Men of War IIPREVIEW
These tankswere very much the stars of
the firsthands-off demo and presentation
from publisher 1CEntertainment andMen
of War’s original developer, Best Way,
once again at thehelm. In the clips of
campaign missions and PvP
confrontations,I almostfelt bad for
the wee digital soldiersgetting mown
down by these indomitable vehicles.HEAVY METAL
Men of War II’s tanks seem unstoppable,
with the heavier ones ableto do a huge
amount ofdamage even on their
lonesome. Theyaren’t really unstoppable,
of course. Some well-positioned anti-tank
guns, or sneaky infantrykeeping out of
sight, cantakethese monstersout.
Whether you’recommanding or fighting
them, you’ll want topay attention to things
like armour thickness andthe piercing
power of shells. Thankfully,all this stuff is
displayed clearly, helping you get a read on
the damage you’re doing and taking.
Modular damage means there’s more
than just two states. Vehicles canbe
immobilised, turrets can be takenout,gunners can be killed – there are plenty of
ways to slowdown an enemy’sadvance,
leaving them vulnerable.
With the series’DirectControl feature,
you get to effectively sitinside the tank,
controlling it like you might a first-person
shooter. All vehicles and troops can be
commanded this way,though some will be
third-person. Some tanks can be
camouflaged, too, and in one clip I saw a
Tiger disguised as abush devastating a
convoy before itcould even figure out
where the attack was coming from.
Of course, allof Men of War II’s units
require anon-the-ball commander totake
advantage of their tricks. It looks like there
will be a fair amountof micromanagement
as you select different types of
ammunition to deal with different kinds of
enemies, and you’ll need to make sure
they’re fully stocked back in your territory.LINE OF FIRE
Speaking of territory, Men of War 2has a
dynamic frontline thatdivides mapsinto
enemy and ally areas, limiting what you
can do. Troops can only appear acertain
distance from the front line; engineers
have to bein yourown territoryto
erect defences;vehicleshave to
retreat into your territoryto resupply;
and enemy territorywill be hidden by
a fog of war,unlikeyour own.
Alongside the twin campaignsare
co-op andPvP modes.In co-op, you can
play specific missions or entire campaigns
in a five-person team, while the PvP mode
will be a 5v5 affair with playerspicking a
preset battalion from a list of 45– 15each
for the Allied, Axis, and Soviet forces. Each
battalion has a specific playstyle, with
units thatrepresent the different phases
of battle. In thecase of tanks, thatmeans
you’llhave light tanksto start with, and
then you’llwant tobring in thingslike the
King Tigerwhen you reach the endgame.
If you need a break from World WarII,
then modders might have yourback. With
full mod supportand a toolset provided by
Best Way, modders will be able to make
sci-fiscenarios,or ones that go further
back in history. Amid Men of War: Assault
Squad 2’s mods, forinstance, are Fallout
and Warhammeradaptations, so we
should be able toexpect the same kindof
thing after Men of War 2arrivesin 2022.
Fraser BrownVideogames are pretty invested in
continuing and replaying World War II.
There was a period where it seemed like
people were getting a bit tired of the old
confrontation between Allies and Axis, but it was
short lived. Hot on the heels of Company of Heroes’
reappearance and Call of Duty heading back to its
favourite war, we’ve also got returning RTS Men of
War II. It’s a good time to be a lover of old tanks.The return of the men who lovewar, and their tanksMEN OF WAR IIIN ONE CLIP I SAW A TIGERDISGUISED AS A BUSHDEVASTATING A CONVOYRELEASE
2022DEVELOPER
Best WayPUBLISHER
1 C EntertainmentLINK
1 cpublishing.euNEED TO KNOWFIRST
LOOKThe close-up
detail isincredibly
impressive.Just taking a
break to admire
the planes.