If you don’t know it already, and I’m sure that’s almost impossible, World in Conflict is another RTS with Americans and Russians. Before you start getting crazy ideas, let me assure you that this one is a masterpiece. And the only rival it has at the moment could be Company of Heroes.
World in Conflict has a very interesting story. In an alternate history, in 1989, the Soviet Union decided that the World belongs to them and they continued Hitler’s job: conquering the world. So they start by invading Europe. As always, the brave Americans help their French allies and manage to give a coup-de-grace to the Soviet. And this is where it begins. The rest will be unveiled in a beautiful story which I will let you taste, drop by drop. You’ll play the part of Lieutenant Parker as you visit France, Germany, Norway and of course USA. Get your gear soldier as the enemy will have no mercy! They give us Hell!
The guys at Massive did an excellent job in imprinting the game a special, unique print. Inspired by the 1984’ Red Dawn, with the help of Larry Bond, co-author of Tom Clancy's novel Red Storm Rising, the game gives you a very patriotic and warring atmosphere.
World in Conflict follows the Company of Heroes recipe. You won’t need to build bases, troops and such. You will have to fight to get them. Instead of commanding hundreds of troops, you will be given a hand of units that will have to manage the impossible. You will have your orders, sometimes even crazy orders, but we all know that war is crazy, and we all know what you must complete in order to save the day.
Your mission will rely most of the time on capturing and holding strategic points. This will eliminate the base management, allowing you to concentrate on the battlefield. With the management out, you are left with no option but to kick ass, ensuring a game full of adrenaline, with furious attacks by both sides, leaving you no choice but to give your best and survive the slaughter. With each point conquered and kept, your reinforcement and tactical aid points will receive a boost, allowing you to keep on the carnage on the battlefield. 
{pagebreak}You are given a number of reinforcement points that you can spend on units. Each unit has its own number of points that are subtracted when you call the reinforcements. You will have at your disposal units ranging from armor, infantry, air and support. Each unit has its own abilities, making them very powerful if played right. You’ll be able to control weapons of destructions like heavy tanks, heavy helicopters, heavy artillery and of course bad ass soldiers ready to bust up tanks and take out enemy infantry and helicopters. 
Another amazing feature is the tactical aid. Depending how well you play and if you are a team player, you will receive tactical aid points. You can spend these on receiving additional reinforcements or delivering hell on earth upon the enemies. Heavy artillery barrage, carpet bombing, napalm for those bastard soldiers hidden in the forest harassing your troops or the mother of all damage, the Nuke. Launching a nuke at the right time will mean most of the time end of game for your opponents. 
In order to play as a team, you will need to talk with your team. If you own a microphone, you will be able to use the in-game chat feature. If you don’t own a mike, don’t worry. It’s all covered. By pressing the “K” key, you will receive a small semi-transparent interface that will allow you to use a series of commands. If you need air support, artillery to take out a certain point on the map, tactical aid or whatever you want, it’s all there. You will win only if you and your mates play as a team. And if you consider that the intense game doesn’t give you too much time for chitchat, you will have to master it.
The beauty of World in Conflict will remain as always the multiplayer. Up to 16 players can play on each of the 21 maps available. If you prefer to play in local network, alone, you can play with bots. Up to 15 bots can be set to play and if you choose advanced mode, you can set up the games as you want, which bots you want, how smart, what weapon should they use, etc., allowing you to play the map as you want it.
{pagebreak}On the Internet, you can play against human opponents; you can be part of a clan, the same as in Battlefield. Using Massgate, the official online portal for World in Conflict, is a breeze and allows you to take part in online matches, set up clans and chat with other players. Considering the amount of players that took part on the Beta, you will surely find a game ready and a chance to prove yourself.
Massive managed to create a fully destructive environment. Each bomb that hits the ground will leave a mark; each shell that explodes will leave a crater. After you release a nuclear missile and the smoke disappears, a big crater will remain at the impact point. The craters on the ground will have a huge impact as your units will be unable to shoot from that position and will have to climb in order to get into combat. You can also use it to duck from enemy fire if you feel the need. The buildings that will get hit look pretty realistic, with pieces of concrete flying all over, collapsing into a cloud of smoke in the end.
Besides the ground, the rest of the environment looks pretty cool. The trees, the foliage looks damn realistic, the clouds look like in real life, each forming and dying, with rays coming from the clouds, an effect that brings a unique feeling, everything forming a palette that sometimes takes your breath away and almost forces you to take your time and admire the view. 
The voice acting and the musical score are beyond what we would expect in a RTS game. Each mission unfolds the talent of Alec Baldwin as he narrates how the war is being fought, remaining emotionally perfect throughout. His thoughts are very deep, spine chilling but at the same time heartwarming, almost pushing you to the limit of being Lieutenant Parker. Philippe Bergeron, Dmitri Boudrine and Michael Boyd all did their best in their roles, creating a very beautiful story.{pagebreak}
Gameplay: 94
World in Conflict brings you a very dynamic, full of adrenaline piece of WW2 RTS game. They managed to create something that will probably be a new standard for the future RTS games.
Graphics: 93
The game looks amazing. If I were to resume, World in Conflict is a very appealing, accessible and highly polished package. With the addition of DX10 features, the game gives everything you would want from a RTS game. Lots of polished cinematics sure do their trick.
Sound: 91
The help of Alec Baldwin, Philippe Bergeron, Dmitri Boudrine and Michael Boyd brought something special to the game. In addition, the musical score is very well done, creating that intense feeling that you are actually on a battlefield.
Multiplayer: 93
Played on LAN or over the Internet, you will experience that thrill that haunts you from the campaign. Implementing the medals and all that Battlefield touch, the multiplayer is very competitive, pushing you to do your best in every game.
Hardware: 90
World in Conflict is pretty demanding. It gives you everything you want depending on what you give it. If you own a powerful computer, you will benefit from an amazing graphics. If you only meet the minimum specs, you will miss some candies but will still enjoy a very good game.