Initial Impressions

[Missouri_Rebel]

Top Notch! Never played a Lock N Load game before but I have to say that this game sets the bar for computer animated tabletop games for years to come.

* Excellent artwork!!!

* Clear counters throughout camera levels

* Very functional UI with wonderful button icons

* Splendid maps

* Great Font

* Really enjoy the dice rolling on screen

* Ample options

* Thorough tutorials

* Stable so far

* Clear combat modifiers

* Concise combat results

* Smooth game-play

* Excellent Line of Sight tool

* Good combat sounds

* Refreshing combat animations



Very few things that should be mentioned. Nothing that even came close to putting me off.

* Stone Walls are a little hard to see with the hex thickness

* Would have like a popup for units in hex for viewing the counters at the highest height (though clicking them does bring them up so probably a design decision)

* Tutorial text boxes that were sized for the amount of text. (i.e. smaller) A couple of times they blocked popup messages


I haven't been this impressed with a computer game in many years. As much as I like boardgames converted to the computer, recent releases have not met my expectations. They didn't try to reinvent the wheel and instead focused on the gameplay with HoS. What they did do is make an impressive presentation that should be the envy of any genre.


10 out of 10 (something I never thought I'd ever rate a game)

Mo Reb

[aaatoysandmore]

ORIGINAL: Missouri_Rebel

Top Notch! Never played a Lock N Load game before but I have to say that this game sets the bar for computer animated tabletop games for years to come.

* Excellent artwork!!!

* Clear counters throughout camera levels

* Very functional UI with wonderful button icons

* Splendid maps

* Great Font

* Really enjoy the dice rolling on screen

* Ample options

* Thorough tutorials

* Stable so far

* Clear combat modifiers

* Concise combat results

* Smooth game-play

* Excellent Line of Sight tool

* Good combat sounds

* Refreshing combat animations



Very few things that should be mentioned. Nothing that even came close to putting me off.

* Stone Walls are a little hard to see with the hex thickness

* Would have like a popup for units in hex for viewing the counters at the highest height (though clicking them does bring them up so probably a design decision)

* Tutorial text boxes that were sized for the amount of text. (i.e. smaller) A couple of times they blocked popup messages


I haven't been this impressed with a computer game in many years. As much as I like boardgames converted to the computer, recent releases have not met my expectations. They didn't try to reinvent the wheel and instead focused on the gameplay with HoS. What they did do is make an impressive presentation that should be the envy of any genre.


10 out of 10 (something I never thought I'd ever rate a game)

Mo Reb

Finally this is a game we can both agee on. Puts Auchtung Panzer in the dung. [:D] and I mean deep dung not that shoe slingin stuff.

[wodin]

Better than Achtung Panzer...I doubt it.

[aaatoysandmore]

ORIGINAL: wodin

Better than Achtung Panzer...I doubt it.

YAY there's Wodin....where ya been man? And what chew mean willis. doubting that it's as good as Achtung Panzer? [:D] Been waiting on yer comments.

[thewood1]

HoS is a good boardgame and I like playing for its simple play. But there some pretty big abstractions and game mechanics I scratch my head over. The whole card thing makes me a little uneasy for a computer game. A great tool for a boradgame though.

APOS is a much better computer game of small unit tactics. It takes full advantage of everything the computer offers. It is also complex and difficult to come to grips with. Developer support is weird and inconsistent.

If I want a simple session, I'll play HoS. If I really want to delve into tactics and what ifs, I'll fire up APOS and deal with the pain.

[meskary]

Finally got it...well worth the wait.

[Hotschi]

Downloaded it last night, played a while today, and am hooked.

More of the same, please! [:D]

[mh1066]

This simply is a brilliant game. I know Mark does not like the comparison to ASL, but honestly it is the closest we have been able to get in the computer world. If you play on the hardest setting (which just removes the advantageous modifiers and forces you to play the game as designed) it will truly have the ebb and flow of a hard nosed tactical war game. In playing the Partisans scenario I was forced to take it right to the last turn...and at that, my victory was completely dependent on a melee that could have gone either way. If you have an interest in squad level tactical wargames this is a must buy. Oh, and if you are anyone like me who still has piles of ASL boards, chits and rules in a closet but without anyone to play with - this will put a smile on your face. It's been a long time coming.

[Missouri_Rebel]

Comparing it to Achtung Panzer is like comparing the latter to Command Ops, something done so unsuccessfully before.

Those were my initial impressions. I got real busy this weekend so I haven't had time to dig further but I plan on doing so tonight. I'd say that peoples opinions are fairly consistently positive.

Mainly I look forward to where this title may go.

[Erik Rutins]

Thanks Missouri_Rebel, that is a glowing review and much appreciated.

[baloo7777]

I FINALLY WON! [X(] I played In The Beginning on normal and won on the last turn when a German Lt,a squad, and a half squad w/MG-34 melee'd a Russian Lt. and squad and KIA'd and survived! Talk about exciting...great ebb and flow... thought I was winning then losing then won on last turn...and first try at this scenario (this is my first win against many losses)! What a great game and hard to put away! THANKS! Well worth the wait, and a good AI (not that I am much, but I beleive those players who are good will enjoy this game also).

[markhwalker]

APOS

What is this?

And thanks for the kind words.

[aaatoysandmore]

APOS stands for A Piece of Sh*t lol my favorite description of Achtung Panzer. I loaded it up again and I still cannot get past that initial setup/placement screen. It's so awkward and ugly.

[markhwalker]

Achtung Panzer is a computer game? When I Google I find a book.

[MikeAP]

ORIGINAL: aaatoysandmore

APOS stands for A Piece of Sh*t lol my favorite description of Achtung Panzer. I loaded it up again and I still cannot get past that initial setup/placement screen. It's so awkward and ugly.

Hahahaha YES!!!!! I love that.

I'm glad I'm not the only person who agrees that Graviteam games are rubbish. By far, the worst and most confusing UI ever. Not even a tutorial. It makes Combat Mission look like a genius work of art.

[Dorb]

After reading all these great reviews, I think I will take the plunge after work tonight when I get home. Thanks.

[aaatoysandmore]

ORIGINAL: markhwalker

Achtung Panzer is a computer game? When I Google I find a book.

Well, it is if you want to call it that, I like APOS myself. [:D] It might be an ok game if it was more intuitive and easier to play like Combat Mission or Panzer Command. But, I get lost in which way I am facing and the screen darkness. It's awful dark. I gave it one more try because Wodin likes it, but, not even Wodin can convince me of it being a good game. I'll stick with Combat Mission and Panzer Command, although Combat Mission lost its draw as well with the new CMx2 engine. Why you publishers always feel the need to "change" an already perfect game instead of just upgrading the graphics? Battlefront went to the kids with CMx2 and that rts crap. Even though it still does have wego it's pretty easy to see where the emphasis of their design decision went. Like the new one has TCP/IP for wego players but no replay the turn movies ability. Might as well play rts online if I can't watch the move as many times as I want. I'll still miss as much with no replays as I would playing rts. The only salvation is it still will be in turns online now if someone or anyone wants to play that way online.

[Thomasew]

ORIGINAL: aaatoysandmore

APOS stands for A Piece of Sh*t lol my favorite description of Achtung Panzer. I loaded it up again and I still cannot get past that initial setup/placement screen. It's so awkward and ugly.

What? [&:] .. your inability to get the game to work[8|] , .. is certainly no reflection on the game itself, .. and most certainly does not deserve your flippant, unwarranted comments.

Achtung Panzer Operation Star, plus all it's addons (multi-theatre) is perhaps one of the best wargame simulations around, and the graphics are nothing short of stunning. Yes, the interface may need some tweaking/understanding, .. but, once you get the hang of it, .. it works really well.

Anyway, ... back to LnL .. game on .. [:)]

Cheers
Tom

[Erik Rutins]

Guys, please keep the conversation clean and please do not bash other titles or developers here. Opinions differ. I happen to like APOS as well, for example.

Regards,

- Erik

[Gizuria]

Ouch! This is clearly a port of a board wargame to the PC, in the same way that 'Company of Heroes' and 'World in Flames' are. These games cannot be compared with games like CMx1/x2 or AP:OS, which are clearly 3D computer games from the ground up. Much as we'd like to think of CMx1 as a computerised version of ASL, it wasn't a board game with hexes.

I have never played AP:OS but only because CMx2 fully satisfies my itch for a 3D tactical wargame. I've never really understood why people hate CMx2 so much and feel a need to complain about it on other boards although I suspect that their hate is for the game developer and some of the Beta testers rather than for the game itself. And, the RTS 'crap' complaint is a smoke screen because the game is playable, by most it would seem too, in WEGO just as CMx1 was.

I think this is an excellent port of a computer game and I'm very happy with my purchase.