Wargame: European Escalation
Preview
Gamescom 2011: What If?
by Ingvi Snædal
previewed on PC
It's All in the Details, cont.
When a shell hits its target, the location of the hit, momentum, range, and a smattering of random chance determine whether a crew member dies, slowing down the inner process that he was responsible for, or a mechanical part, such as the fuel tank, the gun stabilizer, or the tank's internal ammo storage are damaged, making that part of the tank useless until repaired. The units also have limited ammo for each weapon and limited fuel, but special resupply vehicles can be called in to refill those. The terrain vehicles are travelling on also plays a role in their speed and fuel consumption, making them go faster and further per gallon on the roads, while going slower and consuming much more fuel while pushing through a forest. The resupply vehicles themselves, however, have a limited amount of supplies, so the player will have to be careful not to simply fill everything up as it is used, but pick and choose which units to resupply at any given time.
The morale system in this game controls not only the units efficiency, but also the stress level of the units in its squad. If a single tank in a squad shoots down a helicopter and by doing so, receives a promotion, the other tanks in its squad are less likely to flee when things start to get messy. The units stress level is a real issue and the player will have to factor that into his style of gameplay. If a unit is too stressed, it will not only become less efficient and make their aim less accurate, but the chance of them ignoring your orders and fleeing the battle are vastly increased. A happy unit is a healthy killing machine, whereas a stressed unit is a useless coward.
Beautiful Scenery
While every map you will play in the single-player campaign is based on actual locations, multiplayer maps have randomly generated elements. This prevents a player from learning the map and becoming unbeatable on that particular battlefield. Each map is split up into sections, some of which supply the player with income, allowing him to buy units and equipment more frequently. Others don't supply funds, but are equally important due to their strategic location. Losing one of those could potentially open up a clear path for the enemy to sneak past your front lines. The maps look very good already, even though the developers assured us that more polish was yet to come.
When the player zooms out as far as he can, he will see the map as a satellite image with all the units marked in blue. As you zoom in, the terrain seamlessly takes shape in a 3D environment, all the way down to a close up view of a single selected unit. The player also has the option to quick zoom with a touch of a button, making the camera jump to any given place on the map in the direction of your cursor. All these options may sound confusing to some, but it allows players to play the game in any way they see fit.
One to Watch
Despite all these options, the size of the map, and the vast pool of units from which to pick, the developers have managed to design the user interface in a way that makes the game look very simple and accessible. The level of detail and the historical accuracy in unit design makes this title one to watch for hardcore real-time strategy players, and the ease of access makes that doubly true for players interested in giving it a try. The game looks beautiful, but we didn't get to hear any voice acting or detailed plot elements on which to say whether or not Eugen has beefed up their efforts in that department. Regardless of that, I can safely say that I will be looking out for this one in the near future
