I remember the first time I popped the disc into my PlayStation 2. It was late 2003. The opening cinematic for Medal of Honor: Rising Sun wasn't just a cutscene; it was a loud, chaotic, and terrifying introduction to the Pacific Theater. You play as Corporal Joseph Griffin, and honestly, the game doesn't give you time to breathe. One second you're asleep in your bunk on the USS California, and the next, the world is literally exploding around you. Pearl Harbor was the hook. It was the "water cooler" moment of the year.
But if you ask any serious fan of the franchise today, they’ll tell you that Rising Sun is kind of a weird masterpiece. It’s flawed. It’s buggy in places. It feels like half a game because, well, it sort of was. Yet, there’s something about the atmosphere—the dense Philippine jungles, the tension of the bridge over the River Kwai, and the sheer audacity of the "Supercarrier" mission—that modern shooters just can't seem to replicate.
The Pearl Harbor Level Was a Technical Miracle
Let’s be real. In 2003, we hadn't seen anything like the "Day of Infamy" level on a home console. PC players had Medal of Honor: Allied Assault and its legendary Omaha Beach landing, but console players were often left with watered-down ports. EA Los Angeles changed that. They wanted to give the PS2, Xbox, and GameCube a cinematic experience that rivaled Spielberg’s Saving Private Ryan.
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The sheer scale of the attack on Pearl Harbor in Medal of Honor: Rising Sun remains a high-water mark for the series. You aren't just a soldier; you're a frantic survivor. You’re manning AA guns, watching the USS Arizona list and sink, and dodging Zeros that feel like they're inches from your head. It was visceral. It felt heavy. The sound design by Michael Giacchino—who would go on to win an Oscar for Up—provided a score that felt sweeping and mournful all at once. It wasn't just "go here, shoot that." It was "survive this tragedy."
Why the Pacific Theater Was a Bold Choice
Most shooters back then were obsessed with the European front. If I had to storm another French village in 2003, I probably would have lost my mind. By shifting the focus to the Pacific, EA took a massive gamble.
The gameplay shifted from urban warfare to guerrilla tactics in thick vegetation. In the mission "In Search of Yamashita's Gold," the jungle isn't just a backdrop; it’s an obstacle. You’re squinting through the foliage, trying to spot a Japanese sniper before he spots you. It changed the rhythm of the game. It was slower, more methodical, and way more claustrophobic than the streets of Berlin. This wasn't just a reskin of previous games. The developers actually tried to capture the specific horror of the Pacific campaign, even if the AI was, admittedly, a bit "hit or miss" even for the time.
Honestly, the Japanese AI in Rising Sun was a point of contention. Sometimes they'd pull off a brilliant flanking maneuver. Other times, they’d just stand there while you reloaded your M1 Garand. But when it worked? It was terrifying. The banzai charges were a legitimate jump-scare.
The Gunplay and the "Thunk"
There is a specific sound an M1 Garand makes when the clip ejects—that iconic ping. Rising Sun nailed the foley work. Every weapon felt distinct. The Thompson submachine gun had that rattly, high-speed kickback. The Welrod (that weird, silent pistol you use in the Singapore missions) felt like a specialized tool rather than just another gun.
- Weapon variety was huge: You had the M1903 Springfield, the BAR, and even some captured weaponry like the Type 99 Arisaka.
- The sense of impact: When you hit a target, the animation feedback was surprisingly detailed for a sixth-generation console game.
- The reload animations: They were slow. They were deliberate. They made you feel vulnerable.
The Mystery of the Unfinished Sequel
Here is the thing that still drives fans crazy: Medal of Honor: Rising Sun ends on a cliffhanger. A massive one. After the final mission on the Japanese supercarrier, Joe Griffin watches his brother, Donnie, get flown away as a prisoner of war. The screen fades to black with a "To Be Continued" vibe.
But it never was. Not really.
EA had planned a Rising Sun 2. The sales were actually great—it sold millions of copies—but the critical reception was mixed. Critics felt the game was too short and the AI was dated. Instead of pushing forward with Joe’s story, the franchise pivoted. We eventually got Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault on PC, which was a fantastic game in its own right, but it followed a different protagonist (Tom Conlin). Joe Griffin’s quest to save his brother was relegated to the "what if" bin of gaming history. It’s a tragedy, honestly. We spent the whole game building up this emotional stakes only to have the door slammed in our faces.
Multiplayer and the Golden Age of Split-Screen
Before Xbox Live took over the world, we had four-player split-screen. Rising Sun was a staple of the Saturday night sleepover. The maps weren't huge, but they were smartly designed. "Caldecott Bridge" and "The Shima" were legendary.
There was a simplicity to it. No killstreaks. No custom loadouts that took three hours to configure. Just you, your friends, and a rocket launcher that someone would inevitably use to "screen cheat." We didn't care about "meta" builds. We cared about who could find the sniper nest first. Looking back, the framerate would probably make a modern gamer nauseous—it dipped into the low 20s when things got busy—but at the time, it was the pinnacle of social gaming.
Breaking Down the "Realism" Myth
People often praise the Medal of Honor series for realism. Is Rising Sun realistic? Not by 2026 standards. You’re basically a one-man army. You take enough bullets to kill a rhino and keep running because you walked over a green first-aid kit.
But it was authentic. There’s a difference. The developers worked with military consultants like Captain Dale Dye. They made sure the uniforms looked right. They made sure the tanks moved like tanks. They captured the feeling of the era. The mission in Singapore, where you’re wearing a civilian suit and sneaking through a high-stakes meeting of Axis officials, felt like a scene straight out of a classic war movie. It gave the game a sense of prestige that Call of Duty (which was just starting out) hadn't quite mastered yet.
What Most People Get Wrong About Rising Sun
There’s a common narrative that Rising Sun killed the franchise. I disagree. While it wasn't as polished as Frontline, it expanded the scope of what a World War II game could be. It introduced a co-op campaign mode, which was revolutionary for the time. Playing through the entire story with a buddy on the couch changed the dynamic completely. You could actually coordinate. One person could suppress the enemy with a BAR while the other moved up with a shotgun. It was a precursor to the modern co-op shooters we love today.
The game also tried to tell a more personal story. The letters from home that you’d find, the interactions with the OSS—it wasn't just about the war; it was about the people in it. It had a soul.
Why You Should Care Today
If you can find an old console or a way to play it today, do it. Don't look at the textures. Don't look at the 480p resolution. Look at the ambition. Medal of Honor: Rising Sun represents a time when developers were still figuring out how to tell "cinematic" stories in 3D spaces. It’s a piece of history.
It reminds us that games don't have to be 100-hour open-world slogs to be memorable. Sometimes, a tight, 8-hour campaign with a killer soundtrack and a few iconic set pieces is all you need. It was a game that dared to take us to a different part of the world and show us a different side of the greatest conflict in human history.
Actionable Steps for the Retro Gamer
If you're looking to revisit this classic or experience it for the first time, here is how to get the most out of it:
- Seek out the GameCube version: If you have the choice, the GameCube version often has slightly better textures and a more stable framerate than the PS2 version.
- Play in Co-Op: The game is significantly more fun (and easier to manage during the tougher jungle sections) with a second player.
- Appreciate the Score: Turn the music volume up in the settings. Michael Giacchino’s work here is genuinely some of his best.
- Use a CRT if possible: These games were designed for tube TVs. The "fuzz" of a CRT hides the jagged edges of the 2003 graphics and makes the lighting look much more natural.
- Look for the "Film Strips": The game includes unlockable historical footage and interviews. They provide incredible context for the missions you’re playing and show the level of research the team put in.
Rising Sun might be a "flawed gem," but it’s a gem nonetheless. It’s a reminder of a time when the Medal of Honor name meant something special—a blend of history, heroism, and high-octane action that paved the way for every military shooter that followed. It’s a shame we never got to save Donnie Griffin, but the journey to try was worth every minute.