Blitzkrieg 3 (PC) Preview

Sadly the reality is that in the ten years Blitzkrieg has been in the wilderness, it has picked up some very unfortunate habits straight out of the worst excesses of the mobile app market, of all places. Indeed, the multiplayer mode that seems to be one of the most pushed features, has incredible similarities with titles such as Clash of Clans or Call of Duty: Heroes. Like those titles, Blitzkrieg 3 features a multiplayer mode in which gamers build up a base gradually, having to fight battles and even wait for others to attack their base in order to get rewards and progress.

On its own, this system definitely has its plus points. It cannot be argued that there is ever a shortage of the addictive feeling of accomplishment that comes with constant supply and fuel (the currency to build with) rewards popping up, unlocking new base upgrades. It is no doubt a never-ending delight to the completionists in gaming, constantly having something to strive for. The issue is that it feels so out of place in this apparent serious series, with such a hardcore fan base of players. The RTS gamer equally wants to have large tournaments and be able to have a great amount of depth to their multiplayer, which Blitzkrieg 3 just sadly does not cater for in its present form.

Another aspect straight out of the mobile market is the extreme pace the battles are played at. Anyone looking for quick pick-up-and-play action will be greatly pleased with Blitzkrieg 3 and it would be great playing it on the bus. The issue, of course, is that for the serious player, battles rarely involve anything more than hoarding a group of units and annihilating anything in their path. The historical battles that are in place (as of publication) give some scenario's in which some tactical play is required due to the enemy numbers, however, these still are not the most challenging of missions. Battles almost feel like arcade engagements, and that is a very hard style to adapt back to after the years of serious WWII RTS releases, such as Company of Heroes and Men of War. Positioning of units is not as big a deal as it would be in the aforementioned games. In fact most times the tanks won't even go the right way, with bad pathfinding being a particular annoyance.

The positive of Blitzkrieg 3 comes in its production values. The graphics are absolutely top notch for an RTS title. Units are very well detailed, although it isn't helped that the camera does not allow a finer look at such details. Additionally, there are a plethora of maps available with a massive amount of variety and interesting landmarks and obstacles to look at, as well as rivers, forests and towns. More will be coming as development continues with the team boasting the eventual completion of a campaign that stretches from the start to the end of the war, which is definitely eagerly awaited. The sound of the battlefield is also rich and pulsating and gives the title a real epic feeling.

Those battles won't feel as epic, though, if every battle involves a 10 minute rush across the map to capture one solitary objective point. Hopefully developer Nival makes a sustained effort to increase the variety of battles. Additionally, it is hopeful that it increases unit variety as there is simply not enough of it to be interesting for a long time.

Active Defense Mode - Impressions, July 2015

Since Cubed3 last looked at Blitzkrieg 3, developer Nival has proceeded with implementing a much requested multiplayer feature to the game, the so-called ‘Active Base Defense.’ Previously the multiplayer was about building up a base through resources that were gained purely through battling against the AI, who acted for the players in battle. It was the AI who would attack and defend bases on behalf of another gamer, meaning there was never any direct competition between users. Thankfully, real-time PvP is now a part of Blitzkrieg 3 and marks a step in the right direction of where it should be heading. There is now the ability to directly challenge each another, resulting in one side attacking and the other holding the defences of their base together. The main issue, however, still seems to be that the player population is rather sparse at the moment, meaning that most battles are ultimately played out against the AI, which takes control when someone is not active. Hopefully, with time, this population will grow as these new attack-defence battles have great potential to be a very fun addition to Blitzkrieg 3.