Band of Brothers Review

[@AlexTheUruguayan]

"This is war not a game of cricket, after all." I just ordered Ghost Panzer, in part, thanks to this review.

[@valensinclair6750]

All of these WW2 tactical games that have hit the market in the last 10 years are an enigma. They're all fine, but no one is really playing them except 1 or 2 times solo, then they try to sell the system they "invested" in. There's no real community of people to find games with, and that's a huge problem for me. I know people like to dump on ASL, but just on Vassal alone there are something like 10,000 games played each month.

[@darrylkopman378]

Love it: "It may not seem very noble, but this is war not cricket"

[@mtaran02]

Nice job Marco. Thank you for taking the time to do these videos. I appreciate it.

[@TheTeamauld]

Very nice review- well done. I was in the 82nd and this seems exactly like the type of game I’ve been looking for.

[@horrido666]

The problem I have with this game is the moral check before melee. It results in elite units surrendering to conscripts far too often. It is such a hole, that any competitive player will be focusing almost solely on this. Although the procedure (suppress the enemy, then close to attack) is realistic, the end effect is completely absurd.

[@twentysides]

Thank you for the review. My local store ordered a copy because of how pretty the box is, and I'm considering buying it from them.

[@paulhamrick3943]

What is better, Band of Brothers or Lock n’ Load?

[@brianasklev3508]

any plans of reviewing Ghost Panzer or other games in the series (when they are published)?

[@marcowargamer]

@twentysides: phenomenal game + support of local economy... you should totally go for it!!

[@RoC1909]

Damn you, Marco. I just bought a new car and now I have to spend money that I do not have on another game that you review! Thanks a lot, Buddy!

[@marcowargamer]

BoB, definitely. Much more elegant and economic!

[@Doomsfist]

marcowargamer I have been Miniatures gamer for a long time and have been looking to get into more historical Wargames but don't really want to invest the time into doing them in Miniature, so my question is would this be a good starting point for a Miniatures gamer to get into historical tactical combat?

[@billyfrmhill]

This looks similar to the Lock n' Load system.

[@nozidnolram]

I like how you see the good things about the games and not whine like other reviewers.

[@TerrorVisual]

Man, I find the way your voice goes up in pitch at the end of every sentence is making it REALLY hard for me to listen. I need to research this game for work so I'm soldiering on but... yeah. Its not easy.

[@100bullet95]

maybe the tactical WW2 game i've been waiting for... afraid of complexity in ASL dubious on the chaos in CCEurope very afordable game; worthington rolls high these days

[@TheToekutter]

The chaos is what makes CC a blast. War is pure chaos, despite all the organization and logistics involved. Defeat/victory can happen when a short string of chaos ensues on the battlefield. This is aptly modeled in CC...and it's often a hoot.

[@GeorgeMonck]

Great review again! Thanks for this - much appreciated.

[@neftalibaltasarsilvaalvare8244]

great review as always!

[@Viewfromtheturret]

Another great review. Thanks for all your effort.

[@REMMc-jx7vc]

I would recommend Combat Mission:Normandy for a much more realistic wargame. Board wargames are so abstracted. Great in the 80's :)

[@horrido666]

Combat Mission is a great simulation, but a horrible game. These are wargames, not war-simulations.

[@REMMc-jx7vc]

+Dan S so would ASL not be a wargame? CM is much more advanced it is just graphic representation. With hundreds or variables accounted for. Love board games but they are limited and not as realistic IMHO. Like I said great in the 80s and 90s. All the war colleges are now using computer "simulations" to add to their training.

[@horrido666]

ASL is a game, not a simulation. It is and always has been 'design for effect'. as opposed to a simulations 'design for realism'. With a simulation, the primary goal is realism. With a game, the primary goal is to be a game. These is cross-over of course - wargames must be realistic enough to be believable. Simulations can be fun, but the emphasis is on realism. The reason we don't have any decent computer wargames is becasue programmers and developers completely underestimate the importance of game design. ASL is a fantastic game not becasue it covers every theater of operation in all of WW2, but becasue so many games come down to the last turn - even the last die roll. It's just so fun. In reality, warfare and killing is not fun, although it's fascinating.

[@REMMc-jx7vc]

I think we all share the same hobby with different medium. ASL is nothing compared to a combat mission large scale operation IMHO. Played both. Board games are so limited in so many areas......both tactical and operational. There is only so much you can do with dice, paper and combat result table. If you dislike the 3D models and prefer the cardboard pieces fine. Try something like Garys Grigsby's War in the East, or War in the Pacific. Detailed and highly acclaimed wargames. All the best.

[@horrido666]

Oh no - it's not that I like card board and dislike computer games. I've played Combat Mission extensively, and have played pretty much all computer wargames out there. I would VASTLY prefer a computerized version of a wargame. They just don't do it right. With Combat Mission, you never get the tension a board wargame will give you. CM is more of an ebb and tide thing. When things go wrong, you know it early (usually), and when they go right, it's a cake walk. Sometimes you can get that balance-tension, but it's the exception rather than the rule. With a well done 'game', the balance is much more finely tuned. As a frame of reference, I've got thousands of hours into ASL, and at least a couple hundred into CM (but that was when it initially came out). I've played a few of the CM expansions, but got bored with them. I've been playing ASL for 30 years. Is there ANY computer game that you play that long. The only thing that comes close on the computer gaming side is shooters. Also, with all due respect, the realism you see in CM is all an illusion. Board wargames are about as realistic as it gets, but even those only get you to 2 on a scale of 1 to 10. Try Fields of Fire. It's probably as realistic as it gets from a command and control perspective.