"Fighting in Europe during WWII was often about close-quarters combat - men would fire from any position they could find that would help conceal or protect them," Pitchford said. "When I play any WWII game (including our past ones), it's silly that wooden fences provide perfect, impenetrable cover. I've fired a machine gun at wood before - it gets chewed up pretty bad. So, 'Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway' features a lot of destructible cover."

This new focus on degrading cover dramatically changes the way the game will be played, with a need to factor time into the equation, since one moment of delay too long means that wagon you're behind might be nothing but splinters of wood.

The liability goes both ways, especially since the main character, Sgt. Matt Baker, will now be able to command new teams like the machine gun and bazooka squads - teams that can shred enemy cover with the best of them.

"The fact is that Baker's squad has become a recon team for Operation Market Garden. So, they are attached to the 101st Airborne at the division headquarters level and they have access to assets that aren't normally part of a typical airborne infantry squad," Pitchford tells us. "Since you're Baker and you have command of these assets, well - you can really kick some a--."

Another feature that sets the game apart is what the team terms "brotherhood moments."

"When was the last time you saw someone trip and fall in a video game?" Pitchford says. "Have you ever seen a soldier accidentally drop his weapon or a magazine while he is trying to reload? People make mistakes. Teams help each other. We invested in this kind of behavior because we felt it helped take us more plausibly into the real experience."

The authenticity of your companions will be further aided by a new combat stance system, where your entire team will naturally recognize situations and act accordingly. At HQ, they'll stand around, relaxed. On patrol, they'll be alert, but will also chat about girls or drinking. Sneak up on an enemy position, and your allies will enter a stealth stance, where they'll communicate with hand signals and flank the enemy. If the enemy gets the drop on you, the whole team will immediately drop into combat stance - without a command, they'll naturally throw themselves to the ground behind cover and react intelligently to situations.

Even with the technical know-how that is backing up the game, Pitchford is insistent on the deeper values he'd like to instill in "Hell's Highway."

"In 'Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway,' Baker jumps into Operation Market Garden, the largest airborne invasion of all time." Pitchford explains. "Complete obliteration is what these men faced. Baker has to struggle with this burden and it begins to crush him - much like how the corridor of Hell's Highway was crushed by the Germans."