Neo-Berlin is frighteningly beautiful in its order and grandeur, yet quainter, picturesque moments can also be found out in the wilderness, for instance when Blazcowicz escapes from a hospital in Poland early in the campaign and gets his first look at the blue sky in 14 years. It's pretty, too, both in-game and during cutscenes, especially when you get a chance to marvel at some of its open vistas and cityscapes. The New Order plays and runs well, though you'll encounter occasional texture pop-in and some poor audio mixing that frustratingly drowns out some well-acted voices. Wolfenstein's bloody brutality, especially when it comes to those Blazcowicz loves, only makes it easier to be sympathetic. Virtually everyone around him - from the fiendish General Deathshead to the brave Caroline Becker - also command attention. You get to see an interesting side to him that makes it easy to become invested in his journey, and he's not the only character who's worth noting, either. But when you fast-forward to 1960, Blazcowicz is older and smarter, hardened by his experiences in the post-war, Nazi-controlled world. You catch a glimpse of him 14 years before the events of the main campaign in a shockingly weak intro sequence that takes forever to put an actual gun in your hand, and at that point, he's more unrelenting meathead than poet laureate. The Wolfenstein series' longtime hero - BJ Blazcowicz - returns, though he's deeper, better written, and more fleshed-out than he's ever been. Cutscenes are especially riddled with little touches that made them more believable - the twirling of a character's thumbs as he speaks, the subtle ashing of a cigarette, the nuance of rolled eyes - and there are relatable heroes to pull for and devilish villains to wish the worst upon alike.
Walking into a setting I've seen so many times before, I didn't expect the high level of polish applied to Wolfenstein's exceptional writing. By 1960, the Nazis are everywhere, laying waste to their remaining opponents while cleansing the impure from society. In The New Order, Nazi Germany didn't only win World War II it completely dominates the globe.