2006 seems to be getting off to a slow start in the first-person-shooter genre and UberSoldier unfortunately won’t satisfy the shooter itch many gamers are longing to scratch. Developed by the Russian firm Burut CT and published by Germany’s CDV, UberSoldier is a highly conventional shooter set during World War II. The protagonist is Karl Stolz, a German officer killed toward the tail end of the war. Thanks to Germany’s delving into occult resurrection technology, Stolz is brought back to life by Ernst Schafer, a run-of-the-mill Nazi mad scientist. Under Schafer’s direction the Germans are bringing their best soldiers back to life to create an army of UberSoldiers, who conveniently follow the commands of the first person who speaks to them after they reawaken. Unfortunately for the Germans, Karl’s first encounter upon reawakening is with a member of the resistance movement and Karl begins a journey that will eventually cripple Germany’s UberSoldier program. 

The gameplay is similar to other shooters, and consists primarily of run-and-gun action with a respectable variety of weaponry ranging from pistols, rifles, machine guns, and rocket launchers. The one unique feature that helps set UberSoldier apart from other games in the genre is Karl’s ability to stop bullets. This Matrix-like effect produces a blow glow around Karl that stops bullets in midair. The player is them able to shoot the bullets back where they came from, which is convenient when trying to cross a large room without much cover. However, overall UberSoldier feels like a recap of other games, Return to Castle Wolfenstein springs instantly to mind, and does little to set itself apart from games created by more experienced developers. 

UberSoldier is a good-looking game, especially for a first-person-shooter developed by a previously unknown and foreign development team. Shooters are typically the most visually ambitious titles out there and bad graphics can sink an otherwise decent game almost instantly. In the visual department UberSoldier shines. It doesn’t raise the bar by any means, but it makes good use of shaders, textures, and lighting techniques. Flames and smoke seem fairly realistic as well. The only visuals that seem slightly sub-par are the character models, especially when they are speaking. But aside from that, UberSoldier’s graphics deliver a solid performance.

The game also nails the atmosphere of occult themed, World War II shooters. The environments are heavily industrial and have a gritty, dirty look to them. UberSoldier uses a grainy filter as well which adds to the grim atmosphere of the game. Levels are full of furniture and boxes and other objects that add ambience and are also destructible or moveable when hit by bullets, concussive blasts, or the player. A nice physics effect occurs when grenades are detonated close to the player; in addition to the typical screen blur and sound distortion, the player is actually swept off his feet and it takes him a few seconds to recover. 

The last, and possibly best, thing UberSoldier has going for it is the price. Budget priced at $29.99, UberSoldier is easy on the wallet and its flaws are a little more forgivable considering the overall price of the game. The price will probably fall quickly, making it easy for budget-minded gamers to pick up without feeling guilty.

The biggest flaw in the game is the low quality of voice-acting. The German accents the in-game characters try to portray sound ridiculously cheesy, not even worthy of a World War II B-movie. The lines sound like they are being delivered by people the developer dragged in from off the street, and the terrible acting severs any immersion the game was trying to create. While the game was probably not developed primarily for an English speaking audience, the game’s voiceovers border on the horrifically terrible, and a few more dollars to hire better actors would have been money well spent. 

The game is also rather unforgiving. After a few potshots, and certainly after a headshot, Karl is out of action. The quicksave button is the player’s friend in UberSoldier, and without it the game would be so unbelievably frustrating gamers would give up before making it past the second level. Unfortunately, the game’s load time is lengthy, even when loading a quicksave, and repeat deaths in the same area coupled with the long load times make the game almost unplayable at times.

Last, but not least, UberSoldier lacks any form of multiplayer. The low retail price for the game helps make up for the lack of replayability caused by the absence of multiplayer, but UberSoldier still suffers slightly without it. At best, UberSoldier will occupy gamers for a few days and will then gather dust on closet shelves. 

While my review has been harsh, UberSoldier is a decent game. It simply doesn’t break any new ground and games of its type have already been done better by more experienced developers. The fact that a little-known developer from Russia was able to make a game that looks and plays as well as UberSoldier is encouraging, and perhaps other small developers will soon be creating games that rival the big name companies out there. With a $29.99 MSRP, UberSoldier may be worth picking up for gamers who are desperate for a shooter they haven’t already beaten. It isn’t the next Quake, or Call of Duty, but UberSoldier does provide an entertaining ride while it lasts.

The same run-and-gun action seen in countless FPS games.

Looks great, which is encouraging from an unfamiliar developer.

Weapons lack some punch, audio is standard WW2 fare.

The game is unforgiving, action has already been done better by other developers.

No multiplayer and no reason to pick it up again once you’ve beaten it.

]]> Mon, 24 Apr 2006 14:49:00 -0500 The Gaming Horizon Archive http://www.gamebump.com/go/gh_preview_ubersoldier_pc1 http://www.gamebump.com/go/gh_preview_ubersoldier_pc1 http://www.gamebump.com/go/gh_preview_ubersoldier_pc1# This preview was originally published on Gaming Horizon, GameBump's predecessor. Its format does not match our own but we support its content. It was written by Matthew Call.

It seems PC games are a becoming a rare breed these days, with the Xbox 360 already released and the PlayStation 3 on the horizon. Several key developers have already announced that they will design games for the next-gen consoles along with PC versions, which may be the first step in stopping development for PC games entirely. The Xbox 360 has had several high profile releases this month while the PC has had few, if any. The PC will certainly always be a gaming platform, but it seems that major developers are moving away from PC games, which leaves more room for the lesser known development teams.

UberSoldier is the perfect example of such a game. The developer, Burut Creative Team, is a European company entering the gaming arena with UberSoldier as its first major project. A year or two ago, UberSoldier would have fallen between the cracks with other games like Doom 3 or Call of Duty 2 stealing the attention of the gaming press. In April 2006 a new, high quality first-person-shooter for PC is very marketable, as the November 2005 release of Quake 4 was the last time a polished FPS was released for the PC.

UberSoldier casts gamers as a German officer, Karl Stolz, who is killed in a Partisan raid on his convoy. However, as Karl dies before the player is able to actually do anything in the game, the developers bring him back to life, courtesy of Nazi occult technology. The Nazis are attempting to create a highly trained team of Ubersoldiers by reanimating the corpses of fallen soldiers and brainwashing them into killing machines. Karl doesn’t take too kindly to the process and promptly decides to kill the scientists and soldiers in the facility upon his revival. He then joins the Partisan movement, determined to put an end to the experiments.

Being undead gives the player some new abilities. In addition to being able to take a great deal of punishment, players are also able to create a shield around them for a limited duration. The shield stops any bullets from hitting the player, suspending them in the air similar to Neo’s ability to stop bullets in The Matrix movies. Players are even able to shoot the bullets back where they came from, which is often effective at clearing out large rooms of enemies. However, the ability doesn’t last long and must be recharged. To recharge the shield ability, players must get three knife kills or three headshots within a limited amount of time. When players get a knife kill or a headshot a timer appears on the screen and the other two kills must be acquired before the time expires in order to refill the shield ability. 

The game features 16 weapons, which are the standard World War II shooter fare. Machine guns, pistols, sniper rifles, flame throwers, and rocket launchers all make their required appearance. In terms of gameplay and theme UberSoldier bears much in common with Return to Castle Wolfenstein. Run and gun action is par for the course and, while the game does occasionally give player teammates, players have little control over what they do. Gamers looking for realism will need to look elsewhere, while those who are satisfied by lots of shooting and explosions will find them in spades.

Visually UberSoldier holds its own when compared to any other recent FPS on the market. There are shaders and particle effects galore and the character models are extremely detailed. All the high end lighting effects seen in recent games are present and the textures are well designed, giving the game its gritty feel. The physics system is also well implemented and the player is able to interact with almost anything that isn’t nailed down. In a new twist, nearby explosions actually knock players over leaving them vulnerable until they regain their senses and are able to stand back up.

In the preview build we received the audio was still in development. There was no dialogue in the cutscenes, and the audio in the game felt a little rough. The weapon sound effects were satisfying, as were the explosions. Environmental audio effects still needed to be fully implemented so it remains to be seen how the game will measure up in the audio department upon its release, although what has been done seems to be on par with other shooters in the WW2 genre. 

UberSoldier doesn’t contain any type of multiplayer, and the game’s 12 missions should take most gamers about 15 hours to complete. However, the lack of replay value is countered by a low $29.99 MSRP, meaning gamers won’t have to break the bank to purchase the game. UberSoldier seems to be shaping up to be the best FPS of 2006, although the year is still far from over. Other titles on the horizon, such as Prey, will likely take the Game of the Year spot, but for gamers looking for a good FPS early in 2006, UberSoldier is looking to be one of the best. ]]> Sun, 26 Mar 2006 18:46:51 -0600 The Gaming Horizon Archive http://www.gamebump.com/go/ubersoldier_announced_for_pc http://www.gamebump.com/go/ubersoldier_announced_for_pc http://www.gamebump.com/go/ubersoldier_announced_for_pc#

"ÜberSoldier 's high quality graphics, dynamic physics engine and realistic rag-doll effects will offer players an affordably-priced yet high-quality game experience," stated company spokesperson, Mario Kroll. "We believe that ÜberSoldier will provide a fun, fast-paced alternative to CDV's traditionally more cerebral game offering, thus complementing CDV's impressive 2006 line-up extremely well."

Look for more on this title later down the road.