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I have a strong interest in this game. I consider Steel Panthers one of my favorite games. I know that at this time there isn't a campaign feature, but hopefully a future addition! One question is how does this tactical game play in comparison to Steel Panthers? I'm hoping that that this game about 15 years newer, will have a definite improvement feel to it and a much better AI. Also, how does it compare in the "realism" aspect? Finally, will you be able to scale the difficulty level and if so, how does it change the play?
Thanks for any opinions.

CoH is generally much more interactive than Steel Panthers (SP). In SP, you played your turn, planned out your attacks and then watched it happen. There was opportunity fire as well that broke up the turn sequence as well.

In CoH, you make a move, the enemy makes a move, you make a move, the enemy makes a move, not just piece by piece but move by move. So there is no need for an opportunity fire mechanism like SP has because every move, you or your opponent will have the chance to fire or move or whatever. The exception to this sequence is really in planning your offboard artillery which you do at the beginning of the turn. Turn length is also variable in essence because it ends when both sides pass. Both sides can pass long before your units run out of actions so it adds another dynamic that SP does not have.

As far as realism goes, I would say it depends on what you are looking for. CoH boils your attack and defense down into a few factors so it's much easier to tell what can beat what. Also, individual squad weapons are not considered like they are in SP. That is, in SP, you know a squad is carrying satchels or bazookas or what not. But in CoH, it is more abstract. SP was much more complex also with regard to armor penetration values, turret vs hull armor, etc... so you may consider it more realistic but on the other hand, CoH was intended to model a boardgame, and no boardgame that you can finish in a couple hours could possibly handle all the factors that SP does.

There's still complexity in CoH such as armor vs non-armor, front vs flank, range, smoke, and terrain all are important things to consider so you still have to put a good deal of thought into it. If you judge realism by getting the expected results in 'realistic' situations than CoH is certainly as good model for realism as any boardgame of that type. Of course, in any game, you always have that luck element!

If you haven't already, take a look at the AARs to get a better feel for the gameplay, especially Mo Reb's beginners AAR.

PS There are difficulty options but I'm not sure how much under the hood I can talk about so will let Matrix answer that one.

Joram,
Thanks for your reply. You have provided some good info. I did read all the AARs so I have a general feel or the gameplay sequence. Back to the AI. If you played Steel Panthers the difficulty was mostly in beating the amount of enemy forces generated, not a lot of AI finesse or tactics. Will this game have more of AI which will use more tactics etc?

I'm unsure if discussing the details of the AI would be against the NDA so I'm going to err on the side of caution and refer you to Erik's post here. If they aren't running around prepping for tomorrow or a million other things, maybe they can provide more details.

PS If it helps, I plan on getting my father a copy of the game right away because I know he would enjoy this game.

Joram,
I read your posts comparing CoH to Team Assualt over on The Wargamer. Do you have an opinion of CoH vs. a Squad Battles title?
Thanks.

I'm sorry, my experience with Squad Battles is both very old and very limited. It models individual weapons and you move around individual soldiers which is what sets it apart from most other games. AI and graphics I seem to remember on par with Steel Panthers. I don't remember how well it models morale or command and control.

I believe the only individual soldier units in SQB are leaders. Other than that they are multiman units of some sort.

Is the AI scripted and predictable or does it try different strategies in the same scenario?

Are the maps in the scenarios sufficient in size to allow for maneuver or are they smaller so you are usually just making a direct assault?
Thanks.

The AI has scripted elements as well as dynamic ones. It is not set in stone and does adapt and make different decisions each time you play, especially as the scenarios increase in size and allow more options.

Scenario size varies, so there are some smaller knife fights but there are also many scenarios with plenty of room to maneuver.

Regards,

- Erik

Here are some additional comments on the AI made by Eric, the designer.
http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=3047039&mpage=1&key=script&#3047651