Cold War Conflicts

In something ofa confusing situation for literalists, real-time strategy game Cold War Conflicts sets out to recreate all the least cold bits of the Cold War. So you've got battles from The Korean War. the second Arab-Israeli conflict and the Yom Kippor offensive of 1973. No Vietnam though, which is a curious omission considering it remains not only the most eminent of all the Cold War conflicts, but also the trendiest place to set a game since the medieval dungeon.

The reason for this apparent oversight seemingly stems from the game engine, which has been taken wholesale from Sudden Strike 2, warts and all. A single glance at the screenshots should confirm this - Cold War Conflicts could easily be confused for an add-on pack to the two-year-old RTS. As a result we have the same pernickety mouse control system, with troops that are not only difficult to distinguish from one another, but at times impossible to make out against the battlefield. Throw a dense Asian jungle into the mix and you'd have a bloodbath on your hands.

Not that the game engine is any more suited to the battles it does try to portray. The flat pseudo-isometric terrain of Sudden Strike 2 is retained, which does little to promote Korea's infamous and bloody hilltop engagements. More obvious is that SS2's graphics were hardly cutting edge at the time and if anything, CWC's graphics are marginally worse. The new and updated units fit in well enough but the maps lack visible depth and cohesion. Worse still, some of the required visual effects, such as whirling 'copter blades, appear not to have been attempted at all.

For Fans Only

It may seem unfair to keep harping on about Sudden Strike 2, but essentially Cold War Conflicts is the same game with new units and voices.

That said, the formula is still an enjoyable one, offering battles that are as strategic as any outside of the Total War series. Instead of worrying about constructing bases and mining ore, the resource system is based on managing supplies, which puts the emphasis firmly back on military matters. Moreover, the ability to assault and control buildings compensates to some extent for the featureless terrain you're forced to war across.

The Cold War setting also offers a slight shift from massed infantry battles to more modem long-range rocket attacks and explosive helicopter assaults, and as such there's probably enough here to recommend the game to Sudden Strike fans. However, for most it will be a tall order to overlook the crude graphics, let alone forgive the punishing difficulty levels and total exclusion of Skirmish options. Sure, it's nice to be offered a new historical setting for our RTS pursuits, but it's hardly a good reason to choose this game over one of the many better options cramming the shelves.