Ubersolder, from CDV, is a WWII era FPS. You play as Karl Stolz, a Nazi soldier killed on the frontlines of WWII in the 1940s. Little do the governments of the world know, the Nazis have been working on a program to revitalize dead tissue, creating undead UberSoldiers.
Karl represents the first successfully-created Ubersoldier. But, instead of serving his socialist overlords, his desire is bent by members of the French Resistance. Karl becomes determined to join the rebellion against the Nazis and enact revenge for… uh… ruining his afterlife?
The FPS action takes place in all the typical shooter meccas – factories, garages, bunkers, and warehouses (with the occasional evil science lab thrown in for good measure). The environments are only somewhat interactive – doors open, some walls are destructable, barrels explode, glass shatters. You know the drill. For a PC game, the engine is underwhelming. There’s a smear of rag-doll physics on some of the bodies, a few nice particle effects, but that’s about all the features that distinguish this title from one made two years ago.
The 1940s style of architecture and industrial design is faithfully recreated, however. Thoughout the game, I noticed and was impressed by environments that were simultaneously antique and new. Interiors really did look like WWII-era facilities. Considering this is just about the highest praise I’ve given the game thus far, you can probably give up here and skip right to the score at the end. To sum up: the game looks good. Dialed to the max, the graphics are even impressive.
Graphics are in direct contrast to sound, which is easily of the lowest quality I’ve ever encountered in 15 years of playing games. Audio doesn’t sync to the lips (when I played a beta of the game in February, the FMV sequences were already animated, but voices had yet to be recorded) and the V.O. work has less emotion than the presentation of Little Red Riding Hood you did in preschool. Music alternates between dark, gloomy, dour, and grim.
Weapons in the game are the same tried and true WWII-era munitions. Pistols, sniper rifles, SMGs, mounted machine guns, grenades, and the obligatory Luger pistol all make an appearance. Kudos to developer Berut for recognizing that, in a game about resurrecting dead Nazis, one can suspend disbelief and make almost all the weapons equally inaccurate. If you’ve played Day of Defeat, you’ll be familiar with the look and handling of each weapon.
In fact, the only really original feature found in the title is the timed bullet shield that comprises your one and only supernatural ability (at least your only supernatural ability besides a knack of getting rid of the charred bologna smell that follows around resurrected Nazis in other games). Accumulating headshots and killing enemies rapidly will enhance the effect and time of the bullet shield. When activated, the shield cloaks Karl in a protective cloak of… bullet-halting haze? Regardless, timing the de-activation of the shield will allow Karl to either drop the bullets to the ground or send the ammo flying back at whoever shot it. The problem with the system is that it’s totally unnecessary. I never really needed to avoid being shot to get through a level or past a pack of enemies. I used the shield purely for my own amusement. It would have been much more fun if timing the use of the bullet shield required either strategy or planning to implement.
Ultimately, Ubersoldier falls prey to its own popular genre. The game isn’t bad by any means, if you’re looking for a mindless romp through WWII Europe, buy the game and lose yourself for a few hours. Ubersoldier just doesn’t contribute anything to FPS’ as a whole, and many features of the game are indistinguishable from a title two years older. It looks great, but cranking your graphics to 11 (that’s one higher than 10, graphics junkies, that’s right: my computer goes to 11) will come at a cost of performance.
