Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood Review

Multiplayer

Earned in Blood also features a multiplayer mode that you can play both in splitscreen as well as on Xbox Live. You can play co-op both on and offline through all of the single player missions, which is a thrill and makes the game a lot more fun because your friends are both more capable and more willing to attempt different and more interesting tactics than the repetitive pattern of flanking and suppression. Other modes force you to defend against wave after wave of enemies, timed assault where you must kill all of the enemies on a map in a certain amount of time, and a tour of duty mode where you have to complete five missions in a row with a single squad and just one life. There are other objective based modes where 2-4 players each have their own squads and they try to complete various objectives. The game runs smoothly on Xbox Live and it is an absolute blast to play when you have a good group of people to play with.

Graphics and Sound

Graphically, Earned in Blood is a great looking game. The character models are insanely detailed, particularly their faces, and look outstanding overall. The environments you explore are detailed and really look like a war zone. The game has a very gritty look and feel which is just marvelous.

The sound in Earned in Blood is also very well done. Sound effects for gunfire and explosions are just about perfect. There is also a lot of spoken dialogue and all of the voice actors did a great job reading a well written script. You’ll hear your squadmates yelling on the battlefield as well as the Germans yelling at each other and it all works together to really immerse you in the game. Rounding out the presentation is an absolutely amazing soundtrack that really sets the mood and tone for the game.

Bottom Line

Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood is a solid game that is worth playing, but it is hard to deny that more time spent in development would have produced a much better game. What we have is an experience that is basically identical to Road to Hill 30 and, as good as that game is, spending another $50 only seven months later to do all of the same stuff over again doesn’t sound too hot. Earned in Blood does tell a good story, however, and it does so in a way that will keep you glued to your Xbox until you finish it. If you liked the first game you’ll enjoy Earned in Blood but since it is so similar I’m not so sure it is worth a purchase. It is worth playing, however, so give it a rental first and decide whether to buy it for yourself.