My thoughts on the game

[Rocco]

I noticed there isn't a whole lot of activity in here, so I thought I'd write this.

I owned the original World at War, and only played a few games. It was fun at first, but it really didn't grab me
and suck me in. It didn't seem like there were many interesting decisions to make strategy wise. It might have been
a little "too" Axis and Allies for me.

So finally I bought the new version. I was hesitant at first but I thought it sounded like there were now
more choices to make that would make the games play out differently each time.

I was right. There are a lot of new rules that change everything. Artillery is totally different now, and makes
a lot more sense. At first I thought that artillery was useless now, but seeing it's effects on combat, that's not the case.
They now do what they did in the war, make it easier for the ground troops to kill the target by suppressing them.
The way artillery was handled in the original really bugged the, uhh... pants off me.

The veteran units can have a major impact, most notably to me having an elite light fleet to
hunt down enemy subs.

Random, percentage weighted, events can fire simulating research breakthroughs to simulate, for example, the
Germans me262 jet fighters.

The spies and signal intelligence can definitely help you out, but the supplies required could leave your army
paralyzed, without sufficient reinforcements being built. So it's an interesting strategy decision to make.

There are new scenarios weighted to help the ai a bit, which provides a much better challenge (and here's
a hint on improving the difficulty: NEVER reload [:D]).

I just thought there might be people out there like me, I was sitting on the fence, didn't want to spend
another 26 bucks on something I had already tried. I liked the original game, but to me it didn't offer
enough variability - just build a bunch of units and go through the motions kind of game. The changes to
neutral countries mix it up (which I now realize I never talked about), the events vary the game from one
to the next. I like it now. Sorry for being long winded.

Just my opinion, thought I'd share it since it seemed like a ghost town around here. If you just hated the first game
I would guess you still will. But if you liked it, but found it to get old quickly, you might want to look into it a little
deeper. Ask some questions, find out if you think it might be worth buying. I think it's worth it.

Thanks,

Rocco

Rocco

[GKar]

Seconded. I didn't play the first game that much compared to other games, but AWD definitely is more varied and - more fun, quite simply!

[dobeln]

Third: Indeed, I think this is one of the best examples of refining a game by adding complexity in the right places. The research system is fixed, naval movement is no longer so constrained, airpower and artillery handled better, a more dynamic and realistic political system, the list goes on and on. It's simply a  great game. It's largest drawback is that it's not transparent enough - I.e. presentation of what goes on behind the scenes could be better.

I do believe those of us who really enjoy the game needs to pull up our sleeves a bit and try to draw others into the community so that the PBEM community becomes stable and viable (I'm being selfish here)

[JudgeDredd]

you buggers.
 
I was refusing to buy this on the basis that the first one was shallow (attack, research and build) - maybe shallow is the wrong word and a bit harsh, I'm sure there were lots of things going on under the hood....
 
Basically I felt like the first poster. I wanted to like the first one, but it wasn't taking me in....
 
Would I like AWD? I don't know. I'm not sure what my big hang ups about the game were...was it 3 month turns? Yes...was it only that? No....do I like the sound of the diplomacy aspect? Yes. Might I enjoy the game because of this? I don't know. Did I give the first game a fair chance? Probably not. Did I understand the rules of the first game? No. Are these things likely to change in AWD? I don't know.
 
So I'm still sitting on the fence big time. I like the sound of the changes and I've read several people say they didn't enjoy the first one but rave about the second one.....
 
It's for this reason, and the AARs I read, that I have re-installed the first one and will be having another crack at it. But I keep getting my preverbial handed to me...especially when Russia and the US kick (especially the former)...but I still have to read and understand the manual.
 
And that brings me on to an important point that I always bring up. Manuals. It simply ddn't get read when I first bought the game because it's big, unweildy, unbound A4...and I hate reading that. So it was a big part of me not playing the game...and it's a big reason for me not knowing how the damn game works...even second time round! On the other hand, I'm fairly proficient at HoI2 and Civilisations IV...why? Because they come with a manual that I can read on the sofa, in the conservatory, in bed...on the toilet!
 
Anyway, my usual pet hate rant is over. I am replaying the first one and that will most likely determine whether I get the second one of not...BUT it doesn't bode well that the manual shouts to me "LEAVE ME ALONE" and I really need to understand what's going on in order to enjoy the game.

[Rocco]

Judge,
 
I'm with you on the manual deal.  I actually printed out the manual for War in the Pacific, but I think that's the last big
manual I will ever print out, it took almost a whole ink cartridge!
 
And the manual for A World Divided (sorry, I hate acronyms), while it explains all the rules well, is definitely a rulebook style
writing.  It can be a little confusing and hard to find that one rule you might want an explanation for amongst all the rules.
And there are lots of rules!
 
Sadly, I think the days of good, printed manuals are almost over.  The toilet is my favorite place to read (lets face it, there
ain't much else to do [:D]).
 
The three month turns always put me off at first; but, after getting through complete games, the overall flow of World War II
is actually very well represented.
 
I would say, if there is something you would like explained, come on in here and ask away.  I don't want to talk you into buying
the game, that's not my job, I just build houses.  But I would, and so would others I'm sure, help you to understand what's
going on and how things work; then you can make a decision on whether you would part with your money to get into the new
game.
 
Thanks,
 
Rocco

[Grotius]

I also think AWD is a significant improvement over the first game. The new features are great, and the new scenarios designed to boost the AI have given me a good challenge. So, er, I "fourth" the original poster's comments.

[Tom Grosv]

I agree 100% with your comments Rocco.

I was a work the other day constantly distracted by deliberations as to whether to launch a surprise WA airborne attack in the Low Countries in Winter 1942 to deflect the Germany AI success at Moscow was worth it at a 44% chance..............how sad is that!

PS I did it, and failed. Darn.

[JudgeDredd]

Question - one of the problems I am finding with GG:WaW is the instability when ALT-Tabbing out to the manual. Being as I will not print the manual for reasons already stated, it's pretty imperative, if a manual is to be supplied in pdf, that the game support alt-tabbing.

Does AWD support alt-tabbing out to the pdf?

My system is Windows XP SP2, AMD Athlon XP 3200+ 64bit, 2GB PC3200 DDR Ram, 6600GT 128MB nVidia graphics card.

Cheers

[Joel Billings]

No, despite several attempts to figure out the problem, we could not make WaW or AWD stable with the use of Alt-Tab. However, players can use Windowed Mode and be able to leave the game to view the manual. Depending on your screen resolution setting, Windowed Mode can appear to take up practically the full screen. Windowed Mode is a preference option in both games.

[Rocco]

Yep, that's how I run it is in windowed mode so I can flip to the manual.
 
One note, if you run in windowed mode, and your desktop resolution is bigger than the game's, then to scroll
the map, you have to move your cursor all the way to the edge of your DESKTOP screen.  Don't laugh too hard,
but it took me a few minutes to figure that one out [:)].
 
Seeing that you have 2 GB of memory, you should be fine.  I had a low virtual memory warning one time with the manual
and the game open, but I have less memory (in my computer AND my head).  It only happened once though.
 
See ya,
 
Rocco

[JudgeDredd]

Well...that's honest. Thx.

I'm really, really on the fence here. I'm hearing all kinds of good things...but I'm still having a hard time with the predecessor. BUT...now that I know to run in Windowed mode, I can get access to the manul whilst playing which will help me get to grips with the game...so there is hope.

I'll be in touch [;)]

[GKar]

I lost a long turn once due to the Alt-Tab problem and am using windowed mode since then. I got used to it really fast: It fills the whole screen with my normal resolution and feels almost like full screen mode when the task bar is minimized. And it's rock stable: I had no problem leaving the game open and switching between several windows for hours.

Good luck with the manual, JudgeDredd! It can be a bit confusing at first, but the information is worth it. You'll play the game much different once you figure out how some mechanics really work.

[lkendter]

Alt-tab seems to be a problem with a lot of games.  Civ4 was horrid before I went to windowed mode.  Going back in often took 2 or more minutes, and a couple of times I thought I locked my PC.  In windowed mode, no problems at all.  I haven't bought AWD yet, but I know the original really needed windowed mode for me.