RO isn't all that hard to learn.
The legend of the steep learning curve comes more or less from the fact that people who were very good at some games (like CoD or CS) were reduced to mere newbies when playing RO because the gamestyle is totally different.
A fast trigger finger might not be completely useless but positioning skills are much much more important. In Call of Duty or Counterstrike the opposite is true!
So RO is indeed a very hard and maybe also frustrating game if you try to play it like it was Call of Duty or Counterstrike. If you accept that RO is different and you play accordingly it shouldn't be too hard to learn.
Also, what is hard about RO is the gameplay! The controls and how you move around in the world are very easy to pick up and they are pretty much like in most other first person shooters, so don't be scared expecting a game where you need to look into a 500 page manual just to find out how to reload your rifle.
Lastly, the advice that getting RO if you are into realistic games and getting something else if you are not is a very good one, however you might not yet know if you are into realistic games.
If you really want a more action based world war 2 game then Call of Duty 2 is THE game to get. It plays great, is easy to pick up and play but still deep enough to offer great deathmatchial (TM) fun and it looks stunning and runs great for how it looks.
If you want a game with big maps and vehicles that is more on the action side then Battlefield 2 is great game to get. In my opinion the characters can take way too much damage but that's a matter of taste and other than that it is a very good game. There is also a free ww2 mod for it, if you want something with ww2. It is called Forgotten Hope 2. If you should decide that you still want something more realistic then there is the free mod "Project Reality".
If you want a game with big maps and vehicles that is even more realistic than RO on a wider scale, then Operation Flashpoint is your game. There are also ww2 mods of varying quality for it. Just be sure to grab a unit-replacement mod with new animations, because the old ones really drag the game down to eye-sore level. Not the prettiest game, but the graphics get the job done (especially with a unit-replacement pack).
There is also Armed Assault which is very similar to it though itl ooks much better if you have a good PC but the singleplayer missions aren't as great. Both games have a terrific co-op though.
If you are looking for a hard, realistic tactical shooter set in ww2 (singleplayer!) then getting Hidden and Dangerous 2 would me my advice. Runs rubbishly for how it looks and doesn't look that great to begin with, but it is good enough and the gameplay is great once you get past the awkward squad controls.
If you are looking for a hard, realistic tactical shooter that isn't necessarily set in ww2 (singleplayer!) then I can recommend Raven Shield to you. A very good, thrilling game and it has a co-op mode that absolutely rocks!
