There is something unforgettable about the moment you began playing Wolfenstein 3D.  Fast, furious and in your face, this title made an impact that affected the games industry forever.  For many gamers, including myself, it changed the way we played and thought about games, shooters in particular.  

Fast forward 17 years and many first player shooters later, Wolfenstein is getting set up to be released by id Software and during this E3, we saw a demonstration focusing on the supernatural aspects of the game.   Once again, you assume the role of BJ Blazkowicz and it is your mission to uncover and stop the Nazi plot to take over the world.  This time they are calling upon powers from a dark parallel dimension called The Veil.  Conveniently, you found a secret amulet that can manipulate The Veil and harness those powers for your own use.  The Veil powers include being able to seeing into The Veil to find hidden passages and enemies, a bullet time action and a shield that can be projected to protect you from damage.

I admit that I was skeptical as I sat down for the presentation.  How many franchises have started with such an amazing title deep into the past and lately have been disappointing (Alone in the Dark or Duke Nukem Forever, anyone)?  The demonstration began with the opening cinematic that was cheesy enough to begin an eye roll.  That movement immediately stopped once the actual game play started.  I felt I was taken back in time to my youth.  They essentially captured a retro vibe with outstanding current generation graphics.  It opened with bolt-action rifle gun play that looked clean and rewarding reminding me of the original Medal of Honor on the PSOne.  They showed a “Tesla rifle” that shot arcs of lightning that hit the first enemy and then jumped to other enemies nearby laying waste to multiple enemies at once.  This stirred memories of using the BFG 9000 in Doom with how satisfying it looked.  They seemed to integrate the Veil powers well.  Besides finding passages using the Veil during the demonstration, it never felt there was a giant sign saying “USE VEIL POWERS HERE NOW TO PROCEED.”  There were definitely plenty of opportunities to use your powers, especially when confronted with the “assassin” types that are only visible in the Veil.  There are also plenty of puzzles that have Veil inhibitors that force you to go without the additional supernatural powers.  Obviously, the demonstration only gave us a small taste of what BJ will encounter, but my hope is that this vein continues that Veil power use is encouraged, but not entirely dependent upon to complete the game successfully.

Overall, the demonstration left me with a desire to see more and get my hands on it.  I couldn’t shake that feeling of classic shooter armed with current generation graphics and technology.  To whet your appetite, they id Software released the classic Wolfenstein 3D on Xbox LIVE and the PSN.  As an added bonus, purchasing this download and completing the game will translate to gold that you can use to purchase upgrades in this new iteration of Wolfenstein on day one.  That translates to upgraded weapons before ever setting foot in this new world.  Check out Wolfenstein online for more information and stay tuned to Aggrogamer.com for news and impressions on this game as it closes in on launch.