Gamer reviews for Battle Fleet 2

Battle Fleet 2

It is fair to say that game studio Capital J Media knew precisely what it was doing when it put together the direct sequel to Battle Fleet - which is the recreation of the naval war in the Pacific as a strategic and tactical game on a grand scale - and that is not mere superlative!

While it was envisioned and created with an emphasis upon multi-player play, Battle Fleet 2 includes a comprehensive single-player campaign.

The game is listed on the iOS App Store and iTunes Marketplace as Battle Fleet 2: WW2 in the Pacific, and is priced at $4.99 with no in-app purchases necessary or required, and no advertising either. It is a case of WYSIWYG!

Game play is also pretty much a case of what you see is what you get - and what you get is the Pacific Naval Theater in late World War II, depicting a very accurate drawing of the lines.

Game play is divided between two primary modes: multi-player and single-player campaign. The multi-player side is generally considered to be the best game mode, as it offers a level of challenges only obtainable when two human opponents face off against each other.

But mobile gaming being the style of gaming that it is, it should not surprise to learn that the single-player campaign mode is far away the most popular, as it allows the gamer to play - at their own pace - through a historically challenging scenario whose outcome is by no means a foregone conclusion!

The game itself is divided into several distinct elements: there is a Risk-type strategically focused game in which the different territories and zones are the prize, then there is the naval combat - big ship-to-ship actions whose outcome often can be determined by which side has aircraft carriers present in their task force and battle groups.

Prestige Points are obtained in a combination of territories held and battles won - and it is those points that dictate how many and how large the new ships you can build to increase the potency of your navy and the security of your holdings.

Combat in the game is not the sort of adrenaline-hyped personal action one finds in the typical FPS or action-adventure title - instead it takes the form of a God's Eye View of the battle scene, with each of the ships as well as shore facilities (where that applies) easily spotted.

Turn-based combat ensues in which you not only need to pick your targets, you also need to maneuver your ships, target your guns for range and direction, and send in your air attacks, often as the pointy-end of the stick while trying to avoid taking crippling damage from the enemy.

One thing that the PRs were right about - there is an element of the geek to this. Because in the end what we are really talking about is who is better at the math of sending large explosive shells to a specific target!

The secret to game play success in BF2 is found in understanding the strengths and the weaknesses of each specific unit type, and an ability to act decisively.

The graphical world of Battle Fleet 2 is a mixture of established traditional styles of the map-based game world, a simple two-dimensional depiction of the fleets and individual ships, and a rather limited animation style that is pleasing but pretty average.

That is not really a bad thing - graphically it gets the job done - but as it is not the sort of game that needs or relies upon cutting-edge graphics and action so it's all good.

Comparatively speaking while the graphics don't impress much, the sound work for the game is itself rather impressive in a subtle way. There is a soundtrack that is clearly a well-thought-out attempt at setting the mood, and it does this well.

The special effects in the form of different sized naval guns, machine-guns, and the varity of planes and ship sounds nicely frame game play as it is happening, and the subdued bit perfectly applied background sounds of ocean and tide, war machines and combat, all combine to make for a very pleasant game play experience.

It is, in short, precisely what it needs to be. Now, considering that this is, after all, a mobile app game, that is more of an accomplishment than might be at first obvious.

While graphics and the graphical world are always a priority in the creation of games for all platforms, sound is not. In fact a lot of mobile app/games end up getting short-changed in that department.

That being so, seeing the complete package in BF2 is both reassuring and cause for happiness. After all if you are a fan of map-based RTS play, you already have a good idea of just how bad it can be - so the reality here, of a well-planned, well thought-out and well-executed game? The answer to that we leave as an exercise for the reader!

In the final analysis the cost of Battle Fleet 2 - which is $4.99 US - is something of a bargain. Most gamers are used to their games on iOS and Android coming either with a free price ticket - the general expectation being that payment when payment is due tends to come in the form of either in-game purchases for resources, or more often, some form of advertisements for products we don't really want.