You may know Brothers in Arms from the Xbox and PS2 platforms respectively, but you may not be aware of the leaps and bounds the series is making on next-generation platforms. One thing we have to get out of the way is the game is squad-based combat, allowing you to maneuver your squad similar to Rainbow Six: Vegas, another popular Ubisoft title that did exceptionally well.
One thing that has always remained true with the Brother in Arms series is its personality; characters each have their own back-story to tell, plus their very own personalities which come into play during the game's many scenes. Even in combat they act realistically, crawling over walls, and even stumbling at times - this type of detail is what makes Hell's Highway different from previous WWII titles.
One instance of "personality" is Stella - a bazooka weapon that one of the soldiers carries around with him. He talks about her as if she is his girlfriend and a living, breathing person. It's great to see such an emphasis placed on character development, which most first-person shooters seem to overlook. Your squad can, of course, suppress fire for you, but they can also die on you and it is actually pretty terrible for this to happen. Your squad is your lifeline and a bond throughout the game makes it really feel like you are in the midst of a heated battle and with your good friends.
Another unique feature the game offers is the first-person perspective, called first-person action by Ubisoft. It allows you to see your body; hands, legs, everything when handling certain obstacles. This is a great feature and really doesn't make you feel detached and all you have is a gun and that's it. The animations work well with this too and it is obvious that Ubisoft spent a great deal of time making it believable, that yes, your character is real and in tense firefights along the way.
Of course, one thing that is striking about Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway is its beauty. The graphics are quite spectacular, ranging from the environments themselves to the detailed character models. Even the lighting gives the game such a realistic appearance and your character cast shadows realistically, as well as the objects in the environment.
What we especially admired about the gameplay is the new cover system exploited first by Rainbow Six: Vegas, now used in Hell's Highway. It's not surprising that Ubisoft grabbed this cover system and implemented into Hell's Highway, simply because it works so darn well. Simply by pressing the Left Trigger, you can go into a third-person view, or what is called "digging in," and have the ability to fire your weapon while taking cover. It is so much better than staying in first-person and having to go back and forth between cover.
Another little interesting tidbit has to be the risk assessment, which shows you if you are in the line of enemy fire. The screen, according to the situation, turns red to warn you of any danger. It gives you a clear and strong warning that you need to either take cover, give suppressive fire, or both. You can do this yourself and/or use your team at the same time.
We are incredibly excited about Hell's Highway and look forward to giving you more details as we receive them. Brothers in Arms Hell's Highway is set to be released at the end of 2007.
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