Mark turns back time...
From the moment Nazi Zeppelins float across the 1950's New York skyline, gusting high-rise construction workers to their doom, bombing buildings, and delivering payloads of parachuting German troops to the streets below, you can tell Turning Point: Fall of Liberty isn't your typical World War II First-Person Shooter.
Indeed, Turning Point: Fall of Liberty's outline isn't the way anyone will remember WWII at all. You see, in Turning Point's storyline, Churchill died in 1931; thus he never rose to power and the allied forces failed to fight off the Nazi threat without him to lead them. As such, by the time 1952 comes around, the Nazi's have had nearly a decade ruling Europe – and are turning their attentions to 'purifying' the 'evil' shores of the United States.
Joe Average Dan Dare
Which is where Turning Point: Fall of Liberty begins; with you, average joe construction worker Dan Carson, racing down from your precarious lofty position, loping along beams, diving through windows, sneaking up on and pushing off paratroopers and battling through Nazi-infested buildings to reach the Big Apple city streets and the promise of a possible resistance.
The Nazi's have had nearly a decade ruling Europe – and are turning their attentions to 'purifying' the 'evil' shores of the United States.
It's this completely fresh spin on the idea of battling Nazis which will see Turning Point stand out as original, even in the overcrowded WWII FPS genre. The smart thing is that Fall of Liberty's setting isn't entirely unbelievable; Sure, the Nazi's may not have had Atlantic-crossing blimps and jet-hovering aircraft in the 40's – but with a further decade of research, who knows what they might have made?
To add further weight to this notion, every advanced Nazi craft in Turning Point: Fall of Liberty is based on real-life Nazi schematics found after the war ended. This is WWII the way it could have happened.
Close quarters combat
But does all this historical context make Turning Point: Fall of Liberty a title you'll actually want to play? Well, to be honest, at first glance it seems your bog-standard shooter. Indeed, as Unreal Engine 3 FPS's go, it's not the most detailed – though there is a grandiose sense of scale to the New York setting that belies the relatively bland character models. Instead, its Turning Point's novel gameplay ideas that set it apart.
For starters, it's unusual to see one that so readily moves out of first-person for context-sensitive actions; from shimmying along overhead pipes to battling bad guys at close quarters, Turning Point: Fall of Liberty isn't shy on moving to a third-person camera for sneaking up on enemies to snap necks, stealing weapons, bash them unconscious and even taking a human shield whilst shooting with your free hand. It's a little like the recent Turok, but for our money, far more accomplished.
Hits right to the heart of America's biggest fears of being attacked; making your one-man mission feel all the more heroic.
And the setting really is something to behold. This may not be the most glossy-gorgeous shooter on next-gen systems, but the sheer scope of Turning Point: Fall of Liberty's New York is something special. It's highly unusual to have an FPS set in NYC and modelling it so believably – and Turning Point's gameplay integration makes it feel all the more authentic, seeing you grenading Nazi's in construction yards, gunning them down from lofty skyscraper vantages, and run-gunning in the city streets.
Terror done tastefully
On top of that, Turning Point: Fall of Liberty boasts a chilling-but-tasteful similarity to 9/11's iconic imagery. Planes fly into buildings, towers topple, bodies fall through the air and debris spews across Manhattan, making Fall of Liberty's setting all the more powerful. Turning Point is a title which hits right to the heart of America's biggest fears of being attacked; and it makes your one-man mission to fight this terror feel all the more heroic.
It remains to be seen how Turning Point's story will pan out in gameplay terms, but with one of the most original narratives we've seen in some time and some unique ideas for an FPS, there's certainly scope for this to be a rather big hit. Add in solo and team deathmatch online multiplayer modes too, and Turning Point: Fall of Liberty seems yet another promising title for shooter fans to look forward to.
Preview by: Mark Scott
Preview Published: 03.03.08