Thank you to the developer and publisher at MS GAMES for providing a fresh WW2 FPS adventure for me to enjoy again.

My Steam rating: Negative

As I watched the reveal trailer for CoD WW2 in 2016 I simply rolled my eyes as it was going to be another American campaign. I have been saying forever, why dont devs explore soldiers from Japan, Russia, England, heck even a Germany POV. Well, finally someone heard my cries as MS Games gives us the story of Poland and the heroes who defended the country as it was being invaded by Germany at the start of the war in 1939. I just wish it was better.

The story for Land of War starts as you assume the role of Pvt Kowalski and his squad as they make their way to Morka, site of one of the first fights of WW2. If this game is anything, it's a constant history lesson, adrenaline and well, other things we will discuss later. As soon as combat begins you will be bombarded from all angles and be barked at to complete tasks during the fights. When given an order a small mark will appear, sort of a trigger for the game to begin the next phase, it is imperative you hit these marks. During this opening you will learn to use a med kit, which you can also request from medics, use standard rifles, mounted weapons and grenades. This will be pretty much the crutch of the gameplay as you go through the 4-10 hr campaign, depending on the difficulty you choose and the luck you possess.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2923611414


Each chapter begins with a newsreel with photos and explaining the mission at hand. While I was excited to go down this part of history we never have gotten before in a game, we still got the super soldier who can do it all. You will be able to use any gun, fly planes, drive tanks, sniper expert, and sniff out assassins and spies. I guess I was hoping to follow more of that one soldier's Audie Murphy story than of the normal video game hero. The missions themselves are fine but veterans of these games have done them all before and much better.

The issues with Land of War are long and it begins at the start with voice acting. I really was disappointed in the VA BUT when I changed it over to Polish with English subtitles(as I do with certain games) it made the experience so much better in every way. The writing and acting is still weak, but it made the experience much more tolerable.

Other issues include the following:
Poor optimization- probably avg around 50 FPS for the entire game
AI will sometimes just stand or hunker down and do nothing. BUT there will be occasions when ghost snipers will find your back.
Your AI ally however, will stand and fight but never hit anything and simply gets in the way.
A couple of late missions I had to restart because the mission would be bugged and not continue
Difficulty is all over the place
You cant holster weapons or turn off any icons in the game which for myself is infuriating

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2923610401

I can live with all that, no problem, but my #1 issue is the checkpoint system. There are a couple of missions that are just horrible as in most cases will return to the start of the mission. So if there is dialogue or a cutscene you will have to go through it all again.

I really want to give the game a recommendation, but just cant. It is way too janky for even a person who doesn't mind a little jank…and jerk, if you know what I mean. What maybe the worst crime of all is they make you pay for a Thompson MG and another weapon which are needed to get a few achievements.

Positives

Finally a WW2 story that most haven't heard before
Good level design and some missions
Polish VA and sound is not bad
Old school WW2 action is fun at times

Negatives

Optimization
A little dated in design
Checkpoints
Be warned some missions will make you reach defcon 1
Simple options in the main menu excluded
Major WW2 weapons are behind a paywall
Jank

System
AMD MSI 6700XT
Ryzen 3600
16GB Memory
3440x1440

Thank you to the developer and publisher at MS GAMES for providing a fresh WW2 FPS adventure for me to enjoy again. My Steam rating: Negative As I watched the reveal trailer for CoD WW2 in 2016 I simply rolled my eyes as it was going to be another American campaign. I have been saying forever, why dont devs explore soldiers from Japan, Russia, England, heck even a Germany POV. Well, finally someone heard my cries as MS Games gives us the story of Poland and the heroes who defended the country as it was being invaded by Germany at the start of the war in 1939. I just wish it was better. The story for Land of War starts as you assume the role of Pvt Kowalski and his squad as they make their way to Morka, site of one of the first fights of WW2. If this game is anything, it's a constant history lesson, adrenaline and well, other things we will discuss later. As soon as combat begins you will be bombarded from all angles and be barked at to complete tasks during the fights. When given an order a small mark will appear, sort of a trigger for the game to begin the next phase, it is imperative you hit these marks. During this opening you will learn to use a med kit, which you can also request from medics, use standard rifles, mounted weapons and grenades. This will be pretty much the crutch of the gameplay as you go through the 4-10 hr campaign, depending on the difficulty you choose and the luck you possess. https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2923611414 Each chapter begins with a newsreel with photos and explaining the mission at hand. While I was excited to go down this part of history we never have gotten before in a game, we still got the super soldier who can do it all. You will be able to use any gun, fly planes, drive tanks, sniper expert, and sniff out assassins and spies. I guess I was hoping to follow more of that one soldier's Audie Murphy story than of the normal video game hero. The missions themselves are fine but veterans of these games have done them all before and much better. The issues with Land of War are long and it begins at the start with voice acting. I really was disappointed in the VA BUT when I changed it over to Polish with English subtitles(as I do with certain games) it made the experience so much better in every way. The writing and acting is still weak, but it made the experience much more tolerable. Other issues include the following: Poor optimization- probably avg around 50 FPS for the entire game AI will sometimes just stand or hunker down and do nothing. BUT there will be occasions when ghost snipers will find your back. Your AI ally however, will stand and fight but never hit anything and simply gets in the way. A couple of late missions I had to restart because the mission would be bugged and not continue Difficulty is all over the place You cant holster weapons or turn off any icons in the game which for myself is infuriating https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2923610401 I can live with all that, no problem, but my #1 issue is the checkpoint system. There are a couple of missions that are just horrible as in most cases will return to the start of the mission. So if there is dialogue or a cutscene you will have to go through it all again. I really want to give the game a recommendation, but just cant. It is way too janky for even a person who doesn't mind a little jank…and jerk, if you know what I mean. What maybe the worst crime of all is they make you pay for a Thompson MG and another weapon which are needed to get a few achievements. Positives Finally a WW2 story that most haven't heard before Good level design and some missions Polish VA and sound is not bad Old school WW2 action is fun at times Negatives Optimization A little dated in design Checkpoints Be warned some missions will make you reach defcon 1 Simple options in the main menu excluded Major WW2 weapons are behind a paywall Jank System AMD MSI 6700XT Ryzen 3600 16GB Memory 3440x1440