Is The First Episode Of Wolfenstein II's Freedom Chronicles DLC Worth Checking Out?

Yesterday, the vault inside of Wolfenstein II finally opened to reveal its treasures, including two new gameplay modes. The first mode, a challenge mode similar to the one in the The Old Blood, lets you replay levels from the campaigns, encouraging you to build up your score with combos to unlock medals and achievements. It's a funny, goofy mode if you like Wolfenstein II's gameplay, but it doesn't offer anything narrative-based.

The second, bigger treasure is that the first bit of Freedom Chronicles, Episode Zero, opened up if you bought the season pass or preordered The New Colossus. The episode serves as a playable introduction to the three upcoming pieces of DLC that make up the Freedom Chronicles. If you're curious whether or not there's enough enough promise in Episode Zero alone to warrant going all-in on the season pass for all the episodes, here's what you need to know (as well as our impressions).

Episode Zero Is Short But Packed
Episode Zero will take you a little over an hour to complete your first time through, so it's rather short. However, the episode serves as a sampler for all three characters you'll be playing as across the Freedom Chronicles: Gunslinger Joe, Agent Silent Death, and Captain Wilkins. Every character has their own mission to complete, with each adventure apparently being a standalone experience. 

You Are Going To New Places
Unlike the Ubercommander assassination missions and Combat Simulations, the Freedom Chronicles takes you to new places. In Episode Zero, Joe is infiltrating a keep to steal some Panzerhunds and take on Nazis in Chicago while Silent Death is sneaking through bunkers in California to take out a traitor. Finally, Wilkins is infiltrating a keep in a tropical setting to try and figure out how to shut down a top secret Nazi weapon. All the levels in Episode Zero are fun to navigate and kill nazi scum in.

Each Character Has Their Own Playstyle
Essentially all three characters have their strengths that correspond to the contraptions from the main campaign. Joe's a quarterback bruiser capable of slamming Nazis into red mush and breaking through walls, while Silent Death can constrict herself into any ventilation shaft and underneath tables with tight spaces. Wilkins gets access to the battle walkers, so he can reach vertical areas and rain down bullets on foes.

However, there's more going on here than just rehashing mechanics from the campaign. Each character has alterations to their presentation that makes them feel like their own unique character as opposed to a reskinned Blazkowicz. For example, Silent Death uses knives instead of hatchets and has different melee kill animations. Joe is fond of using his own hands to break necks and ribs. Every character also has their own set of RPG lite skills, such as Joe's ability to regenerate armor or Silent Death's ability to slow down time briefly whenever an enemy sees her. As short as Episode Zero is, I had fun playing through it twice to check out how each character plays when you're familiar with their respective skillsets.

The DLC Is Campy As Hell
Where The New Colossus struck a balance between goofy irreverence and somber storytelling, The Freedom Chronicles (much like The Old Blood) looks to be embrace the wacky shenanigans of Wolfenstein's roots, with comic book-style cutscenes and caricatures instead of fleshed out characters as protagonists. Those who come to MachineGames' take on Wolfenstein exclusively for its powerful storytelling might be disappointed at the lack of seriousness. For everyone else, there's a lot of fun to be had here. 

It's An Exciting Introduction...But Not Much More Than That
At its best, Episode Zero suggests that what's coming is a generous platter of gory entertainment. There's still not a lot here outside of the hour of gameplay in Episode Zero so if you're still on the fence, it might be best to wait to episode one to see how the first substantial bit of DLC turns out. However, as someone who wants as much Wolfenstein II as possible, this teaser has me excited for more adventures.

For more on Wolfenstein II check out our review of the main game here as well as the 15 craziest things you can do in the campaign.