Dawn of War 2

SirYawnalot · 22nd Jan 2009, 05:38 AM

So the beta just came out for SoulStorm owners - has anyone here tried it yet?

flo0tz · 22nd Jan 2009, 06:25 AM

I've been playing it, it's pretty fun. It probably doesn't have as much "depth" as DoW (rts-wise) but it seems like it'd be truer to the tabletop game.

Fuzzle · 22nd Jan 2009, 06:42 AM

yeah I've been keeping tabs on it for a while so it was instant download for me.

I wouldn't say it has less depth, I'd be more inclined to call it minimalistic. The lack of base building puts the focus entirely on micro and map control.

I love how any unit can pwn another if you just use it right. I've killed a few commanders with just one squad of scouts a few times.

-Jes- · 22nd Jan 2009, 07:46 AM

Still DL'ing here..

SirYawnalot · 22nd Jan 2009, 07:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flo0tz

I've been playing it, it's pretty fun. It probably doesn't have as much "depth" as DoW (rts-wise) but it seems like it'd be truer to the tabletop game.

That's a pretty good assessment actually.

I played a few botmatches last night and I'm not really too enthused thus far. I'm finding the population cap too severe, I want more troops on the field!
I think the thing is that they're trying to encourage lots of mobility - having a small force that you keep shipping around the map to engage at conflicted points rather than keeping in garrisons at the various frontiers. But I'm a naturally defensive player and I like keeping contingents of troops at each frontier strategic point - the current model doesn't allow for that (unless there's just one chokepoint I suppose).

But then again, I was never that keen on Dawn of War in its vanilla form, I always modded it to increase squad caps and generally make the game more defensive. There's been some rumblings from Relic that they won't be releasing modtools this time around, so I hope the community comes up with a solution (happily they usually do).

Matfei · 22nd Jan 2009, 08:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fuzzle

I love how any unit can pwn another if you just use it right. I've killed a few commanders with just one squad of scouts a few times.

Which is entirely possible in the tabletop game, provided you get the opportunity.

Fuzzle · 22nd Jan 2009, 09:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SirYawnalot

I'm finding the population cap too severe, I want more troops on the field!

Yeah, that's the idea. You have like 3-4 squads that you micro and care for. It's evident that they want it to have a tactical flavor with the cover, upgrades, levels, and interdependencies like waagh buffs and synapses.
Some of the commanders can build defensive structures if you like digging in, but they still take a bit of unit cap.

If you like larger battles, you should go check out supreme commander which basically revolves around 'more the merrier' instead of unit abilities and micro. I feel DoW2 is about a polar opposite of supcom as you can get, which is a good thing. I'd rather have them cater to different audiences, instead of both trying to reach a middle ground.

SirYawnalot · 22nd Jan 2009, 09:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fuzzle

Yeah, that's the idea. You have like 3-4 squads that you micro and care for. It's evident that they want it to have a tactical flavor with the cover, upgrades, levels, and interdependencies like waagh buffs and synapses.
Some of the commanders can build defensive structures if you like digging in, but they still take a bit of unit cap.

If you like larger battles, you should go check out supreme commander which basically revolves around 'more the merrier' instead of unit abilities and micro. I feel DoW2 is about a polar opposite of supcom as you can get, which is a good thing. I'd rather have them cater to different audiences, instead of both trying to reach a middle ground.

Fair enough. Like I said, I understand what they're doing, it's just not my preferred style. But I'll probably mod the hell out of it just like I did DoW1.
As for SupCom, that's a bit too big for me, and doesn't have the Warhammer 40k atmosphere and style that I find so compelling in DoW.

*Sir_Brizz* · 22nd Jan 2009, 10:06 AM

I played it and it's really fun. I've never played DoW before though I own it (o_O), so every gameplay mechanic was completely confusing to me at first, but once I got the hang of it I enjoyed it more.

MonsOlympus · 22nd Jan 2009, 11:22 AM

Yeah I know where SirYawnalot is coming from, I really enjoyed the halfscale mod for DoW and would like to see similar return in the future. I can certainly appreciate the more micro style with the rpg elements, I really liked the commander upgrades/deep strikes etc in previous games but I do like to be able to have battles of different scales. Like infantry with only acouple of vehicles for instance or a ****load of both, or even just infantry only.

While the TT accuracy is a noble goal I dont think it should be the only one, theres certainly plenty of 40k to go around

FuLLBLeeD · 22nd Jan 2009, 04:19 PM

It's awesome! I love the Tyranids!

FOR THE HIVE MIND!!!

Fuzzle · 22nd Jan 2009, 06:56 PM

It's getting more fun as I play it and start to get the hang of things. It's really satisfying to work with other players and hold our own portions of the map, while assisting eachother with powers unique to each player.

It feels really tactical once you get a couple people on voice chat.

KillStreak · 22nd Jan 2009, 06:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SirYawnalot

That's a pretty good assessment actually.

I played a few botmatches last night and I'm not really too enthused thus far. I'm finding the population cap too severe, I want more troops on the field!
I think the thing is that they're trying to encourage lots of mobility - having a small force that you keep shipping around the map to engage at conflicted points rather than keeping in garrisons at the various frontiers. But I'm a naturally defensive player and I like keeping contingents of troops at each frontier strategic point - the current model doesn't allow for that (unless there's just one chokepoint I suppose).

But then again, I was never that keen on Dawn of War in its vanilla form, I always modded it to increase squad caps and generally make the game more defensive. There's been some rumblings from Relic that they won't be releasing modtools this time around, so I hope the community comes up with a solution (happily they usually do).

sorry you cant turtle?

Kantham · 22nd Jan 2009, 07:31 PM

Relic seems to know what they're doing when we talk about Real Time strategy. I know this game has quite a lot of hype around it but unfortunately I wasn't really a fan of the first DoW. That means no Beta for me.

-Jes- · 22nd Jan 2009, 08:27 PM

I blame Kantham for Hayes and me not being able to join eachother's games.

Fuzzle · 23rd Jan 2009, 11:10 AM

Having played a bit more after they fixed stats, I earned myself rank 3 and an unlock. Pretty cool, while at the same time scary. I could see a TF2 situation coming up where people play to farm and not for fun.

KaiserWarrior · 23rd Jan 2009, 11:24 AM

Ugh, there's ranks and unlocks?

I never was a big fan of RTS games, though I did pick up the DoW collection when I saw the whole shebang for a reasonable price on Direct2Drive. It's kept my interest longer than other RTS's because of the more user-friendly nature of it, but I wouldn't really consider myself a fan. I was debating about DoW2, but hearing this unlocks thing really kills it for me.

BF2142 was ruined by that kind of system, where people farmed points instead of playing for the goal. Heck, Planetside was, too. And just about every other game I can recall that involves that kind of system.

Kantham · 23rd Jan 2009, 12:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KaiserWarrior

Ugh, there's ranks and unlocks?

Like almost every games nowadays.

Fuzzle · 23rd Jan 2009, 02:38 PM

Upon closer inspection, the unlocks are purely cosmetic. You basically have a type of character customization for all of your units, using the unlocks you've earned.

It should also be mentioned that you earn the ranks through winning, so there is no statpadding.

JaFO · 24th Jan 2009, 12:59 PM

There's always statpadding ... losers that do this always find a way because they focus on beating the mechanics and they will break as they will have superior resources.
// ---

Do the orcs get really large squads in DoW2 ?
Or are they (and the other races) limited to the same size/squad-limits as the Spacemarines ?

I do wonder if anyone will ever do an Epic variant of the WH40k-universe as a pc-game.
Think of it as SupCom with a WH40k-mod ...

22nd Jan 2009, 05:38 AM	#1
SirYawnalot Slapping myself in the face Join Date: Jan. 17th, 2004 Location: England Posts: 946	Dawn of War 2 So the beta just came out for SoulStorm owners - has anyone here tried it yet?

22nd Jan 2009, 06:42 AM	#3
Fuzzle spam noob Join Date: Jan. 29th, 2006 Location: Norway Posts: 1,784	yeah I've been keeping tabs on it for a while so it was instant download for me. I wouldn't say it has less depth, I'd be more inclined to call it minimalistic. The lack of base building puts the focus entirely on micro and map control. I love how any unit can pwn another if you just use it right. I've killed a few commanders with just one squad of scouts a few times. __________________ SPIWAWAWWO

22nd Jan 2009, 07:46 AM	#4
-Jes- Shreddin' Join Date: Jan. 17th, 2005 Location: DM-HyperBlast Posts: 2,666	Still DL'ing here.. __________________

22nd Jan 2009, 10:06 AM	#9
Sir_Brizz More Than Just Mad Skill Join Date: Feb. 3rd, 2000 Location: >:3 Posts: 25,709	I played it and it's really fun. I've never played DoW before though I own it (o_O), so every gameplay mechanic was completely confusing to me at first, but once I got the hang of it I enjoyed it more. __________________ 64 65 61 74 68 62 6f 6f 67 65 72 73 20 6d 6f 74 68 65 72 20 6f 66 20 63 6f 75 72 73 65 Liandri Archives - A veritable smorgasbord of information about the Unreal series If Titanic taught me anything, it's to never let go until you're a frozen corpse staring hopelessly into a barren horizon.

22nd Jan 2009, 06:56 PM	#12
Fuzzle spam noob Join Date: Jan. 29th, 2006 Location: Norway Posts: 1,784	It's getting more fun as I play it and start to get the hang of things. It's really satisfying to work with other players and hold our own portions of the map, while assisting eachother with powers unique to each player. It feels really tactical once you get a couple people on voice chat. __________________ SPIWAWAWWO

22nd Jan 2009, 06:25 AM	#2
flo0tz Registered User Join Date: May. 1st, 2004 Location: Brisbane, Australia Posts: 882	I've been playing it, it's pretty fun. It probably doesn't have as much "depth" as DoW (rts-wise) but it seems like it'd be truer to the tabletop game.

22nd Jan 2009, 11:22 AM	#10
MonsOlympus Registered User Join Date: May. 27th, 2004 Posts: 2,222	Yeah I know where SirYawnalot is coming from, I really enjoyed the halfscale mod for DoW and would like to see similar return in the future. I can certainly appreciate the more micro style with the rpg elements, I really liked the commander upgrades/deep strikes etc in previous games but I do like to be able to have battles of different scales. Like infantry with only acouple of vehicles for instance or a ****load of both, or even just infantry only. While the TT accuracy is a noble goal I dont think it should be the only one, theres certainly plenty of 40k to go around

22nd Jan 2009, 04:19 PM	#11
FuLLBLeeD fart Join Date: Jan. 23rd, 2008 Location: Kansas Posts: 964	It's awesome! I love the Tyranids! FOR THE HIVE MIND!!!

22nd Jan 2009, 07:31 PM	#14
Kantham Fool. Join Date: Sep. 17th, 2004 Posts: 18,041	Relic seems to know what they're doing when we talk about Real Time strategy. I know this game has quite a lot of hype around it but unfortunately I wasn't really a fan of the first DoW. That means no Beta for me. __________________

22nd Jan 2009, 08:27 PM	#15
-Jes- Shreddin' Join Date: Jan. 17th, 2005 Location: DM-HyperBlast Posts: 2,666	I blame Kantham for Hayes and me not being able to join eachother's games. __________________

23rd Jan 2009, 11:10 AM	#16
Fuzzle spam noob Join Date: Jan. 29th, 2006 Location: Norway Posts: 1,784	Having played a bit more after they fixed stats, I earned myself rank 3 and an unlock. Pretty cool, while at the same time scary. I could see a TF2 situation coming up where people play to farm and not for fun. __________________ SPIWAWAWWO

23rd Jan 2009, 11:24 AM	#17
KaiserWarrior Flyin' High Join Date: Aug. 5th, 2008 Posts: 800	Ugh, there's ranks and unlocks? I never was a big fan of RTS games, though I did pick up the DoW collection when I saw the whole shebang for a reasonable price on Direct2Drive. It's kept my interest longer than other RTS's because of the more user-friendly nature of it, but I wouldn't really consider myself a fan. I was debating about DoW2, but hearing this unlocks thing really kills it for me. BF2142 was ruined by that kind of system, where people farmed points instead of playing for the goal. Heck, Planetside was, too. And just about every other game I can recall that involves that kind of system.

23rd Jan 2009, 02:38 PM	#19
Fuzzle spam noob Join Date: Jan. 29th, 2006 Location: Norway Posts: 1,784	Upon closer inspection, the unlocks are purely cosmetic. You basically have a type of character customization for all of your units, using the unlocks you've earned. It should also be mentioned that you earn the ranks through winning, so there is no statpadding. __________________ SPIWAWAWWO

24th Jan 2009, 12:59 PM	#20
JaFO bugs are features too ... Join Date: Nov. 5th, 2000 Posts: 5,483	There's always statpadding ... losers that do this always find a way because they focus on beating the mechanics and they will break as they will have superior resources. // --- Do the orcs get really large squads in DoW2 ? Or are they (and the other races) limited to the same size/squad-limits as the Spacemarines ? I do wonder if anyone will ever do an Epic variant of the WH40k-universe as a pc-game. Think of it as SupCom with a WH40k-mod ...