Though the console versions of Call of Duty shares its name with the excellent PC and Xbox 360 version of this World War II shooter from Activision, the game carries the sub-title The Big Red One for a reason - it's a different beast altogether. The Big Red One tells the story of World War II's most fierce and seasoned warriors - the US Army's 1st Division. Nicknamed the Big Red One for the insignia's they wore on their uniforms (a big red number one), the Big Red One has been honored for their bravery and their luck (a good example of this is the film, The Big Red One, starring Lee Marvin). For Activision's console versions of the game, players join the legendary fighting force as they push through North Africa, clean up Italy, land on the rugged and dangerous shores of Normandy, and survive the heavily occupied European continent into the heart of Germany. The game experience on the console is linear, as the storyline that drives it is played out and players, as their youngest member help the squad fight off the Axis forces around the world.

The game is played out in a 13 mission campaign as the Fox company captures airfields, clears out occupied villages and fortified bunkers, and assists other units in a myriad of flashy and oftentimes ultra dangerous battles. There's a lot of variety in The Big Red One in terms of missions and objectives. Players will find themselves at the controls of mounted guns, using anti-aircraft guns to destroy Axis aircraft, and inside the B-24 Liberator as you operate the turret guns and bomb bay doors. Players will also help spot artillery targets like tanks and boats (raining down destructive strikes against these targets), hunting for secret documents, and even driving tanks against the Jerries. Beyond these special missions , players will find themselves in some of the most difficult missions that World War II had to offer, running, gunning and carefully clearing out occupied areas using a variety of vintage standard issue armaments and items dropped by Axis forces (good weaponry of the period from the American, German, Italian, and French).

The weapons are pretty decent in the game, and using a modified version of the look-down-the-barrel gameplay introduced in Call of Duty 2 for the PC, players will have an easier time sniping with even the regular weapons in the game. The scoped Springfield - the weapon of choice for the Deadeye Dick (obscure Kurt Vonnegut Jr. reference) - is better suited for sniping, but if the distance isn't too far you can get the job done with a decent standard issue rifle. The Big Red One does offer a lot of variety in terms of weaponry - there's the heavy duty BAR assault rifle, the popular Thompson, and some quality arms like the MP44 Sturmgewehr (German) - but players will obviously have their favorites.

Along with the look down the barrel gameplay, The Big Red One also offers the usual assortment of shooter gameplay elements including the ability to kneel and go prone, the ability to lean left and right (perfect for when you're pinned down and need cover) and the ability to land headshots. Depending on what kind of mission you're in, you'll notice that the pacing for the game is very thoughtful and tactical as you and your squad make their way through heavily occupied areas and clean it up building by building or trench by trench.

The AI in The Big Red One is decent, with squad mates and enemies doing their best to either help you or get you killed. Squad mates follow you and provide cover fire, or help lead you to objectives when you get lost. In some of the more tumultuous missions, it was nice to know that locating my squad mates and following them helped lead me refocus my attention to the top objective I was supposed to be completing. If there's one complaint i could launch against the AI in the game, it's that sometimes your squad mates get in the way, blocking your path forward or while your firing at enemies. Although this was only occasional, it was nonetheless agitating when it happened.

Finally, it's important to note that this game is based on the exploits of real people - real heroes that went above and beyond the call of duty to serve our country. The stories in these games are real, compelling and moving. As you play through the game you'll see some of your comrades die in the service of their country. Surprisingly these chracte3rs are very compelling and there are a variety of moments that are both humorous and moving. This overarching storyline is further heightened by mission briefings and real footage from the events of World War II which add some layers to the game's realism.

If there's one big complaint that can be lodged against the GameCube version of the game it's that there is absolutely no multiplayer - not even split-screen play, which means that when you've completed the single-player game you're pretty done with the Big Red One experience. GameCube owners are probably accustomed to no multiplayer, but it still would have been nice to at least offer a four-player mode to lengthen the experience and give GameCube owners some of the decent multiplayer modes available for the PS2 and Xbox versions of the game.

Overall The Big Red One is a great addition to your GameCube library that isn't quite as robust as its PS2 and Xbox cousins due to a lack of multiplayer. The game also isn't quite as flashy as the other versions, but it's still quite beautiful for a GameCube game. If the only platform you have is the GameCube then I highly recommend picking this game up, otherwise pick it up for the Xbox for multiplayer via Xbox Live or on the PS2 via the broadband network adapter and GameSpy's console matchmaking multiplayer service. In the end The Big Red One is the best shooter you can get for the GameCube this year.