SGS Heia Safari
The game has a campaign game and four campaigns which start in 1915, 1916, 1917 and 1918 and run to the end of the War. I have been playing the game for over a month and am greatly enjoying it. It has good period feel and the game captures well the asymmetric nature of the conflict with lumbering large Allied forces chasing the German forces, made up almost entirely of native askaris, who wage an effective campaign of raids, cutting Allied supply lines and overpowering isolated Allied garrisons.
– Real player with 8.6 hrs in game
Read More: Best World War I Historical Games.
It has always been my belief that games can succeed in two ways. The first, through the intricacies of its systems, how they relate to one another, and the opportunities they present for players to express themselves within its world. The second, thorough the novelty of expert explorations of its setting. Sometimes, but not often, we’ll be presented with games that manage to do both. Heia Safari’s iterative design doesn’t stray far from its established formula, and I’m assuming, the reason for that, is the existence of an already established fan base and the recently well-received SGS Afrika Korps. I’m hesitant to call this an all-out review, per se, because I enjoy doing reviews properly, going in-depth with every little detail, something I can’t afford to do with SGS right now, but I’ve spent a long couple of hours in the game, so I should be confident enough to share my opinion on it.
– Real player with 8.3 hrs in game
Blue Max: Aces of the Great War
Forget glory, friend. Think survival.
The “Pour le Merite” or Blue Max fighter pilots were something to be both admired and feared. An award given to the best German pilots of World War I, if you ended up in the sights of a Blue Max plane, you knew your flying days were over.
Originally released in 1991 by Artech Digital Entertainment, Blue Max: Aces of the Great War is a classic flight simulator that takes you right into the fray as a World War I flying ace. Choose from 8 different planes, such as Fokkers, Sopwiths, Spads to take down enemy planes or capture surveillance behind enemy lines. If real time flying simulators aren’t your thing, Blue Max can also change dogfights into strategic turn-based battles, taking your challenge out of the sky and onto a 3D tactical map.
Step into the cockpit in Blue Max: Aces of the Great War, and experience the strategy and thrills of the best fighter pilots of their time.
-
Take your dogfights to a 2D tactical map, executing turn based strategies against your opponents with an unique 3D simulation to visualize your best plan of attack
-
Fly high in 8 historic fighter planes such as Albatross DIII, Fokker DVII, and more!
-
Multiple 3D angles for more visibility when dodging and diving in the heat of a dogfight
-
Shoot down enemy planes or fly skillfully over enemy territory for surveillance as you engage in captivating gameplay featuring multiple mission options and several historical locations.
Read More: Best World War I PvE Games.
Commander: The Great War
Ok. I have played this game for a while and got the hang of it.
It is a great game of WW1 with a couple of frustrating imperfections that you only really appreciate when you have played quite a bit. So while i might say negative things at the end of this review this is a recommendation.
For starters it feels like WW1.
The graphics look the part. The map covers everything and there is plenty of open ocean for the naval campaigns to unfold. The opening turns also develop in a very similiar manner to the actual war as long as you play even modestly sensibly as either side.
– Real player with 1715.3 hrs in game
Read More: Best World War I Strategy Games.
The designers did many things right. I really have only two complaints. One of those complaints is pretty serious, but the good points outweigh that big negative.
My background: History is my passion. I’ve had a particular interest in WW1 for thirty years. I’ve been to the best museums, and one of the battlefields. I’ve been playing hex-based wargames for even longer. When I was in college I was frustrated by the lack of WW1 games (apart from air combat). I wrote my own game, loosely based on squad leader and researched it thoroughly.
– Real player with 477.7 hrs in game
Strategic Command: World War I
I’ve spent some time playing this game, and unfortunately, I wouldn’t be recommending this game at current state.
The biggest problem is how SLOW the game is. Reminds me of old SNES games where you made a cup of tea while waiting for enemy AI to finish their turn. In 2020, that’s not acceptable.
The balance of the game is OK but not great. I think they’ve nailed the stagnating warfare in the Western Front, but this meddled with balancing in East and Asia.
And because portrayal of stagnation of Western Front is so good, there are little incentive for Germany to go west. Current meta for multiplayer seems to be, don’t invade Belgium, go East First. We usually see Entente invading Belgium, not other way around. If alt-history is happening most of the time in a historical strategy game, some things needs to be addressed.
– Real player with 614.8 hrs in game
Immersive and thoroughly addictive game that more than satisfies the need to scratch a turn based strategic Great War itch. Having played both Guns of August and Commander Great War, SCWW1 is not only a worthy successor but a real gem of a game that needs effort and thought to master.
A good selection of scenarios, including a full campaign, the addition of the ‘Blue Max’ mods and numerous scripts together with an elegant engine and sensible AI makes the game replayable and challenging.
To date, I haven’t played two games the same, as the AI varies decision making events randomly. For instance Italy joins the Entante or bribed with territorial gains by the Hapsburgs to delay entering the war; if Russia is making gains then Lenin remains a bit part orator in Switzerland, if not than the Entante to the West will feel the weight of those transferred Eastern Front battled hardened Corps in 1917/18.
– Real player with 473.7 hrs in game
Tannenberg
You know what bothered me about Battlefield 1? How every single player got automatic or semi-automatic weaponry, as if Europe had been magically blessed by the Glorious Murder Cube as soon as Franz got shot. Sure, there were semi-autos and submachine guns in WW1, but only in extremely limited numbers, and most were about as reliable as an alliance with Italy.
I’d hoped for a more deliberate kind of shooter, and BF1 wasn’t it. Then I found Tannenberg, a game set in the eastern front of WW1, and it was like finding the game I’d hoped BF1 would be.
– Real player with 228.3 hrs in game
So, after spending some 20 hours in Tannenberg and roughly the same amount of hrs in Verdun, I decided to write a review here. This may seem as a somewhat subjective opinion of the game, because of the fact that I am a history enthusiast, but I highly recommend this piece (and Verdun as well, of course) to anyone who’s interested in historically accurate, semi-realistic, squad based semi-tactical FPS shooter - that’s what WW1 Game Series are. The squads are well made, equipment is on point, graphics are nice, sounds believable - same goes for the maps in both games. Immersion is the biggest pro of this game, it really makes you believe you are there, bullets whizz by your ear, men are screaming for their lives same on both sides, you shoot as many foes as you can before someone on the other side of the trench/field with more luck shoots you dead. But the vicious cycle goes on and on, same as it did in the actual conflict and more men die by your side. The tactical part may seem minimal but it has a huge impact on the game results. I could go on and on listing pros of this game… The one and only thing that makes people write bad reviews is the player count. At peak hours in EU and US it’s roughly 200 players in Verdun and 70 in Tannenberg - not ideal, I know but it got as high as 600-800 when the game was on sale and during the free weekend - it needs to be advertised, put on sale (I know Tannenberg is sorta new but still, gotta make cuts when you want a stable playerbase). It doesn’t have any gamebreaking bugs or flaws, it just deserves more polishing and content. And advertisement…and ads…and sales :)
– Real player with 175.9 hrs in game
Flying Corps
It is a flight simulation game which is based on the theme of the World War 1 and is one of those which has really depicted a realistic flight war gameplay. You have 6 different planes in the game which are the ones that were famous in those times.
The planes have been modelled perfectly and have been given a lot of details.
You have both instant playing mode and the campaign mode for doing a wide variety of missions.
Coming to the planes again, the inner dynamics have been made with a good number of details which allow you to check the speed, the height of the aircraft, the targets, situational awareness and many other on board options which you can easily use and implement in the gameplay.
To End All Wars
I’m going to give this game a recommendation for people to own. But with reservations. This is not going to be a straight hex wargame like many of you are used to. If you cannot get your mind around that, then you will hate this game. If you can be open-minded and strive to understand this game, try and understand that the army cards/icons have men truly modeled inside that army,, then you will enjoy this game.
I did an AAR of this game over on the Ageod forums.
– Real player with 235.8 hrs in game
I wrote a very critical, barely positive review for EAW six weeks ago, when I had only about 32 hours played on version 1.0. In that review, I complained about the game’s counterintuitive attack/defense outcomes, inscrutable casualty calculations, supply system flaws and ahistorical patterns.
In the meantime, I have played through the game twice and racked up over 200 hours played. Additionally, patch 1.1 was released during this time. In the light of these new developments, I am happy to adjust my review from “barely positive” to “strongly recommended.”
– Real player with 228.9 hrs in game
Making History: The First World War
What kind of world war game is it when the war never happens? The diplomacy needs to be fixed before this game is worthwhile. I played twice now building up my forces, preparing for the war, and then the assassination happens and they never go to war. Also if you are a power like Italy, you can never gain favor with any of the major allies and can never join the alliance. Another stupid thing is that you have a minor power almost beat, you have most of their provinces, then you offer great terms to them where they only lose one or two provinces and they never accept it. Diplomacy is just screwed and it ruins the whole game.
– Real player with 1148.5 hrs in game
Longtime fan of the Franchise and this I think has been my favorite game yet, I got it before it was “finished” and got a deal on it too, they’ve done a good job with all the new events in it which makes it more interesting to play as there’s a lot more random chance with how things play out, mechanics of it work pretty well, I still get some bugs now and again, I find it way to easy to get sucked in and “one more turn” turns into about 20, especially when in battle.
Recommendations:
1. a Russo- Japanese War Scenario and a Boer War Scenario would round out the period nicely.
– Real player with 553.5 hrs in game
The Operational Art of War IV
Grognards will love this game. Fans of easy gameplay and immersive graphics will not. Don’t expect to see cavalry charges and explosions. Think moving pieces on a chessboard, but with hundreds of unique pieces.
A grognard is a hard core wargamer who values accuracy over playability. Wargames started during the Napoleonic era. Miniatures, then cardboard counters, then computers used markers or counters which identify the unit and its attack and defense capabilities movement, morale and other factors all represented by numbers. When the attack is resolved the numbers on the combating counters change and the units advance or retreat into the next hex.
– Real player with 3672.1 hrs in game
This review includes suggestions for those new to the genre.
tl;dr: If you don’t want to put/have the time to learn, don’t like more abstract games, hate the graphics (as shown in screen shots) don’t like time limit and pressure, then you should pass. Otherwise, I recommend trying it out if there is a hunch that you might enjoy it–I’m glad I did.
I had not played games in this genre before (learned to read NATO counters to play). Starting out, I read the manual, referenced resources other players provided, and watched YouTube tutorials. I was then lost, confused, and put off. With persistence, I won my first scenario (Kasserine Pass) and, after that, felt I had the hang of it, after which the game has been more fun.
– Real player with 195.9 hrs in game
Tactical Warfare Simulator
I’ve only played in VR with a HOTAS. Beyond the fact that it’s wildly overpriced, this game needs a serious overhaul by someone who understands UX.
The menus are amateurish and bewildering, particularly in the campaign mode. There’s no way to recenter your view. It seems to be impossible to start a campaign game in VR, because you have to type in a name for your squadron, and it won’t accept keyboard input as typing. When I hit the F key I get some performance numbers. I had to restart in desktop mode, create the campaign, and then restart again in VR mode to play it.
– Real player with 3.1 hrs in game
this game does not fell finished to me. at this time in VR you have hand tracking but can not interact with anything just ghost hands. that sucks would have loved to fly the planes with my VR hands. but im so far happy with what i got. the joysticks on the VR controls work. game brings me back to playing red baron long long ago. for that feeling i like the game. and for that i will give it a thumbs up. if you go into this expecting a full VR exp you will be a little upset. but the controls work the game plays and is fun. maybe wait for a sale if you are unsure.
– Real player with 1.5 hrs in game