Publisher: Activision, www.activision.com
Ages: Mature Only
Parental Advisory: Ultra-violent and bloody.
Violence
Rating: 
All gamers will recall, years ago, when they first played Id's original Castle
Wolfenstein-the first shooter on the market and clearly the best of its day.
What made Wolfenstein so compelling was the fact that you could, for the first
time, participate in the action from the perspective of the main character
by "walking" down corridors, "peering" around corners, and blazing away with
your guns-almost as if you were a part of the game.
Wolfenstein's success later spawned Id's amazing Doom and Quake, as well as games such as Half-Life, Aliens versus Predators 2, No One Lives Forever, and more. Activision's new Return to Castle Wolfenstein is a familiar game that's back with a vengeance. While the game's single-play experience is solid, it's the multi-player experience that truly stands out. As before, the bloody action in this game is for mature players only.
In the game, you play B.J. Blazkowics, an American soldier who single-handedly has to stop the plans of the Third Reich. With this simple plot, you'll find yourself fighting waves of storm troopers, knights, and outrageous products of genetic experimentation in seven missions and 27 levels.
The single-play mode offers the usual running and shooting with a few stealth missions. In this regard, Wolfenstein lacks the in-depth plot of a Max Payne or Alien Versus Predator 2. While there's plenty of action, the problem is, there are few surprises along the way. On the plus side, the game's artificial intelligence is good. I found that the enemy soldiers didn't idly sit around waiting for me and even made the effort to run and hide.
The game's graphics are impressive. The outdoor scenes offer interesting terrain and the interiors are quite detailed. Also, the enemy soldiers move in realistic ways. Also, Sound effects are well done.
While the single-player mode is solid, the multi-player mode is outstanding. Interestingly, here you won't find the usual capture the flag and deathmatch games, but a compelling mix of team-based games that ask you to achieve goals such as destroying structures or stealing objects from other teams, or capturing checkpoints.
Multi-player games offer four different characters. As an engineer, you can repair guns and install and ignite explosives. As a medic, you can heal teammates. Since multi-player games don't offer health bonuses, medics are particularly important. Lieutenants can call artillery and air strikes. And finally, soldiers can use all of the game's weapons. The game does a good job of balancing the importance of each character and making each integral to winning games.
With its excellent multi-player activities and its first rate single play, Return to Castle Wolfenstein is a great game. It builds on the same elements that made its predecessors great and offers an entertaining experience.
