14 DAY TRIAL // What we know: Wargame AirLand Battle is a military strategy game created by developer Eugen Systems and published by Focus Home Interactive, which aims to give players a taste of what combat between NATO and Russian forces would have looked like during the Cold War.
The developers are known for their realistic and immersive strategy titles and they want to give players all the hardware that countries in Western and Eastern Europe had access to at the time.
This means that there are more than 750 units to control on the battlefield, 150 of them being newly introduced planes that use a unique system for their attacks, based on lanes and resupply.
Wargame AirLand Battle will introduce a single-player campaign that focuses on the Northern part of a supposed Cold War going hot and there will also be new multiplayer options.
Each mission will have special assets and rules and will influence the rest of the experience, forcing the player to perform at its best at all times.
Gamers will be able to take charge of the improved IRISZOOM engine in order to zoom in close to the battle so that they can see units in action, but will also have the ability to zoom out in order to see the entire conflict as counters and make quick decisions.
Wargame AirLand Battle is set to arrive exclusively on the PC during 2013.
Why it matters: Wargame AirLand Battle is one of the most ambitious strategy video games of the year and could make the entire genre more interesting to mainstream gaming.
The IRISZOOM engine that Wargame AirLand Battle uses is impressive in itself and very flexible and as long as Eugen Systems introduces a solid tutorial, the game might be one of the revelations of the year.
The full Incoming 2013 series of articles can be read on Softpedia right here.