Steel Division 2 (RTS)

So this forum doesn't get a whole lot of new threads, so why not one for another niche-game



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Steel Division 2 is a historically-accurate WW2 real-time strategy game set on the Eastern Front. Features 1:1-scale turn-based army management and real-time tactical battles with thousands of men at your order.
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I spent a few hundred hours with Steel Division 1, and some more hundreds with the Wargame-Series. If you like larger scale RTS-games that a bit more on the realistic side, without going overboard, then I suggest you give this one a go, maybe during the next Beta-Phase (you can pre-order on steam, play next beta and cancel anytime for a full refund prior to release).

Multiplayer is pretty brutal until you get the hang of everything, but there are a lot of changes from Steel Divison 1, so everyone is kinda starting over.



Some Videos:








Some beta-review:




Some gameplay:

I also didn't enjoy SD1 as much as Wargame: ALB or RD, mainly due to reduced scale and the far lower number of units (and many balance issues)

In SD2 with current normal income you have many, many more units in play. Currently there is no time-limit for the PvP-matches, so they go on until one side runs out of Victory-Points. I've had matches where I deployed 60 units of infantry and 40 tanks, plus a multitude of other units. Map choice is rather limited and you can always chose to play a 2vs2 on a 1vs1 map, for example, but the intention is for each player to have more room to worry about / control. Still the current income may be a bit too spammy actually.

I also quite like the addition of "control-points" in Conquest, so you can't just push forward at any point on the map to simply have your part of the frontline cover more ground, but you have to worry about actually getting control over those CPs.

Balance - well, as Brando said, it's tricky to get it right. We only saw a few Divisions in the Beta so far and there are some issues (e.g. infantry with flamers). But so far I enjoyed the interaction between Divisions. I had a blast fighting heavy IS-2 with the 20th Panzer that only has medium tanks.

There will be another Beta-Phase in a few weeks (I'll give an update here) and if in doubt you should go ahead and buy the standard-version on Steam to give it a shot. If it disappoints you can refund without any problems prior to release.

Some screenshot-gallery someone posted:



If you play the game seriously you will rarely zoom in that close to enjoy the view (maybe during a replay), but still, it's nice to know that you -could-

New BETA-Phase starting Thursday, May 2nd at 3PM CEST and will last until Monday at 3PM CEST.


6 Divisions:

• Gruppe Harteneck (New)
• 9th Guards Cavalry Division (New)
• 5. Panzerdivision
• 2nd Guards Tank Corps
• 20. Panzerdivision
• 29th Tank Corps

BETA-Manual:

Last Beta-Phase starts tomorrow.

Hehe yes, that's mostly true.

Though I suppose in singleplayer you could e.g. dial down the speed and have more time to enjoy the zoomed in scenery.

And of course when observing a multiplayer-game or watching replays you may take the time to look at a developing situation from up close. But as with most RTS-games it's better for you to have a good overview over what happening when playing seriously.