What's the Learning Curve Here?

[Adam Parker]

With the 1st patch looming completion I'm closer to a buy.

How intuitive would you say the game is on first load? How hefty is the rulebook?

I remember Carriers at War stumping me until I got the rulebook printed but it was a very straight forward read in the end. Same here?

Thanks guys,
Adam.

[Noypi53]

As a newbie, it seems to me that the rule book / manual is not that extensive nor does it need to be. What's more important is to click on the help button, which is the one with the "?" mark, in each of the individual screens.

Read the campaign notes carefully because it gives you an idea of the random number of additional SAM sites & bandits that may pop up during the course of the mission. This helps you prepare what pilots to take & what ordnance to load up on. This is one of the key factors in the game.

Learning time should not be more than 30 minutes. I still struggle in trying to master this game which is a mark of a good game, for me.

It's not Flight Commander 2 but still a good buy for me.

[PDiFolco]

It's a pretty straigthforward game with rules simple to grasp. It's very "boardgamistic" with few parameters to handle. Yet it offers a good choice of strategies. "Simple to learn, hard to master" fits.
The Help features are pretty complete too.

[Adam Parker]

Much appreciated guys.
 
I'll await the official patch and buy.
 
I am a definite fan of a good boardgame with "solitaire system" ported to a PC, than a PC game with a lame "AI".

[NefariousKoel]

You can pretty much play without reading the manual using the afforementioned '?' help button on each screen.

The only issue might be what I ran into having a couple questions about the game mechanics (from the original boardgame) since I never played the original.

[AlvinS]

I feel that the manual and the help screens were well done. The manual is a good read, but it is nice to have the appropriate help screen for the screen you are on in the game. It keeps you from flipping back and forth. I am very pleased with this purchase. [8D]