Wolfenstein

B.J. Blazkowicz returns to foil another Nazi scheme. This time they are trying to win the war by harnessing the mystical powers of another dimension. But let's start from the top. You can't write a text about a new Wolfenstein game without mentioning its heritage. Wolfenstein 3D was the game that put the first person shooter on the map, and Return to Castle Wolfenstein brought the very popular free multiplayer mode Enemy Territory and also became an early hit on Xbox Live. A lot to live up to for Raven with the latest entry in the Wolfenstein series.

There is a certain pleasure derived from shooting Nazis. The more they scream orders and instructions the more you want to shoot them in the throat and watch as they desperately try to stop the blood from flowing out of their bodies. They're not monsters, yet there is no feeling of remorse. They're simply very bad people who sound hilarious both when alive and when dying.

It was a bit of a surprise to me that the game was so heavily focused on the single player campaign. There is no co-operative mode and the multiplayer brings nothing special and it quite frankly a disappointment given the heritage. The usual suspects in terms of modes won't be able to keep a healthy number of players online for long. Not with established competition such as Modern Warfare, Halo 3, Gears of War 2, Killzone 2 and others. It just isn't up there with those games in my opinion. However, it is nice with different classes, veil powers and some objectives.

Maybe it was a bit backwards to start by telling you about the multiplayer, because the single player is were most effort has been made with Wolfenstein. B.J. is sent to a small town called Eisenstadt where the Nazi are experimenting with some occult power source called the Black Sun. B.J. gets dragged into the struggles of both the local resistance group and a secretive society called the Golden Dawn who are in Eisenstadt to study the occult and prevent the Nazis from harnessing the tremendous powers hidden in the city. The actual city works as a hub in between missions and there are also a few side missions that can be carried out in the city. There are plenty of collectibles all over the place, and you have to pick up gold in order to upgrade your arsenal and veil powers through the Black Market vendors.

Speaking of veil powers, these are perhaps the most important aspect of the gameplay that sets Wolfenstein apart from other shooters (well it's sort of similar to a lot of shooters at the same time). As you progress through the game you unlock four powers. The first one veil allows you to see the alternative dimension. It opens up hidden paths and highlights enemies. It also reveals weird bloated floating animals that you can shoot in order to electrify close by Nazis. The mire allows you to slow down time, and there is also a shield power and a power that allows you to shoot through the shields of your enemies. They can be combined, but they all consume your veil energy. Using the right power or combination of powers is key to being successful in Wolfenstein. It adds a tactical element to the game, but to a certain degree it also robs it of some of the suspense as you will run around with your veil power turned on for most of the game to get the jump on the Nazis.

As expected the story won't win any awards, but the story telling and atmosphere is surprisingly good. The hospital level for instance is a favourite of mine. The levels themselves are mostly linear and if there is ever any doubt as to where to go next the compass will point you in the right direction. You will run and gun through a lot of corridors and there is a distinctly old school feel to the level design, the veil powered weaponry and powers do help to mix things up a little but not enough to offset that feeling entirely. I mentioned the weaponry and there are some nice veil powered addition to the more traditional World War II arsenal. I particulary took a liking to the extremely powerful particle cannon (ammo is semi-rare though) and all weaponry is upgradable through your Black Market connection.

The most annoying thing in Wolfenstein is the artificial intelligence or occasional lack there of. The ground work has been done. The Nazis use basic squad tactics and position themselves behind cover. They scream for their comrades to attack when you are reloading and they never resort to any sort of suicide tactics (well, the Nazi veil dog creatures do, but they're a special case). However, that is only when the artificial intelligence is turned on. It seems a lot of the time the German soldiers are completely unaware of your presence, even if you take out the friend standing next to them. And sometimes they just freeze. They also have a tendency to sit with their head just above the cover, which is kind of nice, but well, not very intelligent. Designing decent A.I. for a game with level design like this isn't exactly cutting edge game development and I think we should be expecting far more from veterans such as Raven Software.

Overall I enjoyed the time I spent with Wolfenstein. It's one of those games that doesn't leave a strong lasting memory and perhaps it's best suited for a weekend rental. Nevertheless it's always good fun to put a bullet in the throat of a screaming Nazi. However, I was expecting something far more memorable after first learning about the game back at X05 in Amsterdam.