Sound: 7
Gameplay: 5
Replay Value: 7
Reviewer's Tilt: 8
Overall: 8.2
Not a hint of detail is missed in the graphics of RTCW, with the highest framerate I've seen for the PC. All the paint scrapings on walls, bullet holes, and bloodly hacked limbs are highly detailed to perfection, thanks to the excellent Quake III engine, which is the best graphical engine I've seen in my life. The lighting, particle, and fog effects are some of the best I've seen in video games, making this an offer you can't refuse. RTCW needs to be in the gaming library of everyone.
This game was made by the professionals who gave us Wolfenstein 3D back in 1992, so naturally they know what they're doing. The whole FPS genre begin with that game, and these game developers came back to do justice to the FPS library by practically revamping it completely. This is an FPS that stands out among most others. It may not be as good as Red Faction, or Ghost Recon, or Medal of Honor: Allied Assault, but it's good on its own note. This is a truly rewarding, terrifying experience and if you miss out, it's your own fault.
The first part of the game seems kind of lackluster. Shooting hordes of Nazis gets somewhat old, and seemingly overused. Well, stick with it. Soon you'll find yourself alone and terrified, shooting lots of undead which pop out of many places and scare the hell out of you. Gore piles up and soon you have challenging enemies which never cease, all sorts of freakish demons hounding you. If you've never been unnerved while playing a horror video game, then now is the time to start. RTCW executes this nicely, with brilliant gore and highly detailed monsters.
The game's plenty interactive as well. You can go around shooting Nazi flags, or shooting chairs until they collapse...you can even pick up chairs and throw them. Parts of some walls and floors can be shot off, and there's tons of little things to do now and then that will make your jaw drop.
The game isn't without its drawbacks, though. For one, the game isn't groundbreaking by any means, and sometimes it seems a little cliched. It's definately not bad, but I was expecting some better output from the people who made the original Wolfenstein 3D back in 1992.
Do I have any other complaints? Well, for one, it's too easy to get lost in the environments. There's way too many paths and doors to take that lead you to new parts of the game, even if you do find "secrets". The game isn't quite linear enough, is my complaint. But you won't care when you see the perfect use of the Quake III engine. The framerate will make you dizzy and dazed, which means it's perfect.