WIC is without a doubt the best RTS i've ever played. The story takes place during the cold war. (In case you didn't know, the early 1980's) Russia has invaded Europe, and the U.S. has sent help to her allies in their time of need. Taking advantage of the loose gaurd the U.S.S.R. disguises themselves as civilian cargo ships. They land in Seattle and start pushing inland. You play as Lt. parker a west point prodigy that has found himself in the thick of battle. Whats interesting about the game's story is that it aims fro a real emotional message. Outside of the in-game cut scenes that explain each battle to you, there are some comic style cut scenes that really touch you in your soft spot, which is rare for a video game much less a strategy game. There is stellar voice acting spearheaded by Alec Baldwin. There is some melodrama and cheese here and there, and sometimes the game constantly reminds you of facts like Bannons incompetince. Still the story is one of the best we have ever seen. Content-wise WIC pretty much stays by the book. The single player will take you around 8-10 hours to complete depending on what difficulty you choose. Suprisingly there's no skrimish mode, but there is the fantastic multiplayer that still has servers full to this day. Massgate (The componet that runs the multiplayer) deserves a nod for it's excellent community. Stat tracking, clans, medals, ranks, and dedicated and non-dedicated servers are what Massgate has to offer. While the singleplayer is brisk it provides a great runthrough and also teaches you all you need to know about WIC, which you'll put to good use in the multiplayer. Now to actually talk about the gameplay. The biggest change from other RTS games is the lack of base building. Instead you choose a dropzone then spend of pool of points to order your units, then in about 20 seconds your units are airdroped to the field. The lack of base building may anger RTS veterans, but it focuses the attention on combat rather then sending units to get resources. There's a great rock paper scissors system. Infantry and anti-tank infantry can take down just about anything if they are in cover, tanks destroy anything on open ground, helicopters can also destroy anything on open ground, and anti-air.... well you get the picture. This may sound simple but it gets deeper. For instance heavy helicopters can wipe tanks from the face of the earth, but don't do so well against other choppers and for medium choppers it's basically vice versa. There are also alot of special units like snipers, artillery, transports, and repair tanks that have to be used strategically. There is a constant flow of tactics in the game. Flanking, facing and elevation are just a few of the many tactics that need to be used. killing an enemy is all about figuring out what advantages you have over the enemy and using them. Tactical aid is another big part of gameplay as well. By doing just about anything in the game you earn TA points which can unlock things like heavy artillery, airdropped units, and even a tactical nuke. TA keeps the action frantic, and fast paced because, you can't just capture a CP and camp their for the whole game. If you do that the enemy will just drop somthing on you and force you to retreat. There are some issues in the game that should be mentioned. Sometimes units have path finding problems which causes them to either take the longer route or stop altogether which in a tense fight can cost your units lives. Another problem is the team based multiplayer. For the most part it's fantasic to work with your team to win, but for lone wolf type players you'll get tired of having to rely on your teamates. Somtimes you'll get killed because of the incompetance of your teamates. Despite these problems the multiplayer that has kept players playing for over two years is still just as addicting. Another high point for the game is the camera. It controls like a FPS and allows you to make your own cinimatic camera angles and still be able to control your units in them. In conclusion WIC is absolutely a must buy for PC players. It can be frustraing from time to time, but overall you'll whiddle away the hours before you know it. Add in some amazing visuals (even on run of the mill machines), and you have one of the best RTS games ever assembled.
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Other Helpful Reviews for World in Conflict (Collector's Edition)
Kind of disappointing to me. It seems like you are just moving all of your units to circle areas on the ground to control a specific area. All you have to do to win is put your forces in these circles and have a repair... Read Full Review
Ok...let me start off by saying after playing this game a good amount of time it is one of the best games Ive played it quite a while and I am NOT a rts fan really. A bit of background....Ive been playing computer gam... Read Full Review
