A modern tactical wargame in Syria
Combat Mission Shock Force 2 puts you in a hypothetical conflict in Syria between NATO and the Syrian Army. You take command of US Stryker Brigade Combat Teams and Heavy Brigade Combat Teams fighting Syrian Infantry, Mechanized and Armored units in arid terrain. The fighting covers the full range of modern threats: irregular combat forces, terrorists, spies, suicide bombers and IEDs alongside conventional forces. You command at battalion and below scale, issuing orders to individual vehicles, teams and squads in a full 3D environment. Content includes the Task Force Thunder campaign, more than a dozen crafted battles, and Quick Battles where you buy your own force and pick a map from a wide selection.
Playing together
Missions can be run in Real Time or in WeGo, the hybrid turn-based mode the series has used for 20 years. In WeGo both players plan 60 seconds of combat, then watch both sides' commands play out simultaneously, and you can re-watch the turn afterward. Head-to-head play works over TCP/IP on a LAN or over the internet, and WeGo also supports play by email and hotseat on a single computer. Online PvP and Remote Play Together are available, so a group can either split into opposing commanders or watch along. The Quick Battle system lets players build custom forces and fight over their chosen battlefield, which makes for quick matchups between friends.
What to know before starting
This is a detailed simulation, so expect a learning curve rather than instant action. Every unit is modeled one-for-one with real-world physics, ballistics, armor and post-armor effects, and vehicle damage is tracked per sub-system. Weather, lighting and terrain genuinely affect how units and weapons perform, so the same fight plays differently across conditions. Fog of War is strict: each soldier has their own view of the battlefield through Relative Spotting, and Command and Control determines how information spreads, so what one unit sees is not automatically known to the rest. Soft factors like Morale, Experience and Leadership operate at the individual soldier level and shape how units behave under pressure. A full editor for maps, scenarios and campaigns is included for building your own content.