The real-time naval strategy genre has gone some time without a new
product. Jane's Fleet Command, developed by the naval gurus at
Sonalysts, brings something new to the table for those of us who enjoy
our military simulations on the high seas. How well does it stand up
under fire? Let's take a look.
On the Box Experience
Those of you reading my previous material should realize by now
that my bent is to look at a new simulation from a variety of
viewpoints. While it's easier to take my naval grognard ethos into a
low-level eyeball pass of any new sim, a more balanced view is achieved
when non-core gamers are also considered, and the developer/publishers
intended audience is brought into view. This way we avoid an unfair
evaluation which measures a simulation in categories for which it was
never intended.
So what is the publisher's take on things? Judging from the
marketing material, it looks like they are being quite aggressive with
their positioning of the product:
"The Jane's team has just released the world's first comprehensive naval strategy game."
"Jane's Fleet Command delivers pinpoint accuracy and realism."
"Actual Navy war tactics and sophisticated artificial intelligence (AI) challenge even the most experienced naval commander."
Though I've selected some of the more hard-core statements from the
Fleet Command press release, you can see that Jane's is trying to
position their product with few compromises. The many superlatives are
typical of marketing hype: "comprehensive," "world's first," "pinpoint
accuracy," and "challenge the most experienced." These statements give
a clear sense of direction and suggest a hard core target audience.
But on the other hand, there are these statements:
"Jane's Fleet Command's intuitive point-and-click interface and
mouse-driven tactical map eliminate memorizing symbols and complex key
commands."
"Jane's Fleet Command features a range of single missions
and multiple gameplay options, from sea lane patrolling missions for
novices to a branching campaign for the advanced player."
It's pretty clear from the outset that Jane's is positioning its sim to
cast a wide net. This is not necessarily a bad thing, as today's
marketplace demands such a wide net. The question then becomes, "Does
the simulation actually include the components required to appeal to
the diverse groups of gamers?"
The ... Manual?
Jane's in its most recent releases seems to be shying away from
the large, information-filled manuals of the past. The Fleet Command
manual is 45 pages long and contains sections on Gameplay, the Mission
Editor, Multiplayer, and the Weapons Platforms used in the Fleet
Command database. By far the most attention is given to the mission
editor.
Arleigh-Burke Class Destroyer
The brevity of the manual quickly becomes a problem. On several
occasions I had difficulty locating information I was seeking. On page
16 the manual lists icons that represent "air station", "ship station",
and "rally points", but I had a difficult time trying to figure out how
use these command in a pre-built game.
Finally, I found out that you have access to these commands only in
scenarios generated with the mission builder (or ones where the mission
designer used them), but I found this out only after posting a question
to the naval newsgroup. The manual does not do a good job of adequately
explaining this topic.
Also, each ship/aircraft has radars and sonars that assist in
detecting targets. No where in the manual does it explain how these
devices are to be used and when you might NOT want to use them, such as
a stealth mission. Although I understand the difference between a fire
control radar and an air search radar, I'm sure there are many new
players who do not.
These are but two examples of areas in which I had questions. To me,
the manual was of little assistance for all but the most basic queries.
Training
Fleet Command includes a set of four tutorials that allows you
to get your feet wet (pun intended.) An instructor narrates each
tutorial and he gives you a good sense of how the menu/command
structure works.
The training missions are also a good place to learn more about the
different situational views and how to navigate across the operational
area. Some commands are disabled during training to allow the student
to focus on the mission at-hand.
The training missions are what I would expect a good tutorial
to represent. They were not too long and they included the basic
information on menu navigation, fleet operations, and weapons
engagement.
Single Missions
Fleet Command includes 34 scenarios that can be played as single
missions. The scenarios range from no-fly zone missions in Iraq to
conflicts between India and Pakistan to head-to-head battles with the
Russian Fleet. The missions can be played in any order and range in
difficulty from one to four stars.
I found the single missions to be an enjoyable way to get deeper into
Fleet Command. Depending on how you play, each mission takes
approximately an hour. Different fleets are included in the single
missions, so you aren't playing as the US forces all the time. I found
learning about other fleets to be one of the more enjoyable aspects of
these missions.
Campaign
The campaign structure is a bit different than most campaigns included
in military simulations today. Fleet Command has a set of four
different campaigns that cover different parts of the world.
Unlike campaigns that are a series of linked missions, each Fleet
Command campaign is in effect one large mission. Each scenario includes
multiple objectives that must be attained for campaign success. Some of
these objectives may not be known at the out-set, and they will be
relayed to you via tasking messages as the campaign progresses.
Each campaign could last three to four hours or more, but
luckily Jane's has included a save feature that allows you to save your
missions at any point in the campaign. You can save multiple versions
as well.
Each campaign scenario is prefaced by a beiefing video that gives you
some background on the situation. Though each scenario has a context,
there really isn't any linkage between individual campaigns. Since the
campaign scenarios are not really connected in any substantial way, I
personally did not like the fact that you are prevented from playing
subsequent campaign scenarios until you successfully complete the
previous one.
Mission Building
In Fleet Command you can build your own missions, and boy, what
missions you can build! In constructing your mission, you have access
to just about every ship of the included navies (see below). Most naval
aircraft are included as well as airforce aircraft that can fly from
ground bases. You also have the ability to save your mission so that it
can be played in multi-player mode.
Any region of the world can be depicted as well as setting up your
scenarios to attack the enemy of your choice. Objects can be programmed
to appear with a certain amount of randomness and mission goals can be
hierarchically arranged. You also have control over the environment:
weather, time of day, and sea state can all play a role in your custom
mission.
The mission goal structure is probably the toughest thing to
master, and I have yet to understand it fully. My attempt to model a
realistic battle of the current Operation Allied Force
operation is included here. I got a real kick when I was able to place
each object from the current US task force that is present in the
Adriatic sea.
I believe the mission builder is quite sophisticated and I have
yet to really scratch the surface. This feature above all others will
allow me to continue to enjoy the sim for some time.
Gameplay
Much has already been said about the "click fest" nature of
certain gameplay scenarios. The game in its current configuration does
not allow for friendly ships to protect themselves autonomously. You
must manually engage incoming aircraft and missiles.
There are several missions where this becomes a problem to the point of
not allowing you to organize offensive operations because you are
spending all your time protecting yourself. The argument becomes
somewhat subjective as to whether to balance player participation or
computer control and I've read the arguments for both camps.
I think the bottom line here is that Jane's should have included
options to accommodate both gameplay styles. Some "admirals" will tend
to want to control every aspect of fleet protection, while others would
tend to leave the close-in protection of the fleet up to the computer.
Even for the most mouse-adept clicker, the final campaign scenarios
should prove to be too much of a challenge, as enemy ships and planes
continuously pummel you with anti-ship missiles. I feel a twinge of
Carpal Tunnel coming on as I write this.
What Jane's HAS done is to allow the user (albeit an advanced,
familiar-with-programming user) to modify what is called "doctrine"
files that control the AI of the ships and planes. You'll find more
about this feature below where you can download some files modified by
Ron Hunt.
I could have done without the included in-game videos. The live
action footage is present in the game before missions to give you a
sense of environment and also to give you information for your upcoming
mission. I found it odd that US Navy officers were in a combat
situation in their dress whites. Maybe they got called into the
situation room during a formal occasion?
I'm usually forgiving with regard to the acting in PC games, because
let's face it - we are not buying the games for Tom Hanks or Meryl
Streep-caliber performances.
But in Fleet Command the performances and dialogue got to be so
ridiculous I hastened to hit the escape key to bypass the scenes
altogether. I think even gamer/non-naval types will get a chuckle at
the statements made about how "their worst enemy is surprise", and "the
art of command comes in bringing order from chaos", and "the cost of
panic is defeat." I guess Jane's was trying for something different
than the standard mission overview briefing. They got it.
Beyond these two issues, I found gameplay to be quite
enjoyable. You are free to employ any tactic you see fit, and at times
must fully engage all available power to attain your objectives.
Although the mouse plays a big part in the control of your assets,
Janes has thankfully provided some shortcut keystrokes to allow you to
specify commands more readily.
On one particular campaign scenario I was tasked with destroying the
enemy's fleet of submarines. I had a large space to search and I was
able to sortie just about every ASUW asset I had: P3-Orions, Vikings,
and Seahawks all took part in the hunt. It took me a while, but I had
control over the types of detection devices used (dipping sonar and
sonabouys) and the search areas I wanted them to perform. Eventually I
was able to destroy my quarry and the world was a bit safer as a result
of my efforts.
Graphics Quality and Support
The Glide and Direct 3D APIs are supported in Fleet Command. Direct 3D
goes up to 1024x768 on my Diamond Viper V550 TNT as well as my Diamond
Voodoo 2 SLI setup. Although the sim does include real-time 3D rendered
objects, frame rates did not appear to be a problem. I did notice that
scrolling the screen in D3D seemed to be a bit slower that it was for
Glide, however.
Some of the objects articulate - SAM batteries, jet blast
deflectors, F-14 wings, and ship propellers all move for effect. One of
the best visuals is watching a SAM or cruise missile take off from
aboard ship. The Phalanx close-in weapons system will also engage
in-bound missiles by firing off its deadly shield of bullets. A hit on
an in-bound missile produces a spectacular explosion where the remains
of the missile continue on their flight path until they fall into the
sea.
The objects in the game were rendered quite nicely. While they
won't stand up to comparison to the objects included in EAW, Apache
Havoc, or even Longbow II, they represent a good balance for a game
that was not intended to be a first-person action simulation where
terrain and battlefield assets modeling are paramount.
Sound Quality
I was very impressed with the sound included in Fleet Command.
Everything from jets taking off on the carrier to comms traffic and
explosions were done very well.
The environment is really enhanced when the fur starts to fly and you
are receiving comms chatter from all over the map. The effect is quite
similar to 688i where you are receiving many comms calls, all at the
same time.
Realism
Much has been written in the news groups about the ability to specify
custom loadouts in Fleet Command. Simply put, you cannot change from
within the game the default ordnance loads that each aircraft carries.
Jane's wanted to concentrate on a single implementation for each
aircraft to accommodate the broadest appeal. This translates to an F-14
with 6 AIM-120s and 2 Harpoons and F/A-18s that carry 2 AIM-120s, 2
AIM-9s, 2 AGM-65s and 2 AGM-88s.
While the ability of each aircraft to carry the assigned load is
realistic, at times it makes it a little difficult to perform a
particular mission. Airbase attacks require many sorties when your only
ordnance is Mavericks and HARMS. There are no AIM-54s, AIM-7s,
laser-guided or dumb bombs, or any of the more advanced air-to-ground
weapons such as the JSOW, JDAM, SLAM, or tactical nuke.
If there is one place that shines above all others, it is in
the database of the included aircraft, ships and weaponry. Not only are
the ships from the US, Russian, and British navies included, but you
also have access to ships and aircraft from the countries of China,
France, Australia, Germany, India, Argentina, Brazil, Pakistan, Iran,
Taiwan, Libya, Malaysia, and Japan. Whew!
Janes also claims that Fleet Command adheres to realistic
sensor detection models and object dynamics. My subjective analysis
shows that Jane's/Sonalysts has done a great job in staying at the top
of the heap with respect to a realistic Order of Battle.
Bugs
For the most part, Fleet Command was relatively bug free. I have
read posts in the naval news group that stated there were some crash to
desktop problems with Glide when you were inside the game, but I never
experienced any of these personally.
The most notable problem for me was when I would end a game's
session by going back to the desktop and then trying to run the game
again. About 95% of the time I would lock up when the game is trying to
mode-switch between the desktop and my chosen 3D card. This happened so
frequently that I resolved myself to rebooting after each time I exited
from a game. Sometimes, even the reboot didn't help. After seeing
similar problems in Falcon 4.0 get resolved during the patch-beta
process, I understand that there are some underlying
hardware-to-software issues at fault.
I also tried to run the game from a Windows 95 OSR2 machine (my P2 450
before I switched over to Win98). I would continually lock up when I
entered my name at the sign-in screen. For some reason, I was never
able to get past it. Only after reformatting my system to Win98 was I
ever able to make it past the sign-in screen.
Occasionally I experienced problems in the AI that I could not explain.
When I gave the command to a flight of EA-6B Prowlers to "set speed to
max", inevitably one aircraft would drop its speed to the normal rate
after a couple of minutes and fall behind the pack. Since these
aircraft all took off at the same time and there were no threats in the
area, there shouldn't have been any reason for the one aircraft to
perform differently.
Ships would occasionally exhibit the same behavior. At times
one ship would depart from the pack and return to patrol status after
I've given the set of ships a specific directional transit command.
Departure from command is something I would experience about twice in
each mission. It seemed to be more prevalent the more objects there
were to control.
Summary
Did Fleet Command stack up as billed? I would have to say partly so.
While there is much to be said for the realistic database and
environment that is resident in Fleet Command, control of the available
assets only goes so deep, and the sim as-shipped may not please the
naval grognards who require more precise control.
I believe that newer players will enjoy the sim to the point of
the later missions where fleet defense becomes a physically limiting
issue. I believe more experience players will continue to enjoy the sim
because of its robust mission builder and multi-player features.
I think both newbies and seadogs alike will be frustrated at
the lack of informative manual and the ability to control from within
the game loadouts and fleet defense options. Here are some of my
parting thoughts:
High Points:
Mission Builder, Available Assets, Realistic Environment and Feel, and General Gameplay.
Low Points:
Manual, Lack of Control Over Certain AI Aspects, In-Game Videos, some bugs.
While I generally try to make it a habit to only comment on the
simulation as-delivered, I must let you know about the work that Ron
Hunt and several others have undertaken. They have put together a list
of "doctrine" file changes that in-effect modifies the AI to allow the
ships and aircraft to engage the enemy on their own.
You can learn more about what Ron has done by heading to Ron Hunt.
For me, this has made the sim much more enjoyable, especially for the
more advanced campaign scenarios. Following is a brief outline of the
effects of his changes:
1. The AirtoAir file has been refined and you will notice that
planes sent to ID a target will automatically engage that target if it
is hostile. After the engagement the plane will default to Patrol
status and then re-engage enemy planes that it later senses.
2. The CWIS file has been modified to allow automatic engagement of
inbound missiles. I deliberately left out auto-engagement of aircraft
from the ships. If you have a CAP up you won't need it since they'll do
it for you! Turning on the ships air radar will greatly enhance your
ability to defend against incoming targets.
3. Aircraft sent to ID a ship or land target will automatically
engage that target if it turns out to be hostile and then default to
Patrol status once the attack is complete. Also included are two
alternate files which will allow the aircraft to ID ships and land
targets and if they turn out to be hostile the aircraft will then turn
and run giving you the opportunity to plan those attacks manually.
Download Ron Hunts adjusted doctrine file by clicking HERE. Instructions included.
