After "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" made 310 million bucks in 24 hours is it any shock that EA wants a piece of that pie? Well, they'll be doing just that with their reboot of the "Medal of Honor" franchise. The next game, currently titled just plain ol' "Medal of Honor," will be set in Afghanistan and will feature a new "bad ass" hero who looks a lot like Mattias from "Mercs 2." Apparently he's known as a "Tier 1 Operator," someone who "takes on missions that no one else can handle. At least, that's what the press release says.
"Medal of Honor" went from the top of the world, with "Allied Assault," to relative obscurity with the latest releases. I think it's important for EA to recognize that just setting an FPS war game in present day isn't enough to guarantee $310 million dollars, and that the popularity of "Call of Duty" is built on fantastic multiplayer and a cinematic single player. EA has tapped DICE (of "Battlefield" fame) to handle the multiplayer, while the campaign will be developed in EALA.
More interesting is when EA plans on releasing such a game. Too close to a "Battlefield" or a "Call of Duty" release and it will likely get overshadowed. And yet the game is planned for 2010, with a fall release seeming likely. A direct assault on Treyarch's next "Call of Duty" game, perhaps?
Whatever ends up happening I'll reserve judgment until I catch a glimpse of the gameplay. The first trailer will be shown during the VGAs next week, but here's hoping it's not just a flashy FMV.