|
|
Combat Commander: Europe
When you set it up, Combat Commander like a standard hex-and-counter game very much like squad leader except with decent sized hexes. However, it's card driven, so the play provides different challenges, opportunities and uncertainly compared to a more traditional wargame.
I am fond of the idea of card driven wargames, as they seem to be a simple way of simulating the chaos and fog of war. However there is a fine line between stopping the game being a “Wild West shootout with tanks” without it becoming either a frustrating straightjacket for the players, or an abstract game that isn't really a simulation of warfare at all.
I think that CC:E does a pretty good job of striking that balance.
Firstly, the game is composed of a lot of very small turns. So if you need to pass your turn to discard cards from your hand, you haven't lost too much.
Also, the cards cleverly have two parts, an Order (which you use to advance your play) and a Action (special circumstance card) and you choose which one part of the card you use it for. This means even a card with a useless order may still have a tactical use (such as allowing your machine gun to pepper more than one target).
CCE is for 2 players only and plays out pretty quickly, we played the (small) first scenario after in just under 2 hours. Game box says 1-3 hours.
Pros:
- Well executed fun WWII squad-level game
- Nice components
- Card system is very clever and slick
Cons:
- Rulebook hard to digest at first
- Frustration if you don't have the correct cards
- Some people might not fancy a card-driven wargame game
Overall, I would recommend it to anyone looking for a fast WWII game – unless they hate the idea of the card system. Also check out Tide of Iron, and probably end up, like me, with both!
Other games I would compare it to:
Squad leader: CCE is more fun, but simpler and less hex-and-counterish
Memoir 44: CCE is more complex and a lot less abstract.
Tide of Iron: pretty similar in level of detail.
House rule: We allow Two Fire cards to be played as a Move Order and vice versa.
Rating: 9.0
Reviewed by:
StuartMcIntyre
|
|
|
