I don’t play nearly enough shooters, or ‘blockbuster’ games.  I am at the age now where the phrase ‘blockbuster’ just turns me off – I guess I’m jaded.

That said, I could not help get wound up in the hype surrounding The New Colossus. And you know what? The damned game delivered. Why it has ‘mixed’ reviews on Steam is beyond me.  I don’t even care.

Wolfenstein 2!

By: Lloyd Sabin,

From the moment I booted up The New Colossus, it just grabbed me by the cajones and has not let go.  I am about five hours in.  The writing, the voice acting, the level design, the graphics, the weapons, the mood and feel of the game – all of it is just spectacular.  Better than most movies out there. The soundtrack deserves special mention. It’s like John Carpenter joined Skinny Puppy for a recording session while tripping on acid.

Furthermore, the fact that our protagonist BJ Blazkowicz is Jewish, like me?  I can’t help but love this game, just for giving me the opportunity to play a Jewish Angel of Death…it gives me the opportunity to get revenge against 1960s alternate reality Nazis, for Chris’sake.   Surprisingly, it does it without belittling actual history or its own alternate history.  It’s respectful and exciting at the same time – raw and honorable – engaging, pushing the edge of what can be included in a FPS, while not being ridiculous.

Could I ask for any more?  Why yes, yes I could.  At about three hours in, The New Colossus drops me into a post-apocalyptic Manhattan to join up with new allies.  The levels located in Manhattan are everything I could have ever asked for.

Are they photo-realistic and based on satellite mapping?  No, of course not! But it almost feels like a Fallout game in some areas (in a good way), and hearkens back to other PC classics that I never even got a chance to play, like Manhunter: New York…a game I always wanted to play, before I even had a PC, but never had a chance to.  At least, it satisfies what I thought Manhunter should have been like, in my imagination.

All this and I’m only 5 hours in!  I can’t wait to see what wonders and horrors lurk, waiting for me to stumble upon in the world of The New Colossus.  In the meantime, enjoy the screens I have placed below…I am sure there will be a lot more coming. This game has dug its claws in deep.

The opening scenes take place on a giant u-boat, rendered with the perfect amount of darkness, tension and horror.  Although The New Colossus is a FPS that doesn’t take itself too seriously, it is hard not to be grabbed by it.  Right by the cajones.

Each weapon and tool has a convincing weight and feel, very authentic-feeling.

Besides Fallout and Manhunter: New York, the influence on MachineGames (the developer) by the legacy of System Shock is also clear in The New Colossus.

The legacy of Doom is also very strong here, as far as the art style anyway.

Plenty of carnage to go around. If you are not into gore, you will not enjoy The New Colossus. It is very violent.

Dual-wielding weapons is also back.

The cinematics are epic. This is the u-boat you, as BJ, needed to escape to move on in the story.

At the beginning of The New Colossus, BJ is crippled and badly hurt. The only way he can get around after the first hour of the game is by using this 1960s version of cryonic armor, the helmet of which is shown above. Before he gets this armor, he is navigating the first hour of the game in a wheelchair.

The lore of The New Colossus is there for the taking, if the player wants it. It can also be easily ignored if all you’re there for is the Nazi killin’.

Possible Nazi future-tech is scattered throughout, subtly sometimes.

Weapons can all be fully upgraded and tinkered with, reminding me a lot of armor sets and weapons from Fallout 4.

Completing the first few hours, the light at the end of this tunnel is a set piece I have been looking for in games for more than 25 years.

“Neu York”

Thanks for reading! More on The New Colossus next week.

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