MachineGames once considered going further with Wolfenstein 2’s infamous Hitler scene until Bethesda told them to pull back.
Wolfenstein 2’s most notorious moment
The New Colossus features a bizarre sequence where Hitler auditions actors for a propaganda film, only to unravel in a mix of rage, vomit, and urination. MachineGames co-founder Jens Matthies and creative director Jerk Gustafsson wanted this to surprise players with something disturbing yet darkly comic.
Gustafsson admitted they originally debated showing Hitler’s penis during the scene. “It was maybe a little too much,” he later said. In the end, the choice was scrapped.
Bethesda vetoed the idea quickly
Matthies explained that he floated the concept to Todd Vaughn, Bethesda’s VP of Production. His response was blunt: “Yeah, I don’t advise doing that.” Matthies laughed, later admitting, “We all need to be saved from ourselves sometimes.”
Instead, the scene played out with Hitler peeing offscreen, still grotesque, but not gratuitous.
Wolfenstein 2 pushed boundaries beyond Hitler
The New Colossus is full of shocking and chaotic set pieces. Among the standouts:
- B.J. Blazkowicz mowing down Nazis while confined to a wheelchair
- A bloody, topless Anya saving B.J. while heavily pregnant
- B.J. confronting his abusive father in a surreal, action-packed flashback
- Frau Engel brutally murdered Caroline Becker before torturing B.J. further
MachineGames consistently mixes gonzo humor with crushing violence, giving Wolfenstein 2 its chaotic identity.
How the team viewed Hitler’s portrayal
For Matthies, Hitler needed to feel physical and disgusting, the opposite of a spiritual figure. By making him weak, erratic, and grotesque, the team turned the dictator into an object of ridicule while still maintaining menace.
That choice helped keep Wolfenstein 2 aligned with the reboot’s mission: to strip the Nazis of their myth while emphasizing their cruelty.
Wolfenstein 2 leaves room for one more chapter
Even without that cut detail, Wolfenstein 2 cemented itself as a bold, controversial entry in the series. In the same interview, MachineGames teased its desire to close out the trilogy with a third game, saying they still had “story to tell.”
For fans, that tease is almost as tantalizing as what Bethesda kept hidden.
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