Does Forge of Freedom still hold up?

[sandman2575]

Damn!  You guys are leaving me no recourse but to buy ACW2 and compare for myself. 


...at least it's still on sale on the Matrix site at the moment ...

[Bletchley_Geek]

Which was strange for me since I thought I would love it.....I remember waiting for the release sitting by my computer with huge anticipation...downloaded and was like...hmmm....that's it?

I really thought it was going to be the definitive CW game for me, just something about the game mechanics did not click with me....

I need also to say that there were quite a few patches, but I must admit I never went back to it after summer of 2007. I was playing AGEOD's by then :)

Seems that my concerns regarding the AI were addressed to some degree in the 2009 patch, according to a poster on Matrix's boards

I have to say that I really like the tweaks to the AI in detailed combat.  So far have found it much less predictable and see far fewer ineffective, piecemeal attacks and futile unsupported charges.

http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/fb.asp?m=2099946

[Grim.Reaper]

My problem wasn't with the detailed combat since I auto resolved battles...didn't care much for the strategic layer.  If I recall correctly, it used some kind of container system to organize armies which I couldn't grasp.

Just to be clear, I have also had issues with acw2 complexity:)

[Bletchley_Geek]

Just to be clear, I have also had issues with acw2 complexity :)

My issues with AACW2 in particular are about how to make sense out of the turn resolution (similar to the problem I had in FOF, but the UI is friendlier and more informative in both AACW and AACW2). To be honest, I find very surprising that the lessons on how to visualize WEGO turn resolution from the Atomic Games operational war games - results shown on the map as clickable icons, etc. - have been ignored for the past 20 years. That, and having the ability to replay the WEGO turn resolution 'impulse by impulse'. It is hard to figure out what's the reason for two events happening - and see if they're somehow related - when one can't easily make sense of which one came first.

[bbmike]

Damn!  You guys are leaving me no recourse but to buy ACW2 and compare for myself. 


...at least it's still on sale on the Matrix site at the moment ...

The correct solution. Those other two guys seem awfully grumpy concerning FoF.  :P

[Grim.Reaper]

Damn!  You guys are leaving me no recourse but to buy ACW2 and compare for myself. 


...at least it's still on sale on the Matrix site at the moment ...

The correct solution. Those other two guys seem awfully grumpy concerning FoF.  :P

Nope, not grumpy at all....just didn't enjoy it myself, but sure others did.  Even with acw2 it isn't necessarily the game I hoped for.  Both seemed to make things overly complex than I had hoped for this type of game.

As mentioned, best to try both to make your own personal decision.

[Greybriar]

I bought Forge of Freedom about the same time I purchased Gary Grigsby's War Between The States. I enjoyed both of them but when I got a new PC, they didn't get installed on its hard drive.

What I'm hoping for is an updated Civil War Generals 2, or even an updated Robert E. Lee: Civil War General. I tried playing AGEOD's American Civil War - The Blue and the Gray as well as a number of their other games, but the AGEOD engine just doesn't click with me.

[Grim.Reaper]

BBmike...

So I decided to reinstall and give another go...quick question, is there any way to zoom in on the map?  I don't mind the way the map looks in the low res, but couldn't find a way where I could scroll in and zoom in or out to see the whole map.  I know the military groups screen exists where you can see a big map, but not detailed enough.

After reinstalling, one thing I quickly remembered which I really liked was how it had a battle history screen where it showed in order all the battles that happened...kind of a history.  Really did like that.

[bbmike]

BBmike...

So I decided to reinstall and give another go...quick question, is there any way to zoom in on the map?  I don't mind the way the map looks in the low res, but couldn't find a way where I could scroll in and zoom in or out to see the whole map.  I know the military groups screen exists where you can see a big map, but not detailed enough.

After reinstalling, one thing I quickly remembered which I really liked was how it had a battle history screen where it showed in order all the battles that happened...kind of a history.  Really did like that.

Holding down the 'CTRL' key and using the mouse wheel should zoom the map in and out.

I bought Forge of Freedom about the same time I purchased Gary Grigsby's War Between The States. I enjoyed both of them but when I got a new PC, they didn't get installed on its hard drive.

What I'm hoping for is an updated Civil War Generals 2, or even an updated Robert E. Lee: Civil War General.

That would be nice!

[Grim.Reaper]

BBmike...

So I decided to reinstall and give another go...quick question, is there any way to zoom in on the map?  I don't mind the way the map looks in the low res, but couldn't find a way where I could scroll in and zoom in or out to see the whole map.  I know the military groups screen exists where you can see a big map, but not detailed enough.

After reinstalling, one thing I quickly remembered which I really liked was how it had a battle history screen where it showed in order all the battles that happened...kind of a history.  Really did like that.

Holding down the 'CTRL' key and using the mouse wheel should zoom the map in and out.

I bought Forge of Freedom about the same time I purchased Gary Grigsby's War Between The States. I enjoyed both of them but when I got a new PC, they didn't get installed on its hard drive.

What I'm hoping for is an updated Civil War Generals 2, or even an updated Robert E. Lee: Civil War General.

That would be nice!

Thank you, that worked.....when you really do scroll out though, my screen gets real choppy, but still serviceable for now..

[Grim.Reaper]

I bought Forge of Freedom about the same time I purchased Gary Grigsby's War Between The States. I enjoyed both of them but when I got a new PC, they didn't get installed on its hard drive.

What I'm hoping for is an updated Civil War Generals 2, or even an updated Robert E. Lee: Civil War General. I tried playing AGEOD's American Civil War - The Blue and the Gray as well as a number of their other games, but the AGEOD engine just doesn't click with me.

CWG2 is one game I never had the chance to play...does it hold up today and even available nowadays?  Is it playable on modern computers?

[Anguille]

What I'm hoping for is an updated Civil War Generals 2, or even an updated Robert E. Lee: Civil War General. I tried playing AGEOD's American Civil War - The Blue and the Gray as well as a number of their other games, but the AGEOD engine just doesn't click with me.

Same here!

[Anguille]

I bought Forge of Freedom about the same time I purchased Gary Grigsby's War Between The States. I enjoyed both of them but when I got a new PC, they didn't get installed on its hard drive.

What I'm hoping for is an updated Civil War Generals 2, or even an updated Robert E. Lee: Civil War General. I tried playing AGEOD's American Civil War - The Blue and the Gray as well as a number of their other games, but the AGEOD engine just doesn't click with me.

CWG2 is one game I never had the chance to play...does it hold up today and even available nowadays?  Is it playable on modern computers?

It's playable on Windows 7 and it's still the best game of the Civil War for me. I haven't installed it on my latest desktop but have it on my Windows XP deskop and on my netbook (windows 7).

[Grim.Reaper]

I bought Forge of Freedom about the same time I purchased Gary Grigsby's War Between The States. I enjoyed both of them but when I got a new PC, they didn't get installed on its hard drive.

What I'm hoping for is an updated Civil War Generals 2, or even an updated Robert E. Lee: Civil War General. I tried playing AGEOD's American Civil War - The Blue and the Gray as well as a number of their other games, but the AGEOD engine just doesn't click with me.

CWG2 is one game I never had the chance to play...does it hold up today and even available nowadays?  Is it playable on modern computers?

It's playable on Windows 7 and it's still the best game of the Civil War for me. I haven't installed it on my latest desktop but have it on my Windows XP deskop and on my netbook (windows 7).

I'll have to try it...thanks.

[sandman2575]

Wow.  After spending time learning the preliminary ropes with ACW2, it just doesn't even seem like a contest.  FoF really pales in comparison, and I can see why ACW2 is the 'go to' Civil War grand strategy game of the moment.

I am really, really impressed by how much Ageod has improved the AGE engine.  My previous experience had been with Napoleon's Campaigns, which always felt like a 'great in theory, lousy in practice' game. The frustrations always outweighed the positives. ACW2 just feels like a much more refined and well-thought-out design, esp. with the UI.

The 'hands off' combat still doesn't thrill me, but the battle outcomes are now much more decipherable than they were in NCP.

Glad I took the plunge while it was still on sale.  I'll have to pick up Alea Jacta Est as well at some point, given how good ACW2 is...