Consolidated Heroes of Stalingrad thread

[JudgeDredd]

not this Saturday ... no rugby for a week...give us time to lick or wounds before our next battering against the Italians  :)

[undercovergeek]

lol no worries - once im downloaded and an undefeatable warrior we're on

ive asked Brant about it - if we AAR it we might achieve front page glory

[Apocalypse 31]

Only a wargamer gets excited about a computer game that emulates a board game.... I'll never understand you guys.

Regardless, this game looks very nice. Something about it reminds me of Close Combat. In fact, most of the Lock n Load products have fantastic artwork.

Since there's no demo, I'm hoping you guys can answer some questions.

What are the campaigns like?
Is the AI decent?
Is there any way to modify the dice rolling, and make it automatic/hidden?
What is the scale? It looks like Squad/PLT...what is the highest it can support?

Is Lock n Load ever going to release their modern stuff on PC? A Day of Heroes or Heroes of the Gap?

[Barthheart]

Only a wargamer gets excited about a computer game that emulates a board game.... I'll never understand you guys.

Regardless, this game looks very nice. Something about it reminds me of Close Combat. In fact, most of the Lock n Load products have fantastic artwork.

Since there's no demo, I'm hoping you guys can answer some questions.

What are the campaigns like?
Is the AI decent?
Is there any way to modify the dice rolling, and make it automatic/hidden?
What is the scale? It looks like Squad/PLT...what is the highest it can support?

Is Lock n Load ever going to release their modern stuff on PC? A Day of Heroes or Heroes of the Gap?

Campaigns are kind of story driven. You follow a leader character through a series of connected scenarios. 3 or 4 intro scenarios and then you get to take some core units with you through the rest of the campaign. You gain "campaign points" for do killing enemies in interesting ways.  ;) these can be used to improve your core troops. If your leader dies the campaign ends.

The AI is decent. It can occasionally still beat me and I've been playing this game for many years. It won't always surprise a veteran player but will still give you a good game.

Yes the dice and detailed combat table can be turned off. So when you fire all you'll see is the result on the map. The UI is also hidable.

The scale is 150 meters per hex, squad counters, individual leaders and tanks, weapon teams for 3-4 men.

I hope that this does well so they will do the modern stuff on PC as well.
8) 

[Apocalypse 31]

Thanks for the reply.

Although East Front isn't my thing, it's still tempting...

[Sir Slash]

Hey Barth. Any advantage to buying boxed vs digital? I mean do you really need a manual to learn how to play?

[Barthheart]

Hey Barth. Any advantage to buying boxed vs digital? I mean do you really need a manual to learn how to play?

I'd say no. There are some good tutorial scenarios that will teach you the basics of how to work the game controls.
And the game controls are very straight forward.

The included ebook manual has all that the printed manual has, so if you have an tablet of some kind yer all set.

There are a few quick reference pages at the back of the manual you might find handy until you fully understand the game,
but for that there is a printer-friendly .pdf included as well.

Once you learn the game, you'll never need the manual. I've been playing the board game for years and maybe look something up once every 10 games or so.

[Rayfer]

Only a wargamer gets excited about a computer game that emulates a board game.... I'll never understand you guys.

Well, speaking only for myself, I'm 62 years old so in my early adult days, for the longest time, there were no computers so the only wargame option was table top mini's and boardgames.  Because of this I will always have an affinity for boardgame conversions, I'm comfortable with them and very much enjoy them. But I also play and enjoy other wargames as well.

[Arctic Blast]

Good price, looks good, Brant seal of approval...I'm in. Well, I'm in once I finish another game or two from my existing backlog...SHUT UP, ME, THAT IS HOW IT'S GOING TO WORK! STOP BEING A BABY!

Yes...

[SgtRock]

I don't understand the need to show dice in a computer game?  Yes, I know it's just like the board game but, I not buying or playing the board game!

[Con]

I'd love to get this but with my travel schedule Ipad is the way I role now for any new games I buy.

I have heard rumors about porting LnL to iOS and if it ever happens they would get my money ASAP

Con

[Barthheart]

I don't understand the need to show dice in a computer game?  Yes, I know it's just like the board game but, I not buying or playing the board game!

You don't have to watch them if you don't want. There is an options setting to turn them off.

[Nefaro]

I don't understand the need to show dice in a computer game?  Yes, I know it's just like the board game but, I not buying or playing the board game!

The few games that make it feel like you're rolling dice (by clicking on them and seeing them roll) just adds to the boardgame atmosphere of the whole thing.  I think it's great when done well.  In this case, the "immersion" is in relation to playing the tabletop as opposed to commanding a platoon on the East Front. 

Why not just buy the tabletop game?  Dealing with table space usage, setup time, and my big reason - managing lots of counters - is so much easier.

Despite my general WW2 gaming aversion, I will have this before long.  The reasonable price is good to see.  For awhile I began to think everything released by Slitherine-Matrix would be $80.  ???

[JudgeDredd]

I don't understand the need to show dice in a computer game?  Yes, I know it's just like the board game but, I not buying or playing the board game!

Well not everyone is the same, but here's my take...

I have said before, and I'll say again...for me, conversion of a board game to a PC lacks something. Setting up the board, getting the counters out, having the dice there, getting your chits ready, sorting the cards, the rule book etc, etc, etc. Everything for me is about the physical product.

For me those are elements that make boardgames very special. When you convert a boardgame to a computer game, it removes ALL the physical element...and what you have is a rather sterile version of a superb boardgame.

With the dice in the game, the cards and graphics being the same...what you end up with is a very good digital version of a boardgame.

I think it's even more important if you've played the actual boardgame being represented.

I don't know how better to explain it.

I understand why someone would not see the point of it if they didn't play boardgames. I could also understand if people didn't get how the graphics had to be 2D if they hadn't played the boardgame...but in my mind, it's absolutely essential for me to play that computer version of the boardgame as I would the physical product.

Conflict of Heroes was a great boardgame and a good system. It lost something in translation to the PC version because they went 3D. They caught up after release and made a 2D version of the game which was much better.

Of course, it's good to have both sides...people who enjoyed the boardgame can have an exact representation of the boardgame they love and entice other people in with switching "boardgame features" off.

That's all I have got. I've only played a single scenario just now...but I love it's look.

[Apocalypse 31]

The point of a computer game is to create what cannot be created with a board game. At least they made the dice something that can be toggled. I'm really tempted here..

I'm not really keyed in on Lock n Load, since I'm not a board gamer. Now that they have a successful game out, with what seems to be a desirable system, will they look at converting more of their games to PC? I would think most of the artwork is already digital.

What about the World at War series?
http://lnlpublishing.com/products/world-at-war-series

Those are some beautiful looking games. Do they have any plans to make those digital?