SamuraiProgrmmr
Posts: 353
Joined: 10/17/2004
From: Paducah, Kentucky
Status: offline
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I have been telling my friends that might be interested in playing this the following:
This game catches the 'flavor' of the different facets of the war.
By this, I mean that the decisions you are making have the feel of what those decisions might have been to the highest echelons of command.
The land combat has the same familiar feel of overrun, blitz, and attrition that defines that part of the war. Combined with the importance of keeping supply lines open (a face-down out of supply unit that is attacked is TOAST), the ability to reorganize troops with an HQ (and make that final push at much cost), and the limited actions in non land impulses give the impression that you are faced with the same decisions the Generals might have agonized over.
The air combat, while stylized, give you some real decisions in economy of force that have to be experienced to be believed. How many fighters do I send to defend / clear a path? How many land air should I send to be sure? Can I force my opponent to commit air assets when this is only a diversion to the upcoming main battle? These things have the possibility of making the Battle of Britain come alive!
The Naval portion of the game handles the idea of patrolling fleets in a way I had never experienced before. Choosing which box to put units into (i.e. how much time they spend patrolling the area) makes for some interesting possibilities. A mad dash to strategically redeploy fleets over two impulses feels and behaves different than a patrol which is yet different from a strike force.
Choosing between Land / Air / Naval / Combined impulses is like spending time at the Craps table. Often it will be the wrong bet at the wrong time. Only the dice will tell. Nevertheless, with a determined and well thought out plan, these things can be coordinated.
Planning your builds out several turns in advance in order to get the ramping correct becomes almost a game within itself. As Germany ramps up submarine production, the CW must take note and perhaps change some of their builds to light ships for ASW. Is Germany going to prosecute the convoys in earnest or are they trying to get CW to lose the benefit of the ramp up in fighters and bomb them into the 1800s?
Understanding that sometimes the threat of doing one of two or three things is more debilitating to the enemy than actually doing one thing makes the game even more fun. Every time you commit to a plan, there is a chance that it will open the door to your opponent to throw a wrench in the works.
The big green monster (aka the USA) has to balance between the two major Axis powers. Preparing for war in one theater without some care to the other can figuratively break your back. With the time from conception to launch for the largest naval units consuming 1/3 of the game, these are decisions that become delicate. Too many CVs will take care of Japan, but how much good will they do you to force Germany to pull units off of the Eastern Front to defend Fortress Europa?
Do you have enough transports to throw the D-Day assault? How much did losing 2 of them to subs during transit hurt?
These are the kinds of things that I feel give this game its 'flavor'. To me, that feels as much like immersion that a turn based game can be.
Furthermore, I certainly hope that this is a commercial success so that its sister game, Days Of Decision, can be integrated into it. As with all games, we are presented with the situation at the beginning of some interesting battle, campaign, or war. With Days Of Decision, the party starts almost 4 years earlier in January 1936. This is before the Anschluss, before the Soviet Pact, before the purge, and early enough to complete the Maginot line. "What if" becomes "lets see".
I am getting excited... I NEED THIS GAME!!!!!
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Bridge is the best wargame going .. Where else can you find a tournament every weekend?
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Printable Version
Immersion? - 
it might be the first game that you have ever played that you have to think, the question might be what do I do next to win this game. I dont believe winning or losing has anything to do with the enjoyment of this game. 
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