Earned in Blood is an improvement over the first one, but doesn't really change anything.
Brothers in Arms Earned in Blood, is the first sequel to Road to Hill 30 that came out earlier this year. In that game you played Sgt. Matt Baker. In EiB you play as Red Hartsock, a soldier that was under Matt Baker, but was promoted at the end of RTH30.
Earned in Blood starts out with Sgt. Red Hartsock being interviewed by Col. S.L.A Marshall. The first few levels takes place during the same events as they happened in RTH30. But you see it from the eyes of Hartsock. In RTH30 you heard what happened to him, but in EiB you get to play it. Four levels into the game you are already past the events of the previous game. Just like the first game, it is fictional characters woven into real events that happened during the days following D-Day on June 6th 1944.
Now to the fun part, the gameplay. I believe it is much better than RTH30. In Road to Hill 30, the Germans stayed in one spot until you performed the four F’s (Find, Fix,Flank, Finish). In Earned in Blood, if you make contact with two teams of Germans, and have your Fire and assault team put down suppressing fire on one of them. The other team will find and flank you! In one mission I did just that, I gave my fire and assault teams the order to lay down cover fire for me as I tried to flanks them. But what I didn’t see was the second team of Germans to their left, and since they were not surpressed they were free to move at will. By the time I saw what was happening it was to late, they already took out my whole assault team, and one of my guys from the fire team, before the rest of the fire team managed to kill the German attackers. In the mean time the other team of Germans were unsuppressed and started to shoot at me and what was left of my squad. It‘s can get so intence you will have to pause it just to get your berrings back.
One of the things the Brothers in Arms Franchise is known for is its Situational Awareness mode. It is when the camera zooms out so you can see some of the battlefield. It only shows the enemys that you know of, so you can figure out the best route to out flank them. In RTH30 I never used this feature. But in EiB its a necessity. If you want to win you must use it.
The game sounds great. Good sound is a must in WWII games, because each weapon during that time had a unique sound. Such as the sound of an MG42. That machine gun had a sound so intimidating, that soldiers during WWII would drop to the ground even if it was not firing in their direction. That is what it is like in Earned in blood. As soon as you hear the MG42 I advise you duck behind the nearest cover. Because if you’re caught in the open, and an MG42 opens up on you .I promise you will be going home in two bodybags, because it will cut you in half.
This game is a great example of what a realistic WWII game is suppose to be. With the good story line, even better voiceover work, the open ended missions that allow you to accomplish it multiple ways. And the incredible sound, make this the best WWII game to date. So if you like historical First PersonTactifcal Shooters, this is the game for you.