WARNO

83%
Game Brain Score Based on 11,790 reviews
  • gameplay
  • graphics
  • music
WARNO Game Cover
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Warno is a real-time strategy game set in the Cold War era, where players command customized battlegroups from either NATO or Warsaw Pact arsenals. The game features dynamic tactical battlefields and intense 10v10 battles, challenging both AI and human opponents. The year is 1989, and as tensions rise, players must prepare for a large-scale conflict in a divided Germany.

  • PC
  • Windows
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

83%
Audience ScoreBased on 11,790 reviews
gameplay446 positive mentions
stability66 negative mentions
  • gameplay1,587 mentions

    The gameplay of "Warno" has received mixed reviews, with many praising its strategic depth and engaging mechanics, particularly the combination of features from the "Wargame" and "Steel Division" series. Players appreciate the improved graphics and the tactical gameplay that rewards planning and coordination, though some criticize the balance issues and the lack of content in its early access state. Overall, while the game shows promise with its mechanics and visuals, it still requires further refinement and additional content to fully realize its potential.

    • “For the most part the combat is quite fluid and a good mix between strategic gameplay and micromanaging your units.”
    • “The gameplay is very fun, even if it's headache inducing if it's played more than a couple of hours straight or that might be me because I'm not as young as I used to be.”
    • “The gameplay is smooth, not too simple but also not too hard.”
    • “The game looked cool and has an interesting design, but the mechanics are bad and unenjoyable.”
    • “It makes coop army general so unfun as you are given no resources and it encourages reactive gameplay and punishes players for playing well on the strategic map by not letting them have the advantages they earned.”
    • “Gameplay is deteriorating and they won't fix a bug that allows players to listen to areas of the map that they have no vision over to kill units there, and there are some ridiculous units that have no counter.”
  • graphics1,300 mentions

    The graphics in "Warno" have received widespread acclaim for their stunning detail and immersive quality, marking a significant upgrade from its predecessor, "Wargame: Red Dragon." Players appreciate the realistic models, vibrant environments, and impressive visual effects, which enhance the overall gameplay experience. However, some users have noted performance issues and a few graphical inconsistencies, suggesting that while the visuals are impressive, further optimization may be needed.

    • “The graphics are stunning and the unit models are so well-made that you can stare at them for hours if you would rather appreciate the attention to detail than start up a skirmish or multiplayer match.”
    • “Warno showcases some truly next-gen graphics, detailed unit models, and diverse, realistic environments.”
    • “The graphics are absolutely gorgeous, so much detail to marvel at!”
    • “Massive downgrade from wargame both in visuals and usability.”
    • “Commands are shit, graphics are 10 times shittier than you see in the trailers (with all on ultra), not even fun for me.”
    • “The developer claims it to be the 'ultimate next-gen world war iii battle simulator', but I am yet to understand what makes it ultimate, let alone next-gen: the graphics are still awful, the smoke and explosions look like they came straight out of budget 3D cartoons.”
  • music759 mentions

    The music in the game has received overwhelmingly positive feedback, with many players praising its nostalgic 80s synthwave vibe that perfectly complements the game's setting. Reviewers describe the soundtrack as "banging," "kickass," and "one of the best" they've encountered in a strategy game, enhancing the overall immersive experience. However, some players feel that the upbeat music can detract from the seriousness of the gameplay, suggesting a need for more varied tracks during intense moments.

    • “The soundtrack is a straight up masterpiece.”
    • “The music is incredible, plenty of 80's style synth wave tracks.”
    • “The graphics are great, the maps really interesting and the soundtrack is absolute gold, please keep releasing tracks, Eugene, the 80s synth vibes really make this game stand out!”
    • “The music is worse.”
    • “Music is lame af kills immersion.”
    • “I just can't take the rockets, bombs, dying soldiers, and intense dog fights of an 'all too real conflict' seriously when an upbeat and 'poppin' soundtrack is playing in the background.”
  • story270 mentions

    The game's story aspect has received mixed feedback, with many players noting a lack of depth and variety in the narrative. While some appreciate the immersive elements and thematic scenarios, particularly in the newly added single-player missions and operations, others find the overall campaign and mission design to be linear and repetitive. There is a strong desire for more substantial story-driven content and a cohesive campaign to enhance the gaming experience.

    • “But the fantastic story encapsulates almost every fear, paranoia, and dis- and misinformation the decades-long western anti-communist propaganda successfully produced and distributed gratis.”
    • “These gave my individual skirmishes against the AI significance within a larger story.”
    • “I have already played dozens of single-player skirmishes—a strategic map and historical fiction campaign will make these skirmishes feel like a cohesive story.”
    • “The rest of the game offers nil story-wise.”
    • “To cut my story short, like Warno, a commodity that does not meet these requirements will likely fail to reach big audiences, will fail to sell, and will fail to make a profit.”
    • “Game is too linear; all missions feel the same.”
  • optimization175 mentions

    The optimization of the game has received mixed feedback from users. While many praise its graphics and overall performance, noting that it runs smoothly on high settings for most systems, others report significant performance issues, particularly during large-scale battles, leading to frame drops and instability. Overall, while there are improvements compared to previous titles, further optimization is still needed to enhance the gaming experience, especially for players with high-end rigs.

    • “Warno runs smoothly in almost all instances on my system at 1440p max settings (Windows 11, 16GB DDR4, Ryzen 5 5600X, Radeon RX 6700 XT).”
    • “Warno is a beautiful and well-optimized game, and is clearly where Eugen is going to be putting its resources in the future.”
    • “Its beautiful, well optimized, has great depth and variety, fantastic gameplay and is getting to a balanced state.”
    • “Game is highly unoptimized and unbalanced; it needs a lot of work to get to a fun experience.”
    • “Terrible performance optimization, huge frame drops during 10v10 tactical games despite running a 4090.”
    • “Performance issues: the game tends to run slow even on some higher-end PCs (I have a 2060 Super GPU and I still have to play on medium graphics settings) and I end up playing with 20-30 FPS, sometimes going below 20.”
  • stability90 mentions

    The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with many players noting it is generally playable and runs well, especially on older hardware. However, numerous reports highlight significant bugs, glitches, and performance issues, particularly in multiplayer modes, leading to frustrations with gameplay interruptions and unbalanced mechanics. While some users appreciate the visuals and sound, others criticize the game as unfinished and overly buggy, especially for an early access title.

    • “Essentially bug free.”
    • “The graphics are superb, the music atmospheric, and the gameplay is smooth and bug free. 10v10 tactical maps are very much my 'cup of tea.'”
    • “The game looks and runs great on my PC using 6-8 year old hardware, even on the big 10v10s.”
    • “I wish someone told me that the game was buggy before I bought it. I hope that this helps people by knowing that if you buy this game, it will be buggy, and I would say to not buy this game.”
    • “Sometimes when playing the game, I get random freezes and a short black screen before everything refreshes itself. It has been a consistent issue for me since launch and ends up affecting other programs running on my PC, sometimes even crashing them (example: Discord).”
    • “It's early, raw, buggy, and unpolished.”
  • replayability84 mentions

    Overall, the game exhibits a strong potential for replayability, with many users praising its strategic depth, mod support, and diverse unit options that enhance the experience. However, some players express concerns about current limitations, such as a lack of maps and content, which can restrict replay value. While many find the game infinitely replayable, others feel it needs further development to fully realize its potential.

    • “Literally endless replayability - incalculable number of possibilities and results; impossible to recreate results.”
    • “Having said all of that, my bottom line is this: Red Dragon and Steel Division 2 embody an RTS formula that I find holds almost unlimited replay value.”
    • “The hundreds of units are relatively well balanced and provide plenty of variety and replayability.”
    • “This was a bad decision and badly limits replayability.”
    • “Most complaints I see now are directed at low replayability due to only a few maps, less-than-intuitive UI, and low unit selection compared to Red Dragon.”
    • “It has no replay value as of right now.”
  • humor56 mentions

    The humor in the game is often described as absurd and situational, with players finding amusement in the game's quirks, such as unbalanced mechanics and unexpected AI behaviors. Many reviewers highlight the comedic potential of gameplay scenarios, like the interactions between different units and the exaggerated outcomes of battles, while also noting the developers' self-aware humor regarding the game's early access state and its bugs. Overall, the humor is a mix of intentional comedic elements and the unintentional hilarity that arises from gameplay flaws and imbalances.

    • “For an early access game, it is very good—a funny mix of wargame and Steel Division, and the graphics are beautiful.”
    • “It would be extremely hilarious to see the Mi-24 hover over an enemy FOB to use its 12.7mm nose gun to drive off the opposing artillery forces, only to find there are not enough bullets to kill all the remaining forces and the damaged tube artillery will only walk back under your rotor wings to slowly recover to full health.”
    • “It's funny seeing people crying in the reviews about the lack of content when they didn't even spend one minute to read the early access descriptions.”
    • “The game really hasn't improved with more content; the line 'they say they're sacrificing historical authenticity for gameplay but what's actually happening is they're terrible at research and they're horrifically uncreative' permeates the whole game. Now the new divisions are so similar to the release ones it's not funny.”
    • “Ambush, infantry units die so quickly to HE it's not funny. AA guns and guided missiles miss almost always or can even fire for some reason even if they have line of sight. Be ready to watch as 5 SAM and MANPADS sites miss 5 shots at a non-moving helicopter. The SEAD planes don't work as they still fly into the death zone of AA when shooting, or the AA radar is off, and then once you fly over, they turn it on with no delay in shooting. The SEAD should be shot from outside of the AA shooting area, not inside it, or at least not have the plane fly inside after shooting the missile when leaving the battlefield. Scout troops get spotted by transport vehicles, which is still an issue. Scouting is hard to understand; there's no way to find out how it works. The helicopter rush at the start of the game is too easy and makes for bad gameplay. New players will not know how to defend nor understand how to counter. ATGM units will all fire ATGMs at the same target even if it's just one transport. Shooting artillery is crazy!”
    • “The game really hasn't improved with more content; the line 'they say they're sacrificing historical authenticity for gameplay but what's actually happening is they're terrible at research and they're horrifically uncreative' permeates the whole game. Now the new divisions are so similar to the release ones it's not funny.”
  • atmosphere51 mentions

    The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its immersive and authentic depiction of the 1980s Cold War era, enhanced by superb graphics and a compelling soundtrack. While some players feel it lacks the atmospheric depth of other titles like Company of Heroes, many agree that the realism, scale, and attention to detail compensate for this shortcoming. Overall, the game's atmosphere is described as intense and engaging, effectively pulling players into its thematic setting.

    • “The graphics are superb, the music atmospheric, and the gameplay is smooth and bug-free. 10v10 tactical maps are very much my 'cup of tea.'”
    • “Warno nails the cold war vibe with its intense and immersive atmosphere.”
    • “The feeling of this game... it really immerses you in the time period; the atmosphere somehow is just insanely good.”
    • “Warno, for me, doesn’t have the atmosphere of COH games, but the realism, scale, and depth go so much further that it (for the most part) compensates for the lack of atmosphere.”
    • “I wish they would have added a bit more ambient effects to the atmosphere.”
    • “Those games had an atmosphere within their menus which is lost here.”
  • grinding51 mentions

    The reviews overwhelmingly describe the grinding aspect of the game as tedious and repetitive, often requiring excessive micromanagement that detracts from the overall enjoyment. Players express frustration with the clunky combat mechanics and AI behavior, leading to a monotonous experience that feels more like a chore than fun gameplay. Despite some improvements in quality of life features, many still find the grinding elements to be a significant drawback.

    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “It's not fun and produces an extremely repetitive, dull, and tedious experience.”
    • “In wargame, the campaigns are 90% tediously gaming the system and 10% actual fun when things lined up for an actually enjoyable battle.”
    • “The battle AI just spams units down the same roads until it's out of units, or loiters around a point. For this reason, I do not play the campaigns; you are just handling unit spamming 99% of the time, and it gets tedious fast.”
  • monetization44 mentions

    The monetization practices of the game have been widely criticized, with many reviewers labeling it a "cash grab" due to expensive DLCs and a lack of promised content. While some players find potential in the game, they express frustration over the predatory nature of its monetization and the feeling that it was rushed to market. Overall, the sentiment leans towards disappointment, with calls for improvements before recommending a purchase.

    • “If the monetization won't go overboard for new decks (the type of units available to you), then it will be quite a fun game.”
    • “To summarize: fun game, ok-ish balancing, predatory monetization practices.”
    • “Possibly monetization will turn into an issue.”
    • “I do not recommend a purchase due to the predatory monetization attempt.”
    • “Overall, the game feels like a cash grab.”
    • “It's a fairly pathetic cash grab and has no features over Red Dragon.”
  • emotional13 mentions

    The emotional aspect of the game evokes a mix of nostalgia and frustration, with players expressing deep connections to the gameplay and its themes, particularly in relation to historical contexts like the Soviet army. Some players find themselves emotionally invested, recalling past experiences with similar games, while others feel overwhelmed by the game's mechanics, leading to a sense of disillusionment. Overall, the emotional responses range from joy and nostalgia to frustration and disappointment.

    • “It almost made me cry and go into a fetal position like I own an AK in real life and now we own an AK, glorious like everything in communist Russia.”
    • “Just like when Airland Battle came out, there was always that one guy who wanted to still play Euro Escalation because he was so invested emotionally in playing his way… the same is going to happen with WGRD to WARNO.”
    • “The soundtrack kind of made me feel like I was playing Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War and I really want to forget that game.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

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Play time

28hMedian play time
99hAverage play time
16-50hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 30 analyzed playthroughs

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