Combat Mission Black Sea

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Combat Mission Black Sea is a tactical war game set in the modern-day Black Sea region. Players command a combined arms force, utilizing infantry, armor, and artillery in challenging, dynamic environments. Realistic ballistics, line of sight, and cover systems require strategic planning and on-the-fly decision making for success. Experience immersive combat on both land and sea in this intense, thought-provoking simulation.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Local Multi-Player Play with friends in the same physical space using split-screen or multiple screens
2-Players Play with one other player, either online or locally, in a cooperative or competitive game mode
Multi-Player Compete or cooperate with other players online
Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo
PvP Player versus Player - Fight against other players in real-time, often in arena-style combat
Split Screen Play with multiple players on the same screen, often with divided or shared screen real estate

Reviews

83%

Audience ScoreBased on 245 reviews

story14 positive mentions

graphics9 negative mentions

Incredibly detailed and realistic military simulation that challenges players to think strategically and adapt to dynamic battlefield conditions.
Offers a deep tactical experience with a variety of units and scenarios, rewarding careful planning and execution.
Strong community support with mods and scenario editors that enhance replayability and customization.

The game suffers from outdated graphics and a clunky user interface, making it difficult for new players to navigate and enjoy.
Performance issues are prevalent, with many players experiencing lag and crashes even on high-end systems.
The steep learning curve and unforgiving gameplay can be frustrating, especially for those unfamiliar with military tactics and strategy.

story
102 mentions
14 % positive mentions
83 % neutral mentions
3 % negative mentions
The "story" aspect of the Combat Mission series, particularly in "Combat Mission: Black Sea," is characterized by its focus on realistic military simulations set in modern warfare contexts, specifically a fictional conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Players appreciate the depth and complexity of the missions, which require strategic planning and adaptability, although some criticize the unbalanced scenarios and the game's aging graphics engine. Overall, the narrative is driven by tactical engagements that challenge players to think critically and execute real-world military tactics.
- “The depth of the simulation, the detailed unit soft factors, the easy-to-learn mapmaker/mission editor, and the incredible community that has been behind the Combat Mission games for the past 20 years make it a standout experience.”
- “Combat Mission: Black Sea is a military-grade simulation depicting a fictional series of escalations between Russia and Ukraine, offering a realistic tactical strategy game that is unmatched in its genre.”
- “What struck me immediately were the mission briefings, which provide a level of detail and context that enhances the overall gameplay experience.”
- “The tactical mission map during the briefing is useless.”
- “This is the hardest and most unforgiving combat mission game there is, because of the modern time period and countries that are fighting you really have to plan everything out, and even when you've planned everything something happens that changes and or messes your plan up.”
- “Game is pretty good but there are just so many unbalanced missions where the scenario developers for some reason just don't give you the tools to actually win.”
graphics
46 mentions
17 % positive mentions
63 % neutral mentions
20 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely criticized for being outdated and lacking polish, often described as feeling two decades behind modern standards. While some players find the visuals serviceable and appreciate the game's depth and tactical elements, many others report significant performance issues, including graphical glitches and poor optimization. Overall, the consensus suggests that while the graphics may not appeal to everyone, they do not overshadow the game's strategic merits for dedicated fans of the genre.
- “I was honestly hesitant at first because of the ancient-looking graphics, but after watching a couple of YouTube videos and realizing how deep the tactics and planning can get in this game, I decided to give it a go and boy do I not regret it!”
- “The graphics might not seem the best at first but the level of detail for each bullet, fatigue, morale, mental state of each pixel, communication delay, etc. lends this to be one of the best strategic games ever.”
- “Graphics are utilitarian in nature, meaning they are advanced enough to display tactical factors (terrain, visibility, altitude, sight-lines) but dated for the current year.”
- “In the end, this game is a literal headache with eye-straining graphics.”
- “The UI is horrible, and in general the graphics (for a simulator from 2021) feel like they are twenty years behind.”
- “Game play is clunky, graphics are atrocious.”
gameplay
26 mentions
19 % positive mentions
69 % neutral mentions
12 % negative mentions
The gameplay is praised for its depth and attention to detail, offering a complex and immersive experience that appeals to fans of tactical wargames. However, players note that the controls can be frustrating and the lack of a proper tutorial may hinder newcomers. While the game excels in simulating combat mechanics, it can also become overly complicated and occasionally suffers from performance issues.
- “I really love the gameplay and depth of mechanics this game provides.”
- “If you wish to get into serious wargames, this game offers a great introduction with its 'easy-to-learn, hard-to-master' gameplay.”
- “It's a fun war game for small to medium scale battles with a lot of hidden simulated mechanics, regarding spotting, armor penetration, inter-unit communication, morale, etc. It's a modern realistic RTS, thus you will not be building up bases and pumping out units.”
- “Good simulation but controls and gameplay actually feel awful.”
- “It is too complex for its own good at times, and it does not have a proper in-game tutorial that teaches you how to play, how the mechanics work and what the game AI does.”
- “However, it gets insanely frustrating with line of sight and many game mechanics.”
optimization
21 mentions
14 % positive mentions
67 % neutral mentions
19 % negative mentions
The game's optimization is widely criticized, with players reporting severe performance issues, including low resolution, graphical glitches, and significant input lag. Many users describe it as unplayable on modern hardware, citing a lack of effective optimization and stability, despite some hope for future engine upgrades to improve performance. Overall, the game's technical shortcomings overshadow its potential, leading to frustration among players.
- “Great series on how to improve performance and low resolution on laptops: make sure combat mission titles are using your GPU and not integrated graphics.”
- “There's news of a new engine coming out this year that's focused on performance improvements - hopefully that helps!”
- “My performance increased dramatically after I did so.”
- “This is a joke and whoever coded this trash had no clue what the word optimization even means.”
- “Performance is terrible and even when the game does run, it's full of graphical glitches and optimization problems that range from annoying (horrendous pop-in and other texture issues) to genuinely bothersome (entire screen flashes white on every single explosion) to game-breaking (some of the worst input lag I have ever experienced in a game).”
- “Unstable poorly optimized cash grab.”
stability
3 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The game's stability is severely criticized, with users reporting frequent graphical glitches, optimization issues, and significant input lag, even on high-end hardware like the 5950x and RTX 3080. Players experience regular stutters and freezes, making for a frustrating gaming experience.
- “Performance is terrible, and even when the game does run, it's full of graphical glitches and optimization problems that range from annoying (horrendous pop-in and other texture issues) to genuinely bothersome (entire screen flashes white on every single explosion) to game-breaking (some of the worst input lag I have ever experienced in a game).”
- “Running the game on a 5950X and RTX 3080 suffers from sudden hiccups and freezes, depending on the scenario.”
- “Small freezes and stutters are the norm.”
grinding
2 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be somewhat tedious, particularly when managing a large number of units. However, the satisfaction of seeing successful outcomes from their strategic decisions adds a rewarding element to the experience.
- “It can get quite tedious, but watching those turns play out, especially when they go your way, is very rewarding.”
- “While that gives you more granular control to lay out your tactics, commanding a huge number of units can become a little tedious.”
monetization
1 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy is criticized as a poorly optimized cash grab, leading to an unstable user experience.
- “Unstable, poorly optimized cash grab.”
emotional
1 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is characterized by its brutal and unforgiving nature, leaving players with a sense of heartbreak and deep emotional impact.
- “It is brutal, unforgiving, and heartbreaking.”
replayability
1 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The game offers exceptional depth and replayability, making it a standout title in both its genre and the broader gaming landscape, though recommending it within the series can be challenging.
- “Recommending this title in the series is pretty difficult, since the kind of depth and replayability it delivers is incredibly rare in the genre and in mainstream and niche games.”