World in Conflict: Complete Edition

I never got a chance to play online. However, the single-player alone is more than enough to buy at full price. The story is very believable. In 1989, the Soviet Union is facing collapse due to a poor economy. Rather than fizzle out like it did in our timeline, the Soviet Union in desperation decides to go on a war footing by invading Western Europe, and the United States. Like I said the story is very believable and relies on real-world tactics and weaponry from the era so no goofy super weapons. You mainly play as the United States and NATO but thanks to the Soviet Assault expansion pack, you can play as the Soviets in six added story missions. What I love about the game was how it presented both sides. There really is no black and white and paints both sides of the conflict as human making the scenario all the more real. You really empathize with both sides. All in all I fully recommend this game at full purchase. Gameplay wise it's very easy to learn and completely ditches base building. Instead you use points to call in units of support wether by CAS or artillery support.

What if the Cold War went hot in 1989? This action packed strategy game aims to answer that very question. Just like in the Red Dawn movie (1984), Soviet troops invade the USA and it’s up to a rag tag military group to push them back. This is a fast paced strategy game, one that has NO base building and NO resource gathering. You are instead given a number of points to call in troops and battle the enemy. Whenever you take casualties those points are (slowly) given back to you, meaning you can still make a comeback even after losing half of your army. The key to winning battles is to have an assortment of units that are good against vehicles, infantry and aircraft. I mostly relied on the M1A1 Abrams heavy tanks and M2A2 Bradley armored transport vehicles during the campaign, with a couple of anti-air and repair vehicles sitting in the back. The most important skill needed to succeed is to be able to (quickly) split up your units into 2 or 3 groups, as some missions will require attacking/defending multiple locations simultaneously. Wasting precious seconds during these key moments can spell DEFEAT. The single-player campaign is well made, often giving you side objectives to complete while encouraging you to try different approaches and not rely on the same tactic each time.

World in Conflict (WIC) captured my imagination from the first day I saw reviews of it. At the time my old laptop could hardly run it but I still played it for the sheer pleasure. Later I got a kickass rig and this was among the first games I installed on it. Played it and maxed out all the graphic settings to finally see what this game really had to offer. I was, and still am, delighted with this game. The campaign centers around a plot which, though hardly believeable, is filled with characters and a narrative which simply takes you in and doesn't let you go. This is especially true when combined with the Soviet Assault expansion. The cutscenes make every mission that much more dramatic. IF you are not one to be swayed by a good narrative you will stay for the gameplay and the graphics. There is no base building in WIC. You have a set of points with which you are free to decide what units will make up the composition of your forces. Infantry, APCs, light/medium/Heavy armour, artillery pieces, Choppers... and more. Each unit has a special ability and each unit is better suited to fight against a specific type making for a good old rock paper scissor mechanism, HOWEVER, and I can't stress this enough, the special ability of the units can break that Rock Paper Scissor mechanism when used and timed correctly and can change an engagement around in a second making for much more interesting combat and a certain micro-management which becomes second nature two missions in. Another thing that can change an engagement around, off map support. This is where the game shines at its brightest. THere is a plethora of off map support you can call in with a bank of points that regenerate throughout the mission making for tough decisions on when to call it in and when to save it for the right time. There is nothing more satisfying that a napalm strike in the forest to smoke out hiding infantry. Just youtube it and you will see what I mean. GET THIS GAME!!! PS: Ekranoplanes

Very nice RTT (not RTS.) It's old but gold. No base building, huge plus for me. Don't expect realism but a fun tactical challenge and an engaging story told well (for a change.) I've played the campaign once on "normal" difficulty. At times it wasn't easy, I'm not used to playing such games. It's quite enjoyable and as you go you learn. Now I'm replaying the campaign on "hard," maybe I'll do it again on "very hard" some time. Apparently there is a way to play it on multiplayer in 2022, and there are mods and extra maps available for that. check out massagate dot com if you're into that.

This is game is an amazing RTS set at the very end of the Cold War. I can't say too much due to spoilers but it has great story line, you actually feel for all the characters in the game, and as an actual war veteran (Battle of Fallujah in 04/05) I can say it was a great experience. I had it on Steam a long time ago and loved it, but it would not play ever again so I was extremely excited seeing it in GOG and patched. Save often, even right before an ending of a mission since it can crash. There are actually no bugs or glitches in the game so as long as the game runs, it runs great but you may have a crash unexpectedly (this is why you save often) and just load it back up, it may not be for everyone though since I had other things running in the background while I played. The air and artillery support in this game is awesome, but the story alone is worth it, the voice acting as well was great and kept you in the moment.