Swedish team MachineGames has been discussing its upcoming standalone expansion Wolfenstein: The Old Blood over on the Bethesda blog, describing the prequel as a “pulpy B-movie” that makes full use of the new 1940’s setting. It also fills in some plot points left unresolved in Wolfenstein: The New Order, namely just how the Nazis got their hands on all that firepower.
“We get to explore things that were only hinted at in New Order,” says senior producer John Jennings. “We get to find out what the Nazis were up to, and reveal a little bit about how they actually got some of this advanced technology that let them win World War II.”
Oooh, yes, we’re heading back to Return to Castle Wolfenstein territory here. Castles, undead soldiers, mad, occult-obsessed Nazi officers. All that good stuff.
“But it’s not just the setting,” explains Bethesda. “Sure, old-school players will get a nostalgic thrill as they sneak and shoot their way through the castle walls, and they’ll run into a few familiar faces along the way, including Agent One and Kessler. The weapons and collectibles – while completely new – are reminiscent of the classic shooter. Even the plot shares some similarities with the earlier game.”
To take on the new enemy types, several of which are early prototypes of the nastier troops from The New Order, you’ll need some new weapons. Like… a pipe. Or even two pipes. I’ll let Bethesda explain.
“What sets the pipe apart from the knife? For starters, B.J. can connect and pull apart the pipe, allowing him to single- and dual-wield this melee weapon. B.J. also uses it for climbing, breaking through weak walls, and even reaching high hatches in the ceiling.”
Couldn’t you dual-wield knives in the first game? Whatever. Your new unconventional melee weapon comes with a suite of gory takedown moves, which will be useful when you come up against the new undead enemies. These guys aren’t shambling zombies, they’ll use weapons, dash attacks and other tricks to get up in your face.
Basically, it’s all sounding pretty promising. There’s some more interesting bits and pieces in that post, so do give it a read if, like me, you can’t wait for The Old Blood to drop on May 15.
