Unfortunately for me, I began my research by jumping into Medal of Honor Heroes 2’s arcade mode. Not that it’s a bad game in this particular on-rails experience, but despite it’s fun infused name, the arcade mode isn’t half the bullet-eating battle of the Campaign mode. I say this in the review’s opening paragraph simply because my introduction to this superb game was something of a damp squib, and being as important as they are, your first impression might be a finer one if it begins with a campaign.

Of course, there’s no combating the emotional fatigue brought on by yet another Medal of Honor game – being the tenth or eleventh in the series since the turn of the millennium (I’ve lost count, and lack the impetus to research this laboured franchise). The likelihood is that even fans of the prolific series will struggle to muster any real sense of excitement – a matter which has been sadly reflected in the lacklustre launch campaign. Medal of Honor Heroes 2 just seemed to trickle out - especially over here in the UK, when the Americans have had it for three months.

This all amounts to a significant shame that robs this latest outing of a great deal of worthy praise – this is quite an excellent FPS that, for once, uses the Wii’s control system well, rather than gratuitously (or not at all). Essentially (in EA’s FPS timeline, anyway), this game picks up from the addled control system of Vanguard – a game that went so far overboard in its attempts to involve the Wii-mote that it quickly drowned in the iciest of critical waters. Lessons were clearly learned, and despite being exasperating by lineage, Heroes 2 is, for all its faults, an incredibly fun game.

Enjoying it is a wonderfully guilty pleasure. For some reason, we seem to expect a lot of modern games – we want engrossing storylines, brilliantly varied gameplay and ingenuity oozing from every pixel. A game that asks only for us to shoot everything and try not to die feels distinctly low-brow and is probably the reason many critics will feel professionally obligated to score it down.

Indeed, it suffers from many of the discourtesies that have long plagued the Medal of Honor franchise. The hero in question is the repulsive kind of atypical, square-jawed American war machine and singlehanded saviour of the world – running around historical references killing dim-witted Germans and heroically blowing shit up. This one-man war effort is packed to the trumpet with macho one-liners, while the enemy holler pathetic death knells in American lilted pseudo-Tutonic accents. Hell, if these guys weren’t Nazis, the game would practically be racist. There’s no plot (other than killing things between checkpoints) and character development surmounts to changing weapons.

But despite all this critic-rending fodder, there’s no denying that Medal Of Honor Heroes 2 on the Wii is one of the most enjoyable arcade titles the system has yet been graced with. It makes no apology for its uncultured approach to raw action, and defies anyone to take up a Zapper and not have a Nazi-blasting good time. And, to be honest, anyone who buys this game looking for cerebral stimulation isn’t nearly as intelligent as they might like to think.

As previously mentioned, the arcade mode provides an on-rails experience which very much resembles the Ghost Squad or Virtua Cop kind of gameplay – enjoyable, but hardly imaginative. The campaign mode gives movement control back to the player, however, and a Gears of War style of game mechanics comes into play. By the way, if you don’t already own a Zapper attachment for your Wii-mote (or, I might suggest, one of the cheaper and more aesthetic versions littering the World’s Marketplace like we have), bagging one for this game is a grand idea.

Two control systems are available – essentially, with and without the Zapper. It’s a simple matter of button configuration that places the required controls right at the player’s fingertips – whether using a gun attachment or not (make sure you’ve got the right one selected in the options menu). Ducking down, strafing, aiming through the sights, leaning out around defences and switching weapons are all a simple and ergonomic success. Perhaps the only slight issue with controls is the actual movement, which is controlled by the analogue stick of the Nunchuk for forward, backwards, left and right – and pointing with the Wii-mote for turning. On occasion, this does leave your all-American hero counting his bootlaces or watching the sunset, but a small amount of practice and attention resolves this small issue very quickly.

A terrific array of weapons – from grenades to rocket launchers and pistols – are available (two can be carried at once), as well as melee controls being suitably mapped to a sharp thrust forward of the Zapper; perfectly matching the pistol whipping onscreen action. Of particular note are the superb sniper rifle sequences, which quickly brought home the realisation that Silent Scope finally has a suitable home console waiting for it. I’ll look forward to reviewing that one, should it ever now appear.

Not an especially long game, but the continuous combat, sharp graphics and thoroughly action-fuelled arcade thrills make it no effort to have another lash from the beginning. Coupled with the 32 player online modes (except in Australia where, inexplicably, there is no multiplayer mode) anyone who can put together enough chiselled men of steel will undoubtedly have themselves a blast with the virtual paintballing action the multiplayer content offers.

Although our score will undoubtedly conflict with many others, and further expand the perplexing range of “love it and loath it” reviews out there, it’s simply unjust to demote a game that’s as much unabashed fun as this on account of trying to appear more civilised. Running around shooting things and needlessly blowing stuff up is a huge barrel of thrills, and Medal of Honor Heroes 2 conclusively proves it.

Only buy this gave if you love having fun.