Afghanistan '11

About

Afghanistan '11 is a single player turn-based strategy game with warfare and historical themes. It was developed by Retro Epic and was released on March 23, 2017. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

"Afghanistan '11" is a strategy war game set in the war-torn country in 2011. Players command the U.S. forces, managing resources, troops, and diplomacy to bring stability to the region. The game features a detailed campaign mode, challenging players to make tough decisions in a complex and dynamic environment. Every soldier and resource matters, making for intense and immersive gameplay.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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73%

Audience ScoreBased on 526 reviews

gameplay28 positive mentions

stability24 negative mentions

The game offers a unique and engaging simulation of asymmetrical warfare, focusing on logistics and resource management.
The mechanics encourage strategic thinking and planning, making each decision impactful on the overall mission.
The developers are responsive to community feedback and actively work on updates and improvements.

The game suffers from numerous bugs and crashes, which can disrupt gameplay and lead to frustration.
The user interface can be clunky and lacks automation, leading to tedious micromanagement of supply lines and units.
Combat mechanics can feel unbalanced, with player units often facing overwhelming odds against enemy forces.

gameplay
150 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
77%
4%
The gameplay of the game is characterized by a unique focus on logistics and counterinsurgency mechanics, offering a complex and engaging experience that can be both rewarding and frustrating. While the core mechanics are solid and innovative, many players have noted issues with bugs, lack of quality-of-life features, and a need for better automation in managing logistics, which can lead to repetitive gameplay. Overall, despite its flaws, the game is recommended for fans of the genre, especially when purchased at a discount.
- “I really like the gameplay; it is quite unique compared to other strategy war games and has a strong focus on logistics as well as fighting.”
- “The gameplay is really compelling, and I think it's a great strategy game.”
- “The game mechanics are well-machined and balanced, and I've really enjoyed coming to grips with handling limited information about enemy movements and surprises like unexpected IEDs taking out a supply truck that absolutely derails my plan for the next few turns.”
- “As much fun as this game could be, the lack of quality of life features and some of the gameplay aspects just break it for me.”
- “It feels like a labor of love, but frankly, while the core gameplay is solid, it really would have needed some additional time to playtest and improve.”
- “Gameplay gets repetitive, limiting any fun to being a logistics handler, making sure units are supplied, etc. There is no easy automated way to handle supply, perhaps that was the intent.”
story
128 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
6%
91%
3%
The game's story revolves around military strategy and peacekeeping missions, emphasizing the importance of logistics and local support in achieving objectives. Players engage in complex missions that require careful planning and resource management, with a focus on increasing the 'hearts and minds' score to reflect the success of operations in the eyes of the local population. However, the narrative can become repetitive and is marred by bugs and unclear mission objectives, leading to frustration during gameplay.
- “The missions entail increasing the 'hearts and minds' score (a way of measuring the success of American/British operations in the eyes of the locals), securing certain regions of the map and, in later missions, training local soldiers to hand over to.”
- “In my opinion as an infantryman that directly served in this theater, I have to say the devs did a pretty good job of nailing down a lot of the aspects of the overall mission structure and basic mechanics.”
- “A lot of the real-life dynamics of logistics, mission readiness, intel, manpower, and most importantly support units, were logically and accurately represented as in-game mechanics to the best of their ability and I'm impressed.”
- “Certain campaign missions are flat out broken; there's weird things going on with the IED system, units that are supposed to counter IEDs (Huskys which serve as minesweepers) are vulnerable to them, and MOABs not functioning.”
- “Campaign missions are easy to win in only a fraction of the allotted turn limit, and without the ability to declare victory, they drag on without serious challenge nor any substantial change of pace after the inevitable cross-border Taliban assault is mopped up in two or three turns.”
- “Would be a very enjoyable, if limited, game were it not for terrible mission goals.”
graphics
40 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
35%
50%
15%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players finding them functional and well-designed, while others criticize issues like poorly mapped textures and performance problems at different settings. Although a few users appreciate the visuals as nice and complementary to the gameplay, many express that the graphics can feel uninteresting or repetitive, detracting from the overall experience. Overall, while some players are satisfied, others suggest that the graphical quality may not justify the full price of the game.
- “Great game, nice graphics.”
- “The graphics are nice.”
- “The graphics are functional, improved over v65 and quite wonderfully complement the UI.”
- “The major issue I am experiencing are the graphics.”
- “The lowest graphical quality setting makes everything too bright, the middle looks good but locks my frames per second to max 30 (makes the game stuttery when moving over the map) and the highest setting introduces chromatic aberration and makes the game look somewhat blurry.”
- “I wouldn't buy the game for the full price, it is too steep especially with the graphical issues left behind but do make the plunge when the game is discounted 50% or more - the gameplay and unique setting itself warrant the buy at that discount.”
stability
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
86%
The game suffers from significant stability issues, with numerous bugs, frequent crashes, and glitches affecting both new and existing content. Many users express disappointment over its unfinished state, likening its instability to that of Cyberpunk. Despite its intriguing concept and mechanics, the overall experience is marred by these persistent technical problems.
- “It also runs great on my oldie-but-goodie gaming box.”
- “Game abandoned in a buggy and unfinished state by the developer.”
- “This game is still buggy and still has constant crashes.”
- “It has a good and unique concept, intriguing and, at the very core of it all, good mechanics; unfortunately, the game is quite buggy, and at times there are some things that simply don't make sense.”
grinding
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players consistently describe the grinding aspect of the game as tedious and frustrating, with many noting that it devolves into a repetitious slog after an initial enjoyable experience. The lack of clear strategic goals and the overwhelming micromanagement required, particularly in managing supply trucks, contribute to a sense of monotony and boredom. Additionally, the poorly designed tutorial exacerbates the issue by failing to adequately explain the game's mechanics, further complicating the grinding experience.
- “I was loving this game for the first dozen hours or so, then it just devolves into a tedious, repetitious slog.”
- “Tedious quagmire with no clear strategic goals, no possibility of decisive victory, and it's just a bloody whack-a-mole and random casualties until the clock runs out.”
- “Problem is, the game makes managing a convoy incredibly tedious.”
replayability
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
43%
19%
The game is praised for its high replayability, featuring a customizable skirmish mode and improved mechanics that enhance depth and enjoyment. Players appreciate the balance of challenge and entertainment, with many engaging scenarios emerging from the game's various elements. While some aspects, like managing requisition points in skirmish mode, can be challenging, the overall consensus is that the game offers significant replay value through its campaigns and ongoing content updates.
- “A11 offers clear improvements in depth and replayability over v65, new mechanics, and an insightful view of the conflict in Afghanistan.”
- “Easy to learn, replayable, challenging in a consistent fashion, and highly entertaining for the price.”
- “It has a customizable skirmish mode, so endless replayability is addressed on top of the campaigns already present, and they have more content and DLC on the way.”
- “There are many other smaller changes which make the game far more playable. For example, the increased number of things to do means longer games aren't such a slog. Some units being either impervious or highly resistant to IEDs, and adding extra health to Taliban units creates the threat of them returning, which has already led to some memorable scenarios in the short time I have been playing.”
- “A11 offers clear improvements in depth and replayability over v65, with new mechanics and an insightful view of the conflict in Afghanistan.”
music
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
8%
42%
50%
The music in the game has been widely criticized for being repetitive and boring, leading to a lack of engagement and contributing to the overall dullness of the experience. While the graphics are deemed acceptable, the soundtrack fails to enhance the gameplay, with some players opting to mute it and play alternative music for a more enjoyable experience.
- “However, if you turn the music off and play the soundtrack from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 instead, the game becomes pure, modern military strategical bliss.”
- “The music is the most boring sound I've heard in a very long time.”
- “The sound, music, and graphics are so dull that the game becomes boring very quickly.”
- “The music gets repetitive after a while, which is one of the few complaints I have.”
optimization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
33%
The game faces significant optimization issues, with users reporting serious FPS drops and stuttering during specific actions. These performance problems are likely due to inefficient code that scans the entire map, indicating a need for better optimization to enhance gameplay experience.
- “This game, however, suffers from serious FPS drops and stuttering during certain actions.”
- “My computer science brain is telling me that this is because the game is scanning every hex on the map during these actions (probably more than once for the FOB case), so some code optimizations could solve the problem, but it's still appalling that this issue is present.”
humor
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is highlighted by its absurd scenarios, particularly the comedic juxtaposition of players being tasked with influencing Afghan elections, which many find both ironic and amusing. Overall, the humor is characterized as clever and thought-provoking, eliciting laughter through its unexpected contexts.
- “I find it hilarious how you are tasked with influencing Afghan elections.”