Order of Battle: World War II
- April 30, 2015
- The Artistocrats
- 83h median play time
Get on SteamOrder of Battle: World War II is a turn-based strategy game that simulates various battles and campaigns throughout the duration of World War II. Players can choose to control either the Axis or Allied powers, commanding vast armies across multiple types of terrain and environments. With a focus on historical accuracy and strategic depth, the game offers a challenging and immersive experience for fans of the genre.
Mac OS
PC
Playstation 4
Windows
PlayStation
Reviews
- Order of Battle: WWII offers a rich and engaging turn-based strategy experience with a high replay value due to its numerous campaigns and scenarios.
- The game successfully combines land, air, and naval combat, providing a more immersive and strategic gameplay experience compared to similar titles.
- The graphics and animations are well-executed, enhancing the overall enjoyment and making battles visually appealing.
- The AI can be slow during its turns, leading to frustrating wait times that can detract from the overall experience.
- Some players have reported bugs and crashes, which can interrupt gameplay and diminish enjoyment.
- The game requires purchasing additional DLCs for full access to all campaigns, which may be seen as a drawback for some players.
- story54 mentions
- 9 % positive mentions
- 85 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The game's story is deeply engaging, with missions based on real WWII battles and scenarios that require tactical flexibility and strategic planning. Players appreciate the integration of primary and secondary objectives, which not only enhance gameplay but also influence future missions, creating a sense of progression and attachment to units. While the campaign structure may limit replayability, the immersive storytelling and varied mission design keep players invested and eager for new content.
“One of the best WWII strategy games available, well worth buying all the DLC - it's a lot of fun and tells a great story!”
“The missions are mostly based on real battles and situations of WWII, with some 'what if' scenarios thrown in for meeting certain criteria.”
“It's the hallmark of good game design and programming like this that really puts you into the game and makes you feel like you are a part of the story and not just watching it unfold.”
“Overall, it's a very promising game, but the lack of a true campaign limits replayability and dampens my enthusiasm for playing much more than a few missions.”
“This game's idea of a campaign is to string along a series of individual missions and carry over some units from one battle to another.”
“You don't get ground/naval coordinated actions, and there's only a small number of missions.”
- gameplay51 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 65 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The gameplay is generally praised for its realism and strategic depth, with many reviewers noting improvements over previous titles like Panzer Corps, particularly in the addition of supply and fatigue mechanics. While the mechanics are familiar to hex-based wargames, they are described as engaging and challenging, requiring players to master them for success. However, some criticisms include issues with air unit mechanics and the encirclement system, which detract from the overall experience.
“I particularly like the realistic battle mechanics.”
“The mechanics are quite familiar to hex-based wargames, but the addition of supply and fatigue mechanics make the game deeper and more interesting.”
“I've enjoyed the turn-based but still pacey gameplay, and the mechanics are simple and effective.”
“Air units have bad mechanics and are very hard to distinguish on the map.”
“The encirclement mechanic (units not connected to a supply source fight worse) is badly done.”
“Gameplay does get indeed repetitive.”
- graphics46 mentions
- 61 % positive mentions
- 28 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many players appreciating the solid visuals and animations that enhance the gameplay experience, particularly for a strategy title. While some users note that the graphics may not be cutting-edge compared to newer games, they still find them appealing and fitting for the genre. However, a few critiques highlight issues such as poor performance and a lack of polish, suggesting that while the graphics are generally good, they could benefit from further refinement.
“The graphics are outstanding, and the learning curve is not bad.”
“Beautiful graphics and animations.”
“Order of Battle Pacific is a fantastic strategy game with satisfying visuals rarely seen in a game of this genre.”
“The visuals of the maps are bad.”
“I just never got into this game; the graphics are deplorable and it's become nothing but a DLC fest.”
“Found the graphics performance poor to the point that the game was unplayable.”
- optimization15 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 60 % neutral mentions
- 20 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization remains a significant issue, with users reporting slowdowns during larger battles and AI turns, particularly on older PCs. Despite some improvements noted in recent patches, many players still find the performance unacceptable, often rendering the game unplayable. The persistent stability and performance problems overshadow the game's positive aspects, leading to widespread frustration among the community.
“All in all, this is, in my opinion, the definitive PG-alike game that falls short of perfection due to the stability and performance issues.”
“There is an improvement in terms of performance with the 2.4.0 patch, but unfortunately, I really wish to say the opposite; the game is still not playable unless you play another game at the same time.”
“Performance-wise, the AI turn can be very slow, particularly with older PCs and in large scenarios.”
“Until the performance issues are resolved, I can't recommend the game to anyone.”
“Found the graphics performance poor to the point that the game was unplayable.”
“All the good sides, however, are irreparably ruined by its abysmal performance (ironically, all the pros of the game make the cons all the more aggravating).”
- replayability12 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 42 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The game boasts high replayability due to its numerous campaigns, challenging gameplay, and the availability of user-generated content and DLCs that expand the experience. While many players find the replay value excellent for the cost, some express concerns about the monetization of additional content, which may detract from the overall experience. Overall, it is regarded as a fun and engaging game that encourages repeated playthroughs.
“So many campaigns, so much replay value... it's a game I always go back to.”
“Overall, a great game with solid replay value.”
“Overall, it's a very promising game, but the lack of a true campaign limits replayability and dampens my enthusiasm for playing much more than a few missions.”
“The developers are obviously not as concerned with making the game more playable as with making more money: instead of fixing the problem, they devoted their limited resources into making one DLC after another and shamelessly ask you to pay more cash.”
“This game is quite entertaining and has a high potential for replay value (different scenario results have different campaign influences).”
- stability7 mentions
- 14 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 86 % negative mentions
The game's stability is heavily criticized, with frequent framerate drops, AI glitches causing endless turns, and numerous bugs that remain unaddressed by the developers. Players express frustration over the lack of effective support and communication channels for reporting issues, leading to a frustrating experience overall. While the gameplay itself is praised, the persistent technical problems significantly detract from the overall enjoyment.
“The game runs great, is easy to learn, and the gameplay is tremendously well done.”
“There's clear framerate drops and freezes as the AI takes its turn, and it is agonizingly slow while doing so.”
“If you get this game, you will be setting yourself up for extreme frustration as you encounter scenarios that can't be won because the victory conditions are unobtainable, turns that never end because of AI glitches, units that don't function properly, updates that don't fix longstanding glitches, and developers who ignore bug reports in Steam discussions and who don't provide an email for directly reporting bugs because they want to direct traffic to their own website where you must register and receive spam.”
“It isn't as playable as Panzer Corps; the game is buggy and freezes easily.”
- music4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game's sound effects, including tank explosions and gunfire, are praised for their quality and impact, enhancing the overall experience. However, the music is considered lacking, with players expressing a desire for a more engaging soundtrack to accompany the gameplay. Despite the budget constraints acknowledged by some reviewers, the absence of a compelling musical score is noted as a significant drawback.
“Nice soundtrack.”
“I own all these games and have them in my Steam library. I like the game graphics along with the great sound effects and music.”
“Music-wise, it's pretty lacking and it would be nice to have a nice soundtrack to listen to while playing this game.”
“I understand that the developers were on a tight budget, but I think the lack of music is a significant drawback.”
- monetization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that the monetization strategy is perceived as exploitative, with users labeling it a "cash grab" that relies on repetitive content, particularly involving themes related to German and Nazi elements.
“Now we get into the big cash grab.”
“But no, reruns of more German/Nazis and an easy cash grab.”
- grinding2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
Players generally find the grinding aspect of the game to be enjoyable rather than tedious, with some noting that it encourages strategic experimentation and adds depth through the supply system. While some may need to restart multiple times to achieve the right combinations, the overall experience remains engaging.
“With a few of them, I had to restart 2 or 3 times to get a force mixture that would allow me to win, but it was fun and not tedious.”
