Return to Castle Wolfenstein |
Return to Castle Wolfenstein is a first person shooter computer game published by Activision and released in 2001. The single player game was video game developer by Gray Matter Interactive and Nerve Software developed it s multiplayer mode. Id Software, the creators of the original game entitled Wolfenstein 3D , oversaw the development of the game and were credited as executive producers.
In 2003, the game was ported to the PlayStation 2 and Xbox video game consoles and subtitled as Operation Resurrection and Tides of War , respectively. Both console versions include a series of prequel single player missions where the main character, William Joseph BJ Blazkowicz and his partner Agent One (later tortured to death in the Wolfenstein castle/prison) are in Egypt / North Africa.
The game is powered by a heavily-modified version of the Quake III engine
=Overview=
Return to Castle Wolfenstein is a remake of sorts of the early, seminal first-person shooter, Wolfenstein 3D . However, with the advances in graphics technology and gameplay design since the original game, without the name and the occasional in-game references, it would be unrecognisable as a remake.
It features a story-based single player campaign (taking up many of the themes from the original game), as well as a team-based networked multiplayer version which features different character classes that must work together in order to win, similar to the concept of .
The game is based on Castle Wewelsburg, a 17th century castle occupied by the Germans under Heinrich Himmler s control, and used for occult rituals and practices. Unlike the original Wolfenstein 3D , only a handful of the single player missions in Return to Castle Wolfenstein takes place in the infamous castle/prison. The single player game takes place in Nazi-occupied Europe during 1943 and revolves around Allied Commando B.J. Blazkowicz, who, along with another agent (Agent One in the Xbox and PS2 versions), is sent to investigate rumors surrounding one of Heinrich Himmler s personal projects, the SS Paranormal Division. The agents are, however, captured before completing their mission and are imprisoned in Castle Wolfenstein. Taking the role of Blaskowicz, the player must escape the castle and continue investigating the activities of the SS Paranormal Division, which include research on resurrecting corpses, bio-technology, and secret weapons. During the game the player will face numerous foes, including Wehrmacht soldiers, elite Fallschirmjager (paratroopers), legions of undead creatures, and horrific übersoldaten (supersoldiers) formed from a hideous blend of surgery and chemical engineering. The end boss is an undead Saxon people warrior-prince named Henry the Fowler. Some of the missions involving the undead were influenced by The Mummy (1999 movie) (1999 in film) and The Mummy Returns (2001 in film) movies, and somewhat similar to Indiana Jones . Other missions are similar to romanticized fictional stories of Allied commandos and resistance fighters that operated behind enemy lines to spy and sabotage.
To make the game eligible for sale in Germany, the developers of the game removed the infamous Nazi swastika in Return to Castle Wolfenstein . In its stead, the German forces logo is a creative logo that can be interpreted in 3 different ways; Quake III Arena (a game previously developed by id Software and the graphics engine that Return to Castle Wolfenstein is based upon), an Eagle (a symbol often used to represent Germany), and W (standing for Wolfenstein). Every reference to the Third Reich was removed; thus, the player is not battling Nazis, but a secret sect called the Wolves .
=Plot Outline=
*Mission 1: Ominous Rumors: While investigating the activities around the SS Paranormal Division, B. J. Blazkowicz and Agent One are captured by the Nazis. Agent One is killed during torture, and B. J. manages to overcome his guard and escape. Armed only with a Luger and a knife, he has to find a way out of the castle, fighting through platoons of guards, and ultimately using a tram car to leave the area and look for a German resistance agent in a nearby village. *Mission 2: Dark Secret: Helga von Bulow, the leader of the SS Paranormal Division, had her team excavate deep within ancient catacombs and crypts beneath the village. There they awoke an arny of vile undead - zombies and skeletal knights. B. J. has to descend in those crypts, fight hordes of undead, and locate an ancient defiled church, where Helga s Elite Guard await. *Mission 3: Weapons of Vengeance: The German scientist at the SS Special Projects Division, Wilhelm Strasse, Deathshead , has planned a vicious attack on London using a V-2 rocket fited with an experimental chemical warhead. B. J. is sent to stop this before London is hit by the deadly missile. His mission is to use stealth and surprise in order to sneal into the rocket base and destroy the missile. At success, he will also have to steal an experimental Nazi aircraft from a guarded airbase. *Mission 4: Deadly Designs: Seeking to investigate more into Deathshead and his secret projects, the OSA sends B. J. to a mission in a heavily bombarded city. He is to discover and damage Strasse s Secret Weapons Facility (SWF). The focus of the mission is the retrieving of the plans of the experimental Venom Gun, which has immense destructive power. He would also be able to retrive one of those guns and try it out on his own. In the SWF, the agent will encounter new powerful mutants, and see as Deathshead escapes with his submarine... *Mission 5: Deathshead s Playground: B. J. is sent to put an end to Deathsehead s mad schemes once and for all. He is to penetrate his secret X-Labs, retrieve his journals, and learn more of the Ã?ber Soldat project, as he would encounter one of those robotic monstrosities. Deathshead ultimately escapes but promises that some day they would meet again... *Mission 6: Return Engagement: As Operation: Resurrection is revealed, B. J. is sent to the village of Paderborn and Chateau Schutzstaffel to stop a dark ceremony that would arise the ancient Dark Knights. On his way, the hero would have to assassinate the SSPD officers, and then locate the ceremony site, where something quite evil awaits. *Mission 7: Operation Resurrection: The Nazis are to resurrect the ancient Saxon prince Heinrich I. If they are not stopped, and Heinrich rises, B. J. would have to face him in battle, and prevail...
= Enemy Territory spinoff=
A multiplayer only spinoff of the series, Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory , was originally planned as a full-fledged expansion pack for Return to Castle Wolfenstein developed by Splash Damage. The single player component of the game was never completed and thus was removed entirely. The developers at that point decided the the multiplayer part would be released as a free, downloadable standalone game. Enemy Territory is a team-based networked multiplayer game which involves completing objectives through team-work and by using different character classes.
In 2005, id Software and Splash Damage announced a follow-up to Enemy Territory using the and is due for release in the first half of 2006.
=Return to Castle Wolfenstein 2=
In July 2004, id Software CEO Todd Hollenshead briefly mentioned that a sequel to Wolfenstein was in development saying Return to Castle Wolfenstein... basically the sequel to that is a project that s already under works at another studio . It has been confirmed that this statement was not referring to Enemy Territory: Quake Wars , which was the general assumption when ET:QW was announced. It is likely that it will be developed using Doom 3 technology. There have been a couple of news articles about RTCW2 discoveries, including an email received from Todd Hollenshead which can be viewed at http://www.rtcw2.com.
=See also=
=Awards=
*2002 Game Developers Choice Awards- Nomination
=External links=
=References=
*[http://pc.gamespy.com/pc/doom-3/538993p4.html Gamespy.com Interview with Todd Hollenshead] *[http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/32696/ Eurogamer: Return To Castle Wolf 2 in development]|
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