Post originally by Mike Hill at 2004-07-21 07:30:12
Converted from Phorums BB System

Sorry Tom. Nice review but as good as Memoir '44 is to look at - it's only a 'dumbed-down' version of Battle Cry with 'special rules for young generals'.

The game is almost completely devoid of atmoshphere.

There's no indication of scale which leaves the player feeling detached from the game.

The game components are mighty fine and don't need to be broken out of a spru frame and stuck together as they do in Battle Cry but the level of detail is woeful compared to BC. In fact, Airfix figures are far more detailed and would at least have fit on the board (try moving a hex-full of tanks wedged between a unit of infantry and a bridge).

The combat odds presented by the dice result in so many casualties that the playing time is almost entirely eclipsed by the set-up time.

M'44 is a nice game to have on the shelf but it won't see the light of day anywhere near as often as Battle Cry and it could have been so much more.