Panzer Corps 2

Just a fun, stress free strategy game, a lot like checkers... Does not take up a lot of time and not all consuming. I use it as a stress reliever.

I held off buying this game because it was listed as incompatible on the Steam deck which is a deal breaker for me. I saw a video of someone playing it on the deck though, so I decided to give it a try. It actually works perfectly and flawlessly on the Steam deck straight away with zero adjustments whatsoever, so this game should absolutely be listed as playable now. The game doesn’t show controller icons like A or B button, but it took all of two minutes if that to figure out which steam deck button did what I needed, super simple really.
With that out of the way, I absolutely love everything about this game! I played the original Panzer Corps and this game so far has been everything I had hoped for in a sequel and more. Panzer Corps 2 is bigger, better, and more immersive for me in every way than the original Panzer Corps, and I’m sure I will sink many more hours into it before moving on to the DLC. The strategic depth of the gameplay, and variety of options available in setting up each campaign exactly how you like are phenomenal.
If, like me, you held off on Panzer Corps 2 because of the supposed deck incompatibility, it runs flawlessly and looks amazing on the deck! What a treat to be able to play this strategy gem on the couch or on the go. I would whole heartedly recommend this game to any and every strategy gaming fan.

That's what I call a good game.

Good looking, fun turn by turn game. Easy to play for a couple minutes when you are in between stuff.

The campaign can be replayed with different theater so I suppose you can at least play it two time without much repetition (if not more). Beating it the first time took me a good 80h+ so good value there.

Something I found particularly interesting is the fact that you play Germany and while you win your battles your still facing the inevitable fact that your losing the war. It gives you a special point of views that few other games offer.

So I recommend it for some good relaxing gameplay time.

I've been playing these kind of games going back to the original 'Panzer General' series from the mid-90's and I'm in the middle as far as recommending it or not.
- As technology advances so do the graphics. Outstanding in this case, but... it's far over done for what's necessary. To really appreciate the quality you have to zoom in so far that it makes the game incredibly difficult to play, in a practice sense.
-At times the Axis operations campaigns, battles are exactly that. I don't know many battles that you go from being the primary force, then cutting it to a fraction to support allies forces. it doesn't sound like an issue until you have to completely reorganize your units as well as all the heroes' to fit the changing mission. If you don't know what you'er doing this can take a significant amount of time that could be used for actually play.
In addition to that, you sit there watching the computer fight itself and some of the battles are big, with two or there friendly forces plus the enemy. Sure, you can set the AI turn to fast, but still... The way I see it, is that it's just robbing your core forces of experience.
- Now to the biggest issues with any of these games. The AI programming itself. There are numerous ways to make the game more difficult for the player; give you less core slots, making the enemy stronger among other ways to hinder the player, ect.
No matter how difficult you make the game it still doesn't fix the root problem- the AI has the tactical/ operational sense of a tree stump. Imagine kicking over a nest of fire ants. It swarms and attacks everything in range until they are all dead. Except when the programming tells them to stay in place and do nothing. (even when they should)
It doesn't matter what the mission is, just assume that you start in a defense mindset or cautious movement to contact. Let the enemy come to you when you're in a favorable position and destroy themselves. Bound forward a little more and let them do it again. Rinse and repeat.
That programming doesn't take things into consideration that the player does, like economy of force or force preservation, because they start out fresh and strong at the beginning of every battle.
- As the game progresses beware of the sucker punch. Just when you think the enemy is on the ropes, you've fought your way through several waves of what you 'thought' was the bulk of the enemy, then the enemy 'cheat' units attack. Or they are sitting on some Elite objective. They will be stupid powerful, most times beyond what you could ever have, with the equivalent of 4 or 5 hero perks. It's all about having bigger and tailored units instead of having an AI that 'thinks' smarter in a tactical sense. Find these guys and tear them up before they do the same to you.
-There are steam cheat codes and I use them in moderation; nothing more than evening the odds, as I see it. Especially when you keep getting worthless heroes after a battle, over and over again.
- Despite all that, I've played this game a lot and it is fun. It could just be so much better is all.

I cannot recommend this game more if you are a WWII game fan. The DLC for the main game (Axis Operations) adds a huge value to the playing experience. The game has enough challenge to keep you coming back for more. If you put enough randomization into the campaign, no two play throughs will be the same. Get the base game and AO and you have hundreds or more hours of playing time available to you.

Like its predecessor, this game resembles a classic wargame from the 90s, with its core rules and presentation carefully reworked. This is what you get, and you should know that before buying.
Yeah, it's a good game. Yeah, Panzer Corps is a better game. The reason is simply that Panzer General is a bit of a better game than Panzer General II.
Panzer Corps 2 is a lot fancier as Panzer Corps in it's presentation, and for me it's not really an improvement but confusing at times and actually a bit distracting. Above that It needs way more resources and you won't get it to run, say, on your Steam Deck.
But still it's a very good wargame and well worth your time and money providing an awful lot of maps, historical and semi-historical campaigns spanning all of World War II.

This is hands down absolute masterpiece!
If you enjoy strategy games as well as role playing games, this is the best of both worlds.
The game itself is a turn based tactical battle, where you have to consider the terrain, your units strengths and weaknesses and how to combine units for the best result. The gap between a beginner and a veteran player is so vast! But it's fascinating to figure out strategies and the best units to work together.
Then, there are the RPG elements. And I have to say, after playing tons and tons of RPG games, this game really surprised me how well it's thought through! You have your usual experience and leveling, however the best part is the "heroes" where you get one after each battle and they provide some bonus benefit to any unit of your choosing. This makes every playthough completely unique and also forces you to adjust your strategy based on what types of bonuses you get. I mean this is revolutionary. Without it, you play through it once or twice and it's the same thing over and over. But this way I have played it at least half a dozen times and every playthrough is completely unique. It's incredible. For me, this is 10/10 game, or top 1%.