"Strategic Command strikes an excellent balance between realism and playability. A WWII European theatre scope game can easily get bogged down with details, making micromanaging and playing a headache. Some folks like that; others prefer a game that compromises on detail in favor of something that is fun to play. SC focuses on the latter, yet still wonderfully captures the feel of WWII from a strategic perspective -- the German blitzkreigs in Poland, Denmark, the low countries (if the gamerstemple reviewer took more than 1 turn to take Antwerp, it was because of poor tactics) France and Russia in '41; the war of attrition in Russia in the later years; and, if the Germans do not capture enough strategic resources, the growing mass of allied forces, leading inevitably to the invasion in France and collapse of the Wermacht against the overwhelming Russian hordes.

The mechanics of the user friendliness is excellent. You almost don't need to read the manual to play -- though you will want to develop the tactical skill to play the game effectively. Click on a unit and its movement options are highlighted. Use of ground, navy, and air forces are simply matters done with minimal clicking. Necessary menus are easily accessible. There is no stacking, and therefore no wading through piles of units to determine what your forces are. And while this is a strategic level game, proper use of tactics is critical -- use of natural defenses, the right mix of units, and air power in the proper tactics is critical to success. If you don't hit hard and with sufficient supporting forces, well, it might take you several turns to take Antwerp.

The game accomplishes this feat of capturing the feel of WWII with an enormous breadth of strategic options. As the Germans, conquering various minor builds economic power, but at the expense of inducing Russia or the US to engage earlier. The technological race can be critical. The determination of which units to produce will affect your strategic options and success on the ground. And there are the strategic choices -- Should you try to take Egypt? Greece? Sweden? Spain? As the Allies, should you commit the navy to the Mediterranean? Concentrate on a mediterranean strategy or build your forces for an earlier invasion of France?

It is not without faults - the strategic submarine warfare aspect of WWII is not well implemented because submarines are too easily spotted, making them almost worthless. But it is a wonderfully fun game to play. You can fight WWII in a couple of nights. The AI is pretty competent, although it will eventually be mastered. But it is a great game for PBEM (or you can play in real time over the internet) and I have enjoyed many struggles to conquer the world (or prevent that from happening) with other players, who can be found at various SC fan sites.

If historical detail -- along with the micromanagement of that detail, is what appeals to you, you might like something like Hearts of Iron better. But for a game that captures the strategic feel or WWII and is a blast to play is more in your line, SC is hard to beat.

Give it a 9, Excellent. " - Iriemon