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Call of Duty: Finest Hour
Call of Duty: Finest Hour
Developer(s)	Spark Unlimited; Kuju Entertainment (PS2, Xbox); Exakt Entertainment (GC)
Publisher(s)	Activision
Designer(s)	Eric Church
Writer(s)	Michael Schiffer
Composer(s)	Michael Giacchino
Series	Call of Duty
Engine	RenderWare
Platform(s)	GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox
Release	NA: November 16, 2004; AU: November 25, 2004; EU: December 3, 2004;
Genre(s)	First-person shooter
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

Call of Duty: Finest Hour is a first-person shooter video game developed by Spark Unlimited and published by Activision for GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox. It is the first console installment of Call of Duty.

Although it is based on the original Call of Duty for Microsoft Windows, it has a different storyline and acts as a side-story of the main game. It features six intertwined stories and battles based on real events from the perspective of soldiers on each side of the allied campaign (U.S., British, and Soviet).

The game's music was composed by Michael Giacchino, who previously worked on the original Call of Duty and the Medal of Honor franchise. AC/DC singer Brian Johnson provides the voice of Sergeant Starkey, one of the British commandos.

Multiplayer

Finest Hour can support both online and local multi-player support, depending on the console. It had no online multi-player support for the GameCube as it does not take advantage of the GameCube broadband or modem adapter. On the Xbox, Finest Hour had Xbox Live support and up to 32 players can play locally through Xbox's System Link feature. The PlayStation 2 port of Finest Hour also had PS2 Online support, with up to 16 players per session.

Plot

Eastern front

In the Soviet campaign, the player first controls Private Aleksandr Sokolov. Sokolov participates in The Battle of Stalingrad following Sergeant Oleg Puskov. The sergeant is eventually killed by a sniper, sacrificing himself to save Sokolov. A female Soviet sniper, named Tanya Pavelovna appears and shoots the German sniper, then sends Sokolov on a mission to liberate Mamayev Kurgan hill. After the mission is completed, Sokolov becomes Pavelovna's spotter as the two work to harass the Germans. Pavelovna and Sokolov navigate through the sewers to help defend a tractor factory to ensure the safety of a T-34, supervised by Major Nikolai Badanov. In the tank, the major fights his way to General Belov's headquarters. Nikolai has orders from Belov to deliver a radio to a spotter team at the train station in order to coordinate a Katyusha rocket barrage on German armor. Afterward, Badanov is involved in the Soviet assault on a German airfield at Tatsinskaya, codenamed Operation Little Saturn. Nikolai and other T-34s proceed to the airstrip to destroy German aircraft. Upon destroying the airfield they meet up with more Soviets to assault the German headquarter's air traffic control.

North Africa

The British campaign follows Edward Carlyle. Carlyle embarks on a night raid in Matmata with a commando team led by Sergant Starkey to storm a German fortress and destroy a fuel depot. After the Matmata raid, Starkey and Carlyle evacuate in a Jeep. By daybreak Starkey drives through German infested roads, while Carlyle mans the 50. Cal Browning machine gun. Eventually Carlyle and Starkey make it to a besieged British fort, where they rescue Sergeant Dehart and a cartographer and ultimately neutralize the German presence in the fort.

Western Front

The American campaign follows Sergeant Chuck Walker. The first three missions concentrate on the capture of Aachen, with Chuck protecting the tank column along the way. After the capture of Aachen, the story shifts focus to M4 Sherman tank commander Sam Rivers, a young African-American who fends off Germans around the town of Tillet. After that, the newly promoted Lieutenant Walker infiltrates the city of Remagen to scout the Ludendorff Bridge and escort Rivers' tank squad to the bridge. Upon reaching the bridge, a huge hole in the ground prevents the tanks from moving on. Chuck eliminates the German garrison, delivering the bridge into Allied hands, so they can push into Germany.

Reception

Aggregate score
Aggregator	Score
Aggregator	GC	PS2	Xbox
Metacritic	74/100^[2]	76/100^[3]	73/100^[4]

Review scores
Publication	Score
Publication	GC	PS2	Xbox
Electronic Gaming Monthly	8/10^[5]	8/10^[5]	8/10^[5]
Eurogamer	N/A	N/A	7/10^[6]
Famitsu	N/A	32/40^[7]	33/40^[8]
Game Informer	8.5/10^[9]	8.5/10^[9]	8.5/10^[9]
GamePro	^[10]	^[11]	^[11]
GameSpot	6.6/10^[12]	6.7/10^[13]	6.7/10^[13]
GameSpy	^[14]	^[15]	^[16]
GameZone	7.5/10^[17]	8.7/10^[18]	7.5/10^[19]
IGN	7/10^[20]	7.3/10^[21]	7.3/10^[22]
Nintendo Power	3.7/5^[23]	N/A	N/A
Nintendo World Report	6/10^[24]	N/A	N/A
Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine	N/A	^[25]	N/A
Official Xbox Magazine (US)	N/A	N/A	7/10^[26]
The Sydney Morning Herald	N/A	N/A	^[27]
The Times	N/A	^[28]	^[28]

The PlayStation 2 version received "generally favorable reviews", while the GameCube and Xbox versions received above-average reviews, according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.^[2]^[3]^[4] IGN stated that despite its portrayal of a good shooter, it is still stuck between realism and over-the-top antics; the graphics were criticized as being very ordinary along with the effects being disappointing and the sound was also found to be out of place in some areas of the game.^[20] In Japan, where the PS2 and Xbox versions were ported and published by Capcom on October 27, 2005, Famitsu gave it a score of 33 out of 40 for the latter,^[8] and 32 out of 40 for the former.^[7]

The Times gave the PS2 and Xbox versions all five stars, saying, "What singles out this series from the rest is that it homes in on the sheer intensity and ugliness of war."^[28] However, The Sydney Morning Herald gave the latter console version three stars out of five, saying, "Although missions are well-designed and combat can be intense, sequences such as the battle to reclaim Stalingrad lack the scale and cinematic grandeur of the PC version."^[27] Detroit Free Press gave it two stars out of four, saying that the game, "while offering a well-scripted narrative, comes up with precious few reasons to play out these battles again. No surprises here -- just solid, albeit predictable, action that could have been better."^[29]

By July 2006, the PlayStation 2 version had sold 1.2 million units and earned $45 million in the U.S. NextGen ranked it as the 41st highest-selling game launched for the PlayStation 2, Xbox or GameCube between January 2000 and July 2006 in that country. Combined sales of Call of Duty console games reached 4 million units.^[30] The PS2 version also received a "Platinum" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA),^[31] indicating sales of at least 300,000 units in the UK.^[32]

References

^ van Leuveren, Luke (November 22, 2004). "Updated Australian Release List - 22/11/04". PALGN. PAL Gaming Network. Archived from the original on November 27, 2004. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ ^a ^b "Call of Duty: Finest Hour for GameCube Reviews". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on June 21, 2023. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ ^a ^b "Call of Duty: Finest Hour for PlayStation 2 Reviews". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on June 16, 2023. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ ^a ^b "Call of Duty: Finest Hour for Xbox Reviews". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on April 1, 2023. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ ^a ^b ^c EGM staff (January 2005). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 187. Ziff Davis. p. 124.
^ Fahey, Rob (December 2, 2004). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour (Xbox)". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on October 1, 2015. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ ^a ^b "コールオブデューティ：ファイネストアワー (PS2)". Famitsu (in Japanese). Enterbrain. Archived from the original on June 29, 2023. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ ^a ^b "コールオブデューティ：ファイネストアワー (Xbox)". Famitsu (in Japanese). Enterbrain. Archived from the original on June 29, 2023. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ ^a ^b ^c Reiner, Andrew (January 2005). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour". Game Informer. No. 141. GameStop. p. 115. Archived from the original on March 5, 2006. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ Four-Eyed Dragon (December 8, 2004). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour Review for GameCube on GamePro.com". GamePro. IDG Entertainment. Archived from the original on February 7, 2005. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ ^a ^b Four-Eyed Dragon (December 8, 2004). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour (PS2, Xbox)". GamePro. IDG Entertainment. Archived from the original on February 9, 2005. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ Colayco, Bob (November 18, 2004). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour (GC)". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on February 9, 2005. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ ^a ^b Colayco, Bob (November 18, 2004). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour (PS2, Xbox)". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on February 6, 2005. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ Tuttle, Will (November 16, 2004). "GameSpy: Call of Duty: Finest Hour (GCN)". GameSpy. IGN Entertainment. Archived from the original on June 26, 2007. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ Tuttle, Will (November 16, 2004). "GameSpy: Call of Duty: Finest Hour (PS2)". GameSpy. IGN Entertainment. Archived from the original on June 9, 2007. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ Tuttle, Will (November 16, 2004). "GameSpy: Call of Duty: Finest Hour (Xbox)". GameSpy. IGN Entertainment. Archived from the original on October 21, 2007. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ Romano, Natalie (December 6, 2004). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour - GC - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on February 13, 2008. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ Bedigian, Louis (November 16, 2004). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour - PS2 - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on March 11, 2008. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ Hopper, Steven (November 19, 2004). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour - XB - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on March 31, 2008. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ ^a ^b Goldstein, Hilary (November 16, 2004). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour (GCN)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on May 23, 2023. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ Goldstein, Hilary (November 16, 2004). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour (PS2)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on August 23, 2007. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ Goldstein, Hilary (November 16, 2004). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour (Xbox)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on August 5, 2007. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ "Call of Duty: Finest Hour". Nintendo Power. Vol. 187. Nintendo of America. January 2005. p. 136.
^ Pallesen, Lasse (December 16, 2004). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour". Nintendo World Report. NINWR, LLC. Archived from the original on June 29, 2023. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ "Call of Duty: Finest Hour". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. No. 89. Ziff Davis. February 2005. p. 82.
^ "Call of Duty: Finest Hour". Official Xbox Magazine. Future US. January 2005. p. 72.
^ ^a ^b Hill, Jason (January 6, 2005). "Something for everyone". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on July 28, 2016. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ ^a ^b ^c Wapshott, Tim (November 27, 2004). "Call of Duty: Finest Hour (PS2, Xbox)". The Times. Archived from the original on August 5, 2021. Retrieved June 29, 2023.(subscription required)
^ "RECENT VIDEO GAME RELEASES: BLINX 2: MASTERS OF TIME AND SPACE; LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS; CALL OF DUTY: FINEST HOUR". Detroit Free Press. Gannett Company. January 23, 2005. ProQuest 436536551. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
^ Campbell, Colin; Keiser, Joe (July 29, 2006). "The Top 100 Games of the 21st Century". NextGen. Future US. Archived from the original on October 28, 2007.
^ "ELSPA Sales Awards: Platinum". Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association. Archived from the original on May 15, 2009.
^ Caoili, Eric (November 26, 2008). "ELSPA: Wii Fit, Mario Kart Reach Diamond Status In UK". Game Developer. Informa. Archived from the original on September 18, 2017. Retrieved June 29, 2023.