Our Rating: 92 Excellent Graphics: Game-Play: Replay Value: Fun: Sound:

Return to Castle Wolfenstein is the long awaited sequel to the classic 1993 game Castle Wolfenstein that jump started the 1st person shooter genre. The original Castle Wolfenstein was an incredible game that paved the way for future classics like Doom, Quake, Duke Nukem 3D and Half-Life. Now, after more than 8 years of anticipation, the sequel to Wolfenstein is in stores and boy is it good!

If you played the original Castle Wolfenstein game then you'll probably be able to guess what the premise of the sequel is. Yup, run around and kill Nazis. Back in 1993, it was quite easy to kill the Wolfenstein Nazis...in the 2001 sequel, it is a whole lot more difficult. A combination of Snipers, machine gun nests, zombies and traps all make the game incredibly challenging. To make matters even more difficult, Return To Castle Wolfenstein has some of the best sound effects I have ever heard in a game. Both the music and the noises in the game give Return To Wolfenstein and eerie and surreal feeling. Both effects are done incredibly well and do a fine job of immersing you in the game. At one point the music and sound effects freaked me out so much that I just ran as fast as I could hoping to find the end of the level.

Aside from the sound effects, the graphics and game play are also well done. Each level has a realistic look as well as secret rooms and hidden treasures to find. More powerful weapons and enemies are introduced with each new level forcing you to continuously change strategies. One thing to keep in mind, the first 3 levels are the worst levels in the game. So stay patient and understand that after the first 3 levels, the game instantly becomes a great deal more fun.