PBS VS BSC WAR: PBS VS BSC - 29/06/2025 20:30

[Cornstar]

Just wondering if any of you ever played WW II Online back in the days? It seems to still exist on steam, in early access, yet released in 2001 :-). I played it between 2007 and 2010 I think.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/251950/WWII_Online/

I used to play this game with a small British clan, 40 Commando and we solely played allied, and HLL is the first game since that has given me the same feel of excitement, cooperation & fun. HLL feels like the spiritual successor to WW II Online to me. There’s a couple of things that I still find missing in HLL though that worked well in WW II Online (and obviously some things that HLL is way better at).

Things I miss in HLL

1. a persistent larger campaign map (half sized Europe) on which a war was fought over a couple of weeks / months. Always exciting to jump into a larger war. The map also made it possible to ambush resupplies and tanks being moved to the front. For HLL this could be stringed together maps for Normandy maybe, but I guess this is not something HLL could emulate.
2. Game had a complete meta air game with strategic bombing of Germany, several types of aircraft, paradrops, AA, etc. I’ve spend hours as a tailgunner in a bomber, just talking bollocks while bombing the Ruhr industry to bits, good times. would not fit HLL i think.
3. Paradropping with planes filled with 20+ soldiers, the chaos on the ground after a drop, 10x better than these airheads.
4. Game had small gunboats, but this never felt realistic, would not fit HLL
5. Game had clans dedicated to playing one side of the war, this puzzles me still in HLL, we are fighting our PBS mates playing on the other side of the same server. This makes the immersion a bit less in HLL. Adding russians and what not makes it impossible to have dedicated clans. I played BEF most of the time, I was one with my Lee Enfield… god i miss it :-).
6. Mobile spawn points, just in time to make this point since HLL will have it soon enough, makes finding an enemy truck way more exciting, and it feels like it makes more sense. Chance to build defenses around a mobile spawn, place them strategically, etc., will be a great addition.

What makes HLL the better game

1. Map design, almost every corner of the map is a sight to behold. Well, except Stalingrad because everything is broken there.
2. Graphics, graphics graphics… really, look at the steampage, it’s so sad to see.
3. Developers that develop. WW II Online had slow development, like glacier like. Hardly any fresh content throughout the years. They used their own engine, and it shows. Apparently they’re making a new game on the Unity engine. After 20 (twenty!) years…
4. The concept of tiered linked comms is great.
5. The variation in maps with changing strongpoints
6. Buildable defenses!

All in all the games are fairly similar in most other aspects though, I guess WW II online was a bit ahead of its time in some aspects. Almost pulled of the integral war with air, tanks, infantry, resupply, production, the works, but in the end their engine held them back I think. Surprised they still exist to be honest.

Well… that’s a very convoluted way of asking if anywone used to play WW II Online… oh well 🙂

 

 

 

[FourWindBadger]

Yeah i use to play it a lot, just got tired of having to pay to get the more advanced units ^^ also i sucked at it! But beside that its really fun and really advanced, there haven’t been any game i have died so much in as this or traveled as far as i have in this (i once spend over an hour driving in a truck to get behind the enemy) xD

 

but it has a great community!

[Cornstar]

FourWindBadger wrote:

Yeah i use to play it a lot, just got tired of having to pay to get the more advanced units ^^ also i sucked at it! But beside that its really fun and really advanced, there haven’t been any game i have died so much in as this or traveled as far as i have in this (i once spend over an hour driving in a truck to get behind the enemy) xD but it has a great community!

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I think the paying extra for advanced units was after I quit, I paid a monthly subscription I think. I do remember the long long drives indeed, great banter makes up for it I guess!

[Powerbits]

Dont know the game but having played many WW2 games in the past with PBS, ofcourse there can be more stuff added.

One thing i find better then MMO is servers.  Servers provide the clan/community to create a world without cheaters or as less as possible.

Something many tripple A games these days and MMO cant assure.

[Cornstar]

Powerbits wrote:

Dont know the game but having played many WW2 games in the past with PBS, ofcourse there can be more stuff added.

Not worth considering to be honest for PBS, it’s a dead/dying game. Just wanted to point out the merits of this seminal piece of junk :-).

[FourWindBadger]

Powerbits wrote:

Dont know the game but having played many WW2 games in the past with PBS, ofcourse there can be more stuff added. One thing i find better then MMO is servers. Servers provide the clan/community to create a world without cheaters or as less as possible. Something many tripple A games these days and MMO cant assure.

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Basically its a 1/2 scale map of Western Europe, but im not gonna go as far as  Cornstar and say its a dead game.

 

It just requires a rather specific type of person to play it

 

[FourWindBadger]

Cornstar wrote:

FourWindBadger wrote:

Yeah i use to play it a lot, just got tired of having to pay to get the more advanced units ^^ also i sucked at it! But beside that its really fun and really advanced, there haven’t been any game i have died so much in as this or traveled as far as i have in this (i once spend over an hour driving in a truck to get behind the enemy) xD but it has a great community!

Quote

I think the paying extra for advanced units was after I quit, I paid a monthly subscription I think. I do remember the long long drives indeed, great banter makes up for it I guess!

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I played when it requires a subscription and then after as well ^^

[Cornstar]

Powerbits wrote:

Basically its a 1/2 scale map of Western Europe, but im not gonna go as far as  Cornstar and say its a dead game.   It just requires a rather specific type of person to play it

In all fairness, I haven’t launched the game in ages so me saying it’s a dead game is a bit presumptuous :-). The post wasn’t aimed at suggesting it for PBS, I still hope HLL will take some more pointers from WWII online!

[Author]

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