Finally, a WWII first-person shooter that ask the hard questions, like: “What, exactly, is the normalized value of eight M1 Garand rounds and a hand grenade?”, “How do I balance my esprit-de-corps against the operational cost of my grease gun?”, and “Can myself and a friend, riding a bicycle, outpace a 1940’s Ford truck?”

The answers to two out of three of these questions are addressed by a clever twist on a tried-and-true free-to-play mechanic known as “credits”. The answer to the other question is simply, “Yes”.

Each round players are awarded credits according to their performance relative to everyone else on the server. Each round credits are deducted a specific amount for every bullet you fired, every grenade you threw, and for “maintenance” of the equipment that you brought into the match. These are the “Heroes” in “Generals and Heroes”, apparently burdened with the cost of supplying and maintaining their patriotism-waging equipment.

I can only surmise that this must have something to do with the overarching concept that some general, somewhere, has to sign off on requisition forms to get bullets, grenades, and the WWII equivalent of hot pockets into the hands of soldiers every time they want to put boots on the ground. This mechanic is what puts the “Generals” into the “Heroes and Generals” of this game. Not really sure how that part works because I like to emphasize the “Free” in “Free to Play”, and putting on a General hat seems to involve either grinding away at this game for a very long time or handing over real life currency.

If you have ever wanted to a play a game where pulling the trigger was preceded by a momentary pause to consider the cost of taking a shot, or enjoy tallying the expenditures of a military campaign down to the level of individual bullets, this is the game for you.

It is otherwise a pretty straightforward WWII first-person-shooter.