Zero Punctuation: Wolfenstein: The New Order
- Thread starter Yahtzee Croshaw
- Start date
Huh, having not really talked to anyone about this game I was fully expecting it to make like the entire shooter genre and turn out to be another thinly disguised clone of the modern CODs but what do you know. Might actually consider buying it now.
That limerick episode is still my favorite today and I couldn't believe it didn't win the viewer's choice thing... much less make it to the top five. That ending being four lines of limerick made me pine for a the days that might've been if we had let him know we liked his sing-song poetry...
One thing that makes me sad about the new Wolfenstein is that it will inevitably get glossed over, while overhyped drivel like Titanfall gets more media coverage than two wars and a kitten massacre.
It's a solid, competent FPS with good level design and good supporting mechanics. You can stealth your way through many sections, exchange fire from cover (with one of the most unobtrusive cover systems ever) or just dual wield shotguns and plow your way through the Nazi hordes while laughing maniacally. There's even a perk system that rewards unlocks not for arbitrary XP points, but rather by completing gameplay objectives that encourage you to try all the various approaches to murdering Nazis that the game offers. Again, it's unobtrusive and feels like a nice extra.
But where the game shines is the worldbuilding and characterization. The plot itself is fairly unremarkable (though not bad), but the alternate history that's built for it is just great. And again, it's unobtrusive - you get it through journal entries, recovered letters, newspaper clippings and overheard conversations, and it all paints a picture of how the world turned out, both on a personal and global scale. From the events in China and Russia to day-to-day lives under a world-spanning Nazi regime, it's all there for you to find.
Hell, the developers made alternate German versions of songs from the period! [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_artPecEaM] That's just going the extra mile there!
Characters themselves are believable, fleshed out and feel like actual people. Even B.J., despite seeming like a generic square-jawed meathead FPS protagonist is actually a subversion of that trope - while outwardly he does often act like the "action hero", his inner monologues and his interaction with people in quiet moments reveal a thoughtful, introspective individual with plenty of remorse and regret who just wants to set things right.
It's a wonderful game, the best Wolfenstein game and one of the best single-player FPS games in a long while.
It's a solid, competent FPS with good level design and good supporting mechanics. You can stealth your way through many sections, exchange fire from cover (with one of the most unobtrusive cover systems ever) or just dual wield shotguns and plow your way through the Nazi hordes while laughing maniacally. There's even a perk system that rewards unlocks not for arbitrary XP points, but rather by completing gameplay objectives that encourage you to try all the various approaches to murdering Nazis that the game offers. Again, it's unobtrusive and feels like a nice extra.
But where the game shines is the worldbuilding and characterization. The plot itself is fairly unremarkable (though not bad), but the alternate history that's built for it is just great. And again, it's unobtrusive - you get it through journal entries, recovered letters, newspaper clippings and overheard conversations, and it all paints a picture of how the world turned out, both on a personal and global scale. From the events in China and Russia to day-to-day lives under a world-spanning Nazi regime, it's all there for you to find.
Hell, the developers made alternate German versions of songs from the period! [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_artPecEaM] That's just going the extra mile there!
Characters themselves are believable, fleshed out and feel like actual people. Even B.J., despite seeming like a generic square-jawed meathead FPS protagonist is actually a subversion of that trope - while outwardly he does often act like the "action hero", his inner monologues and his interaction with people in quiet moments reveal a thoughtful, introspective individual with plenty of remorse and regret who just wants to set things right.
It's a wonderful game, the best Wolfenstein game and one of the best single-player FPS games in a long while.
I finished this game the other day too, and was left with a twinge of a smile on my lips and the feeling that I'd just had 12 hours of fun. Which is pretty much EXACTLY what I want out of a story driven FPS. And the fact that it came with a surprisingly effective story just made it all the more sweet, probably even a contender for shooter of the year.
I believe that Yahtzee has truly gone soft
Praising and padding and pissing aloft
Where there once was flare
With the strength of a bear
All I see now is cowardly croft
Praising and padding and pissing aloft
Where there once was flare
With the strength of a bear
All I see now is cowardly croft
According to a few critics, simply applying traditional mechanics in a cohesive and well designed manner just isn't good enough, unlike all of those modern milit...
...wait...
Ah well, I'm glad that the game seemed to have done well so far, at least it's success wasn't automatically mandate by the media like Titanfall and Watchdogs, regardless their real quality.
...wait...
Ah well, I'm glad that the game seemed to have done well so far, at least it's success wasn't automatically mandate by the media like Titanfall and Watchdogs, regardless their real quality.
Would have been better if they had picked a side and went with serious depiction of a world ruled under the iron fist of Nazis or just over the top silliness of, say, killing mecha-hitler on the moon with laser shooting dinos. The tonal shifts between the two just didn't flow well and was not helped by BJ having some of the worst "deep introspective" lines I have ever heard. Made me chuckle to imagine that it was a symptom of the shrapnel imbedded in his brain, making him spout terrible dialog that only he would think are insightful or funny XD
Guns could have used more variety though the ability to dual wield was pretty sweet. There are only a handful of enemy types and the only noticeable difference was that the normal armored guys with shotguns are strangely a bigger threat than the big robot uber soldier dudes. The boss fights (of which there were only two) were pretty lame. The moon base was pretty disappointing as you only spend a minute out on the surface before its back to generic industrial corridors. The stealth was surprisingly good and sometimes a much more preferable option to just running in guns blazing. The splitting timelines wasn't a terrible idea but provides only superficial changes that doesn't matter either way.
Overall it was still an enjoyable shooter, getting to see some old mechanics make a comeback was refreshing like a leaning mechanic even though I never used it. It did have some good scenes and set pieces but the tonal shifts and loose threads connecting them were painfully obvious. There is plenty of Nazis killing and I suppose that's what matters when you pick up a Wolfenstein game.
Guns could have used more variety though the ability to dual wield was pretty sweet. There are only a handful of enemy types and the only noticeable difference was that the normal armored guys with shotguns are strangely a bigger threat than the big robot uber soldier dudes. The boss fights (of which there were only two) were pretty lame. The moon base was pretty disappointing as you only spend a minute out on the surface before its back to generic industrial corridors. The stealth was surprisingly good and sometimes a much more preferable option to just running in guns blazing. The splitting timelines wasn't a terrible idea but provides only superficial changes that doesn't matter either way.
Overall it was still an enjoyable shooter, getting to see some old mechanics make a comeback was refreshing like a leaning mechanic even though I never used it. It did have some good scenes and set pieces but the tonal shifts and loose threads connecting them were painfully obvious. There is plenty of Nazis killing and I suppose that's what matters when you pick up a Wolfenstein game.
-"...Tintin on protein shakes."
SOLD! SOOOLD! SOOOOLLDD!!
Although, captain Haddock would've been a great Nazi-Em-Up character, running about on enemy u-boats glassing everyone.
-"Blazing barnacles, ye buggers! Teach ye to take me ship!"
SOLD! SOOOLD! SOOOOLLDD!!
Although, captain Haddock would've been a great Nazi-Em-Up character, running about on enemy u-boats glassing everyone.
-"Blazing barnacles, ye buggers! Teach ye to take me ship!"
The Wolfenstein review has been my favourite ever since it came out. Glad you added that limerick at the end for old time's sake.
Also, this game is sounding better and better. I wasn't really considering it until it started getting positive reviews with most people praising the story.
Also, this game is sounding better and better. I wasn't really considering it until it started getting positive reviews with most people praising the story.
My take on the meaningless choice is that it was deliberate. You are put in front of a terrible and unavoidable decision, and no matter what you do, you know you'll choose wrong, because there is no good choice. I think the aim here was to present the helpless horror one must feel at that moment, where both friends are looking at you desperately. Think Sophia's Choice.gamegod25 said:
At least in my case, the writers achieved their goal. Kudos.
love this game, already done one timeline and now a good bit into the other, the game so good the only complaint I have is a childish nitpick, there is no level in the game where you get a chance to dual wield the hunting shotgun, that´s how good the game is.
PS: am I the only one who feel they could expand upon the easter egg as DLC?
PS: am I the only one who feel they could expand upon the easter egg as DLC?