The Great War: Western Front
- October 30, 2023
- Petroglyph
- 24h median play time
Despite finicky controls and complex gameplay, The Great War: Western Front is deeply satisfying, always respectful of the source material.
Get on Steam
Get on Epic Games Store"The Great War: Western Front" is a real-time and turn-based strategy game set in World War 1, developed by Petroglyph. As a commander on the Western Front from 1914 to 1919, players can choose their faction, direct armies in battles, and make high-level decisions in the turn-based campaign. The Victory Edition includes a digital field guide, original soundtrack, and other bonuses. Pre-ordering grants up to 3 days early access.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- Unique and immersive representation of WW1 trench warfare
- Engaging tactical battles that require careful planning and resource management
- Solid historical context and attention to detail in gameplay mechanics
- Repetitive gameplay with limited variety in battles and maps
- AI behavior can be predictable and lacks strategic depth
- Technical issues such as pathfinding bugs and performance problems
- gameplay285 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players noting its repetitive nature and shallow mechanics, particularly in the context of World War I trench warfare. While some appreciate the strategic elements and the unique supply mechanics, others criticize the AI behavior and the lack of depth in combat, leading to a monotonous experience after a few hours. Overall, the game offers an engaging concept but struggles with execution, leaving players wanting more variety and refinement in gameplay.
“The core gameplay loop of the tactical battles is incredibly satisfying once you get the hang of it.”
“Great War: Western Front delivers on the premise with genuinely unique and period-accurate gameplay.”
“The gameplay is intuitive and basic enough that you can get right into it without obscure orders or UI buttons.”
“The supply mechanic is more complicated than I would like, and makes it very hard for me to understand how much I should be using on each battle.”
“Very shallow and repetitive gameplay loop that could be far better if the game wasn't abandoned by the developers upon release.”
“The gameplay mechanics quickly grew monotonous, offering little variety or innovation.”
- graphics139 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 57 % neutral mentions
- 18 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many players noting that they are below modern standards, often likening them to titles from the early 2010s or even earlier. While some appreciate the aesthetic and thematic elements, others criticize the visuals as outdated, bland, and lacking detail, which detracts from immersion. Overall, while the gameplay is generally well-received, the graphical quality is seen as a significant area needing improvement.
“The graphics are fantastic; I really like the tech tree.”
“The artwork is great, the setting feels very authentic, and the battles play really well.”
“Great presentation, audio, and visuals as well.”
“The graphics are just ugly and bland; you will not find yourself admiring units.”
“My system is the opposite of a potato, and yet, this game performs as if I'm using a 2005 laptop and trying to run a state-of-the-art next-gen game with top-of-the-line graphics.”
“Graphically speaking, the store page is borderline false advertising; I play on max settings with high-resolution monitors, and the quality is nowhere near what is shown in the advertising.”
- grinding56 mentions
- 2 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 98 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game is widely criticized for its tedious and repetitive nature, mirroring the slow attrition of World War I. Many players find the gameplay becomes monotonous after a few hours, as battles often require repeating the same strategies and maps to capture territory, leading to frustration. While some appreciate the historical accuracy and atmosphere, the overall consensus is that the grinding mechanics detract from the enjoyment, making it feel more like a chore than a strategic experience.
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“Many people say the game can get tedious.”
“This game is excellent for those who enjoy resource management, World War One, and mass infantry charges across beautifully crafted terrains; however, many of the game mechanics become repetitive, and after a few hours of playing, I found myself deciding to let the battles auto-play as I was not willing to sit through another tedious battle.”
“The game is tedious, repetitive, frustrating, and boring.”
- stability46 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability is widely criticized, with numerous reports of severe bugs, crashes, and unresponsive AI, rendering it nearly unplayable for many users. Players express frustration over the lack of updates or support from developers, leading to a perception of the game as unfinished and poorly designed. While some acknowledge minor glitches, the overall consensus is that the game suffers from significant stability issues that detract from the experience.
“The game is incredibly buggy, and pretty much not playable.”
“The game is a complete buggy mess, with no info from the devs about further updates or changes being implemented to the game.”
“This game is nowhere near what was promised or expected, buggy as can be and is borderline unplayable.”
- music43 mentions
- 42 % positive mentions
- 51 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received widespread praise for its fitting and immersive quality, with many noting its strong connection to the historical context, including the use of World War I-era songs. While the soundtrack is generally considered excellent, some players feel it can become repetitive over time, and there are calls for a broader selection of tracks. Overall, the music significantly enhances the game's atmosphere, despite some critiques regarding its alignment with the game's more somber themes.
“Really enjoy the game, especially the soundtrack and even the inclusion of real World War I era songs and film reels.”
“The atmosphere and music are superb.”
“The soundtrack is wonderful and has period songs playing as well.”
“The music is corny; I thought the old style motivational music would be overtaken by somber tones as the battle progresses, but no.”
“The game does take a day to get used to... and the soundtrack is boring.”
“They could have done a better job with getting music for the menus; playing the same song over and over again gets tired really quick.”
- optimization40 mentions
- 8 % positive mentions
- 73 % neutral mentions
- 20 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization has received significant criticism, with many players reporting severe performance issues such as low frame rates, stuttering, and bugs that affect gameplay. While some users noted improvements and stable performance on certain systems, the presence of DRM and memory leaks has been highlighted as major contributors to the game's optimization problems. Many players express frustration over the lack of options to adjust performance settings, leading to a generally negative perception of the game's optimization.
“It could use some polish, but overall it runs well and I've had zero performance issues running the game on high graphics settings with a NVIDIA 1070 and i7.”
“My original complaints were that the game had no permanent scarring, and bodies didn't accumulate on the ground, neither did the wrecks of tanks, etc. Not only is body accumulation a thing now (you can change how much it happens in the options for performance's sake), you can also grab mods that just increase the lifespan of how long bodies and shells remain on the ground for the entire match.”
“I was worried about the game being a buggy, slow mess after playing the demo a few months back, but honestly they have improved performance a lot and it runs fine (after updating my graphics card driver, it was crashing before but I haven't had one since I did that).”
“However, the performance is maddening, like single digit FPS sometimes.”
“It's poorly optimized and has memory leak issues which cause units to bug out even more and fall under the map or get stuck in trenches and map objects easily.”
“I have an i7-14700KF, 64GB DDR5, and a 4080; there is no reason I should be getting 40 FPS and constant stuttering in battle and on the campaign map.”
- story29 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 72 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
The game's story aspect is largely criticized for its lack of depth and engagement, with many players finding the campaign missions repetitive and uninteresting. While some appreciate the historical context and tutorial, the overall narrative feels minimal, often overshadowed by gameplay mechanics that detract from strategic decision-making. Players express a desire for more meaningful missions and interactions, as the current structure leads to a sense of aimlessness in the story progression.
“10/10 for the story mode and gameplay but...the PvP, the whole reason I got this, was so I could play against my friends in the main mode.”
“Thanks for interesting gameplay and historical story.”
“For potential buyers: if you like trench/defense-based games, enjoy setting up fortifications and trenches, find enjoyment in a battle even if you lose by treating it as a story, and are thinking of buying this game because it looks appealing based on what you see in the store page screenshots, then yes, do buy it and try out skirmish mode for a quick preview.”
“The campaign missions are not very interesting and most often than not, I complete them by accident.”
“The repetitive nature of the missions and objectives made it feel like a never-ending slog through the trenches, devoid of strategic decision-making or engaging gameplay elements.”
“No commander voice acting in story battles, just text bubbles.”
- replayability26 mentions
- 23 % positive mentions
- 62 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's replayability is a mixed bag. While some players appreciate the custom difficulty settings and the option to play as different factions, many criticize the lack of variety in campaigns, maps, and unit options, leading to a perception of limited replay value. The absence of post-launch content and engaging skirmish modes further detracts from its long-term appeal, leaving some players feeling that the game could have offered more.
“The game seems to have a lot of replayability.”
“This game is great! The custom difficulty adds great replay value, allowing you to have super strong units or weak units, and you can also set how good the enemy's troops are too!”
“Very fun game, a lot of replayability with different styles of war. The elite difficulty campaign is very good too, as the AI goes as brutal as possible on you, but not so ridiculous that you can't win.”
“I don't feel that the replayability is there, unfortunately.”
“The gameplay is extremely exploitable; after a couple of hours, you'll understand how to never lose to the AI. There is virtually no replay value due to awful unit and map variety, and as the cherry on top, it's a massive insult to everyone who fought in the Great War.”
“Moderate replay value as there is too little variety in battle maps and no variety in the initial campaign setup.”
- atmosphere17 mentions
- 41 % positive mentions
- 41 % neutral mentions
- 18 % negative mentions
The game effectively captures the atmosphere of World War I, particularly the brutal trench warfare, through its aesthetic elements like music, weather effects, and overall design. While some reviews note a lack of historical accuracy and gore, the immersive experience and dedication to conveying the horrors of war are praised, making it a standout in the genre. Overall, the atmosphere is described as superb and engaging, enhancing the gameplay experience significantly.
“Although not accurate, it does get the atmosphere of the Great War across very well.”
“This is a game that does a pretty decent job of capturing the atmosphere of brutal, grinding trench warfare of the First World War.”
“The atmosphere and music are superb.”
“Its atmosphere and playing into the memes around WW1 is all it has, making its disdain for history much worse.”
“There is a lack of gore that seriously wounds the atmosphere of the game.”
“Nothing to deplete units, but it may add to the overall atmosphere of an exchange all down the line rather than it being dead quiet when trenches are just yards apart.”
- humor9 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is derived from its absurdities and quirks, such as the comical movement of units and the exaggerated effects of weaponry, which often lead to unintentionally funny scenarios. Players find amusement in the game's portrayal of World War I, where the challenges of advancing troops and the slow pace of the campaign map are humorously reflective of the historical context. Overall, while some mechanics can be frustrating, the game's aesthetic and unexpected comedic moments provide a lighthearted take on the serious themes of war.
“Now of course there are downsides: sometimes units move awkwardly, moving forward then regrouping only to be mowed down by rifle fire, units outside of trenches orienting towards trenches already in the midst of melee combat and thus, getting mowed down by rifle/mg fire. The comedic launching of grenades across the map because one German rifleman is near a machine gun, and all of a sudden the Kaiser's army is armed with M203s is more funny than annoying to see.”
“I also find it funny that a lot of the things people don't like about the game are things like 'advancing troops is hard and everyone gets killed' or 'things on the campaign map rarely move' - that's the First World War for you!”
“The game is hilariously easy once you've seen the movement 'quirks'.”
- emotional5 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its ability to evoke deep feelings of grief and nostalgia, particularly through poignant moments like receiving a telegram. Players experience a mix of wholesome elements and the harsh realities of war, leading to a bittersweet emotional journey that can be both heartbreaking and reflective.
“Mother home, get a telegram and shed a tear of grief.”
“Watching literally hundreds of enemy soldiers getting cut down by your machine guns and mortars while your entrenched men fire volley after volley of rifle fire into their lines is bad enough, but then witnessing the handful of men that survived dragging themselves over the first line of barbed wire as you drop hundreds of 155mm shells onto their position can be heartbreaking.”
- monetization5 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization aspect of the game has been criticized as a cash grab, with misleading advertising that fails to accurately represent the gameplay experience. While some players enjoy the gameplay itself, they feel let down by the developers' marketing tactics, which suggest a depth and complexity that is not fully realized in the game.
“It's a quickly abandoned cash grab, if anything.”
“The advertising is incredibly misleading.”
“I expected more than a cash grab with this game, but after playing, that's all it feels like.”
Critic Reviews
The Great War: Western Front review
The Great War: Western Front is a bleak, conservative attempt to capture the brutal battles of World War I.
68%The Great War: Western Front Review – Boom Boom Boom Boom
The Great War: Western Front is an interesting strategy game that delves into its setting for better and worse. Offering various strategic and tactical opportunities provides a lot for strategy game fans. However, the glacially slow pace will undeniably turn some people off, despite being very much due to the World War One setting. If there is one key issue, the AI is almost like a relic of previous games, seemingly not following the same rules as the player. Other issues with pathfinding also feature. However, despite these issues, I can't help but admit the game is compelling.
70%The Great War: Western Front Review (PC)
The Great War: Western Front is a good strategy game that tackles a historical period most titles in the genre overlook. Both the strategic and the tactical sides feature interesting mechanics and plenty of choices that affect the course of the war. The computer mostly puts up a good enough fight while the multiplayer side has plenty of options to create varied situations. But the game sits at a weird crossroads in terms of abstraction. It has plenty of realist elements but also allows corps to instantly move across the map. It rewards deep preparation but some battles can be won by simply carefully avoiding some enemy defenses. The Great War: Western Front captures the frustration and tension of World War I trench warfare well but struggles to make it a great video game experience. A review key was provided by the publisher
80%
