| Panzer General 2 & AdlerKorps Pack 2007 Graphics 4/5 Very average graphics for the time. Aweful for today of course. This is why it only receives an average four out of five here... but do not get fooled, this game does not need graphics to be incredible, what it currently has with AdlerKorps Pack 2007 is more than what it needs to be a very good game. Play Control 9/10 Simple, to the point play control. It is very easy to move your divisions around with little incovenience. Although, you might want to take your time and be a little less anxious to make your move as you can easily make mistakes and either need to reload or click the undo button... but you cannot undo a move that has discovered enemies. Interface 9/10 The interface like the play control is simple and to the point. No fancy menues, no buggy interface because the game makers wanted to make them look good, etc. It's accessible, it's there, it's simple, direct to the point and it's user friendly... what could one ask more of an interface? Information on individual troops should have been accessible in one click instead of a few though. Fun 13/15 An almost endless amount of fun awaits you especially if you can get your hands on the entire list of maps and scenarios made by fans of the game. Adding the AdlerKorps 2007 Pack makes this game even better, improving many things like being more logical and balanced. This is why I give it a thirteen out of fifteen here. Depth 11/15 The original game had some longivity, but lack any kind of documentation on the period, so the reason it has only a eleven out of fifteen. The important battles of the occidental part of World War II are all present, from Stalingrad to Normandy, from Rommel's Afrika Korps to Patton's troops. The fact that the original Blitzkrieg campaign has different paths in it according to your performance makes this game deeper since each game you play might have a different outcome, especially if you change your initial strategy. For certain that the combined arms strategy is the easiest way to beat the game, but can you do it with tanks only? Only infantry and artillery? or with a majority of airplanes? Whatever your choice of strategy, the game will be harder for some, easier for others and not the same type of game or tactics used. Story 3/10 We cannot say that there is any kind of story if we look at it quickly, but there is a simple story there but nothing to throw yourself out the window though, the reason why it only receives a three out of ten. More movies, texts and voices would have made the game perfect though. Idea 4/5 The idea to make a World War II turn-based strategy game is always a good one. But it was not very original since there was already many turn-based games on World War II already including the first Panzer General. The reason I only give it a four out of five here instead of a perfect rating. Non-linearity 8/10 As I said earlier, the Blitzkrieg campaign has several paths to go through it, some have good endings other bad endings. The other campaigns though have little alternative paths, but are still fun to play though. The fact that the you can have the strategy YOU WANT and not something the game conceptors wanted you to have it great and makes each new game different each time you adopt a new strategy as I explained further up. This makes thereplayability factor high, and in turn makes this rating high to an eight out of ten. If all the original campaigns were as long as the Bllitzkrieg campaign and had many alternative paths in it according to your performance, it would have received a perfect rating here. Interpretation 11/15 The interpretation of the idea is excellent, but hardcore strategy games fans will find it a bit lite. The game is at a division scale so makes it quite impossible to make smaller but as important battles of WW II. The majority of the major European and North Africa battles are present, and are well interpreted with the system of PG 2. Since it is a lite strategy game and it does not actually reflect how difficult the war was and how WW II was a war of resources, it only gets an eleven out of fifteen instead of a perfect rating. Completion 3/5 The game needed a few patches to correct as well as dozens and dozens of custom made maps as well as many custom made campaigns to make its worthwhile. But even though the original game has only five or siz campaigns and that it required a few patches to correct some bugs and other issues, it remained one of the best games of the late 1990s. 75/100 A must buy for all strategy game fans and WW II fans. Download all available maps and scenarios found on Adlerkorps' website. Panzer General II has the perfect balance between fun, replayability and realism. Sure, it is not a simulator, nor is it a shoot them up, nor a role-playing game, but it has enough action, strategy, tactics, non-linearity and realism to make it one of the best games ever. |