: Players had the freedom to play through three distinct stories in any order they preferred, following American, British, and Soviet soldiers. Thematic Campaigns and Settings

Call of Duty 2 introduced several mechanics that became industry standards for the next decade:

The game features 27 missions across the European Theater of World War II: Go to product viewer dialog for this item.

: Abandoning traditional health packs, the game used a streamlined healing process where players recovered automatically by staying out of fire.

: A new on-screen icon warned players of nearby explosives, a feature now ubiquitous in shooters.