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Played on: PC (RTX 4090) Playtime: ~7 hours Difficulty: Medium Music Setting: Off

Gameplay The gunplay feels tighter and more satisfying than in The New Order, with solid weapon variety and the pipe tool adding fun traversal and combat options. That said, the climbing mechanic was the only real addition-everything else played the same. Enemy AI was surprisingly weak; you could often run or sneak past enemies unrealistically. Some chapters were wildly inconsistent in difficulty, with the prison section and final boss being especially frustrating.

Story The story had just enough momentum to keep me playing, but it was nowhere near as engaging as The New Order. The entire plot revolves around getting a single Nazi file, which felt flat. The forced inclusion of zombies and supernatural elements completely clashed with the grounded tone of the previous game. That said, the references and the ending-tying directly into The New Order-were satisfying.

Graphics Despite a few visual bugs (like floating cockroaches), the graphics still hold up decently for a 2015 release. Nothing visually blew me away, but it wasn't distracting either.

Sound / Music I played with the music off, and overall sound design felt a bit weaker than The New Order. Voice acting was serviceable but lacked standout moments or lines. Nothing memorable here.

Performance No crashes or issues at all, which was a pleasant surprise, especially compared to The New Order, which had several. Performance was smooth throughout.

Replayability While the game includes familiar collectible content, it felt lazily implemented this time-"gold collectible 29," "gold collectible 50," etc., with no meaningful context or rewards. There's little reason to replay unless you're hunting for 100%.

Immersion The world didn't pull me in as much as The New Order did, mostly due to the bizarre tone shift with the zombies. Still, as a prequel, it was neat seeing the origins of certain characters and plot elements. The lack of waypoints was actually a plus-I always knew where to go, which speaks well of the level design.

Creativity Creative in parts, especially with tools like the pipe and the idea of a prequel. But adding zombies ruined the tone. A Nazi shooter suddenly turning into supernatural horror didn't sit right with me.

Difficulty Balance Most of the game felt fair, except for the prison break and the final boss. Those were outliers and not enjoyable. Thankfully, the respawn system was quick, which helped.

Value for Money At $20? No way. The New Order offers far more value, depth, and enjoyment for the same price (or less during sales). This one's only worth grabbing if you're a big fan and it's on discount.

Played on: PC (RTX 4090) Playtime: ~12 hours Difficulty: Medium Music Setting: Off

Gameplay The gunplay feels tight, with good weapon variety and satisfying mechanics. However, a few sequences were more frustrating than fun, even for a veteran gamer like myself. I had to look up how to progress in some areas, which broke the flow slightly.

Story Phenomenal. I loved the characters, pacing, and emotional beats. The alternate history setting is wild but well-grounded, and the protagonist, B. J. Blazkowicz, has more depth than you'd expect from a first-person shooter.

Graphics For a 2014 game, it looks great. No, it's not cutting-edge by 2025 standards, but the art direction holds up surprisingly well. Lighting and environments still deliver a strong atmosphere.

Sound / Music Voice acting is excellent across the board. I turned off the music early on, and some sound effects were overly loud, which affected immersion a bit, but the performance from the cast made up for it.

Performance The game crashed on me several times and didn't play well over Discord streaming, which was unexpected given my modern setup (RTX 4090). Definitely some optimization issues.

Replayability There are two main timeline paths, but they converge with minor differences and the same ending. While collectibles exist, they didn't really motivate me to go for 100%.

Immersion Incredible atmosphere. The world-building and presentation pulled me in from the start. This is where the game truly shines.

Creativity Absolutely. From Nazi moon bases to stealth missions in underground bunkers, it never felt stale or predictable.

Difficulty Balance Some segments felt a bit too hard for medium difficulty. I was surprised by how often I had to retry or Google solutions - not a deal-breaker, but worth noting.

Value for Money I got it for free, but even at the $20 full price, I'd be very satisfied. The campaign alone offers enough quality content to justify the price.