While the previous two Machine Games-developed Wolfenstein titles were extremely heavy on story, 2019’s recently-released Wolfenstein: Youngblood made no pretenses about following in those same narrative-driven footsteps—at least, not initially.
The third in the alternate history continuation of Id’s classic FPS franchise, Youngblood feels in many ways like a live-service looter shooter masquerading as a level-based, linear experience. And, while most players don’t seem to have taken too kindly to the series’ sudden shift in focus, there are at least a few story beats in which fans of the franchise's quasi-new 52 may be interested.
Anyone who watched the game’s intro cinematic will know that the experience centers around the daughters of classic protagonist BJ Blazkowicz as they work to liberate Nazi-occupied 1980s Paris while simultaneously hoping to track down their rogue father. It would be easy to assume that, apart from the sisters reuniting with their father and ending the fascist rule over France, there’s not much to write home about here.
Character Assassination
In actuality, that’s not really the case. While the first few hours of gameplay scarcely hint at anything deeper going on, once the duo infiltrates the three “brother” towers, it is revealed that French resistance leaders Jaques and Juju are actually undercover Nazi officers working to topple Paris’ dissenting fascist occupiers and install their own brand of national socialism.
The weird thing about this is that, aside from Soph and Jess, BJ’s well-meaning-albeit-totally-overbearing offspring, none of the characters are all that memorable. In fact, this late-game twist will hardly register with most players, as, by that point, Juju and Jaques are nearly all but forgotten. Since literally every character hanging out in the French resistance’s Parisian catacombs base is there to hand out missions and act as a series of totally innocuous nonentities, they may as well have been introduced as separate characters entirely.
Be that as it may, Soph and Jess have been tricked into doing the bidding of a conniving Nazi agent, and, after an intense, albeit confusing, altercation in which their stereotypical nerdy hacker friend Abby gets stabbed in the eye, the rest of the game focuses on their quest to track down these traitors and stop their awful-if-nondescript plans. On the way, they finally cross paths with their father, who informs them that he’s basically been searching for a way to open a gate to alternate dimensions via an artifact known as the God Key. He also tells the girls that Adolph Hitler posthumously enacted a plan to destroy the world, and that he’s been trying to figure out a way to stop it, as he feels partially responsible for setting it in motion.
Setting Up The Future
The girls then catch and eliminate the sadistic Jaques and Juju—their real names are actually Lother and Julie Brandt—though they aren’t able to permanently stop the Nazi’s doomsday plan. With some sort of apocalypse apparently destined to take place in the near future, the girls take control of the newly-liberated Paris and prepare for what may be the end of the world.
Now, all of that sounds ridiculous, even for the Wolfenstein games, but it could serve as a really interesting starting point for a potential final entry in Bethesda’s Wolf trilogy. With a global disaster incoming, Youngblood seems to suggest that BJ and his daughters will use the power of the God Key to transcend the universe and travel to different planets or realities. While it may still be a bit of a pipe dream, all of this crazy sci-fi deus ex machina could potentially be setting up a crossover between the Wolfenstein and Doom franchises.
It’s previously been insinuated, albeit in an extremely obscure way, that the protagonist of the Doom games may, in fact, be the far-flung descendant of BJ himself. The same was once said of Commander Keen, as he was, at one time, stated to be either the son or grandson of Blazkowicz. However, Youngblood seems to contradict that notion.
Either way, could this truly be the direction in which Wolfenstein is headed? It’s true that the games have never really been based in reality, but this still seems like it may be a bit of a stretch. We do know, however, that the upcoming Doom: Eternal will be set, at least in part, on Earth, and it’s not inconceivable to believe that the state of the planet could have, at least in part, been brought about by the events of the Wolfenstein series.
How exactly does that tie in with the previously-established actions of the UAC? Well, who knows, but it wouldn’t be out of character for Bethesda to introduce a major ret-con. Quite honestly, all bets were off once BJ literally lost his head in Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus and wound up some sort of conceptually-untenable cyborg. Hell, while they’re at it, they may as well cram some Fallout lore in there and make it so that BJ, his daughters, and the Doom Slayer can all pal around in Fallout 76’s insipid battle royale mode.