14 DAY TRIAL // What we know:
Wolfenstein: The New Order is an upcoming first-person shooter in development by Machine Games, to be published by Bethesda Softworks.
The game is the ninth installment in the Wolfenstein series, and although Id Software won’t be working on it, Machine Games have conversed with the franchise’s creators at length, in order to capture the feel of the series and to decide the best direction for the new game.
Wolfenstein: The New Order will also be built on Id’s proprietary engine id Tech 5, being designed as a single-player oriented experience, driven by a strong and challenging storyline.
The upcoming game will try to capture the essence of first-person shooters as they once were, focusing on crazy, over the top action, and will even see the return of the on-screen health bar, with a system based on regenerating sections.
The story places players in the role of series protagonist William “B.J.” Blakowicz, in a world where the Nazis have won the Second World War.
After spending the last 14 years in an asylum, in a catatonic state, agent Blazkowicz wakes up to find himself infiltrating Nazi strongholds and battling legions of enemies, trying to take control of the super weapons that the Nazis have used to conquer the world.
Why it matters:
The action takes place in the 60's, a decision that lets developers go a little wild with the content. The Nazis have certainly been busy, developing new weapons and technologies, and players will now encounter cyberdogs and mechanically-enhanced super soldiers.
Wolfenstein 3D was the game that started the whole first-person shooter genre, back in ‘92, and the success it was met with quickly prompted the development of the Doom series, as well as some less successful clones like Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold and Corridor 7: Alien Invasion.
It will surely be interesting to see how such a classical experience, that created many of the tropes seen in shooters today, will benefit from a modern reboot.
Wolfenstein: New Order is in development for the PC, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 platforms.
Softpedia is hosting an entire series of Incoming 2014 articles, covering this year's most anticipated games.