I’m beginning to worry that the rest of the game will be a cakewalk now that we’ve got panzerkleins. I mean, I don’t miss our squad members dying by the dozens, but we’re so powerful now that it’s not even fun anymore.
Although… this next mission doesn’t allow panzerkleins.
So that’s at least one more mission that might be a challenge.
OH GOD I TAKE IT BACK. I don’t want a challenge anymore!
…
Okay… Hold on. Let’s start at the beginning…
Back then, it was a simpler time. We were young and innocent, drunk on the power of our panzerkleins. And Gator was still alive.
This was our plan: we head back to the Urals and check in with the last of our leads there. We take Sinitsyn into custody…
And then drop by Russian Command…
I really have no idea why we do that second one, but this note we found in the raid on Bauer’s headquarters has opened up a new mission location there.
But — right now — we’re off to pay a visit to Sinitsyn’s hideout, the “Russian Military Factory.”
We have no idea what to expect. Sinitsyn may resist us; he may not. Thor’s Hammer could attack at any moment. They could have been there already. We have no schematics for the facility to plan our entrance or escape.
So what you’re saying is… there’s no plan.
No need to gloat about it.
We just need to stick together, keep our eyes peeled, and watch each others’ backs. If there’s an ambush, no heroics. Stay professional and we’ll make it out just fine.
Great. So we’re all dead.
Leaving all these panzerkleins behind seems… ill advised.
It can’t be helped. I doubt Sinitsyn would surrender himself if we showed up in the trademark suits of the organization that wants him dead.
I just have a bad feeling.
But we’re greeted by this friendly chap, so it looks like there was no need for all the worrying.
Mechnikov. What a deeply symbolic name.
Even though it’s really not the time for this, he decides to give us the tour on the way to Sinitsyn.
We walk by rows and rows of machines as he explains that this is the most advanced facility in Russia, and that the Americans could never dream of anything like this.
American “scientists” — pft! An oxymoron. You might as well put a chimp in a lab coat.
Yeah, what a bunch of dicks the Americans are, right?
You’re telling me.
I’m standin’ right next t’ ya, y’ know.
Next stop: more machines.
…and that’s why Russia is going to win this war.
I told you Russia would win the war and you all thought I was crazy!
And then our final stop: this… door that Mechnikov is super proud of.
Sure is some impressive door tech ya got there.
…uhhh. I hadn’t considered that mode of entry.
Everyone scatters.
They’re coming at us from the north, where they’ve already set up behind a bunch of boxes. Presumably the south and west are clear of enemies for now. Moving back and behind the boxes seems like the safest bet for now.
We’ve taken damage in the cutscene (thanks, game!), so while we pull back, Bogey gets to work straight away.
He gets to safety, then Viper, then Sook.
Then I make a terrible mistake…
I figure Gator’s more useful close up to the attackers, so I prepare to move him forward to the next line of crates.
Lieutenant! Where are you going?
I can take ’em. Besides, girls could be watching!
I guess that while we could spot the Thor’s Hammer guys, their vision wasn’t good enough to see Gator. Until he moves closer. He must enter their field of view after just a few steps, because…
A few bullets fly harmlessly past him. But then one — one very unlucky shot — hits those tanks. And you know the rest.
Our counter attack is fast and deadly. And the building’s two whole security guards jump to our aid.
And we even give the Hammer some of their own medicine right back.
It quickly becomes apparent that the attacking force is no match for us in the open — at least once the element of surprise is removed from the equation. What they are a threat to is the factory workers.
They’re shootin’ the civies!
Oh god. This is what happens when we go in without a plan.
Hey, this ain’t our first rodeo. We’ll do fine. Just keep yer head about ya, right?
I’ve never lost someone under my command…
Happens t’ us all th’ time. ‘sides, he was technic’ly under Bogey’s command.
We lose two of the civilian workers, but manage to halt the attack. Zinaida herself finishes off the last visible soldier — in the control room — with a shot from the beam cannon she’s been hanging onto.
Blind shot, right through the wall.
Feel better?
A little.
While we gather up what of Gator’s gear we can carry, we ponder the situation:
The warehouse area may be clear, but three floors of these cramped rooms remain in the corner of the facility. Sinitsyn could be anywhere inside there. And the Leave button…
Still brown; there are enemies alive on the map.
Sook? I don’t suppose you’ve got enough skill points to unlock Vanguard yet?
Dangit. Just one more level and no one will ever get the drop on him again. Regardless, he’s the best sneaker we’ve got, so the duty still falls to him anyway. We’ll go from the top to the bottom and clear every room until we find our target.
Some preparations before we head in…
Bogey patches up one of the Russian soldiers in the hopes they’ll come to our aid if it turns into a shootout in there.
Viper positions himself on the catwalk across from the control room, with line of sight directly through the window.
And finally, Sook shoots out the other window with his silenced SMG. The shattering glass is probably less than silent, though.
He climbs in through the window, but as he’s crawling over the table on the other side —
This guy shows up.
I’m scrambling to click on him and initiate combat before he does. Agh! Sook can’t start combat while he’s in the middle of an animation! Dammit, where’s the button?! WHAT IS THE HOTKEY TO START COMBAT OH MY GOD.
AAAAGHH.
Viper eviscerates the guy, but the damage is already done. We’ve lost another man.
We all pile inside to avenge our fallen comrade.
Even one of the Russians is so moved by our loss that he joins us. And we start literally knocking down the walls to find Sinitsyn.
Conventional weapons aren’t doing the job, though, so it’s time we went back to the fan favorite: entrance by mine.
Sorry about your billion-dollar research facility, guys, but I’m not losing anyone else in here.
Pardon our dust, Mechnikov.
That gets us down to the second floor (which had been inaccessible due to other damage). Doug has to drop down from the third floor to this ledge, then down to the first and back up again.
On the other side, he stealths up. Zinaida lasers a locked door down, and Doug gets ready to head into the hallway. Except then we hear this guy approaching:
We order Doug to bail. He jumps back down and out of danger while Viper and Zinaida pelt the wall with bullets and whatever that green energy is, hoping we can take him out through the wall.
Nope. And when he comes into view the dude has the nerve to try to kill the scientist who’s just minding his own business.
Viper vaporizes the Hammer soldier’s head before he can finish the job.
Still brown.
We all drop in to back Doug up. And that Russian soldier is still following us like a creep.
When everyone’s gathered up on the second floor, we press on. There’s a big office just to the south that looks like it could be the overseer’s office. It’s the most promising option.
We’re about to enter the room — and probably lose a third squad member — but our Russian tag-along sacrifices himself to save us.
Even if we can’t see the attacker, he’s marked for our snipers.
…and…?
Finally.
Thanks, creepy Russian guy. You died so that we could live.
On to the next episode!
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