pym
10-30-2006, 11:52 AM
-----------------------------------------------------------
By: THQ, Relic
Genre: Real Time Strategy
Release Date: September 13th, 2006
Platforms: PC
-----------------------------------------------------------
The best RTS for 2006
In july, I made a top 10 list (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6337&highlight=pymarticle) of upcoming games, predicting this game will bring wonderfull news to RTS gamers and set a new threshold for this genre.
Well, looks like I was right!
When it comes to strategy, Relic knows what it's doing...
Relic's new strategy title is indeed the best RTS for 2006 in so many aspects. If you consider yourselves - even a little - as RTS gamers, you must battle your way to the nearest store and purchase your copy ASAP!
Sometimes, words just can't describe what they are meant to, and this game's atmosphere, beauty and realism is quite hard to describe in text...
http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/9899/garrisonedaz3.jpg (http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/5562/garrisonedwz9.jpg)
What is it about
The game takes place in WWII and shows us this war from an angle that we never saw before.
The player actually feels in a warzone while playing and the feeling is amazing.
Each battlefield is devided into strategy points and tactic points. When controlling a startegic point, the player gets supplied with man power, the main resource in the game. The tactic points are Fuel and Munitions.
The battle, as you may understand, takes place around these points in order to gain control of them and get the resources flowing...
The greatest thing about this game is the dynamic environment it has.
Anything you do will effect the environment, causing the buildings, trees, walls, rocks, vehicles or anything else to be used tactically.
Everything, and I mean, everything is destructible.
I can't describe the feeling I get when I bomb an area with artillary strike and hear the bombs' whistles all around the place, soldiers run around in panic and fly in the air once hit, trees fall apart, vehicles catch fire and blow up into pieces and buildings go down to the ground.
After the place turns into a crater field, you can use the craters or burned vehicles as cover for your soldiers, which creates even a deeper tactics game.
In CoH you command squads and not individuals. Meaning you will not ba able to micro manage them, for the good and bad in it.
Units will get more and more experienced in the art of war as long as you keep them alive long enough, making them more accurate and lethal.
If you lose soldiers within a squad, you may reinforce them getting them a full squad again.
http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/5831/10ux6.jpg (http://img83.imageshack.us/img83/567/10ry6.jpg)
Take Cover !!!
Company of Heroes takes the cover aspect very seriously, which adds a lot to the game tactically and allows you to micromanage your squads to get the best cover around in a given situation.We don't get to see that in many RTS until now.
Your soldiers' cover is effected by every command you give them, and when they get to the place you ordered, they will be in: a) No Cover b) Light Cover c) Heavy Cover.
That means that if you want your infantry to survive and win the battle, you need to take advantage of the surroundings wisely...
You can also garrison your infantry inside buildings, which makes them pretty hard to access.
But don't feel too comfortable, you are still vulnerable to mortar squads, flame throwers, sinpers, artilary strikes and, of course, tanks!
Besides taking cover behind the given dynamic objects, you may build - for free (well, takes time, which is a resource as well...) sand bags in strategic poins, barbed wire in a key area and use all of these for your advantage.
Also, you may mine an area you know your enemy will try to cross of block the road with tank traps, making it inaccessible for tanks without clearing the road first...
http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/2412/11oh5.jpg (http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/1240/11tk5.jpg)
Looks and sounds stunning!
Not only it has a very deep strategic aspect with lots of refreshing ideas, it also looks amazing and it shows that Relic really invested in the sound department...
The graphics of this game will make top of the line video cards ask for some cool air (as I like to say...)
You will understand what I am talking about right within the first minute you'll play.
Each soldier has 2500 :shock: different animations and you'lll be able to see their mood and feeling according to these animations.
When a tank's shell will hit the ground, a huge visual explosion accompanied by pieces of dirt, mud and thick smoke will rock your screen, making your speakers roar.
Believe me, with so much detail in the units and environments, you will feel you are in the battle fighting rather commanding the battle from above...
Just take a look on the screen shots to get a feeling of how good the game looks.
http://img83.imageshack.us/img83/7320/07dv9.jpg (http://img83.imageshack.us/my.php?image=07my0.jpg)
The Bad Sides
Well, the game is truly amazing in almost every possible aspect.
Still, as I am doing a review here, I must look on the bad sides as well.
As stated, the game is set in WWII, and has only two countries to select from.
As I recall, there were some other countries involved besides Germany and United states.
Also, both countries have somewhat similar units, i.e - infantry, light vehicles and tanks - more or less stronger, have different abilities, but the feeling is too similar for my opinion.
Maybe because it is WWII and not some far away planet with different life forms and species...
I also miss air battles, planes, choppers and sp forth...
When the online servers were up, users experienced a lot of connection problems and lag, but now, most of those are solved, although sometimes I still get kicked or dropped from games.
One last thing, if you don't have a heavy gaming machine, you may experience some long loading times...
To sum it up
The problems I mentioned above are really dwarfed when looking at the big picture.
Company of Heroes truly takes the RTS genre one step forward and bring us many refreshing things where others failed to deliver (cover, for example).
Graphics - 10
Sound - 10
GamePlay - 9
Pleasure - 9
User Interface - 9
Score: 9.5
As for the bottom line: Buy it - NOW ;)
Other pymPreviews:
Overlord (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10449)
Medal of Honor: Airborne (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6099&highlight=pympreview)
Heroes Of might & Magic V (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5452&highlight=pympreview)
Hellgate: London (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6514&highlight=pympreview)
Elder Scrolls: Oblivion (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5493&highlight=pympreview)
Unreal Tournament 2007 (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6990&highlight=pympreview)
Gothic III (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5644&highlight=pympreview)
Rise of Legends (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7384&highlight=pympreview)
Dreamfall: The Longest Journey (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6795&highlight=pympreview)
- pym
By: THQ, Relic
Genre: Real Time Strategy
Release Date: September 13th, 2006
Platforms: PC
-----------------------------------------------------------
The best RTS for 2006
In july, I made a top 10 list (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6337&highlight=pymarticle) of upcoming games, predicting this game will bring wonderfull news to RTS gamers and set a new threshold for this genre.
Well, looks like I was right!
When it comes to strategy, Relic knows what it's doing...
Relic's new strategy title is indeed the best RTS for 2006 in so many aspects. If you consider yourselves - even a little - as RTS gamers, you must battle your way to the nearest store and purchase your copy ASAP!
Sometimes, words just can't describe what they are meant to, and this game's atmosphere, beauty and realism is quite hard to describe in text...
http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/9899/garrisonedaz3.jpg (http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/5562/garrisonedwz9.jpg)
What is it about
The game takes place in WWII and shows us this war from an angle that we never saw before.
The player actually feels in a warzone while playing and the feeling is amazing.
Each battlefield is devided into strategy points and tactic points. When controlling a startegic point, the player gets supplied with man power, the main resource in the game. The tactic points are Fuel and Munitions.
The battle, as you may understand, takes place around these points in order to gain control of them and get the resources flowing...
The greatest thing about this game is the dynamic environment it has.
Anything you do will effect the environment, causing the buildings, trees, walls, rocks, vehicles or anything else to be used tactically.
Everything, and I mean, everything is destructible.
I can't describe the feeling I get when I bomb an area with artillary strike and hear the bombs' whistles all around the place, soldiers run around in panic and fly in the air once hit, trees fall apart, vehicles catch fire and blow up into pieces and buildings go down to the ground.
After the place turns into a crater field, you can use the craters or burned vehicles as cover for your soldiers, which creates even a deeper tactics game.
In CoH you command squads and not individuals. Meaning you will not ba able to micro manage them, for the good and bad in it.
Units will get more and more experienced in the art of war as long as you keep them alive long enough, making them more accurate and lethal.
If you lose soldiers within a squad, you may reinforce them getting them a full squad again.
http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/5831/10ux6.jpg (http://img83.imageshack.us/img83/567/10ry6.jpg)
Take Cover !!!
Company of Heroes takes the cover aspect very seriously, which adds a lot to the game tactically and allows you to micromanage your squads to get the best cover around in a given situation.We don't get to see that in many RTS until now.
Your soldiers' cover is effected by every command you give them, and when they get to the place you ordered, they will be in: a) No Cover b) Light Cover c) Heavy Cover.
That means that if you want your infantry to survive and win the battle, you need to take advantage of the surroundings wisely...
You can also garrison your infantry inside buildings, which makes them pretty hard to access.
But don't feel too comfortable, you are still vulnerable to mortar squads, flame throwers, sinpers, artilary strikes and, of course, tanks!
Besides taking cover behind the given dynamic objects, you may build - for free (well, takes time, which is a resource as well...) sand bags in strategic poins, barbed wire in a key area and use all of these for your advantage.
Also, you may mine an area you know your enemy will try to cross of block the road with tank traps, making it inaccessible for tanks without clearing the road first...
http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/2412/11oh5.jpg (http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/1240/11tk5.jpg)
Looks and sounds stunning!
Not only it has a very deep strategic aspect with lots of refreshing ideas, it also looks amazing and it shows that Relic really invested in the sound department...
The graphics of this game will make top of the line video cards ask for some cool air (as I like to say...)
You will understand what I am talking about right within the first minute you'll play.
Each soldier has 2500 :shock: different animations and you'lll be able to see their mood and feeling according to these animations.
When a tank's shell will hit the ground, a huge visual explosion accompanied by pieces of dirt, mud and thick smoke will rock your screen, making your speakers roar.
Believe me, with so much detail in the units and environments, you will feel you are in the battle fighting rather commanding the battle from above...
Just take a look on the screen shots to get a feeling of how good the game looks.
http://img83.imageshack.us/img83/7320/07dv9.jpg (http://img83.imageshack.us/my.php?image=07my0.jpg)
The Bad Sides
Well, the game is truly amazing in almost every possible aspect.
Still, as I am doing a review here, I must look on the bad sides as well.
As stated, the game is set in WWII, and has only two countries to select from.
As I recall, there were some other countries involved besides Germany and United states.
Also, both countries have somewhat similar units, i.e - infantry, light vehicles and tanks - more or less stronger, have different abilities, but the feeling is too similar for my opinion.
Maybe because it is WWII and not some far away planet with different life forms and species...
I also miss air battles, planes, choppers and sp forth...
When the online servers were up, users experienced a lot of connection problems and lag, but now, most of those are solved, although sometimes I still get kicked or dropped from games.
One last thing, if you don't have a heavy gaming machine, you may experience some long loading times...
To sum it up
The problems I mentioned above are really dwarfed when looking at the big picture.
Company of Heroes truly takes the RTS genre one step forward and bring us many refreshing things where others failed to deliver (cover, for example).
Graphics - 10
Sound - 10
GamePlay - 9
Pleasure - 9
User Interface - 9
Score: 9.5
As for the bottom line: Buy it - NOW ;)
Other pymPreviews:
Overlord (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10449)
Medal of Honor: Airborne (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6099&highlight=pympreview)
Heroes Of might & Magic V (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5452&highlight=pympreview)
Hellgate: London (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6514&highlight=pympreview)
Elder Scrolls: Oblivion (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5493&highlight=pympreview)
Unreal Tournament 2007 (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6990&highlight=pympreview)
Gothic III (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5644&highlight=pympreview)
Rise of Legends (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7384&highlight=pympreview)
Dreamfall: The Longest Journey (http://www.bjorn3d.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6795&highlight=pympreview)
- pym