Brothers in Arms: D-Day review

Just about the time that you stopped being able to distinguish one World War II shooter from another, the seminal Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 came along and single-handedly jolted the genre back to glorious life. Featuring - gasp! - actual military tactics, it (along with follow-up Earned in Blood) offered an exhilarating (if often painfully difficult) experience while placing itself shoulder-to-shoulder with the more established Call of Duty and Medal of Honor franchises.

A tribute of sorts, Brothers in Arms: D-Day is a veritable "greatest hits" of fourteen missions pulled from both offerings, distilled into smaller form - literally and figuratively - for the PSP. Series heroes Baker and Hartsock reprise their starring roles, as do rest of the cast of rough-and-tumble paratroopers. Vets of the franchise will immediately recognize the levels, characters, dialogue, and tactics for victory. Many BIA hallmarks make their way into its handheld iteration, including the find-fix-flank-finish mantra that is the only way to secure victory.

That is, find your enemies, order your squadmates to pin them down with covering fire, sneak around to their flank while they're distracted and pump them full of lead before they realize what's happening. It's a remarkably effective tactic, but God forbid you flunked flank at the Academy, because stepping out into the open without your squadmates (human, tank, or otherwise) suppressing enemies is a recipe for instant, bloody death.