World War II (game)

Official

The development of the game did not stop after the release of the first add-on. The developers announced a future continuation in the form of a second supplement dedicated to the actions of the German Panzer LehrDivision (training tank division) during Operation Overlord (Allied landing in Normandy in 1944 ). In addition to this campaign and the introduction of new combat units, it is planned to again (although not to a large extent as in the first addition) adjust the gameplay, in particular, to improve the system of visibility of targets. In the current version, the visibility of the target weakly depends on weather conditions and the distance to it and is mainly determined by the topography and the presence of obstacles (houses, trees) on the line of sight. If a certain set of conditions is fulfilled, then the goal is visible; otherwise, no. The developers plan to introduce a more realistic scheme, taking into account the presence of bushes that hide the target, and limited sectors of the review of combat units (instead of circular). Thus, a tank without a commander’s turret may not even find a fairly close, but on its board enemy anti-tank gun in the bushes. In the current version, if the line of sight is not blocked by terrain, trees or buildings, the tank always detects a target of this kind.

Player Creativity

Built on the basis of models from the popular package of three-dimensional modeling and description of missions in XML files, the game has repeatedly been modified by players who are competent in these technologies. Along with the openness of developers in this matter, as a result, a modification of JSH 1.0 was recognized on the official website of the game, which introduces an additional degree of realism in the game process. In particular, it became possible to use the captured equipment not only during the battle, where it was captured; Lend-Lease equipment became available to the Red Army ; introduced new types of rifle ( infantry ) units . Along the way, a number of rather old mistakes were corrected (for example, an IS-2 crew of five) and the cost of some models of equipment was slightly changed. Modification JSH 1.0 comes with several new single scripts and makes small changes to existing ones. The developers promise to transfer a number of innovations from this modification to the official version of the game.

The player acts as the commander of a combined arms unit, from the infantry squad to the company (in some scenarios infantry is not provided). In addition to infantry, a player can be given a means of qualitatively enhancing the combat power or tactical mobility of the unit entrusted to him: armored personnel carriers , tanks , self-propelled artillery (self -propelled guns), anti-aircraft self-propelled guns (ZSU), towed guns (almost always used as anti-tank guns ), cars . Depending on the task, the choice of these means is limited by the scenario developer's intention: in the offensive , tanks and self-propelled guns can most often be used in defense, a greater emphasis in defense is shifted towards towed guns, although it is sometimes allowed to be equipped with armored vehicles. There is a maximum limit on the quantity and quality of equipment that can be used in this battle, but any movements of crew members, crew and infantrymen are completely allowed. For example, a player is allocated 150 points to equip a unit with armored vehicles. For this number of points, it is impossible to take the available T-34 medium tank with an experienced crew, but it is possible to use the T-70 light tank with inexperienced tankers. In such a situation, the choice will be the T-70 and the transfer of some of the experienced tankers from the T-34 into it.

After choosing equipment and soldiers, the player is explained the combat tasks (which may change in the future as the game progresses), the most typical of which are capturing or holding a certain point on the map, typical routes of their own and enemy forces. The player's goal is to complete these tasks with the least possible losses. Minimization of losses, as in real combat, is achieved by careful use of the terrain, knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of your enemy’s equipment, and competent tactical use of all combat units. For example, the chance to hit the Panther from the T-70 in the forehead is practically zero, however, using the folds of the terrain or at home as shelters, it is quite possible to let the Panther close up (without revealing itself by premature firing) and hit it with a shot from T -70 aboard with a projectile . All these orders are fully implemented by the game mechanism. Also, during the battle, the morale of the soldiers changes - the destruction of their tank, the death of the commander, or even the close presence of the enemy can lead to panic and flight, even if there are adequate means of counteracting the enemy. However, the presence of a commander or soldier with a medal or order nearby increases morale, which allows you to increase the chance of winning in a particular fire duel. Also, during the battle (if provided by the scenario developer), you can call attack aircraft, artillery and mortar attacks on a given area, fighters to counter enemy attack aircraft.

After the battle, surviving soldiers are awarded experience points that can be spent on improving the skills of leadership, driver, gunner, scout, rewarding medals and orders and promotion. The last two actions affect only the leadership skill (that is, the fighting spirit of the fighter and his comrades surrounding him). Possession of other skills is of paramount importance in battle: in the absence of a “driver” skill, a fighter simply cannot drive a tank or a car, in the absence of a “gunner” skill he will not be able to shoot from tank and self-propelled guns (with one important exception - to shoot from any towed guns maybe the most inexperienced soldier). With increasing the skill, important abilities are added - for example, with a high level of driving skill, a soldier will be able to control unfamiliar trophy equipment, with a high level of “gunner” skill, he can shoot from captured tanks or from his own. The skill of a “scout” directly affects the probability of a fighter being detected by the enemy and the accuracy of his firing from a sniper rifle. There are also two characteristics of a soldier that are not directly controlled by the player. One of them - the intellect - is generally fixed and determines the combat experience gained by the fighter after the end of the battle in which he survived. The second - accuracy - refers to the firing of a machine gun, conventional or assault rifle, submachine gun. The higher the accuracy, the more the fighter has a chance to hit the target, and this characteristic increases when shooting marks, regardless of the player, directly in the course of the battle. In single scenarios, work with personnel does not play a role, whereas in campaigns when the surviving personnel moves from one battle to another, this aspect is a necessary condition for victory in the entire campaign. In this regard, a strategic question arises, what is better for the player - to prepare more strong “middle peasants” in skills or to develop a small elite group of soldiers. Since skills do not affect the survival of a soldier when a fragment or bullet hits him, the loss of even an experienced fighter in the game is a common thing, which also negatively affects the morale of other soldiers. Replacing a dead elite fighter with a high rank is also problematic in comparison with a large group of “middle peasants”.

Battles are fought in real time with the possibility of giving orders in pause mode (tactical pause mode), there is the possibility of accelerating or slowing down the pace of the game. Actual for November 2007, the second edition of the game includes six historical campaigns for the USSR (one original and one additional - the Battle of Moscow ), the Third Reich , Poland , France (1940) and Western allies (alternately the United States and Great Britain ). In six campaigns over 40 historical battles based on the battles of the Second World War, several single battles and 4 training scenarios. Battles take place at different times of the year, in various weather conditions. Some missions try to reproduce specific combat episodes with the participation of famous historical figures, for example, Michael Wittmann’s attack on an English column of armored vehicles during the Allied landing in Normandy.

Realized features

• 28 maps of the area, created on the basis of aerial photographs, topographic maps and archival military documents. Trees and buildings are completely destructible.
• The playing area of ​​the maps of the area reaches 4 km², the displayed area is 8 km².
• The influence of the landscape on the scope and speed of movement of troops.
• More than 150 types of various ground and aviation equipment, reproduced according to the drawings and technical specifications: tanks , self-propelled guns , ZSU , armored vehicles , artillery pieces , etc.
• More than 150 variants of infantry uniforms different for the time of year and military branches.
• Over 100 types of hand weapons and grenades .
• The ability to request artillery, mortar and aviation support.
• Ballistics and damage counting system close to reliable: the speed of the projectile, the type of projectile, the angle and point of impact, the thickness of the armor, etc., are taken into account for each hit.
• A realistic system of damage to equipment, with a defeat, the location of the crew and units inside the equipment, as well as the type and caliber of the projectile that pierces the armor, is taken into account. Holes are shown at the point of impact, taking into account the caliber of the projectile and the type of surface. Armored vehicles do not have “life points”; disabled tanks show components and assemblies that are out of order (chassis, engine and transmission, guns and machine guns).
• Role-playing elements: soldiers gain experience in battle and improve their skills.
• The ability to transplant crew members, calculation in accordance with professional skills (before and during the battle), as well as the capture of enemy equipment.
• The ability to manage their own troops before the battle: the change of crews, the replacement of equipment, the redistribution of soldiers in units.
• The ability to deploy troops to positions before the start of the battle.
• The ability to change hand weapons by fighters during a battle.
• The influence of morality on the behavior of troops (panic, retreat, disobedience to orders).
• 3 difficulty levels, the ability to move to the next mission without passing the current one.
• Built-in illustrated encyclopedia of equipment and weapons in the game.
• The possibility of multiplayer games on a local network and over the Internet.

Unrealized features and limitations

• The game does not have the ability to repair equipment and treat wounded soldiers during the battle.
• Since the fighting takes place on a 2 × 2 km site, there is no mounted fire from closed positions (the minimum range for the guns implemented in the game with mounted fire exceeds 2 km).
• In the official version of the game, it is not possible to use captured equipment and small arms in the next battle (it is possible only during the battle, in which it is captured directly). The use of a predefined trophy technique is allowed in a custom modification of JSH.
• There is no way to place foot soldiers in buildings in the game.
• In the game there is no way to assign positions in the infantry squads (you cannot create a squad only from snipers or grenade launchers), you can only put a soldier in a predetermined position. Partially fixed in custom JSH modification.
• There is no possibility of a tank ram in the game, although it is possible to crush enemy infantry and towed guns with caterpillars.
• There is no hand-to-hand combat in the game.

The game has its own official website on the Internet . In addition to the standard for such things things, the ability to download patches and updates, answers to frequently asked questions about installation and troubleshooting, the publisher of the game and its developers have done quite a lot of work to build a community of adherents of their software product. Military-historical materials, congratulations on professional holidays of military specialists, and the best new scenarios created by players are periodically posted on the site. The military-historical section on the site is maintained by Mikhail Nikolaevich Svirin , a famous military historian and author of numerous books and articles about armored vehicles , artillery and the events of World War II . At the game forum, he can be asked questions on military-historical topics. The developers in their collective blog share some of the secrets of creating the game and announce future plans for its development. Also, developers held competitions among the players for the best “ wallpaper for the screen ” and guessing the topic of the future second addition; the prize for the winners were the disks with game programs of 1C.

According to the results of several reviews at once in game magazines and on gaming sites, a sharp prevalence of AI in accuracy of fire and maneuvering was noted, which for an unprepared player can cause rejection of the game. The situation is aggravated by a certain desire of developers to create difficulties for the player by scantily allocating units of military equipment to him: in the conditions of a declared and fairly good approximation to a real battle in an offensive, the game also needs to have three times more strength than the defending side, which is very rare. Nevertheless, almost all observers agree that World War II is a niche product and for players who are interested in the history and tactics of combined arms combat , the angle of inclination of the armor and its penetration by various types of shells, it is a natural choice. Careful planning of the battle, taking into account the features of technology, the selection of personnel allow you to go through all the campaigns of the game. Naturally, traditionally for such games, questions arise about the adequacy of the presentation of one or another representative of armored vehicles or artillery, but at the official forum of the game the topics most discussed are those related to the history of a particular event or model of armored vehicles. Messages about the inadequacy of booking or weapons are also present there, but many complaints were withdrawn with the release of the second edition of the game, the developers carefully listen to constructive criticism and consult with the famous military historian M.N.Svirin.

Little attention is paid to unit prices. There is no system. For example, a German Wespe half-armored self-propelled gun is more expensive than a Brumbar with a better gun and thicker armor. Almost the same (in terms of armor and armament) French infantry tanks R-35 and H-35 differ in price by 1.5 times, and the slower R-35 is more expensive.

• - World War II official site
• Official site "1C" - the publisher and developer of the game
• Modification with fair unit prices