Gary Grigsby's World at War Released Digital download

[Galaril]

FWIW to those who have been following this game World at War Digital download version has been released on the matrix game site . It has gotten a good review over at the Wargamer.com site today.

game link (http://www.matrixgames.com/games/game.asp?gid=295)

[Buccaneer]

Thanks, I did stop by EB games today but they didn't get it in. This'll work.

[Calis]

Bucc, you of course are required to post feedback on it ASAP!

Anxious to hear how this one is, the last thing I need is another game right now, but I'd love for a good lite wargame right about now. You seem to have about the same threshold as I do concerning them, so I'll wait on your thoughts.

[Bubba Wheels]

Review http://pc.ign.com/articles/580/580574p1.html

[Buccaneer]

Biggest download I had ever done - 428mb. Should take about 10min (thanks Adelphia). :)

[MTD]

Where is this available?

[vyshka]

Where is this available?

online through www.matrixgames.com . It should be in stores
anytime now too.

[sabotai]

I've been looking at this one too. Anticipating some thoughts on this one.

[Eaglesfan27]

I've been looking at this one too. Anticipating some thoughts on this one.
Ditto.

[DaddyTorgo]

wasn't this the HUGE one that was going to cost like $70?? That puts me off a little bit. For $70 I expect a hell of a game, awaiting reviews of fellow FOFCers.

[vyshka]

$40. installing right now

[DaddyTorgo]

oh, only 40? For $40 it doesn't have to be that much of a game to get me to buy. Definately not as much as a $70 game :)

[DaddyTorgo]

oh okay. Yeah I am thinking of War in the Pacific. That looked like quite the hardcore game. So, definately interested in World at War. Awaiting reviews before I pick it up though. Need something to replace Axis and Allies, which frankly was never as good on the computer as it was on an actual board.

[Calis]

wasn't this the HUGE one that was going to cost like $70?? That puts me off a little bit. For $70 I expect a hell of a game, awaiting reviews of fellow FOFCers.

You're thinking of War in the Pacific.

Yeah, completely different game, that one was pretty frigging hardcore.

[DaddyTorgo]

grrr. we all know where that latest post by me belongs :)

[Buccaneer]

124-page manual in PDF. Only printed the last 36 pages before the black ink ran out. In glancing at the manual on-screen, it is HUGE. Probably a typical Grisby manual that is loaded with gameplay info, history and strategies.

[Galaril]

Onlty have had time to look through the PDF manual and go through the tutorials btu it looks like it is a keeper from my early impressions. Th etutorials IMHO cover the basics and a little more to get you started. I like the "feel" of the game. A lot of these type of games like HOI 2 seem more like work than gaming and i don't get the WW2 feeling. However this does give me that WW2 feel. Will give more detailed impressions. later the wife is hovering over my should to get on th ecomputer to play some Bejeweled or Dynomite.

[DaddyTorgo]

i too felt like HOI was more like "work" than an enjoyable experience and am glad to hear that this seems to have a good feel. Might even buy tonight with all the good press this is getting, although I'm a bit concerned that the # of turns seems small. But maybe they all take a real long time I guess?

[WSUCougar]

Bit of a threadjack but if anyone wants to swap their HOI2 for something I am interested.

[Galaril]

i too felt like HOI was more like "work" than an enjoyable experience and am glad to hear that this seems to have a good feel. Might even buy tonight with all the good press this is getting, although I'm a bit concerned that the # of turns seems small. But maybe they all take a real long time I guess?

you can extend the end of the war indefinitely so the war could go on for decades if you like to build up turtle-style.

[vyshka]

For those wanting to know more about the game there are some after action reviews of games in the matrixgames WaW forums.

I have gone through the tutorials and it looks like it should be good. That is to be
expected though when Grigsby is the developer.

[vyshka]

you can extend the end of the war indefinitely so the war could go on for decades if you like to build up turtle-style.

Are you talking about HoI or WaW? I'm not sure which he is referring to in his post. At first I thought it was WaW, but it could be HoI. WaW goes until 1946.

I take that back, I just read in the manual that there is an option to turn off
the end date and go until automatic or total victory.

[Galaril]

I don't belive HOI 2 has an option to shut off the finishing date.

[TazFTW]

No option but you can download a no-time limit mod.

[Peregrine]

I'll have to take a look at this. I am playing the hell out of HOI2 these days and love it, but I have room in my heart for many good wargames. :)

[ice4277]

I was thinking about picking up HOI2, but I may change my mind if reviews of WaW are favorable. I'll be interested in what some of you guys have to say about this game over the next few days.

[vyshka]

Since we are talking wargames, I thought people might be interested
in what Norm Koger is currently working on new project (http://home.austin.rr.com/normkoger/RJW.html) .

He is the man who created the Operational Art of War. Having also created
Stellar Crusade, Red Lightning (a personal favorite), Tanks, Age of Rifles, Conflict: Korea, and Conflict: Middle East.

This Russo-Japanese War thing looks pretty cool.

[DaddyTorgo]

mmmmmn. me want World At War. Here's my little concern though, I read in a review that all of the different things are represented by the same icons right? Like all planes have the same icon. But they do have different statistics right? So there are different statistics for say...different types of fighters (P51's vs. P38's say)? Right? I assume...

[Flasch186]

No option but you can download a no-time limit mod.

from where?

[DaddyTorgo]

is there a demo?? I am very leery of buying games without a demo.

[Buccaneer]

Read the manual today and it reads like an awesome game. There is enough attention to detail but still keeping you in the commander/production manager seat. One of the great things I saw was the Setup screen where you can change many settings to make it the game as easy or as hard as you want, as well as to turn off things that do not interest you (i.e., things that would cause the game to more work than fun).

Torgo, this game is at a world-wide strategic scale, thus it cannot break down Air Units that finely without having the gamer spend 2 hours moving hundreds or thousands of units every turn. Combat is resolved in a traditional way using a series of six-sided die rolls. From the manual:


8.5.5 COMBAT PROCEDURES

Combat is resolved through a series of six-sided die rolls modified depending on the situation. The rules that follow

cover these possible modifications, limits, and bonuses. However, the core of combat resolution in World at WarTM

involves the following:

The appropriate Attack Value of an attacking unit is determined as follows:

Land Attack – Used against Land units, against Infrastructure during Infrastructure attacks, and against

Air units on the ground during Airfield attacks.

Aircraft Attack – Used against Air units.

Ship Attack – Used against Fleets (except Submarine Fleets).

Anti-Submarine Attack – Used against Submarine Fleets.

Torpedo Attack – Used against Fleets (except Submarine Fleets) in addition to the use of the unit’s Ship

Attack.

The appropriate Attack Value is the number of dice that the computer will roll. These dice are all rolled together and

added into one sum, which is the Attack Factor.

A defending unit has a Defense Factor that is compared to the Attack Factor just generated. The Defense Factor is

determined by taking the defending unit's Evasion attribute and multiplying it by the defending unit's Durability

attribute. The resulting number is the Defense Factor.

There is one more consideration at this point: the Armor attribute of the defending unit. The Armor attribute affects

the number of dice an attacker may roll. The Armor attribute for a defending unit is the number of dice the attacking

unit must discard before determining the Attack Factor.
The computer determines which attacking unit will face which defending unit (using certain targeting guidelines).

Combat is also simultaneous, so damaged and destroyed units may fire back.

Units have a Range attribute that determines which units fire first in land combat, or at which units get to fire in

Naval combat. Units with a Range of 2 get to fire first, inflicting casualties if applicable, before units with a Range of

1 can fire. After units with a Range of 2 fire, all units, including those with a Range of 2, get to fire.

For example: Germany attacks the Soviet Union in the Baltic States with five Infantry, two Artillery, and two Armor

units. This attack is made when the Soviet region is Politically Frozen. The Soviets have three Infantry to defend

with. The computer determines match ups randomly and has a German Artillery unit attacking one of the Soviet

Infantry units.

The German Artillery unit's Land Attack value is six, meaning it can roll six dice in combat. The Soviet Infantry unit

has no Armor attribute, so no dice are deducted from this total. The computer rolls a 4, 6, 4, 6, 5, and 5, for a total of

30. Since the Germans are attacking a Politically Frozen region, no die roll modifications are allowed, so the total

Attack Factor for this particular combat is 30.

The Soviet Infantry unit has an Evasion attribute of 5 and a Durability attribute of 4. However, since this is

considered a Surprise Attack, the Soviet Infantry's Evasion rating is reduced by one to a total of 4. Four multiplied

by four equals a total of 16. No other modifiers are added or subtracted, so the total Defense Factor for this

particular combat is 16.

Once a total Attack Factor and a total Defense Factor is figured, they are compared. If the Attack Factor is greater

than or equal to the Defense Factor, but not higher than double the Defense Factor, one hit is scored on the

defending unit. If the Attack Factor is equal to or greater than double the Defense Factor, two hits are scored on the

defending unit. Otherwise, if the Attack Factor is less than the Defense Factor, no hits are scored on the defending

unit.

The number of hits scored on a unit is important to remember – all units may take up to two hits before being

destroyed; if one hit is scored, the unit is considered damaged (and is moved to the Production Track for repair; see

section 9.0). The only exception is Militia units can only suffer one hit before being destroyed.

When an air or land unit is damaged in a land region, the units must have a friendly land or Transport Fleet link to a

Factory to be rebuilt. When an Air or Fleet unit is damaged in a sea region, they do not have to have a link to a

Factory to be rebuilt.

In our example above, the Germans have an Attack Factor of 30 and the Soviets have a Defense Factor of 16.

Since 30 is not quite double 16, but is greater than 16, one hit is scored on the Russian unit. If 32 was generated as

the Attack Factor, the Soviet Infantry unit would have taken two hits, causing it to be destroyed. However, since

combat is simultaneous, damaged or destroyed units get a shot at the attacking units before their fate is applied.

Now that the basics are covered, let's move on to the specifics.

Combat is resolved in this order:

1. Air to Air

2. Air to Ground

3. Ship to Ship

4. Air to Sub

5. Submarine versus Ship

6. Ship versus Land

7. Land versus Land

Fire within each phase is simultaneous, with the exception of Air to Ground combat, where if the aircraft is damaged

by anti-aircraft fire, it does not get to attack a ground target. Units that are damaged or destroyed in one phase, do

not progress to the next phase. Units get to fire once in each phase (except for artillery units that get to fire at range

2 and then again at range 1 in phase 7). Units will attempt to select an enemy unit to fire at that is the same type, if

possible, although all enemy units must be fired at by at least one unit before a unit will be doubled up on (i.e. and

Armor unit will fire at an enemy Armor unit if there is one that has not yet been fired upon). The exception to this is

in the Air to Ground phase, where each attacking air unit will be fired at by one enemy ground unit. The Ground unit

with the best AA value will fire at the first attacking air unit. The Ground unit with the second best AA value will fire

at the second attacking air unit, and so on.
Another exception to the basic rules are that Air units that are bombing ground units will attempt to fire at artillery

units first, with each artillery unit being attacked by two air units before any non-artillery units will be attacked.

The order of firing units and target selection is randomized during combat.

Heavy and Light Fleets will attempt to bombard land regions they are adjacent to that are attacked by friendly land

forces during their turn. This will not happen if the ships are in a mandatory combat sea zone at the instant that the

land combat is resolved. The number of ships that can bombard is equal to one plus the number of units that are

amphibiously invading the area being bombarded. Bombarding ships will select any enemy artillery units as their

primary targets. Artillery will return fire at bombarding ships. When a possibility exists for ships to bombard, before

the combat is resolved, the player will be asked if they wish the ships to bombard. If the player answers no, no ships

will bombard. One should consider the presence of enemy artillery, and whether they are likely to be destroyed by

friendly airpower, before giving approval to bombard. Ships can be very vulnerable to fire from artillery.

[DaddyTorgo]

but Bucc my question is: is every single plane basically considered to the same "type" of plane with the same stats, or are there different types? Cuz from what I've heard there aren't, but I just want to confirm that, which I could do through a demo too if I could find one.

[Peregrine]

From what I've seen the types of units are limited, however your particular nation can choose different research roads that would improve different things, you could choose to go with fast and maneuverable planes or ones with more firepower I believe.

Unit type list

Infantry
Militia
Mechanized
Airborne
Flak
Artillery
Figther Air
Tactical Air
Heavy Air
Carrier Air
Carrier Fleet
Heavy Fleet
Light Fleet
Sub Fleet
Transport Fleet
Supply

[DaddyTorgo]

thanks Peregrine. That clears it up.

[scooter]

For those that may be able to wait a couple days to play this one (instead of the instant gratification of a digital download), I just noticed that GoGamer has it for $34.90. I think it may go nicely with Silent Hunter III for $27.90 :D

[gstelmack]

My local EB is hoping to get this in today, so I may have to pick it up. When do the FOFC PBEM games get rolling?

[WSUCougar]

For those that may be able to wait a couple days to play this one (instead of the instant gratification of a digital download), I just noticed that GoGamer has it for $34.90. I think it may go nicely with Silent Hunter III for $27.90 :D
Man, do you ever have me pegged. Placed that exact order last night. :D

[Buccaneer]

Only got about 30 sec before going to work

the game is very civ-like, in the production, movement and attributes of units with a similar conflict resolution - but more detailed

[Lonnie]

Just saw it in the Dallas Fry's ad for $29.99. I might swing by there after work.

[DaddyTorgo]

is there a demo out yet? if so can someone hxxp it cuz I can't find it, and i refuse to buy without demo-ing.

[Galaril]

It sounds like there "Definitely" won't be a demo released ever,something about company policy. I got it and would hignbly recommend the game.

[DaddyTorgo]

really? cuz i read interviews that said a demo would be released a week or two after the game goes gold. Oh well. The lack of a demo pisses me off.

[Galaril]

I never heard that. Everything on the official forums from the devlopers is that matrix doesn't usually release demos.

[DaddyTorgo]

odd. oh well. still, it's getting pretty good reviews, I just might have to take the plunge, especially with the two old paychecks i just found lying on my floor :)

[DaddyTorgo]

dola: can anyone tell me if the game is playable in 1024x768 or 1280x800? Without a demo I just want to confirm that before I buy the game, in case returning it is a no-no.

[vyshka]

dola: can anyone tell me if the game is playable in 1024x768 or 1280x800? Without a demo I just want to confirm that before I buy the game, in case returning it is a no-no.

It will run at 1024x768

[Buccaneer]

1024x768 is required.

[DaddyTorgo]

goodstuff. thanks guys!

[CraigSca]

Is the sound in Dubly? I would never play a game without Dubly sound.

[Bea-Arthurs Hip]

Ok, I cant take it anymore. I am downloading right now.

To anyone who has the game: I am new to any of Grigsbys games, can I play the tutorials and be ready to jump right in after running through them?

What is the learning curve?

Thanks

[Galaril]

Ok, I cant take it anymore. I am downloading right now.

To anyone who has the game: I am new to any of Grigsbys games, can I play the tutorials and be ready to jump right in after running through them?

What is the learning curve?

Thanks


I also, am new to Gary's games and war sims as well. I have read the manual through once and played the tutorials. I have started up one game and got my ass handed to me by the AI. I will definitely take the the weekend and read the manual as you play . I have it download on the PC as a PDF and keep it open and as needed switch between it an dthe game to check on stuff. Great, great game.

[Buccaneer]

agree with Galaril. I'm almost done with the tutorial, having to learn about the Production Phase next. From what I can tell, WaW has a much less steeper learning curver than HOI. Don't mistake the streamlining and truly global scale as being "dumbed-down". Maybe to hardcore grognards who gets their panties in a bunch when the angle of deflection of a tank's upper hull is not quite right when a certain artillery shell hits it. As I said before, this game is very Civ-like. Here's what I mean:

These are the units attributes



Speed: This is the Movement Factor of the unit. The Movement Factor is the number

of regions a unit may move without using Strategic Movement (i.e., moving under its

own power and not being transported).

Transport Capacity (for Strategic Movement) / Load Cost (for other units) - For

Transport Fleets it is shown as two numbers separated by a slash, e.g. 25/3, where

the first number is the Transport Capacity and the second number is the amphibious

capacity (used for invasions).

Land Attack – This is the unit's Land Attack Value, used when engaging in combat

versus other land units and/or infrastructure, or when attacking air units on airfields.

Aircraft Attack – This is the unit's Air Attack Value, used when engaging in combat

versus air units. If the unit is a land unit, this is the land unit's anti-aircraft ability.

Ship Attack – This is the unit's Ship Attack Value, used when engaging in combat

versus ship units. Note that Artillery units can attack ships by using Op-Fire or when in

a region being bombarded by ships.

Anti-Sub Attack – This is the unit's Anti Sub Attack Value, used when engaging in

combat versus submarines.

Torpedo Attack – This is the unit's Torpedo Attack value, used when engaging in

combat versus ships.

Range – This value is used to determine at what combat range the unit can fire (e.g.,

Artillery with a Range of 2 gets to shoot before land units with a Range of only 1).

Evasion – This is the unit's first Defense Rating. Evasion is multiplied by Durability to

get the unit's Defense Rating.

Durability – This is the unit's second Defense Rating. Durability is multiplied by

Evasion to get the unit's Defense Rating.

Armor – This is the amount of protection the unit has; when the unit is attacked, it

reduces the number of dice rolled by the attacking unit.

Production Cost – This is the number of turns (and, number of Production Points)

that are required to build the unit.

As far as Production, you simply have Factories, Resources, Population and Transportation in each region. You decide what to build (and move out) each turn. In a region that is on the front lines (like in Europe), you could have

11 Infantry
2 Militia
7 Mechanized
3 Artillery
2 Figther Air
1 Transport Fleet
8 Supply

That's not too bad to manage. The key, though, is to know how to use the units properly - in the offense and defense (like sending in a tactical bomber prior to the infantry and make sure you have plently of armor units support them). The fact that, particularly playing as the Western Allies, you have fight a different kind of war in the Pacific and trying to balance supplies between the two theatres will be interesting.

[Galaril]

A new patch has been released he is the link and readme.Word is Gary is already working and done with AI improvements for the next patch :eek: :

Readme patch 1.16
Change History:

v1.016 – April 5th, 2005
(First Update Changes and Additions)

Please Note: Old save files (v1.005) should be able to be loaded with the updated version. However, if playing PBEM, once one player has loaded the game using the patch, all the next players to follow must also play the game using the patch. Not all fixes will work in games that continue from old saves.

1. Important New Feature - Users using systems with less than 640 MB of RAM or less than 100 MB of texture space will be set to Low Graphic Quality (16 bit) mode the first time the game loads with this version. It will mark the new graphics setting on the preferences screen. At this point if the user selects High Graphic Quality (32 bit) it will use that setting on future loads. Old preference files (v1.005 game release) will be ignored on the first run of this newer version. These settings are designed to reduce troubleshooting by setting the systems that should be using Low Graphic Quality for performance and compatibility to that setting for the first load, while allowing a change back to High Quality if the user desires. In most cases, the difference in visual Quality will be slight, but with a significant performance gain on slower systems.

2. Bug Fix – The sound handling on the production screen was improved, which may help some systems that were experiencing issues with overlapping sounds.

3. New Feature – Added the ability to interrupt the game during an AI turn. Press ctrl-p to pause the AI and gain control over the top toolbar. Press ctrl-r to resume the AI’s turn.


4. Bug fix – When Combat Animations are turned on, the game may crash during a battle involving 64 or more units (combined total of both sides’ units). This has been fixed so that it will work with up to 256 units (when more than 256 units are in a battle, some will be left out of the combat animation but the game should no longer crash).

5. Bug fix – A crash reported during AI movement was determined to be caused by bad unit data. A fix was made to self correct this kind of data problem and more safeguards were inserted to protect the system from initially generating bad data. This crash was reported by one user in the German AI movement phase of the Winter 1945 turn.

6. Bug Fix – Combat modifiers for attacks on frozen zones are not taking effect. Now the surprise rule modifiers will function properly and no die roll modifiers are allowed in combat in frozen zones as per the manual.

7. Bug Fix - When Germans invade Russia in winter, the first winter rules are in affect on the turn of invasion. They will no longer take affect until the following winter turn.

8. Bug Fix - There were some instances where units that should have been able to retreat were destroyed as if they had no legal area to retreat to. One example was Soviet Units in Vladivostock being destroyed as being unable to retreat after a battle even though they had a retreat route. Units will now retreat properly.

9. Bug fix – In some cases Carrier Air units on a Carrier Fleet in a battle were being destroyed as unable to retreat even though the Carrier Fleet successfully retreated. Now, the Carrier Air unit will retreat with the Carrier Fleet.

10. Bug Fix – Units on factories that are scrapped upon capture were providing extra resources to the capturing player. Now, when units are scrapped when the factory they are on is captured, no resources will be generated for either player.

11. Bug Fix – A few instances of crashes while using the turn replay were reported. Changes were made to better prevent these crashes from occurring.

12. Bug fix – Sometimes the last line of the message listing what has been produced at the end of the production phase is truncated. This display bug has been fixed.

13. Bug fix – There have been several reports of AI ground units remaining in sea regions without transports at the end of their turn. Changes were made to the AI to eliminate possible illegal moves that might explain these reports.

14. AI improvement – Improved the AI’s ability to team up on Germany late in games when Germany is reduced to just a few areas and Western Germany is controlled by an especially large German army.

15. AI improvement – Improved the Western Allied AI’s ability to resist a German invasion of England. The Allies should be more aggressive with their fleets in trying to disrupt a German invasion.

16. AI improvement – Improved naval AI so that fleets will do a better job avoiding making poor odds attacks.

17. AI improvement – Improved naval AI so that the Russian fleet in the Black Sea will be more aggressive at attacking German transports in the Black Sea.

18. AI improvement – Improved Japanese AI to avoid weak attacks against areas where militia will be generated.


v1.005
(First Release Changes and Additions)

1. (Addition) After a game is completed, both major alliances (Axis and Allies) will receive a victory point score. This is in addition to the basic victory level (Total, Decisive, Marginal, Draw). This score takes into account the victory level, difficulty level, number of turns played, the build cost of units damaged and destroyed (both friendly and enemy), and the factories, resource centers and regions owned at the end of the game. The higher the number, the better the score.

2. (Change) In reference to section 3.2.6, political garrison requirements are not only checked at the end of friendly player turns. All political garrison requirements (for all players) are checked after each battle is resolved and also at the end of each player’s turn.

3. (Addition) Just below the save date on the Load Game screen, during PBEM games you will find the text message Console: 0. This indicates the number of times that the data in the game has been altered by the players. This should always be 0, as players should never attempt to alter game data. If you see a value greater than 0, your opponent has tampered with the game data.

4. (Addition) The game now keeps track of how many times each player has loaded a saved game during the current turn when playing in a PBEM game. Some PBEM players prefer that player’s not be able to replay all or part of their turns. We’ve added this loaded count feature for those players. The loaded count appears just after the Console message on the Load Game screen. The game will track the number of times the game has been loaded during a player’s turn.

Each time a saved game is loaded, the save, and all other saves by this player this turn will have that player’s load count increased by one. Whenever a new save is made, the load count only for this save will be decreased by one. Whenever a PBEM game is saved, the game will automatically exit to the main menu. As long as a player always loads the most recent save (and only loads each save once), the final load count for the player’s save that they pass to the next player will be 0. So when you load a saved game, if the value is ever greater than 0 for any of your opponents, you know that that opponent has loaded a save more than once (allowing them to retry a portion of their turn). The loads are listed for each of the 5 World Powers: Ge, Ja, So, Ch, We (although nothing is listed for a player if their load count is 0). Whenever the German or Soviet player loads a saved game, the load counts of the previous players are zeroed out.

Example: Soviet Union is played by player #3 and China and the Western Allies is played by player #4. The Soviet player loads the save received from the Japanese player and starts playing. They then save the game, exiting to the main menu after the save. The Soviet player then loads his save, finishes the turn, saves the game and emails the save to player #4. When player #4 loads the save, he will see no load count as the Soviet player did not make any extra loads. Player #4 moves for the Chinese and then during the Western Allies turn they save the game. Player #4 loads this new save, continues the turn, but exits to the main menu. They then reload their save. Since this is an extra load, the Western Allies load count will be increased. If player #4 completes the turn, saves the game and sends it to the German player, the German player will see We: 1 on the Load Game screen for this save, and will know that during the Western Allies turn an extra load was made.

5. (Clarification) In section 8.5.7, the combat modifier that begins with “+1 Firing Unit is German…” should be changed to read: +1 Unit in Defending Force and the Firing Unit is German in a cold weather Soviet Nationality region during the first winter turn following a German declaration of war with the Soviet Union.

6. (Addition) Section 8.5.8 Combat Animation - When a unit is fired at, two small boxes will appear near the target unit. The first number that is displayed in one of these boxes is the modified defense factor of the target unit. The next number displayed is displayed in red, and is the modified Attack Factor of the firing unit.


link (http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=834675)

[JPhillips]

How well do allies work together in WaW? My major problem with HOI2 right now is that allies never seem to attack together. Of course amphibious landings almost never happen at all in HOI2.

[Buccaneer]

Galaril, have you started a game playing as the Western Allies?

[HerRealName]

How well do allies work together in WaW? My major problem with HOI2 right now is that allies never seem to attack together. Of course amphibious landings almost never happen at all in HOI2.

I've only played 2 games so far, both as the Soviet Union. The Western Allies did provide a lot of supply to me in both my games. The US, UK, Australia, and Canada are all the same entity in the game so the player could coordinate attacks. Amphibious landings are very possible in GGWaW.

[Eaglesfan27]

Digital download is such a good business move. Tonight, I'm in the mood to play a grand scope war game. As a result, I've just purchased this and am downloading it now.

[Pumpy Tudors]

I'm about to give this game a shot, too. Still on the fence about it, and I've never been terribly good at turn-based strategy games (although I love them), but I should be happy as long as I have fun.

[Buccaneer]

I'm about to give this game a shot, too. Still on the fence about it, and I've never been terribly good at turn-based strategy games (although I love them), but I should be happy as long as I have fun.
...and being able to manage your first turn.

[Pumpy Tudors]

...and being able to manage your first turn.
Now you've frightened me. Maybe I'll purchase tomorrow. :)

[DaddyTorgo]

i've resisted shilling this other game, but if anyone is into Space combat sims a la Wing Commander or that type of genre, Matrix has another game called "Starshatter" that has a playable demo and is a really easy-to-learn and fun-to-play game.

everything from single space-fighter combat to massive capital ships in huge formation battles. i havn't gotten that deep into it, but i'm very satisfied with the 30 bucks i spent on it.

[Eaglesfan27]

Now you've frightened me. Maybe I'll purchase tomorrow. :)

I don't think I'm going to play much tonight. I could easily spend a few hours tonight just reading this manual (and most likely will.) :)

[Eaglesfan27]

i've resisted shilling this other game, but if anyone is into Space combat sims a la Wing Commander or that type of genre, Matrix has another game called "Starshatter" that has a playable demo and is a really easy-to-learn and fun-to-play game.

everything from single space-fighter combat to massive capital ships in huge formation battles. i havn't gotten that deep into it, but i'm very satisfied with the 30 bucks i spent on it.
Is the purchaseable version downloadable as well? If so, I'll likely check it out at some point. I really wish all companies would go to digital distribution.

[DaddyTorgo]

yeah the purchaseable version is downloadable too. and the demo isn't time-limited like some other companies, it's just limited to I guess you'd say the "first campaign." I gotta say it only took me like...an hour with the demo TOPS before I bought the game. And I played it for a good...3-4 hours the first night. I still havn't played World at War for that long (but that's more b/c i feel I need to really read the manuel to be any good at that)

[gstelmack]

I checked out the Starshatter demo a while back and it definitely looked cool. It's on my list to pick up soon...

[Galaril]

I checked out the Starshatter demo a while back and it definitely looked cool. It's on my list to pick up soon...

Do you need a joystick to play it or not?

[DaddyTorgo]

nope. i play it on a keyboard and it's fine. it's like a flight sim though. if you think you'd prefer a joystick for a flight sim then you would probably for starshatter too.

[Buccaneer]

As a matter of verification, can someone share with me what would be the typical turn 1 movements or movement strategies for the Allies?

[Galaril]

Yeah, I too would like a kick start turn one. This is atough game to get started with.

[JPhillips]

Buc: What I do is take Italian Africa with the two troop next to it while also moving a BB into the Red Sea for support. I move CLs where needed to eliminate the Nazi sub threat. I land in Morocco to begin my capture of N. Africa. I move my troops into Egypt to stop the Nazis from advancing.

Those are my offensive moves. I may bomb Paris if there are no planes stationed there.

I'm just now playing my thrid game as the Allies. Its summer of 1941 and I took all of N. Africa and Italy before the US entered the war. The Nazis are already pulling troops from the Eastern front to stop the British advance. Now the US is ready to enter the fray. I'm hoping for the surrender of Germany before 1943.

[Buccaneer]

What about all those units around UK and the North Sea? Also, do you keep the navy where they are along the Atlantic Coast? If you want to defend an area of sea, what would be a good mix of units? My hesistancy, besides not being very experienced in WW2 games like this, is spending quite a bit of time doing something totally stupid.

[JPhillips]

I keep a couple BBs around the UK, but the Nazis seem very reluctant to force a naval confrontation in the North Atlantic. I generally strip the UK of troops and throw them into Africa and then Italy. Once you take either half of Italy the Nazis lose their ships in the Med. and that allows me to send those carriers to the Pacific.

I like BBs around the coast of Europe for bombard value and CLs spaced around the atlantic for antisub duty. Carriers can also pick off subs, but I want them to meet up with the US carriers in the Pacific as soon as they enter the war. I have found BBs to be of very little value except for bombarding on assaults. As in real life, carriers eat up BBs.

[BYU 14]

Is the sound in Dubly? I would never play a game without Dubly sound.

It's not in Dubly, but you can offset that with the new Soundblaster PC amps that go to 11.

[Peregrine]

I'm not sure I get the naval reference, why would Germany have ships in the Med? Wouldn't it be primarily Italian ships instead?

[JPhillips]

Peregrine: Yeah, but Italy and Germany are controlled by the same player in the same turn, so for game purposes they are all given the German designation.

[Wolfpack]

Think of it like Axis & Allies. At such a scale, giving the Italians their own troops makes no sense because the Italians didn't make a dent, comparatively speaking, in the war. Germany had to bail them out in Greece and in North Africa, after all.

[Buccaneer]

BBs and CLs?

[Wolfpack]

If you're asking abbreviations, I belive it's battleships and light cruisers (though I suppose it's just cruisers in the game).

[Buccaneer]

Actually neither terminology. We have Heavy Fleet and Light Fleet. I'm just not experienced in this type of game to know better.

[JPhillips]

Sorry Buc. Think BBs for Heavy fleets and CLs for Light fleets.

I achieved a total Allied victory in Winter of 1945. The Nazis held out well in Europe. I had Italy by Spring of 1942, but didn't get all of France until late 1943. Western Germany took three attacks from my combined armies and two attacks from the Soviets before finally falling in spring of 1945.

The Japanese fell fairly quickly once I started sending enough transports and troops that direction. My best work was sinking the Japanese fleet without losing a single carrier! It took over three years to get the last of the Jap carriers, but in the five major carrier engagements I lost planes and escorts but never a carrier.

[Buccaneer]

Thanks, that helps.

[DaddyTorgo]

playing as the allies intimidates me in this game. There's...so much. I havn't even begun to get the hang of the whole naval-combat thing. I'm still working on getting the hang of land combat (admittedly havn't played enough cuz of MVP 2005 sucking all of my time)

[JPhillips]

Once you get comfortable enough with movement and combat besure and do production yourself. That made a huge difference in my early conquest of Italy. I made some mistakes and never did quite get the hang of manpower, but building troops that could go right into N. Africa and then Italy freed up my Med. naval forces to go to the Pacific.

I never built a heavy fleet and only three extra carries. I built several transports, but only a couple of subs. In general I built much more land/air power than the auto build with a corresponding lack of naval build.

[DaddyTorgo]

yeah. i've already taken over production cuz I feel that's pretty vital to the overall strategies that i might produce. I also got frustrated with the AI's naval building (is there a slider I didn't see for that?) As Germany it was concentrating on building me subs and boats early on, which was making it difficult for me to prosecute the war in the East after conquering the rest of Europe blitzkrieg-style.

[Bea-Arthurs Hip]

and the demo isn't time-limited like some other companies, it's just limited to I guess you'd say the "first campaign." I gotta say it only took me like...an hour with the demo TOPS before I bought the game

Is there a demo out? I could not find anything on the Matrix site.

[Galaril]

No demo.

[gstelmack]

playing as the allies intimidates me in this game. There's...so much. I havn't even begun to get the hang of the whole naval-combat thing. I'm still working on getting the hang of land combat (admittedly havn't played enough cuz of MVP 2005 sucking all of my time)
Try playing a few rounds as the Russians. It's a bit simpler introduction to the game (no real Naval worries) and helps you figure out how production works.

[sachmo71]

Not sure if anyone saw this, but it's a quick and dirty strategy guide for the game. Enjoy.


http://waw.wargamer.com/mark.html

[gstelmack]

So, anyone up for getting a PBEM game started?

[JPhillips]

I'd be in. Although after a play as Germany and a couple times watching the computer play everyone I think the Allies are far superior in this game setup.

[judicial clerk]

Shut up, shut up, shut up!

I don't have time to play this game.

PBEM would be so badass!

Does Russia play as kind of a thrid party, not strictly alligned with the Allies?

[gstelmack]

Does Russia play as kind of a thrid party, not strictly alligned with the Allies?
Well, they can't attack them or anything, but they are played separately.

[sachmo71]

The game is on sale at gogamer.com for 27.90 for the next 48 hours. A copy is winging it's way to my house as we speak!

[judicial clerk]

I have high hopes for this game. I am excited to have a good WWII strategy game that I can pop into the computer and play without too much fuss. Of course, first I must invest the time in learning how the game works. I do not think that it is too complicated, but it is a little intimidating at first.

I have played through the tutorials and I have decided to jump in as Germany. I am playing with normal rules and I think i have simple supply selected. I know that I am going to make some mistakes (especially regarding supply, production, and repair) that will probably result in a ass-kicking from the AI, but I figure that this is the best way to learn the game.

So gremany, I attacked and won in Beglium/Holland with about 5? infantry and 1 artillery followed by western France with my 6? tanks (wich triggered the Vichy event). I next took Denmark which was unprotected.

Per the tutorial. i then repaired the infrastructure of Denmark (so that i could use its strategic movement in my amphibous assault) and invaded Norway by amphibous and airborne assault.

Next I attacked the British navy in the med with the Italian navy and maybe a bomber? and won.

For non combat movement I moved artillery into denmark to take advantage of opportunity fire against any allies lokking to sail into the Baltic and flak into western france to hopefully deter strategic bombing. i moved my subs into the port in western france so that they can later use their two movement points to hit at british shipping and return to base in the same turn. I also moved some infantry towards yugoslavia and I will invite them to join the thrd reich soon.

[lighthousekeeper]

Game available for $3.90 at GoGamer

All PC Games - World at War for PC (http://www.gogamer.com/viewproduct.htm?productId=4761722&extid=August1409)


I couldn't tell from rereading this thread whether this game was worth the time investment. Any comments from those who played?