Gary Grigsby’s Eagle Day to Bombing the Reich is a turn-based strategy attempting to faithfully recreate bombing raids over Germany performed by the Allies during World War II. The game was prepared by Talonsoft, a studio specializing in this type of releases, with notable mentions in form of Battle of Britain and 12 O'Clock High: Bombing the Reich, which served as inspiration for Eagle Day. The game mixes the mechanics of the two titles, but with a lot of new elements and upgrades.
Mechanics
The creators wanted to realistically portray the whole background of bombing raids conducted by the Allies. For this reason, the game contains an incredibly rich database of over 18 thousand historical pilots. The game supplies much more interesting details and information – we can now learn the exact number of deceased pilots, destroyed objects, or shot down planes during one encounter. Gary Grigsby’s Eagle Day to Bombing the Reich utilizes a turn-based system, with one turn representing one day.
Aside from the said novelties and modifications, the game now contains more units, plane models, locations, and nationalities taking part in the conflict (e.g. Brazil, USSR). The system of gateways has been reworked, resulting in more optimal flying routes. The dogfights have reached a new plane of realism by introducing mechanics of altitude, fuel usage, or the specifics of bombers. This is one of the more difficult Talonsoft titles, thanks to improvements to pilots’ AI.
Technical Aspects
Visuals are satisfying, considering the genre. Battlefields are shown as two-dimensional maps, with simplified icons representing individual units. Panels and statistics are very streamlined, and as a result – legible, which is important considering that the game is a very complicated strategy. A two-player mode is an interesting addition, considering the nature of the title.
