Square Enix tries hand at WWII RTS with Order of War
Victor Kislyi, Chief Executive Officer of Wargaming.net, states that Order of War is bent on "narrowing the gameplay focus on the best part..." That sounds to us like there will be -- familiar to the Company of Heroes and Dawn of War II style of RTSes -- little in the way of old school 'dirt farming' resource management and base building. Plus, fielding up to 1,000 soldiers, tanks, armored vehicles, artillery, and air planes will have this one rubbing elbows with the somewhat flash-in-a-pan Supreme Commander series by Fall 2009.
Here's some heavily-branded screenshots to peruse. And I know this is the equivalent of the 'inevitable water effects comment,' but man -- check out those gorgeous skyboxes:
SQUARE ENIX ANNOUNCES ORDER OF WAR,
A NEW WESTERN-DEVELOPED WWII REAL-TIME STRATEGY GAME
LOS ANGELES (April 16, 2009) – Square Enix, Inc., the publisher of Square Enix® interactive entertainment products in North America, announced today a new agreement with strategy game specialist Wargaming.net to publish a brand new IP set during World War II. ORDER OF WAR™ will be released on Windows PC across all North American territories in Fall 2009.
ORDER OF WAR will feature massive-scale battles brought to life with a cinematic intensity never seen before in a WWII strategy game. Players will take command of an entire army including ground troops, artillery, tank divisions and aircraft in all-out strategic assaults. The single-player mode can be played out in two campaigns – American versus German forces on the western front and German versus Russian on the eastern front. Missions will be based on key historic events and operations from 1944.
ORDER OF WAR will be Square Enix’s first release of a western-developed game outside of Japan. It will also see the company’s first simultaneous release across multiple territories.
John Yamamoto, president and chief executive officer of Square Enix, Inc. comments, “ORDER OF WAR offers Square Enix an exciting opportunity to enter this hugely popular genre, and is a strong proposition for our first western-developed release. With its cinematic intensity, hugely realistic battles and historical accuracy, the game looks set to whet the appetite of any war-gaming fan.”
Victor Kislyi, chief executive officer of Wargaming.net says, "ORDER OF WAR will take strategy games in a new, exciting direction, narrowing the gameplay focus on the best part and challenges gamers to defeat the most powerful armies of WWII. And we are really glad that this immense title will be released by Square Enix – one of the largest and most successful publishers in the world."
About ORDER OF WAR
In the summer of 1944, the Second World War entered its end-game when the Allies launched two major operations that would drive back German forces on both the Western and Eastern Fronts at once.
In the ultimate test of military strategy, ORDER OF WAR will challenge you not only to lead America’s finest to victory in the west, but also place you in command of German forces charged with repelling the Red Army’s seemingly unstoppable offensive in the east.
Even the keenest military minds will find that it’s one thing to make history, but quite another to change it.
Do you have what it takes to command?
Features
· Experience WWII warfare on an epic, cinematic stage; that truly captures the intensity and scale of the battlefield
· Command of an entire armed force consisting of up to 1,000 soldiers, tanks, armored vehicles, artillery and air planes
· Players can choose between two different campaign modes offering completely different storylines, missions, objectives and environments
· Experience the unique dynamic camera that allows players to command troops over huge geographical scale whilst maintaining movie-like vistas and detail
· In-depth gameplay mode: two different campaign modes, multi-player, Deathmatch and Skirmish
For more information on ORDER OF WAR please visit the official website at http://www.orderofwar.com/.
About Wargaming.net
Based in London with development in Belarus, Wargaming.net is a strategy game development company operating since 1998. The company developed the highly acclaimed Massive Assault series, including Massive Assault, Massive Assault Network, Massive Assault: Phantom Renaissance and Massive Assault Network 2. Wargaming.net has also developed “Galactic Assault”, a turn-based strategy based on the famous sci-fi universe by Strugatsky Brothers. In November 2007 Wargaming.net acquired Arise, an independent PC game developer. The company’s motto is “Strategic Satisfaction”.
About Square Enix Co., Ltd. and Square Enix, Inc.
Square Enix Co., Ltd. (Square Enix), with headquarters in Tokyo, Japan, develops, publishes and distributes entertainment content including interactive entertainment software and publications in Asia, North America and Europe. Square Enix brings two of Japan's best-selling franchises — FINAL FANTASY®, which has sold over 85 million units worldwide, and DRAGON QUEST®, which has sold over 47 million units worldwide — under one roof. Square Enix is one of the most influential providers of digital entertainment content in the world and continues to push the boundaries of creativity and innovation.
Square Enix, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd. with offices in Los Angeles, California. It handles operations in North America, including development, localization, marketing and publishing of Square Enix titles. More information on Square Enix can be found on the Internet at http://www.square-enix.com.
ORDER OF WAR is a trademark of Wargaming.net. Published and distributed by SQUARE ENIX under license from Wargaming.net. Games for Windows, Windows, Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox LIVE, and the Xbox logos are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies and are used under license from the owner. DRAGON QUEST, FINAL FANTASY, SQUARE ENIX and the SQUARE ENIX logo are registered trademarks of Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd. in the United States and/or other countries.
