by Peter Robbins, 10 March 2024
Welcome to a quick first impression of the upcoming WW2 wargame Headquarters: World War II. First, I’d like to point out that this is a first impression of a publicly available DEMO. So, keep in mind that this is not a finished overall product, but what they do show off here is quite nice and I think you should at the very least download it and try it out. That is my first overall impression, it’s definitely worth having a go at it. See if it is to your taste, but I do feel like it has a little pinch of this and that for a majority of the wargaming crowd. The game is overall extremely visually appealing, its easy to jump into and understand most of the controls for, but it still takes a mostly realistic bit of suppressive fire and maneuvering to get the best results out of a scenario.
HQWW2 rewards good tactics, and is appealing on all other wargaming fronts. What more could you ask for? Is this the spiritual successor to Battle Academy 2 that we’ve all been dreaming about? I think we need to hold off on that level of kudos until we get to see the final product in its full glory. This demo does hint at being a great modern successor to the classic wargame (and as far as I know currently, no developers from that game series were involved in the production of this game) but I don’t yet want to step into the minefield of giving it that gilded prize.
click images to enlarge
Of note, even though it’s a demo of only one scenario from one perspective, it actually has had a really good amount of replay value even with only that! That is a pretty good sign that when and if you buy the full version of the game, you are going to get your money’s worth; as it will be presenting (at least from its demo description, always of course subject to change upon full release), nine scenarios from three perspectives: Great Britain, USA, and Germany.
What is also potentially extremely appealing, is that similar to titles like the Battle Academy series (a favorite of mine, so I am going to be biased reviewing this game), is that HQ:WW2 includes a skirmish mode, random map generator, multiplayer support, and a map editor. What is really cool is that you can take the random map you just generated and immediately edit it to taste. So, again, I’m talking to a full game I do not have access to (yet, hopefully we can get a full review copy so we can put it through a full review), it at least on paper is going to be an incredibly dynamic wargame, that will not only be entertaining for its core scenario content but which with the supported features, could be years of playing bliss. I am ahead of myself, as this article must stick to what is presented in the public DEMO.
After you finish reading this article, get the public demo, play it (you will actually get replay value out of it*), then watch Slitherine’s Feature Demo video of the full beta product
So beyond the rather nice menu system and nice description of what you are getting with the demo, when you jump into the training mission, you actually get a well put together training interface that goes beyond the normal game mode’s interface. This is a nice touch. I know we could argue that sometimes just showing the interface and giving overlays is nice and all, but this game takes a more visually-appealing, “encyclopedic” approach, which I found to just feel like they put a decent amount of effort into it. They really tried.
As you can see above, the interface is reminiscent of older isometric view square-space-based wargames of the 2000s, which is a huge compliment, actually. While it may give off a bit of an RTS vibe at first, it’s not – it’s a wargame.
And what is really unique about this one is, intermittently, as you order the movements of units, you get a full “cut scene” view of the action.
That gives it an oddly first person shooter feel, and combined with the main game mode’s graphics being cut-scene-worthy-level nice; it really is seamless and just adds that little extra touch of immersion to deter disbelief. You do feel like you are commanding troops in a battle, as opposed to just moving pieces on a wargaming game board. And that is a unique feeling amongst the crowd of wargames on the market. Somehow they’ve merged the two seamlessly from what I can gather – and my current laptop is extremely modest.
I’d overall describe HQWW2 as a “Cinematic Wargame”, as it shoots for realistic visuals and a full on wargaming underbelly. It hides a rather robust wargame underneath a shiny veneer. And the effect is not a jarring juxtaposition, but a pretty damn good overall meshed pretty wargame in the making. The more I’ve played the demo, the absolutely more I cannot wait for the full version. That is a good sign. It is one of the only wargame demos I’ve played many times over. In fact it’s delayed me writing this, as I’ve played it so much I didn’t want to stop and write about it.
This game is somewhere nicely entrenched between the visual sensibilities of WARNO and Wargame: Red Dragon approaches, but the wargaming features of more traditional “serious board game” approach such as Battle Academy 2. The units generally perform realistically, from what I can make of the results, and needed tactics to perform well. You are still married to the IGOUGO phasing of the game, but that is the only thing that pulls you back away from the realism factor many may be looking for. OTHERWISE though, its a solid wargame.
This is not an RTS with the word “wargame” in its description text.
Above, you will see the descriptions of the game’s Overwatch, Reactions, and Morale. I’ve included these just to show you, yes, there is a wargame underneath this cinematic bliss. The game engine is incredible, and it looks as good zoomed all the way out as in, which is just incredible. And the fact that they’ve added in the extra little dynamically-adjusted camera view “cut scenes”, but from the same game engine (which is key) makes the experience more seamless. You are not just getting a video of a similarly-typed unit doing a statically-taped attack. You are watching a cinematic cut scene of your actual moves with the actual units in the game engine.
I know this may have been attempted in other wargames, but this is a seamless wonder to behold. And all this, on a very modest system; I only have a Geforce GTX 1050 Ti, (an eight year old graphics card!). Yes, I’m due for a new system (soon, thankfully!), but still, HQWW2 attains high bar graphics, but smooth as silk on my system.
The two shots above help show you how the cinematic cut scenes are in fact from the game engine movements of the units involved in your actions. This is the same “scene” from two camera angles and zoom levels.
The above screenshot shows you the missions that will be available in the US, UK, and Germany “Battle For Normandy” campaigns. I can only hope (yet another good sign) that more DLC will become available as the Western front progresses. And, of course, an Eastern Front DLC would be more than welcome on my system. If they can maintain this level of visual and wargaming quality, they have a customer for life in me.
And also check out the Features video at: Headquarters: World War II | Features video
I just so happen to catch a player running a stream of the full game and took one quick screenshot of his playthru below.
Now, for a final set of additional screenshots. I really have enjoyed playing this game, and its well worth you attention wargamers. Take it for a spin by downloading the demo here.
Here is a slideshow of more action from the Normandy single mission demo:
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