The "overheating" of the suppressed Sten actually has some basis on history: suppressed Sten models could be shot in full auto, but this was highly discouraged since doing so the gas had no time to properly vent from the the suppressor and the increased pressure would damage the internals, decreasing the suppressor's effectiveness or rendering it downright inoperable.
also to add the Sten mk2 had a baffle system instead of a the mesh wise suppressor which means there's only so much ammo you can put into the suppressor before you need to maintain it in hindsight their usage here has merit
as a 12y old I snuck out of bed to play RTCW on the pc in the basement - I was scared as shit when playing through the crypt. but at the same time I fucking loved it! fond memories!
The Sten gun overheating actually is pretty realistic. It was a fairly early attempt at a suppressed automatic so the heat generated from rapid fire would potentially cause the gun to malfunction
Well it’s a kind-of situation. It wouldn’t completely cease firing after ten seconds due to it, it was more of a compound-problem stenning (ha) from the design itself. The heat and bolt caused a lot of misfires just by simply nudging the butt after shooting it for a bit, and the accuracy/range was really hindered (as well as the suppression of sound from the barrel being really minimal.) Also it would stovepipe like a motherfucker thanks to the magazine configuration. Those problems were paid in return by the fact that it could have sand catch, extensive lack of any maintenance and still shoot (which is why it was so used in the Africa campaign.) Like every gun, it had its positives and negatives.
@@samholdsworth420 I hate being that "insufferable gun nut" guy every comment section has to have lol, but this is the only comment that's completely correct. Firing a silenced Sten MK II in full auto was reserved for emergencies only, and a lot of silenced Stens even had the selector switch welded to only function in semi-auto. This was because the baffles in the silencer couldn't handle sustained full-auto and would get jammed up and filled with carbon, making the silencer less effective and difficult to take apart for cleaning and even outright breaking the silencer in extreme cases. Overheating wasn't the issue though, the silencer just couldn't handle sustained full-auto.
When this came out I remember watching my older brother playing it. They he got stumped during the Uber Soldat fight… just kept getting his ass kicked, even asked my dad to try, who didn’t fare any better. They tried for a good hour. I’d played Doom and Half Life before but that was the extent of my FPS experience at the time. I asked my dad to give me a chance and I survived, first try! Now, 20 years later my brother and dad still give me accolades for that LOL
I know this is not a music channel, but I just thought I’d share this: the “dipping tone” you refer to at 6:23 is called a tritone, also known as “the Devil’s interval”; it consists in splitting an octave into two equal parts and playing the first, last and central note. The result is an evil sounding chord which visually mimics the shape of a pitchfork (hence why it is referred to as the Devil’s interval)
Famously used in Black Sabbath opening riff in the self-titled song. Might sound quaint today, but when I first heard that riff when I was like 6 or 7, it was the most ominous thing I'd ever heard, and that's when I decided I need to play music as well.
My dad played this game so much he had a note book with every secret mapped on the PS2 version and notes on how to beat the forest mission, down to knowing when to actually restart from a save point if the AI didn't act the way he wanted them too. Basically from then on he would just go for 100% the game on nightmare mode each play through. He probably still has that notebook somewhere
You must be pretty much bang on my age Gman, Wolfenstein 3D being the first FPS I played as a kid, moving onto Spear of Destiny, Doom, Duke, Blood, Quake etc. We are getting very old and crusty but we totally experienced the golden age of gaming at our peak gaming years so its not all bad. Especially looking at the current state of the industry compared to back then. They can't even remaster 20 year old games anymore.
to be fair, at least our era has been getting a 'lot' of love from an indie space that's just getting better & better of capturing the essence of the past with the bells & whistles of the present.
@@InnuendoXP Yeh very true dude, the indie market is making up for what the "AAA" Studios are letting us down on. Also the "AA" Studios are coming up with some awesome stuff. Games like Kingdom Come Deliverance, Divinity: Original Sin 2, Hellblade just to mention a few top games made in that industry space. It's just a shame seeing so many AAA letting fans down with the IP's we have loved for so many years. AAA would rather chase just the bucks in most cases than please the fans too.
@@gladiatorscoops Issue with AAA is when you have budgets that big, it means a few things: -you have to sell millions to break even -you have to design for th3 lowest common denominator to reach that many people (see the top charts of anything creative) -a lot more people need to sign off on what is done, so effectively the game designs are decided by committee -it needs to be sold internally usually to shareholders, many of whom don't know anything about videogames, why this project costing tens to hundreds of millions of dollars & hundreds of employees is going to sell. They need precedent, evidence what's being done is going to work. Easiest way to do that is precedent, what's already been done before, and sold before. No wonder almost nothing interesting comes from AAA games Indie & AA, their team sizes are just as big as mainstream game devs in the 90s / early 2000s, and it really shows in the creative angles they're able to take by catering to smaller, more niche, but more dedicated audiences.
The best Wolfenstein game ever IMO. I played it when it first came out 20 years ago, and I still play it at least twice a year. I wouldn't even want a remake of it, it's just perfect as it is.
@@Masterdesstruct The gun knockback feels like crap and is way over the top. The enemies hitboxes suck. And finally the difficulty balancing is just bad all around. You die insanely fast in this game and the boss alone is close to impossible to beat. And no, the difficulty settings barely have any impact. Literally play any Wolfenstein but RTCW. RTCW is only good for the MP but aside of that should be avoided.
@@simonocelot Nah, I have played pretty much all FPS since the 90s and many on highest difficulty setting. The problem here is the game, not the skill.
I like how this retrospective is organized. It's been a while since i checked out your channel, but I always know I can watch your entire video. Can confirm that RTCW is one of the best FPS ever made.
Good to see you returned to this game again with a refreshed look at it! I wonder if you gonna redo your RealRTCW review, considering how many updates it recieved since then. We even pushed it on Steam with achievements and workshop support.
I love you guys for RealRTCW. I hope you will continue pushing out more content. Amazing work so far. Cheers! Also, I hope your post gets pinned so that more people will know about RealRTCW.
I've shared this opinion in many forums/comment sections regarding remake of RTCW and the most common answer/replies I get is that the devs already did Old Blood which was an homage RTCW, so why do another Remake?
Same, it is one of my all time favourite games and one I still play through pretty much yearly and sometimes more. But I am shit scared they will destroy its legacy like the GTA 'definitive' games, or they will somehow inject woke bullshit in it and ruin it that way.
Hands down one the best FPS games of all time! Still remember when I installed the game and saw the Intro cinematic, followed by opening escape level, and then the terrifying n intense Crypt levels! A masterpiece!
I just started playing this again on my Oculus Quest 2. If you own the game on steam you could side load the game files and play it in VR. It is incredible and completely immersive. You could also play Wolfenstein 3D in VR, which is equally awesome. I can't stop playing them.
I still remeber watching footage of this game and AvP 2 on the TV with my jaw dropped to the floor, and I was even more awestruck once I was finally able to play them. And after all these years they are stil some of the best FPS's of all time.
I was 4 when it came out and needless to say it's a part of me. I literally grew up on this game and can never get over the nostalgia of the mood and atmosphere it gives off. And everyone in my family feels the same. Even my mom dreams of that. How many other games can say they've done that?
I buy you guys 30 minutes: *RTCW is still a fcking masterpiece and one of the best shooters ever made* But still watch the video cause it's gmanlives Edit: I watched the video and what can i say other than *SILENCEDSTENSUBMACHINEGUN*
This game had the right amount of everything. Intriguing story, good gameplay, perfect atmosphere, hell even hidden treasures just because. No matter what kind of fps games you liked, this suited everyone for one thing or another.
The silenced Sten actually overheats extremely quickly in real life, too. Like, to enough of a level that doctrine for its use suggested never shooting any faster than slow semi-automatic fire unless it's a BIG emergency.
@@HelghastStalker Looks like you lucked out with an arsenal refurbishment. They just had big-ass bins of parts that go back on without any real fit and finish, so it's quite a luck-of-the-draw affair with how one will run. Good on you mate. Also they weren't meant to be precise enough for a scope to be useful anyhow. SMLE's are set up for fast shooting with a very brief interval to aim, hence the aperture and bolt layout.
I really hope they find a way to combine all 3 versions of RTCW (PC,Xbox,PS2) kinda what they did with "Shadowman". That would be the version I would personally want to see.
@@TrueRinku95 you should check the RTCW Venom Mod, it keeps vanilla weapons but includes better AI and HD textures and effects remaked from PS2/XBOX and A LOT of fixes for SP/MP.
The puns, the RLM references, the humor, this belongs in a museum!, and thanks for updating the review, always come back to this game, seems I'll be returning to...
Just recently played it again. Im amazed how a game this old can still look so good. The soundtrack is timeless, and how the game changes from feeling like a total badass taking down entire enemy bases, and then have you crap your pants in the X-Labs and the Catacombs
@LabRat Knatz Now there's a classic. Elite Force 2 was and still is amazing. I was surprised how long and involving the story of that game was, and the really varied levels and environments you visit.
Replayed it last year with the realRTCW mod. Was absolutely wonderful game 20 years ago and still is today. Truly the golden age of gaming. I was a youngster back then (around 20 y.o.) and I do remember being quite impressed with the undead npc's in the dungeon.
My sentiments exactly! There is something about the mood of this game. This blend of black magic stuff with WW2, briefings - all of it just works. Got PC and Xbox edition - split screen campaign!
The silenced sten is prone to overheat when used in full auto for a long period of time. It's bad for the baffles of the supressor. It is recommended to use in semi-automatic while some versions are semi-automatic only. Ian McCollum of Forgotten Weapons has a couple of interesting vids on several iterations of the silenced sten.
I've never even finished any of the Wolfenstein games that come after this one. I played rtcw so many times I can't even remember. Truly a top 10 of all time game! It's up there with einhander, I just sit down and play it at least a few times a year.
I replay this game's campaign at least once every year. It's so damn good, just the right amount of challenge, variety of weapons, levels, pacing. Sound and music was top tier. I remember the crypt level scared me when I was younger.
Ha me too! I must have played through the campaign 25 times by now and I can dream it, but its still fun every time. At this point it feels like visiting an old friend.
I recently replayed this game in VR on the Oculus Quest 2 (there's a mod) and oh boi it not only still holds up but it's super fun reliving the creepy crypt levels in VR. When I was 8 me and my mate played it (great parenting, I know) and were really creeped out by those damn zombies in the crypts. Now - still pretty (jump)scary. Great game.
It was the first thing I downloaded when I got my Quest 2, big mistake, got motion sickness within 20 minutes. Took a few weeks to get my VR legs and absolutely loved it.
Probably one of the best vr port games on Quest, even better than Half Life and Doom 3. It works so well in vr and you can still play mods and Enemy Territory on it.
i'm Quest-ing it right now, for the first time ever. Chose death-incarnate difficulty, and meeting elite guards (the chicks) had me regret the decision a bit. Barely got through by save-spamming. Stuff that follows is all-right so far.
I was around 7 when this game came out. I remember watching my dad play this, as well as other classic games, like doom, quake, unreal, and Half Life. This one stood out, because the setting was so different, and the game world felt so believable compared to those other games. A few years ago, I found the original install CD for this game, as well as the floppies for doom, and CD for Quake 2. This was before I had a nice rig, so I popped the CD for RTCW in an old desktop that we had, and played the game officially for the first time, and I must say it has held up very well, and I have played it several times since. Some of the best pure FPS combat, even by today's standards, and honestly it never gets old. Legendary game.
This game was one of the first PC games I've ever played. Bring so much memories. It was installed on my aunt computer with 4x4 Evolution racing game. When I visited we played together. I was so scared of undead and those bloody Lopers. Sadly my aunt passed away last year, but every time I see this game reviewed or replayed it brings back all the memories.
Totally agree with you! I was 17 when I played this on my first PC having a Pentium 3 and "no external graphics card" - I was completely blown away at that time. The cinematic was the best and still is in my opinion. I still in 2021 sometimes watch the cinematic opening of this game and brood over these golden happy days on my teenage self. THANKS for reviewing this game...
Got this when it came out and after all these years of playing FPS this still stands up as one of the best I have ever played. Still got the original PC version I purchased on release and play it from time to time, highly recommended.
I remember being terrified of this game. I was so scared I refused to play it myself. I only watched my older brother playing it from behind his shoulder.
I’m so glad all the games I remember a kid are actually as good as I remember. My dad used to have a badass PC and we would play both this and Max Payne. Both have held up incredibly well!
Disagree about the village stealth mission. I think it's one of the best missions in the game. It's superbly designed and Beethoven music adds to the atmosphere perfectly.
I completely agree. I even replayed that mission so many times the 1st time I got to it. It does slow the pace of the game down... but it's just a perfect level to sneak around and feel like a spy badass
Yeah, I loved that mission. Sneaking through, dropping guards with the snooper rifle, stabbing targets with the dagger or popping them with the silenced luger. And yes, nothing quite like sneaky up on some Nazi officer while moonlight sonata plays and shanking him.
@@wh8787 yeah it was fun, until you sneaked through entire village, killed everyone undetected, and suddenly "Alarm sounded on after 3 minutes of sneaking for no reason.... :)
Such a great game! I spent so many hours playing.. When Enemy Territory came out though, I got hooked on a whole other level. I started playing when it came out and still play it to this day. I played for a couple different clans and in quite a few leagues/competition. These couple of games were life changing for me and for FPS fans all over. They changed the genre.
A true FPS classic. I have an anecdote, back in high school days, when I lend my copy of the game to a classroom mate who didn't know what was a loading bar in a videogame.
That first stealth sequence in the forests was indeed a pain in the ass back in the day, that one guard in the truck, but the one where you had to kill the officers stealthily was my favorite part of the game, and I didn't have nearly as much trouble with it. Probably it was mainly just the idea of it, being this covert assassin, especially with that silenced Sten. (That gun was for the longest time my favorite weapon in any game, only finally getting eclipsed by the shotgun and the cannon in FEAR.) I liked the part with the Paratroops coming in too, was a lot of fun shooting them out of the sky, and that rifle is indeed great. Loved this game's singleplayer mode. I tried the MP mode but not only did I really suck at it, my net wasn't nearly good enough for it, everyone else seemed to have way better ping.
Been playing this game since I was 6. The level design and enemy placement is still fresh as ever in my mind in 2021. This video does nothing except make me want to play it again for the 302th time over...
As a kid I had a hard on for WW2 shooters having played the original COD, BF:1942 and the Medal of Honours AA & Frontline to death I was thirsty for more. Now as a 9 year old kid I went into GAME with my mum and asked the guy if there was any new WW2 shooters coming out and he goes "oh yeah this one Wolfenstein on the PS2" snapped it up straight away although he neglected to mention you'd be fighting the undead and mutants which scared the shit outta me at the time none the less I loved/love Wolfenstein ever since ! I've recently broken out the Xbox original at the moment I'm blasting through Stubbs the Zombie another classic but it's relatively short so I think I'll move onto Tides of War after for some more nostalgia. Thanks for the great tribute dude !
"Wolfenstein RTC" is my favorite video game period! I own & still enjoy today the PC, PS2 "Operation Resurrection" & the Xbox "Tides of War" all on original hardware & all uniquely different from each other. The 2009 "Wolfenstein" reboot is my favorite 7th gen game on the 360 & highly under-rated! If you've never played them they all come recommended!
I only played first few hours of New Order and 2009 game each, just to test these and was amazed, but never sit to play them throughout, always playing something else. I had to mention here I played Scarface by your recommendation (among others I also played), and couldn't leave till end, I played over one year on ps2 and never was bored, taking my time between other pc games, what a blast! I actually had to quit, there was still unsolved side-missions, but already thinking to play it again soon.
The Weapons of Vengeance was always my favorite section of this game. The first mission with the stealth was frustrating, but now I can do it easily. The rest was cake; the sabotage missions felt like a mix of Medal of Honor and James Bond. And of course the Airbase Assault section is still my favorite mission in the game: it begins quiet as you are doing the usual, until the paratroopers arrive. That is such a memorable moment
With the state the Wolfenstein games are currently in, I really want them to go back and make a proper sequel to this game or even the 2009 entry. It would continue from the Deathshead story and instead of the Nazis winning the war, it would keep going into the 1950s. The Nazis would be relying on their new experimental weapons while the Allies have developed their own equivilents(instead of having the usual WW2 weapons). The game(s) would follow the same themes and formula as RtCW having a mix of sci-fi, supernatural, and realistic war settings.
I liked ‘09 Wolfenstein too. I really enjoyed TNO and Old Blood, especially when the Old Blood went more towards the supernatural in the latter half. I wish Machine Games would have kept going in that direction. New Colossus was such a disappointment…
This one is super nostalgic for me. I have fond memories of getting this and AVP 2 for Christmas 2001. I playing the absolute shit out of both of them, despite my PC at the time barely being able to keep up. I miss those times...
It's worth being this old, to have been young when these games came out. It's also why I've given up on modern games, there are so many old games that endlessly entertain me without the looming threat of disappointment that surrounds anything they've released in the past decade.
Games had a ton of charm and atmosphere back in the day. They also didn't hold your hand. I'll be honest, though, I just don't understand the praise of this game. I didn't play this game when it came out and actually no where near when it was released, but I have no difficulty playing a retro game and basically going back in time. I played a ton of retro games when they were released and some very recently, and RTCW is still one I don't get. I question the hit detection, the gunplay is sloppy, and it's just not fun. I am the minority here too, as I also praise Wolfenstein 2009. RTCW does have some atmosphere and was prob pretty badass for the time but Machine games revolutionized badass wolfenstein games and also gave us what may have been the best gunplay up until that time. RTCW only saving grace with being a badass FPS cannot hold a candle to how badass Machinegames Wolfensteins were.
You’re missing out man! I just finished Youngblood, and yes, it has major flaws but I still had a ton of fun exploring the world they created. It depends on how you approach these things I guess, I’m more of a tourist. There to smell the roses.
@@clavius5734 I think the problem with Youngblood was the Machinegames formula felt stale. Wolfenstein: The New Order was mainlining cocaine. No where to go but down from there. I'm surprised at how good TOB was, but as badass as these games were, there was this stale feeling with Wolfenstein TNC. You can tell a ton of passion was put into that game and Youngblood (sort of), but sadly the games didn't feel the same anymore and without any real innovation, the badass formula that MGs created was done.
Dude!! Allied Assault!! I spent hours on that game. By far one of the best D-Day missions. Fun fact: Later in the game you'd come into a muddy town with a bunch of snipers reminiscent to the scene in Saving Private Ryan where Vin Diesel's character gets sniped in the rain. Well there's characters spread across the level that I believe are scripted to be killed by the snipers. However if you're able to counter-snipe fast enough you can save them all and they'll squad up with you until the end of the mission.
FYI: There was a vertical slice level for Return to Castle Wolfenstein running at Xatrix Entertainment in 1998. Xatrix was working on the Quake2 mission pack and Redneck Rampage Rides Again at the time, and pre production was being done on Kingpin and Return to Castle Wolfenstein. When Xatrix closed after releasing Kingpin some team members went to Valve while others formed Gray Matter Interactive, where they did Return to Castle Wolfenstein. Also another FYI, the editor for Call of Duty games was called Graydient (a portmanteau of Gray and Radiant, Gray for Gray Matter and Radiant beings from QERadiant the fan made editor based on the source code for QE4 (the editor used by id software for Quake2)
Oh yeahhhh bois!!! One of my all time favourites RTCW is finally getting some recognition. Multiplayer is god tier, campaign is timeless. Makes the new Wolfenstien look like Snowflake safe spaces. The new games have absolutely nothing on this classic.
@Gmanlives: Thank you for drawing my attention to this forgotten jewel: Back in the day I tried to play a pirated copy but that never worked properly. Now that I've tried it 20 years later, I cannot stop playing.
RTCW is the best Wolfenstein ever made! Period. IGN nominating New Colossus over RTCW in their top FPS list is just egregious. O.o Absolutely deserves a proper Remake and No! ... Old Blood paying homage to RTCW doesn't count. Still can't believe Raven, of all the developers, came up with that turd of a sequel, Wolfenstein (2009). Why, Raven? Just why? Will never touch that again ...
He's not kidding about that first Death Incarnate playthrough. Holy hell, those were some frustrating sessions. The second and third playthrough on Death Incarnate were both awesome though.
I have the same feelings of nostalgia and the game still being fun with Max Payne 2. Would be about time though to return to Return to Castle Wolfenstein.
Absolutely best shooter ever made. Just watching the crypt scenes still sends a shiver down my spine. This was a long game with changing environments that kept it fresh. Nothing since has come close (though I am a big fan of Wolf 2009 - the later stuff was too much cutscenes and too little play - exception to Old Blood).
"We've defeated the wrong enemy" said General George S. Patton after defeating Germany in WW2. For ages this comment could not be understood, but now that we live in these crazy times, people finally wake up and know exactly what he meant.
i remember as a child that i couldnt get past the village because you had to destroy the gate to get into the crypt, and i never thought to shoot it open, i just saw a mausoleum that was basically a huge block of concrete with no visible openings and got stuck, it didnt help matters that i didnt know a shred of english back then also...regarding the damage sponges at the later half of the game, it truly contrasts the fact that you had all this OP weaponry going against the elite of the elite and outright monster machines, you could somewhat get away with going rambo in the earlier levels, but not anymore, you had to play tactically, kiting enemies to corners, engaging them 1 on 1 instead of groups, picking your fights, at least the game was aware enough that these were going to be damage sponges via said sponges having scars on their faces, a way of telling you these were battle-hardened soldiers. and as you pointed out it did make a lot of sense that ammo for your thompson, dual pistols and snooper was scarce, why would enemies be having crates of ammo of a caliber they werent using?, it also made special sense for the snooper, since it was OP as hell and you clearly werent meant to overuse it, a nice balancing mechanic since it could totally make life easier if you were paying attention to the environment, unlike other games who gave you vast ammo for everything, sure it leads to you play the game the way you want it, but it could also lead to a 1-note experience and being prone to attempting to brute force certain scenarios your current weapon wasnt meant to handle, leading to possible frustration
This game is a classic. The atmosphere this game creates hasn't been matched again in the series. They re-booted Wolfenstein with such promise, and then ran it straight into the ground.
This will always be my favorite game. I will never forget the feeling of online play. Listening to Team Sportscast Network when the clan Darkside faced off against the clan Doctors for a championship. The gold rush mod. Coloring your name online. God the times were so good. Thank you so much for this, Gman.💥
Great retrospective! Man, we were spoiled by the variety of gameplay during that campaign. I remember loving the change of pace when I arrived in that wide-open countryside level. It was a relief after the claustrophobic interiors from earlier 💀
Nah, fuck that forest stealth mission. It's honestly as difficult and unfun as a real sneaking mission would be. Enemies have realistic lines of sight, for one. People joke about the genome soldiers in Metal Gear Solid being as blind as bats, but that makes it a little more forgiving and playable.
22:37 apart from the zombies chapter, the Uber soldiers literally gave me nightmares! Such a great game, I am so glad I had the privilege to play it as a kid.
I just started the video so I don't know if it's mentioned in it or not, but this game has a VR mod for the Quest 2, and it is so, sooo good. I remember playing this back when it first came out and being blown away, and the VR mod of it legitimately gave me the exact same feelings. It was so great going back to this game and being "inside" of it with full motion control support, because everything about it still holds up so well. If you're a fan of this game and own a Quest 2, do yourself a service and check it out. The mod is free, available via Sidequest and you just need to install the game files from a legit copy once you get the mod installed on your Quest 2, and you're good to go. Half-life, Quake, Quake 2, Classic Doom/Doom II, and Doom 3 all also have really great Quest 2 mods that all add in full motion control support as well. Classic Doom and Doom II also have a GZDoom branch for VR via PC as well. Doom 3 also has a PCVR port called Fully Possessed, and Half-life 2 can be played in VR via Gary's Mod VR. All of them are great ways to experience these games in VR, but be aware that they all require movement and don't have much in the way of comfort options, so you'll need to get your VR legs before you can really enjoy them. If only someone would resurrect that EDuke32 VR thing from back in the dev kit days and get it working with Duke3D and Shadow Warrior, I'd be a happy little retro gamer. Another thing worth pointing out is that Wolfenstein New Order's DLC "Old Blood" is in fact a partial remake of Return to Castle Wolfenstein, but nowhere near as good. Later in the video, the silenced stein's limited firing capability actually is accurate. It wasn't great at regulating heat, and adding a silencer just made it worse. So the weapon actually would overheat and wear down the parts and eventually break if you fired it full auto. The least realistic thing is the video game mechanic that it would cool down and be back in perfect working order again.
21:30 The best thing to do in this sequence is RUN. (TBH I had no idea that you could shoot your parachutes, so this could be a good option as well.) What a fun sequence. Also agree with the statement (minus "artificial") at 23:49. The tough difficulty of this section totally warped my expectations for the much easier final boss battle, although it's not unbeatable.
I'll never forget playing through this for the first time on PS2 and marveling at what an awesome evolution for Wolfenstein this game was. It's only continued to grow in the perfect direction to this day too.
My 1st encounter with the Paratroopers with their FG-42s in the end of the Airbase level & the intense badass music is One of the most memorable moments in 2+ decades of my Gaming Life. RTCW represents a time when Video Games were at their best.
RTCW not only had an amazing campaign, but it was by far the BEST multiplayer experience on Xbox Live on the OG Xbox. YES, I said RTCW was THE BEST Xbox Live game, even more fun than Halo. Stopwatch on Beach Invasion is an all-time classic that I wish modern gamers could experience with fresh eyes in 2022. No killstreaks, no perks, no over-reliance on power weapons, no crazy phrenetic movement, no unlimited ammo, no operators and generic factions. Just Axis vs Allies with TEAM-BASED gameplay that required strategic class setups working together to attack or defend the objective. Limited ammo, health packs, limited but powerful explosives, and map knowledge was king. Thanks for the great trip down memory lane Gman!
Aaaah yeeeeah, this game was the best! I still get chills from the intro "Return to castle Wolfenstein immediately, notify herr Himmler, we found him".
Only you could do justice to this gem of a game through this retrospective Gman. I played RTCW when i was 15 too! And as you rightly said: it scared the fucking piss out of me during those crypt levels. The music, the dimly lit and misty areas and general scarcity of resources made it even more scary. Hands down one of my favourite games of all time. As a side note, if ID software remakes this game with exact same mechanics and everything but with new tech, i would give my left nut to play it.
To this day whenever a friend comes over to my place for the first time I like to greet them with "Such as it is, this is my house." (Kessler says this when he shows you his secret hideout in the village)
The "overheating" of the suppressed Sten actually has some basis on history: suppressed Sten models could be shot in full auto, but this was highly discouraged since doing so the gas had no time to properly vent from the the suppressor and the increased pressure would damage the internals, decreasing the suppressor's effectiveness or rendering it downright inoperable.
Even some supresed Sten models had bloqued the full auto selector.
Some even had the fire selector removed, Ian at forgotten weapons has just done a video on em :D
There was a recent Forgotten Weapons video about it.
Remember, short controlled bursts.
also to add the Sten mk2 had a baffle system instead of a the mesh wise suppressor which means there's only so much ammo you can put into the suppressor before you need to maintain it
in hindsight their usage here has merit
fuck this game is so good, can confirm the crypt level scared the piss outta me
as a 12y old I snuck out of bed to play RTCW on the pc in the basement - I was scared as shit when playing through the crypt. but at the same time I fucking loved it!
fond memories!
I was 7 when I played RTCW and I allways had my dad play the crypt level for me because i was so scared hahaha
Those screams... Those horrible screams... Did you hear them? I can hear them still!
This game is even better in VR just saying
I loved this game so much when i was a kid and played the shiz out of it
The Sten gun overheating actually is pretty realistic. It was a fairly early attempt at a suppressed automatic so the heat generated from rapid fire would potentially cause the gun to malfunction
Kinda it's more that the silencer would stop working until you let the gasses vent from it.
Well it’s a kind-of situation. It wouldn’t completely cease firing after ten seconds due to it, it was more of a compound-problem stenning (ha) from the design itself. The heat and bolt caused a lot of misfires just by simply nudging the butt after shooting it for a bit, and the accuracy/range was really hindered (as well as the suppression of sound from the barrel being really minimal.) Also it would stovepipe like a motherfucker thanks to the magazine configuration. Those problems were paid in return by the fact that it could have sand catch, extensive lack of any maintenance and still shoot (which is why it was so used in the Africa campaign.) Like every gun, it had its positives and negatives.
Yea that's why most guns arnt fully auto, instead having burst so you don't waste ammo and melt barrels
You're only supposed to shoot semi with a silenced sten.
@@samholdsworth420 I hate being that "insufferable gun nut" guy every comment section has to have lol, but this is the only comment that's completely correct. Firing a silenced Sten MK II in full auto was reserved for emergencies only, and a lot of silenced Stens even had the selector switch welded to only function in semi-auto. This was because the baffles in the silencer couldn't handle sustained full-auto and would get jammed up and filled with carbon, making the silencer less effective and difficult to take apart for cleaning and even outright breaking the silencer in extreme cases. Overheating wasn't the issue though, the silencer just couldn't handle sustained full-auto.
When this came out I remember watching my older brother playing it. They he got stumped during the Uber Soldat fight… just kept getting his ass kicked, even asked my dad to try, who didn’t fare any better. They tried for a good hour.
I’d played Doom and Half Life before but that was the extent of my FPS experience at the time. I asked my dad to give me a chance and I survived, first try! Now, 20 years later my brother and dad still give me accolades for that LOL
My dad gave up and used god mode
It is just awesome that games from our childhood we share memories about today! The bonding nostalgia is powerful; you are the victor!
I've had that before with games
When i was younger, my friend was stuck on a Mario boss for hours, and then I beat it on my first try
I know this is not a music channel, but I just thought I’d share this: the “dipping tone” you refer to at 6:23 is called a tritone, also known as “the Devil’s interval”; it consists in splitting an octave into two equal parts and playing the first, last and central note. The result is an evil sounding chord which visually mimics the shape of a pitchfork (hence why it is referred to as the Devil’s interval)
And is also the tone of a wolf's howl.
Famously used in Black Sabbath opening riff in the self-titled song. Might sound quaint today, but when I first heard that riff when I was like 6 or 7, it was the most ominous thing I'd ever heard, and that's when I decided I need to play music as well.
You mean, it's like A, G, Dm ?
Damn. ! Best All Times ! +1 People and Union ! :-)
@@Mafon2 nono, it's basically just an octave plus the middle note: G,C#,G
My dad played this game so much he had a note book with every secret mapped on the PS2 version and notes on how to beat the forest mission, down to knowing when to actually restart from a save point if the AI didn't act the way he wanted them too.
Basically from then on he would just go for 100% the game on nightmare mode each play through.
He probably still has that notebook somewhere
You must be pretty much bang on my age Gman, Wolfenstein 3D being the first FPS I played as a kid, moving onto Spear of Destiny, Doom, Duke, Blood, Quake etc.
We are getting very old and crusty but we totally experienced the golden age of gaming at our peak gaming years so its not all bad.
Especially looking at the current state of the industry compared to back then. They can't even remaster 20 year old games anymore.
to be fair, at least our era has been getting a 'lot' of love from an indie space that's just getting better & better of capturing the essence of the past with the bells & whistles of the present.
@@InnuendoXP Yeh very true dude, the indie market is making up for what the "AAA" Studios are letting us down on. Also the "AA" Studios are coming up with some awesome stuff. Games like Kingdom Come Deliverance, Divinity: Original Sin 2, Hellblade just to mention a few top games made in that industry space. It's just a shame seeing so many AAA letting fans down with the IP's we have loved for so many years. AAA would rather chase just the bucks in most cases than please the fans too.
@@gladiatorscoops Issue with AAA is when you have budgets that big, it means a few things:
-you have to sell millions to break even
-you have to design for th3 lowest common denominator to reach that many people (see the top charts of anything creative)
-a lot more people need to sign off on what is done, so effectively the game designs are decided by committee
-it needs to be sold internally usually to shareholders, many of whom don't know anything about videogames, why this project costing tens to hundreds of millions of dollars & hundreds of employees is going to sell. They need precedent, evidence what's being done is going to work. Easiest way to do that is precedent, what's already been done before, and sold before.
No wonder almost nothing interesting comes from AAA games
Indie & AA, their team sizes are just as big as mainstream game devs in the 90s / early 2000s, and it really shows in the creative angles they're able to take by catering to smaller, more niche, but more dedicated audiences.
The best Wolfenstein game ever IMO. I played it when it first came out 20 years ago, and I still play it at least twice a year. I wouldn't even want a remake of it, it's just perfect as it is.
Nah its the worst...
@@muchossaugus9927 why? Never played it
@@Masterdesstruct The gun knockback feels like crap and is way over the top. The enemies hitboxes suck. And finally the difficulty balancing is just bad all around. You die insanely fast in this game and the boss alone is close to impossible to beat. And no, the difficulty settings barely have any impact. Literally play any Wolfenstein but RTCW. RTCW is only good for the MP but aside of that should be avoided.
@@muchossaugus9927 skill issue
@@simonocelot Nah, I have played pretty much all FPS since the 90s and many on highest difficulty setting. The problem here is the game, not the skill.
The multiplayer was my entire high school life. The beach map being my favorite, such an amazing game and online experience.
my buddy showed me the online of this game back in middle school, the German team mates always yelling "medic" like "MAY-DEEK" made us laugh so hard
If you let your body fall down to the beach as a defender your teammates would yell at you. I would yell at you.
'Hallo' im a medic',
I'm an engineer!'
*crouches in front of fireplace* 'fire in the hole!'
'ya'
V57! oh, and mp_base was clearly the best stock map heheh
Damn. ! Best All Times ! +1 People and Union ! :-)
I like how this retrospective is organized. It's been a while since i checked out your channel, but I always know I can watch your entire video. Can confirm that RTCW is one of the best FPS ever made.
Good to see you returned to this game again with a refreshed look at it! I wonder if you gonna redo your RealRTCW review, considering how many updates it recieved since then. We even pushed it on Steam with achievements and workshop support.
Didn't even know about RealRTCW. Thank you!
Maybe you'll be the one who brings Enemy Territory multiplayer on Steam.
RealRTCW is awsome !! and i love the fact that its on steam !! can only recommend people download and play it !
RealRTCW is a true gem! It's awesome that you can now get it on Steam!
I love you guys for RealRTCW. I hope you will continue pushing out more content. Amazing work so far. Cheers!
Also, I hope your post gets pinned so that more people will know about RealRTCW.
"I used these things less than a speedrunner uses deodrant." LMAO. GmanLives is gonna kill me one of these days with his jokes 🤣
From all the Games, that could or should be remastered/remade, RTCW is the top one on my wishlist.
RealRTCW is on steam and it kinda does that.
As long as it isn't like what recent failed remasters, then hope they remaster it
I've shared this opinion in many forums/comment sections regarding remake of RTCW and the most common answer/replies I get is that the devs already did Old Blood which was an homage RTCW, so why do another Remake?
@@jasonkennedy6844 This. Real RTCW is a proper remaster
Same, it is one of my all time favourite games and one I still play through pretty much yearly and sometimes more. But I am shit scared they will destroy its legacy like the GTA 'definitive' games, or they will somehow inject woke bullshit in it and ruin it that way.
Me and my dad love the wolfestein games. It's ALWAYS such a good time to watch your videos with him! Thank you Gman for all the great memories
Hands down one the best FPS games of all time! Still remember when I installed the game and saw the Intro cinematic, followed by opening escape level, and then the terrifying n intense Crypt levels!
A masterpiece!
I just started playing this again on my Oculus Quest 2. If you own the game on steam you could side load the game files and play it in VR. It is incredible and completely immersive. You could also play Wolfenstein 3D in VR, which is equally awesome. I can't stop playing them.
that's a good idea. i just realized i never played this and playing it in VR would be a great way to make it feel more special.
I still remeber watching footage of this game and AvP 2 on the TV with my jaw dropped to the floor, and I was even more awestruck once I was finally able to play them. And after all these years they are stil some of the best FPS's of all time.
They need to remaster AVP2. Damn shame it's not available on Steam or GOG. It was never ported to Xbox either.
Been playing this for 14 years. Never gets old. A family favorite in my house
I’m gonna play this again in a little bit because today I finally got my Windows XP up and running again after a few months of it not working.
I was 4 when it came out and needless to say it's a part of me. I literally grew up on this game and can never get over the nostalgia of the mood and atmosphere it gives off. And everyone in my family feels the same. Even my mom dreams of that. How many other games can say they've done that?
I buy you guys 30 minutes: *RTCW is still a fcking masterpiece and one of the best shooters ever made*
But still watch the video cause it's gmanlives
Edit: I watched the video and what can i say other than *SILENCEDSTENSUBMACHINEGUN*
For sure💪
I swear
he's a right laugh, proper pissed myself at the clip from Dumb N Dumber ^_^
This game had the right amount of everything. Intriguing story, good gameplay, perfect atmosphere, hell even hidden treasures just because. No matter what kind of fps games you liked, this suited everyone for one thing or another.
aww this brings some memories
Фига кто пришёл в комменты
awwwwww
Who are you?
Нифига себе какие люди...
Э
The silenced Sten actually overheats extremely quickly in real life, too. Like, to enough of a level that doctrine for its use suggested never shooting any faster than slow semi-automatic fire unless it's a BIG emergency.
@@HelghastStalker You can even get that from non-self loaders if you fire fast enough. My Lithgow's barrel will sear the skin after a good mad minute.
@@HelghastStalker Yeah, Lithgow repros are VERY popular in aus. Up there with Tikka, Howa and Sako in terms of our favored brands.
@@HelghastStalker Looks like you lucked out with an arsenal refurbishment. They just had big-ass bins of parts that go back on without any real fit and finish, so it's quite a luck-of-the-draw affair with how one will run. Good on you mate. Also they weren't meant to be precise enough for a scope to be useful anyhow. SMLE's are set up for fast shooting with a very brief interval to aim, hence the aperture and bolt layout.
NightDive Studios need to sprinkle their magic on this game.
I really hope they find a way to combine all 3 versions of RTCW (PC,Xbox,PS2) kinda what they did with "Shadowman".
That would be the version I would personally want to see.
The PC version still holds up very nicely. But a new rendition in all platforms including the new content from the PS2/Xbox versions would be great.
@@TrueRinku95 you should check the RTCW Venom Mod, it keeps vanilla weapons but includes better AI and HD textures and effects remaked from PS2/XBOX and A LOT of fixes for SP/MP.
The puns, the RLM references, the humor, this belongs in a museum!, and thanks for updating the review, always come back to this game, seems I'll be returning to...
Just recently played it again. Im amazed how a game this old can still look so good. The soundtrack is timeless, and how the game changes from feeling like a total badass taking down entire enemy bases, and then have you crap your pants in the X-Labs and the Catacombs
@LabRat Knatz Now there's a classic. Elite Force 2 was and still is amazing. I was surprised how long and involving the story of that game was, and the really varied levels and environments you visit.
Same with Unreal it still looks great! georgeous in high res.
@@meshuggah18 Personally I think the textures were a bit sharper in the Quake 3 engine.
@LabRat Knatz Elite Force was awesome, played it a bunch on the Ps2
1:48 Your cadence and pace gave a real documentary feel to it, like someone being interviewed for one.
Replayed it last year with the realRTCW mod. Was absolutely wonderful game 20 years ago and still is today. Truly the golden age of gaming. I was a youngster back then (around 20 y.o.) and I do remember being quite impressed with the undead npc's in the dungeon.
My sentiments exactly! There is something about the mood of this game. This blend of black magic stuff with WW2, briefings - all of it just works. Got PC and Xbox edition - split screen campaign!
The silenced sten is prone to overheat when used in full auto for a long period of time. It's bad for the baffles of the supressor.
It is recommended to use in semi-automatic while some versions are semi-automatic only.
Ian McCollum of Forgotten Weapons has a couple of interesting vids on several iterations of the silenced sten.
I've never even finished any of the Wolfenstein games that come after this one. I played rtcw so many times I can't even remember. Truly a top 10 of all time game! It's up there with einhander, I just sit down and play it at least a few times a year.
I replay this game's campaign at least once every year. It's so damn good, just the right amount of challenge, variety of weapons, levels, pacing. Sound and music was top tier. I remember the crypt level scared me when I was younger.
Ha me too! I must have played through the campaign 25 times by now and I can dream it, but its still fun every time. At this point it feels like visiting an old friend.
I never thought grapics were going to get better than that flamethrower. Amazing game and the multiplayer was incredible amounts of fun.
I recently replayed this game in VR on the Oculus Quest 2 (there's a mod) and oh boi it not only still holds up but it's super fun reliving the creepy crypt levels in VR. When I was 8 me and my mate played it (great parenting, I know) and were really creeped out by those damn zombies in the crypts. Now - still pretty (jump)scary. Great game.
I played metal gear solid at 8
It was the first thing I downloaded when I got my Quest 2, big mistake, got motion sickness within 20 minutes. Took a few weeks to get my VR legs and absolutely loved it.
Probably one of the best vr port games on Quest, even better than Half Life and Doom 3. It works so well in vr and you can still play mods and Enemy Territory on it.
i'm Quest-ing it right now, for the first time ever. Chose death-incarnate difficulty, and meeting elite guards (the chicks) had me regret the decision a bit. Barely got through by save-spamming. Stuff that follows is all-right so far.
@@victortitov1740 Good luck with that, that's quite a challenge you've set yourself!
I was around 7 when this game came out. I remember watching my dad play this, as well as other classic games, like doom, quake, unreal, and Half Life. This one stood out, because the setting was so different, and the game world felt so believable compared to those other games. A few years ago, I found the original install CD for this game, as well as the floppies for doom, and CD for Quake 2. This was before I had a nice rig, so I popped the CD for RTCW in an old desktop that we had, and played the game officially for the first time, and I must say it has held up very well, and I have played it several times since. Some of the best pure FPS combat, even by today's standards, and honestly it never gets old. Legendary game.
This game was one of the first PC games I've ever played.
Bring so much memories.
It was installed on my aunt computer with 4x4 Evolution racing game.
When I visited we played together. I was so scared of undead and those bloody Lopers.
Sadly my aunt passed away last year, but every time I see this game reviewed or replayed it brings back all the memories.
Totally agree with you! I was 17 when I played this on my first PC having a Pentium 3 and "no external graphics card" - I was completely blown away at that time. The cinematic was the best and still is in my opinion. I still in 2021 sometimes watch the cinematic opening of this game and brood over these golden happy days on my teenage self. THANKS for reviewing this game...
Imagine being a game so innovative even the sound of a door is mind-blowing and remarkable
Got this when it came out and after all these years of playing FPS this still stands up as one of the best I have ever played. Still got the original PC version I purchased on release and play it from time to time, highly recommended.
I believe, what makes this game stand the test of time is it's perfect atmosphere.
Those zombie levels scared the shit out of me when I played it as a kid.
You know Gmanlives love this game when he put a great and detailed drawing of the game in the thumbnail.
I remember being terrified of this game. I was so scared I refused to play it myself. I only watched my older brother playing it from behind his shoulder.
I’m so glad all the games I remember a kid are actually as good as I remember.
My dad used to have a badass PC and we would play both this and Max Payne. Both have held up incredibly well!
Disagree about the village stealth mission. I think it's one of the best missions in the game. It's superbly designed and Beethoven music adds to the atmosphere perfectly.
I completely agree. I even replayed that mission so many times the 1st time I got to it. It does slow the pace of the game down... but it's just a perfect level to sneak around and feel like a spy badass
Agreed, loved that mission. Such a great atmosphere too, and also some good humor.
Yeah, I loved that mission. Sneaking through, dropping guards with the snooper rifle, stabbing targets with the dagger or popping them with the silenced luger. And yes, nothing quite like sneaky up on some Nazi officer while moonlight sonata plays and shanking him.
@@wh8787 yeah it was fun, until you sneaked through entire village, killed everyone undetected, and suddenly "Alarm sounded on after 3 minutes of sneaking for no reason.... :)
The Enemy Territory mod of this was what got me into competitive FPS. Clan vs. Clan on TWL was so good and it's where I met my rave girl.
This can't be Master PL is it? It's Orion used to play with Mr. Furious, SilentRob etc...
Such a great game! I spent so many hours playing.. When Enemy Territory came out though, I got hooked on a whole other level. I started playing when it came out and still play it to this day. I played for a couple different clans and in quite a few leagues/competition. These couple of games were life changing for me and for FPS fans all over. They changed the genre.
ET was the greatest online fps i ever played, played in clans ect from grade 7 until i finished highschool, i miss it.
Played the console versions due to your recommendation, and gotta say they were interesting, plus just more rtcw is always welcome.
So much wonderful memories with this game.
A true FPS classic.
I have an anecdote, back in high school days, when I lend my copy of the game to a classroom mate who didn't know what was a loading bar in a videogame.
google what anecdote means. then realize it doesn't work here. that story wasn't interesting or amusing
This is by far one of the best games of the 2000's.
Spent thousands of hours playing RTCW/ET multiplayer it was the SH*T.
One of my favourite fps games still to this day. And levels that included monsters scared me a lot when I was a kid
"Like brunettes and glasses" 👌❤️🤤 The amount of effort you put into your videos with such varied exciting gameplay is captivating.
That first stealth sequence in the forests was indeed a pain in the ass back in the day, that one guard in the truck, but the one where you had to kill the officers stealthily was my favorite part of the game, and I didn't have nearly as much trouble with it. Probably it was mainly just the idea of it, being this covert assassin, especially with that silenced Sten. (That gun was for the longest time my favorite weapon in any game, only finally getting eclipsed by the shotgun and the cannon in FEAR.) I liked the part with the Paratroops coming in too, was a lot of fun shooting them out of the sky, and that rifle is indeed great.
Loved this game's singleplayer mode. I tried the MP mode but not only did I really suck at it, my net wasn't nearly good enough for it, everyone else seemed to have way better ping.
Been playing this game since I was 6. The level design and enemy placement is still fresh as ever in my mind in 2021. This video does nothing except make me want to play it again for the 302th time over...
As a kid I had a hard on for WW2 shooters having played the original COD, BF:1942 and the Medal of Honours AA & Frontline to death I was thirsty for more.
Now as a 9 year old kid I went into GAME with my mum and asked the guy if there was any new WW2 shooters coming out and he goes "oh yeah this one Wolfenstein on the PS2" snapped it up straight away although he neglected to mention you'd be fighting the undead and mutants which scared the shit outta me at the time none the less I loved/love Wolfenstein ever since !
I've recently broken out the Xbox original at the moment I'm blasting through Stubbs the Zombie another classic but it's relatively short so I think I'll move onto Tides of War after for some more nostalgia.
Thanks for the great tribute dude !
"Wolfenstein RTC" is my favorite video game period! I own & still enjoy today the PC, PS2 "Operation Resurrection" & the Xbox "Tides of War" all on original hardware & all uniquely different from each other. The 2009 "Wolfenstein" reboot is my favorite 7th gen game on the 360 & highly under-rated! If you've never played them they all come recommended!
I only played first few hours of New Order and 2009 game each, just to test these and was amazed, but never sit to play them throughout, always playing something else. I had to mention here I played Scarface by your recommendation (among others I also played), and couldn't leave till end, I played over one year on ps2 and never was bored, taking my time between other pc games, what a blast! I actually had to quit, there was still unsolved side-missions, but already thinking to play it again soon.
@@Vlado.S41 I am delighted you tried & enjoyed some of my recommendations my friend, thanks for the kind words!
Gman you always playing my child hood games. Thank you for doing this game justice
The Weapons of Vengeance was always my favorite section of this game. The first mission with the stealth was frustrating, but now I can do it easily. The rest was cake; the sabotage missions felt like a mix of Medal of Honor and James Bond. And of course the Airbase Assault section is still my favorite mission in the game: it begins quiet as you are doing the usual, until the paratroopers arrive. That is such a memorable moment
the music when the paratroopers drop in and you getting the FG 42 (which sounds badass as does its reload) is still the best moment.
One of the best multiplayer experiences of its time.
With the state the Wolfenstein games are currently in, I really want them to go back and make a proper sequel to this game or even the 2009 entry. It would continue from the Deathshead story and instead of the Nazis winning the war, it would keep going into the 1950s. The Nazis would be relying on their new experimental weapons while the Allies have developed their own equivilents(instead of having the usual WW2 weapons). The game(s) would follow the same themes and formula as RtCW having a mix of sci-fi, supernatural, and realistic war settings.
I liked ‘09 Wolfenstein too. I really enjoyed TNO and Old Blood, especially when the Old Blood went more towards the supernatural in the latter half. I wish Machine Games would have kept going in that direction. New Colossus was such a disappointment…
I'd like to see a true sequel to Return to Castle Wolfenstein. Go back to real WW2.
No more New Colossus and especially Youngblood...
So true, what a great game then and now. Excellent review! Great memories of playing this game.
I love RtCW so much. It's been my favorite game since as far as i cam remember. My dad used to play it when i was a wee tot.
Some of my fondest gaming memories come from this title. Lot of fun times here, especially with multiplayer and with that GOAT flamethrower.
As someone who got a ton of enjoyment out the more recent wolfenstien titles, I honestly would would want to give this title a try.
I absolutely bloody LOVED this game!!!! It was so so so darn good!!! Still looks good today. See you in another 20 years, BJ!! 😀😀😀
One of the best experiences in life... Return to Castle Wolfenstein
I didn't play it ,I lived in it
This one is super nostalgic for me. I have fond memories of getting this and AVP 2 for Christmas 2001. I playing the absolute shit out of both of them, despite my PC at the time barely being able to keep up. I miss those times...
It's worth being this old, to have been young when these games came out.
It's also why I've given up on modern games, there are so many old games that endlessly entertain me without the looming threat of disappointment that surrounds anything they've released in the past decade.
Games had a ton of charm and atmosphere back in the day. They also didn't hold your hand. I'll be honest, though, I just don't understand the praise of this game. I didn't play this game when it came out and actually no where near when it was released, but I have no difficulty playing a retro game and basically going back in time. I played a ton of retro games when they were released and some very recently, and RTCW is still one I don't get. I question the hit detection, the gunplay is sloppy, and it's just not fun. I am the minority here too, as I also praise Wolfenstein 2009. RTCW does have some atmosphere and was prob pretty badass for the time but Machine games revolutionized badass wolfenstein games and also gave us what may have been the best gunplay up until that time. RTCW only saving grace with being a badass FPS cannot hold a candle to how badass Machinegames Wolfensteins were.
You’re missing out man! I just finished Youngblood, and yes, it has major flaws but I still had a ton of fun exploring the world they created. It depends on how you approach these things I guess, I’m more of a tourist. There to smell the roses.
@@bmshaven yeah 2009 was awesome too! Really great worldbuilding and beautiful ambiance ( especially the golden dawn safehouse 👌)
@@clavius5734 That makes just two of us in the world lol
@@clavius5734 I think the problem with Youngblood was the Machinegames formula felt stale. Wolfenstein: The New Order was mainlining cocaine. No where to go but down from there. I'm surprised at how good TOB was, but as badass as these games were, there was this stale feeling with Wolfenstein TNC. You can tell a ton of passion was put into that game and Youngblood (sort of), but sadly the games didn't feel the same anymore and without any real innovation, the badass formula that MGs created was done.
Dude!! Allied Assault!! I spent hours on that game. By far one of the best D-Day missions.
Fun fact: Later in the game you'd come into a muddy town with a bunch of snipers reminiscent to the scene in Saving Private Ryan where Vin Diesel's character gets sniped in the rain. Well there's characters spread across the level that I believe are scripted to be killed by the snipers. However if you're able to counter-snipe fast enough you can save them all and they'll squad up with you until the end of the mission.
When the bad in this game can be summed up in less than two minutes in a review over 30 minutes long, that’s how you know this game is good.
FYI: There was a vertical slice level for Return to Castle Wolfenstein running at Xatrix Entertainment in 1998. Xatrix was working on the Quake2 mission pack and Redneck Rampage Rides Again at the time, and pre production was being done on Kingpin and Return to Castle Wolfenstein. When Xatrix closed after releasing Kingpin some team members went to Valve while others formed Gray Matter Interactive, where they did Return to Castle Wolfenstein. Also another FYI, the editor for Call of Duty games was called Graydient (a portmanteau of Gray and Radiant, Gray for Gray Matter and Radiant beings from QERadiant the fan made editor based on the source code for QE4 (the editor used by id software for Quake2)
Oh yeahhhh bois!!!
One of my all time favourites
RTCW is finally getting some recognition.
Multiplayer is god tier, campaign is timeless.
Makes the new Wolfenstien look like
Snowflake safe spaces.
The new games have absolutely nothing on this classic.
Finished this gem because of you man. It's really effin good.
It's a great game.
@Gmanlives: Thank you for drawing my attention to this forgotten jewel: Back in the day I tried to play a pirated copy but that never worked properly. Now that I've tried it 20 years later, I cannot stop playing.
RTCW is the best Wolfenstein ever made! Period.
IGN nominating New Colossus over RTCW in their top FPS list is just egregious. O.o
Absolutely deserves a proper Remake and No! ... Old Blood paying homage to RTCW doesn't count.
Still can't believe Raven, of all the developers, came up with that turd of a sequel, Wolfenstein (2009).
Why, Raven? Just why? Will never touch that again ...
@Eclipze After Youngblood? You're goddamn right!
One of the GOATs.
Man do i feel old.
Well...off to Enemy Territory. ;)
Ah, the best Wolfenstein ever.
He's not kidding about that first Death Incarnate playthrough. Holy hell, those were some frustrating sessions. The second and third playthrough on Death Incarnate were both awesome though.
I have the same feelings of nostalgia and the game still being fun with Max Payne 2. Would be about time though to return to Return to Castle Wolfenstein.
Absolutely best shooter ever made. Just watching the crypt scenes still sends a shiver down my spine. This was a long game with changing environments that kept it fresh. Nothing since has come close (though I am a big fan of Wolf 2009 - the later stuff was too much cutscenes and too little play - exception to Old Blood).
"We've defeated the wrong enemy" said General George S. Patton after defeating Germany in WW2. For ages this comment could not be understood, but now that we live in these crazy times, people finally wake up and know exactly what he meant.
i remember as a child that i couldnt get past the village because you had to destroy the gate to get into the crypt, and i never thought to shoot it open, i just saw a mausoleum that was basically a huge block of concrete with no visible openings and got stuck, it didnt help matters that i didnt know a shred of english back then
also...regarding the damage sponges at the later half of the game, it truly contrasts the fact that you had all this OP weaponry going against the elite of the elite and outright monster machines, you could somewhat get away with going rambo in the earlier levels, but not anymore, you had to play tactically, kiting enemies to corners, engaging them 1 on 1 instead of groups, picking your fights, at least the game was aware enough that these were going to be damage sponges via said sponges having scars on their faces, a way of telling you these were battle-hardened soldiers.
and as you pointed out it did make a lot of sense that ammo for your thompson, dual pistols and snooper was scarce, why would enemies be having crates of ammo of a caliber they werent using?, it also made special sense for the snooper, since it was OP as hell and you clearly werent meant to overuse it, a nice balancing mechanic since it could totally make life easier if you were paying attention to the environment, unlike other games who gave you vast ammo for everything, sure it leads to you play the game the way you want it, but it could also lead to a 1-note experience and being prone to attempting to brute force certain scenarios your current weapon wasnt meant to handle, leading to possible frustration
This game is a classic. The atmosphere this game creates hasn't been matched again in the series.
They re-booted Wolfenstein with such promise, and then ran it straight into the ground.
This will always be my favorite game. I will never forget the feeling of online play. Listening to Team Sportscast Network when the clan Darkside faced off against the clan Doctors for a championship. The gold rush mod. Coloring your name online. God the times were so good. Thank you so much for this, Gman.💥
I can't name another decades-old game that still holds up as well as this one. It really has aged about as well as it could have.
Great retrospective!
Man, we were spoiled by the variety of gameplay during that campaign. I remember loving the change of pace when I arrived in that wide-open countryside level. It was a relief after the claustrophobic interiors from earlier 💀
Yeah, this is probably my favorite Wolfenstein game. So well done and a good mix of levels and great weapons.
Just finished this for the first time via the VR mod by TeamBeef. It was an absolute blast, highly recommended.
Nah, fuck that forest stealth mission. It's honestly as difficult and unfun as a real sneaking mission would be. Enemies have realistic lines of sight, for one. People joke about the genome soldiers in Metal Gear Solid being as blind as bats, but that makes it a little more forgiving and playable.
22:37 apart from the zombies chapter, the Uber soldiers literally gave me nightmares!
Such a great game, I am so glad I had the privilege to play it as a kid.
I just started the video so I don't know if it's mentioned in it or not, but this game has a VR mod for the Quest 2, and it is so, sooo good.
I remember playing this back when it first came out and being blown away, and the VR mod of it legitimately gave me the exact same feelings.
It was so great going back to this game and being "inside" of it with full motion control support, because everything about it still holds up so well.
If you're a fan of this game and own a Quest 2, do yourself a service and check it out.
The mod is free, available via Sidequest and you just need to install the game files from a legit copy once you get the mod installed on your Quest 2, and you're good to go.
Half-life, Quake, Quake 2, Classic Doom/Doom II, and Doom 3 all also have really great Quest 2 mods that all add in full motion control support as well.
Classic Doom and Doom II also have a GZDoom branch for VR via PC as well. Doom 3 also has a PCVR port called Fully Possessed, and Half-life 2 can be played in VR via Gary's Mod VR.
All of them are great ways to experience these games in VR, but be aware that they all require movement and don't have much in the way of comfort options, so you'll need to get your VR legs before you can really enjoy them.
If only someone would resurrect that EDuke32 VR thing from back in the dev kit days and get it working with Duke3D and Shadow Warrior, I'd be a happy little retro gamer.
Another thing worth pointing out is that Wolfenstein New Order's DLC "Old Blood" is in fact a partial remake of Return to Castle Wolfenstein, but nowhere near as good.
Later in the video, the silenced stein's limited firing capability actually is accurate. It wasn't great at regulating heat, and adding a silencer just made it worse. So the weapon actually would overheat and wear down the parts and eventually break if you fired it full auto. The least realistic thing is the video game mechanic that it would cool down and be back in perfect working order again.
21:30 The best thing to do in this sequence is RUN.
(TBH I had no idea that you could shoot your parachutes, so this could be a good option as well.)
What a fun sequence.
Also agree with the statement (minus "artificial") at 23:49. The tough difficulty of this section totally warped my expectations for the much easier final boss battle, although it's not unbeatable.
I'll never forget playing through this for the first time on PS2 and marveling at what an awesome evolution for Wolfenstein this game was. It's only continued to grow in the perfect direction to this day too.
i was blown away when i saw that bad guys know how to climb letter... holly crap... that was incredible... i like this game on PS2 too
My 1st encounter with the Paratroopers with their FG-42s in the end of the Airbase level & the intense badass music is One of the most memorable moments in 2+ decades of my Gaming Life. RTCW represents a time when Video Games were at their best.
RTCW not only had an amazing campaign, but it was by far the BEST multiplayer experience on Xbox Live on the OG Xbox. YES, I said RTCW was THE BEST Xbox Live game, even more fun than Halo. Stopwatch on Beach Invasion is an all-time classic that I wish modern gamers could experience with fresh eyes in 2022. No killstreaks, no perks, no over-reliance on power weapons, no crazy phrenetic movement, no unlimited ammo, no operators and generic factions. Just Axis vs Allies with TEAM-BASED gameplay that required strategic class setups working together to attack or defend the objective. Limited ammo, health packs, limited but powerful explosives, and map knowledge was king. Thanks for the great trip down memory lane Gman!
Aaaah yeeeeah, this game was the best! I still get chills from the intro "Return to castle Wolfenstein immediately, notify herr Himmler, we found him".
Only you could do justice to this gem of a game through this retrospective Gman.
I played RTCW when i was 15 too!
And as you rightly said: it scared the fucking piss out of me during those crypt levels. The music, the dimly lit and misty areas and general scarcity of resources made it even more scary.
Hands down one of my favourite games of all time.
As a side note, if ID software remakes this game with exact same mechanics and everything but with new tech, i would give my left nut to play it.
To this day whenever a friend comes over to my place for the first time I like to greet them with "Such as it is, this is my house." (Kessler says this when he shows you his secret hideout in the village)
Yep this was one of my favorites as well. I loved how you could save at any time and when you reloaded you'd be right back exactly where you saved.