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Consumate WWII Strategy Game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 37 / 39
Date: July 09, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I'm a huge fan of Paradox Interactive. These guys make the perfect games for history geeks like me. Gloriously complex, very playable, with the smack of verisimilitude. Hours of pleasure..

I started war-gaming twenty-five years ago, when I was just a kid in grade school- the Old Avalon Hill era. Hexagon boards, dice, fat rulebooks and hundreds of cardboard unit chits. And far too few fellow geeks to play with. A.H. put out a strategic level European/Mediterranean theatre game called Third Reich. I loved that game. I played WWII out with my little brother, or by playing all factions myself, hundreds of times. Ah, the good old days..

But wait, no. The sepia tones fade to a harsh, merciless grey. I've played HoI2, and this new hyper charged "Doomsday" revision of that glorious game. And there is no comparison. This is Third Reich beatified and transfigured. To heck with the old days.

With HoI2 you can begin campaign play in 1936, 1938, 1939, 1941, or 1944. The diplomatic and military situation being as it was historically at each date. You can play any country in the world - any major power (Germany, U.K., U.S.A., U.S.S.R., France, Italy, Japan) or a lesser power such as Australia, S. Africa, Canada, Brazil, Turkey or Spain, etc. Or you can even play a minor country like Bhutan or Costa Rica - even though they have very little economic, scientific, diplomatic, political, or as a result, military power. Still, if you want to attempt world conquest with say Nicaragua, Switzerland, Tibet or Siam, you are free to.

There are also minor scenarios where you can play out Barbarossa, the Invasion of Poland, Japan in China, the Spanish Civil War, a hypothetical war between Argentina & Brazil, the Battle of the Coral Sea, the Ardennes offensive (Battle of the Bulge).. you get the idea. I'm solely a 1936 campaign game man, myself, though, so I can't speak to the quality of the scenarios.

In the original HoI2 campaigns all end in 1947. Which often cuts the game short while things are still very interesting (Hitler played a very stupid HoI2 game- I mean, taking on the U.S.S.R. and U.S.A. simultaneously? While the U.K. is still kicking? Don't you be so stupid. Things could've gone on so much longer.. 988 years longer, vielleicht?) So 1947 is too early an end date.

This new Doomsday expansion corrects that. The new end date is 1953 (the year of Stalin's death.) And a new "Doomsday" scenario is added, beginning in 1945 with Germany defeated. Europe is divided between the Comitern and Allies, and they're at war. Dr. Strangeglove is in the house, ya'll. Yeeehaw!

Armageddon aside, the glory of HoI2 Doomsday is that you can start in 1936, and play through 1953, and absolutely anything can happen. Early Cold War, or Axis world domination, whatever. I mean, you can do all sorts of interesting things (especially if you use the F12 cheatcode "freedom" to change the political conditions of your country more quickly than would otherwise be allowed - Germany can be made communist, the U.S. fascist or communist, the U.S.S.R. a democracy - and all international alliances and national leaders will change..)

The economic and technological aspects of this game are very good- the tech tree is pretty complex, and every country- even the little ones - has a bevy of historic industrial firms and technicians (e.g., Germany has I.G. Farben, Krupp, Siemens, Junkers, Porsche, Rheinmetal, Mauser and individuals such as Guderian, Udet, Goering, Von Braun, Heisenburg, Von Manstein, Raeder, etc. the U.S. has Ford, Raytheon, Oppenheimer, McDonnell Douglas, Nimitz, etc.) who are assigned different tech/doctrinal projects. You can choose to pursue certain lines of technology, and military doctrine and ignore others, try to research them earlier than they were historically, etc.

Economically, each country has an factory industrial base which determines how many units you can produce or support, and which must be fed resources. Resources are obtained by controlling their geographic sources, or through trade with countries who have surplus resources.

Militarily, this is a division level game. The units are assigned historical names and designations (1st Panzer Division, 101st Airborne, K.M.S. Bismarck, U.S.S. Lexington, etc.) You organize them into corps and armies, and fleets. Every unit has a historical commander whom you can reassign and promote, with his own unique skills (Patton, Rommel, Monty, Yamamoto- the whole gang's here.)

Politically and diplomatically you can pick your governmental cabinet. If you dislike your head of state, you can gradually over time manipulate the political & economic climate of your society so that he is replaced. (or you can use the cheat code I mentioned to do it instantaneously.) The U.S., for example, has its historic elections, and F.D.R. can be defeated.. how about a Landon or Wilkie administration?

The axes of your political and economic culture that you can manipulate over time are these: Right/Left, Democratic/Authoritarian, Open/Closed Society, Free Market/Centrally Planned Economy, Standing/Drafted Army, Hawk/Dove, Interventionist/Isolationist. All choices here effect your game play.

One other major change in Doomsday from the original is that they've added an espionage tab to your menu.. you send spies to check out your enemies and neighbors, and get partial and less than fully accurate information instead of HoI2's omniscient all army/navy/air force comparison charts. More realistic, methinks. You also get an idea of what they are researching, which is a nice improvement. Your spies can attempt other missions (assassinate leaders, sabotage projects, foment partisan revolt, etc.) Overall, an improvement, I think.

The A1 is solid, and will usually throw up a challenge. The program is pretty stable, and Paradox is very good about patches and support. Check out Paradox's web forum [..]

In sum: the game is a excellent one. If you play a major power, and stick to the historical script, the war will quite often fall out more or less as things actually did. But what's the fun of that? You could, instead, say, skip Pearl Harbor and take and send the Japanese Imperial Army into Russia instead of China. Or, you could play the U.S. and realize her manifest destiny by conquering all the Americas.. Or you could truly challenge yourself and attempt wide conquest with a middling power such as Turkey, Spain, Nationalist China, Brazil, or Canada.. or try to prosper with even a much smaller power such as Ireland, or a Latin American country like Guatemala. Be creative.

Five plus stars. Buy this game if it sounds at all interesting to you.

Doomsday is awesome

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 27 / 30
Date: April 14, 2006
Author: Amazon User

This is the best WWII simulator on the market. Doomsday simply updates it and provides some great user enhancements as well as a new WWIII scenario.

Be warned that this game is complicated, has a high learning curve, but as a result is extremely rewarding and fun. The AI is better than any of its competitors and can actually provide a challange for even expert users.

Anyone interested in Alternate History and wants a computer simulator to try it out should give this one a go...

Best game I have ever played - and the one game I constantly go back to after I get bored with the rest.

The expansion included the original HOI2 - and so for the cost is the best value for any game on the market.

The best in the genre and a must-have for wargamers!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 19 / 20
Date: July 06, 2006
Author: Amazon User

To call Hearts of Iron 2: Doomsday anything but the best strategic-level WW2 era wargame on the market today would be a crime.

The game allows players to command almost any country of their choosing and guide them through the period of 1936 to 1953. `Doomsday' is actually a stand-alone product, and so while it only adds a few new elements and changes a few others from HOI2, it isn't a traditional `expansion pack' in the sense that Frozen Throne is to Warcraft III. The big change from HOI2 is that a new espionage element is added, allowing players more control over spying aspects of the game. This helps the game slide more easily into the cold war era, which is the focus of Doomsday.

For those unfamiliar with the Hearts of Iron series, control in Doomsday is granted over more than simply military forces, and the player has complete control over the nation of their choice's industrial, political, and ideological direction. The level of detail is astounding, with each country having politicians, military leaders and research specialists available to use that were actually active during the period. Players can even name individual ships and divisions to their liking, and promote or demote commanders and replace key cabinet members as they see fit, all with differing consequences. And while the game is very event-driven, it has the flexibility to allow variations from what happened historically while still keeping within the general capabilities of the player's country. For instance, if a German player wanted to build a strong carrier fleet, it can be done. The game is also highly customizable, and almost any element (literally) of the game can be molded to the players liking.

At the heart of any true wargame though is it's A.I., and for a game of this size and scope, Doomsday does an admirable job. Not to say everything that the computer does always makes sense, but it certainly does make playing the game fun and gives players quite a challenge in the process. The only real complaint I have about the game is that airpower in the game still seems flat and tacked-on. The engine suits land and naval combat well enough, but air combat seems `broken' at many points, being either too weak or too strong in many areas. Another problem is that while ground units can target specific provinces for attack, air units cannot and instead attack in a general region of several provinces. And while some gamers are also quick to correctly point out that Doomsday is not an actual simulation, this is probably the closest gamers will get to a solid representation of the conflict on this scale.

My Summary:

Pros: Best game in the genre, allows near total control over almost all aspects of control. Graphics and sound are good for a game of this type, highly moddable, active mod community helps extend gameplay, stable.

Cons: May not appeal to players who dislike micromanagement, some AI issues, airpower needs work.

Summary: If you're a true wargamer and you don't own this, I have to ask what's wrong with you... However, players that already own HOI2 will have to be the judge as to if the changes are worth it to them. Those looking for something less involved but on the same scale can look to World at War or Strategic Command 2.

Best WWII Strategy Game Ever. Period.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: October 19, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I have been a WWII gamer since the 80's. I started with Axis & Allies as a kid, moved on to High Command (old DOS based game - phenominal), but have always searched for the ultimate WWII strategy game. One that compares to the great 'Rise and Decline of the Third Reich' board game.

I found it.

This game is the pinacle of WWII strategy games. It has everything you could ever want. Have Rommel run rupshot over the Red Army and take Moscow in 1941? Sure. Invade India as the Japanese? Why not. Forget Russia and go for the Mid-East? you get the idea....

The graphics are fine for a grand strategy game. You can also make it so the units are the traditional squares with NATO terminology. The part I like most about this game is the way you can learn it in steps. It has a couple basic tutorials where you learn what everything is. The best part is you can then start a game (in '36,'38,'39,'41... whenever!) and be Romania or Bulgaria, or even Nepal(!), and learn how to deal with everything in the game environment. Once you get good, you can start as a major player, step up the AI, and go crazy. You control EVERY stage of your nation. But you can also have the comptuer take over portions if you just care about your tanks and surrounding the russian hordes.

The greatest moment for me came when I allowed Guderian to Roll into Moscow in October of 1941 and bypass the Ukraine. This followed my triumphant paratrooper operation the year before on the white cliffs of Dover, which was followed by Operation Sealion.

You WWII buffs will appreciate this game fully. Be happy, buy the game.

Great game for fans of board war games

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: January 11, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This game reminds me of the old Avalon Hill board games only it automates the movements and rolling of the dice. It takes a long time to play, but if you are a fan of true strategy games, and a fan of WWII history I think you will like this game. I also own the original version and this is definitely a step up. The title is misleading because while it expands on the original version, you DO NOT need the original to play this version. My biggest draw to this game are the several "what-if" scenarios, including going to war with the Soviets right after WWII.

One of the best

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: January 06, 2007
Author: Amazon User

One of the best, all encompassing WWII simulation stratagy games I have ever played. Historically acurate and awe-inspiring! I only wish the scenerios were longer.

Most Intelligent

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: January 10, 2007
Author: Amazon User

When I first started playing this series I saw it nothing more than a more in-depth version of Risk. In-depth to me is a serious understatement. There have been plenty of times where I've created a game early in the morning and played it through the night. Time really does whiz by with this game, a super buy!

Doomsday: A solid Expansion

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 1
Date: February 02, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Not much to say. If you are all about HOI2, this provides some fun ways to expand the game beyond both your limited time frame and technological/historical of the first.

Hearts of Iron 2: Doomsday Expansion Pack

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: April 16, 2007
Author: Amazon User

A game that you can play over and over, never the same game twice. This has to be one of the better world domination games on the market. The game has a medium learning curve, but once you get the hang of it its fun and easy. I had to start over many times when I learned something new during game play that would have help me out at an earlier stage. The only issue I have is the game editor. Maybe I just didn't find it, but no instructions on how to use it. It is an awesome utility but tricky to figure out. No previous versions required to play this game it is a full game not just and expansion

HOT

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 1
Date: May 02, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Best WWII game I have ever played. This is not an expansion pack, but the whole game with extra years and other good suprises.

If you don't own it, buy it.

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