WOLFENSTEIN THE OLD BLOOD [2015] STEAM PC REVIEW
🏆 MASTERPIECE 🏆
Wolfenstein: The Old Blood was released in 2015 as a great follow-up to the 2014 Wolfenstein reboot: The New Order. It brings a short but intense action-packed experience with an old-school FPS feel combined with frantic and intense gunplay that keeps your adrenaline rising.
CASTLE WOLFENSTEIN
MachineGames managed to pull off a successful franchise reboot with The New Order implementing an alternate timeline: The Second World War didn't end in 1945, and the Nazis are winning thanks to technological and supernatural advantages unearthed by their scientists. The old Blood is a prequel to the Reboot events, picking up the story of B.J. Blazkowicz in 1946. Your mission is to infiltrate the infamous Castle Wolfenstein, destroy any Nazi plans or advanced weapons, and get the location of Deathshead factory.
2001 Return to Castle Wolfenstein is one of my favorite shooters, it's a classic. The 2014 new order reboot was an explosive and fun new experience, but it lacked that mystical old castle atmosphere, filled with Nazis, zombies, and dark magic secrets that the 2001 classic had. The old blood takes you back to the dark castle setting while maintaining the new gameplay mechanics, frantic gunplay, and top-notch graphics.
ADRENALINE RUSH GUNPLAY
The Old Blood is a fast-paced FPS with tons of action that packs satisfying feedback when using the weapons that make you feel like you’re really wrestling against the recoil. There are also some soft-stealth sections designed like the previous installment: huge rooms filled with Nazi soldiers and a couple of Commanders or officers, that if detected would alert everyone. But if you manage to take them out without alerting anyone, it will prevent reinforcements from being called in. It is a solid mechanic with a bit of risk/reward, as if you do decide to ‘go loud’ and shoot everyone in sight, you’ll have plenty of trouble coming your way.
You might be overwhelmed by swarms of enemy forces during the frantic shooting encounters, but that is nowhere near the unforgiving challenge of some stealth segments, which are a nightmare on the hardest difficulties. The game uses these stealth puzzles as a nice buffer to the action. The checkpoint system makes for some repetitive shooting galleries as after some heavy encounters with tough enemies, the last standing Nazi would kill you, so you have to re-run the whole level.
There is no waypoint, that's actually cool, but sometimes you get stuck not knowing what to do. I got used to looking at my cat for directions but he kept getting us lost and wouldn't even admit it.
CONCLUSION
There are some missed opportunities here, MachineGames didn’t take the opportunity to fix some of New Order’s nagging issues, like the repetitive effort required to pick up items. The final chapters bring zombies into the mix and that adds to the variety and action to carry this short shooter through to the end. But they could have implemented the zombies better, making them more fun.
The Old Blood is a great follow-up! The intense combat and the visual art are the highlights of the package. The weapons feel great, and the arenas are interesting and filled with opportunities for some strategic creativity. Despite the missed opportunities, Wolfenstein Old Blood is a masterpiece. The story and villains are memorable, and BJ blazkowicz never losses his charm or his passion for killing Nazis. 💗
Comments
Post a Comment