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Hurrah! For Antietam!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 86 / 88
Date: February 20, 2001
Author: Amazon User

As a veteran of tactical war games using miniatures, I can say that Sid Meier has finally realized the potential of the computer in delivering a minatures quality game without the expense of acquiring figures and terrain (which can easily run into thouands of dollars).

Furthermore, these miniatures are animated! They march, they wheel, they fire, they charge, and sometimes they run away. Having played Gettysburg, my main complaint was that all Union troops were in kepis, all Confederates in slouch hats.

Imagine my surprise playing Antietam to see a regiment of Confederates Zouaves moving across the field, with fez's and tassles (from Louisiana, I think). The Iron Brigade wears their famous black hats. Some regiments have blanket rolls, others wear full packs. Kepis and slouch hats are found in both armies, sometimes within the same regiment. Some Confederates wear gray, others are in butternut. The tunic may be blue, the pants light blue.

Artillery includes Napoleon's, old 6-lbers, 3 inch rifles, and 10 and 20# Parrots. There is an option to fire cannister.

The sound effects are outstanding. You click on an order and you hear an officer yelling "Bayonets!" The gunfire sounds good, as does the grumbling within the ranks "When are we gonna get moving?", etc.

The terrain is beautiful and realistically detailed. Cover and line of sight are built into the rules.

Aesthetically, the game is superb.

The rules force you to use historical tactics. The are four grades of troops, from green to crack, and four grades of commanders. As they fight, losses and fatigue drive to regiments to the breaking point. You will learn the importance of tactical reserves, feints, and shifting the main point of attack.

Best of all, the player merely gives the orders. No hours painting hundreds and thousands of figures, or filling a 9X6 table top battlefield with terrain. And best of all, no rolling of dice, no consulting the rules manual, no bookkeeping. The program does all of this for you to the sound of roaring cannon and crackling musket fire.

Antietam completes the revolution in war gaming started by his Gettysburg. One can only hope Mr. Meier will extend his genius to the Napoleonic battlefield.

What an Awesome Civil War Game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 17 / 18
Date: July 10, 2001
Author: Amazon User

Being a history freak and a reenactor I am really picky on how correct history is. Sid Meier does that as well as keeping the game fun. The battlefields are precise and detailed just like the real battlefields. The sound effects and graphics are really good. You can actually hear the bugle calls and the sounds of gunfire and cannons are great as well. But this game requires some stradegy. You can't attack head on. You will get driven back just as if you were a general in the Civil War. If you want to win you must try to get around the enemy and flank them. I got it about a year ago and I still win and lose. Overall this an excellent game for history fans and people who just like good stradegy games! Maybe Mr. Meier should add more battlefields to his collection. How about Fredericksburg or Manassas!

How it all started

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 16 / 25
Date: July 04, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Sid Meier has but has name on some of the best games ever. These two games are now exception. Gettesburg started it all. Antietam took it a step further. In these two games you can change history as you bravely direct your troops. You can make them form a battle line, charge of fall back. Trap enimeny units as you flank them. These are to great games from a great game maker.

I may not be a general but I play one on...

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 18 / 18
Date: June 28, 2001
Author: Amazon User

This is one of the most realistic tactical simulation games I have played. At the harder levels working at normal time this game is very hard to beat. Living in Maryland I have walked the battlefields of Antietam and Gettysburg. I now have a better understanding of both battles having "fought" them first hand.

Good stuff: Very fun similar to the Close Combat series. Great learning tool to understand battles. Challenging on a grand scale. The full battle includes directing more than a hundred units.

Bad stuff: The interface can be fidgety to operate--especially when there is a breakthough and you need to move fast. I have had the game lock up and lose information (rarely).

Overall I found this was a great tactical game. It features a good mix of hands on action and a good game AI.

Best game ever

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 14 / 14
Date: April 17, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I have played war games for almost 35 years. This one is the best one ever, simply stated. Most computer games, you can pretty much figure out within a few reps, how to beat the computer easily. This one, no way. I'm getting better, but after 100 tries or so, i'm still winning some, losing some. Also, with most computer war games, the strategy of just "attacking with everything" usually wins. In this game, no way! You need the same planning that a general needs in real life. If you're caught without reserves, you could be in big trouble. Head on attacks? Don't work most of the time! Flank attacks? Yes, but they take time and you could get caught with divided forces. To sum up, this is the most realistic, fun war game I have ever played. It is an absolute MUST for any wargamer. I hope that more are forthcoming in addition to Gettysburg and Antietem. Hey, how about Chickamauga!

Excellent Civil War Package!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 17 / 17
Date: July 05, 2004
Author: Amazon User

This set is a must for the Civil War buff and the gamer who likes historically-based games!

With real-time strategy, you are attacking and defending while the computer is doing the same thing. In my humble opinion, this is more entertaining and realistic than the turn-based games.

Both Gettysburg and Antietam offer several scenarios of two categories: historical (your chance to replay and perhaps change the outcome of what actually happened in the battles) and speculative (a chance to play and win "what if" scenarios that did not happen in the battles, i.e.- one Gettysburg scenario has Stonewall Jackson present - an interesting scenario indeed!).

The graphics for both battles are excellent. Since I have visited both battles several times, I was readily able to identify terrain features for both battles.

The player is also allowed to choose either North and South and the level of difficulty - in my opinion, these are excellent features.

Buy and enjoy the set! Highly recommended!

CWC- Gettsburg! and Antietam! work on WinXP(SP2)

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 14 / 14
Date: June 16, 2005
Author: Amazon User

A complete set of instructions to allow Gettysburg! and Antietam! to be fully functional on Windows XP (Service Pack 2) can be found at http://vogons.zetafleet.com/viewforum.php?f=8

This should re-assure buyers of this software package that their investment in this purchase will not be wasted, and that CWC is as playable now as the individual titles were when they were introduced.

True classics...

Amazing

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 9 / 11
Date: January 09, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I am 13 years old and when I first played this game I found the civil war a neat thing to learn about. Now, every spare moment I have I am playing Gettysburg. You learn the history of the civil war like the landmarks, leaders, and you still get to enjoy the excitement of a real time war game. From the bugle calls to the reinforcements, anyone and everyone is sure to love this game.

Reply to Trenton NJ

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 9 / 9
Date: June 07, 2004
Author: Amazon User

My husband loves these games...but couldn't get them to work when we upgraded our computer. Go to www.firaxis.com, then choose DOWNLOADS at top of the page. There is a download for the civil war games to make them compatible to Windows XP. The Gettysburg game we still get an error message, but if you choose to run it from the Programs menu, it's fine. Good luck!

A Wonderful Historical Experience

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 8
Date: July 05, 2001
Author: Amazon User

My great-great-great grandfather recieved his "baptism of fire" at Antietam, and I must say, it has been amazing playing this game. I was playing the Bloody Lane scenario when suddenly the disembodied voice said "Reinforcements are comin' up!". I saw Walker's NC Brigade marching through the woods. I placed the 46th NC, my ancestor's unit in it's historically correct spot, and commanded the brigade as it flanked the Yankees.

So you may not have had an ancestor in Antietam or Gettysburg, but you still can get the amazing feeling of being a part of something large and momentous.

The gameplay can be a little confusing, but so is war. The uniforms are so realistic, and the South Mountain scenarios are a nice (yet challenging) mini-game. I seriously reccommend this game to any civil war, history, war, or wargame buff!

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