First, the upside. Super Power 2 is a game of deep data and detail. Make no mistake there is a ton of information available about nearly everything. Just the selection of maps available to the player are really impressive.
Super Power 2 is a menu driven game that is based on a globe. The globe is quite cool as it is the primary interface for most of the interaction of the game. Right click anywhere on the map and you get a context menu that presents data options for you selection or a list of globe overlays to present different types of data, such as weather patterns, colored zones of military might, etc. This data isn’t just for show either. Pop on the map that shows political influence and you can see by the color codes which countries have the most global clout and exactly whose butt to kiss.
Another cool feature of the globe is the ability to zoom into the terrain. And I mean way into the terrain. From the furthest global view, you can start zooming in on a specified location. The more you zoom in, the more details are revealed until eventually you see roads, cities, lakes and other waterways appear. The globe really does have great detail.
From the globe you can also select and move any military unit anywhere on the globe. Of course the game won’t let you drop a thousand tanks into the middle of the pacific, but you get the idea. Once a unit is selected to move the game prompts you to confirm you want to attack the current target (assuming you moved a military unit onto a neutral or friendly country), or the unit simply changes position. However, the unit must first be mobilized to move and this can take a bit of time. You see, just as in the real world, a unit that has not been mobilized is much cheaper to maintain, but not less effective once combat is joined. Active units are considerably more expensive, so do yourself a favor and make the bulk of your armed forced reservists unless you’re actively attacking or defending.
Like most global domination games, Super Power 2 encompasses three disciplines, Military, Politics and Economics. Of course, victory conditions can be set on each of these three disciplines as well. After all, there is more than one way to take over the world.
The military units are quite good. Because the game is based on real world data, each country has the real world arsenal at their disposal. The United States has the Apache attack helicopter and the M1 Abrams tank, the Russians have the Migs and T series tanks, etc. Not only can you build out the military the way you want it. But you can also create new military units. Building tanks was my favorite. I decided I needed some quick strike vehicles and some juggernaught. First you select the track type. In general the track type doesn’t mean much but it helps the unit look uniquely yours. Then you select the hull type. And finally you select a barrel type. Now you can select how heavily armored your vehicle is, how big the main gun is, how fast it will be, etc. But only up to the level of your current research. As your technology increases, so too can your units. For my purposes I selected a lightly armored, fast attack design with a really big gun, and a second design with all the trimmings…which basically made it an M1 Abrams tank but at least it was uniquely mine.
Now for the downside. This game is fat. So fat it can often be tedious. Navigating through menus and windows trying to find important information or to see if a bit of research has any real meaning.
There is a ton of information available. Good, solid, important data…that is all to often irrelevant. In many instances, such as scenario play, all the extra data and steps a player has to wade through is simply annoying. In fact, it got to be so annoying that I skipped some of the cooler features (like being able to design custom military units) because I found everything else too tedious.
On a side note, I also have to question the authenticity of at least some of the data. For instance, you can buy a CH-47 Chinook helicopter for about six million dollars per unit. While I cannot speak with any real authority on this matter I can say that I have some personal experience with this particular aircraft and the price tag on of these flying busses is closer to sixteen million per bird. That’s about ten million more than Super Power 2 has them listed at. It doesn’t really mean anything in the grand scheme of the game, but it raises some interesting questions.
For a game that is primarily window driven, the usability of the windows leaves a lot to be desired. Sometimes you needed a double click, sometimes you needed a single click, sometimes it’s a right mouse click and selection from a context menu. A little more consistency in the interface would have been nice but overall it wasn’t that tough to work with.
