October 10, 2008 2:36AM
Brothers In Arms: Hell's Highway
I just completed Brothers In Arms: Hell's Highway (the third BiA installment) and I figured it would be a good time to finally let everyone know what I thought.
There are two very different ways that you could look at this game that would change how you look at it, or what you expect when you sit down and play. You can see it as the third in an ongoing, established franchise, with a set formula of design, or you can look at it as a stand alone game with no history (like if you didn't play the first two). Going into it, I was hoping that they took all the awesome from the first two games and added a bit more awesome, and at first I was disappointed because it didn't seem quite as awesome, but if I had gone in without those expectations, I think I would've been very happy with the game.
I've already gone back and replayed a few of the earlier levels, and I think I wasn't paying as much attention as I should've been the first time through because things just seem to make more sense the second time through.
Levels (or maps, or chapters) in Brothers in Arms are broken up into small skirmishes between you, your two squads and something like 3 to 6 German squads. Between you and the Germans are various obstacles (sandbags, barrels, walls) placed in specific angles. You basically begin the encounter by examining where the Germans are positioned and quickly figure out the best way to flank them without exposing yourself, set up your fire squad to supress them (and your fire squad can be either a fire team, mg team or bazooka team), then take your assault squad around and flank them or at least get them close enough to use the assault command (which lets them throw grenades and usually hit them even when they're behind cover). After that is done, you get a checkpoint, and you move onto the next encounter or story sequence. Now, in the first two games, it was much more obvious to you as to the path you need to take to flank. You could look at the map and almost right away see the cover was set up so you can set up there, and flank there, and you could quickly do it... it made me feel empowered and good at the game to do it that way. In Hell's Highway it's not as obvious, and sometimes your presented with no standard place to flank (or so it seems) and your forced to pick off the Germans, slowly, one at a time from behind cover.
The basic gameplay remains, it just feels like it went backwards instead of being more refined and polished.
The narrative is heavily reliant on whether or not you played the first two games. Gearbox assumes that everyone played them, because the story just pickes up where the last ones ended, and the characters are never introduced. Since I knew the characters well (having played the first two obsessivly) I really enjoyed the story, to the point where I'm playing through the levels again just to see the story again. It's moving and powerful... however only because I know them, I think to someone who had no idea who anyone was, wouldn't find much to connect to, but I could be wrong. There were a few issues with the over narrative of the game however, like out of nowhere they introduced this superstition storyline involving Matt's gun that had never appeared before, and they never explain it, or resolve it... it was weird. There were a few moments where I didn't quite understand where the writers were going or why, but overall it was a great continuation, and I eagerly await the inevitable sequal (hopefully very soon).
I do feel like the game was quite a bit too short, especially considering the game was in development for three years or so, I could've gone for another third in length, or even twice the length, so hopefully they come out with the next game soon, since they've got the engine and stuff down.
The Brothers in Arms games remain one of my favorite franchises, my favorite WWII games, and should be played by everyone. So.. go play!
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