Call of Juarez: The Cartel

I'm a huge fan of shooter games (anything Rockstar, Stranglehold, Call of Duty 3, The Uncharted series, etc.) so I was excited when I heard positive things about its predecessor. I was absolutely disappointed the moment I pressed the start button.

The character development was non-existent, the plot was ridiculous, and the game-play was extremely annoying. There was a level where you have to move drugs from one car to another. You can't shoot anyone while holding items and every single flipping time I did this part, I ALWAYS ended up dying. I was stuck on this mission forever. When playing, in general, it felt as if I was a lab rat trapped in a universe that you can't even explore or get some fresh air. I don't have a problem with linear games but this was poorly executed.

Immediately after dying for 50th time in a row, I went to Gamestop sold it for store credit. Those $10 I paid for it were not worth it. Do yourself a favor and avoid this game!

Literally the most racially insensitive, and it can be argued, downright racist game I've ever played and it's shocking that it came out only a little over a decade ago. I can't think of a single thing this game doesn't screw up, there's a reason the developers have tried to scrub it from existence. This isn't me being easily offended, it's a game full of nothing but racial stereotypes, built around terrible gunplay, graphics, bugs, the list goes on. This almost killed the franchise for a reason.

This game did not fulfill my expectations. I don't know what was the idea… no more good old western, no more Indians, Mexicans… duels… good music… This is just… a FPS with some typical, already used story about FBI, DEA… and all that stuff fighting against drug lords and weapon smugglers. There are some tiny references… for example, you can find some valuable items… you can ride a car and you can choose character, this time, three of them. One of them is Ben McCall, no other than a descendant of Marisa and Thomas and their son Billy. But, he inherited some strong genes that reminds you of… Ray McCall. And the guy is pretty the same as Ray, he is tough, hard-nosed, merciless and he cites the bible when he enters a special shooting mode… a former Vietnam veteran and a crazy mofo. Eddie is latino-American DEA, not that important, but he can handle rifles pretty good. Kim is a FBI agent skilled with snipers. And they all have pretty interesting connection through the gameplay. But, the game itself doesn't offer you any kind of intensity, energy, atmosphere… just running around and shooting at the targets, but it holds some elements from the previous games, like concentration mode shooting and breaking in position at the doors. On occasions, it can be fun, but don't expect too much.

Wow! what a comedown from the first game..its now just a generic shoot-em-up derived from- and inferior to- so many others.

Gameplay is awkward. I found the driving levels incredibly irritating and cumbersome.

The story is clichéd, the characters are unlikable racial stereotypes and there are just too many cutscenes. Swearing doesn't bother me but if it offends you there is a lot of profanity here.

The modern setting adds nothing and merely removes call of juarez of its unique selling point and sense of identity.

I did consider buying this but thankfully I rented it first. I definitely won't be buying it.