A shot above the rest?
Brothers in arms – Hell’s highway pits you against the evil force that is the Nazi’s. You play as Sergeant Baker, the squad leader of a troop of “different” types of people. However, their differences lead to arguments and overall a better story line. Hell’s Highway takes place in WW2 Holland, occupied by the Germans. You take part in the Historical operation Market Garden, in which you break through the Germans line and start the offensive that will end the war. The story is played out through lengthy cut scenes, which sometimes become arid and drag on far too long. During the battlefield gameplay members of your squad may also add to the story. The story relies heavily upon those of previous games, so if you are new to the Brothers in arms franchise, expect to be somewhat in the dark. Of course this doesn’t mean that the game is a total waste of time, the story can easily be read up on the internet, and besides, it’s all about killing Nazi’s, right?
An action packed, tense WW2 shooter that will have you on the edge of your seat.
Survival in the game relies heavily upon your skills, and intelligence to plan your route to the next objective. You must control your squad, which is comprised of assault, MG and bazooka teams, through the attractive villages of the Holland countryside. The teams must be controlled separately, which is fine during the beginning of the game, but in the later stages where you must be quick and decisive, it can become difficult and fiddly. When you finally select the correct squad you have the options to move to cover, destroy scenery (i.e. fences) or suppress the enemy. The controls for Sergeant Baker are at first, complicated, but after a few skirmishes they become fluent and simple. The cut scenes employ beautiful graphics, however, often the textures either do not appear, or take their time. Whilst the battlefield itself is smooth and well detailed, with no lag or FPS problems.
Along with the intuitive squad system Brothers in Arms uses a good variety of sounds for the limited amount of weapons. The cover system works well, if you’re not AI. The AI will more often than not stand around taking incoming fire like they are out for a walk in the park. A unique feature in Brothers in Arms is the slow motion system. This is activated whenever you kill multiple enemies with one grenade, or when you score a headshot on an enemy. When this does happen, expect a dramatic explosion of skulls, and shattering of crates. Of course if this becomes annoying it can be turned off via the options.
Brothers in arms features a number of multiplayer maps, each of which support up to 20 players. The game supports only one game mode, Capture the flag. This is standard capture the flag in which players only spawn at the beginning of each round. Players take different roles in the team, for example machine gunner, assault or even tank operator. The squad leader can call in special options like aerial recon. This system is hit & miss. In on match the squad leader maybe vocal and commanding, some players may listen or some may not. But in the next match the leader can be quiet or not talk at all, leading to mayhem as everyone does as they wish.
In conclusion Brothers in arms – Hells highway can sometimes leave you in the dark, but when you do know what’s happening its an action packed, tense WW2 shooter that will have you on the edge of your seat. With limited weapons and stupid AI’s it may also leave you somewhat frustrated at times. If you’re a lover of the Brothers in Arms series, then this is a big yes for you.
The Bad: Cut-scenes are too long, Limited weapons, Texture problems, Difficult squad controls
Silver Y Award