Battle Academy

About

Battle Academy is a single player and multiplayer turn-based strategy game with warfare and historical themes. It was developed by Slitherine Ltd. and was released on April 16, 2014. It received positive reviews from players.

Battle Academy is a turn-based strategy game set in World War II, where players command a group of units and use real-world tactics to secure victory. With a wide range of unit types, missions, and multiplayer options, the game offers high replayability and a host of user mods and scenarios. Players must use ambushes, suppressing fire, and flanking movements to outmaneuver and defeat the enemy.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

+20

Skip User Reviews

88%

Audience ScoreBased on 290 reviews

story4 positive mentions

music3 negative mentions

Battle Academy offers a fun and engaging turn-based strategy experience, reminiscent of classic games like Steel Panthers, with a good balance of challenge and accessibility.
The game features a variety of scenarios and troop types, making it enjoyable for both beginners and seasoned wargamers, with a decent learning curve.
Despite its dated graphics, the gameplay mechanics are robust, and the attention to historical detail adds depth to the experience.

The tutorial is poorly designed, providing minimal guidance on game mechanics, which can lead to confusion for new players.
Many scenarios are locked behind expensive DLC, which can feel like a cash grab and detracts from the overall value of the game.
The game suffers from issues like infinite reaction fire mechanics and a lack of unit information, which can lead to frustrating gameplay experiences.

story
74 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
5%
91%
4%
The game's story is conveyed through a series of interconnected campaign missions that present varied and challenging scenarios, allowing players to engage with the narrative while strategizing their approach. Each mission starts with a fresh set of troops, which adds a layer of tactical depth and reduces the pressure of losing upgraded units, although some players wish for more continuity in unit progression. Overall, the campaigns are well-received for their engaging design, though some players note a lack of detailed information about units and mission objectives.
- “Campaigns in the game are a series of related scenarios that sort of tell a story.”
- “The game is shipped with three campaigns sporting a dozen missions each (Desert War, Normandy, and the Battle of the Bulge), plus a special game mode and a user-friendly level editor.”
- “I loved how each mission was set up and you could go into it with a plan only to fail because you prepared wrong!”
- “My biggest gripes are: (1) the lack of information about units under your command, including weapons and effective ranges, and (2) the lack of information about the order of battle for each mission, with the responsibility for selecting additional forces from a limited force pool without knowing what forces are already organic to the scenario.”
- “I’ve given this game so many opportunities, but the deflection all the time is frustrating. There’s one particular mission where you are totally outmatched; your tanks break down every turn. I wish I had a physical copy so I could smash it against the wall.”
- “However, due to mission and map design, if you stray from the standard mix of tanks and infantry, you will have a very difficult time.”
graphics
62 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
39%
51%
10%
The graphics of the game are generally described as fun and appealing, with a cartoonish or comic book style that some players enjoy, though they lack the polish and detail of more modern titles. While the visuals are serviceable and suitable for mobile platforms, they can appear grainy and pixelated on PC, leading to mixed opinions about their overall quality. Despite these criticisms, many players appreciate the game's art style and find it effective for gameplay, especially given its low system requirements.
- “The art style is appealing and still holds up after more than a decade.”
- “The graphics are surprisingly detailed yet fun at the same time.”
- “Enjoy the artwork and sounds are top notch!”
- “While Battle Academy excels in historical accuracy and strategic gameplay, the visuals and audio could benefit from some improvement.”
- “The graphics, while serviceable, lack the polish and detail found in more modern titles.”
- “Bad graphics, bad AI description say you can play Canadian forces but in reality you can't; it's buggy as hell and crashes often. Was this game made in the 90s?”
gameplay
56 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
72%
7%
The gameplay of Battle Academy is characterized by its robust turn-based strategy mechanics, which effectively capture the essence of WWII tactics and historical accuracy, making it appealing to strategy enthusiasts. While the game features clean and meaningful mechanics, some players noted issues with outdated visuals, audio quality, and a frustrating tutorial experience. Overall, despite minor technical shortcomings, the engaging gameplay and attention to detail in unit design contribute to a compelling experience for fans of the genre.
- “From the meticulously detailed units and maps to the realistic combat mechanics, Battle Academy successfully captures the essence of the era, making it a must-play for history buffs and strategy enthusiasts alike.”
- “The strategy gameplay is great; the fog of war system is one of the greatest I've seen in any hex strategy game, and the ability to suppress any position, whether occupied or not, adds so much to the gameplay.”
- “It really conveys the sense of real war tactics; it's unique in the fact that, like in real war, knowledge is everything. Knowing where your enemy is and trying to avoid ambushes using scout planes and scouts is a must, but it's handled very well. The gameplay is addicting and very fun.”
- “Boy oh boy, just for starters; I jumped into the tutorial... it walks me through issuing move orders and goes way too in-depth on how to use the mouse, but then before it can make it to any sort of game mechanics or any other basics, it glitches me out of the tutorial... guess I was done.”
- “Graphics are cartoonish, sounds are cheap, and gameplay is slow and clumsy.”
- “It tries to freshen up the old Panzer General formula, but poor explanation of mechanics and bugs make for an irritating experience.”
replayability
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
30%
30%
The game offers notable replayability, with players enjoying multiple campaigns and various modes such as Normandy skirmishes and special assignments for both Allied and Axis factions. While some users rate the base replay value around 6/10, it can increase to 8/10 with the use of modding tools, indicating that those willing to engage with the game's editor can find even more enjoyment and replayable content. Overall, it promises hours of fun for fans of the genre.
- “Bottom line is it's a lot of fun and has a high replay value if you're interested in this type of game.”
- “- Replayability in the form of Normandy skirmishes + Allied special assignments + Axis special assignments + if you want to restart every campaign from the beginning upon having completed it.”
- “However, it is done really well and if you are willing to shell out, you won't be disappointed and are in for hours of replayable fun!”
- “Replay value: 6/10 (if you don't mind using the editor to make mods then 8/10)”
- “Replayability in the form of Normandy skirmishes, Allied special assignments, Axis special assignments, and the option to restart every campaign from the beginning after completing it.”
- “I think there is some replayability at least, as I think I did most of the campaigns twice at least (like maybe came back and played them through a couple of years after the first time).”
music
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
37%
38%
The game's music features catchy earworm themes and excellent sound quality, but it suffers from repetitiveness that can become tedious and lacks atmospheric depth. Overall, while some tracks are enjoyable, they may also lead to frustration over time.
- “Also, some of its musical themes are earworms.”
- “Excellent music and sounds.”
- “On the downside, the music in the game is enough to drive anyone nuts and it lacks real atmosphere.”
- “The repetitive music track can be a bit boring when you notice it.”
- “The music in the game is enough to drive anyone nuts and it lacks real atmosphere.”
stability
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The stability of the game is highly inconsistent, with some users reporting a bug-free experience and smooth performance, while others encounter frequent crashes and glitches, particularly during the tutorial. Overall, the game appears to have significant stability issues that detract from the overall experience.
- “Have not come across any issues graphics or sound wise, playability wise there's three levels, installs and runs great straight out of the box.”
- “I jumped into the tutorial, and while it walked me through issuing move orders and went way too in-depth on how to use the mouse, it glitched me out before I could learn any game mechanics or basics. Guess I was done.”
- “The graphics are bad, the AI is poorly described, and although it says you can play Canadian forces, in reality, you can't. It's buggy as hell and crashes often. Was this game made in the 90s?”
optimization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
34%
33%
The game is praised for its excellent optimization, running smoothly on lower-end hardware without any significant performance issues or game-breaking bugs. Additionally, it offers a cost-effective alternative to similar titles, making it accessible to a wider audience.
- “Game-breaking bugs are non-existent (or rare; I don't know if anyone else has run into major problems, but my version has run smoothly since I installed it).”
- “It doesn't require a computer with high graphics performance.”
- “A quarter of what similar games cost and no glitchy performance.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Many users expressed a desire to connect emotionally with the game, but felt hindered by the small map sizes and a lack of depth in the units, which they perceived as mere cannon fodder rather than characters to invest in. This led to a general sense of disappointment in the emotional engagement the game offered.
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's atmosphere is criticized for being lacking, with repetitive music that detracts from the overall experience and fails to create an engaging environment.
- “On the downside, the music in the game is enough to drive anyone nuts and it lacks real atmosphere.”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be notable, as battles can feel repetitive despite the inclusion of diverse units and larger maps. While the increased difficulty adds a layer of challenge, it also contributes to a sense of prolonged engagement that some may find tedious.
- “The battles are a bit grindy.”
- “Bigger maps don't always make for better battles; they can lead to a more tedious grinding experience.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy has received criticism for appearing to prioritize profit over player experience, with early instances of aggressive cash grabbing leading to a negative first impression among users.
- “A bit of cash grabbing at the start gave a bad impression.”
- “A bit of cash grabbing at the start gave a bad impression.”