Customer Reviews

Brothers in Arms: Double Time

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Brothers in Arms: Double Time for the Nintendo Wii has received very little attention in the reviewing world, either from professionals or consumers themselves. Any attention it has been given, though, has been largely negative or sub-par. And, in an effort to perhaps sway some on-the-fence potential buyers, allow me to say that this game completely exceeded my expectations.

Background:
For the uninitiated, BIA: DT is actually a direct port of both "Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30," and "Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood" originally released for the PC. Despite being released together here, the games are stand alone titles, and "Double Time" presents each on a separate disk. The stories intertwine overall, but each is a distinct entity.

Graphics:
One of the main complaints about BIA: DT is the graphics, which have gone largely unchanged from their original, 2005 style. Yes, the newest BIA game "Hell's Highway" looks tens of times better than anything in DT. The faces are all pretty expressionless, except during certain cutscenes, and many character models don't seem to have any weight, but if that's the deal-breaker in games for you, I doubt you're really the type of person who would enjoy a BIA game, anyway. Framerate complaints are also numerous, and also pretty spot on. Gearbox could have cleaned up the title a little bit, but I've played the game for hours at a time, and it hasn't frozen on me, it lags every once in a while, but again, it doesn't ruin anything about the game.

Gameplay:
BIA: DT is a first person shooter set in World War II with a heavy emphasis on team strategy over individual heroism, with very little "run-n-gun" fun to be had. To underscore this, there is no health regeneration system (the old standard of crouching behind cover will do nothing to clean up your bloodied avatar on the menu subscreen,) aiming is often sporadic (never unfair, but under enemy fire you'll find yourself unable to line up your shots perfectly.) And the more squadmates you send into enemy fire, the harder your job will be in the end. Throughout all 31 levels on both disks, many missions become similar and a bit "same-y" but they never cross into straight out repetition. Every level brings something new, and while you'll inevitably find a few missions to be your favorites, you'll most likely play through all of them several times.

Story:
One of the greatest stories of any video game, let alone a war game. Teary-eyed "Oh Say Can You See" moments are at record lows, and very little is done to over dramatize an already dramatic situation. It becomes really easy to become immersed in the story as a whole. Very well written all around, which plays more like an interactive movie than a video game.

Presentation:
Dialogue is a bit hit-or-miss. With some genuinely entertaining bits ("Don't even try to argue with me, son. I was kicking a** while you were still playing dolls with your sister") and some hammy lines every now and then, but nothing too bad. Voice-acting is the same way. Unfortunately, Sgt. Baker (your character in RTH30) is one of the more poorly voiced characters, and his narration can become cheesy. Sgt. Hartsock's narration in EIB is much more competent. In the heat of battle some soundbytes become over-used, which is a fault most action games share.

Overall:
Overall, a very good buy. Two games for $50, with a pretty high replay value. (The removal of the skirmish feature detracts from this heavily, though.) And lack of multiplayer is almost criminal. Don't believe the negative hype surrounding this game, easily the best war game to be released on the Wii so far, and if you can get past the dated graphics, you'll find an incredibly enjoyable gaming experience.

This game is the combination of the previously released Brothers in Arms Hill to Road 30 and Earned in Blood. There seem to be no differences thus far into playing though the body and visual co-ordiantion seem to be less precise than the PC version I am used to (or maybe I need more Wii practice). The Wii zapper is definitely helpful and would recommend it. Having both Road to Hill 30 and Earned in Blood in the PC version and having played them much, I bought Double Time because I thought the zapper make the game more dynamic. I would highly recommend this game with the zapper to anyone new to the game, though I feel if you have played the game much in other formats you may be more happy moving on to their other new release.

I bought this 2-game package for the Wii, but I want you to note, that I owned and played Call of Duty: World at War prior to playing both Hill 30 and Earned in Blood.

WAW is a great game in its own right, but for different reasons. In my opinion, these two games are absolutely done better than Call of Duty: World at War. And I've bought them years after publication at deep discount here at Amazon. Accepting that the game engine would not be as good as recent games, I was completely surprised at how fluid BIA was. If you are a World War II buff, or with any interest in that truly global conflict, or military history, then these two games are packed with historical research and the actual missions, over the actual terrain, that has been painstakingly researched.

In World At War, there were battles that were just free-for alls where you just shoot to kill. In Brothers in Arms, the problems are tactical in nature, and in fact do require at times some real squad leader tactical decision making. You have an actual fire team and assault team. They take losses.

Plus, there is a story line in both games that is consistent and entertaining.

These are also recommended by the D-Day Museum, and the George S. Patton Museum for authenticity. If you're a war gamer (Avalon Hill, GMT, SPI, etc., these would be of great appeal to you). I've enjoyed them thoroughly.

This game is fun to play. The only reason I gave it four stars as overall game is because when you move on to your next checkpoint it has a bit of a delay which is quite distracting. It really is a good game though. I like that it offers you a tactical view of enemy locations as well as where your troops are, also it gives you different view perspectives. There is a couple of spots that are rather difficult but once you figure out where the game wants you to go and do you will crack right on. The game is rather difficult to put on hold to play another time because you will get so engrossed you won't want to stop.

This is one of my all time favorite FPS games! I have it on my old PC and was dubious about how it would play on the Wii, but it plays just the same! I am pleased with the game and the graphics are every bit as good as the PC version.

I played Earned in Blood on the PC and was looking for the Road to Hill 30 on the PC when I found this, which includes both games ported to the Wii. Overall I found the Wii port to be a faithful rendition of the PC version. The Wii controls were a natural transition from the normal keyboard and mouse, and I actually found it easier to play on the Wii than the PC. I can't even imaging playing a game like this using a control pad.

For the game itself, I found Brothers In Arms to be an excellent mix of history and action. The enemy AI is pretty good, and you often find yourself quicking ordering one squad to pin down some entrenched Germans while you the the other squad around to flank them. Of the two chapters, I enjoyed playing Road to Hill 30 more than Earned In Blood, but it is interesting to play both as they overlap in time and you see the same characters in both.

I recently picked up Call of Duty 3 for the Wii, and I can tell you that Brothers In Arms is MUCH MUCH MUCH better - the story is better, the graphics are better, the controls are better, etc. I often feel like Call of Duty is like a random arcade rails shooter, but never felt that way about Brothers In Arms.

On the downside (and why this gets 4 stars instead of 5) it is buggy. There are at least two missions where if an explosion goes off near you, the screen gets partially scrambled and stays that way so you can't see a thing. For those two missions you will be very unhappy. Also the resolution of the Wii is fairly limited, so it's more about gameplay than outright eye candy.

If you buy this, you won't regret it.

I got a Wii for Xmas and a couple combat videos to play after getting bored of Wii "Play" and "Resort". "Brother in Arms - Double Time" was a lot of fun to play. The thing that really turn me off though was all the foul language. I'm no saint but do you really need a video that says "F*+K" all the time? "Son of a B*^*$" and all the other stuff you'd expect to hear in a Biker Bar. Yes, its war but it is really necassary to use the "F" word which personally turns me off. Is it really needed to drive the point home in any Video game that someone's shooting at you? I don't want friends or kids hearing that from my house, anytime.

After I bought and played it I noticed it had a {M" for mature 17+} symbol on it. I thought that was because of all the shoot em up bang bang to be expected. It would be nice if in the Game Option section would at least tone down how much trash talk happened.

I also wish there was a way to fast forward past all the scene story telling going on. After a while I just want to pass it and start shooting those nasty ol' Germans. And my Wii Remotes never lined up dead on the targets either. I always had to point ever so slightly to the right. I reset the console but no use. My other games don't have this problem.

I love that there were 2 CDs and what seemed like endless scenarios to deal with each time. I liked the graphics very much but some were so dark I had to adjust it in the Game Options section. This game was so cool. Each phase took about 1 - 2 hours, yes sometimes 6 hrs if I was full of holes.

I suggest to those first time players to not send out the other members of your squad until you secure an area. The game revolves you as in the first person so you direct all the action for your team. They tend to get shot if you don't place them out of harms way. The Tanks are really out gunned also. They both provide good backup once you've kicked some enemy butt. I feel bad for the tank guys though. They can't be out in the open very long without getting blasted. I could never get them to spin around as I wanted to point at the enemy as I was shooting its machine gun mounted on top. No, to the right stupid! Turn,turn. Ouch!

Talking about Tanks. I found that even though the game says you can climb up the back of the enemies tank and throw a granade to kill em, sometimes you put yourself out in "no man's land" and find you can't get up the back of the tanks after all. I hate that. Bang bang I'm dead. I can shoot the German that poops he's heads out of the hatch but that's about it until you blast em with a German tank granade or good ol' U.S. of A. bazooka.

Play "Road to Hill 30" first because the second CD "Earned in Blood" is a rehash with the other G.I. "Hartstock" reliving his previous hardships with Sgt Baker. Play the first time cautiously to get a feel for the game and then use your squad up front with you as you go.

I had hours (and hrs) of fun playing this game. Loved the scenarios and constant supply of ammo (via tag team) and types guns available. Unfortunatly you only get to carry one at a time. That sucked lots of times. I loved the M1918 (Bar) and the M1919A4 Machine gun. If you get one hang onto it as long as you can. Lots of fun shooting those. Don't forget to use those granades. I kept forgetting about them when all caught up in the battles. Good luck G.I.'s.

This is the best WW2 game I ever played. I got this game on friday at target for $20 and i've been playing it all day. This is the first WW2 game iv'e played with squad based playing were you actualy get to command your troops. get this game it is a must have if you have a wii.

First of all, lets get things straight. This is a lazy port of two Playstation 2 games and, as such, graphics are much below Wii's standards. It is not that bad in terms of textures and polygons, as this was a good looking PS2, but framerate take a hit quite often. Additionally, the AI is workable at best. Your squad members and german soliders will positioning badly from time to time but it is never too bad.

That said, the gameplay is pretty solid. Unlike most first person shooters, BiA take the side of realism. No regenerating health and very unreliable aiming at distance. There is a strong emphasis in realistic small team combat tactics. You're suposed to divide your men in teams, each one with different objectives, usually suppressing fire and flanking.

The game also keeps in the side of history. Most, if not all, scenarios are based in real engagements and, despite some unavoidable repetitiveness, they work well providing challenge. Extras include real documents from the battle reports and a extensive catalogue of photographs, not only from the historical archive but also from a recent visit to the actual area during pre-production research for the game.

Voice over is much above average in videogames and do work in creating an emotional link to characters. The soundtrack is actually good, although it is blend to the background most of time. Sound effects are well done but I thought they could be better mixed into the game.

Controls are serviceable but not quite as good as Metroid Prime and other comparable first person shooters for the Wii. Grenade throwing is particullary bad and, as there are few customization options, I'll have to live with the presets.

Despite the limitations, Brothers in Arms: Double Time is a worthy game, especially considering its budget price. It does offer a different perspective from most shooters that might interest those looking for a more accurate depiction of World War II or for simulation of real squad tactics.

I love that the events are accurate and true,This game has very realistic graphics and is very fun.