| |
Expansion:
World War II |
WiF
World in Flames |
Hearts of
Iron II |
| Map size |
640 x 320 hexes
(1 hex = 50 km)
(1 hex = 30 miles) |
360 x 195 hexes
(1 hex = 100 km)
(1 hex = 60 miles) |
2700 areas
(1 area = ±150 km)
(1 area = ±90 miles) |
Units /
Counters |
unlimited |
3600 |
unlimited |
| Game Turn Length |
10 game days (operational)
1 game month (strategic) |
2 game months |
1 game-hour (operational)
1 game-day(strategic) |
| Fog of War |
implemented: even player's
own combat strength
is distorted by perspective |
none |
implemented, but player
has full knowledge
of own strength. |
| Military Affairs |
realistic, detailed
and complex,
computer-assisted |
abstract, detailed
and complex |
abstract, detailed
and simple |
| Political Affairs |
realistic, detailed
and complex,
computer-assisted |
detailed and complex,
needs Days of Decision |
detailed and simple |
| Economic Affairs |
realistic, detailed
and complex,
computer-assisted |
crude |
realistic, crude
and simple |
| Research |
detailed, user can design
his own units and
military equipment |
none |
detailed and simple,
but unrealistic |
| Game Period |
1937-1947 |
1936-1946
with Days of Decision |
1936-1948 |
| Playable Countries |
8 (Britain, China,
France, Germany, Italy,
Japan, USSR, US) |
6 |
8 |
| Human Players |
1-infinite |
2-6 |
10 |
| Artificial Intelligence |
under development:
multi-layered |
under development:
details unknown |
challenging AI |
| Rule book |
online, over 150 pages
including encyclopedia |
booklet, over 100 pages |
booklet, 96 pages |
| Status of the Game |
under development
see news updates |
boardgame: available
computer game under development |
released in March 2005 |
| Price |
$60 USD which
includes subscription
of $45 a year |
Board game:
$80-$350 USD
Computer game: ? |
Computer game:
$39.99 USD |
| More information |
http://www.expansiongames.com |
http://www.a-d-g.com.au |
www.heartsofiron2.com |
The comparisons above give some clue as where to place
Expansion:World War II. It's the most detailed and realistic simulation
of a grand strategy game. Although World in Flames (WiF) is very detailed and
complex, it is more abstract than Expansion. For example: WiF and HOI have military
units which have combat factors, while Expansion uses exact numbers of soldiers
and military equipment instead.
This of course makes Expansion much more
complex than the already complex WiF. But, just as in HOI, a player may use
computer assistance to compensate for this complexity.
For example: a player may choose simply to raise and train another armoured
divison instead of assigning thousands of soldiers and hundreds of tanks to
form a unit.
