Deron

Why are there no objective flags in operations? That is my major problem with the ops, since it really limits the type of scenario you can design. It works perfectly in the battles, so why not use them in the operations as well (just create a fourth kind of operation: Capture or Secure). I also heartily agree with a need for more information in the operations: how big is the map, how much further do I have to go, what are the phase lines going to be if I stop here? I also really like the idea of being able to leave your units in the exact same spot they ended the previous battle, or of pulling them back to a resupply line. All new units have to come in at the new line. Excellent solution, and not a tough one at all to code, I would imagine, since they already allow for immobilized, isolated units.

Well, seeing as how my blasted copy of CM still hasn't arrived here in distant Massachusetts, I have been playing Shogun. Played all day with a friend as "advisor" and we had a total blast. Shogun is an amazing experience. The manual sucks, but if you look in the strat newsgroup you'll find tips from people who took the bait and bought the strategy guide. I am totally hooked on Shogun now, and I'm not as bummed as I was about the fact that I won't be getting CM until Monday (when I get into work to pick it up). If you don't have Shogun, give it a shot. It's $30 as EBX, and there is a $10 rebate from their website on top of that (www.ebworld.com). I *highly* recommend it.

I have to say that I really loved CC2. I played that grand Campaign through three times, over about 60 hours each. I couldn't wait for CC3 and was extremely disappointed. CC4 was more of the same, and worse. What I liked about the CC series was that it was real-time, but the battle developed slowly enough, and I had a small enough number of troops to command, that I never felt it was a click-fest. The infantry seemed capable of taking care of itself -- where I had to babysit was with the semi-braindead armor. I think with their growing emphasis on armor the weaknesses in their code began to really show. As a primarily infantry game, it was great. I had some of the most memorable moments in my (long) gaming career in Market Garden: a wounded sergeant single-handedly bayonet-charging and defeating a surprised German Scout unit in the woods just in view of Nijmagen, anabling me to barely capture the bridge before the sun went down; a cowering PIAT assistant hunkering down in a building with his leader dead and a Panther several meters away, finally getting up and taking his last shot, destroying the tank and stopping what had been turning into a major punch through to Arnhem; the lone .50 cal team in the farmhouse fending off swarms of German infantry, corpses littering the ground just meters from the window. I lament the decline of the CC series precisely because I loved it so much (despite its flaws) and saw the potential it had to become something even better. Unfortunately, it seems that the Atomic team have no interest in taking the series in that direction. I am really glad for CM, and I know I will love it to death, but I just can't bring myself to bash one of the very few RTS games that really hooked me and made me believe the genre had something valuable to offer. Having said that, I still think that if the data could be made more accurate, the lethality of weapons fire could be toned down to a more realistic (if less gee-whiz) level, and the tactical AI for the armor could be improved to the point that tank commanders could take reasonable care of themselves, it could be an amazingly fun game to play. I just don't see that happening.

I was playing the Gold Demo and noticed that the stereo sounds were playing in the wrong ear. My headset was on properly, and I tested it with other games with positional audio (notably Thief 2) and the sounds are fine there. I have a Diamond Monster Sound 300 (A3D 2.0) Anyone have any ideas why this would be happening?

"Mind you, perspective is a wonderful thing, I had a distant cousin frostily inform me that the American Civil War should really be called the "War of Northern Aggression" , so one's perspective will color a lot of things. " I've actually seen a monument up here in Boston dedicated to the "Brave men who perished in the War of Southern Aggression." Now that one takes the cake as far as I'm concerned!