However, we can immediately notice that the subtitle of the game has nothing to do with the sea. By retaining the expression "red dragon", the developers have indeed preferred to emphasize the other novelty of the moment: the arrival of playable Asian forces. Japan, China, North Korea and South Korea enter the dance, accompanied for the occasion by the army corps of Australia and New Zealand, better known by the acronym ANZAC. But it is indeed on Asia that the single player mode is particularly focused. It opens with four separate campaigns, all based on fictional scenarios. The first takes place in 1987 and sees North Korea and South Korea compete. The second goes back to 1979 and opposes China and the USSR. The third took place in 1984, when China and the United Kingdom disputed the ownership of Hong Kong. Finally, it is once again the year 1984 which is chosen for the fourth campaign, which notably features Japan and the USSR. Particular care has been taken in the staging, which offers us cinematic scenes that are both stylized and based on archive footage. If the form is commendable, the substance also progresses compared to the previous episode. We find the general principle of a campaign that mixes turn-based strategic phases and real-time battles, but everything has a better rhythm and seems much better controlled. However, we will not cry genius, because real problems remain. Like its predecessors, Wargame: Red Dragon indeed offers artificial intelligence with sometimes approximate behavior. In addition, the automatic combat resolution option gives sometimes surprising results, and rarely in favor of the player. If they remain quite classic and usual in RTS of this type, these defects confirm all the same once again that the Wargame franchise is much more appreciated in multiplayer than in solo, in spite of the various efforts and proofs of good will of from the developers.
sea dragon
But back to our sheep, or more exactly to our boats. These come to enrich the tactical possibilities which were already very high. They can be broadly classified into three main categories. Powerfully armed, frigates and other destroyers can capture sea areas but only have access to deep water areas. Lighter, corvettes can navigate in shallow waters, and therefore approach the coast for rapid defense or attack operations. Finally, the modest dimensions of the river launches allow them to pass under bridges and go up rivers in order to support the action on the ground. The presence of bodies of water brings greater variety to the maps of the game, which are also larger and more numerous than ever. The delusions of grandeur also reached the number of units, which increased considerably due to the concomitant arrival of ships and Asian nations. You already had trouble finding your way among the 800 units of Wargame: AirLand Battle? Well, know that you will now have to choose from nearly 1500! Knowing that each of them has many characteristics (firing rate, precision, range, optics, discretion, autonomy, and many more...), the "hardcore gamer" orientation of the game no longer matters. doubt. What definitely scare novices, and even overwhelm the most seasoned players a little too much. Fortunately, the creation of unit decks is made easier by new sorting and search tools. A few clicks are enough to select units by alliances, nations, categories, roles, eras and themes, while the dynamic search field updates the list of results as you type. We needed that to find it! If we appreciate the small improvements of this type as well as the big novelties of this episode (Asian campaigns and naval units), we must still admit that the series is struggling to renew itself. Much like AirLand Battle in its day, Red Dragon is more reminiscent of an expansion than a brand new brand new game. After three episodes, the soufflé begins to fall.
