Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus: PS4 Review

Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus: PS4 Review

Published by Bethesda Studios
Developed by Machine Games
Platform: PS4

BJ returns in the game that 2017 potentially called for, given what a weird year it's been - and given how simple Wolfenstein 2's MO is - blasting the hell out of Nazis.

OTT action, combat and story-telling has always been the Wolfenstein way and it's no surprise to relay that the latest does all of that and more as BJ Blazkowicz heads up a rag-tag team of resistance fighters who want one thing only - to kick the Nazis out of America.

Beginning on air-ship where BJ is brought round after the events of Wolfenstein: The New Order, it's up to you to wheel yourself around in a wheelchair and shoot the hell out of those who get in your way. Once that's done, the story takes another turn and you're forced into a fight on the ground to pull together a team to stop the New Colossus' nemesis, Frau Engel, from winning the day.

In a weird way, Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus is all about empowerment.

From besides the obvious with taking down Nazis (and after 2017's Charlottesville riots and other such rises of the Far right, it feels incredibly timely), Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus's desire to give you the power from a wheelchair to face foes feels fraught with frank promise and vulnerability.

As you wheel yourself around with much of your own body failing, it's a sign that fighting back isn't wrong - and is the right thing to do. Coupled with the fact that BJ's attitude is driven by a desire to protect, it's a smart message to get going.

Hurtling through corridors, taking out commanders before reinforcements can be called and fighting enemies with laser fire weapons may make you recall Doom's recent outing in all its shooty-glory.

But Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus is smart enough to balance character and story with the OTT elements, giving it a kind of unexpected grounding that proves very worthy of your time.

It's not that it's easy either - even on the simplest setting (for which the game mocks you) some enemies can be hard to kill off leading to your death before you realise what you've done wrong again. All guns blazing may work sometimes, but it's not always the smartest way to execute the game.

Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus's cut scenes give the game a cinematic edge and an emotional resonance - it lends a feel of a recruitment video in some ways, which is no bad thing, but proved to be the surprising edge on the game that had been unexpected.

At the end of the day, Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus's MO is simple - to let you blast away through a series of levels and end your opponents with grisly deaths - thanks to its simplicity of execution, its ease of gameplay and controls, it achieves that and more.

In many ways, Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus is an unadulterated guilty pleasure of a blast.