Command Patton and his Divisions through the Ardennes mountain passes to relieve Bastogne. Hopefully the weather will clear so you can receive air support...
Playability: 2
While this is fun enough, there are some things that detract from the score. One thing is the enormous army you have to control, it's just too big! Not to mention having to keep an eye on Bastogne too. And then, there's the fact that at least 50% of your GIs anywhere don't fight! Yes, you heard correctly. They are not GIs but American Soldiers. Not just any American Soldiers, but the ones without any type of range or attack! Wtf?!
Balance: 2
The balance is rather whacked. Not one of my armies made it through any pass to actually reach Bastogne, while Bastogne itself really wasn't under attack, as the Germans decided to slaughter the Dutch villagers that the computer kept making at the large number of TCs in Bastogne, meaning that I could pick off the Germans that wandered around killing Dutch at will.
Creativity: 2
Sure, it was creative enough. We haven't seen many WW2 scenarios other than DDay and Stalingrad, which is nice. However, working around the lack of snow is not the same as ignoring snow. There are at least two threads on how to simulate snow, and you could have at least put some effort into trying them, even if the snow is only here or there.
Map Design: 3
The map design is the jewel of this map. There is some pretty decent terrain mixing, overall. However, some things just make you and "why?!" One such thing is the mixing of the two types of cliffs. They don't mix. Never have, never will. Plus it doesn't even mix them, it makes too many straight lines. Also, the town is lackluster. It is more or less a nearly perfect square, which is just wrong for a town. There are too many right angles from too straight roads, there are too many plazas, not enough actual city.
Story/Instructions: 1
This deserves a one for two reasons. The story is so lackluster it can't be considered a real story. Also, there are absolutely no objectives. So I just kept marching my armies forward toward Bastogne because I didn't know what to do!
Additional Comments:
- Story story story!
- Test it! It needs better balance!
- Whatever else I said up there ^.