Russian version of best game since CC released, English is coming! :)

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#1

Promising ‘Theatre of War’ game turned out to be actually very good so far.
I’m big fan of Close Combat series, played its multiplayer for several years at work after work hours. It’s a pity that many its successors like Squad Assault were actually very poor compared to original 2D CC.
And now, after 5 years of development the DVD with a russian version released this week (english should follow in a month i heard) of this very ambitious game is in DVD-ROM of my PC.
It’s made using heavily modified IL2 Sturmovik engine. Thus you can see several kilometers of terrain with myriads of trees, etc. in any direction.
One thing - its wargame like CC, not typical RTS at all. No realism or historical accuracy sacrificed for gameplay (as i’ve seen so far). Real weapon ranges, etc. No silly compromises like simplifying something for action-orientated gameplay (but there is plenty of action i must say). Even explosions are almost lifelike - no movie-like clouds of twirling burning gas (from grenade, lol), the typical explosion is one short and bright flash and then lots of flying soil, debris and dust.
Almost anything what i liked in CC is in this game. SEVERAL Grand Campaigns (Polish, French, Brits & USA, USSR, Germany)!. Soldiers gaining experience and staying with you as ong as you keep them alive. Panicking. Suppression. Scavenging of weapons and ammunition from fallen soldiers. Multiplay (LAN, Internet). And much more! Fully modelled ballistics (including weather, gunner skill and morale, properties of barrel and ammunition, …). Maps up to 2x2km. Real weapon ranges. Various soldier skills. Lots of aircraft directly from IL2 Sturmovik (bombers, sturmoviks, even recon planes as i’ve been told) attacking enemy or your positions (and interceptors which actully battle and shoot them down above your battlefield). Off-map artillery (one flaw though - mo mortars yet, promised in addon. Oh well). Reinforcements. Capturing of mostly intact vehicles (but high command will take enemy vehicles from you after battle).
And good news for poles on this forum - there is a separate polish campaign (i’ve started playing it, completed one mission - defence under Mokra 01.09.39). 7TP, TKS, Vickers… (even several variants of all them). Difficult mission, next one is even more difficult…
“Druzhina, uvaga!!!” :smiley:

Here is a link for upcoming English version
http://www.battlefront.com/products/tow/index.html

Here is screens from Russian version
http://ww2.games.1c.ru/?action=screenshot&groupid=12
(use links below for much more).

#2

Ah yes, I will get this as battkefront brought us the wonderfull Combat Mission series.

Surely you have this?

#3

excelent, thanks for the heads up.

#4

Yep, i’ve played Barbarossa to Berlin mostly. Great game, if only it had campaigns… I recall that battlefront released T-72 too, take a look at it’s demo if haven’t played it!

#5

I’ve played it some more and can correct some what i’ve posted earlier. Campaigns are not so lengthy as i would want - polish is only 3 missions big (but i still haven’t complete its insane last mission - 4 Pz4c are too big for 4 battle-weary 7TP which have only several AP rounds left, ahem). Other campaigns are 7-15 missions long. Some missions are very hard and some are almost easy (several missions in French campaign were completed by me at first try).
Another thing, the feel is different from CC - the pace is much faster. Here you can have several attack waves coming at you in 10 minutes. The missions themselves usually take no more than 30 minutes (40 tops). The exception is second polish mission, it took almost 2 hours (my poor guys took captured german 37mm gun through several hills to reach good firing position for shooting at immobilized enemy tanks) :).
Typical mission (from polish or french campaigns) consists of several waves of enemy reinforcements. Morale plays a big role - soldiers rout, recuperate and reform and return to fight. One time bastards even bailed out from undamaged tank. Damage model is very detailed. All crew members can be ijured or killed depending on where the shell hit (if it hit the turret - bad news for gunner, but driver will be okay probably). Sometimes entire crew dies from inside fragments and tank look ok from outside. Parts of tank can be broken by a shell and fall off (shurzen, for example). Devices are modelled - it’s possible to destroy engine (and only in that rare cases tank actually begins to burn). Imobilization due to destroyed track is common. You can order shoot normaly or order to shoot specifically at tracks, hull or turret. One time i saw an explosion of ammo (tank was hit several times from behind) - it was EXPLOSION i must say. Killed several soldiers around.
AI is not so dumb - enemy soldiers man guns which crew were killed. You can oder your soldiers man a tank if it was not destroyed completely (but, say, infantry MG gunner will have hard time accurately shooting that meanie cannon or driving the tank). Effectiveness depends on skill - for example. a good driver will move the tank smoothly and find optimal way while green one will move, stop, turn, move, stop - you got the idea.
If gun (or tank) is stationary and target is stationary too then gunner will have more high probability of hitting the target with each shot - logical.
BTW, models are very detailed if you look close, i’ve not seen such detail level even in sims, not to mention tactics or strategies. Game has built-in encyclopaedia similar to IL2-Sturmovik.

#6

Hi Sneaksie
While i could not to get this game - living in the tupical province, but soon i could order it in the Rostov.
Excellent game i hear.
Detalized graphics and a great map space - tactical real-time stategy. This is the new generation of tactical RPG on the WW2 theme.
They did it on the modernized “IL-2 engine” - it’s fantastic?

#7

Thanks Sneaksie,

Good graphics. I will buy this game!

Pazdrawlaju,

Lancer44

#8

Lancer44
Try the demo first (it should be released soon) to be sure.

#9

I would advise anyone to wait a while for the Battlefron version. It will be more realistic as they are adding in extras.