Another Bethesda Showcase come and gone and this year Bethesdaland offered plenty for fans but little for those hoping for big surprises. One spoiled reveal was the announcement of Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus , colloquially referred to herein as Wolfenstein 2 , leaked by Amazon Germany earlier this week. But Wolfenstein 2 might not have been a big surprise but it could still end up being a big hit when it releases later on October 27, 2017, on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC.
READ: Wolfenstein The New Order Review
Here’s the thing about Wolfenstein . It’s silly. It’s macabre and sinister too, but at it's heart is an old PC game that introduced generations to Robot Hitler. And 2015’s Wolfenstein: The New Order gave us that silliness in just the right amount. Dropping acid with an alternate history Jimi Hendrix remains one of my top “if you could do anything in a game” moments. I thought the mechanics were a bit cookie cutter, and Wolfenstein never rightly decided if it wanted to be a stealth game or not, but there were some foundationally cool things about its cutscenes and stories and lore that made me want to spend time there. Wolfenstein 2 brings that alternate history to America, and the Nazi regime will be resisted in some of America’s most iconic settings, according to the official press site:
Set in America in 1961, The New Colossus will take BJ (dubbed “Terror-Billy” by the Nazis) from post-nuclear Manhattan to small-town Roswell to the bayous and boulevards of New Orleans and beyond, as he leads the Resistance against the Nazi occupation of his beloved country.
Roswell? Nice. The Nazis on the moon was a very nice touch in Wolfenstein: The New Order, so I’m looking forward to whatever “fucking bananas” stuff MachineGames gets up to with the premise of “what if the Nazis found an alien spaceship at Roswell.”
There was no mention of multiplayer, either, something I think MachineGames should get a little credit for doing. It’s rare to find a single-player shooter experience these days that isn’t more than a glorified excuse to train you for multiplayer. Assuming this holds true Wolfenstein 2 will likely stand out as one of, if not the only, game offering this kind of experience this fall.
It’s hard to watch a trailer for a game about Nazis and not think about all the growing Nazi hype in America’s political climate today. And while I don’t think MachineGames will experience the kind of backlash dogging Ubisoft’s Montana-cult inspired Far Cry 5 , I would be surprised if people didn’t latch on to the theme a little bit. All this talk about punching Nazis likely has folks in the mood to do a whole lot more. And Wolfenstein 2 is ready to give you an outrageous, over-the-top outlet to work out those feelings.
If Wolfenstein 2 can keep the focus on a balanced narrative tone and put it in a game that knows what it wants to be, instead of sitting on the fence between stealth and bloodbath, then count me in.
What do you think of Wolfenstein 2? Are you ready for more Nazi killing? Let us know in the comments!
