Reviews

• gamedeal user

  Dec 26, 2021

  I dislike the way the game decides when you have lost, by having met fanaticel resistance and not enough objectives Ended on turn 4 one game ( I had one of two objectives ) and turn 7 in another. Moving units is a chore, as they are always get directed past Enemy units, so they get fired on. It's a pain having to break down each unit's move multiple times to avoid this. Maybe that's the tactics/strategy, but it's cumbersome. It is not possible to enter certain hexes next to the enemy, which I find frustrating. Jap artillery is just random, it will hit units on the other end of the map and does not appear to support defending units sometimes. Enemy units do not move, ( which I suppose is correct for the defence ) so just advance, attack and repeat. There is no combining attacks from units just a piece meal one unit attack at a time against the defender, although you don't lose a step/strength or fatigue when attacking. There wasn't enough depth for me to play this time again to try and get to the end or even try and Win. I was hoping for a bit more than the game has to offer, lucky for me I bought this on Sale for about £5 so I got my money''s worth, but it was just not enjoyable enough for me.
• gamedeal user

  Oct 23, 2022

  I like this game because it feels like a really old school tweezers and cardboard game. The problem is it has some bugs here and there that are basically gamebreaking, so I can't recommend it. Numerous times I got near the end of a multi-hour campaign and the game suddenly tells me that I've lost. It's pretty annoying. I can't find any reason why I lost other than that I have lost before, then started a new game.
• ajsoave

  Apr 5, 2023

  I liked the historical aspect of the game, but it seems the AI was at times ridiculously and overtly coming to the rescue of the Japanese units. I wiped out the entire Japanese army within the prescribed amount of time and captured every objective but was still given a "Draw." A win is a win, not a draw.
• gamedeal user

  Mar 8, 2020

  Battle for Iwo Jima, by Yobo Wargames, is an interesting beast. At first it seems simple; the mechanics are minimalist; just push units forward in the appropriate phase, and literally attack every time a unit is adjacent to an enemy. However... The game features 3 divisions of US Marines, the 5th, the 4th and the 3rd. Each is different in quality, represented by strength points ranging from 10 at the highest, to 1, which is nearly dead. Units have 1-4 "steps" that represent sequential losses; each step loss drops the unit strength significantly. They also have fatigue, which is gained through losses, movement, fighting in day and at night... Pretty much anything can cause fatigue. Fatigue degrades combat performance significantly regardless of unit strength. Fatigue can be regained by resting away from enemy fire, losses by allocating replacement steps. Unit types are infantry, which do the fighting; armor, which supports infantry from one hex back and adds combat strength, and a divisional HQ, the location of which determines which units are in command. If you are not in command, you can move, but you can't fight or recover fatigue or steps. So positioning your HQ is important. The Japanese artillery and the ability to attack at night. They also have 3 levels of fortification, with which they built lines of defense. The game is about taking the various victory locations on or before the date on which they were taken in real life. This is hard, because of a simple fact. Remember I said that you, the Marines, attack adjacent enemies? Well, the Japanese can also attack *two* hexes out, while your troops move. Which means they have an automatic advantage in that they can attack you about 2x times, or more, than you can attack them. Remember I said that the game is about beating real world performance? It's also about limiting casualties. And that completes the complexity, because between casualties, fatigue, unit positioning, terrain, command and control (simple though it is) and all the other elements, the game becomes one of tempo. That means that you'll move and fight differently depending on whether you're trying to rush an airfield without worrying about casualties to make the time limit, or trying to crack a line of fortifications, which can require rotating fatigued units in and out of combat each turn. This makes the game difficult, brutal and thought-provoking. It's amazing to me that with such a minimalist approach, Yobo has produced a game that is complex and keeps you on the edge of your seat. It plays relatively quickly, and the mechanics are simple, but the innards of the game are complex and unforgiving. I definitely recommend this.
• gamedeal user

  Mar 16, 2020

  yes, but: 1. It goes so extremely slow, mainly i think due to unnecessary graphic duration. The very worst is the flare shooting into the air at each nite attack. It goes dramaticly on & on, but, you know, after the very 1st time, ok, we get it. Actually same re artillery & j attacks, and movement in general - i think the units could move a lot faster if the sound&graphics were abbreviated. 2. I play over&over & lose EVERY time. OK i learned, but this last time was especially bad: Day 13 end turn, i've achieved green on 3 of the so-far 4 objectives, red on the 4th :(, several days remain to get to the next 1, only 235/320 j points, truly it feels the opposition is COLLAPSING, i am racing to the final objectives with plenty of time left, seems i've finally got this fig'd out, and suddenly "japanese decisive victory". WHY?
• gamedeal user

  Mar 28, 2020

  A very fun game that does what it was designed for. You can only play the marines and you do not pick where they land. I see that a a good thing because it gets you right into the fight. What makes the game fun and challenging is that you have to beat the clock by securing historical objectives around the same time the marines took them in real life while keeping casualties down. Its replay value is low because once you figure out how to win your done unless you want to better your score. .I really liked the way each division had its own counter picture. Made it easy to keep your divisions together and in command and control. For me it was well worth the money.
• gamedeal user

  Apr 5, 2020

  Fun game that really show how tough Iwo was for the Marines.
• gamedeal user

  Apr 25, 2020

  A fun inde game but I think the price is too high. the price should be closer to $5 not $12
• gamedeal user

  Jun 7, 2020

  The game tends to crash on the movement phase sometimes after only moving 1 unit. Otherwise the game is fun and has potential.
• gamedeal user

  Jun 29, 2020

  Any game screws up when steam is involved, I HATE STEAM!!!