Quick Stats:

• Developer: Gearbox Software
• Publisher: Ubisoft
• Release Date: 1 March 2005
• Platform: PC
• Genre: First-person shooter
• Last played: 07 May 2020

Introduction:

So this first game on clearing this backlog I completed was Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood and that might seem like a bizarre choice seen as this game was actually the first in the series. Well, that’s because I had tried to complete Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 before and managed to get six hours into the game before giving up due to the difficulty of one of the tank missions. It’s another first person shooter with a tactical squad management element.

Now however, armed with my intense knowledge from Earned in Blood, I am back to make sure I actually complete the series properly before moving onto Hell’s Highway, which I already know I will love. I’m completing this playthrough on the ‘Difficult’ difficulty setting and hopefully will complete this in fewer sittings than the previous game. I also purchased this on 3 July 2017 on the same date as Earned in Blood, so beating this almost three years after picking it up will be worthwhile!

Playthrough:

Session 1: Hill 30 to Objective XYZ

Time: 42m

I thought I would do a super quick session just to start off this playthrough as I know that the first few missions of any shooter are usually quite basic and tutorial heavy. I found the portrayal of Pfc. Leggett to be kinda strange at the start of the game as we see his death immediately and him not really acting as his character does for the rest of the game.

The first three missions, including Objective XYZ are kind of basic and so getting through them wasn’t a problem. The shooting in this one feels better than when I started Earned in Blood, but then again that might just be because I am now used to how horrible and janky the shooting mechanics are in these games. Also Red was an absolute badass in these missions, doing way better than my squads in Earned in Blood.

One thing I found interesting was that there was an M1A1 Bazooka in use as part of the mission Objective XYZ, which means that this existed in the engine for Earned in Blood but they just chose not to use it. That’s a really bizarre stylistic choice by the devs, but it’s good to see it in this game.

Session 2: Foucarville Blockade to Dead Man’s Corner

Time: 1hr 02m (1hr 44m)

Maybe it’s the COVID-19 lockdown meaning I have nothing to do, but I decided that I should play another session of Road to Hill 30 as I wanted to make some more inroads and perhaps even complete the first chapter of the game.

The mission Rommel’s Asparagus had a really annoying repetitive task of blowing up these wooden poles used to stop gliders… but there were a tonne of them and enemies kept respawning. The cool part of this though was that once you had removed all the poles a glider came down but holy heck was the animation sped up a lot on these, the gliders just instantly appear and crash land into the field.

I had my first hilarious glitch in Action at Vierville when the enemy tank got totally stuck in a gate and therefore this supposedly epic sequence where you have to distract the enemy tank whilst yours kills it ended up being me watching a Stug stuck in a gate whilst our Stuart just kept firing into its side. Perhaps not quite the action sequence the developers had in mind at the time.

I must admit, I found the tank gameplay in Dead Man’s Corner to be really fun. I felt that in this game they did a lot better job of showing how the tank should be an infantry support vehicle unlike Earned in Blood. I know I keep making comparisons, but that game is just fresh on my mind. I was absolutely gutted when the tank is destroyed on Dead Man’s Corner.

Session 3: The Crack of Dawn to Alternative Route

Time: 59m (2hr 43m)

So after a little break from the game, I decided that it was actually time to come back and today (4 May 2020) I set myself a target of completing at least 3 but hopefully 4 missions in order to get this campaign moving along. I can now say that I managed to achieve that and honestly I was enjoying the first three missions so much I probably could have gone further. Some great visuals in these missions too as the time of day moved on.

The defence of the house in Crack of Dawn was a favourite for me and it felt good to be playing this game again. Perhaps my playthrough of Men of War: Red Tide had just gotten so stressful that it was just nice to something that had… wait I was about to say decent controls… have I now just come to accept this level of controls as “good”? Jesus.

It wasn’t all good through. In The Fall of St. Come, my Assault Team was immediately killed (literally 2 seconds into the mission) by enemy mortars striking random locations. Whilst taking the farm was good in Buying the Farm, the attack on the mortar team was kinda dull and the game just keeps throwing tanks in there to add a sense of difficulty.

Alternative Route was why I stopped this session where I did. The mission didn’t feel as fun or polished as the others and the challenge at the end of the mission just seemed so artificial. Like, how did Baker and squad get back across the river when there was a tank and two enemy squads that just showed up? Just seemed like we went from the somber low of Leggett losing two of our squad to suddenly and almost immediately getting stuck into an action sequence. I know it’s not a story driven game but like come on folks.

Session 4: Purple Heart Lane to Push into Carentan

Time: 1hr 43m (4hr 26m)

So the goal of this session was to finish the game, especially as it has been so enjoyable so far and I was starting to forget why I got stressed out initially and gave up with this game. Cole’s charge was actually very fun, charging at the Germans through the smoke and trying to command the squad when you can’t see further than the end of your nose is pretty cool.

Ripe Pickings was also a fun mission with attacking the house and retrieving another US Army soldier (Lt. Coles). I must say though I’m padding this with positivity because I know what’s coming… Push into Carentan.

This mission has been my least favourite part of the entire playthrough and it is the reason I didn’t finish the game in this section. The combat is urban and incredibly close quarters. Which is okay but with clunky controls and peabrained AIs, this meant that I had to try a number of times and rely on the RNG to help me win. Also, the checkpoints are way too far apart on this level. For instance, destroying tank one and two is not sufficient to get to a checkpoint and you have to kill three infantrymen, sounds easy, right?

Well no. The AI are allowed through a glitch to shoot through their cover and so they basically never come out of it and the way that you issue commands means it’s really difficult to tell a squad to get behind the Opel Blitz involves peeking out and certain death. That’s not the worst part of this mission though. That special place in hell is reserved exclusively for the warehouse part of the mission.

Lots of enemies again in close quarters but an MG position that you cannot reach from building 1. The problem is that the game is trying to force you to do a particular action, but doesn’t make this clear. Going behind the boxes and suppressing the MG42 (which is how the game has taught you to act so far) results in an instant death if trying to access the building, regardless of health or if the MG42 is even shooting.

You have to crouch underneath the above opening and sneak past, even though your character model would be in perfect range and position to get scalped by the machine gunner. I honestly had to look up a guide just to be able to complete this part because it didn’t seem right. Once you complete this you have to fight through the warehouse and Mac yet again tells you that you’re God’s gift. (Love you really Mac). I’d say in all honesty this one part of this one mission added about 40 minutes to my total play time and makes me seriously worry about the remainder of this game.

Session 5: Tom & Jerry to No Better Spot to Die

Time: 46m (5hr 13m)

Firstly, I cannot believe that I have actually finished this game. When I sat down to start this session I had allotted two hours in order to get through the final two missions as I just remember that somewhere in there was the part I absolutely could not beat. Tom & Jerry is one of the best missions in the game, an excellent defence where you’ve actually got access to a Bazooka (no more running around for Panzerfausts like a headless chicken).

Now, I still have many complaints to make about No Better Spot to Die. So let’s dig into that. I’m already bored of seeing the classic getting hit by an explosive and knocked out to build drama thing. I even complained about this at the end of Earned in Blood but it’s hilarious that they managed to do the exact same thing TWICE in two games in part 1 of the final mission both times.

That’s a rubbish complaint though. My actual moans about this mission come from one particular set piece, where Sgt. Baker has to run through a hedgerow filled with about at least 8 German infantry and 2 Pz.IV tanks with no AT weapons or grenades. It’s frustrating if you don’t know the exact sequence that works well. Literally any other path or mishap on timing and you will be dead. I died many times trying to get through this teeny bit. The ending is kind of epic though, so perhaps it was worth it. I really want to thank the YouTube user Sascha Wo for this guide on how to get through the last part of this mission.

So there it is, the end of Road to Hill 30. Honestly, I am really happy with the time to beat on this one. I think that having just played Earned in Blood helped a lot with the timing, mainly because I didn’t have to worry so much about the janky controls or AI because I was already used to it. That was even slightly emotional, like this game defeated me once before but I came back stronger than ever and finally beat it!

Game completed in 5 hours and 13 minutes, check out my entry on HowLongToBeat HERE!

Review:

Score: 7/10

I really wanted to give this an 8, I so badly did. But I think it would be unfair as almost all of the things that plagued Earned in Blood are still criticisms here.

If you’re used to modern shooters, the shooting mechanics and general clunky UI and controls will probably feel a little rough around the edges compared to newer games. However, Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 is a classic and I genuinely enjoyed playing through this game (twice!). If you’re a fan of WW2, there are also lots of cool little extras you can unlock by completing the missions that focus on the creation of the game and the actual battles around Carentan.

I’ll admit, there were some moments in this game that were infuriating (hello warehouse and tank parts in the final two missions) but there were also some incredibly good set pieces. Once you get your head around the game’s basic premise of suppress, flank, kill it actually becomes quite satisfying to have your squads take out enemies whilst you command a semi-front line position.

In all honesty as well, I preferred this to Earned in Blood. The campaign relied a lot less on Panzerfausts being randomly strewn all over the place to defeat tanks (you actually get a M1 Bazooka in one mission, woah). The story that underpins it all is also something that keeps you in and something that feeds into later games. Sgt. Matt Baker is a likeable character and I think that most folks will be able to relate to him as you go through the game and he begins to struggle with the experience of war.

It’s usually super cheap, so buy it!