The horrors
and tragedies of war can bring out the emergence of unlikely heroes. Take Sgt.
Joe Hartsock (or “Red”) for example. A drop over France gets ugly and members of
his team are scattered around. The first objective is to round them up.
Brothers In
Arms: Earned in Blood is the successor to the highly touted and critically
acclaimed Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30. It is, at the core, a first-person
World War II shooter with some linear paths through the levels, but smart AI and
an immersive storyline.
Ubisoft and
Gearbox Software are the tag-team behind the Xbox title. And while graphically a
treat, the game does have a few minor stumbles that prevent it from being as
innovative as the original title. Still, if you have not played a Brothers In
Arms title before, you will be pleasantly surprised with this game.
There are
several modes of play – the robust and deep story mode, skirmish and multiplayer
(as well as a tutorial). The multiplayer will enable players to play over Xbox
Live or through two controllers in a split screen mode (cooperative play is
available). Skirmish is just a quick form of multiplayer combat and is broken
down into four different game modes, and will even allow players to take on the
role of Germans. While it is fun, (and certainly the multiplayer adds a great
deal to the gameplay), the multiplayer elements – on the whole – lack depth of
the story mode and the interpersonal relations that the development team tried
to make a key element in the story. The characters have emotions, and
personalities. And remember, war is hell and anyone can get killed, so if you
begin to identify with those personalities and then make a poor decision that
gets them killed, it is intended to be a haunting situation.
This game
itself is all about squad-based maneuver and firing tactics. But in many ways it
is more than just the surface understanding of that. It could be viewed as
somewhat repetitious in that you always seem to be moving through the levels in
a very directed manner (there are many impassible terrain elements), and you
will come upon different German units. The task is always the same – find the
enemy, outmaneuver them and kill them, and then move on. But when you take the
game into the context of the plot line, there is more to this. For example, the
first chapter of the story is all cutscene. But from that point the game play
really works players through nuances of the control scheme.
Then you
begin to pick up assault team members. Pulling the left trigger brings up the
assault command list and from that point on you begin to issue orders.
Suppression fire is always a good thing, but calling for an all-out assault can
be a tricky tactic and used sparingly. As mentioned, the AI is sharp. Enemies
will use cover and will even pull back to better cover if their position becomes
untenable.
There are
new weapons in the game, and as you complete each level, you will receive medals
and unlockables – which are really dependent on the difficulty setting you have
chosen.
There was
one stumbling point and that occurred when the prompt popped up to hit back to
pull up the situational awareness view. The control scheme said back was pulling
down on the left thumbstick, but repeated efforts to do this yielded no results
and the sergeant in charge of the squad was left standing motionless, unable to
move. What the in-game option really meant was hitting the actual button
labeled back on the controller, not using the left thumbstick.
The
situational awareness view allows you to pause the game, view the battlefield,
come up with a plan of attack and then return to the game to execute it. You may
lay down suppression fire, while sending a unit to flank the enemy and take them
out. It is very simple on the surface but does require some thought in order to
properly execute it all.
Graphically
Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood is a strong game. The perspectives are handled
very well; the physics resemble real-world effects. And the sound is superb –
from the orchestral musical score to the Germans speaking in German. Each
command you give is yelled, though, which might not always seem to be the wisest
course, especially when you are within earshot of the enemy.
But Brothers
in Arms: Earned in Blood is a smart game, with a superior AI and a great
tactical element that just happens to be wrapped up in first-person shooter
paper. The sound is terrific, the graphics are above average and the gameplay
and content will draw in players.
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Gameplay:
8.7
The game has load
times but while the control scheme uses everything the Xbox controller has
available, it still manages to present a small learning curve. The maps are also
somewhat linear with vegetation barriers that prevent players from take a more
direct path through the levels. The walls are understandable, as are the fences,
but banks of a small stream are chocked with tall grass that form an invisible
wall that cannot be penetrated.
Graphics:
8.8
Facial
expressions do not always match the emotion in the narrative, but this game does
a fine job of rendering war-torn environments, and the lighting and shadows are
very nicely done.
Sound:
9.2
The sounds and
music of this game are excellent.
Difficulty: Medium
With four
difficulty levels, players should have little trouble fitting the game to their
abilities.
Concept:
9.2
The AI is this
game is almost criminal it is so smart. Not only do your own troops behave with
some intelligence, but the enemies are not about to just stand around waiting to
be shot. They will counter flanking maneuvers, retreat to cover and generally
create a challenging situation.
Multiplayer: 9.0
Solid, solid,
solid. The Xbox Live connectivity, the new skirmish modes and the cooperative
play make for a great multiplayer experience
Overall:
8.9
The game does
have some linear aspects and is mission-based, but this is a smart game that
draws players into the storyline and backs the content angle up with solid
graphics, smart AI and great audio tracks. This is a title that should be in the
library of any FPC war game, and in the library of any gamer who likes a smart
challenge.
