Wolfenstein has an old feel with new innovations.
I'll admit it, I've never been a fan of Wolfenstein, although it was the first game I ever played at the wee age of two. Sitting at the computer chair, on the oldest computer I ever owned, straight off of a floppy disk. Good times.
Gaming has of course come a LONG way since then, with next-gen graphics and fancy physics engines. Luckily, Wolfenstein has kept up with the times, while allowing for a subtle sense of nostalgia.
The first thing you'll notice is that the game feels old. For whatever reason, it reminds me of a classic shoot 'em up. I think it's because the game makes no attempts to be highly realistic with it's gunfights, so you can easily fire off a shot in the middle of reloading if you so desire, and other little things that are better for the actual shooting and not so good for any sense of realism. This is kind of a hit or miss, depending on the gamer. Weapon know-it-all players will most likely find this to be a setback, while others will see it as an advantage.
The story isn't really as bad as some have made it out to be. It isn't new or fresh, and it's not really engaging, but it serves as a suitable backdrop to the action so you're not just mindlessly running around shooting Nazis and their assorted monsters. The cutscenes are few and far apart, with most of the storytelling and mission progression done without missing a beat. This keeps the action moving at a steady pace and your adrenaline levels will be kept high.
Guns are either pseudo-futuristic weapons that melt enemies or electrocute them, or actual historical weapons that you can acquire as the game progresses. They feel fun to shoot, the damage is accurate, and when enemies are shot they will bleed about as much as they might in real life, with the absence of blood pools. They can also be upgraded in various ways through black market vendors, if you acquire enough money.
The superpower that you develop as the game goes on is called the Veil, and can be used to see things invisible or obscured to the naked eye, slow time, create a shield or make your weapons uber-damaging. It evens out the difficultly for the parts in the game when you're simply overrun with enemies or the usual run and gun strategy won't work. For instance, there might be a Nazi gun turret at the end of a hall with a barrier that you can't shoot through. You have three choices (once you unlock all the powers):
Supercharge your ammo to blast through the barrier,
Create a shield and to get past it, or
Slow time and dodge the bullets to get past it.
Boss battles are one of the aforementioned parts of the game that feel really old school. They're a mix of strategy, environmental usage, good weapon choice, trial and error, and simple luck. While no boss I have encountered thus far has been particularly hard to beat, they are all very fun and are admittedly more challenging then regular fights, often requiring you to die once or twice to figure out a strategy and then trying it out.
The only major disappointment is the online play. It breaks no new ground and doesn't do a whole lot with what it does use. Not to mention, 70% of the matches I have played have been so laggy I couldn't walk. Higher level players with tons of upgrades are meshed right in with new players, meaning that a team that just happens to get more experienced players is definitely going to win, removing a lot of fairness and a lot of fun when you can empty three clips into a guy and he drops you with three shots.
In conclusion,
The good:
Good, constant action.
Guns that are really fun to use.
Cool implementation of the Veil superpowers.
Old school feel, while maintaining next-gen compatability.
The OK:
Average graphics, no better or worse than other games.
Decent physics engine, not particularly impressive, but not bad either.
The German and Russian accents are either very realistic or very fake. There's no happy medium.
Story is mediocre and predictable, but fun to watch progress anyway.
The bad:
Online play SUCKS.
No, really, it's terrible. Very disappointing considering this game's reputation.
If you like shooters and you like blowing up Nazis, then this game is a must try. Also, please understand the game does have more complexities than I discussed in this review. I only pointed out the major things that I personally think make or break a game.