Return to Castle Wolfenstein is a first-person shooter video game published by Activision, released on November 19, 2001 for Microsoft Windows and subsequently for PlayStation 2, Xbox, Linux and Macintosh. The game serves as both a remake and a reboot to the Wolfenstein series. By Aspyr Media Revisiting Wolfenstein 3D, this demo puts you in the capable shoes of B.J. Blazkowicz, a highly decorated Army Ranger who must escape Castle Wolfenstein only to return in an attempt.
The Wolfenstein franchise has its roots deep in the first person shooter genre. The original game, Wolfenstein 3D, is considered by most to be the grandfather of the first person shooter. The original Wolfenstein paved the way for classic games like DOOM and Quake, and it laid the foundation of the genre we know today. Return to Castle Wolfenstein attempts to retell the classic story of Wolfenstein 3D with a modern day boost. Nearly 20 years after the release of Wolfenstein 3D, Return to Castle Wolfenstein looks to revive the franchise that created the genre in the first place. With stylish graphics, an extended narrative, and fast-paced multiplayer, the game is both fun to play and well designed.
The story of Wolfenstein 3D was appropriately simple, given the time the game came out. Set during World War II, the game followed soldier BJ Blazkowicz. Taken prison and kept locked up by the Nazis, BJ breaks free and goes on a killing rampage as he escapes from the prison. Return to Castle Wolfenstein takes the same setting and tone of the original game, but amps it up in some fun ways. Players once again take on the role of BJ Blazkowicz, who embarks on military missions to take down the Nazi machine. Working for a government agency known as the Office of Secret Actions, Blazkowicz tries to learn more about the evil General Deathshed and his range of paranormal experiments. Overall, the story is a fun mixture of military action and sci-fi. Besides shooting Nazis and other human enemies, players will encounter a slew of paranormal creatures and biological experiments. The narrative is smartly interwoven with the levels, and it remains fresh and entertaining throughout.
Gameplay is similar in nature to the franchise's original formula, but with a decidedly modern spin. Using a variety of weaponry (both realistic and supernatural), you attempt to fight your way through a number of stages. Along the way, you'll complete objectives, find collectibles and new weaponry, and explore the environment. Like the original game, many levels can feel maze-like. Early stages especially are full of tight corridors and narrow passageways, which you'll have to navigate to find the exit. Weapons are easily obtainable, and you'll get to enjoy blasting enemies with a great range of weapons. From pistols and combat knives to shotguns and SMGs, there are a slew of fun guns to engage with. Each area of the game also contains numerous secret areas to discover, as well as hidden treasures to find. You'll have to search far and wide to find these cleverly hidden spots, but the rewards are often worthwhile.
Overall, Return to Castle Wolfenstein is a great first person shooter that is loads of fun to play. It succeeds in paying homage to the classic shooter franchise while also offering new and fresh ways to play. The environments are well designed and surprisingly destructive, the story mode is lengthy and exciting, and the multiplayer is quick and engaging. Although it is grounded in realism, Return to Castle Wolfenstein explores some interesting supernatural elements, and isn't afraid to let loose every once in a while. Bottom line, the game feels awesome to play, and will go down as one of the finest in the Wolfenstein franchise.
Return to Castle Wolfenstein is set during World War II, located somewhere in Germany. It blends warfare and the occult mixed in with science fiction, bringing together battles waged between opposing regular armies, mummies, undead warriors, demon bosses and mutant horrors. This makes for some very exciting & interesting game play. Single & Multiplayer games to choose from:
- Single Player:
- You are B.J. Blazkowicz on a desperate mission behind enemy lines.
- Use your wits, agility, and firepower to defeat the enemies awaiting you.
- There are times for stealth and there are times for all out firepower.
- Half the battle is figuring out which works best.
- Multiplayer:
- The multiplayer component of Return to Castle Wolfenstein is a team-based game that pits an Axis team against an Allied team in one of three gameplay modes:
- Objective (wolf MP) the default multiplayer mode.
- Stopwatch (wolf SW) Switch mode, swap sides after each round
- In Checkpoint (wolf CP) Battle for flag control.
- Not all of the play modes are available on all of the maps.
- You play as a member of the Axis or Allied team, as one of four classes:
- Soldier
- Engineer
- Medic
- Lieutenant
- Compatibility
Architecture: PPC (Carbonized)
Return To Castle Wolfenstein On Mac
- Minimum System Requirements:
- Mac OS 9.2 or later with virtual memory
- Mac OS X, 10.1 or later
- Power Mac G3/G4/iMac(Flat-Panel or later)/PowerBook G4 (Gigabit Ethernet or later)
- 500 MHz processor or faster
- 128MB of RAM
- 3D Graphic Acceleration required (ATI Radeon, Nvidia GeForce or later)
- Multiplayer Requirements:
- Internet (TCP/IP) and LAN (TCP/IP only) play supported
- Internet play requires at least a 100% Mac compatible 56.6 Kbps modem
- Note:
- A 100% full OpenGL compliant 3-D video card is required.
- Return to Castle Wolfenstein uses OpenGL to support 3-D hardware accelerator.
- Return to Castle Wolfenstein has been tested on many but not all of the major cards incorporating the chipsets listed below.
- ATI Radeon
- All nVidia GeForce chips