Call of Juarez
Call Of Juarez is the only game to give you an authentic look into the Old West and all its glory through the eyes of the hunter AND the hunted. It’s 1882, somewhere in South Texas, and 19-year-old Billy Candle stands accused of murdering his mother and stepfather. Hot on his trail is Reverend Ray McCall, his stepfather’s brother and an infamous gunfighter who believes the Lord has chosen him to be Billy’s judge, jury and executioner. Call of Juarez is an epic western adventure about vengeance, survival and the search for a legendary lost treasure. The distinct rough-and-tumble beauty of the Old West is recreated, through detailed and realistic environments that spread across miles of terrain
User Ratings and Reviews
3 Stars Some good, some bad, some ugly
This review is very late in the game, but with the sequel coming out soon, I figured I’d weigh in.
Call of Juarez is a Western-themed first-person shooter that was actually released back in 2006 in Europe. (For some reason it took the publisher an extra year to release it in the US.) I had been excited about the game since early 2005 when I first heard about it. I’m a big FPS and Western fan, so the prospect of this type of game with modern graphics was incredibly appealing.
Well, it’s not a great game, but it does certain things so right that it cheers a part of my soul. It is good to know that there are others out there as crazy as I am.
In the game you play as two opposing characters, alternating between their viewpoints to fill in their respective sides of the story. Reverend Ray is a tough old codger with a violent past. He is now a preacher, and considers himself to be an instrument of God’s vengeance. The other character, Billy, is a stupid kid. Ray is his uncle. Billy is framed for the murder of his parents, and Ray goes after him. That’s all you really need to know, story-wise.
The Good: Reverend Ray.
Marc Alaimo, the actor responsible for voicing Ray, is fantastic. His performance imbues the character with all sorts of interesting nuance and power. One of the better bits of voice-acting I’ve ever heard, especially in a video game.
The character is well-written, too, beyond just the great dialogue. Ray begins the game as a vengeful self-righteous force, but towards the end is finally made to question his “calling.” The great part about the writing is that instead of questioning God, he questions himself. He acknowledges that it was his own selfish hatred that blinded him rather than attributing his blunder to God either misleading him or not existing. This was an unexpected turn, as stories with characters of this sort usually devolve into some sort of “people who believe in God are crazy” message. The character is also visually well-designed. He wears a piece of armor under his coat that actually deflects bullets in the game (complete with ricochet sounds). One of his “weapons” is a Bible that he quotes terrifying passages from, Pulp Fiction style. Enemies nearby will freeze when they hear it.
The other good bits are the weapons. These guys did their research. While the shotguns and rifle feature no variants, the pistols are pretty great. Included are such unusual guns as the LeMat revolver, an 8-shot percussion pistol with a shotgun barrel under the main; a hold-out barrel-less SAA, which I’ve seen a picture of in a book before; Volcanic Repeaters, the cool looking precursors to the Winchester rifle.
The Bad: Billy, the other main character.
He’s a wuss, a loser, and his voice acting is pretty weak. It’s not horrible, but its mediocrity is highlighted by Ray’s excellent performance. His playable segments are also not that fun. The bow is fun, the whip isn’t, and sneaking isn’t nearly as fun as running-and-gunning like Ray.
The Ugly: the character animation. Whenever you’re interacting with another character, all they do is stand there and talk at you. If there is ever any body acting, it’s an arm movement. Otherwise, they all just stand there with their arms at their sides. Compared with the wonderful full-body acting of the characters in games like Half-Life 2, it just stands out and makes the game world feel artificial. The graphics engine is actually really detailed and realistic, with dust blowing across the landscape, lots of foliage, etc, but when these barely animated puppets yell bad dialogue at you without moving, it really destroys the illusion.
If you’re a Western FPS fan, it’s worth checking out. I have high hopes that they fixed some of the problems for the sequel, due out this fall (Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood).
4 Stars Call of Juarez game review
Awesome game with nice controls and gameplay. The only thing I would change would be an optional weapons category that could be purchased instead of found.
4 Stars Well worth it. Very fun and a refreshing change.
This game is a definite pick up for anyone looking for something different. If you have any interest in westerns at all you will enjoy this game. The story is great and really holds your interest throughout the game. The scenery is authentic and by itself makes the game worth it’s reduced price tag.
As far as game play, it all works as expected for a FPS. Some have complained about Billy’s role in the game but it too is very fun and refreshing. There are a few scenes where you really have to pay attention to the where the bad guys are and even listen to their conversations to know when you can make a break for you next hiding spot. Billy is not Master Chief, Marcus Phoenix or any of the other FPS dudes but that is what makes it so nice. There are plenty of games to cover that approach to gaming. That being said, the other character, Ray, does have the “kill’em all” approach to justice. The way the story weaves back and forth between the two works well and gives you a chance to truly experience the story.
I personally think there are very few games worth the initial $60 price tag – Halo, Madden, Fable…maybe but not many others. We all have our favorites. At the reduced price this game is well worth it.
4 Stars A good game
This is a good game not great but good. Especially if you like westerns. The only downside is how quickly it can be finished.
1 Star Are You Kidding Me?!!
i thought i was buying a FPS but who knows what the developers were trying to create with this. it goes from sneaky/stealth to puzzle solving to platformer to FPS. to frustrate things even more, the subtitles are microscopic and the voice acting was done by out-of-work pornstars. you either need a theater-sized tv or plenty of patience if you even care as to what’s going on with the story. and what a story it is (granted four chapters was all i could handle). you alternate segments between a young retarded lad named billy and his grisled, bloodthirsty yet also retarded preacher uncle. billy’s missions are all about stealth and running like a coward. if you try to take down any of your adversaries, 20 more magically appear and instantly kill you. his uncle is a drunk killing machine, which is actually somewhat fun until the game throws a 3rd grade puzzle at his 1st grade logic and jumping ability. lastly i’d like to mention how glitchy this game is. i walked into town to hear the same “cow moo” sound effect stuck on repeat for a good five minutes. NPC’s repeat the same lines over and over as well. and more often than not, i’d find myself walking towards what looked like an ocean only to have mountains suddenly materialize in the horizon. same thing with buildings. and sometimes, you can magically warp into these mystery buildings and be stuck there forever, how fun!! don’t buy this thinking it’s “gun 2″. don’t buy this game because good games are scarce in the summer. just don’t buy this for any reason!!
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