Sound
The game did attempt to load various sounds for each of the unit types (tanks rumbled along, trains sped by, and battles would result in gunfire). For what they were, they were adequate to get the job done. Yet most sounds get disabled for larger scenarios where you are moving 100′s or 1000′s of units on the map (how many times can you hear the same sound of a tank moving?). Likewise, the music score was nice, but it becomes repetitious after a few hours (or a few years!) too. In the end, this game becomes more like a quiet meeting between two players over a boardgame in someone’s basement. Nothing but the clock ticking, muffled voices from upstairs, and the rustling of you and your opponent moving cardboard over cardboard.
The music and sound was just fine for what it was supposed to do, and I’d give a rating of 9 out of 10 for the category. I would be surprised if any improvements are coming in regards to sound.
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Interface
As mentioned under graphics, the interface (the layout of the game, and how you interact with it) is pretty straightforward. One large map window taking up 75-85% of the screen, with one pane on the right covering the last 15-25% and showing your buttons, mini-map, etc. At first blush, it is very easy to become overwhelmed by the varied and large number of buttons, pull down menus, right-click menus, and other data presented on the various panes. But if you can stifle the information overload, you will find that everything you could ever want to know about your units is a click or two away at all times. While it might not be organized in the best way possible, you do have access to a multitude of information.
The main TOAW interface. Main buttons in top right, pull down menus, and
microview panel (minimap) are all right there in front of you for easy access. Knowing
what information comes from where is the real trick. Click image for full size view.
Accessing information on individual units also takes some getting used to. When you right-click on a unit in the main map window you are given a menu list of actions you can perform with that unit (attack without regard to losses, entrench, set it to reserve status, bombard using artillery, and about 20 other options). When you right-click on the same unit up in the unit panel (top right), you instead get a popup showing the equipment inside the unit, details about its strengths and weakness, and a flurry of other information. Combined with the depth and breadth of other menus and buttons on your screen, it is not hard to imagine new players having their heads spin!
The problems with the interface can usually be worked out over time – assuming a player has the patience for it (don’t bother looking in the manual either!) I could see improving a few things such as perhaps moving all the buttons to the top bar, having the option to close/remove the mini-map, and have the unit details box "float" above the map in the top right (allowing more of the map to be seen at one time). Why not give the ability to click on a unit and see its potential movement radius? How about an option to set all units to the same loss tolerance? Why not show supply as a shaded gradient overlaying (or under-laying) units for the ability to visually scan your supply situation without reading numbers? Or perhaps add in a 3rd zoom level to make the units twice as large for the focally challenged out there? But realistically, given the complexity involved, I doubt we will see many changes to the interface – at least at first.
Despite all its shortcomings and omissions, the interface is usable (once you get over the learning curve) and as such, I’d rate it an 11/15. It would probably be a lot of work to close that gap, as it would require tinkering with how the game works rather than just how it looks. Yet these things (and many more like them) are generally of most significance to those who want to see changes to make the game more player-friendly.
Installation/Technical
The game is pretty uneventful on installation, and over the course of several years I’ve not had many technical issues. The hardest part of buying the game has been finding the upgrade patches for it…since they were removed from any "official" site a long time ago. All in all, the game installation is pretty typical. For most of us, it works fine on Windows 2000/XP (minus the ability to extract OOB information). For that, I’d give it the full 5 out of 5.
Documentation
There is a running joke in the TOAW community which basically says that if you want to learn how to play the game, DON’T use the manual. And, while there is some truth to this (you certainly can’t become a "great" player if it is your only resource), the manual is good for most of the basics of the game. The manual falls flat however because it is painfully ambiguous in many places, omits advanced concepts, and does nothing to help a new player get started (unless you count the hobbled "standard rules" version of the game). Most of the really juicy concepts have to be gleaned from other players in head-to-head PBEM battles, or by keeping up on TOAW forum discussions about the game.
In a perfect world, the manual would be completely redone, with an eye towards giving new players a nice tutorial on how to get started, with notes pointing them to advanced concepts at the appropriate point in the discussion (for e.g., to learn more about how to get the most rounds out of a turn, turn to Appendix A). This would make the manual about 3 times larger than it is now, but it would finally be complete. With that in mind, I would rate the current documentation at 2 of 5. I would have given it a 1 except that there is a slightly more complete set of documentation inside the game itself…although even that is well short of what it should be. There is much room for improvement in any new version.
Value
I make no secret of the fact that I am an avid player of this game system. Over the years I have followed with frustration as various companies passed around the rights to the ownership of this game like it was a tired, rusted old engine. However, many of us knew this "tired engine" was in reality a valuable, unique, sports car engine and we just prayed that a company would eventually see its true worth. It seems that time has finally arrived.
Putting my subjective feelings aside, I do believe this game still offers unprecedented playability for anyone interested in operational gaming. As illustrated above, there is no single game currently on the market which has the possibility of covering such a broad spectrum of time periods and conflicts. One could argue this is the ultimate wargame construction kit – offering almost any battle, anywhere, at any time. I would wager almost every operational boardgame on your shelf is represented in TOAW, and without needing space for mapboards, counters, etc. Granting there are some flaws to TOAW which may have been keeping some potential gamers away, I believe there is a real chance to bring many of them back by working with Matrix Games and Norm Koger to finally help fix what isn’t working.
Furthermore, this game system is serious. The numbers on the counters aren’t arbitrary, but are instead derived from a very in-depth (although incomplete) weapons database, and for the most part are created by researching the real life Orders of Battle of various encounters, as well as the Table of Organization and Equipment from the time period of the conflict. In short, these units are composed of the same numbers and types of soldiers, tanks and aircraft that were actually present in any given battle. While it has every look of a board game, the detail is off the charts once you get under the hood. Fortunately, with a few exceptions, the player isn’t saddled with all this information and is welcome to keep the hood closed and just enjoy driving the vehicle. In that regard, and excepting some of its flaws, you could easily claim this game is simultaneously one of the most complex, yet most playable and enjoyable wargames out there.
In that vein, and with the benefit of hindsight, I can easily award this game a full 10/10 for value and replayabilty. Many TOAW players are entirely dedicated to this game system, even as newer and admittedly better looking wargames are released year after year. But, as with anything, the wear of time and the high mileage were beginning to catch up with TOAW. Matrix Games has chosen the perfect time to save this title from descending further into obscurity, and we can only hope to see some of the changes outlined here and elsewhere to help freshen up this game and carry it into new directions. It is already a classic, so it should be a slam dunk to wash off the rust, give it some new spark plugs, and get this engine back onto the racetrack where it belongs.
Armchair General Score–84%
36/40 — Gameplay
11/15 — Graphics
09/10 — Sound
11/15 — Interface
05/05 — Installation/Tech
02/05 — Documentation
10/10 — General’s Rating
