Dai Senryaku VII: Modern Military Tactics

I have an unusual confession to make . . . one that not only sparked my interest in historical war games of the Medal of Honor type but my love for strategy games as well.  While the other kids loved board games like Chutes and Ladders I was absorbed by the game of Risk.  While the other kids were into Candy Land, I was fascinated by Battleship.  Call me war obsessed, but it was just too cool getting into a campaign that required me to think up strategies for dominating the enemy front and outwitting my opponent by coming up with disabling surprise attacks.  For this short skirt-wearing Desert Fox of strategy war games it’s a pleasure to see a game like Dai Senryaku VII: Modern Military Tactics, a game that looks to be really promising.  Is it the game us strategy war gamers have been waiting for, though?  Oh yeah.

Modern Military tactics will bring to mind classic strategy boards games like Risk but offer a modern twist.  Through a series of uniquely designed battle scenarios and massive maps with a bird’s eye view of the action it is up to you to come up with your own strategy and implement it out on the field.  The game offers two main modes of playing: Mission (the game’s main mode) and Free Play (filled with a very healthy amount of scenarios).  There’s even a Map Editor that lets gamers design their own map and objectives to try out against the computer or a friend.  Your first stop, however, will definitely be the Tutorial.

And we’re talking about a Tutorial that covers every single aspect of the game without skimping out on a single question you might have on your mind.  You’ll be sitting down a long time before you finally get the gist of the game’s action because this isn’t the type of game you can simply pick up and start playing.  I tried playing the game without going through the entire Tutorial and found myself completely baffled by the Pre-Battle screen.  Thankfully Mission mode gives you a quick exercise before you jump into the far more complex battle scenarios.  Mission mode puts you in the boots of the Commander of the Blue Army as you go up against the forces of the Red Army.  Through several different campaigns you’ll basically battle the Red Army for positions and that means you’ll attempt to capture their capitol cities.

The game is played on a 3D map you can zoom in and out of and you’ll be given a main production facility that allows gamers to produce your war machines such as tanks, aircraft carriers, armored transports and even winged fighters or helicopters.  Of course, you work with a budget so you can’t simply produce dozens of transports and supply trucks.  The next phase is movement of your ground, aerial or naval units but take in consideration that some enemy units can conceal their location and can attack at will.  You have the option to detect both the ground and air within a radius.  You can also stage surprise attacks of your own but mainly you’ll be the one on the receiving end of a surprise attack.

The map is composed of hexagons so your tanks and vehicles can only move within reasonable boundaries.  Still, the game gives you enough room to position your units anyway you see fit and this is perfect for veteran strategy gamers that love coming up with their own tactical maneuvers like closing perimeters around your main base.  Some scenarios will have you defending your production house or your main capital while others will have you attempting to capture enemy cities or stopping the production of a massive fleet.  Free Play offers some pretty interesting scenarios such as having you play out a scenario that has you defending US soil from attacking Japanese and Nazi German forces.  Another will have you advancing on Sumatra in an American and Indonesian war.

Here’s the thing, though.  Modern Military Tactics is a really hard game . . . one that won’t fail to have you annoy casual gamers and even some die-hard fans.  You’ll find the computer-controlled opponents always a step or two ahead of you and you’ll be doing more defending than attacking.  Battles have you choosing your attacker and the ammunition (cannon fire or machine gun fire or SAM missiles); all of which can make two or three vehicles disappear with a single strike.  It’s also a slow-paced game, something that might turn off some gamers.  Oh yeah, think of it as a game of chess moving slower than usual and with more devastating consequences for making the wrong decisions.  Yet for those who love a true challenge, this one will not fail to disappoint.

The game’s visuals will not blow you away nor will you find any graphical Xbox dazzle, it’s simply a game with an adequate-looking map with little animation and a smooth framerate.  The hexagonal map is boring and there are very little in terms of environmental details (no tress, etc.).  The battle animations are limited to a few rockets and gunfire hitting the enemy and vice versa. 

As for the game’s sound, you’ll only hear sound effects during attacks or whenever you capture an enemy city.  The sound effects are simply composed of excellent gunfire or rocket fire and the aftermath (which is usually a series of unspectacular explosions).  There’s some music that plays throughout the game and its unusually cheery and out of place in a strategy war game.

Dai Senryaka VII: Modern Military Tactics doesn’t push the genre into all-new heights but it does offer a military strategy game that fans will surely appreciate.  It’s not a great-looking game and it’s not the type of game casual gamers can simply pick up and play (or want to sit through a really long tutorial), but its a strategic cat-and-mouse game worthy of the genre.  Buy this one if you’re a hardcore fan of the genre only or are interested in playing a game that will truly challenge. 

 Gameplay: 7.0
Even with a tutorial that takes you step-by-step through every single aspect of the game, it still manages to be frustratingly complex.  Still, there are plenty of maps and scenarios to sink your teeth into and you can always create your own.

Graphics: 6.5
It’s not the most visually gorgeous games but the maps aren’t too boring to look at and the gunfire look decent enough.

Sound: 6.5
There’s some music and it all seems out of place but that’s okay since the sound effects of machine gun fire and rockets are not bad at all.

Difficulty: Hard
It’s not easy producing your own military personal and then mobilizing them throughout the map to defend your city capital--especially since the computer-controlled opponent is always two steps in front of you.  You can’t really anticipate your opponent’s move that easily but if you know what you’re doing you can at least match their firepower.

Concept: 7.5
There’s enough battle scenarios here to keep you more than busy and if that wasn’t enough the game has also tossed in a Map Editor so you can design your own scenario.  This is a strategy gamers’ dream come true.

Multiplayer: 7.2
Playing chess against a computer might be fine and dandy but games like this are so much more fun playing against a friend.  You can play against a friend in the various battle scenarios available in Free Play mode so that’s great.  Unfortunately, there’s no Xbox Live multiplayer mode.  Wouldn’t it have been great to hear your opponent say “You sank my battleship!”?

Overall: 7.2
If its a well-conceived tactical strategy game that you crave then Dai Senryaka VII will definitely be right up your alley.  Sure it's a bit complex and it can get frustratingly hard at times but for those looking for a real challenge in this particular genre will find this one highly enjoyable.