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Navy Field 2

Navy Field 2 is an MMORTS featuring ships from WWI and WWII. Command an array of naval warships on massive maps and tactically sink your enemies, earning experience to unlock new ships and improving your crew’s skills.

Publisher: SDEnterNet
Playerbase: Low
Type: MMORTS
Release Date: March 05, 2015
Shut Down Date: December, 27 2017
Pros: +RPG-stylized stat accumulation. +Huge arsenal of ships to command. +Four nations to choose from.
Cons: -Limited game modes. -Imbalanced matchmaking. -Late-game grind

Overview

Navy Field 2 Overview

Navy Field 2 is an MMORTS where player set sail for ocean-sized maps and fight enemies using artillery, planes, torpedoes, and more to gain supremacy of the seas. An overhead view lends to tactical warfare as you line up shots, predicting the trajectory of enemy movements to sink their ship. Command vessels from four mid-20th Century nations, deployed in WWI and WWII, with an extensive tech tree featuring various types of naval warships. Research vessels from aircraft carriers to submarines, with over 100 ships to bring under your command. Improve your ships durability and firepower by researching and upgrading modules. As you play you and your crew accumulate experience that translates into increased stats and bonuses, such as faster reloading speed and increased anti-air attack. Battles are fast and fierce, ranging from 1v1 duels to epic fleet warfare.

Navy Field 2 Key Features:

  • Tactical Combat - an overhead, tactical camera view lets you carefully plan ship movements and line up artillery shots by predicting enemy’s trajectory.
  • 4 Nations - choose from four mid-20th century nations and captain their ships—the United States, Great Britain, Japan, and Germany.
  • Extensive Tech Tree - research and command over 100 ships, from battleships and light cruisers to submarines and aircraft carriers.
  • Captain & Crew Leveling - as you play your captain and crew level, accumulating increased stat bonuses, making them more efficient at wresting control of the seas.
  • Module Upgrades - improve your ships firepower, durability, and more by researching and equipping advanced modules to survive longer and dish out more damage.

Navy Field 2 Screenshots

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Navy Field 2 Featured Video

Navy Field 2 - Gameplay Trailer

Full Review

Navy Field 2 Review

By, Sean Sullivan

Who knew there was more than one naval warship game? After playing World of Warships I expected future modern iterations of arcade naval fighters, not realizing one already existed. Navy Field 2 avoids the FPS feel of its distant cousin; it takes a more RTS approach to naval warfare. While not perfect, it’s a rewarding experience, particularly in large fleet battles as combustible missiles light up the screen and enemy vessels drown in the seas. It’s a game met with equal amounts of praise and criticism, constantly compared to its older brother Navy Field. Does Navy Field 2 deserve to sink or swim?

WWII Graphics

Aesthetically, Navy Field 2 isn’t winning any awards, maybe a blue ribbon. It’s a top-down RTS stylized visual presentation, with simple texturally modeled ships. It does look like Matchbox Navy ships floating in an imaginative five-years-old’s bathtub. While not the sharpest appearance, it’s detailed enough for what it sets out to create, an intense, quick, naval combat game. Graphics mean nothing when I’m so occupied with the game’s game play mechanics I forget to appreciate them, until a thunderstorm rolls in—a mimesis of the battle on the seas.

Setting Sail

Depending on what ship you’re using there will be a variety of weapons to fusillade enemy vessels. Beginner ships have one: artillery. By pressing the weapons corresponding number, “1,” you select it and then use left-click to line up the shot. Two hot-green lines indicate where your cannons will be hurtling the oversized missiles, and left-click must be held to line up the shot. Two crosshairs will appear, indicating where your artillery is attempting to aim. But there is some RNG and you’re not guaranteed to hit the bullseye. As you fire away you use “W” and “S” control your ships speed, while “Q” and “E” can be used to turn. But I found myself right-clicking to navigate more than using the keyboard, setting up waypoints to focus on firing on enemy ships. Dragging your cursor to the screen, or using the arrow keys, will shift the camera anywhere on the field of battle. And you’ll be moving it quite a bit, keeping an eye on enemy movements and ensure no sneaky submarines are flanking your fleet.

Where’s The Life Raft?

Due to the low population finding a battle isn’t instantaneous, but it’s also not comparable to finding a PUG group as a DPS in Final Fantasy XIV. Matchmaking is broken into two tiers, with everyone up to rank IV grouped together while higher ranks fight in the big kid's lot. Therefore, you’re matched with all types of ships whether they be battleships, submarines, or cruisers. And larger battles are fast-paced and brutal. Not only will artillery explode around you in a firestorm, but torpedoes pose a nuanced threat, sneaking up on your hull until “Torpedoes Incoming” flashes red on your screen. Combat quickly becomes hectic, and teams that scatter to the seas end up decorating the coral below.

Since artillery takes time to travel I tended to aim in front of my target, predicting their trajectory to form a direct hit. World of Warships has the same mechanic, but from a first-person perspective. In the same way you can fool enemies by moving spontaneously to keep your opponents guessing where you’re directing your vessel next. It’s an idealized strategy that only pays off in 1v1’s which happen every now and then, as the game eventually gives up on looking for a multiplayer match and settles for matching you with another player. One ridiculous match pitted my intrepid destroyer against a submarine, who guerrilla warfare’d me into a metal carcass.

The game shines in larger matches. One 11v11 was a fragfest maelstrom with ships on fire, sinking all around me, until one large battleship ripped through three-fourths of my health in a decimating barrage. Matchmaking is imbalanced, in part due to the small community. If matches were limited to sectioned ranks, no one would play the game as matches would be too small. It would suffer from the World of Warplanes disease, and quickly sink to the bottom of the sea. But because you earn experience fast early on I see no issue with being matched against stronger ships, and it makes battles more interesting. However, late game you will be overwhelmed by powerful veteran ships. It’s an issue that’s difficult to rectify, again due to the small player base.

One Gauss Rifle Please

After my ship sank into the Mariana Trench on more than one occasion I decided to use my accumulated credits to purchase some new modules. Every ship has categorical areas to be improved, such as hulls, artillery cannons, compasses, etc. By spending experience, earned from participating in battles, you can upgrade your modules to dish out more firepower and endure more damage.

Beyond ship upgrades, you can also recruit officers to support aspects of your ship—weapons, support, special, and more (the Riker, La Forge, and Data, to Picard). It’s a neat mechanic, that realistically fits the game’s world. The only issue is that buying new officers requires purchasing gold, the in-game currency at $5 for 625 gold—enough to purchase two officers. But your starting officers do level, and have their own set of stats that can be upgraded by using credits to purchase training courses for them, like “How To Use Artillery For Dummies.” They earn ability points in an RPG fashion, that can be applied to their areas of specialty. For Peggy, my weapons officer, I increased her proficiency in “Rapid Fire,” and “Accuracy.” Whereas my support officer Kyle learned better maintenance and engine management.

Officers add a micromanagement portion to the game, a rewarding layer of investment after a match. Your Captain also levels up, accumulating experience and skill points to be doled out in spheres of command. I elected to throw points into my weaponry to more efficiently pew pew enemies into oblivion. With enough points invested, you unlock additional officer slots, increasing your bureaucratic efficiency.

To Battle… With Science

Following in the tradition of, seemingly, every military vehicle based game in existence, there are tech trees to be researched and acquired (why reinvent the Kung-Fu movie?). I applaud SDEnterNet for at least turning the Tech Tree on its side, unlike Wargaming and Gaijin Entertainment who seem to copy each other’s templates like two clueless students in high-school calculus. As in other similarly stylized games you first upgrade your ship's modules before unlocking the next tier of ship. I’ve always appreciated this line of progression, as you form a closer relationship with your vehicles, rather than dumping them for the next model (the Hugh Hefner strategy).

Experience is earned fast in Navy Field 2. Every battle, whether it’s a win or loss, allots enough experience that progression is readily apparent. Whereas in other relevant games, accumulating experience is droll and arduous, and feels like an artificial barrier to progression or an incentive to purchase in-game currency. But every battle I participated in, someone was leveling. Most of the time both my captain and crew leveled. And I accumulated enough ship experience to purchase new modules or unlock a new vessel. It provides a solid incentive to keep playing. Reward the dog with a biscuit and she’ll give paw all day long.

Gold For Guns

While Navy Field 2 does have an in-game currency, gold, it doesn’t seem to promote a pay-to-win strategy. All ships must be researched before they can be purchased; there are no exclusive gold-purchased vessels, nor modules or upgrades. Although you can purchase 100,000 credits with 1,000 gold, there’s little incentive to do so early on as you earn more credits than you can realistically spend. Many of the bonuses (experience and otherwise) that are purchased with gold, such as a Patriotism morale buff or an upgraded reloading system, last a specified amount of time, such as two days for modernized launcher. And this, along with cosmetics, seems like a fair model to me, as no one purchasable buff secures victory in its own right. Other gold purchased items are purely cosmetic, and don’t affect gameplay in anyway besides looking like the Fonze.

Final Verdict - Great

Navy Field 2 is overshadowed by World of Warships but its sail is strong enough to hold its own. An overhead camera and simple controls lend to tactical gameplay resulting in chaotic firefights. Experience quickly translates into new ships, upgrades, and a more proficient crew—providing an incentive to keep playing. While jumbled matchmaking and a small population may deter some, for those interested in free-to-play, pick-up stylized gameplay with some twists of its own go download Navy Field 2 for free.

Screenshots

Navy Field 2 Screenshots

Videos

Navy Field 2 Videos

Playlist: Navy Field 2

System Requirements

Navy Field 2 System Requirements

Minimum Requirements:

Operating System: Windows XP (SP3)
CPU: Core2 Duo or AMD Phenom II X2
Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GT or ATI Radeon HD3850
RAM: 2 GB
Hard Disk Space: 3 GB

Recommended Requirements:

Operating System: Windows XP (SP3)
CPU: Intel Core i5 or AMD Phenom II X4
Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTS 250 or ATE Radeon HD4850
RAM: 4 GB
Hard Disk Space: 3 GB

Music

Navy Field 2 Music & Soundtrack

Coming Soon!

Additional Info

Navy Field 2 Additional Information

Developer(s): SDEnterNet

Closed Beta: January 01, 2014
Korean Release: June 25, 2014

NA Closed Beta: April 10, 2013
Steam Release: March 05, 2015

Shut Down Date: December 27, 2017

Development History / Background:

Navy Field 2 was developed by South Korean based development team SDEnterNet. It is the sequel to the praised 2006 game Navy Field. Closed beta of the game began in January, 2014 followed by a South Korean full release in August, 2014. It was translated and released on Steam on March 05, 2015. Beyond the two Navy Field games, SdEnterNet has also developed the online flight shooter Bugs Rider Military casual game and the similarly stylized game Pearl Harbor. Navy Field shut down on December 27th, 2017.