The three best antagonists in video games are aliens, demons and Nazis. Halo 2, Doom 3 and now Brothers in Arms has fulfilled its aspirations of purging evil from the French countryside.

Brothers in Arms is a tactical squad-based first-person shooter starring Matt Baker, a 20-year-old paratrooper. The story is in-depth and has a Saving Private Ryan feel to it, complete with a musical score to make Tom Hanks proud. Baker is just a soldier. He can be killed easily, his gun shakes as he shoots and shooting while running is inaccurate. It’s realistic.

Outmaneuvering the Nazi’s isn’t a walk in the park. The basic situation is having one of your squads lay down cover fire to suppress the enemy, while you lead the second squad around to flank them.

The story is what sticks in my mind. “I never asked to be squad leader” is Baker’s favorite line and he says it several times in the first several levels. It’s sad to get to know the men in your squad and then see how it bothers everyone when they’re killed.

It’s been a while since I’ve played a good WWII first person shooter and after playing Brothers in Arms I wish there were more good ones on the market. The multiplayer adds depth to a game as you play as either a Nazi or an American, fulfilling objectives like defending or destroying anti-aircraft guns.

What makes it fun is the chaos you endure while trying to create order by flanking your enemy and then when you’ve finally moved into a flanking position you hear the sound of metallic treads rolling along. You turn to find yourself staring down the barrel of a German Panzer and you feel like Matt Baker, just another soldier.

Grade: A