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One look at Wolfenstein and you'll see why it's being touted as a "reboot": the Nazis are toying around with energy from an alternate dimension, leading to a heavy dose of zero-gravity and time-stopping nonsense. The unkillable American special op BJ Blazkowicz has access to some damn strange, sci-fi-style weaponry (like a Tesla coil-powered electricity gun, and my personal favorite, a Nazi-vaporizing particle cannon). In essence, the game feels a lot like Wolfenstein, and yet somehow manages to skirt around that feeling without ever embracing it fully.
But isn't really fair to actually call Wolfenstein a reboot—after all, it's only the third ‘true' game in the series whose sequels have been close to a decade apart each. Instead, it feels more like unexpectedly running into someone you knew well from your college days, only they've shaved their head and had tribal tattoos inked on their chin. Needless to say, this might not be the Wolfenstein you know and love from your childhood; call it something closer to Half-Life: WWII Edition instead, a caveat which may help shape your excitement or disappointment over the tone of this latest outing.
The difference between what you might expect from a sequel to Return to Castle and the direction Raven's taken this new Wolfenstein isn't for a lack of the supernatural, however. There's plenty of otherworldly portals and even some demonic nazi monsters. Then again, there's also a boss fight with a gigantic inter-dimensional alien bug queen.
Now, I'm not suggesting that any time a series makes a substantial departure from previous iterations it's a bad thing; one need only revisit games like Resident Evil 4 or Tomb Raider: Legend to see the merits of reinvention. This time around, Blazkowicz gets his hands on the Veil, a supernatural artifact and key into the black sun dimension, whose powers the Nazi war machine are attempting to harness in order to end the war and finally conquer the world. Comparing the bug-like aliens that inhabit the black sun, weird energy weapons and inter-dimensional portals to the undead soldiers and grotesque genetic abominations seen in Return, Blazkowicz may as well be packing an HEV suit and a red crowbar.
As you progress through the war-torn town of Isenstadt, which serves as the main town hub connecting the game's various missions, squads of average (read: non-supernatural) soldiers are soon accompanied by menacing heavyweights wielding flamethrowers and the aforementioned particle cannon (among other things), gangly creatures ripped straight from Resistance and clawed, acrobatic, demonic female assassins. We assume that these new enemies and technologies all come from R & D associated with the black sun, but little time is devoted to story here. It certainly doesn't ruin the game, but it's something that still bears mentioning.
On the other hand, Raven didn't skimp on the game's most important mechanic: shooting. The variety of weapons at your disposal feel accurate and are a blast to use, and the damage modeling and physics are spot-on. Blazkowicz can also use Veil powers, which can give you an edge in combat by slowing down time, allowing you to shoot through cover or creating a shield, all of which become necessary for success toward the end of the game. The black sun dimension is also used to find hidden paths and solve basic puzzles, which is an interesting mechanic itself. Finally, BJ moves faster when the Veil is activated, which can make hoofing it across Isenstadt and on to your next objective a quicker, easier experience. Outside of the city, where all of the game's core levels take place, these mechanics come together with generally solid level design. Isenstadt itself is a little looser, and the combination of the mandatory rendezvous with resistance fighters in various town hideouts and unscripted battles with entrenched enemies you generally have to fight your way through to get through point A to point B take a chunk out of Wolfenstein's pacing. Although the decision to use an open-world setup between missions is a questionable one, the bulk of the gameplay is spent in core missions, which generally last between 30-45 minutes each.
In essence, Wolfenstein is very different beast from Return, but aside from the pacing issues, it's still fun. You may not be experiencing too much you haven't seen approximated before, but the game's departures knock some of the dust off WWII shooters and make for an enjoyable, if at times uneven, experience.
That, and vaporizing Nazis never gets old.
Fun factor: Raven's Wolfenstein is a sci-fi/horror mash-up that's easy on the horror. If this idea intrigues you, it might be your cup of tea. Vaporize Nazis!
Game length: You can get through this one in about eight hours.
Difficulty: Average, until the last part of the game. Then Raven throws everything but the kitchen sink at you. Expect to die a lot.
On the negative side: The open world structure between missions feels a little unnecessary, and there's little story. You may either like or dislike the departure in tone from previous installments.
Bang for your buck: The single player is short, but there's always online multiplayer. I'd wait for a price drop before committing.
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