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Blitzkrieg Review - PC

Blitzkrieg (verb) -to fight a quick and surprising war.

Gameplay

Blitzkrieg is a real time strategy game set amongst the grand campaigns of WWII. In Campaign mode you get to control the 3 main factions of the time, the Allies (the Good), the Germans (the Bad) and the Russians (the Ugly).
Once you wad through the text heavy mission briefings and objectives you finally arrive on the battlefield, where you find yourself in charge of an army of epic proportions. Keeping control and informed as to your armies many units is half the battle here- you must guide them through various objectives ranging from simple search and destroys to protecting bridges from an invading force.

The main focus of Blitzkrieg is ground-to-ground combat. Each unit, weapon and vehicle has distinct strengths and weaknesses that need to be utilized or exploited in order to progress. There is the ability to research your equipment and infantry and know how to respond to a certain type of arsenal/unit the enemy might be using. Blitzkrieg implements a lot more strategy than most modern RTS titles. The focus here is definitely combat strategy and you won't find yourself collecting or mining resources or building construction factories- you are basically given troops and vehicles and the rest is up to you.
While the majority of the action is fought on the ground, there is the ability to call in air strikes and make use of the aircraft of the time. A bit of strategy is required in the use of the aircraft- you only have until they run out of fuel to use them- use the fuel all up at once and you can be opened to a sky-led enemy assault.
Despite the sheer size, at times, of your army, Blitzkrieg has a reward system that, in a way, helps create a bond with your troops. Much like the excellent Cannon Fodder, steering units through missions successfully rewards you with bonuses in the next mission. Though the troops aren't given names and upgraded ranks- it gives you a more vested interest in the welfare of certain troop units.

You also have a choice as to the way you want your army to upgrade. You could choose to upgrade your weak tank fleet or boost your already powerful infantry. This reward for effort pays dividends in both your enjoyment of the missions and diligence to see as many of your troops through. After completing each mission, the powers that be rate your performances depending on how you played the game. Take your time, with a cautious approach will see your caution-rating shoot through the roof, while multiple losses eats into your logistics rating.
The action comes pretty fast in Blitzkrieg and your enjoyment is somewhat hampered by the fiddly interface. Most of the buttons are way too small, and while there is use of the hotkeys, the non-ability for precise mouse use is a slight drawback. The game does support multi-player, which (continued next page)