Call of Juarez Reviews

I was stuck on the first tree where u had to swing across with your whip for 30 minutes. I love old games that just fuck u right in the ass if u're shit.

good story, unique gameplay. watch my playthrough on youtube https://www.youtube.com/@tomiko17

Classic Western game, a very immersive and compelling story.

I played for the first time close to the launch date, it was great, but is still great? It is an interesting game following a little bit of the gameplay style of Half-Life, where it is not just run and shoot, but also some physics puzzles, exploration, and jumping around. The bad part is that it takes a while before the action starts. I like this kind of game with more exploration, but, at the time, it was much harder for me because my English was bad. I understand most of it. Nevertheless, I got stuck a lot on simple parts. Now, I can enjoy better. I still think that the first game is better than the second (Bound in Blood). The gameplay is almost the same, but the animations are more primitive in the first. You don't feel like you are shooting a gun, there is little impact to the player in the animations. However, the duel is much better, you actually play and control your character. It is not just some close timing to press a button then wait and press another button. The story of the two main characters is told in a more interesting way. it hooks me from the start what is happening, even though I already know what will happen. I played the DirectX 10 version and encountered some crashes and physics problems like falling from the ground and dying after a cutscene. At least one or two reloads and it is fine. Another problem is at the second to last mission, you can't downgrade the graphics without having to quit, and because the highest graphics have too much bloom the brightness obscures the dynamites you have to shoot to avoid a trap. The music is more monotonous than the following games. There is more action-packed music, but it is not that good or memorable. The pacing is not perfect for me, especially with Billy. He has a couple of boring and long missions. I like stealth, but only if you have options to deal with enemies and not just wait. And there are a couple of really long missions. Overall the game is very good and fun. Even though the gameplay is not the best comparing with current titles it still stand as a good game. + Great narrative + Duels + Ray "bullet time" - Gun recoil lacking feel - Boring long parts with Billy - Crashes

It is not good but it is beautiful and you must play this entire series

Although game plot is good,there are tons of bugs running this game.Easily crash when you play on DX10.Many game instructions are unclear.I bugged almost 5 times playing the last duel scene against Juarez:Suddenly died before the duel begin.If you met bugs on DX10,play DX9.And if you met bugs on DX9,turn to DX10.That will fix. Story is really dark.Not over five good guys in this game.Cruel and brutal wild west.

I didn’t expect this game to feel this authentically Western. The developers did a marvelous job making every inch of it feel like your classic Sunday night Western movie on TV. For its time, Call of Juarez masterfully crafted its missions—whether it’s open-world shooting, horseback chases, hunting, Assassin’s Creed-style platforming, or classic dueling, every Western trope is here. You’ve got Billy, the rebellious drifter, and the preacher, a Punisher-like character on a redemption journey. You can play with both of these characters and the gameplay for each of these characters' missions are somewhat different and needs a bit different tactics. The atmosphere is spot-on, and aside from a few rough gameplay elements, this game is a hidden gem for its age. That said, some mechanics feel unintuitive. For example, in the final scene, I spent 15 minutes trying to draw my gun the usual way—only to realize the game classified it as a duel, requiring the special duel maneuver. The game gives no hint about this, which was frustrating. But aside from these occasional missteps, Call of Juarez is a solid experience that successfully delivers on everything it sets out to do. A must-play for anyone interested in older FPS titles.

Would I recommend this game? Yesn't. Yes, if you are used to janky Eastern European games, slippery slopes and you don't bother the grind with often little to no reward. No, if you want a quick pew pew yee-haw experience. Now with that out of the way, let's focus on the two protagonists and the two entirely different gameplay they bring. I hardly like Billy's missions at all. While I do enjoy his bow and arrow (which requires careful aim and patience when your enemies are moving), the climbing sequences are a disaster. And the whip. THE FN WHIP. It's sooo bad. I have died so many times just because the whip did not make me jump high enough or I just simply slipped after moving 0.000001 mm on the surface of a rock. But this is overshadowed by the fact that more than half of the game is spent playing an insane bounty hunter-turned-minister who can dual wield pistols, a pistol with a sawed-off shotgun or a pistol with The Bible (the latter can't be used as weapon). The bullet time feels very repetitive but also really satisfying if you pull off 5 headshots in one sequence. I also liked how you have to make your bullets count and choose between different types of pistols based on their strenghts and usage. I recommend a Ranger-Quickshooter combo or the Vulcan Gun with the Quickshooter (although this is only available at the end). In any case, have a Quickshooter with you. Additional Positives: The scenery is beautiful. this remedies Billy's missions somewhat as he needs to climb and wander A LOT so you will be forced to admire the levels. Credit where it's due, the developers really did create breathtaking levels, even if you will fall down 10x in a row from a stupid rock. I also really enjoyed the soundtrack. There aren't many songs but the OST is dynamic and I did not mind hearing the same battle music for the 12th time. Additional Negatives: The fist fights and the duels suck. The first is just button smashing until your enemy dies, the latter just feels really forced. You mean to tell me that this crazy dude just shoots up the whole train and the sorrounding area, blows up a bunch of TNT, reads condemning verses from The Bible on top of the corpses of the enemies and... courteously goes out to duel with a dude cause he asked nicely? Nah. And sorry, when you execute the guy in one shot during the duel, it's really awesome but at the end of the episode I just don't have the patience to deal with this nonsense. Also wtf is this getting punished for shooting corpses and animals? What is this, the Polish PETA inquisition? the game even dropped me out for allegedly shooting a dead horse when I aimed at the NPC hiding behind it. *sigh* 5.5/10. Good for one playthrough and then deleting from your pc. Buy it when it's on sale, isn't worth 9.99 €.

Poor performance on new hardware (mostly screen tearing regardless of settings). The game is wonky but likeable. It has an interesting story that alternates between two protagonists. The story is somewhat insane at times, it does take inspiration from a few western classics. The game is overall good, but not the most pleasant experience due both gameplay and performance issues.

Call of Juarez tries many things to avoid being an ordinary western FPS and often fails in the process. The gameplay flow constantly changes from episode to episode. One moment, you're the badass Reverend Ray who believes he's the hand of God, and the next, you're just an ordinary kid named Bill. As Reverend Ray, you are always in a gunfight. You can dual-wield two revolvers alongside a shotgun or rifle if you want. The gunplay feels good and dynamic thanks to the physics engine. 80% of the objects can interact with bullets, so you can't hide behind cover forever. The body ragdolls feel satisfying when you kill enemies. Ray’s voice actor makes him feel so alive. It’s a very dramatic and theatrical performance, but it fits the character because Ray’s mental health is messed up. And as Bill, that’s where the game gets boring. You can use guns as Bill too, but most of the time, the game won’t let you. It forces you into stealth sections or different things like hunting rabbits, climbing a mountain, running from someone, or searching for something in lifeless places. And because of the clunkiness of the game, these sections feel boring. Stealth mechanics are just crouching and walking. You can’t knock out anyone to make the mission a little easier, and since enemies can spot you from a distance, you'll have to do everything again from the last save point or quicksave. I think Call of Juarez is a divisive and experimental game from Techland, even though it becomes boring and unbearable because of Bill’s episodes. If you are interested in the western theme, you should give it a chance.