History YMMV / WolfensteinTheNewOrder

** A badass soldier who took part in World War 2 has a long slumber, wakes up after a timeskip, returns to fighting for America after his forced hiatus, and primarily fights a vicious Nazi leader with a skull motif? ''ComicBook/CaptainAmerica'' would like his royalties. Goes a step further in the Wyatt timeline where Wyatt often calls B.J "Cap".

* SpiritualSuccessor: This game, along with its [[expansion pack VideoGame/WolfensteinTheOldBlood]] and [[sequel VideoGame/WolfensteinIITheNewColossus]], are often considered this to VideoGame/EscapeFromButcherBay and its sequel VideoGame/AssaultOnDarkAthena, due to the similar stealth mechanics, stealth executions and weaponry. It also helps that they are all made by the same people.

* SpiritualSuccessor: Often considered one to VideoGame/EscapeFromButcherBay, due to the similar stealth mechanics and tone. It also helps that both games were made by the same people.

* SpiritualSucessor: Often considered one to VideoGame/EscapeFromButcherBay, due to the similar stealth mechanics and tone. It also helps that both games were made by the same people.

* DemonicSpiders: The shotgun-wielding Fire Troopers and their cousins the Rocket Troopers are heavily armored, impossible to stealthily kill, and rarely -- if ever -- miss when firing. This is especially a problem when they attack during a firefight with dozens of weaker enemies. Fire Troopers get even worse when they start packing shrapnel rounds, which can bounce and rip nice large chunks out of your health (especially when you're low on armor).

** A badass soldier who took part in World War 2 has a long slumber, wakes up after a timeskip, returns to fighting for America after his forced hiatus, and primarily fights a vicious Nazi leader with a skull motif? ''ComicBook/CaptainAmerica'' would like his royalties.

* ThatOneLevel: Chapter 12, "Gibraltar Bridge", is this for some players. You're sent on a ruined bridge to steal the identity of one of Deathshead's top commanders. Sounds easy? Not so much. In addition to the tricky level design, enemies have a tendency of using every possible angle to attack you from. Also, there's quite an abundance of Supersoldaten around every corner. At least this is the level where you get the rocket launcher attachment for the assault rifle.

** The game is also one of the best adaptations we'll ever get of ''Literature/TheManInTheHighCastle''. And one without the constant [[GushingAboutShowsYouLike shilling]] of the ''I-ching''.

** The game is also one of the best adaptations we'll ever get of ''Literature/TheManInTheHighCastle''.

** A badass soldier who took part in World War 2 has a long slumber, wakes up after a timeskip, and returns to fighting for America after his forced hiatus. ''ComicBook/CaptainAmerica'' would like his royalties.

* MagnificentBastard: Deathshead once again. Even moreso considering he's the guy who won before the story kicks in. [[spoiler:And even when he meets his end, he pulls a TakingYouWithMe to B.J. before he dies]].

** The brain extraction can be this, if you realize how inefficient and destructive the method really is, and that it would ensure nothing remotely useful was left afterwards, nevermind capable of being reprogrammed into a robot.

* NarmCharm: As noted in previews for the game, the developers seem to be aiming for this, like when you visit a Museum and Blazkowicz finds out the Nazis conquered the Moon.

* StrawmanHasAPoint: In a one-on-one scene, J chews out Blazco for ignoring the racial injustices of pre-war America. Blazco loses his temper at him but it's hard to fault J for being angry about the realities of [[UsefulNotes/CivilRightsMovement Jim Crow]].

** Mick Gordon and Tex Perkin's song, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TG_ZEovDDKk "The Partisan"]], plays during the credits of ''The Old Blood''... and if it doesn't make you want to start up a new game and ''go fuck some Nazis up,'' you might not have a soul.

** Many critics praised ''The Old Blood'''s intense firefights, intriguing locations, and the balance between stealth and action. At the same time however, just as many critics disliked the game's story, with most reviewers saying it was the weakest part of the game, and that it is a step back compared to ''The New Order‍'' '​s story, which was heavily complimented.

** In ''The Old Blood'', regular enemy foot soldiers are obviously just as manageable here as in ''The New Order''... until the FinalBoss battle, during which [[spoiler: they storm the inner vault where B.J. is battling the Monstrosity]], and instead of firing at the [[spoiler: ''goddamned EldritchAbomination'']] decide to aggressively pursue B.J. instead. And when you kill them, [[spoiler: they are immediately returned to life by the zombie mist and become even ''harder'' to kill]]. It's actually easier to kill them by [[spoiler:not shooting them at all and letting the blind Monstrosity flail in the direction of their gunfire to reduce them to LudicrousGibs.]]

** Rudi Jäger in ''The Old Blood'', due having to live under an AbusiveDad and [[spoiler: becoming grief-stricken over the loss of his pet dog Greta, who he genuinely loved and tried to avenge her death against B.J. during a BossFight, then tearfully stating he'll be reunited with her in death when defeated]].

** On another meta level, the fact that The Old Blood won't be available for XBOX 360 and [=PS3=] has saddened people with only those systems.

** Annette in ''The Old Blood'', as she is Jewish and had escaped from going to a concentration death camp, but lost her parents to the Nazis. She also gets mauled by a Kampfhund and had to wear a cast around her arm where the Kampfhund injured her. [[spoiler: She is then either killed [[AndThenJohnWasAZombie then turned into a shambler]] if B.J. saves Kessler, or if she is saved and reunited with her friend, she and her friend will probably have no future as we know in ''The New Order'', the Nazis would win the war.]]

* CompleteMonster: [[MadScientist Nazi General Wilhelm Strausse]], better known as "Deathshead", was also the main villain of the [[VideoGame/ReturnToCastleWolfenstein previous]] [[VideoGame/{{Wolfenstein2009}} two]] games, but really makes his mark here. Capturing protagonist William Joseph "B.J." Blazkowicz, Deathshead forces him to choose which of his two friends he will painfully dissect, B.J. being ForcedToWatch before Deathshead leaves the survivor to burn alive. Using the fruits of his terrible experiments to give the Nazis victory and establishing a cruel dictatorship, Deathshead continues his experiments by forcing a mental asylum to give him subjects and then ordering his soldiers to murder all the remaining patients when he decides he does not need them anymore. Finally confronted by B.J., Deathshead takes his dissected friend’s brain and places it in a robot as a [[AndIMustScream fully conscious slave]]--a fate he intends for all his dissected victims and B.J. himself--and forces him to attack B.J. Fully committed to his scientific legacy and believing compassion does not befit the "Master Race", Deathshead represented the worst of the Third Reich.

* CompleteMonster: [[MadScientist General Wilhelm Strausse]], better known as "[[NamesToRunAwayFrom Deathshead]]", was also the BigBad of the [[VideoGame/ReturnToCastleWolfenstein previous]] [[VideoGame/{{Wolfenstein2009}} two]] games, but [[BigBad really makes his mark here]]. Capturing [[PlayerCharacter BJ Blazkowicz]], Deathshead [[SadisticChoice forces him to choose]] which of his two friends he will painfully dissect, BJ being ForcedToWatch before Deathshead leaves the survivor to burn alive. Using the fruits of his terrible experiments to give the Nazis victory and establishing a cruel dictatorship, Deathshead continues his experiments by forcing a mental asylum to give him subjects and then ordering his soldiers to murder all the remaining patients [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness when he decides he does not need them anymore]]. Finally confronted by BJ, Deathshead takes his dissected friend’s brain and places it in a robot as a [[AndIMustScream fully conscious slave]]--a fate he intends for all his dissected victims and BJ himself-- and forces him to attack BJ. Fully committed to his [[ForScience scientific legacy]] and believing compassion does not befit the “MasterRace”, Deathshead represented the worst of [[ThoseWackyNazis the Third Reich]].

* AcceptableTargets: Weirdly enough, averted. Rather than simply going, "they're Nazis, ergo, it's okay to do terrible things to them", the game takes great pains to show ''why'' the Nazis were terrible. References are frequently made to the master race and eugenics, cultures conquered by the Nazis are slowly being squeezed out of existence and replaced with German culture, and the second level shows them massacring every patient in an asylum simply because they're not useful. Even if you'd never heard of the Nazis, they'd be very evil villains.

** Mick Gordon and Tex Perkin's song, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TG_ZEovDDKk "The Partisan"]], plays during the credits of ''The Old Blood''... and it is quite good.

* AcceptableTargets: Weirdly enough, averted. Rather than simply going, "they're Nazis, ergo, it's okay to do terrible things to them", the game takes great pains to show ''why'' the Nazis were terrible. References are frequently made to the master race and eugenics, cultures conquered by the Nazis are solely being squeezed out of existence, and the second level shows them massacring every patient in an asylum simply because they're not useful. Even if you'd never heard of the Nazis, they'd be very evil villains.

** Though not as popular as Fergus, Wyatt is also quite popular, due to his light-hearted GoshDarnItToHeck and TheAllAmericanBoy personality that contradicts with the DarkerAndEdgier tone of the game and the fact he's really a CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass who is every bit as helpful as Fergus.

* CompleteMonster: [[MadScientist General Wilhelm Strausse]], better known as "[[NamesToRunAwayFrom Deathshead]]", appeared in the [[VideoGame/ReturnToCastleWolfenstein previous]] [[VideoGame/{{Wolfenstein2009}} two]] games, but [[BigBad really makes his mark here]]. Capturing [[PlayerCharacter BJ Blazkowicz]], Deathshead [[SadisticChoice forces him to choose]] which of his two friends he will painfully dissect, BJ being ForcedToWatch before Deathshead leaves the survivor to burn alive. Using the fruits of his terrible experiments to give the Nazis victory and establishing a cruel dictatorship, Deathshead continues his experiments by forcing a mental asylum to give him subjects and then ordering his soldiers to murder all the remaining patients [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness when he decides he does not need them anymore]]. Finally confronted by BJ, Deathshead takes his dissected friend’s brain and places it in a robot as a [[AndIMustScream fully conscious slave]]--a fate he intends for all his dissected victims and BJ himself-- and forces him to attack BJ. Fully committed to his [[ForScience scientific legacy]] and believing compassion does not befit the “MasterRace”, Deathshead represented the worst of [[ThoseWackyNazis the Third Reich]].

* CompleteMonster: [[MadScientist Wilhelm]] [[BigBad Strasse]], better known as "[[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Deathshead]]," first appeared in the [[VideoGame/ReturnToCastleWolfenstein previous]] [[VideoGame/{{Wolfenstein2009}} two]] games, but really stands out here. A genius, high-ranking member of the [[ThoseWackyNazis Third Reich]], Deathshead was responsible for the creation of a variety of monstrosities. Instrumental in the Nazi victory over the allies in 1946, he captures [[TheHero B.J. Blazkowicz]] and [[SadisticChoice forces him to choose]] which of a pair of prisoners Deathshead will dissect. After the choice, Deathshead proceeds to dissect the one and leaves the others to die an agonizing death. Deathshead proceeds [[spoiler:to place the dissected man's brain in one of his robots to force him to fight Blazkowicz later on]]. Deathshead, [[ForScience eager to find any subject for experimentation]], sends his men to raid Asylums so he may find people to send to concentration camps to experiment on.

* CompleteMonster: [[ThoseWackyNazis General Wilhelm]] [[MadScientist Strausse]], better known as [[BigBad "Deathshead"]], appeared in the previous two games but really made his mark here. Capturing [[PlayerCharacter BJ Blakowicz]], Deathshead forces him to choose which of his two friends he will painfully dissect, BJ being ForcedToWatch with Deathshead then leaving the survivors to burn alive. Using the fruits of his terrible experiments to give the Nazis victory and establishing a cruel dictatorship, Deathshead continues his experiments by forcing a mental asylum to give him subjects and then ordering his soldiers to murder all the remaining patients [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness when he decides he does not need them anymore]]. Finally confronted by BJ, Deathshead takes his dissected friend’s brain and places it in a robot as a [[AndIMustScream fully conscious slave]] – a fate he intends for all his dissected victims and BJ himself – and forces him to attack BJ. Fully committed to his [[ForScience scientific legacy]] and believing compassion does not befit the “Master Race”, Deathshead represented the worst of the Third Reich.

* CompleteMonster: [[MadScientist Wilhelm]] [[BigBad Strasse]], better known as "[[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Deathshead]]," first appeared in the [[VideoGame/ReturnToCastleWolfenstein previous]] [[VideoGame/{{Wolfenstein2009}} two]] games, but really stands out here. A genius, high-ranking member of the [[ThoseWackyNazis Third Reich]], Deathshead was responsible for the creation of a variety of monstrosities. Instrumental in the Nazi victory over the allies in 1946, he captures [[TheHero B.J. Blazkowicz]] and [[SadisticChoice forces him to choose]] which of a pair of prisoners Deathshead will dissect. After the choice, Deathshead proceeds to dissect the one and leaves the others to die an agonizing death. Deathshead proceeds [[spoiler:to place the dissected man's brain in one of his robots to force him to fight Blazkowicz later on]]. Deathshead, [[ForScience eager to find any subject for experimentation]], sends his men to raid Asylums so he may find people to send to concentration camps to experiment on.

* JustForFun/XMeetsY: ''VideoGame/ShadowWarrior2013'' meets ''Literature/TheManInTheHighCastle''.

* GeniusBonus: [[spoiler:The term "Da'at Yichud" isn't random. In Kabbalah, "Da'at" (consciousness/knowledge/sentience) refers to a specific state of being where all the aspects of God's creation are perfectly united as one. "Yichud" (union) is a period after Jewish marriage where the husband and wife are allowed to be alone in a room together for a time. This sums up the purpose of the Da'at Yichud -- becoming as close to God as possible by thoroughly investigating his creation and applying it, while staying out of the world at large -- fairly accurately. Alternately, it can be simply translated from modern Hebrew as "Unity of knowledge", as the group considered the division between different sciences unnecessary and instead pursued the great theory of all and everything.]]