*** Updated for v1.2.2.0 ***

Short TL:DR - A faithful translation of the original boardgame with lots of potential, but still rough around some edges. Overall, good enough to get your "fix" for classic Ogre, but G.E.V. is still a ways off and some minor bugs still need to be addressed. I currently rate it a 4 out of 5 (previously rated at 3.5).


I'm going to try to itemize the good and bad as much as possible so you get an accurate view of what the game (v1.2.2.0) looks like. I was part of the beta test and there are a lot of things that have been improved since the beta, but there's still more work to do.

The good:

** UPDATE ** Bugfixes - Many bug fixes have been applied over the last week and the game is much more stable than it was at release time. The majority of the core issues/rules errors have been fixed and most of what's left to address are UI improvements or smaller edge-case rules. Gameplay has cleaned up considerably; with many UI tweaks that have been very helpful. You can review the changelog for details.

Classic Ogre - The rules for classic Ogre games (referred to in-game as the "basic" rules) are solid. If all you ever play is stuff on the orange map (the Original boradgame), you will have a very satisfying experience. The game plays as expected.

The graphics - The modeling of the units is excellent. They represent a great translation of the Miniatures and look awesome. The maps + units are a very good interpretation of what it feels like to play the tabletop game with miniatures. There isn't a ton of extra eye-candy, there's just enough to get the point across in a reasonably fun way.

The scenarios - Currently the "Classic" Ogre scenarios and the Nightfall campaign. Both are well done. The classic boardgame scenarios feel just like you are playing with the 6th Edition set, and the campaign scenarios have some really neat ideas that are implemented very well. The behavior in the "With friends like these..." scenario I found particularly interesting and unique and a great example of the potential of future scenarios. I've been playing the boardgame for almost 40 years, and nothing surprises me; that scenario surprised me (in a good way). **UPDATE** The campaign scenarios continue to impress. I'm up to #9 out of 10 and every scenario has had some unique element that has been a joy to play. They all make you think and the wrinkles that have been thrown in keep you engaged.

The Scenario Editor - Being able to make your own custom scenarios is a great idea (and honestly necessary for long-term survival). Making your own scenario is fairly straightforward and the interface is pretty easy to work with.

The Ui - Contains all the information you need to be able to play effectively. Unit selection and movement works reasonably well overall, and has been greatly improved over the beta so it's obvious they take feedback and are capable of incorporating suggestions.

Multiplayer - setting up custom games between friends works well

The Bad:

Advanced Ogre - A lot is still missing. If you are expecting G.E.V. or Shockwave, this is not there yet. Visually, it "looks like" G.E.V., but it really has only a handful of "advanced rules" that make it G.E.V. You can stack units, and you have terrain effects and overrun, but that's about it. Terrain damage is either nonexistent or not working right. None of the Official G.E.V. scenarios exist yet (Raid, Breakthrough, etc). The only place you see the advanced stuff is in the campaign, and while the campaign concepts are really cool, the gameplay implementation for advanced rules still need a lot of work.

The UI - While it does give you all the info you need to play, you have to be an advanced player to understand some of it. There needs to be more tutorials on the UI and what everything means so new players know what's going on. How the UI works is still clunky in some places and involve more clicking around than necessary and flyouts/tooltips end up in weird places causing you to scroll around to see them. Definitely needs some refinements. ** UPDATE ** They have added a lot to make the interface more intuitive, and have started creating some tutorial videos that should be helpful to new players. A lot of the major quirky UI issues have been resolved, but more refinement is still needed. One of the biggest is movement of stacked units; that's on the short list of things to address, but it still hasn't made it to the game yet.

The AI - If you are an experienced player, you will likely find a lot of the AI implementation very weak. Especially in the Classic Ogre scenarios, the AI plays very one-dimensionally. It seems marginally better in the campaign, but is still not nearly as challenging as it could be. ** UPDATE ** The AI is still a weak link for advanced players. I've seen a number of glaring examples of really bone-headed choices that even a novice player would not have made. Still needs a lot of work to be as brutal as it should be, but without a way to dial the AI strength up or down, I'm not sure what would be preferable.


The Ugly:

** UPDATE ** Bugs - Most major bugs have been squashed, but there are still a lot of edge-case issues with smaller things that need to be addressed. Overall, the state of the bugs has moved out of the Ugly category.

Multiplayer - While it works (sometimes), it has a lot of issues connecting players. Also, you have no control over what you get dumped into; it makes a random selection. It really needs a way to filter the type of game you are looking for and give the ability to choose sides. It's also really poor at in-game communication if the person you are playing is not already one of your friends.

*** Updated for v1.2.2.0 *** Short TL:DR - A faithful translation of the original boardgame with lots of potential, but still rough around some edges. Overall, good enough to get your "fix" for classic Ogre, but G.E.V. is still a ways off and some minor bugs still need to be addressed. I currently rate it a 4 out of 5 (previously rated at 3.5). I'm going to try to itemize the good and bad as much as possible so you get an accurate view of what the game (v1.2.2.0) looks like. I was part of the beta test and there are a lot of things that have been improved since the beta, but there's still more work to do. The good: ** UPDATE ** Bugfixes - Many bug fixes have been applied over the last week and the game is much more stable than it was at release time. The majority of the core issues/rules errors have been fixed and most of what's left to address are UI improvements or smaller edge-case rules. Gameplay has cleaned up considerably; with many UI tweaks that have been very helpful. You can review the [url=http://steamcommunity.com/app/517780/discussions/0/1489987634000650466/]changelog[/url] for details. Classic Ogre - The rules for classic Ogre games (referred to in-game as the "basic" rules) are solid. If all you ever play is stuff on the orange map (the Original boradgame), you will have a very satisfying experience. The game plays as expected. The graphics - The modeling of the units is excellent. They represent a great translation of the Miniatures and look awesome. The maps + units are a very good interpretation of what it feels like to play the tabletop game with miniatures. There isn't a ton of extra eye-candy, there's just enough to get the point across in a reasonably fun way. The scenarios - Currently the "Classic" Ogre scenarios and the Nightfall campaign. Both are well done. The classic boardgame scenarios feel just like you are playing with the 6th Edition set, and the campaign scenarios have some really neat ideas that are implemented very well. The behavior in the "With friends like these..." scenario I found particularly interesting and unique and a great example of the potential of future scenarios. I've been playing the boardgame for almost 40 years, and nothing surprises me; that scenario surprised me (in a good way). **UPDATE** The campaign scenarios continue to impress. I'm up to #9 out of 10 and every scenario has had some unique element that has been a joy to play. They all make you think and the wrinkles that have been thrown in keep you engaged. The Scenario Editor - Being able to make your own custom scenarios is a great idea (and honestly necessary for long-term survival). Making your own scenario is fairly straightforward and the interface is pretty easy to work with. The Ui - Contains all the information you need to be able to play effectively. Unit selection and movement works reasonably well overall, and has been greatly improved over the beta so it's obvious they take feedback and are capable of incorporating suggestions. Multiplayer - setting up custom games between friends works well The Bad: Advanced Ogre - A lot is still missing. If you are expecting G.E.V. or Shockwave, this is not there yet. Visually, it "looks like" G.E.V., but it really has only a handful of "advanced rules" that make it G.E.V. You can stack units, and you have terrain effects and overrun, but that's about it. Terrain damage is either nonexistent or not working right. None of the Official G.E.V. scenarios exist yet (Raid, Breakthrough, etc). The only place you see the advanced stuff is in the campaign, and while the campaign concepts are really cool, the gameplay implementation for advanced rules still need a lot of work. The UI - While it does give you all the info you need to play, you have to be an advanced player to understand some of it. There needs to be more tutorials on the UI and what everything means so new players know what's going on. How the UI works is still clunky in some places and involve more clicking around than necessary and flyouts/tooltips end up in weird places causing you to scroll around to see them. Definitely needs some refinements. ** UPDATE ** They have added a lot to make the interface more intuitive, and have started creating some tutorial videos that should be helpful to new players. A lot of the major quirky UI issues have been resolved, but more refinement is still needed. One of the biggest is movement of stacked units; that's on the short list of things to address, but it still hasn't made it to the game yet. The AI - If you are an experienced player, you will likely find a lot of the AI implementation very weak. Especially in the Classic Ogre scenarios, the AI plays very one-dimensionally. It seems marginally better in the campaign, but is still not nearly as challenging as it could be. ** UPDATE ** The AI is still a weak link for advanced players. I've seen a number of glaring examples of really bone-headed choices that even a novice player would not have made. Still needs a lot of work to be as brutal as it should be, but without a way to dial the AI strength up or down, I'm not sure what would be preferable. The Ugly: ** UPDATE ** Bugs - Most major bugs have been squashed, but there are still a lot of edge-case issues with smaller things that need to be addressed. Overall, the state of the bugs has moved out of the Ugly category. Multiplayer - While it works (sometimes), it has a lot of issues connecting players. Also, you have no control over what you get dumped into; it makes a random selection. It really needs a way to filter the type of game you are looking for and give the ability to choose sides. It's also really poor at in-game communication if the person you are playing is not already one of your friends.