Oh brother!

by ERIK LEIJON

In the sibling rivalry of World War II-sim shooters, the Brothers in Arms series was always the awkward middle child. Call of Duty was the gifted one, excelling in fast, manic action that often crossed the line to sheer anarchy. Medal of Honor was the bratty youngest kid, where realism took a backseat to arcade-style man vs. world shooting galleries.

Trying to combine the puzzle strategy, troop-controlling elements of Full Spectrum Warrior with your standard first-person shooter gameplay, Brothers in Arms’ middle ground approach to history’s most epic of conflicts was a cry for attention. Yet, Brother in Arms: Hell’s Highway (PS3, X360/Ubisoft, Gearbox) features a few exciting peaks and valleys tarnished by extended sequences of placidity.

LACKING SPONTANEITY AND CARNAGE: Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway

In recreating Operation Market Garden, Hell’s Highway tries to have it both ways by attempting to succeed through immersion and rigid, technical strategy. Understandably, this doesn’t work and the entire process is jerky, as long firefights where you are pinned behind cover are sandwiched between excellent battle cutscenes that look far more interesting than the interactive missions themselves.

Despite this being the first BIA to grace the next-gen consoles, Hell’s Highway contains the exact same set-up we’ve seen from the previous two iterations. As the leader of a cocky band of American GI’s in 1944 Holland, your character must direct two teams of soldiers through the beautiful European countryside, cornering and flanking Nazi troops.

Controlling and moving teammates is done through one-button commands with the directional pad, and remains simple enough so orders can be dished out quickly in the heat of battle. Ordering soldiers is fun, even though they’re painfully stupid and usually run directly into gunfire for no reason (especially Jasper, who never survived a mission).

The really intense battles—usually taking place in more open areas—are a spectacular blending of action and real-time strategy. Learning to simultaneously command your troops while blasting a few Nazis of your own has one of the most enjoyable and satisfying learning curves. It’s these occasional magic moments that expose the vast majority of other missions in Hell’s Highway as being far too entrenched in the strategic side of things.

Nearly every fight can be easily solved by using one unit to suppress enemies, while the other unit sneaks around a conveniently located building or brick divider to nab the Krauts from the other side. Certain cover—like fences—are destructible, but most walls can be hidden behind permanently and provide an invisible barrier of protection by merely leaning against them. Your character is pathetically weak and can only survive a couple of shots when outside cover, so there’s little reason to crawl out of your hole and play aggressively when you’ll eventually wear your enemies down.

Because the dig-in cover system is way too effective and not being in cover equates to a death wish, the formulaic approach to every battle doesn’t lend to the spontaneity and carnage one would expect from an upper echelon war shooter. There are scenes that suggest Hell’s Highway was close to greatness, but took a few too many shortcuts along the road.

Sonic RPG

Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood (DS/Sega, BioWare) is a portable role-playing title starring the beloved blue roadrunner, and developed by famed Mass Effect developer BioWare.

The result isn’t quite the instant classic one would hope for from two big names, but it certainly does the Sonic name some good after a few recent missteps. Featuring turn-based gameplay and none of the speed Sonic is known for, Dark Brotherhood is a simple, classic RPG slightly buoyed by the presence of the hedgehog and his buddies.