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Return To Castle Wolfenstein
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Return to Castle WolfensteinLike many other crazed fans of the original Wolfenstein 3D and its unofficial sequel Spear of Destiny, my mouth watered in anticipation when the next game in the series was released. Six years in the making, Return to Castle Wolfenstein (RTCW) would have to be a spectacular game to fulfill its vast potential. Does it live up to the hype?



Yes and No. To judge RTCW fairly, the game’s single player and multi player components must be examined separately. RTCW’s single player experience is a solid, though unoriginal romp while the game’s multi player is the meat of the product.



Sound & Music

Gray Matter has done a fine job with RTCW’s sound effects. From the boom of the Panzer Faust to the subtle crack of the Sten, the game’s weapon sounds are well done. Unfortunately, the Nazis speak in English rather than German, (apart from the obligatory Achtung!) though the same level of exhilaration exists (as it did in the original Wolf 3D) when you hear the Nazi war machine shout orders to each other. The music is mysterious and atmospheric and therefore helps to immerse you in RTCW’s detailed environments. During combat, the music accelerates to a more frantic pace to keep up with the action.

Art and Graphics

Here is an area where the game truly shines. Using a 1.8 Ghz machine and a GeForce 3, running the game in 1280x1024 resolution, with all the bells and whistles turned on, the level of detail is magnificent. The Quake 3 engine has been known to render characters extremely well and RTCW is no exception. In fact, the modified Quake 3 engine is able to produce entirely different facial details for every Nazi soldier you face so you won’t feel as if you’ve killed the same guy twice. Graphical effects such as electricity look great and the much anticipated flamethrower effect is without a doubt the best in any game ever. If you’ve been looking for that one game that convinces you to upgrade to the latest video card, this is it. The only obvious weakness to RTCW’s graphics are the trees. I have never understood why game developers, who shell out a lot of money to create what they hope will be a great game are satisfied with trees that are obviously simple sprites. Its really a shame that with all the detail in the world and characters that one grotesque pimple has to emerge. Thankfully, very few of the game’s missions are outdoors so this shouldn’t bother you too much....




User Interface

RTCW’s interface is the same as any other FPS currently on the market. Standard fare like a numerical health gauge and an ammo count are readily available. The weapons are grouped numerically by type just as in Half-Life. (melee weapons, pistols, rifles, etc...) With the press of a button, all the weapons you have in each category can be cycled through so it’s easy to select the weapon you want. The strength of the Single Player interface is that there isn’t much of it. It takes up a very small portion of the screen, again strengthening the game’s immersion. The Multi Player interface is different and clutters the screen a little more but not to a level that can be complained about. There are no problems with either Multi or Single Player controls, both are as smooth as silk and function superbly.
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