Normandy '44 any good?

[CountryBoy]

Hi all, just started reading Beevor's 'D-Day: The Battle for Normandy" and I was thinking of buying Normandy '44 to play as I read the book. Is it any good as compared to the other PzC games? I generally prefer larger scenarios and I see the largest is 750 turns - is it actually playable? TIA.

[Fortynslow]

Other than trying to get off of Omaha, I love the 750 turn scenario and think its quite playable, if you are willing to devote a couple of years to one scenario. I don't feel like the number of units are beyond comprehension. Concerning Normandy 44 campaign scenarios in general, in my opinion there is a little bit of a disconnect between the ability of the allies to get off the beach, and their strength later in the game. If the settings are such that the allies can get off the beach in a historical manner, they then run roughshod over the Germans later in the game. If the settings are such that post-beach portion of the campaign feels more historical, then they can have a lot of trouble getting off the beaches. Many of the things that slowed the allies down in the course of the campaign, i.e. supplies, concerns about casualties, strategy debates etc, are not modeled well by TOC, and will not slow down an aggressive allied player. That being said, I think it's a lot of fun. FYI, I have not played any of the smaller scenarios, so I hesitate to comment on these.

[CountryBoy]

Thanks for the reply Fortynslow, is the 750 turn scenario playable against the AI (with you as the Allies of course)? I know that the AI is not great in most PzC games, but it seems to me that this might be one where the AI might cope being on the defensive.

[jonnymacbrown]

Hi all, just started reading Beevor's 'D-Day: The Battle for Normandy" and I was thinking of buying Normandy '44 to play as I read the book. Is it any good as compared to the other PzC games? I generally prefer larger scenarios and I see the largest is 750 turns - is it actually playable? TIA.

The short scenarios are good too!  jonny

[CountryBoy]

Thanks jonnymacbrown, I'm still not sure whether to pull the trigger, as I'll most likely be playing against the AI in the large campaign game and I don't know if it is worth it. A PBEM of 750 turns seems a little implausible!

[Paul]

Thanks jonnymacbrown, I'm still not sure whether to pull the trigger, as I'll most likely be playing against the AI in the large campaign game and I don't know if it is worth it. A PBEM of 750 turns seems a little implausible!

Normandy is my personal favourite amongst the WW2 titles. My Personal experiences of the campaign games against the AI is that they are unlikely to go that long. Even if they do it is well worth playing, even if you decide 750 turns is too long. Once the static warfare of Normandy sets in the turns are relatively quick for such a large number of units as many of them are not moving.

Paul

[phoenix]

Thanks jonnymacbrown, I'm still not sure whether to pull the trigger, as I'll most likely be playing against the AI in the large campaign game and I don't know if it is worth it. A PBEM of 750 turns seems a little implausible!

Normandy is my personal favourite amongst the WW2 titles. My Personal experiences of the campaign games against the AI is that they are unlikely to go that long. Even if they do it is well worth playing, even if you decide 750 turns is too long. Once the static warfare of Normandy sets in the turns are relatively quick for such a large number of units as many of them are not moving.

Paul

I was also thinking of buying Normandy. Why is it your favourite - because you like the battlefield, the history, or something about the title itself?

[Paul]

Thanks jonnymacbrown, I'm still not sure whether to pull the trigger, as I'll most likely be playing against the AI in the large campaign game and I don't know if it is worth it. A PBEM of 750 turns seems a little implausible!

Normandy is my personal favourite amongst the WW2 titles. My Personal experiences of the campaign games against the AI is that they are unlikely to go that long. Even if they do it is well worth playing, even if you decide 750 turns is too long. Once the static warfare of Normandy sets in the turns are relatively quick for such a large number of units as many of them are not moving.

Paul

I was also thinking of buying Normandy. Why is it your favourite - because you like the battlefield, the history, or something about the title itself?

Certainly the history of this campaign. An epic endeavour on any scale. Being English I have more of a connection to this than some of the equally epic Pacific assaults.
 I think the game does a very good job of representing both the assault phase and the grinding attrition of the whole campaign. From the the game play point of view you also get the airborne drops which adds a dimension to the game that appeals to me.

[76mm]

I would consider playing the large campaign hotseat against yourself; while I don't own Normandy, I've done this a few times with East Front titles and the grand campaigns are big enough, with enough units, that you (or at least I) can't really remember what you were doing with each unit on each side every turn. Not perfect, but better than playing against the AI IMHO. This probably wouldn't work with smaller scenarios...

[CountryBoy]

I would consider playing the large campaign hotseat against yourself; while I don't own Normandy, I've done this a few times with East Front titles and the grand campaigns are big enough, with enough units, that you (or at least I) can't really remember what you were doing with each unit on each side every turn. Not perfect, but better than playing against the AI IMHO. This probably wouldn't work with smaller scenarios...

I have read of a few people who have suggested that, but I haven't yet given it a go. I do prefer PBEM but perhaps this might be the approach for such a large scenario.