Having never played any of the Wolfenstein games I wasn’t entirely sure what I should expect going into this one. I knew it had something to do with Nazis and the supernatural but not much more than that. I must say that by the end of the game I was pleasantly surprised. Wolfenstein offered a fun action packed shooter experience even if it didn’t do anything to truly stand out in the already crowded market of shooters.

In Wolfenstein you play a special agent named B.J Blazkowicz and like in previous titles your goal is to kill Nazis. I mean that’s essentially what it boils down to. It’s World War II and the Nazis have taken over most of Europe. The twist in this game is the supernatural element. The Nazis possess a strong supernatural power that they plan on using to aid them in ending the war. The power, known as the Black Sun, if used correctly can give the Nazis unimaginable powers. The Nazis are harnessing this power through a parallel dimension called the Veil. As B.J. you are sent in to stop the Nazis before it’s too late.

As ridiculous as the story sounds it was actually quite good and had me intrigued. It was an interesting concept and reminded me of something out of an Indiana Jones film. The story isn’t terribly deep and there is not a ton of character development but fans of the previous titles in the series will appreciate the familiar story elements and newcomers will have an interesting enough plot to follow as they go through the game.

Seeing as there is a supernatural element to the game it’s only safe to assume that there will be some pretty awesome weapons and powers. The Particle Cannon and Tesla Gun, both of which are over the top sci-fi weapon are just some of the great weapons you can use against the Nazis. You also get to use the Veil powers. There are a few different ones, nothing we haven’t seen before but a welcome addition nonetheless. You can slow down time, create a protective shield, find hidden areas etc. These weapons and powers can also be upgraded at Black Market locations which are spread throughout the world. Upgrades are purchased using money earned and found in the game.

The game is fairly open and unlike most FPS games it does not confine you. At the start of the game you are fairly confined but after you have a few missions under your belt the city opens up. At this point you have some choice. There are two different factions who you will be doing missions for and you can choose which missions to do when you want. The two factions are the Kreisau and Golden Dawn. Both want to see the Nazis destroyed and both factions will help you out. At any point you can visit either faction’s safe house and get information, upgrade weapons etc. The missions between these two factions contribute to the majority of the main story mode but of course there are also side missions that are given out by people around town.

As you go through the game there’s actually quite a variety of enemies that show up which keeps the combat fresh and exciting. Along with your Veil powers and some awesome weapons, the game offers some pretty good combat and fights. Now that being said, the game does get a bit bland sometimes. It seems like you’re doing the same thing everytime, which in essence I suppose you are. You’re literally just killing brain dead Nazis over and over. There’s really not much variety between missions. Couple that with some dull voice acting and not up to par graphics and the game starts to lose its appeal.

At points it feels like an original XBOX game because of the poor graphics, cutscenes and animations. That’s not to say the game is bad, it’s not bad by any means, it just doesn’t offer enough variety to keep you hooked. The Veil powers and sci-fi weapons are cool but once again, nothing we haven’t seen before. The game doesn’t really do anything to set itself apart from the crowded FPS genre. I can’t help but to feel the game gives off an old and outdated feeling. It doesn’t stand out and although it’s a fairly solid game, the market is just to cluttered with FPS games and to succeed you have to offer something fresh and exciting and innovative.

Overall, the single player portion of Wolfenstein is fun. It’s pretty creepy sometimes and reminds me a bit of F.E.A.R. It also does provide some great moments and great boss fights, but it’s just a bit bland. Almost every level simply has you going through room after room, hallway after hallway just killing Nazis. There were many points where I couldn’t help feeling like I was just playing another Call of Duty 2 clone. Don’t get me wrong, it has its moments. There are some great levels and action packed sequences; just overall I couldn’t help but to feel a bit letdown and underwhelmed.

Then there is the online. The online in this game is actually a ton of fun. I’m currently addicted to it. There are only three game modes (Team Deathmatch, Objective and Stopwatch) but it’s a ton of fun. There are eight maps included and they are designed pretty well but I just wish they were a bit bigger. They are all pretty small.

Anyways, online allows you to choose which class you want to play as (engineer, medic or soldier). I love class based multiplayer because it gives you variety so you don’t have to play as the same character every time. Each class has their own pros and cons and own unique abilities. You are able to use Veil powers online as well as standard weapons. There is also a ranking system. As you rank up you can purchase new upgrades for your weapons and Veil powers. Put everything together and you’ve got a pretty good online component. The online is also very popular. Currently I have no problem finding games online. There are a ton of people playing. The online doesn’t do anything special, it’s actually pretty basic and a lot of it is stuff we’ve seen before yet it’s oddly addicting and I find myself constantly playing it.

When all is said and done Wolfenstein was pretty entertaining. The single player offered a thrilling adventure even if it did become a bit bland and boring at some parts and the online experience was nothing new or revolutionary but it was very fun and I couldn’t stop playing it. Is it worth a purchase? If you’re a fan of the series than yes, it is. If you’ve never played the series before I wouldn’t recommend purchasing it unless you are planning on spending a lot of time with the multiplayer. Wolfenstein is a good game; if it could have just shaken that outdated/bland feeling it would have been great. The supernatural element is cool and offers a spooky atmosphere as you play through but it’s not enough to totally redeem it. I hope they do make more Wolfenstein games because I really like the premise, I just hope the future titles can improve on the mistakes of this one.

Score: 7.5/10

• Pros:
  • Creepy atmosphere
  • Found the story/premise to be interesting
  • Some great boss fights and action sequences
• Cons:
  • Poor graphics and voice acting
  • Becomes a bit bland and stale at parts
  • Very standard shooter, doesn’t do much to stand out
• Random Fact:
  • Apparently a Wolfenstein movie is in the works.

Wolfenstein was developed by id Software and Raven Software and was published by Activision. It was released on August 18th, 2009