http://store.steampowered.com/app/500190/
Dunno what the price is in USD. Looks like 15% off for a week.
It's clearly not as infinitely randomise-able as the old Windows version but the gameplay seems to be there.
Cheers,
Andy Brown
Why the heck is it so cheap? Is this the chinese handbag of Close Combat
when I first saw the headline, I did a double-take, since my son's old goalkeeper coach is named Sean O'Connor (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sean_O%27Connor_(soccer))
Quote from: Hofstadter on July 12, 2016, 06:08:20 AMWhy the heck is it so cheap? Is this the chinese handbag of Close Combat
He's the original creator of Close Combat, isn't he?
I remember playing his first version, I wonder if anything is different from that or just a port to steam....had some fun with it but never had the staying power for me, but for this cheap, may try again anyways.
Figured out why, Ipad port
http://www.pockettactics.com/news/sean-oconnors-close-combat-like-firefight-breaks-ipad/?url=/news/ios-news/sean-oconnors-close-combat-like-firefight-breaks-ipad/
ewewewew
It is just a simple port, but it's still a pretty compelling experience. I'd like to see some more feedback on what your men are doing and why and I would also like to see a detailed AAR after combat ends. When a mission ends, there is no review of losses and casualties. I'd like to see this. Also, each mission is independent of the others so men and crews don't gain experience, aren't decorated or promoted. The format for a great game is here, but it needs to be beefed up a bit.
I played the first version when it came out for free for iPad and enjoyed it. It's main shortcoming at the time was that there was only one map, but that's clearly no longer the case. I'm still not sure whether it has the depth of the Slitherix versions of CC, since they have an operational component, but if you liked CC then it's certainly worth checking out.
The original Windows version allowed the player to enter date, theatre-of-war and terrain preferences and whether to be attacker or defender. It then generated a map and orbat using a random seed, which could be reused to repeatedly regenerate the same game if desired. Additionally, all data was in .txt files so force elements were endlessly moddable and one could easily add in additional types of afv, squads etc.
From an initial quick look, this new version has beefed up the chrome at the expense of stuff that matters to serious wargamers. On his website, Sean suggests this has something to do with the maps; the increased detail means they can no longer be randomly generated. That doesn't really explain why all the other functionality has been stripped out, however, unless it's with an eye to DLC.
Disappointing, but not unexpected. I'll play it once in a while but will probably play the old Windows version more.
Cheers,
Andy
This new version don't have Pacific front. :(
Oh.....my god
QuoteSorry there was no in-game footage on the trailer video. I downloaded Screen Recorder to try and capture some video but the quality was dreadful. The trailer that you see was actually created by my 11 year old daughter! I needed something there just to satisfy the minimum Steam requirements to get the game approved. I'll look into getting something better done and if you have any recommendations for video capture software I'd really appreciate it!
Copy and Paste of a post by the developer on the game's Steam discussion board:
Quote
The original Windows version (which is $20 on my website or free for the demo) is a very old game I first released back in 1998. It still uses GDI graphics and not DirectX so the frame rate is something like just 10fps. It does have random maps that the game creates itself but that does make the quality of them pretty poor compared to hand drawn maps and they all tend to get a bit samey after a while. It does have a campaign feature so you can play through maps until the war ends or you die. There is a feature where you can choose the units you want to play with and what nationality and date the scenario is.
I was originally going to do a straight port of the Windows version to iOS but then I decided the game could be so much better I started again from scratch. Upping the frame rate to the maximum 60fps means that bullets and shells zip across the screen at the actual authentic speed that they would have done. I added route finding (tanks in the old Windows version drive straight through houses and trees and won't follow roads). Vehicles also have a simple physics engine so they drive authentically. Watch a Sherman tank in Close Combat turn on the spot and then drive off - almost no WW2 tank could turn on the spot and it's a real cop-out if the programmer settled for that. I used hand draw maps because I thought the quality of the random maps just wasn't up to modern standards. The AI is also much improved and much more detailed.
The new Steam Windows version is a direct port of the iOS version from Objective C to C++ and uses SDL for the graphics and sound. The only thing it doesn't have is the networking in the iOS version but all the code is there and I just need to wire it up so that should be available in an update soon. I'll also add a feature to choose your own units/nationality/date. The only reason that's missing from the iOS version is that I thought iPad screens would be too small to have all the user interface lists and buttons etc.., that would be needed to select things. I'll add a mission debrief at the end of the game too. I'd also like to add more options for controlling your squads. On a small iPad screen there just wasn't much space for that and there's no such thing as a right click.
I'll also be looking into getting more hand drawn maps created and the Eastern front added too. After drawing the map background image the trees, buildings, objects, sheep etc... and the scenarios are created on a Windows app I wrote which I'll tidy up and release for free so people can create their own maps. The tank editor for modifying and creating tank info is also a Windows app which I'll release.
Please let me know if there are any other things you'd like me to add for future updates!
Cheers,
Andy
Quote from: Hofstadter on July 13, 2016, 03:47:25 AM
Oh.....my god
QuoteSorry there was no in-game footage on the trailer video. I downloaded Screen Recorder to try and capture some video but the quality was dreadful. The trailer that you see was actually created by my 11 year old daughter! I needed something there just to satisfy the minimum Steam requirements to get the game approved. I'll look into getting something better done and if you have any recommendations for video capture software I'd really appreciate it!
I know, right? He was actually able to make a game while having children!
I kind of had too much coffee. I got rambly
An update has been released. From the Steam discussion board:
QuoteI've just uploaded a new version. The big change is that at the end of a mission you get a summary dialog box appearing which lets you know your performance and you get a rating of how well you did from zero to three stars.
There are lots of other new features too like you can click on a radio message and the screen will jump to where that action occurred, the mouse cursor shows the height of the terrain underneath it, when you tell a squad to fire the mouse cursor shows the distance to the target and mortars show where they are doing a fire mission at.
There was also a bad bug which meant that enemy tanks and anti-tank guns could know where your tanks were if you tried sneaking around their flanks, and could turn to face you. It should be much easier now to sneak around the enemy and catch them unawares.
It's funny. I am an enthusiastic fan of the original Windows Firefight and was disappointed that the new, Steam version was missing much of the original's functionality (especially the infinitely generatable random scenarios). That said, I do like the "feel" of the Steam version and now find it difficult to return to the Windows version's more primitive graphics. The improvements to the way buildings are handled in the Steam version are another big leap forward IMO.
It seems that Sean has got the message and is working to retro-fit many of the missing features. At present, I still find myself starting up the Windows version now and again primarily because the Steam version contains so few "infantry-only" scenarios. I'm hoping this will change as Sean continues his development.
Cheers,
Andy