Playing: Wolfenstein - The New Order

So I'll start off by making a confession. I have never played the original classic Wolfenstein games. I know! As someone who writes and creates gaming content this is a shocking admission, but there it is, I've said it. So now that's out of the way...

I was perusing Steam for games to buy with a new money saving approach to PC gaming. I've decided to keep myself two to three years behind the times. That way I can get the games much cheaper and have a PC rig that can run them on maxed out settings without having to break the bank on the hardware. I can keep my PC at the spec it is (top spec in 2015,) and upgrade in a few years time when something like a GTX 1080 comes down to a much more affordable price. Ok, would I like to get Middle Earth: Shadow of War the instant it comes out? Sure I would, and probably could if I were willing to compromise on the experience by running it on a machine that is one step behind the ideal spec. But I would much rather wait a year or two, updgrade at a much lower price, pay £9.99 or less for the game and run every setting on "Ultra!"

Anyway I digress.

So I was perusing Steam for cheap games and spotted Wolfenstein: The New Order for less than £4. Now I can't quite think what it could have been, but something at the time (August 2017) had put me in the mood for killing Nazis. "That'll do" I thought to myself and immediately purchased and downloaded.

Here was a game released in 2014 and hasn't had time to age so looks amazing. Running every graphics setting at maximum performance wouldn't be a problem on my GTX 970 OC based rig.
I fell in love with the game before I even started playing it. As soon as I hit the Start Screen and heard the soundtrack I knew I was on to a winner. Once I got started on the campaign I realised that the game was going to be joyfully riduculous.

You start out during the alternative World War II where the fighting has continued into 1946 and the Nazis have the upper hand. The styling is delightfully over the top, the very definition of "Diesel Punk." Impossibly over sized B17 type American bombers take you into a foray where you face off against a German army supported by mechanical robot beasts and collosal machines lifted straight from War of the Worlds. I realised straight away that this was a game that didn't take itself too seriously.

So fast forward to the alternate 1960s where the Nazis rule the world after winning the war. This is where the story campaign really starts and what a campaign it is. So far I've battled through Berlin, Nazi occupied London and even Nazi Moon bases. Yes, there are space Nazis! Armed with an arsenal of both familiar arms and futuristic laser based weapons.

I'm on the freakin' Moon!

The game has a perfect balance of stealth and rushing in all guns blazing. The stealth elements are challenging but not to the point of utter frustration as some stealth games can get. Plus if you do fail the sneak about undetected, it's not the end of the world. It's not an instant failure, you simply just have the harder task of shooting your way out.

As far as first person shooter games go this is pretty much standard. If you've played one FPS you've played them all, right? I've always preferred playing shooters on PC as I find the keyboard + mouse setup better suited, allowing for quicker and more accurate aiming. There was one key binding I found awkward to begin with. The sprint key was it's usual [Left Shift] but crouch was [Left CTRL] meaning that to do the sprint into a slide under a low obstacle meant having awkwardly mash both keys with your little finger. That was until I realised that the sprint function worked as a toggle so I didn't have to hold it down to maintain a sprint, something that wasn't immediately made clear as I started the game. All in all game play wise this is only criticism. Not really a criticism are my thoughts on the dual wield mechanic of the game. It's not that it's bad and doesn't work well, more that I find it unnecessary and never use it. Preferring to wield a single weapon and free up the right mouse button for aiming down the scope of my gun. The game never really gives you reason to charge round with a heavy machine gun in each hand, especially with it's focus on stealth.

I find the dual wield a bit pointless and really more of a gimmick

Flavour, atmosphere and story wise the game is a definite winner. There's always a feeling of trepidation going into anything that uses Nazi themes in what is essentially for entertainment purposes. You feel the creators are walking a very tight line and could very easily get it wrong. Although it is a game of over the top action and violence, with ridiculous set pieces and a tongue in cheek attitude to it all. It doesn't tip toe around the big topics and acknowledges the evils of the Nazi regime. The fact that they not only acknowledge the history but actually address it head on is a credit to them. In doing so they showed a level of respect that they wouldn't have, had they shied away from sensitive topics. It in no way glorifies the Nazi regime, something that can easily be done, albeit unintentionally, in a game such as this.

The styling of the story runs like a Film Noir, with the protagonist's internal monologue occasionally narrating the game. Faced with the seemingly impossible task of forming a resistance against an established and global Nazi superpower. What can a rag tag group of down and outs do against a regime so powerful it has colonised the moon!? The First Person Shooter is a genre of game that has become saturated and cliche over it's long history, and for one to keep me interested it has to have something that sets it apart from the others. A great story can be that something. Whereas the gameplay could be the same as any other FPS, if the setting, the characters and the story are well done it can lift the game above mediocrity. Wolfenstein: The New Order nails the story, opens with some great and colourful characters and the setting is engrossing. Visually, the game is inspired. The vision of a Nazi run world is both intriguing and terrifying. Although you only experience it through "on rails" levels, you still get a real sense of the epic scale of this empire and world you travel through. Where travelling to the moon is no trickier than catching a train.

Just look at this big metal bastard!!

Although I have yet to finish, I feel I am getting close to the end of the game. Which saddens me as it seems I've encountered another game that is overly short. Had I bought it on release and paid what I guess would have been close to £40, I'd be less than happy with the amount of game I get. That being said, I could be wrong and maybe I'm being teased with the possibility of the end drawing near.

We shall see.

8/10 (9/10 if there turns out to be a lot more game)