Brothers In Arms: D-Day

By Sam Waldron

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Fools we may be, to make war on our brothers in arms, but folly or no, the seemingly endless stream of WWII shooters seems to suggest that the idea of valorous slaughtering is alive and well, at least in gamers.

References to Dire Straits songs aside, though: the army of WWII games is about to be bolstered by a new Brothers in Arms title for Sony’s PSP. Well, I say “new”, but Brothers in Arms: D-Day is not exactly brimming with new content. Like a greatest hits compilation, D-Day is mostly filled with the best from previous releases – in this case, Road to Hill 30 and Earned in Blood; but it contains just enough new material to hook in the fans. In this case, while the maps imported from the previous, non-portable, Brothers in Arms games are almost completely unchanged, there are four totally new maps to keep veterans of the series interested.

The gameplay will remain largely the same, aside from some handy control changes to make for easier handling on the PSP. D-Day will retain the tactical aspect of previous Brothers in Arms titles – with the bird’s eye view map available by pressing Select, so the player can outflank rather than simply outshoot the enemy. And you will still be able to tell, when shooting at enemy troops, what their level of suppression is.

In addition to the extra maps, and the addition in the old maps of extra checkpoints (because there are more interruptions when you’re on the move), Brothers in Arms: D-Day will also include a separate two-player co-operative campaign, on top of its other multiplayer modes. There is also one particular new feature which interests me: destructive cover – meaning you have to take care not to have your defensive position eroded by heavy enemy fire.

Even though there’s a lot of recycled content here, D-Day looks like it will do the Brothers in Arms franchise proud, taking the war to the tiny screen of the PSP.

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