A big thank you!

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A big thank you! - 11/13/2016 7:29:13 PM

mmaruda

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Joined: 11/13/2016
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I'm not sure where to begin. I bought Flashpoint campaigns a very long time ago on Steam, but it took me ages to finally get around to it. And... it's like a drug addiction now. I had a rough time understanding how giving orders works, or how to get around to controlling larger forces, but thanks to the wonderful people who did let's plays of this on Youtube and the godsend OB window, I am now past the initial "I think I know what I'm doing" stage and venturing into the little intricacies that help wreck havoc among enemy forces.

I think this is where Flashpoint Campaigns really shines. You don't have to be a wargamer (I'm surely not) or check every stat and calculate the chances of every engagement, all you need is some common sense and basic knowledge on modern military to enjoy the game.

And then there is the WEGO system. It's nothing new, it's supposed to be more realistic than UGOIGO, but it's biggest strength IMO, is that it's actually more fun. You give orders and then sit with all that tension during the execution phase. It's sublime. It also tells a lot about modern warfare. There you are with your smug face and a cunning plan, confident in your strategy, but as soon as you click that start button, it's all going south and it's just damage control mode all the way after that. It's all so brilliant.

I love the minimalistic, yet clear graphics, I learned to love the interface and... I would like to love the sound. But with the sound on, the resolution takes forever, so I just put the main theme on and use my imagination.

And that is another that surprised me in the game. When you look at the stats of the battle, the briefings all that glorious F2 window and start to think about what they mean, you get a very brutal picture of the battlefield. It can actually be very moving when you start to think about what hides behind these numbers and words.

I finished three campaigns so far. Rolling Thunder was probably the most challenging at the beginning - the Soviets have just so much damn armour, it's such a desperate defence it's daunting. But after that it's pretty much balanced. The Red Hammer campaign was also very enjoyable - you are attacking all the time and since it's the Soviets, it's just "rush B" tactics all the way with T-80 tanks wrecks smoking on all taken objectives. And then there is the tiny little gem that is the Wolves. It's just epic. I finished the campaign after 6 battles since I did not have the heart to put what was left of my boys through another part of hell. But what they have achieved! Around battle 3 I lost most of my forces. Command wrote that we are no longer an effective combat unit. Yet still in the last 2 scenarios just a few platoons with damaged hardware, almost no tanks (2 Leopards left) and the godsend arty managed to murder around 800 enemy units. Just a handful of guys left behind enemy lines on a suicide mission managed to do the impossible. Command apparently hasn't met these boys.

Anyway, what I am trying to say here is that a game that I read about in Tim Stone's article, that I bought out of nostalgia for the olden days V for Victory series, turned out to be one of the best strategy games ever created IMHO. It's addictive, it's beautiful, and there is just so much content here (just had a look at the editor - sweet). Thank you, On Target Simulations, you have successfully managed turn my whole massive game library into one gigantic backlog, because I simply cannot stop playing Flashpoint Campaigns. Just don't stop! Advertise, do a Kickstarter, whatever, just keep this growing. The engine is just so good, you could do anything, WWII, Vietnam, hell even Napoleonic era - I'll buy day one.

Again, a big warm thank you to the devs, I play a lot of games, but I cannot remember when was the last time I enjoyed something so much.

< Message edited by mmaruda -- 11/13/2016 7:32:29 PM >

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RE: A big thank you! - 11/13/2016 8:27:33 PM

Lowlaner2012

Posts: 779
Joined: 11/20/2011
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(in reply to mmaruda)

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RE: A big thank you! - 11/14/2016 11:37:56 PM

IronManBeta

Posts: 4132
Joined: 2/25/2002
From: Burlington, Ontario
Status: offline

On behalf of the team I'd like to thank you, mmaruda, for all these kind words. It certainly brightened our day to read them. The depth of your understanding of the game makes your comments all the more rewarding for us.

I don't play with the sound on myself so I had lost track that it slowed things down. Darn, I will fix that in the next one.

I really like that you played the game with enough care to see the essence of the modern command experience that we were trying to portray. We spent anxious years honing that and it is good to think we have achieved some measure of success with it. There is a constant tension between portraying all the nuts and bolts of modern combat and just getting on with the game part. We have spent a lot of time trying to get to where the happy medium is. A *lot* of play testers and friends of the game have helped with that over the years and I would like to credit them all too.

Yes, Mad Russian's scenarios and campaigns have tremendous depth and are terrific fun to play. He just has a knack for that. Sometimes he worries that he is being "too mean" to the players when he sets them up but we rarely rein him in. In fact, I make a point of putting in whatever new feature he needs to make it more involved and more rife with dilemmas. That creates immersion, challenge and replayability. Plus I just like it when he is mean. Erik Rutins steered MR our way a couple of years ago and we will always be very grateful that he did!

Thanks again mmaruda, and have fun with the game.

Cheers,
Rob C
OTS Lead Developer

(in reply to Lowlaner2012)

Post #: 3