The Wargamer

Aggression: Europe 1914

We can’t tell you too much about this super-ambitious title because it’s not slated for publication until Q2 2007, and Buka was only showing a few demo loops. Very impressive loops, to be sure, but then Buka always has those. What this spunky Russian company doesn’t have yet is a reliable handle on the kind of smooth, well-rounded game-play Americans are used to and expect. We mentioned this to their sales reps; they agreed; they said: “We know – we’re working on that very hard.” 

What made us enthusiastic was the premise of Aggression: Europe 1914. It starts in 1914, but the end of the conflict doesn’t come in 1918; in fact, it’s historically wide-open. It’s possible for some campaign games to roll on, complete with atomic weapons and guided missiles, up to 1950. Cool. Fascinating a-historical alliances are possible. Imagine Japan coming in on the Austro-German side and running rampant across the Pacific. Also cool. And, as usual with Buka’s games, the graphics were sensational. The Muscovites are using their own new engine to push the polygons and, in addition to the lush 3-D foliage and crisply modeled vehicles, guns and planes, every structure in the game is built up painstakingly from its own set of graphic “molecules”, and when structures are damaged or collapse, they fall/ shudder/ burn randomly but in accordance with the laws of physics, polygon by polygon, in a slick, almost liquid cascade that throws up dust, bodies, and secondary debris. Very sexy indeed. (We were also fascinated by the weight and ponderousness of heavy artillery recoil; when a humongous Krupp siege howitzer fires, you can bloody well feel it!)

There can be thousands of discrete, individually-modeled soldiers and vehicles on the screen at once. True, that may be yesterday’s magic, but this may be the first time a Russian game company has pushed the envelope this far, and Buka has a right to be proud of how spiffy this monster game looks.  Buka does have some reservations to overcome, as gamers will recall the disappointing launch of Entente a few years back, a World War I strategy game which may seem similar.  Are they aware of this problem? You bet. Are they trying to change things for the better? Appearances suggest they are; the PR ladies volubly insisted that was Numero Uno priority.  

So, for what it’s worth: Aggression: Europe 1914 certainly looks terrific and has plenty of potential to improve on past efforts.

About the Author

William R. Trotter was born and raised in Charlotte, North Carolina, and is a graduate of Davidson College. Since 1980, he has supported himself entirely by his freelance writing. In 1987, he became Senior Writer for Imagine Media. His monthly column on war and strategy gaming, "The Desktop General" ran for 15 years and was ultimately read by approximately 1.2 million people, in 13 languages.  Bill's journalistic work has appeared in more than 30 newspapers and magazines -- approximately 1,800 by-lined pieces. His 16 published books run the gamut from true crime, biography, history, to mainstream fiction; his most recent novel is "Warrener's Beastie" (due out in late June), about which Publishers Weekly recently said: "Trotter's sprawling novel successfully straddles the line between fantasy, science fiction, and adventure-thriller; it will find a sizable readership in all three camps." Or, as another reviewer quipped: "An oversimplified description might be 'Ship of Fools Goes to Loch Ness' ..."  For more on all his books, visit TrotterBooks.com.

Trotter lives in Greensboro, N.C., with his wife, fantasy writer and editor Elizabeth Lustig, and their three sons. When not busy writing or parenting, he spends lots of time trying to figure out how to organize and store his 7000-piece classical music collection.