Hell Let Loose Makes Players Into Grunts During The Grim Battles Of World War II
Hell Let Loose is a first person team shooter set during World War II. Battles take place on a large scale and can become hectic once you actually encounter enemy players. It’s realistic gameplay means deaths will come suddenly with no indication of what direction you were shot from. There aren’t many of the quality of life standards gamers expect. A minimalist UI means no health bars or directional indicators. Every bit of progress will feel like you’ve clawed your way forward.
Getting matched with a team that communicates well, learning where the respawn locations are, and what counts as an obstacle for vehicles is integral to winning a match. This is not a game where players can simply pick up and go. It’s completely geared towards those gamers who prefer a more hardcore and strategy focused style. While Hell Let Loose can become enjoyable after enough time, casual players will find it harder to reach that level of satisfaction. Though it’s an FPS game players who lose track of their objective will have an even harder time. There are fourteen different classes and one hundred people in a single match. Combat never stops being overwhelming. It just becomes exciting or too frustrating in turn.
There’s no importance placed on a deep story. Players are tossed into big battles and it’s clear that the big decisions are above your pay grade. Players are randomly placed into one of six factions. Your only concern is trying to capture fiercely defended points. Each side gets a variety of different weapons available during that time period. Unlucky players may find that they wander around, encountering no one, finally find an objective and immediately get sniped. Repeatedly. Players may find that there isn’t a real incentive beyond surviving the game’s difficulty.
Players looking for a realistic WW2 shooter with stunning graphics (even six years later) will probably be right at home. Hell Let Loose fights to make its large maps completely fun, but close quarters maps alleviate some of that sluggishness. Teams that don’t communicate either lead to energy draining, one-sided matches or chaotic fun where losing still feels like a win. Combat is satisfying and disorienting even without the screen shake effect when a player is being shot at. The game is its own worst enemy however. For every high in Hell Let Loose there’s an almost immediate low. Depending on a player’s expectations, this may be a game to keep an eye on and pick up during a sale.
