Medal of Honor Retrospective: Medal of Honor Rising Sun

Medal of Honor Rising Sun was released for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Gamecube on November 2003, developed by EA Los Angeles and published by Electronic Arts.

Medal of Honor Rising Sun is the first game in the franchise to take the games out of the European theater of war and move things to the events in the Pacific. In this iteration of the series, you play Cpl. Joseph Griffin, and you follow his adventures as he searches for his missing brother. Being a game set in the Pacific, you get your first video game taste of events like Guadalcanal, the Khwae Yai River bridge (also known as The Bridge on the River Kwai) and, of course, Pearl Harbor. The Pearl Harbor sequence in particular is probably the best opening to any Medal of Honor game and the most spectacular set piece in the entire franchise. I personally find it even more exciting and impressive than the celebrated D-Day invasion from Allied Assault and Frontline. It is by far the highlight of the entire game, and for me personally it’s a highlight of the franchise.

However, after that impressive opening sequence, the game devolves into standard Medal of Honor fare, which at this point is beginning to get tired. The progression of “go from point A to point B, shooting everything in the way” starts to really show its faults in this game. Without any sort of exploration or branching paths (which would be introduced in the much superior and vastly underrated European Assault), the game shows its age in its design. Despite this, the game remains fun to play–but mainly on the strength of the unique locale. Since the Pacific was a new arena for WW2-based video games at the time, seeing fresh areas was enough to get you through the game. Nowadays it’s just a subpar entry in the franchise, and it was the beginning of Medal of Honor’s decline from being the reigning champs of FPS games.

Not all is hopeless, though. As is standard with the entire series, the sound design and music continue to be top notch and worthy of mention. Christopher Lennertz took over the music duties from Michael Giacchino, and while he had rather large shoes to fill, he did so admirably. He would continue his scoring duties for the next few games, as well, only improving as time went on. Despite the change in composers, the sound of Medal of Honor continues to be a highlight.

Also released around the same time as Rising Sun, Medal of Honor Infiltrator was actually the second Game Boy Advance entry in the franchise. The first, Medal of Honor Underground, was essentially forgettable and is largely considered the worst game in the franchise. Infiltrator, comparatively speaking, is a huge improvement overall, as it’s designed as a portable game at heart. Taking the role of Cpl. Jake Murphy, you attack the Axis throughout several WW2 locales. The game is played as a top down shooter for the majority of it, so as a portable game, it excels, and despite its somewhat forgotten legacy, it’s still a worthy entry in the series.

Medal of Honor Rising Sun, despite being an entertaining game, is the first game to show the age of the design of the Medal of Honor series. Nothing is fresh anymore, and it all feels very tired at this point. Aside from a spectacular Pearl Harbor sequence, the game remains forgettable and is essentially the first skippable entry in the series. It’s best for enthusiasts or completionists only, sadly.

Next week: Medal of Honor returns to the PC and the Pacific in the story-driven Medal of Honor Pacific Assault.