The news, sourced back to 4players.de (translation) attributes a statement to Activision saying that “although it is not a conspicuous element in the normal game … we have decided to take this game immediately from the German market”.

Whether that means the content isn’t in the game but is on a disc for modders to exploit, or if it’s a swastika as part of a background somewhere, who knows. Planet Wolfenstein notes that the Wolfenstein teams from Endrant and Raven already have been laid off, putting a revised localisation into doubt.

We’ve emailed Activision for comment. Should any be provided, it’ll be updated here.

Update: Via twitter, Kotaku reader Spunior pointed me back to one of the sites also linking to 4player.de. Schnitterbericht has a ton of screenshots showing differences in the US and German versions of Wolfenstein. The final one (scroll alllllll the way down) shows a faint swastika at the bottom of a poster. If that really triggered a voluntary recall, Mein Gott in himmel!

Sell Stop in Germany [4players.de, via Blue's News]

Himmler’s Schutzstaffel is on the verge of harnessing a dark paranormal power that would mean the end of the free world as we knew it in 1943, and special agent B.J. Blazkowicz is the only man who can stop them. The direct sequel to Return to Castle Wolfenstein, Wolfenstein finds B.J. slinking through the fictional city of Isenstadt, performing guerrilla-style missions in order to weaken and eventually overthrow the Reich’s grip on the region, thwarting their vile plans in the process. Luckily for fans of the series, B.J.’s idea of slinking involves shooting tonnes of Nazis in the face, this time while harnessing the strange powers of a mystical amulet to accomplish that very task.

It sounds a bit far-fetched, but then the Wolfenstein franchise was never known for its grip on reality or historical accuracy. What it is known for is delivering some of the most entertaining and influential games in the first-person shooter genre. Does Wolfenstein follow suit?

Loved
Point and Shoot: At the heart of Wolfenstein is a rock-solid first-person shooter experience. The controls are tight and accurate, the movement fluid, and the action on each of the weapons is, for the most part, very satisfying. If you are going to make an FPS with the Wolfenstein name on it, you’d better get this aspect right, and the developers nailed it.

Semi-Open World: Rather than following standard FPS conventions and guiding the player by the nose through a series of linear levels, Wolfenstein allows players to explore the fictional city of Isenstadt between missions, randomly spawning enemies at various locations to deliver the illusion of an ongoing conflict. As you complete missions, you’ll see more resistance fighters on the streets, following your example and standing up to their Nazi oppressors. It’s certainly a pleasant change from your average shooter.

Magical Powers: As you progress through Wolfenstein, special agent B.J. Blazkowicz gains a variety of supernatural powers via a magical amulet, such as the ability to slow time, or uncover hidden passages by slipping into the Veil, a sort of paranormal parallel dimension. The powers are gimmicks, and they feel like gimmicks, but at times they can be really handy gimmicks, granting the player multiple ways to approach a situation. Should you slow down time and rush in with guns blazing, or use your Veil vision to pick off targets from afar? In a genre known for its linearity, choice is always good.

Big Bad Boss Battles:The Wolfenstein series has featured some of the most entertaining boss battles in the genre, and while there is no robo-Hitler to vent your frustrations on, there are several bosses that require much more than simple run-and-gun techniques to defeat. In fact, some aren’t even damaged by your weapons at all, leaving you to use your wits alone to take them down. Your wits, or GameFaqs.

Hated
And I Care Why?: In the original Wolfenstein games, B.J. Blazkowicz wasn’t much more than a portrait at the bottom of your screen, and it’s really no different in this installment. B.J. is a generic action hero, saving generic foreigners from the mean old supernatural Nazi regime. If it weren’t for the fact that history has established the World War II-era Nazis as the most villainous military force that ever existed, I would have had serious trouble being motivated take them down. The game excels at death, but could use more life.

The Not-So-Constant Struggle: Wolfenstein might have some impressive boss fights, but getting to those fights can be frustrating, thanks to an oddly unbalanced cast of enemy characters. One moment you are fighting a swarm of enemy soldiers who react intelligently to your actions, following you into buildings, and generally doing things we would expect enemy soldiers to do, such as dying in droves. The first time you encounter one of the larger enemy types sets you off balance, but soon enough you realise the range of your sniper rifle is much longer than the range of their sense, making it easy to take them out with well-placed bullets to their weak spots while they wander around randomly firing off their weapons. This puts the player at ease, making the ultra-fast, silent-movie Veil Assassins even more frustrating, killing you repeatedly before you can even point your camera down. Don’t worry – death points it down for you.

Multiplayer Meltdown: Developed independently by Endrant Studios, Wolfenstein’s multiplayer side is a bit of a letdown, especially after spending a good 10-12 hours playing through the solid and mostly satisfying single-player campaign. The three modes and eight maps quickly become stale, especially when constantly faced by jittery enemies that almost seem to flash wildly about the screen. The developer did try to change things up a bit, adding three classes – engineer, medic, and soldier – and the ability to use cash earned during play to purchase upgrades to your equipment, but the experience as a whole is simply disappointing.

I can’t imagine the sort of pressure that a development studio faces when they are tasked with creating a follow-up to one of the most iconic franchises in the history of gaming. Wolfenstein 3D paved the way for today’s first-person shooters. Without it, there might not have been a Halo or a Modern Warfare to compare this game with, and while expecting a shooter on par with those titles might be unrealistic, a new Wolf game should at least bring something special to the gaming table. The single player Wolfenstein experience comes close to doing just that, but the multiplayer misses by a mile.

It might not live up to its name, but Wolfenstein is still a solid, entertaining first-person shooter with some ambitious ideas. It’s easy enough to find enjoyment in the game, as long as yours doesn’t hinge on taking the fight online.

Wolfenstein was developed by Raven Software, id Software, Pi Studios, and Endrant Studios and published by Activision for the PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3 on August 18 in North America and on August 20 in Australia. Retails for $US59.99/$AU109.95 ($US49.99/$AU99.95 PC). Played Xbox 360 version of the game on default difficulty to completion, participated in multiple rounds of online multiplayer.

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“There was also a slightly larger faction that wanted them to be sexy and wearing skin-tight leather outfits,” Long says. That faction might include a sizable percentage of the millions who’ve played the game since Return to Castle Wolfenstein introduced the Elite Guard.

Wolfenstein will bring back the ladies and give them the standard S/M arsenal – whips, chains, throwing stars – and also give their hooker-y evildoing an additional dimension.

We incorporated the idea of them using the power of the Veil as a weapon to attack BJ and his Faction allies. Along with those deadly Veil powers, the Elite Guard can also create nefarious monsters that they control. When the Elite Guards use the power of the Veil, an evil looking skeletal glow shines through their skin and grows denser as they attack.

You can check out some concept art and get advance word on these enemies’ AI through the Wolfenstein blog on IGN. And if you are fortunate to be at E3, the Wolfenstein booth babes will be modelling the Elite Guard look.

Wolfenstein – The Elite Guard [IGN via VE3D]

Developer Raven Software isn’t altogether unfamiliar with Wolverine, having played about with him in both the X-Men Legends series and Marvel Ultimate Alliance; but this is the first time the developer has flown solo with the most fearsome Canadian on the face of the planet. Just like the film, the video game adaptation of X-Men Origins: Wolverine is all about Logan, his claws, and people being punctured by said claws. Raven has stated over and over again during the development process that they are trying to capture the essence of the character – trying to deliver the ultimate Wolverine experience.

Has Raven successfully translated the raw brutality of the world’s most popular savage to the video game stage, or is X-Men Origins: Wolverine as forgettable as so much of Logan’s mysterious past?

Loved
The Best At What He Does: Raven set out to create the ultimate Wolverine experience, and they’ve pretty much nailed it. This version of Logan far surpasses the movie version in terms of sheer brutality, literally tearing into enemies with everything he’s got. The lunging mechanic is pure Wolverine, though one has to wonder why he can only jump extremely far when there’s an enemy nearby. Feral senses are an interesting way to convey Wolverine’s more bestial nature, using colours to indicate the way that Logan smells the world. If you’re a fan of the scrappy, relentless, savage Wolverine, then this is your game.

It’s Not All Slice And Dice: While slashing enemies to shreds with your claws can get you out of most situations, there are certainly situations where the block button is essential. More skilled players will get a kick out of the counter-attacking system, which has Wolverine retaliating in various entertaining ways if an enemy’s strike is blocked with just the right timing. The quick kill system is basically a timed button press that results in some of the game’s goriest deaths. And as implausible as it might sound, deflecting an incoming missile back at the shooter with your claws is extremely satisfying. All in all the combat system is deep and entertaining enough to keep you smiling throughout the entire length of the 8-10 hour game.

Build Your Own Logan: There are multiple ways to customise how your version of Wolverine plays. As you level, you gain skill points that can be used to beef up the powers and skills you accrue as you play. You also unlock up to three mutagen slots, which you can assign any number of powers to, from converting damaged caused to health to increasing the experience gained with each kill. It gives the player a little bit of control over how the game plays. It might not be much, but I appreciate having the options available.

Double-Sized Boss Fights: While some of the boss fights are nothing more than glorified brawls, there are a couple scattered throughout the game that are simply amazing. I don’t want to spoil anything here, but one boss fight in particular had the X-Men fan in me wanting to stand up and applaud. The big Gambit fight is another one that had me grinning ear-to-ear. I couldn’t have imagined a better place for these two characters to battle it out.

The Inevitable Fan Service: The developers at Raven further prove their comic book pedigree by including little nods to characters and events taking place in the past and distant future of the Marvel Universe. Audio logs scattered about various levels give us insight into the motivations of the characters working behind the scenes, while cameos from other Marvel characters give us some interesting information as to the origins of others. Between the little nods and the unlockable costumes from Wolverines come and gone, there’s plenty in the game to please the hardcore fans.

Achievement Tracking: A small feature more than likely thrown in as an afterthought, the screen that keeps track of your kill counts for specific achievements is an excellent addition to the game. Developers need to pay attention here. If I have to kill 2,000 enemies to gain an achievement or trophy, being able to see how many I’ve got left to kill is not only convenient, it’s an excellent motivation to go back and replay through the game after you’ve completed it.

Hated
Haven’t I Stabbed You Before?: X-Men Origins: Wolverine is a beat-em up. I understand this, and I can forgive fighting the same peons over and over again. In fact, there’s actually a nice variety to the smaller enemies you encounter, so that part really doesn’t get stale. It’s the big enemies that get repetitive. The giant magma elemental is impressive as hell when you first encounter it, but after the third or fourth time the encounters start to lose their punch. Simply varying the enemies in a slight way would have served to keep things fresh (oooh, it’s a blue magma elemental!). Instead, Raven just throws the same giant creatures at you, sometimes in pairs just to keep you on your toes.

Attack Of The Technovirus: As with any movie tie-in, X-Men Origins: Wolverine had to make the movie release date, and in doing so obviously missed out on a little bit of quality assurance testing. Bodies have an odd tendency to hang in the open air rather than settling to the ground, for instance. The Gambit level is particularly buggy. At several points during the drawn-out chase after the ragin’ cajun I found myself slicing and dicing at him only to discover that the Gambit I was fighting was simply a glitch that wouldn’t die, and that my quarry had already run along further down the level. There are also a few horrible camera glitches in the same level that left me shifting my perspective dizzyingly for several minutes as I tried to navigate a narrow ledge. Top that off with some frustratingly buggy enemy behaviour (can you say infinite impalement loop?) and you’ve got a game that didn’t get nearly the polish it deserved.

Making It Look Too Easy: Wolverine is one of the toughest characters in the Marvel universe; I get that. Certain allowances have to be taken with a character like that in order to make an enjoyable video game out of their adventures. Raven has done an admirable job of making Wolverine a walking, talking, spinning engine of brutal destruction – perhaps too good of a job. There wasn’t one point during the game that I was worried that I might die, save for a portion towards the beginning where your powers aren’t quite working up to speed.

Tomb Wolverine: A game this focused on brutal action completely loses momentum when you suddenly find yourself pushing statues about on platforms in order to unlock doors. This is not something Wolverine does. If Wolverine wants a door, Wolverine MAKES a door.

Raven Software has done a lot of things right with X-Men Origins: Wolverine. They’ve captured the look and feel of Marvel’s claw-wielding sociopath better than any other game before it. They even attempted to do something new, introducing real-time healing that more often than not saw my version of Wolverine running around with strips of cloth pasted randomly about his chest and blood pooling around his arse in a rather disgusting fashion, but they certainly did try to do something different. I’ve the distinct feeling that if they hadn’t been tied down to the movie’s release date, this could have been one of the best comic book video games of all time.

Flaws aside, X-Men Origins: Wolverine still manages to be the best it is at what it does, delivering many hours of satisfyingly brutal action the merry Marvel way.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine was developed by Raven Software and published by Activision, released April 29 in Australia and May 1 in North America for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, PSP, and PC. Retails for US$30/AU$70 – US$60/AU$100. Played Xbox 360 version. Completed game on standard difficulty, unlocked three extra costumes, earned 40 out of 50 achievements.

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I’m placing the main image below in case the spoiler warning tag isn’t enough to keep you from peeking inside. It really is one of the more humorous little cross-title nods I’ve come across lately, and I certainly wouldn’t want to spoil the surprise for anyone else. Let’s just say that millions of people across the world will recognise what they are seeing immediately upon finding it and leave it at that. Now go away now if you don’t want to know. Seriously.

Given you plenty of time to leave now. Without further adieu, here’s a shot of the hidden area I stumbled upon while playing X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

Not only did this discovery nearly make me piss myself laughing, it also scored me an achievement, aptly titled, “WoW!”. with the description, “You feel cold as you examine the skeleton and read the name “Arthas” etched into the nearby sword.”

Technically not a spoiler really, seeing as it’s been outed on achievement lists all over the internet, but nonetheless an amusing little nod to one of Activision Blizzard’s slightly more popular franchises.

The latest developer diary video for X-Men Origins: Wolverine is a dirty, no-good secret snikt-tease.

Developer Raven hasn’t so much created levels for the game as they have crafted environments for players to romp about it. Forest environments; jungle environments; snowy forest environments – they’re all represented here. It’s all very interesting, until they get to the end of the clip, when senior artist Cory Carani (my favourite member of the development staff) is about to reveal a big secret in the game, only to have Doug Smith (boo) ruin it with his damnable secrecy.

Curse your secrecy, Doug Smith. Curse it!

The opening cinematic for the new Wolfenstein starts off quietly and ends like any good Wolfenstein video should – with dozens of dead Nazis.

The opening cinematic is filled with tons of heroic action, courtesy of America’s number-one weapon against the Nazi regime, special agent B.J. Blazkowicz. I love the fact that the clip reinforces the well-known fact that Nazis tend to melt when faced with glowing ancient artifacts. My only problem with the opening cinematic is the same problem I have with cinematics for all first-person shooters. They’re generally used to show off exactly the sort of action you won’t see in the game. I’m sure Wolfenstein will be excellent, but it will definitely be lacking something if I can’t swing heroically about a ship while the music swells.

Activision unleashes the first behind-the-scenes video for X-Men Origins: Wolverine is definitely the best at what it does: proving that the developers at Raven are a bunch of drooling Wolverine fanboys.

Activision seems to have a knack for passing their Marvel properties on to developers in love with the characters, though as was the case with Spider-Man: Web of Shadows, that doesn’t always work out. As my only exposure to the new Wolverine video game so far has been this particular video and a few screenshots, I’d say the game is looking pretty good, though that voice at the end spouting Logan’s little catch phrase grated on me a bit.

Still, not going to get my hopes up. I learned a valuable lesson last time I got excited about a superhero video game being released on my birthday.

The new Wolverine game was always going to be a brawler. A fighter. That’s what Wolverine does, he brawls, he fights. But what kind of brawler? What kind of fighter? Developers Raven have opened up.

Speaking with EGM (yes, the article from this month’s mag is now online), Raven’s Dan Vondrak has spoken of the game’s influences, and where they hope to take both the character and the game:

God of War was an influence. Devil May Cry, even Super Smash Bros., to a point. When we play [games like that], we just like the simplicity. Every character has their basic set of moves — that’s simple. People get that, and mass market gets that, so we’re making sure we bring that to Wolverine.

Gasp! Fisher Price: My First Brawler, then? Maybe not, as Vondrak continues that the simplicity is as much about maintaining the character’s speed as it is about making it easy to play.

People are going to play Wolverine and then be annoyed with how slow other action games are. We’ve gone back and played highly touted action games we all love, and you’re in these attacks forever. And it’s not just the speed — it’s the ease in which you’re able to [break] out of your attacks at any time.

Full interview’s below (along with a ton of new screens), and is worth reading if you like seeing the words “Ninja Gaiden” thrown around a few times in relation to this game.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine [1UP]