No expectations and still blown away

I had no expectations of Medal of Honor, so I was not setting myself up for anything, but I requested it for my birthday and received it. When I sat down and decided to start it (I like to usually focus on one game at a time unless there are mood shifts), I was really impressed. First off, the sound is, for lack of a better word, frickin' amazing. This is THE game to test out an audio system (this game made me even more obsessed to hook the PS2 and television up to my audio system; perfect for those who have Dolby 5.1 capabilities). The sounds are very environmental, sounding realistic to their location and the music is very much like the score to "Saving Private Ryan," an equally excellent soundtrack. The company hired the Seattle symphony to orchestrate the score. Secondly, the historical footage (that's real footage people) was a really nice added touch, making the weapons, enemies, vehicles, environments, and data as authentic as possible. Thirdly, the beach landing sequence is very similar to "Saving Private Ryan’s", if not identical, with a nice display of bullets gliding through the water, penetrating all of your comrades. The explosions in the sand are very real, developing craters and sending bodies flying, which makes it feel more realistic as of how important it is for you and your platoon to 'take the beach.' The equal partnership of a team is nicely displayed, as it is your duty to complete certain objectives, but also come across help from other regiments that you come along. Fourthly, the environments are expansive, but not as much as you would probably believe. Fifthly, the movies/hidden extras are fan-freaking-tastic, especially the long cinema about the history of the "Medal of Honor" series. Sadly, there are a few minor complaints I must issue. One, it is way too short. This almost made me tear up because I was enjoying it so much. Second, no blood; it is not that I wish to see the limbs fly off my platoon (and would like to see that of my enemies though), but it removes a fraction of authenticity when there is no blood and no exploding organs when you take a sniper rifle to someone’s head at 50 feet (EA has done so well with the authenticity with everything else in the game, I figured this would be slightly added). Thirdly, there are not enough cinematic sequences between missions. Fourthly, you never get to hear your character talk. Although, you will catch instances of 'powder' blood coming off the bodies when you hit them. A few minor nitpicks aside; this game is a keeper and will serve as a testament as how wargames will be made on console systems.