Armored Brigade Gameplay Review

I'm playing Armored Brigade, a real-time tactical strategy game by Veitikka Studios and Slitherine. Taking place during the Cold War, the United States, USSR, both Germanys, the United Kingdom, Finland, and Poland are doing battle through fifteen pre-made scenarios. The highlight feature of the game is the battle generator: any part of four huge maps can be selected for a user-generated scenario. Then, force type (mechanized, infantry, or armored), date of the conflict (which affects weather, unit availability, and faction preparedness), and objective locations can be set. Finally, the battle size is adjusted; units involved can be chosen manually or automatically. It’s a very impressive system that not only makes it easy to generate compelling scenarios in a couple of easy steps, but also ensures long-term life for the product. The game is controlled by issuing orders to an entire platoon or company (advance, scout, move until contact, fast move, unload); this drastically reduces micromanagement. You can also tweak the formation and standard operating procedure (pathfinding, rate of fire) for the group. Units during this time period were deadly: one-shot kills (even on tanks) are common, so scouting enemy positions is very important. Supporting your ground units are artillery and air units; target reference points are placed pre-battle for artillery strikes, which calls them in significantly sooner if the bombardment is placed near an existing point. The AI is good: scouting in advance, protecting objectives, moving complimentary units together for massed attacks, and supporting with air units and artillery. This is made more impressive when you consider the AI could be playing in any part of the four 10,000 square kilometer maps and must adjust their tactics to the terrain and random objective locations. Armored Brigade is a fantastic tactical strategy game with a unique battle generator that ensures huge replay value, along with manageable mechanics and solid AI.