Killing Nazis is all good and fun. They were one of the most villainous groups to ever exist on our planet and almost wiped out our very way of life. That being said, Wolfenstein II is not just about killing Nazis. It uses Nazi America as a backdrop in chilling fashion and gives our heroes the most irredeemable villains they could ever fight. It’s a game about people trying to live their lives and trying to survive. None of that is more obvious than looking at our protagonist, William Blazkowicz.
William’s Struggle
William is left mangled by the events of the last game. He can’t even walk. It’s only by way of Caroline’s suit that he is able to regain his strength, but even that is only a temporary solution. William is dying; he can feel it. His fight isn’t with the Nazis, but with himself. He longs to be with Anya, the woman who bears his children, yet he knows his days are numbered. What does he do? He shuts her out. He focuses on fighting, which is something he seems to think is the only thing he can do. It’s a very human reaction. William is fighting for survival; for the survival of his family, and ultimately the survival of himself. How the latter comes to be is a bit fantastical to be sure, but it’s one of the more incredible moments in the game.
Blazkowicz is the heart of this game. The flashbacks with his parents and his ultimate confrontation with his father show where his demons lie. And that was not with the Nazis, but with his own father. Ultimately he killed his horrible-excuse-for-a-human-being father to overcome his demons. The greatest demon that William faces within the game isn’t the Nazis, but with himself. Yes, there is plenty of Nazi killing in Wolfenstein II, but to relegate the game to simply one about killing Nazis, and to cement that as its identity is a disservice to the narrative. And it’s such a beautiful narrative too.
William’s Fight
Once William is saved and he realizes he has a future, he is fighting for something. He has a purpose. He is fighting for both Anya and his unborn children.
Another aspect of the narrative of Wolfenstein II is family. People from all walks of life have come together under Eva’s Hammer and are fighting, together, for survival. You could say it’s about a ragtag group of freedom fighters simply trying to survive. Sound familiar? It’s the base for almost every great story you’ve ever been told.
William Blazkowicz — Wolfenstein II’s Heart
The narrative for Wolfenstein II is truly amazing. The Nazis play a core element as the villains in the game for sure, and killing people is a core element of the gameplay as a first-person shooter. But the narrative itself is about a man who is facing death after being mangled and merely trying to survive. A man who is trying to find purpose in his life again. And you can tell this by the narrations he gives throughout the game (so well written!).
This is what Wolfenstein II is really about — William Blazkowicz the man, not William Blazkowicz the Nazi Killer.