Set during the opening days of World War II on the Eastern Front. Its main cast are a group of Soviet teenagers with extraordinary abilities; the teenagers have been drafted to form a special unit to fight the invading German army. They are opposed by a Schutzstaffel (SS) officer who is attempting to raise from the dead a supernatural army of crusaders from the 12th-century Order of the Sacred Cross and enlist them in the Nazi cause.

Moment of Truth is an apt subtitle for this stealthy sequel to 2007 s Death to Spies--because every move you make is, indeed, a moment of truth. Leaving a corpse where it can be seen, getting caught picking a lock, and sometimes just walking into the wrong room can mean sudden death in this incredibly challenging third-person sneaker. Yet when every bungled deed can lead to an untimely demise, success is all the more rewarding, because while oft-amazing AI makes tiptoeing about highly difficult, the action doesn t usually feel unfair. That doesn t mean, however, that every death feels appropriate. There are occasions in Moment of Truth when gameplay contrivances and a lack of information lead you right to the grim reaper s front door, and you are powerless to avoid his scythe. Nevertheless, there s a satisfying ebb and flow to the game, where long periods of tension are relieved in a single sigh when you accomplish an important objective.

Isaac Shapiro was born in Johannesburg South Africa in 1950, trained as a therapist in the USA and studied intensely the workings of the human mind.