Wargame Construction Set 2 is a rather interesting game. Set in World War I, just as the Tank was being introduced to the battlefield, Wargame Construction Set 2 is a fairly solid turn-based strategy game. The graphics are pretty good, the sound is good, the AI is top-notch for its day, and the units are pretty good.
There are quite a few countries available: the USA, UK, Soviet, Germany, and others depending on the scenario.
Unit movement is confusing, but manageable. You will lose a lot of units before you have the controls figured out, but once you do it's pretty easy to operate.
I found the manual to be surprisingly helpful in this area. This game follows the classic turn-based strategy format: first you move, then the AI moves, rinse and repeat. The AI in this game isn't as stupid as in other games, so watch out. I have found it will use classic military formations as well as adjust and re-form on the fly.
There are a lot of different scenarios representing both key battles and the developers' fancies. The game comes with a map creator and editor so if you get tired of the standard maps and scenarios, you can make your own. The editor is fairly easy to work with and uses a standard editing layout.
The graphics are a little rough, but
passable. The main issue is screen size. When the game is run in a window, the graphics are less harsh, but the text is tiny; when in full-screen, there are artifacts everwhere but you can at least read the text. You can tweak the graphics settings with DOSBox to find a good balance. The animation is a little clunky and robotic, but overall I'd say they're pretty good for 1994.
The sound quality is pretty good for its time. Just be sure you select the sound device that best matches your hardware from the setup. If the setup doesn't let you select one, then try a different settings. Don't rely on DOSBox to save you if you choose wrongly. Fortunately, you can always run the setup again.
The units available are very diverse. There are tanks, artillery, mortars, howitzers, machine gun emplacements, and infantry, to name but a few. The units match up with the countries, so you don't get the situation of Soviet equipment being used by the Allies. Each unit has a different sound, which is always nice.
I think this game will provide many hours of enjoyment for most people. The gameplay is superb, and more than makes up for the graphics. The units can be a bit frustrating sometimes, but overall the game is very good.
