Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4083 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: Empire
• Released on: 2007-12-07
• Platform: Windows XP

Manufacturer's Description

Sudden Strike III: Arms for Victory is a Real Time Strategy based on the battles of World War II. The third in the RTS series Sudden Strike, featuring a new Sudden Strike Next7 graphics engine for large-scale air and naval battles and large numbers of units. This edition also features new units, fully redone AI and pathfinding, an improved interface, and more complex multiplayer modes across four campaigns -- two in the Pacific Islands and two in Europe.

The game simulates joint operation of ground, naval and air forces on vast areas. Gameplay includes land and sea operations, with aviation acting as a support force for both. Sea forces are also supported by submarines that can for example hunt down an enemy supply convoy. Carrier-based aviation will support both naval and land operation when possible. Harbours and airfields play an important role in the game, as gates for transports providing supplies and reinforcement. Land operations cover vast areas, making reconnaissance an essential part of gameplay.

Customer Reviews

Not even sure if it's worth 1 star
Yes every one here has it spot on - quite possibly the worst pc war game ever made. Grafix r ok, but the whole thing has been done on too large a scale and you end up with a headache trying to control every thing, and stopping your troops doing stoopid things like standing there while they are being slaughtered. Your troops simply r not strong enough either, dying quickly without achieving anything. It is often extremely difficult to find what the hell is blowing you to bits because you simply can't see far enough, and this gets incredibly annoying. Also what the devil r those robot things that the Germans have that appear to be indestructible.
This is the ruination of a good game - don't buy it! Drivel

A big dissappontment
Like many other reviewers here I was a big fan of SS 1 & 2, so I was bang up for "3". The makers claim to have solved many of the issues that dogged the first two installments, such as the need to micromanage your units (I often thought the name of the game should have been changed to "Traffic Jam Manager") and though the AI does seem improved, your units simply charge mindlessly into the enemy and get mown down - how hard can it be to programme the AI to use available cover? Advance with units covering eachother? Stop and wait for the armour/anti-tank weapons if they run into a tank? - And why is it that cover seems to offer no protection at all?
Many people have talked about the excellent graphics, and though I agree they're an improvement, I feel it was a big mistake to use the smaller characters. You can't tell what you're looking at - the makers have thoughtfully added a 'tag' which appears by each unit if you press "Caps Lock", but that spoils the graphics. The character sizes in 1 & 2 were perfect: it wasn't broke, why did they fix it?
Lastly, before I put my copy on Ebay and delete it from my hard drive forever, where the hell is the strategy? Large scale battles are fun to fight with thousands of units if you can change thier course through your strategies, but all your attempts to direct your forces go to nothing here.
This game seems as though it was made by entirely different people who hadn't a clue. What a waste of a market leading franchise.
Bad.
Avoid.

Boring, don't bother
Bought and installed the game in great anticipation, having been a big fan of Sudden Strike 1 & 2 for the last 7 years. Could not believe how bad this is in comparison. Waves of reinforcements commiting suicide on the beaches, with no way of intervening. By the time I have found the engineer, officer, etc they're dead. Easier to sit and admire the graphics, watching my troops wink out of existance. The AI plays itself, but the computer's AI is better so it wins; 4,773 infantrymen later, I'm still on the beach with 2 left facing another wave of 50 Tigers. The only intervention I made in the 80 minutes (besides reading the paper) was to decide where the 4 artillery strikes and 6 aircraft missions should go, but without any idea where to use them they missed. It'll be on ebay tonight.