An incredible game. The negatives first: Some historical inaccuracies, CSA campaign ends very abruptly, broken units regroup too easily, difficulty spikes can be pretty hefty. Very detailed, fun to play, and manages to avoid becoming a "force concentration simulator". Thousands of troops, represented by smaller numbers of models, go at each other, with deep mechanics and difficult choices to make. You need manpower to recruit, but you need money to arm your soldiers. Resource management and getting the right equipment is key. If you carelessly get your men killed, you'll find yourself unable to field an army later. You can ask your government for additional supplies, but that lowers your standing with them and lowers troop morale. Morale is very important; wavering units can barely fight. Units can reform easily after being routed, but after taking too many losses (about 80%), they "shatter" and you lose the entire unit. WIll you use your depleted veterans to capture that strategic piece of cover, or will you save them to fight another day? Oh, and Lincoln/Davis is watching. Make one mistake too many and it's game over. Artillery is nicely detailed: Heavy short range guns devastate enemy charges while longer ranged guns silence enemy artillery and harass their units from afar. You can't just spam cavalry; they have no cover and will get shattered instantly if they try to attack an unengaged enemy unit. The sides are genuinely unique, with the Union getting more money and manpower while the Confederacy gets recruits with higher veterancy. Playing as the Union is somewhat easy, as you get so many toys and the best artillery, your men can gain experience on the fly and become unstoppable with their superior equipment. Playing as the Confederacy is a real challenge, as not only do you have to defend (or sometimes even attack) against superior numbers, but you also cannot afford heavy casualties. A must have for any history geek, Civil War aficionado or strategy gamer. I am looking forward to the developers next games Ultimate Admiral and Ultimate Admiral Dreadnoughts
This is a great game, even better if you are a fan of Civil War games. One thing I really like about the title is how accessible it is; you can start a new game and begin commanding troops in an intuitive manner right away. As I read in another review somewhere, you can jump in and begin commanding immediately, but there is always something else to learn. There are the inevitable comparisons to Sid Meier's Gettysburg, and at the surface, this game does at first appear to be a highly similar recreation. You drag your units around in a manner very similar to that game. There is the dynamic battle of Gettysburg, meaning that unit conditions persist across each phase, while also making it possible to have situations occur that did not occur in the real history (such as already having Confederates heavily fortified on Cemetary Ridge on July 3rd). Occasionally between phases of the battle, you will be given the opportunity to make a decision which will affect the next phase (for example, following the history or attacking the enemy's flank). This adds a nice touch to the battles, keeping it fresh throughout multiple playthroughs. When beginning a new battle, you have the option of selecting from various AI "command styles" as opposed to selecting difficulty on a linear scale. Each battle will unfold differently based on the reactions of the commanders. This was a really neat feature that might have been done before in other games, but I haven't seen it in a Civil War game prior to this title. The graphics are pretty to look at although nothing new (still great). The music is typical epic fare you will encounter in these type of games. The title works flawlessly for me in the latest revisions of Wine. Additionally, there is a "Custom Battles" feature which will allow you to set up "on the fly" battles. I have not explored that yet, or the multiplayer, so I can't speak for those, but the single player mode itself is enough for this game to stand on.
