Brothers In Arms Hell's Highway Preview

Combat is about the four Fs - find, fix, flank and finish.

It's all about the four Fs. That is, find, fix, flank and finish, the doctrine of Allied combat throughout WWII, and to some extent modern warfare. From our time with the game's early levels we can tell that this will be a process you'll have to go through in almost every encounter in the game. Say you approach an enemy occupied village farm house. You'll want to climb a windmill to get some recon on the German position so they show up on your map (find), instruct your squad to suppress them with fire (fix), work yourself into a suitable flanking position (flank) and finish them off with well-placed fire to the face (finish). Simple.

Not so. At least not at first, but perhaps that's because Hell's Highway is actually charging us with thinking properly about each battle before we charge forward screaming and shooting like Arnie in Commando. This is the beauty of the game - Brothers in Arms is a refreshing tonic to the sometimes brainless run and gun chaos other first-person-shooters serve up.

At times it can also be bloody hard, even on the normal difficulty level. As you progress you'll end up commanding multiple squads, all with their own strengths and weaknesses (bazooka teams are great for blasting sandbag cover into smithereens and for making enemy machine gun turrets weep with fear, for example). Managing your squads, working out appropriate flanking positions, keeping an eye on those little red dots above the Germans' heads, it's all a bit bemusing at first, and more akin to an RTS than a FPS. But that just makes it all the more satisfying when you see the saving message pop up mid level.

The point to make here is that Hell's Highway isn't bloody hard because of its controls. You do get used to them after about half an hour's play - as if in recognition of its controls you can pause the action and choose from pre-set Halo, CoD and RB6 control set ups. No, Hell's Highway can be bloody hard because the enemy AI is so, well, smart. The game doesn't want you to run and gun, and it won't do it itself either. If you do expose the enemy by obliterating wooden cover, for example, they won't charge at you while spitting clichéd German expletives. They'll keep low and search out new cover. Hell's Highway is a proper test.

It's also a gorgeous test. Hell's Highway might be powered by a heavily modified version of Epic's Unreal Engine 3 technology, the same thing that powers the Gears of War franchise, and a lot more, but you won't be left wanting in the colour stakes. The game shifts from lush greens and bright blue skies to night time offensives bathed in beautiful moonlight. The structures are wonderfully textured, grass looks healthily real and the explosions and gore (expect some slow-motion head-popping when you land a head shot) are immensely satisfying. I've never been, but I'm willing to guess that Holland has never looked so good.

The gory slow-motion replays make us feel slightly uncomfortable, but Hell's Highway is still looking like a quality shooter.

But, despite how impressed I am with the game, there's still something gnawing at the back of my mind, and it's got nothing to do with technical failings or fiddly controls. It's more a moral issue. What the two veterans of Operation Market Garden I've just listened to must think of Hell's Highway is beyond me. After all, it's a game based on the most terrible experience they've ever known. For this reason playing it makes me feel slightly uncomfortable (especially when the slow-motion head shots kick in). But then that's not what this is all about. This is about finding out if Gearbox has done the subject matter justice. With the game due for release in only a few weeks, we can tell it's mission accomplished in this respect.

There's always concern, of course. We've played a healthy amount of the game and didn't find the constant FFFF combat repetitive, but this might become a factor after 10 hours or so (the tactical shooting will be sporadically interrupted by lone wolf interior sections and some vehicle combat). We also know next to nothing about the multiplayer. It's hard to make a judgement here, but this close to release, when we don't know much about a game's feature, it's usually because the publisher doesn't want to shout about it.

Interestingly, given recent rumours about Gearbox developing Halo 4, Hell's Highway takes on even more significance. Could the game provide a glimpse into the future of the most popular shooter franchise in the world? Could we see Master Chief commanding squads in Halo 4? Might he be snapping to cover? Could he go back in time and fight in World War II? The mind boggles. Until then, do yourself a favour and pre-order what's looking like Gearbox's best game to date.

Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway is due out for PC, Xbox 360 and PS3 on September 26.