How similar to Panzer General 2 is this?

[FOARP]

Speaking as someone who loved Panzer General 1 but ended up being fairly disappointed by Panzer General 2 (poor AI, narrower scope of battles), I want to know to what degree PzC2 is like PzG2 before buying it.

I assume that PzC2 doesn't repeat the kind of mistakes SSI made with PzG2's AI (i.e., the AI didn't move its artillery) but it'd be great to know if it is at least as challenging as that of PzC1 (which I loved also). Also I want to know if your finding yourself actually at risk of getting wiped out by the AI rather than just running out of time before an arbitrary "must win by" date.

Also, are there battles with a grand scope? I was a big fan of the Norway battle in PzG1 as you got to launch a combined-arms invasion of an entire, huge country which was pretty cool. Not every battle has to be like that but it's nice to see at least a few that are. PzG2 just didn't have that - or if it did they were later in the game and I didn't bother playing up until that point.

[Vorskl]

to get a feeling of the game, watch some youtube walkthroughs - theEdmon, Green Knight to name a few good players
PC2 brought some unique mechanics such as trapping your enemy in "pockets".
There are some big scenarios - France, Kiev, Rostov... not the whole Western Front at once, but still large enough.
I like PC1 but switched to PC2 and dont look back. On the other hand, I bought a few Order of Battle dlcs and just cannot get how to enjoy that game - sits idle for years.
If we go all the way back to PG1, I think PG2 was an improvement as it introduced unit heroes, but PG3 was an epic disaster

[adiekmann]

to get a feeling of the game, watch some youtube walkthroughs - theEdmon, Green Knight to name a few good players
PC2 brought some unique mechanics such as trapping your enemy in "pockets".
There are some big scenarios - France, Kiev, Rostov... not the whole Western Front at once, but still large enough.
I like PC1 but switched to PC2 and dont look back. On the other hand, I bought a few Order of Battle dlcs and just cannot get how to enjoy that game - sits idle for years.
If we go all the way back to PG1, I think PG2 was an improvement as it introduced unit heroes, but PG3 was an epic disaster

Agree. I LOVED PG2 and could not go back to PG1 after I started it. The improved graphics and other changes (heroes, overrun, ranged artillerie support that didn't have to be adjacent to your unit that was being attacked, etc.) in PG2. Weak/dumb AI is a complaint that can be made of nearly every game, including PC1. PC2's AI is improved, but there are still some "issues."

No "offical" DLCs for either, but PG2 had a ton of excellent (and of course not so excellent) user made content whereas PG1 did not (that I was aware of) probably because it came out around when the internet was new and most people weren't online yet even in Western nations. I hope/expect that improvements of all sorts will still be forthcoming for PC2 and by the end it will be a far superior game in nearly every way to its predecessors.

[FOARP]

to get a feeling of the game, watch some youtube walkthroughs - theEdmon, Green Knight to name a few good players
PC2 brought some unique mechanics such as trapping your enemy in "pockets".
There are some big scenarios - France, Kiev, Rostov... not the whole Western Front at once, but still large enough.
I like PC1 but switched to PC2 and dont look back. On the other hand, I bought a few Order of Battle dlcs and just cannot get how to enjoy that game - sits idle for years.
If we go all the way back to PG1, I think PG2 was an improvement as it introduced unit heroes, but PG3 was an epic disaster

Agree. I LOVED PG2 and could not go back to PG1 after I started it. The improved graphics and other changes (heroes, overrun, ranged artillerie support that didn't have to be adjacent to your unit that was being attacked, etc.) in PG2. Weak/dumb AI is a complaint that can be made of nearly every game, including PC1. PC2's AI is improved, but there are still some "issues."

No "offical" DLCs for either, but PG2 had a ton of excellent (and of course not so excellent) user made content whereas PG1 did not (that I was aware of) probably because it came out around when the internet was new and most people weren't online yet even in Western nations. I hope/expect that improvements of all sorts will still be forthcoming for PC2 and by the end it will be a far superior game in nearly every way to its predecessors.

I don't want to turn this into a discussion about PG2, but the issue with the AI - one that SSI didn't patch - was that it wouldn't move its artillery. As in: the artillery would literally be left standing alone at its starting position if the AI was attacking. It was a total game-breaker.

[Kerensky]

Panzer Corps 2 AI no longer has that issue with artillery.

It can move them, load them into transport, and even tries to maintain proper distance from targets now. Meaning a 4 range gun doesn't want to move into point blank range when set to 'attacker' mode. It's quite nice to see the AI make good decisions like that.

[FOARP]

Panzer Corps 2 AI no longer has that issue with artillery.

It can move them, load them into transport, and even tries to maintain proper distance from targets now. Meaning a 4 range gun doesn't want to move into point blank range when set to 'attacker' mode. It's quite nice to see the AI make good decisions like that.

Very happy to hear that Panzer Corps 2 didn't repeat the mistake SSI made in Panzer General 2. I'm not sure why that mistake was made but SSI may have not had time to properly QC the game before launch (whilst people often talk about the "good old days" of computer games before DLC when "games were finished on launch", in reality games would launch with game-breaking issues with them that no-one ever fixed).

OK guys, you've convinced me to give PzC2 a try.