Any number of things can happen to the men when they drop out of the plane: They can land safely, injure themselves on landing, get lost or become completely attached from the rest of the stick, or worse, have a parachute fail. One of the great things about 101 is that it does a very good job of simulating the chaos and uncertainty of airborne combat operations. This can be done either individually or by an auto feature for each area, which speeds up things tremendously, though players with a bit more time on their hands will probably want to fine-tune things a bit.Īfter the troops are ready and the drop arrangement is set, it's time to take off and drop into enemy territory. Forty-eight troops are available, each with varying skills and abilities - it's your job to sort out which is best for the mission. After picking one of nine campaigns (basically initial mission objectives), you are then assigned the task of picking, outfitting, and equipping each of the 18 paratroopers to accompany the mission. You take control over one such group, a "stick" or planeload of 18 paratroopers. The setting is a few hours before the Allied invasion of Normandy the 101st Airborne Division (the Screaming Eagles) is to be parachuted in groups all over Normandy in order to create enough havoc and mayhem to disrupt and distract the German Army from rushing reinforcements to the Normandy beachheads before they can be properly secured by the invading forces. Now, some ex-Random Games employees, under the Incredible Simulations moniker, have revisited the arena with 101: The Airborne Invasion of Normandy, a really good game that overcomes some of Soldiers at War's problems. The same development group created Wages of War for New World Computing, which suffered from many of the same problems. Soldiers at War, developed by Random Games and SSI, was a decent World War II tactical game although marred by the single-mission format, some strange gameplay mechanics, and a few other things that kept it from being truly outstanding. But wargamers - with the Breach series, Close Combat and its ilk, and Soldiers at War - have also had their share. "Over the past few years there have been a number of squad-based simulations, typically of the science fiction variety (with X-COM being the most famous of the bunch). Alan Dunkin's thorough review at GameSpot says it all: Replay Value: Too slow to want to replay immediately.ġ01 Airborne: The Airborne Invasion of Normandy is a much-overlooked and now out-of-print squad-level wargame from Empire Interactive. Sound: Authentic battle effects and voices.Įnjoyment: Can be slow, especially with characters having to be moved individually. Graphics: Interesting use of colors, impressive opening video. World War II just wasn't that "front row, FIRE!" type of warfare. Even though serious strategists will love those factors, overall, the design of the game hampers its playability. There are numerous multi-player options as well as single missions to attempt. The game interface is also relatively easy to pick up with commands readily accessible via a right click of the mouse to make your troops crawl, shoot, duck, or engage in hand-to-hand combat. The graphics are smooth they roll in a "rounded" fashion and are pleasingly not jerky whatsoever.
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The introduction video sets the scene perfectly, full of uphill struggles, and the music and sound effects complement the feeling of battle. Most of the rest of the simulation is well put together. Additionally, having to cycle through each soldier under your command one by one and equipping, training, and moving them individually (although there is an "all at once" option) may cause some players to find this game painfully slow. Although this heightens the quality of strategic decisions made before trying to take a bridge or invade a town, the act of making a move and then having to wait for your opponent to do the same slows the game play down to an almost unbearable crawl. Players will have access to a variety of tools and features that give them access to customize and change the battlefield however they like.101: The 101st Airborne in Normandy is a turn-based World War II combat/strategy game, the object of which is to invade Normandy on D-Day and advance as far as possible into occupied France.Īs a turn-based strategy game, the action and tactical aspects are considerably reduced and slowed down. Save 50% on Warbox on Steam ()Ī sandbox game that enables players to watch or take part in a warzone. Warbox the updated version which is still being actively worked on and developed. Manta's Warbox is NO LONGER SUPPORTED! No further updates will come to the itch.io page.