Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway

Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway is the third entry in the Brothers in Arms series of video games which follows the men of the 101st Airborne Division (502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment). This game once again puts players in the role of Staff Sergeant Matt Baker during Operation Market Garden in the later stages of World War II. The game was released for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on September 23, 2008 in North America, and were in stores on September 24, 2008. The Microsoft Windows version was released two weeks later, on October 7, 2008.

Gameplay

The game has many new features, including the ability to command a further squad from a selection of new specialized units (bazooka and machine gun teams). When a command is issued, the player model uses hand signals to issue the command to his squad, similar to its predecessors. The player also has the ability to take cover behind objects and fire from a third person perspective, in a manner similar to Rainbow Six Vegas, which is an integral part of the game's strategy. A new “health” system has replaced the more punishing set health per mission system of previous titles in the franchise. With this system, the player's screen begins to turn red as they expose themselves from cover and will return to normal when they return to cover; failure to do so will result in Baker getting shot. The AI has been drastically improved, and the player's team will adapt to whether or not they are seen by whispering. The AI also makes mistakes, such as tripping, and help each other recover from these mistakes. The enemy AI has also been improved, allowing the Germans to counter your actions. The game is built on the Unreal Engine 3 and the Windows version can take advantage of the features in DirectX 10, which allow for an enhanced graphical experience for more realistic gameplay.

History & Setting

Operation Market Garden was a plan devised by Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery. The plan was to drop three airborne divisions, two American (82nd Airborne Division and the 101st Airborne Division) and one British (1st Airborne Division), later to be reinforced by the 1st (Polish) Independent Parachute Brigade. These divisions would land in The Netherlands, behind enemy lines, and secure multiple bridges, primarily at Eindhoven, Nijmegen and Arnhem. British XXX Corps would then make a rapid advance along connecting roads and cross the River Rhine at Arnhem (the furthest bridge from the front line), this would then cut the German line and leave the possibility for exploitation into the Rhur valley. The operation was executed on 17th September 1944, four months after Operation Overlord, which was covered in the previous games of the series.

Unfortunately, whilst initially successful with bridges at both Eindhoven and Nijmegen eventually secured, the well equipped II SS Panzer Corps stationed at Arnhem proved too much for the under equipped 1st Airborne Division. The British Landing Zones were captured early in the battle, resulting in the supply drops falling into the hands of the Germans, which made it difficult for the British in Arnhem to survive as they could not re-arm and thus found it difficult to fend off the attacking Germans until XXX Corps arrived. The XXX Corps never arrived to reinforce them. The armor reached Nijmegen but could not advance further to capture Arnhem, as the bridge was now in German hands and around 4,500 British paratroopers were captured. The Allied troops' position along one stretch of linked roads was hit by German counter attacks, locking the Allies onto a narrow stretch of Dutch land which extended beyond the previous front line. The narrow stretch leading up to Eindhoven (which the 101st Airborne Division had to defend from counter-attacks whilst the XXX Corps advanced) became known as "Hell's Highway", where this game derives its name from.

The fictional Staff-Sergeant Matt Baker is a squad leader in the 101st Airborne Division. He, and characters from the previous game are reassigned to the division's special reconnaissance unit before the drop into the Netherlands. The game will follow the 101st's assault and securing of Eindhoven, and the subsequent defense of the surrounding area from German counter attacks.

Limited Edition

Gearbox has officially announced a special, limited edition version of the game. The limited edition includes a 6 inch plastic Sergeant Matt Baker figurine with 13 accessories, a blister pack holding the figurine and accessories, a 32-page Brothers In Arms First Edition Comic book, a full color map of Operation Market Garden, special packaging and 2 more playable multiplayer characters.

Development

On September 15, 2008, Ubisoft & Gearbox announced that the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of the game have gone gold. The Windows version went gold two days later. Playable demo on the PlayStation Network is available now with one to be released for the XBOX 360 soon.