HoI2

[Cheesehead]

Just curious, any of you Beta testers played HoI2 yet? If so, how does it campare to WaW?

[Hanal]

This is being discussed already in the General Forum....I have made a few comments and if any of the other testers want too, they will probably post them there as well....

[Grotius]

I'm not in the WaW beta, but I suspect I'll enjoy WaW more than HOI2. I like HOI2 -- it's a big improvement over the original -- but it always leaves me hankerin' for a real turn-based wargame.

[Sabuesillo]

I'm not a betatester but have played HOI 1.
The fundamental difference is that HOI is real time and WaW is turn based.
Of course the scale of time/units is also totally different.
I found HOI quite bad for playing online because it takes many many hours; also there's so much going on that it all ends up being really messy. Don't know if HOi 2 has improved in that sense. it is a really well researched game, etc. But personally i am looking forward to Waw because it allows PBEM of the whole war in few turns.
There's also a game called Strategic Command , turn based covering the European theatre only but each year was about a week, so each year had many many turns making it quite long for PBEM also.

[fahdiz]

Luckily, HoI2 and GGWaW aren't competing games. They each fill a particular niche. Get both!

[marky]

i played the demo for HOI2

i hated it, and i usually love every WW2 era game

same for the RTS axis and allies, which was given a bad review by pc gamer, which i rely on and trust very much

maybe the guy that played it didnt like it

i liked the demo of a and a

it was a bit hard to control the units, but otherwise it was good

same thin g for HOI2

it was pretty much impossible to contriol the units or givce them orders, and as far as i remember, there was no tutorial to familiarize urself with the games controls


i hope it will be addressed with a tutorial, but u never know til u buy it and try it

[Henri]

There is a HOI2 tutorial and it is very good. so is the game.I have it and I like it a lot. But it IS complex. Much improved over HOI.

Henri

[dog]

HOI2??......NO multiplayer??[:-]..........Hmmmmm, or I could just watch the television[:D].........I'll wait for WAW thanks anyway

[Grotius]

HOI2 does have multiplayer, and my guess is it's much better-suited for multiplayer than HOI1 was. You can automate convoy creation and management, and the automation works adequately. Research is much simpler and, I think, more interesting. Best of all, they've implemented a system for managing air and naval missions that gives you much more control than in HOI1. I still don't love the implementation of air power, but on the whole the game is much improved, and more suitable for MP than its predecessor.

[Cheesehead]

I've been learning to play HoI2 for about a week now, and I'm pretty impressed. Because of the fact that it is RTS, I don't think this game will compete with WaW. I picture WaW being an exclusive PBEM game that will blow everything else out of the water in that respect. If anything, HoI2 will compete with CWiF, especially considering the size, complexity and level of detail. I haven't played enough to judge the quality of the AI, but everything else about the game is beautiful. It will definitely fill up my free time for the next few months...at least until WaW comes out.

[ravinhood]

I picture WaW being an exclusive PBEM game that will blow everything else out of the water in that respect.

I agree with you there and it's another reason I am passing on HOI 2 and getting GGWAW instead. Real time games just don't have it when it comes to wargames. Playing a multiplayer game of HOI or HOI 2 would take ages, I don't care how much they might have improved it.

GGWAW will be the standard for PBEM operational strategy games. Can't hardly wait for this one. One of the few retail purchases I will make this year before a review, I have faith in Gary, unlike some other company and developers I know.

[graf spee]

Well I played the demo for the last two nights and I did not like it.
Just seeing those infantry leaning back and forward makes me nervous.
Don't like the graphics either.
I probably did not give it enough time, but that's the way it is.
Graf

[CPTBrown]

I downloaded and played the demo as well. It was very difficult for me to figure out what was going on. Also, after reading the reviews at Wargamer.com and Gamespot, I think that the level of detail is way over my head. I don't have the time for an RTS that is as in-depth as HOI2. The turn-based and PBEM aspect is very appealing to someone who only has time to play in short spurts.

CPT B
FLY ARMY!

[SeaMonkey]

CPTBrown, you sound like a candidate for Strategic Command, check out the demo at battlefront.

[CPTBrown]

I hate you. I was up 'til 3 AM with that demo. You're right, that is my pace and style of play. The sequel coming out this summer sounds like a winner, too!

CPT B
FLY ARMY!

[SeaMonkey]

My apologies CPTBrown. This is of course a dastardly plot on my part, with an underlying conspiracy, known only to myself, for what ends, I have not decided. Join the multitudes of the sleepy eyed.....buy the game...it is dirt cheap and the PBEM/TCP-IP aspects extend SC's longevity after the solitaire AI wanes. The sequel will simply be awesome as it is full of user suggested features with the sensible application of Hubert Cater's "common sense" abstracting approach. Enjoy[:)]

[solops]

HOI2 and WaW "look" the very much the same in most screenshots, however different they may be internally. HOI2 is getting good reviews and has been really cleaned up and modified from HOI-1 (which I disliked) resulting in a game which may be quite good. The graphics in HOI2 are more to my liking. They have integrated stacks of standard unit icons into the interface, a HUGE plus for me. WaW does not even have units, a gamekiller for me. Even if "modded", who knows what stack support the GUI would provide. I can and will hope for the best...

The idea that the games occupy different niches and will not compete because one is turn-based and the other is RTS is disingenuous. They look the same and they cover the same period so they WILL be in direct competition in the marketplace. Matrix MUST do a super job of positioning this product by CLEARLY and loudly explaining the differences in the products and explaining the benefits of WaW over HOI-2 or they will lose sales to a bigger and better funded sales machine. Which game is "better" and whether they are in "different" niches or not is irrelevant when it comes to sales if the marketing is not good on products that have a very similar appearance.

Personally, without further data, I am inclined to wait for WaW 2 or HOI 3. I HATE little toy boats and men and I loath RTS (whatever that means. There is nothing "real" about time in the "RTS" genre. "Continuous Play" would be a better descrition).

[Cheesehead]

The idea that the games occupy different niches and will not compete because one is turn-based and the other is RTS is disingenuous. They look the same and they cover the same period so they WILL be in direct competition in the marketplace. Matrix MUST do a super job of positioning this product by CLEARLY and loudly explaining the differences in the products and explaining the benefits of WaW over HOI-2 or they will lose sales to a bigger and better funded sales machine. Which game is "better" and whether they are in "different" niches or not is irrelevant when it comes to sales if the marketing is not good on products that have a very similar appearance.

Lighten up Solops[8|]
Just because they both have provinces instead of hexes doesn't make them similar games. WaW is designed for PBEM and HoI2 is not. WaW will take about 6-10 hours to play, HoI2 will take weeks, if not months to finish a game. As I stated in an earlier post. HoI2 will find more similarities with MWiF in that both offer much more detail, will take longer to play and neither is suited for PBEM (at least most of us are skeptical about WiF and PBEM play suitablility).

Hope you plenty of other hobbies to keep you occupied while you wait for the "perfect game." [;)]

[Becket]

ORIGINAL: solops
WaW does not even have units.

[8|]

For thread readers: W@W has units. Lots and lots of units.

[solops]

When I see the word "unit" I think of a standard military unit symbol as a graphical representation of that unit, as is common in most wargames and in all military schools. I should have been more explicit in my comment. I am sure the game does have lots and lots of units, however they might be graphically depicted.

With regard to Cheeseheads comments I would reemphasize my earlier post. Forget the merits of each game because they WILL compete because they look similar, because they cover the same war and because they are going to be on the market at the same time. This has nothing to do with their relative merits (and they both have merits) or my personal preferences. Matrix must endeavor to emphasize WaW's unique points and differences from HOI-2 in order to be successful in the face of competition with the HOI-2 marketing effort.

Insofar as my personal preferences are concerned, I have not given up on either game. While I am observing patches and mods I will probably go back to TOAW, which has plenty of problems of its own. No doubt I will be dead long before a perfect game is published.