The gameplay mixes very well the arcade and military simulation modes: while you still have the common fps elements (visible hud, sprint and life bar) and pacing, one or two bullets will be enough to kill you, you need to check manually how much bullets do you have left and there is a "fear" bar that, if it is filled completely, your vision and hearing will get blurrier and your aiming will get worse, also, you will need to have a good communication with your team if you want to win.
The game makes a great job portraying the horrors of the second world war.
NOTE: This page will mainly focus on Red Orchestra 2, but Rising Storm also shares some of the good qualities