Medal of Honor: Allied Assault was a huge hit a few years ago, boasting a D-Day landing most of us will never forget. Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault takes the war to the Japanese; across Pearl Harbour, Guadalcanal and the Makin and Tarawa Atolls. MOHPC certainly doesn't deliver the raw excitement of the original, but the production values are all we've have come to expect from the series, the jungle settings are nicely recreated, and a few new ideas have been thrown into the mix.

Following a pretty solid introduction to island-hopping warfare and a long, slow and compulsory tutorial, players tackle a decent variety of missions in some tough environments. The mission objectives make the most of the repetitive jungle settings; some optional additional goals add some interest (and the chance to earn a few medals), and the underlying story is well presented. The control interface is standard FPS fare, incorporating basic on-screen information and a limited range of options. A reasonable choice of Japanese and Allied weaponry is on hand.

MOHPC brings some rudimentary squad options, but the game is heavily player-centric, and you'll often find yourself wondering why you have a squad with you at all. Fortunately, the poor friendly AI is partially offset by a bright computer opponent in most scenarios, and the quick-save feature makes recovering from the multiple deaths suffered along the way less harrowing. A lot of work has clearly gone into getting the atmosphere right, evidenced by realistic radio traffic and some great 40's music, and the scripts and voice acting are better than most.   

Multiplay is well implemented and supported, with the eight-map Invader mode taking the honours, and initial problems with lag seem to have been sorted out.  All in all - and despite its pedigree - Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault brings a fairly routine FPS experience with a strong multiplay component and surprisingly high-end system requirements. It's definitely worth a look (particularly if you can get hold of the special Director's Edition DVD with bonus features), but don't expect too many surprises.