Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus
Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus is the second game of a trilogy and it improves on the fast-paced action of The New Order. It is fun, wacky, crazy and has a well told story that is supported by a great cast of characters. The New Colossus is more cohesive and it is just plain old school fun with awesome graphics and locales. It is also the best shooter of the year. Move over Destiny 2, there is a new king.
Once again you take control of B.J. Blazkowicz and shoot and kill a heck lot of nazis. The story takes place right away from the ending of The New Order. B.J. is bloody battered (what is new for the poor guy) and is rescued. While recovering all hell breaks loose and he is bound to fight yet again. This time the supporting characters are given more time to shine and shine they do. Each of their personalities rub off each other and there is a lot of jiving that makes them work well together (well the game takes place in an alternative 1960s so jive it is). Irene Engel, the antagonist, is one sadistic witch. She really holds her own and is a very good evil person. The setting of an alternative nazi run 1960's America is eerie because it does feel like it has really happened but the characters are gun-ho on taking America back and will do whatever is necessary. The story is compelling for sure as it tackles sensitive topics like racism, submissiveness and death.
B.J. controls as old-school arcade ad possible. You go from locale to locale shooting the crap of nazis and robots from beginning to end. You are allowed to have as many weapons at your disposal so you can switch from one to the other on the fly. Again, you are also able to dual wield certain guns and go crazy on everything. When this happens you are basically hip firing as the zoom aim ability is not allowed. Just like the old days you cannot dock or hide to replenish your health. You have to find health packs and if there are none off enemies or found elsewhere you can be in sticky situations where you run out of luck. The game is hard even on normal settings. This can take away from the game as you are easier to kill than the enemies. Luckily, the developers did create different types of difficulty levels you can choose from.
The weakest mechanic is the stealth. You can do your best at being quiet and discreet but most of the time something will catch you. I think the stealth can be a little bit too much at times but sometimes you can be so overwhelmed with this game that you want more stealth. In addition to the story mode you are given investigative hunts to take down generals if you pass a minigame called Enigma. You are given secret codes you have to decipher but if nt successful you lose the code points you wagered. This could lead to frustration but the hunts are worth it. This is a nice distraction and if you are into focusing on killing high level nazi commanders this is a great aspect of the game for you. The only issue is that these generals can sometimes kill you with one or two shots since they carry ultra powerful guns. In addition, you can also play the original Wolfenstein 3D on your ship. This gives an appreciation of how far the game has come.
Graphically, The New Colossus is impressive. Continuing the graphic overhaul of DOOM, Wolfenstein II's engine is a delight to the eyes. Shadow and light does the game justice. The story cut-scenes play like a movie and the sequences are really good looking but be warned that the gruesome nature of some of the kills can be a little too real. Well, it Wolfenstein for crying out loud right?
With relation to the story, it could not e as good as it is without great voice acting. Each character has a personality that is either fun, quirky, serious or mentally unstable. Characters like B.J's pregnant girlfriend Anya and Fergus (if you choose him) are strong in their roles. There is also a scene with an important figure in the series that comes out as a pathetic parasite of a person. Wished the character had some more screen time though.
Wolfenstein II's crazy action takes a breather at times with compelling story cutscenes; which is different from DOOM's heavy action sequences. The New Colossus is a very good looking game and just plain fun. It is a slight improvement to The New Order in terms of its looks and does not overstay its welcome, prolonging the game more than it should. The story is well told, can get a little loopy at times, but its immersion of characters give it a compelling tale. We are given even more detail about Blazkowicz's past life which tackles racism, love, revenge, doubt and anger. It really gives depth and a better understanding as to why he is the way he is. You sympathize his plight even more. It is one of the better stories of this year. From that you kick ass and destroy nazis with no regard to what they are as the action is intense and challenging. The New Colossus is a great shooter and a fantastic game. We cannot wait for B.J.'s next adventure.
Score: 9
Pros:
- Very good looking game.
- B.J. Blazkowicz is a bad ass.
- Great cast of characters.
- Very good story with compelling narrative.
Cons:
- Difficulty can be daunting.
- Wagering hard earned enigma coins for minigame
Update!
Wolfenstein 2 won an award in 2017. List of accolades:
2017 Game Awards
6th Place Overall Game of the Year
1st Place - Best Shooter
3rd Place - Best Story