Genre: Real-Time Strategy
Publisher: CDV Interactive
Developer: Nival Interactive
Release Date: September 19, 2005

Looking back at the history of the real-time strategy genre, I remember a time when having a larger quantity of Rock units to beat your opponents Scissor units, while watching out for his Paper ones made up the entirety of the "strategy" aspect of the genre. Sure, maneuvering your units played a factor and setting up creative ambushes worked wonders, but for the most part, RTS games are, by and large, pretty simple.

Blitzkrieg was one of those games that really did something right, not only accurately modeling the combat dynamic of World War II from an artistic standpoint but also blending in deep-rooted gameplay heavily based in tactics, strategy, and management rather than preset rock-paper-scissors units. Even with its relatively simplistic 2D layout, Blitzkrieg wowed the gamer with visceral special effects and kept him/her there with gameplay that could be enjoyed by everyone from the armchair general to the micromanagement fiend who can mentally keep track of each unit's current ammunition status.

Naturally, Blitzkrieg 2 has significant shoes to fill. How exactly does one improve on a title when the original was so solid and without any real flaws to speak of? Well, first and foremost, Nival created a game engine that not only maintains the same level of exquisite graphical detail from the original title, but it now displays it in a fully 3D game world, complete with the ability to rotate the view as the gamer sees fit. The new engine is a largely cosmetic touch, sure, but also one that goes beyond the mere gimmick of having a 3D world. If there were any real complaint about the original title, it was that occasionally it would have been nice to have the ability to see the action from a different angle, and hats off to Nival for taking the series into the realm of 3D without reducing the original level of detail given to the units and landscape.

There are three sides to choose from in Blitzkrieg 2: the Germans, the Allies, and the Russians. Upon choosing your side of the campaign, one of the new features you are bound to notice is the sort of world map that displays the current battles you can select. Completing a battle will cause the front lines to shift accordingly and will award you additional reinforcements, which will allow for new battlegrounds to be sought, and make other battles further from the front lines easier.

Blitzkrieg 2 commanders will be able to wield over 200 different types of units ranging from infantry to armor, and support to aircraft, some of which are awarded of sorts after a mission is completed. Special units can be used to lead certain types of units, and in turn, these special units not only gain battlefield experience al la the original Blitzkrieg but can also learn new abilities to bestow upon the troops they command.

Still, even with the new engine and units, Blitzkrieg 2 still sticks to its guns in the most literal sense. Every unit in the game is heavily based on its real-life counterpart, from the damage modeling of infantry unit weapons up the directional armor of a tank. Ammunition is a finite resource, and when a unit uses up all they have, they are defenseless until resupplied, making at least casual observation of your unit's supply needs a necessary task. Do you send that Tiger in with only 15 shells, or do you pull it back and risk giving the enemy a foothold on your side of the bridge? Although a gamer can play through Blitzkrieg 2 without really worrying too heavily about micromanagement of units, fans of surgical strategy will be pleased to hear that the same emphasis on effective tactics and troop movements found in the original titles is not only encouraged in the sequel but also just as ridiculously entertaining.

The transition to the new engine has allowed for Nival to put even more detail into Blitzkrieg 2 over the original title. Now when landing craft take one hit too many, they rock and sink into the seas, and those that arrive unload their troops amidst a hail of gunfire that leaves flecks and holes in the turf. Air strikes look particularly impressive due to the sheer level of smoke, dirt, and debris they kick up as they send a small area of earth back into the dark ages. An effect not immediately noticeable but greatly welcomed is the fact that explosions and fire will now light up units and the landscape around them, with burning tanks casting an orb of light amidst the blanket of early dawn.

All things considered, Nival is up to it again. Blitzkrieg easily raised the bar for the RTS genre with not only its unparalleled attention to detail and historical accuracy, but also Nival's ability to incorporate that same accuracy into a genuinely entertaining title. Blitzkrieg 2 essentially takes everything that made the original title a blast to play, polishes it a bit, and throws it into a new engine alongside a healthy helping of gameplay improvements to really qualify itself as a true sequel. Fans of RTS titles in general will appreciate Blitzkrieg 2's ability to be topically entertaining, while fans of WWII will appreciate the title's strong attention to historical accuracy and established fact. Look for more information on Blitzkrieg 2 as it nears its ship date in mid-September.