yet another WW2-themed FPS. However, the clipping errors, other aggravating issues, and rather weak-sounding weaponry do detract from the overall experience.
  11. It is an engaging experience from the beginning through its conclusion, and the many difficulty levels and online support really bring up its replay value.
  12. Hella fun to play. This is a quality title with some nicely designed missions that gradually increase in both difficulty and pace, making the single-player game well-balanced and engaging throughout.
  13. Despite these problems (and obscenely long load times, even on GI's high-end gaming PC), Pacific Assault is a great game. [Jan 2005, p.142]
  14. For those that have shied away from the series because it is not as complex as other war shooters, you will be pleased to find this game a bit more to your liking. Be aware, however, that this game relies heavily on story and cinematic.
  15. A worthy title in the Medal of Honour series and probably the best representation of that campaign so far, but it can't quite beat "Call of Duty: United Offensive."
  16. It's no longer the de facto title out there. I still came away enjoying my time with Pacific Assault immensely.
  17. A lot of great presentation, movement moments, and action, but also a lot of repetitive and frustrating stretches.
  18. It bears repeating that Pacific Assault really does a great job of creating a believable atmosphere, even if the gameplay itself, as well as your allies' inabilities to die or shut up, isn't realistic.
  19. Not a step forward in design, nor will it win any awards for originality. It is, however, a big, fun and stylish FPS with outrageous and brilliant set-pieces. [PC Gamer UK]
  20. It is an intense game, and if that is what you want to get then you can't go wrong here, if you just want a game to jump in get a few kills and stop, then look elsewhere.
  21. The Pearl Harbor level is the most adrenaline pumping half hour I've ever had in a game. There are planes, explosions and soldiers dying right and left.
  22. If you can't get enough of the WW2 action found in previous MOH and COD titles, then MOH: Pacific Assault will suit up well, but for everyone else, particularly those who like more variation in their FPS gaming, Pacific Assault isn't really a must have title.
  23. It has managed to genuinely take the series forward in technology terms, offering up much more engaging firefights than ever before, which are far less forgiving and require a hell of a lot more thought and skill than simply charging in like you're immortal.
  24. Perhaps it's because after countless other games, particularly Call of Duty, those once magnificent scenes of senseless destruction no longer have the impact they once did. Scripted sequences have perhaps gone as far as they can go with these games.
  25. At times claustrophobic, with intensely quiet and loud moments, this is a game that fans of the series will welcome.
  26. Aside from the annoyances of learning the key commands and they fact that you don't seem to enjoy the benefits of cover that your opponents do, there is only one other issue of note. At random times the game slowed to an agonizing frame rate.
  27. 80
    Of all the military games released this winter, Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault brings together perhaps the best ingredients: a character driven story, the action and fatigue of war combat, and top notch video and sounds. If only it weren't for problems like lengthy loads, a tendency towards repetition, and the innately random flow.
  28. Relentless, noisy, and genuinely scary.
  29. Pacific Assault's half-documentary, half-entertainment approach is solid, and the game's a thrilling, if slightly by-the-numbers WW2 shooter.
  30. A must-have for Medal of Honor fans, but we still like "Call of Duty" better. [Jan 2005, p.70]
  31. Despite a few points of ingenuity that shine through the murk, there's just not enough reasons for it to be a must-have game. It's also not nearly as good as "Call Of Duty." [PC Zone]
  32. 78
    If there had been more variation on mission type, enemy AI hadn't cheated, and the feel of the weapons had been more solid, the gameplay could have lived up the awesome presentation value that the rest of the package promised.
  33. Treads frequently to the brink of greatness, only to be tripped by its obsession with repetitive setpieces. [Christmas 2004, p.104]
  34. Pulse-pounding scripted events and great presentation create a nice backdrop for the Pacific theater of operations, but small annoyances such as enemy pop-up and lengthy load times stifle the package.
  35. Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault isn't a revelation that puts new life back into WW2-based first person shooters. It is, however, a revelation for the series, pushing the adrenaline-fuelled action away to make for a much grittier, involving and entertaining experience.
  36. 70
    There were many times when I wanted to just quit and never play it again. Don't get me wrong, it's not a horrible game; it's just nowhere near as polished as [both "Medal of Honor: Allied Assault" and "Call of Duty"].
  37. There's no real AI; soldiers have some behaviors, but everything is as scripted as a presidential debate. [Feb 2005, p.58]
  38. Unfortunately the core combat that makes up the majority of the game soon feels more like chore combat.
  39. The foundations for one of the finest shooters ever are laid down here and there are some wonderful cinematic moments but unfortunately most are tarnished with the numerous bugs which plague the game.
  40. Pacific Assault will turn heads because of its fancy graphics and original settings, but inevitably it'll frustrate you beyond belief for a few game ruining missions.
  41. 60
    But those ideas don't hold much water when the AI acts up as often as it does. That, coupled with the numerous other bugs we encountered, really makes Pacific Assault a minor disappointment.
  42. After "MOH: AA," this latest installment is something of a letdown. The improvements seem to be almost all cosmetic, perhaps at the expense of the gameplay.
  43. This is another ugly blunder. Pacific Assault demonstrates that bewildering battle scenes are no equal for clever level design and attention to detail. [Christmas 2004, p.92]
User Score

Mixed or average reviews- based on 37 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 13 out of 21
  2. Negative: 6 out of 21
  1. FrankB.
    10
    super good love the gameplay everyone must buy it
  2. 9
    This review contains spoilers, click full review link to view. The game is set in the rather unworn Pacific Theater. Unfortunatley that is - along with some other minor things - the probably only Pro I was able to set against a lot of Cons. Other things I liked: The medics are a welcomingly different approach to actually have yourself starting to manage the pleas for help and/or decrease the number of suicidal charges during a level. Usually I put on a certain number of those with the reassuring fact in the back of my head that there will be a med pack somewhere after. In MoHPA it either won't or will be very seldom. The tense atmosphere in the last campaign, the taking of Tarawa. The longer list of things I hated: The Graphics are outdated even for a 2004 release. I know there's a huge debate going on between players of Call of Duty and MoH about which franchise is better. In terms of graphics I would like to take side for CoD. Even the first 2003 release of CoD looks more decent than MoH. On a plus side CoD will support custom screen resolution and ratio settings (though through horrible textfile support), while MoHPA can be played 1600x1200, 4:3 max which looks you are fighting the Imperial Army of Curiously Short and Fat Japanese Men. There are some 16:9 resolutions supported but these being way below 1600x1200 resolution leaves you - using a big 16:10 display - fighting the Imperial Army of Japan (8bit Divisions). The choice which atrocity bothers you less is at least yours. The team AI is horrible. I simply gave up at a certain point trying to make them do something helpful and started to take care of every single thing by myself. Though I am aware that this is what I'm supposed to do as a player, I've had other shooters where my team mates would follow scripts that would at least be helpful to some extend. Let me give two examples of why fighting with the badass marines of MoHPA and being out on a bicycle ride with a bunch of retarded chimpanzees is not of noticable difference: If an attacking Hiroshi Japanimoto takes cover behind a tree or a crate, he is henceforth regarded as 'dug in'. This will be heralded every 10 seconds, leaving you to decide which of the 'fortified' infantry positions really need attention and which can be resolved by let's say throwing a coconut, toothbrush, some cotton pads or stepping one pace left and then shoot. Another heavily utilized tactic is to avoid attacking enemies by turning one's back, standing still and taking one for the team/country/the little green man in the head with the bare back. I saw this dumbassery on at least two different situations and then I had to stop because my tears of anger were putting out my second keyboard. This not only binds useful medic resources, it also puts Uncle Sam in a very bad light for telling a bunch of looneys to be a well-trained special task force. From this point on I spent the rest of the game not only securing all 12 hour positions of our platoon, taking one pace at a time but saving the game after every damn taken coconut tree for whatever stupidity one of the guys might come up with next (Note: I did not see one of them juggling birthday cakes on a unicycle but was expecting that every minute) The person who designed the flying levels needs to be put in a special place if he ever comes to game designer's hell. To be frank: I am not a huge fan of those vehicle levels regardless what shooter I am playing but if I have to do it, please let me do it in a way that does not leave me loosing all hopes of humanity and with an urge to stomp a kitten to death. First of all: The Mouse controls the plane instead of the obvious and well-functioning WASDs, which are set to control the rudders. Something you don't need to use in the entire level. The mouse controls are inverted (pulling the mouse back, lets the plane dive while pushing it forward will make it climb) and the plane itself behaves like a flying a box of oranges that where shot out of an diarrheic elephant's behind. Only worse. Also I encountered this nice glitch at the end of the mission when I was supposed to fly back to base and did not immediately joined my two (did I mention useless?) wing men but flying one more yaw roll, only to find myself being automatically drowned to death after some erratic radio messages, asking what the heck I was doing there. I was not expecting to be able to radio that I follow moron squad to the next waypoint but am for reasons of questionable game mechanics suddenly some 40 miles behind them, but I was also not expecting to be forced to play this motherlode from the last save point again. Fortunately (see above) I was already saving every flight mile at that point, but others should be warned. The last level itself suffers from the same illness a lot of last levels do: They are too short and way too easy. I don't wanna spoil too much on it, but basically letting a battleship do all the work does not justify the build up all other Tarawa Missions do beforehand. Full Review »
  3. jhonathanhellbourne
    9
    This game is my first FPS game and I enjoyed it every way exept that even on the easy setting it was too hard like on makin atoll where I have to save a pilot or some body and the first screen your a** get shot, and tawara(?) island you have to go point A to point B again your face gets shot this time but other than that it's a great game the graphics were great back then the physics engine kept glitching but that was because I skipped to install something. anyways this game is a worth have and is very fun Full Review »