Wolfenstein – The New Order REVIEW
I went into this game unsure what to expect. Start-to-finish single-player shooters are increasingly rare in our multiplayer obsessed medium. Further, Wolfenstein has a chequered history of hits and misses. So I was pleasantly surprised to find Wolfenstein –TNO took seriously the requirement that it replace multiplayer with a strong story and well fleshed out characters.
For the uninitiated, Wolfenstein as a franchise has historically focused on alternate scenarios during or after World War II, with Nazi Germany achieving (or on the way to achieving) victory. TNO is a complete reboot, so no prior experience with Wolfenstein is required.
It is this reimagined post-WWII world that represents TNO’s crowning achievement. The game is based almost entirely in the 1960’s, several years after the Nazi’s have achieved victory in WWII and near-complete world domination. Developer Machine Games has gone to great lengths to provide a rich backstory and menacing atmosphere that is very effective – the game successfully achieves ‘creepy.’ You could rush through the game focusing purely on combat but you’d miss dozens, perhaps hundreds, of insights into what went wrong with the world. The fall of the USA, the bombing of London, Nazi conquering of Asia and space. Alongside a well-produced Nazi-architecture aesthetic, the backstory creates the feeling that the world has well and truly succumbed to its evil Nazi masters.
It is against this backdrop that the main character, Captain William Blazkowicz, engages in a very personal battle alongside other key characters. It is here that TNO shines, with far greater and more effective character development than is present in your average modern shooter. This can be further fleshed out by repeatedly seeking out main characters within your ‘hub’ or base of operations – discovered a couple of hours into the game. Additionally, the game does an effective job of creating personal disdain for one or two key Nazi’s as the ‘face’ of the regime.
It is important to note that characters and their story will vary slightly depending on a key decision made early in the game. I am only part way through a second play-through, but early indications are you’ll want to play through the whole campaign (which will run you 12-20 hours depending on difficulty) at least twice. Without a walkthrough, you’ll need multiple play-throughs to obtain the (substantial number of) collectibles.
Combat is very solid, enhanced by the ability to approach most scenarios in multiple different ways. More than once I got my ass handed to me in open combat, only to discover I could effectively slaughter whole squads of enemies using stealth, or bypass them altogether. The AI generally held up well, though there were occasional issues with enemies bunching and creating easy targets. This is largely remedied on higher difficulties. The weapons are varied and feel sufficiently powerful. However, I recommend against duel-wielding, this feature feels clunky and poorly implemented.
The game is aesthetically pleasing. I played through on a mid (at best) level PC. It is worth noting that I couldn’t get it to run on my more powerful laptop, but I believe this was a technical issue relating to an issue with my drivers, and should be specific to me. I couldn’t find substantial mention of these issues elsewhere. Even on my underpowered PC, the game was very impressive, and I experienced slowdown only once in the whole campaign. The soundtrack is excellent.
The game is not entirely without drawbacks. There were a couple of periods where the story slowed in what did not appear to be an intentional manner. Other reviewers have noted that some of the narrative feels forced and imposed upon the player. I don’t feel the same way, but can see where they got that from. Obviously if you want multiplayer, this game is not for you.
VERDICT
This game is a breath of fresh air for those seeking a solid, single-player experience. You’ll likely find yourself wanting to play through it twice – at least – representing good value for money. Whilst I have not played it on consoles, both the X1 and PS4 are substantially more powerful than the PC I played the game on and should give you a great experience.
Story – 8
Fun - 9
Presentation – 8
Value – 8
SCORE – 8.5
starcraft - Playing Games = FUN, Talking about Games = SERIOUS
