BIRTH OF AMERICA: First Impressions...

It took almost a week for me to post this. Why? Because every time I'd
sit down to write, I'd need to look at or verify some aspect of the
game, and every time I started the software ... well, those Frenchmen
are *still* holding Fort Carillon!

This game has got the "gimme," big time. As in "Gimme Another Game,
it's only 2:47 AM!"

I'm predisposed to like this game, because I'm a huge fan of the topic.
I live right in the heart of the game map, and have read every single
book about the period and the people. But that doesn't make me as much
a potential fanboy as you'd think, because it also means I'm potentially
*very* critical of practical aspects of gameplay or research that might
fall flat.

Fortunately, I haven't found any.

System requirements are fairly steep, though not excessive. This is a
game that shoe-horns a *lot* of information into the user-interface and
map, and it really rewards a system with decent graphics. I've tried it
on my laptop (1.5GhZ Pentium-M, 1GB RAM, lousy graphics card) and found
it a little clunky. On my wife's PC (2.5GHZ P4, 512MB RAM, ATI 7500
graphics), it works just fine. On my gaming machine (4GHZ P4, 4GB RAM,
SLI graphics array), it just flies. My suspicion is that if your
graphics card is up to handing other graphic-intensive games, you'll be
just fine. The only issues I had were with my laptop, and that machine
isn't exactly a joy to use with other graphical games (or Photoshop...).

The aforementioned interface is a bit busy, but it has a lot of
information - in considerable detail - to provide the player. There's
nothing annoying about the presentation, and nothing about the UI gets
in the way of the simple but effective gameplay elements.

Installation is quick and effortless. Copy protection is a straight
serial number. Install the game, insert your code, and you're in
business.

First, the practical details. The scale is operational/strategic, with
the map representing the entire American colonies area circa 1740-1815-
ish. There are no hexes, so movement is controlled by irregularly-
shaped areas that closely correspond to historical geographical
realities. Regions are "grayed-out" in specific scenarios to limit the
AO.

The map changes continually as seasons and weather impact the situation
on the ground, and the computer holds a great deal of swiftly-altered
data on each individual region. Unlike some games, the weather isn't
just pretty window-dressing, and woe to the overly-aggressive campaigner
who doesn't have his regiments in winter quarters come January.

Overall, the map is a joy to use and look at. It recalls all the best
features of hand-painted boardgame maps, flavored with period details
and nice touches - but the attractive system hides a great wealth of
rich detail that's crucial to good gameplay.

The basic combat units are regimental in size, with losses/replacements
taken by percentages of the companies that comprise each counter. Other
units include Leaders, Artillery, Supply Trains, Warships, and
Transports. Within each unit type, there's a terrific variety of
subtypes. Militia, Indians, Regulars, Irregulars - all the basic pieces
are here.

Like the map, the units display a wealth of research and historical
flavor. It's not just an "18 Combat Factor Red Counter" you've moving
towards Fort Stanwix with, it's "Butler's Rangers." Here again, the
computer maintains a fluid "state" of the combat readiness of each
regimental unit: supply, combat, ammunition, strength, and a variety of
traits based on type.

Leaders are likewise rated for multiple factors: command ability,
movement, seniority, and "special abilities" that can prove the
difference between success or failure. Set up to ambush Sullivan's Army
with several Indian tribes and you'll probably fail (with heavy losses
and a humiliating retreat); put Thayandanegea (Brant) in charge of the
affair, and it might be Braddock's debacle all over again. There are
dozens and dozens of these abilities, covering just about every
practical aspect of leadership.

This research and attention to detail, as in the map, isn't just for
show. It means the difference between eking out a dubious "victory" via
VPs ... or a stunning strategic upset. To play well, you need to
understand the strengths and weaknesses of each of the various units and
unit types. This is not a game where you can just shovel counters
willy-nilly at the enemy.

The system is turn-based WEGO, with both sides planning their moves and
then watching them take place during the execution phase. A turn is 30
days long. Movement is simple click 'n drag; click on a regiment or
army and drag it to the destination. A path will appear with the number
of days necessary to enter each region passed through. To cancel a
move, click "delete" until the path is gone. Simple and effective.

Combat is an abstract matter that takes place when units occupy the same
region and are in a posture that allows combat. As this is an
operational/strategic game you're not in tactical control of the
battles, any more than General Amherst in New York could direct the
tactics outside Albany. To initiate combat, move your unit(s) into a
region where the enemy is, and set their posture to "assault,"
"attack," "defense," or "passive." If you set "passive," though, you'll
probably get wiped out unless the enemy is similarly averse to combat.

There are a dozen scenarios, ranging from tiny affairs of only a few
turns and only a few units to entire wars encompassing the whole region.
You've got the French & Indian War and the American Revolution to work
with. I haven't found a scenario editor, but since it took me three
days to find the excellent OOB screen, I'm not 100% sure there isn't one
lurking out there.

The gameplay in the scenarios is oriented more towards operational
aspects than strategic. You're not, for instance, in charge of
economics or recruiting (although control of regions affects supply,
logistics, and replacements), nor are you able to make grand strategic
decisions; that big fleet with the massed army arrives when London says
it does, not when you need it.

Gameplay in BIRTH OF AMERICA takes a little getting used to,
particularly if your experience is primarily with 20th century warfare.
First off, there's no "front line." Regions are controlled by the last
guy to have a bunch of men with guns standing around in it - and you
don't even *remotely* have enough units to provide even an insane
delusion of security. The frontier and wilderness areas are almost like
an ocean, with armies able to move past each other and around each other
with great ease. It's possible - though not likely - to find Amherst
marching his army down Rue Ste. Catherine in Montreal at the same time
Montcalm crosses the Hudson into New York City. Oops.

The fog-of-war elements in this game are crucial to enjoying it, and
really bring out the difficulties involved in this kind of blindsiding
warfare. Indians are a tremendous asset, as they excel at Seeing
Without Being Seen; a bunch of Indian tribes can cause all sorts of
havoc along the frontier, but their best use is to spot enemy troops and
provide critical intelligence about enemy operations and movements.

Oh, and ambush them. Don't forget that.

The AI seems competent and capable. You can set it for "difficulty" (AI
gets more or less men and other advantages) and "aggressiveness"
(passive, normal, reckless) and "give AI more time". I've been playing
on "Hard" difficulty, "Normal" aggressiveness, and "Give More Time."

The AI seems to "understand" what the objectives are, and enjoys that
sort of mathematical advantage AIs have at ruthlessly grabbing every
opportunity a player leaves unguarded. On "Normal" aggressiveness, the
AI seems to move around pretty well and take excellent advantage of my
many mistakes.

Overall, I'm having a great time playing the AI. The game is
interesting and absorbing, and the AI plays with enough "skill" that I
can forget everything but the situation and strategy. Thus far, I
haven't seen the AI do anything stupid. In sharp contrast, I'm
frequently doing stupid things.

I haven't tried the PBEM system. There doesn't seem to be a network
play option.

So. Is it fun?

I'm having a blast playing BIRTH OF AMERICA. If this were a $60 game,
I'd calculate that it was an excellent value. At $35, it almost falls
into the "Only Idiots Won't Own This Game."

The game is amazingly simple to get into. Open a scenario, check over
the objectives, eye the map carefully, check out your OOB and locate
your forces, and start trying to figure out how the hell you're going to
hold onto the stuff you've got *and* grab hold of the stuff you need to
get. Except in rare cases, you'll have *painfully* few units to work
with, and it can be a real nail-biting experience to juggle all the
different missions with the available men. And when the situation
*does* afford you a big, fat army with lots of havoc-making potential,
it's generally kinda late in the scenario, and you have to get busy with
it instantly.

Once you get going, though, you'll find that it's not so easy *to play
well*. Campaign season can be heartbreakingly short. Some scenarios
are even shorter. Powerful units can wither away to nothing with
alarming speed if misused; that big army you sent west to wipe out
aaaall those Indian villages had better not try to assault everything in
sight during the winter.

Victory is awarded by controlling "objectives" or "strategic towns" as
well as accumulating victory points by killing enemy troops or
massacring settlers. But pathways to victory seem always obstructed by
too few men and too many things to do with them.

Overall, I think this game is excellent, but no thumbnail review would
be complete without a harsh, aggressive, fiendishly-hypercritical
savaging of the hundreds of areas where this game falls laughably short.
Here is the all-encompassing, complete, exhaustive list:

(1) The manual is kinda thin. Only 30 pages. Could be better.

That's it. I don't have a single other complaint. The game is robust,
fun, and appears to capture with amazing fidelity the flavor of the
topic.

And now, without further ado, it's time for some more BIRTH OF AMERICA.
The weather gods have visited a freezing day with an actual *snowstorm*
outside, so there's simply no excuse for not sitting here in my den,
sipping coffee (and later, a more spirited libation...), and sending
hordes of Tories and Indians into a frenzy of slaughter all over the
frontier.



--
Giftzwerg
***
"Let's see. What are Muslims raging, seething, and murdering people
about today? Ah. Yes. Cartoon drawings. Islam means peace, eh?"
- Giftzwerg

Excellent, informative review. The play hints are first rate. This
game deserves every accolade it gets. I have rarely had a more
enjoyable experience playing any wargame, board or computer, and I have
been playing them for 35 years. I have waited a very long time for a
PC game to rival the historicity and level of play that a board wargame
can attain. This goal has finally been achieved by Birth of America.
I can't wait for this operational game engine to be applied to other
conflicts: the campaigns of Marlborough, Frederick the Great, even
Napoleon! At last, at long last, a game engine exists that is up to
the challenge!