First impression is I like the game. It's fast and deadly, which is good in my opinion. Games won't drag out forever.
We only played with the 'basic' (CCM) rules , no advanced (ACM) rules were used, like Op Fire and Suppression. I think they will add a lot to the game's tactics. Any negatives I have will probably be alleviated by the advanced rules.
Couple things I liked
1. no point values to worry about. Just pick 5 guys and fight. Makes building armies easy.
2. The models are very nice
3. Small play area (2'x3') means fast games, limited terrain needed
4. I like the armor checks, so even if your weapon has no chance to wound, you could still cause an armor malfunction. I also like that armor failures make you immobile (-2MP, which for most models is immobile)
5. I like the Snap to Cover (S2C) rule, and I like that you can do it any any point in your activation
6. I like that you can only fire OR move (special rules aside). This didn't really comeinto play in our game though, as we got into position and sisn't really move anyway.
7. The learning curve on this game seems is steep than Infinity. It's a better system for a new player to learn.
Couple things that bugged me.
1. There are not a lot of choices currently for constructing your 'army'. Each faction has 6 unique models, and you get to pick 5 to fight with. I know more are coming (another 4 for each faction), so that will open up more choice.
2. The battle seemed a bit stagnant. We got into position, and ther really wasn't any reason to move around further. At that point it came down to who could roll dice better. With the advanced rules that may help, not sure till I try them
3. The rules are straight forward enough, but each character has it's own set of abilities which you will need to learn, not only for your army but for the other factions as well.
4. The weapon damage and armor ranges seem too limited. Armor is rated 1-4, same with weapons. a 1-6 range may have provided a bit more of a dynamic feel
5. I'm not a fan of single d10 combat resolution. I don't like it in Anima Tactics, and I don't like it here. There is no bell curve with a single die, so the only way to have any kind of odds is to throw more dice. Unfortunately, most attacks are limited to 2-3 dice max. There are a few 4 dice attacks, but there are even more 1 die attacks.
I'm sure there are other things, but overall I liked the game. I think Infinity is a better system, with more depth of play, but it is also much hearder to teach a new player, and there are way too many choices for building your army in Infinity. It's really not new player friendly.
I played the KemVar last night, and I still like them. I want to try the CCC next, and maybe Texico.
Thanks,
