Fun and smooth!
Despite the content of war and the scale of decimation and death that is the focal point of the game, it seems better equipped to kids/teenagers. I found no difficulty in quickly rising through the ranks to Colonel in two separate playthroughs. If dedicated, it could be done in a day.
The Grenadiers' limited range puts them as the weakest squadmate out of the possible army you can amass, and I found myself avoiding them if I had the luxury to do so. Riflemen, at the very least, could reach downrange and (after an upgrade) fulfill the role of Grenadier efficiently, especially when there's more than two of 'em.
LMG's (Light Machine Gunners) Were perfect fillers for the downrange barrage of fire. They were a preferable addition to the team just to fill out the ranks a little more thoroughly.
Once you unlock the Marksmen, the squad can make short work of the entire enemy force. Jeeps don't last long, and its the extra oomf needed to take out high value targets that you can't immediately address by swiveling the squad into position. Once you unlock the AA specialists, and you have a few of them lobbing Bazookas all around while Marksmen are picking people off left and right, you barely have to do anything.
You just need to equip your Commander with a Rocket Launcher, hook up the Napalm Wave as the skill, and you'll quickly close the distance between yourself and Colonel, raking in full achievements for the game in short time when you periodically dump your coins into fully upgrading everything.
The difficulty curve never caught up to the amount of punishment a high ranked, high-capped squad could dish out...it just got easier and easier. In Endless, I noticed that when Heroic Dash was activated, there would be a more intense wave of enemies than usual; a thick horde of impenetrable foes FLOODING the screen with ordinance....yet, when the Heroic Dash depleted, that intensity waned into the usual pattern of things... The Napalm Wave is the more efficient skill, but by equipping it, or even the Air Strike, you seem to be corralled into selecting "Normal" difficulty...where the "Hard" is hidden in a brief window of opportunity in the Dash skill. I feel like there should be more distinction between difficulty curves, or something more deliberate...an intentional, "So you're maxed out, huh? Wanna try HELL mode!?"
...Granted, I've yet to see if this is something that's still waiting to be locked. In the Tactics Menu, it says I've done 30 of 100 different missions, which are more like achievement parameters like "Launch Airstrike 10 times" or "Kill 100 enemies using missiles" ...but there's a missed opportunity in integrating these little challenges into the trophy/achievement system here in NG. Once I reached 100% completion, I felt compelled to write my review on the game.
...BUT! Its definitely the sign of a fun game that I decided to keep on playing after 100%ing it. The sound effects are great, but the music is basic, and the graphics are just sufficient. The controls are fine. You go down one corridor that phases in between three different landscapes, and its the epitome of linear gameplay, but for some reason, its still quite fun. Bunkers are a pain in the ass that warrant a bit of tension, especially when squadmates are low on health. Though there seems to be an abundance of health kits in regular play, its still a kinda satisfying march.
So what if the enemy is purple uniformed, driving pink jeeps? I like to pretend in my imagination how hardcore the commander is, or if the Riflemen that spawned with him have a name or a history with the Commander, and what kind of interactions happen with the squad if one of 'em dies amidst the carnage. Oh the drama...OH THE HORROR. It's all fun. :D
+ For keeping it simple to control
+ For keeping it simple to understand
+ For making a functional, fun game with incentive to replay value
In the future, try not to make it so easy to 100% complete...don't do anything CHEAP to stretch out the play time, but definitely consider including more depth. Options, and flexibility for thought and adaption.
Great job! Voted 5