At first consideration, a Polish development team and a game about the American West seem to go together about as well as Twinkies and ketchup, but in 2006, Polish developer Techland proved that in spite of their differences, good things can come from the most unlikely pairings. That year they came out with Call of Juarez, a shooter keeping with the previous year's trend of western-themed games such as Gun, Red Dead Revolver and Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath. Call of Juarez followed the exploits of gunslinger priest the Reverend Ray McCall and McCall's formidable frenemy, Billy Candle. The game allowed players to switch between the two characters, mixing up gameplay by taking advantage of the distinct talents of each. This year's sequel, Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood maintains that format while offering players a new, more emotionally-engaging story.

Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood is the origin story of Reverend Ray and his brothers, Thomas and William. It begins during the Civil War and is recounted by young priest William McCall who tells of his brothers' dedication to the Confederate cause and their eventual desertion of it. William, the moral compass of the group, is distraught when his brothers flee their ex-commanding officer Colonel Barnsby and forever trade the notion of rebuilding their "old Kentucky home" for making a questionable living as gunslingers. In spite of his misgivings, he goes along with them, becoming a reluctant accomplice to their exploits. The three brothers travel west from Arkansas, along the way forming an uneasy alliance with the Apaches, a Mexican bandito named Juan "Juarez" Mendoza, and Mendoza's sultry paramour in order to find the legendary gold of Juarez.



The first Call of Juarez offered two approaches to gameplay during the single-player story mode—stealth or strength—as embodied by the two main characters. That formula is repeated here in the choice between thoughtful Thomas, who can lasso his way to high places, snipe enemies from afar, and perform stealth kills with his bow; and crazy sum'bitch Ray, who can dual-wield pistols, plant and throw TNT, and use a Dirty Harry-ish hand cannon called a Volcano Gun. Thomas is great during missions that require sneaking or eliminating out-of-reach enemies while Ray is best for fighting in close quarters. Both brothers have a Concentration mode, which when fully charged, allows them to stop time, then target and take out multiple enemies. In Thomas's Concentration mode, aiming is automatic and shooting feels very real as you flick the right thumbstick back like a gun's hammer. Ray's Concentration mode is somewhat flashier, letting you use the right thumbstick to select all your targets first then restart time and watch those yellow-bellies go down like poisoned prairie dogs. There's also a co-op Concentration mode for those especially sticky situations that lets the brothers join forces and mow their enemies down.
 
The game gently nudges your choice of character from one level to the next, depending on your objective, but success is possible with either character. Thomas may be the subtler, smarter of the two but Ray is just damn cool.  With his scarred, leathery face and wry cynicism, he brings to mind fallen priest-turned warrior, Father Callahan from Stephen King's Dark Tower series.  And if your play style, like mine, is characterized by throwing caution to the wind and running at your enemies like a chaps-wearing berserker, then Ray is the hero for you. No matter which hero you choose though, you can carry multiple weapons and easily switch among them with R2 (PS3) and the left thumbstick. You can also swipe better weapons from dead enemies or buy them from local gun shops using money "borrowed" from the dead or earned by performing the occasional trot-by-shooting.



Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood is a very well-conceived game, as evidenced by the progress of the story and the way it changes gameplay.  Activities are interesting and various and are driven by the narrative; they're not just "something to do." (My favorite bits involved riding horses at breakneck speed with bullets whizzing past and going on a wild, semi-controlled canoe ride.) There’s never any confusion about what you're supposed to do either thanks to an onscreen pointer, various guide non-playable characters, and the ability to bring up your objective at any time. This last feature is especially good because, depending on whom you're playing, your objectives will differ. Thomas may need to climb over a mine's scaffolding while Ray will have to fight his way through the mines underground.

The co-op nature of the gameplay does a great job of reinforcing the brother's bond so strongly conveyed through the writing. The funny banter between the brothers is crude but convincing and the actors voicing Ray and Thomas do a stellar job of making their relationship believable. The music too does a great job of making the world feel authentic. Something about it brings to mind the theme of HBO's edgy western series Deadwood.



Authenticity is also communicated through the incredible graphics. It's easy to overlook the art in a game like this because it isn't futuristic, full of flashing lights and neon colors. It consists entirely of desert vistas, shadowy forests and grey, dusty towns, none of which are eye-catching in a Las Vegas "look at me" kind of way. What Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood does well is capture the organic quality of the landscape and light it spectacularly. Except for some minor shadow popping in the sunlit sections, the environments look amazing. It's obvious that special care was taken to create mood with light and beautiful compositions with geometry. Riding through rain-soaked towns or walking through deep canyons, you'll be repeatedly surprised by the gorgeous views. Although they almost take a back seat to the landscape, the characters too are just as expertly done. (Though can someone tell me why sexy senorita Marisa has such a huge head? It's like an orange on a toothpick for God's sake.)

Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood is a smart, polished, well-thought-out shooter. It runs smoothly, the load times are short—good for replaying those bungled gunfights—and the checkpoints (although they cause a bothersome several second freeze) are generous and intelligently placed. The good writing, ever-shifting relationships among the characters, and wide range of interesting levels will keep you on the edge of your seat 'til the last bullet flies.


Fun Factor: It's fun-times-two due to being able to alternate between two highly distinct heroes.

Game Length: Depending on difficulty (Easy, Normal, Hard), 8-12 hours.

Difficulty: Due to ample ammo pickups and checkpoints, difficulty on default setting feels spot-on.

On the Negative Side: Frequent checkpoints cause some bothersome hitching. 

Bang for Your Buck: With the possibility of replaying the Story mode on various difficulties, replaying individual chapters as different brothers and engaging in some wild west multiplayer madness in Shootout, Posse, Wanted, Manhunt and Wild West Legends modes, Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood is well worth spending a little of that Aztec gold.