Well let's see.. I picked up the boxed edition of Gateway to Caen a few weeks ago. I haven't tackled it yet but the graphics and fit/feel are great at first look, and quite a bit more accomplished than CC2 - another game that I have only played lightly with thus far [getting my ass kicked playing the Brits]. My goal is to immerse myself in Caen, and return to playing Combat Mission 3 - Afrika Korps.

Oh you have the boxed edition? Is it as actual box or one of those cheap DVD cases?

Yes - I chose the download+disk option. It's a conventional CD/DVD case with a 2-sided coversheet behind a thick clear jacket - looks/works fine for me and inside there is a decent 100 page manual which I really wanted since Caen *may* turn out to be the last in the CC series, and Caen is the only "version 2" CC I have - the rest are all the original big box editions. I decided to splurge on this one since it seemed to get a lot of things right from the reviews I saw...

Yeah I think I'm going to have to buy that one. I'm a tad wary though since I didn't really like CC3 and many of the other ones after that seemed kind of cheesy (i'm not sure why but they just lacked the charm and replayability of Close Combat A Bridge Too Far.). Supposedly there is going to be another Close Combat game coming out but it's completely revamped and has a 3D engine. I'm just hoping it doesn't turn out like G.I. Combat (Which I have a boxed copy of but rarely play now that I have CC2). Many people missed that game but it came out in the early 2000's and was supposed to be a revamp of the Close Combat series made by some of the original devs behind the first two Close Combat games and released under Strategy First. It was horrible though, it completely lacked any urban environments, the AI was buggy the computer cheated and the camera controls were a complete mess. Most of the time while playing you have no idea what is going on since your units seem to dissapear behind hedgerows or get obstructed by other 3d objects.

The new game is going to be called The Bloody First, and while it looks stunning visually so far it seems to have the same short comings as G.I. Combat did. 😒

Also people say the AI is incredibly dumb in Caen. I'm hoping this is not true but the engine does seem to be better suited for small maps and Caen has big beautiful maps. Have you played it at all yet? Is that true or does it put up decent opposition?

No I haven't played it so can't comment on AI or gameplay - but it looks promising.

I have a copy of G.I. Combat too - an old bargain basket find. I gave up on it very quickly because the interface was so clumsy [what I remember of it], and it was really buggy. Should pull it out though, maybe with patience there's a game in there.

Been a long time since I fiddled with any of these games and it was Gateway to Caen that re-fueled interest...

I don't think I'll be buying Gateway to Caen unless their asking price drops considerably or they actually implement a functional AI to the single player. From what I've heard and seen the AI is completely broken, it barely puts up a fight and at best does horribly stupid things that kill all of its units rather quickly. For all of the "improvemants" slitherine has done on the AI it actually seems to play worse now than it did 17 years ago in Close Combat and Close Combat 2. 😒

This is totally dissapointing for me because I was really stoked by the visual look of the game, I mean it looks fantastic and with a proper AI could be freaking amazing. It seems though that Slitherine are more interested in acting like a tiny EA though and churning out overpriced junk than actually making a decent game.

Did you have a chance to play Caen? I'm curious now to see how the AI is. It's a downer to hear it may be that broken since the look/feel of the whol this is impressive. Ah well..

Regarding the cost - there's no doubt these games are expensive. Unfortunately, unlike the old store-bought games of yore, prices come down very slowly. CC2 [2nd ed.] is still $40 download version 3 years after release.

Yeah, whereas I have a mint copy of CC2 in the box that I payed 10$ for on ebay and a copy of CC3 in the jewel case which I found for 99 cents at a thrift store. 😒

No though I personally haven't played the game but I have watched a few lets plays and talked with people who do own it and they say the AI enemy is hopelessy dumb and broken. For an example just watch these videos:

(AI Demonstration)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjYg4gcvDog
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U42co59Q0b0

This is a lets play by SKS, watch how easily the AI gets defeated even though it clearly has the advantage. It makes tons of stupid moves and he cuts though it's units as if it were an AFK player. He's one of the people I asked how the AI is and he confirmed it is indeed quite inhuman in the way it plays (that is to say it doesn't play a good game)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tieGTSHDI1o

Also I don't know about you but I think the whole battle map thing is kind of a dumb idea and just jams this extra "game feature" onto what always was (in the past) a good game. I may be jumping the gun in judging it though, I'll wait for your opinion for the final clincher since you have purchased a copy.