Wargame: AirLand Battle

[Kursah]

Store Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/222750
Steam Info Page: http://steamcommunity.com/app/222750#scrollTop=0




I gotta say I overlooked this a few times but with the receont Steam sales, and then reading the positive reviews and the active community I felt this was right up my alley for some good action RTS. I still enjoy World in Conflict from time-to-time, the Cold War and What If scenarios are always entertaining. I will give WiC the story telling award here, I really enjoyed it the several playthru's I have completed over the years...if the game was just a little more stable. The MP was a hoot too especially on a team that communicated and supported eachother! Too bad there's no WiC 2...

Well I have recently started to get into Wargame: AirLand Battle, which apparently has over 800 realistically modeled (physics, armor, firepower, etc) units and all sorts of neat stuff from the Cold War Era. The graphics aren't the greatest but it runs nice and smooth in DX11 mode. I'm still learning the controls and what not, but the idea is similar to WiC. There's no base building or resource gathering, you get points, you build your blend of unit with those points and you gain more points on the battlefield. The sounds are solid, the explosions are cool, it's really entertaining but is A LOT more challenging than WiC ever was. The AI is also praised by many reviews as a strong point here. You can also do up to 10v10 in MP.

So far I'm enjoying it with what little time I've had to game lately..anyone else playing this? Have tips/tricks?

Edit: Here's the Metacritic so you can check out pro and user reviews! I would rate it an 8.5/10 and that's with me sucking horribly at it!

http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/wargame-airland-battle

 

[SaltyFish]

Looks good. I'm going to check it out. Gameplay somewhat reminds me of King Arthur The Role-Playing Wargame, which was the last decent RTS game I've played.

 

[MT Alex]

I've been pining over this game since it was in beta, but haven't got around to getting it. It reminds me of something closer to Harpoon for land, which would be amazing.

 

[Kursah]

So far I'm really liking it. The learning curve is a little steeper than most, but I like the challenge and being an RTS and Action Strategy fan I don't mind this at all! I like the real military equipment and era.

I am happy with my purchase to say the least!

 

[Kursah]

Well got a little more time to play this today. It's AWESOME! But it's also got a pretty seriously steep learning curve but in a good way. It's a good challenge and takes time to learn what you need to do. But there are some great guides out there with TONS of info.

176-Page Guide off of Steam: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=153388204

Here's a couple video tutorials that explain how things work and how to build a deck and play, I've yet to build a deck...just playing through the game's built-in albeit lacking tutorial missions (they have no tutorial in them lol. But it's worth figuring out...though tutorial #4 is kicking my butt atm!).

Tutorial: Wargame Airland Battle (Beginner's G...
Tutorial: Wargame Airland Battle (Beginner's G...
wargame airland battle tutorial - YouTube


I will add more to the OP soon. This game keeps drawing me in...I...must...play....more.....soooon! Also, this game I have verified uses up all 8 threads of my 4770k and I feel may even push my CPU a little harder at times than BF3 MP! This game has a lot going on, I will post more as I play more!

 

[MxPhenom 216]

Well got a little more time to play this today. It's AWESOME! But it's also got a pretty seriously steep learning curve but in a good way. It's a good challenge and takes time to learn what you need to do. But there are some great guides out there with TONS of info.

176-Page Guide off of Steam: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=153388204

Here's a couple video tutorials that explain how things work and how to build a deck and play, I've yet to build a deck...just playing through the game's built-in albeit lacking tutorial missions (they have no tutorial in them lol. But it's worth figuring out...though tutorial #4 is kicking my butt atm!).

Tutorial: Wargame Airland Battle (Beginner's G...
Tutorial: Wargame Airland Battle (Beginner's G...
wargame airland battle tutorial - YouTube


I will add more to the OP soon. This game keeps drawing me in...I...must...play....more.....soooon! Also, this game I have verified uses up all 8 threads of my 4770k and I feel may even push my CPU a little harder at times than BF3 MP! This game has a lot going on, I will post more as I play more!

Yeah, I was reading people are using it as a full system stability test now instead of Battlefield 3 after then do like Prime95 and all that. They use it as like the 3D Stability test.

 

[Kursah]

Well I'm here to vouch for it as a great stability tester. On top of that it's also a very solid game that I am growing to really really enjoy and want to get better at because it has hooked me even though I'm horrible at it! This game wants you to think about the realistic abilitities of each unit which kind of goes against the grain of most games...it adds a challenge for me not knowing my Cold War weaponry as well as I should I suppose!

I was a HUGE fan of World in Conflict...still hoping for a small chance at a WiC 2 since Far Cry 3 is done...but so far no news... I still love WiC. This is a little like WiC but a LOT more challenging, a steeper learning curve and way less arcadey feel to it. I do wish that this game had the destructible environments that WiC had but the trade-off for what it does offer makes it better in almost every single way.

Also another note, this game does render in DX11, and while the graphics are generally pretty darn good (until you get zoomed all the way into the trees at least...then it starts to show it's limitations) but I even had to back off Shader size to make sure frames stayed at a solid 60fps on my rig. I still see the 40's here and there too! This game is awesome on many fronts...I can see this being an RTS that could stick around and really grow into something even more amazing than it is!

Gonna go play more...but will work on this thread's OP eventually.

 

[Kursah]

Had my first MP match the other day, I gotta say at first I wasn't sure of the online community because the main chat that has shown anywhere between 150 and over 800 users active has had all sorts of topics from technical, game-related to far-fetched BS that kids must think is funny (I must be getting old... sigh..). I did a 1v1 and began with infantry only...unloaded all vehicles and we both marched towards the middle of the map. I had the upper hand until he said all vehicles and I just wasn't efficient enough to strategically place my AA in time and he smoked my batallion with choppers and jets. I do gotta say it was a lotta fun!

I am still messing around with the tutorial that's more of a non-tutorial. I also have Wargames: European Escalation and I have read that this older title's main campaign is like a tutorial and a good one...I may try it. But then if you ask in the chat room, everyone says ALB is better in every way and I may not enjoy the experience. I think I may try it for myself. There is soooo much to learn with this title, it's interesting as all day long to me as well.

I found a wiki, I have yet to dig in too far to it, but here's the link so I can update the OP: http://wargame-series.wikia.com/wiki/Wargame:_AirLand_Battle

Anyone else out there pick up ALB or EE or both?

I will say I am really learning that fewer elite tanks + more low-end tanks and even more AA, and even more Recon is vital. Also having a well placed and hidden in the forest long range mortar division is vital.

One thing to note, is the AI. It can see everything on the map...so hiding in the forest from them is fruitless unfortunately. This apparently is how the AI was designed, and I can now vouch for this when playing the tutorials, skirmishes and campaigns. I have only played on EASY and I still get my butt kicked! But another aspect is learning what units are REALLY capable of instead of assumptions...paying attention to specs, their particular jobs, weapons, strongpoints, range, armor, etc all are important. There was a thread on Steam dogging the AI, and some points I agree on...I have also read between pro and user reviews that the AI is very good...here is one of the AI programmers' response to one posters' comments in that Steam thread:

Originally posted by Allust:
Campaign/SP is a mess due to omniscient AI. Developers have a cavalier attitude about this and don't seem to care. They either have a mediocre AI programmer who doesn't know how to fix it, or they just don't care. The times I've been able to play the game and deal with the AI's all-knowing behavior have been pretty fun so the core of the game is good, but they need to stop it with their attitude towards the AI claiming it's perfectly fine and just fix it already.

Hello,

I'm one of the programmer of the AI and I'm very surprise that you describe me as "mediocre" and have "a cavalier attitude"... I never post a comment that give you that impression or give me the link....
But, I'm not here to be angry and I'll try to be constructive.

This game is very complicated. To program, to make it a game that have a lot of complexity inside but stay at a level that the player doesn't feel it....in the first games that he plays.

More you play, more you go deeply in the mechanics and more you're efficient in it.

On the other side, the AI have to manage this and in real time.... That is the most difficult thing for us. We have to make choice to not overburn the CPU by AI calculation. And to keep the AI competitive, we have to give him some advantage.

But to be clear, the way the AI was made is to give challenge for best players, a sort of sparring partner to test your deck in skirmish. I'm sorry if the AI doesn't give you the fun that we have worked hard on.... Be sure that we are always on, and understand that the omniscience isn't funny when you want to ambush them...but the AI have to see the target to shoot and have a limited deck (a little more units than player deck). Only some command points bonus at the start of the game and all of the same rules as players.

cheers,

Gargoyle
Eugen Team

I can vouch that this game can stress a CPU pretty well, what I've been doing lately is starting the tutorial and zooming down into the trees..not all the way down, but to the tops of the trees...this loads my GPU at 99% and my CPU averages in the 20% range but spikes up on occasion. Once it's good for after a bit I decide to crank on the battle and that really starts spiking CPU usage.

Also I GOTTA get into Deck building in this game...I've yet to do it...I have watched some youtube vids and I think I'm gonna start giving it a go...it's a gimmick I've never really used or liked before and was part of my turnoff to this game initially...but seeing how it works and what it really does for you in the game and me just flat out understanding the reality of it...I am excited to give it a try and spend some time just making decks to try.

Sorry all..I am excited about this title...it's steep learning curve hasn't scared me off to play some C&C 3 to rekindle my winning abilities yet...and the online community is actually pretty damn cool overall. Some a-holes as always, but people are very helpful even offering to help in MP vs matches. There was some free DLC that dropped yesterday that added more units and some unit tweaks, balancing tweaks. AWESOME!

 

[ShiBDiB]

I've had EE since its beta and ALB also since its beta. Literally the only major difference between the 2 is ALB has larger maps, the 10v10, and jets.

EE campaign is a great tutorial and I full recommend it. The multiplayer deck system is different in that you need to rank up to earn points and unlock units that way. But I assume the multiplayer community on EE is dead, as it was on life support 6 months after it released.

Wargame's biggest downfall is its community. If you get a game full of "mature" gamers you can have a blast. If you get one of those 16 year olds that like to do cheese 100tank rushes than it's not fun. Not because you can't counter it but because it's just not a fun way to play. Like I said before EE had the problem of the community burning themselves out or getting sick of the cheese and leaving the game, making finding a game extremely difficult. I unfortunately see ALB going the same route in a few months. The game is great but it has no staying power, no advertising, no real reason to keep coming back after a few months of playing. I find myself playing seriously gimped decks with just minor country units just to keep it fresh.

 

[Kursah]

Ya well I'm interested to see how well ALB's staying power is compared to EE then. I seems solid right now, but Steam sales and being released 2 months ago is kind of a sure thing. That recent minor DLC may be promising if they add more...or even better add new era's as DLC. I think it'd be cool to call in support from ships and subs as well..being able to battle, spy and recon at sea would be a cool element as well.

I will go start up some EE and learn how to play then! Thank you for clearing that up!

It's almost too bad they don't support modding or map making in these games (at least none that I have read about). Could really help out with the community I would think. The ability to add modern units and do modern settings? F22's and F35's, M1A2's, etc.

Well I see a huge success in this game, but you're right it's not something I was all that aware of or strongly interested in right away..I remember RUSE was supposed to be a huge hit...maybe it was but I never tried it. Alright..of to try EE. Thanks again!

Edit: Spent some time playing some Wargames: EE campaign and it's fun! And totally is a tutorial.

 

[MT Alex]

Just letting folks know that Wargame is 50% off until September 9th. This is probably going to be the incentive I needed to finally buy this game.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/222750/