Wolfenstein: The New Order Review

Wolfenstein The New Order
Developer: Machine Games
Publisher: Bethesda Softworks
Platform: Playstation 4 (reviewed), Xbox One, PC via Steam, Playstation3, Xbox 360
U.S. Release Date: May 20, 2014

Unfortunately the world we live in right now has become rife with a resurgence of KKK, Neo-Nazis, and Patriot Extremist groups that are utilizing similar tactics that the Third Reich did back in the 1930's.  And while I'm sure all of us can agree that these people are universally bad/hated/unwanted we also probably don't know how to handle them because of some of the overwhelming "are you serious" attitudes on social media nowadays.  Well I find it rather ironic that I started to replay though the new Wolfenstein game this summer only for something like Charlottesville to happen only a couple weeks after I was taking my slow progression through it.

But, I don't really want to dive down into the rabbit hole that is above (plus I'll be talking about the reaction on social media to the ad campaign of New Colossus in a future rantology), so I really want to start getting into the meat and potatoes here.  Wolfenstein The New Order is a brutal re imagining of the classic Wolfenstein series in a few bold new ways.  Everything you love about the old games is back, but with the added love and affection of glorious 2014 updated graphics, special kill sequences for melee attacks, and of course Nazis in space.  While the looks and action in this may be a far cry from older Wolfenstein games, the Nazi killing message certainly isn't.  The Nazis are back, and this time BJ Blazkowicz is even more pissed of than before.  Oh, and before we get too far into this thing I want to go ahead and toss in this just for good measure.

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So, the game starts off in 1946, taking place 3 years after the events of 2009's release.  The Nazi war machine has been developing new technologies with the help of General Deathshead, and they have managed to start to push back against allied forces.  So in steps BJ fucking Blazkowicz, the most badass soldier to ever rip a Nazis face off, and you guessed it, he's still fucking pissed.  During the attack on Deathsheads castle base BJ is mortally wounded when he narrowly escapes an encounter with Deathshead with only one of his fellow soldiers in tow (either Fergus Reid or Private Probst Wyatt III).  His allies are unable to find his body and he ends up in a Nazi run mental institution under the care of Anya Oliwa and her parents.  After nearly 20 years in a vegetative state Blazkowicz is able to get up and start kicking some Nazi teeth in when they come to shut things down.

After capturing an officer and escaping with Anya to her grandparents house they interrogate the officer and BJ discovers his worst fear: the rest of the world has given up and is now under Nazi control.  Angered he hatches a plan to liberate defectors and start his ass kicking campaign all over again.  After releasing the ally you saved Blazkowicz learns of a resistance underneath central Nazi command in Berlin run by Caroline Becker who hatches a plan to steal some stealth choppers and Nazi intel to put them in their place.  During the process Blazkowicz discovers a secret organization known as Da'at Yichud and a scientist known as Set Roth who is being held in a labor camp.  Blazkowicz infiltrates the camp, kills some fucking Naizs, and ruins some ancient Nazi bitches face by crushing it with a giant robot that Roth was forced to create.

After his liberation Roth agrees to give some of Da'at Yichud tech to the resistance to even the tides of war, but they need a U-Boat to operate it, and as it just so happens the U-Boat that Blazkowicz jacks is the flag ship of the entire Nazi U-Boat fleet. Why you ask? BECAUSE HE'S A FUCKING BADASS THAT'S WHY.  Anyrate, this motherfucker isn't just a nuclear sub, no, nothing of the sort.  It's a nuclear sub with a fucking nuclear artillery gun on it, but the problem is they need the codes to launch it, which are on the moon.  So they hit the supply cache and grab a weapon known as the Spindly Torque, or what I call The-Badass-Ball-of-Death-and-Destruction because it is literally that, and set off to get some codes.  On the moon Blazkowicz airlocks some fucking Nazis and shoves a dick down their collective throats, but when he gets back he discovers that Deathshead tries to do some fucking of his own by attacking the resistance base, however this predictably back fires when he kidnaps Anya serving to only piss off Blazkowicz even further.

The end game sequence starts with one pissed off commando, in a gun loaded with one Baddass-Ball-of-Death-and-Destruction, aimed at Deathshead's castle. Over the course of his rampage he lays waste to dozens upon dozens of Nazi.  After reaching Deathshead you're forced to fight one of his newest creations: a robot with your allies brain in it, who you eventually kill at their request.  Finally Deathshead comes to die, in a giant robot, it's a good fight.  Really that's the story, this is one of the better story based FPS games I've played recently and I can say I'm excite for the second one.

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While the game doesn't offer multiplayer (a fact that I personally find very refreshing and enjoyable), it doesn't suffer from a lack of replay ability and content.  From different difficulty modes, to collectibles, to even the original Wolfenstein being in game there is plenty to keep even a seasoned player occupied through the game.  Plus Nazi killing, who doesn't love that?

While I may not have much more to offer than a plot summary and to describe how much I love this game I will say that overall it is simplistic, with lots to do and keep you occupied, also multiple playthroughs will be required along with getting used to dying in some circumstances because you need to learn and adjust to your surroundings, especially on the higher difficulties.  I highly enjoyed it and look forward to the release of New Colossus.  I give Wolfenstein: The New Order 8 severed Nazi scalps, out of 10.