Don’t worry—War Front: Turning Point isn’t just another World War II real-time strategy game. With crazy weapons, unusual units, and an alternate history that’ll make your head spin, CDV’s magnum opus takes a distinctly different approach than the company’s serious strategic simulations. Spending time with a nearly final build of the game, we’re pleased that War Front: Turning Point manages to mix up the strategy formula up just enough to keep things interesting, while keeping quality high.

War Front follows the events of an alternate history in which the Second World War never ended. After the assassination of Adolf Hitler, Germany undergoes a shift that results in the perpetuation of hostilities. A Soviet advance from the east prompts the Allies to team up with Germany to beat them back. This unusual turn of events unravels between the game’s two single player campaigns, one from the perspective of the Americans and the second as the Germans. While we’ve only spent a limited amount of time with the campaign, the tactically-oriented missions seem challenging; moreover, they’re pretty intriguing: the American campaign starts with the liberation of London, while the German campaign kicks off with the assassination of Hitler.

Like any real-time strategy game, winning demands constructing a base, raising an army, and advancing your technology. Fortunately, you only have to concern yourself with two basic resources: supplies and power. Supplies, which act as currency for buying units and constructing buildings, can be gathered by trucks from mines and oil deposits. Power only comes from power plants that supply energy to your structures. With these two resources at your disposal, you can commence construction of vital buildings such as a barracks, tank factory, airport, etc.

Unlocking new units and improving your structures requires advancing your technology. There are three tech levels, each increasing in cost and offering incrementally better upgrades and units. Advancing is as easy as selecting your base and spending the necessary supplies. Between tech levels you can research individual technologies that provide specific benefits. Basic technologies, like the ability for infantry to capture buildings or increased energy output for power plants, are shared by all three factions; although unique technologies are available that cater to each faction’s strengths. Selecting technologies that complement your strategy will certainly be important as you progress through the campaign, but it’s integral when engaging in multiplayer battles.

You’ll be able to engage in multiplayer skirmishes via LAN or online with up to ten players. Over a dozen maps will ship with the final game, varying in size to accommodate matches as small as 1v1 up to whopping 5v5 clashes. Three factions are available in multiplayer, each of which we explored in separate skirmishes: Americans, Germans, and Soviets. Knowing the strengths and weaknesses of each faction is vital in not just engaging your opponents in combat, but simply surviving. The Americans possesses a strong air force with different types of bombers that can make short work of enemy encampments. With the ability to quickly climb the tech ladder, the Germans can access advanced units sooner than the Americans and Soviets; additionally, sturdy defenses make penetrating German bases difficult. Unlike the tech-savvy Germans, the Soviets take forever to advance the tech ladder, but have immediate access to strong units.

Tactical differences among the factions are complemented by unique units. The mobile Force Shield Generator and Earthquake Bomb available to the Americans make them a formidable foe; but, the Germans and Soviets have plenty of firepower with which to fight back. Exoskeletons, which resemble mechs, and Sonic Tanks top the German arsenal, whereas the Soviet Ice Spitter, capable of freezing units solid, and massive Super Turret give the Red army more than enough force. In addition to these units, each faction possesses three heroes that can be summoned that act as commanders on the battlefield. Heroes offer bonuses such as increased defense and gain experience as they engage in battle. Attention has clearly been given to balance factional strengths and weakness; as a result, multiplayer is not only fairly balanced, but pretty entertaining thanks to distinct differences among the three factions.