I have done a couple of battles now, and I started to like this more than I expected. I know that the reviews one year ago tended to point out that the AI is not as sophistiacted as one would desire from a wargame like this and that it sometimes tends to move in a rushed massive assault and as a result of that gets slaughtered, but i have not had that so far. Maybe it is also my playing style, i don't know. The gameplay reminds of a combination of Steel Panthers, Close Combat, Operation Flashpoint, Combat Mission Shock Force, and the map view of Steel Beasts Pro. The interface is quite intuitive in that you find what you are looking for, maybe not the utmost ergonomic, but functional enough and sufficient to get the job done without making the player curse. Could be more elegant at times, but hey, most of what you need is there, and is easy to reach. What more can you ask for?
The game presents a nice compromise between realism and playability, easy accessability. The experience of setting up your forces and then running the battle, is pleasant. The AI has surprised me repeatedly with unexpected force setups of its own, resulting in suprises for me, and at my cost. Quite some details are considered, and the developer is actively talking with the community, and listens. Like in Steal Beatss Pro, reading the terrian and udnerstanding the basics of your plan takes quite a lot fo time beforte battlke, and that this time isx needed in this game likm ei8n SBP, is a statement for its tactical and strategic quality. Mission and unit editors are included. And a manual. Holy cow, a manual, am i dreaming? This is so much wnated but so rare these days that it deserves extra praise and recognition. Even better, the manual comes in two forms, a graphically designed one which works also well on ebook reader displays (e-ink), and a printer friendly one.
Learning is pretty much by playing, and you do not get overburdened with stuff, nor are you being bored to death. This balance the game gets very right, I think. Its fun to handle this game, you are not beign frustrated by too much attention to detail, still there is enough detail that you stay immersed in the experience.
Worth the asking price, I say. If you are interested in the matter and the scaling of this system, go for it. If you have played the early versions for free years ago, here is your chance to give back a bit to the author now. Replayability is very high. The game currently seems to fly a bit below the radar, which is not deserved, but probably is owed to the fact that it has been in developement and early versions have been around since this long time already. Such long development times always is a problem for a game. The developer is a very small studio only, I know, but this does not change reality.
The interface has psoitvely evolved from the one I knew from many years ago. Not totally new, but positvely building on that and then going beyond it a bit. Good evolution there, not dramatic, but natural.
Steam avoids you the hassle you had reason to fear when buying from Matrix directly in the past.
In school notes: "2" ("B"): good.
Customer review ratings at Steam are very positive: at the time of writing this, 46 positive and 1 negative.