Wolfenstein: The Old Blood backs away from The New Order’s strengths and into the past

The Old Blood is presented as a prequel, notionally a way for fans of The New Order to more fully inhabit the waning days of a less-than-ideal World War II scenario that might have been. If building out the world’s mythology is indeed the reason for this game’s existence, does it succeed? Does The Old Blood add to the surprisingly intricate story of its immediate predecessor in any meaningful way? Or is it just adding more Nazis to the world for B.J. to massacre?

It’s not like killing Nazis in this eight-chapter campaign is any less satisfying than it is in The New Order. An expanded arsenal (including the Swiss Army Pipe), some freshly guttural enemies, and other supernatural wrinkles make for a frenetic and gleeful revenge fantasy.

But potato-masher garnish aside, there isn’t really too much here that you can’t already get in The New Order. One other problem might be that The Old Blood tries a little too hard to bridge the gap between the original Wolfenstein games and the new. With touches like the grindhouse-flavored title screen, The Old Blood feels like it wants to take a step back from the things that made The New Order a success and instead opt for an homage to the drop-ceiling hell of Wolfenstein 3D. I loved Tim Burton’s version of Batman too, but it would be a mistake to give him the keys to Gotham in 2015. Sometimes it’s okay to leave the past in the past.

That’s not to say The Old Blood doesn’t have its moments. In one memorable instance, B.J. finds a shotgun and a conveniently placed hacksaw. He begins sawing through the barrel (as any sane person in his precarious, target-rich position would), looks up, sees an approaching enemy, looks down, and starts sawing much faster. It’s a subtle piece of comedy, but good for a laugh.

In his more contemplative moments, B.J.’s weapon of choice is taciturn, heavy-handed mutterings, like “When I was a kid, we had a monster in our basement. My father said if I done wrong, it’d creep out at night and come for me. I tried to do no wrong. The monster came all the same.” The lesson here, obviously, is something about morlocks, American exceptionalism, psychologically abusive fathers, and lazy parables.

So how many Nazis are in this world? Steadily fewer, but still more than a few too many. Wolfenstein has always embraced gratuitous violence, but The Old Blood just feels a little gratuitous.