Dogs Of War Vu
Sim/Strategy/War => Games Discussion => Topic started by: Asid on October 01, 2020, 03:20:37 PM
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Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism is a (hi)story-driven turn-based strategy set in the WW2 period. It offers refined wargame mechanics, story-rich gameplay, and modern 3D graphics. Lead the USSR Armed forces staging the world Communist revolution. For Stalin! For the Motherland!
Steam (https://store.steampowered.com/app/1341170/Strategic_Mind_Spectre_of_Communism/)
Official forum (https://steamcommunity.com/app/1341170/discussions/)
YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/c/StarniGames/search?query=Strategic%20Mind%3A%20Spectre%20of%20Communism)
FREE Demo
Single-player
Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism | Announcement
https://youtu.be/cEGrDDG-ujo
About
A spectre is haunting Europe — the spectre of communism. (c) Karl Marx, The Communist Manifesto
Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism is a (hi)story-driven turn-based strategy set in the WW2 period. It offers refined wargame mechanics, story-rich gameplay, and modern 3D graphics. Lead the USSR Armed forces staging the world Communist revolution.
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/1341170/extras/unnamed.gif?t=1600672216)
The game has many historical operations and events but also features a number of alternate history moments. It is created with great care and attention to historical details by a team which is passionate about WW2 history. Watching cinematics before and after every operation you can almost feel that you are indeed a participant of the unfolding epochal events. Moreover, numerous primary and secondary objectives allow you to explore every battle in detail. The gameplay is plot-driven and features many historical personalities such as Joseph Stalin, Georgy Zhukov, Vyacheslav Molotov, Kliment Voroshilov, Lavrentiy Beria, Aleksandr Vasilevsky, Konstantin Rokossovsky and others.
Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism is the third installment in the Strategic Mind line of games. The first one - “Strategic Mind: The Pacific” - was about naval warfare during the Pacific War, while the second one - “Strategic Mind: Blitzkrieg” - was telling the story of the European theater from the German perspective. It is high time “Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism” tells the USSR story in WW2, a story filled with valiant hearts and vile betrayals. As a part of the Strategic Mind franchise, it will retain many features of the series along with adding new content and features to the existing variety.
Key features:
• Command ground, air, and naval forces with the emphasis on the land battles.
• Enjoy the modern 3D graphics brought by UE4 engine with detailed models of all the units, day/night cycle and weather effects.
• Upgrade and customize your troops by leveling them up and selecting skills that best suit your strategy.
• Provide your troops with additional equipment for each operation according to your strategy and the war theatre.
• Receive a number of awards throughout the game and get access to unique HQ skills, which you can learn to increase the efficiency and synergy of your troops.
• Acquire various new units out of 10 different classes. All units and equipment are available at the historically accurate time periods.
• Capture trophies and employ some of the enemy`s most advanced units against him in future battles.
• Explore various “what if’s” to see what could have happened if the Soviet Armed forces were to continue their struggle for the world Communist revolution.
• Immerse yourself into the story by watching over 60 minutes of cinematics, and listening to in-operation dialogues with full VO.
• Enjoy the benefits of our “no in-game purchases” policy.
• Feel the rising power of the World Communist Revolution and decide the fate of the European continent.
“Let the ruling classes tremble at a Communistic revolution. The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win.
Workingmen of all countries unite!” (c) Karl Marx, The Communist Manifesto
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Free Demo release today!
Sat, September 12, 2020
Play the Free Demo now
Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism | Gameplay Trailer
https://youtu.be/pc8_Y_ATB1U
Today, we release the Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism Demo. It will be free and contain the Battles of Khalkhin Gol operation. If you are looking forward to the game feel free to try out the first scenario.
We have also released a free Demo for Strategic Mind: Blitzkrieg yesterday. You or your friends can play the free Demo and take advantage of the 15% discount if you decide to purchase the game. Bear in mind, that the discount will end in just two days.
You can also watch the third episode of our cinematic series:
https://youtu.be/WbjGQaBECu4
Have a good weekend!
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Release date announcement!
Sun, 25 October 2020
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The cinematic trailer and release date reveal
Hello, guys! Today we are proud to reveal the cinematic trailer and the release date for Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism - 13 November 2020! Subtitles available:
https://youtu.be/OuG8x3IadnQ
An uphill battle
The pandemic has influenced the production process to a certain degree, but we were working really hard all this time to deliver the game according to our initial production plans. Finally, we can say with confidence that the game will be released on time.
Perfect memory
The release date is very close, so make sure you add the game to your Wishlist not to miss the release and the special Starni Games release celebration, which will be announced later.
Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism
13 Nov, 2020
Localization on release
We plan to have the game available in the following languages on the release: English (text + voice over), German (text), French (text), Simplified Chinese (text), Russian (text), Ukrainian (text).
News updates
We are sorry for the lack of updates recently. There was a force majeure situation for us, but now we are through and will keep you updated with pre-release new updates almost every day (every day if we can).
Developers Q&A
If you have any questions about the upcoming release - feel free to post them in the comment below. We will gather all of your questions over the next week and post a Developers Q&A with the answers.
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Historical personalities in Spectre of Communism p.1
Wed, 16 September
Georgy Zhukov
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There are things in Russia which are not as they seem. (c) Georgy Zhukov
Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov (Russian: Гео́ргий Константи́нович Жу́ков; 1 December 1896 – 18 June 1974) was a Soviet general and Marshal of the Soviet Union. Zhukov was considered the USSR’s “Best Commander” or “Marshall of Victory”. He has shown himself as an effective and competent military commander at all stages of WW2, and even before it, in the Battles of Khalkhin Gol.
If we come to a minefield, our infantry attacks exactly as it were not there. (c) Georgy Zhukov to General Eisenhower
Zhukov was later criticized for taking “unnecessary” or “excessive” losses, caused by poor tactics of just attacking German forces ceaselessly without any intricate maneuvers. However, it must be said that such criticism must be taken with a grain of salt. First, there were politics going on after the war, and he often was out of favor, so that could be one source of criticism. Secondly, virtually all Soviet Generals had high losses, so that could be said of the Red Army in general, not personally Zhukov. At least he won his battles. Thirdly, one has to be competent in military headquarters inner work and be aware of the exact situation to judge the soundness of Zhukov’s tactical moves. Nonetheless, Zhukov himself added fuel to the fire by his supposed bravado before Eisenhower, with all this minefields talk.
If you feel that the Chief of the General Staff talks only rubbish, my place is not here. Better to give me a command at the front where I can be of better use! (c) Georgy Zhukov to Stalin
Zhukov was stubborn, direct and even blunt. Although that caused troubles from him throughout the career, that was also the reason why Stalin respected him a lot. Oftentimes he would speak his mind to the Great Stalin himself directly and without hesitation. He was also very bossy and even rude with his inferiors, but that was probably understandable and did not go far from the Army standards of the time.
The mere existence of atomic weapons implies the possibility of their use. (c) Georgy Zhukov
After the war, Zhukov has quickly fallen out of favor. Most likely, Stalin feared his popularity and decided to move him to a totally insignificant posting in Odessa military district. That was a hard blow for Zhukov’s ego and morale. The official pretense was the “Trophy case”, the Zhukov indeed was too eager to get his hands on numerous wartime trophies.
After Stalin’s death, Zhukov helped Khrushchev to get to power and prevented a coup attempt by arresting long-time NKVD head Beria, who is rumored to be behind Stalin’s death. Later on, he prevented another coup and help Khrushchev once again to remain in power, only to be repaid in a similar manner to what the Stalin did: he was ostracized and sentenced to live his retirement in oblivion and under the torrent of unfavorable articles aimed at ruining his prestige. Yet, Zhukov endured and wrote quite extensive and truthful memoirs for heavily censored Soviet literature standards.
After Khrushchev lost his power, Zhukov got his prestige back and his memoirs played a key role and his redemption. They became a best-seller and brought him great fame.
Overall, he was a very dedicated and talented man and his reputation is well-deserved.
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New units in Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism | Part 1
Thu, 17 September
IS-2 heavy tank VS Tiger
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The next generation of USSR heavy tanks based on the KV-85 chassis, but fitted with a 122 mm L48 main gun. It had both thick armor and a powerful gun. So, not only it was hard to hit for the enemy tanks, but also had a very high chance of piercing the enemy armor.
The IS acronym is the anglicized initialism of Joseph Stalin (Ио́сиф Ста́лин, Iosif Stalin).
IS-2 heavy tank VS Tiger
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The German counterpart Tiger tanks had a more precise, although less powerful gun, and comparable armor with IS-2 being on the winning side (in terms of armor).
This model will become available before the Kursk battle, in 1943. (Half-way through the campaign)
We will keep posting new units that will appear for the first time in the Strategic Mind series, so stay tuned!
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Historical personalities in Spectre of Communism | P.2
Wed, 23 September
Lavrentiy Beria
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The enemies of the Soviet state calculate that the heavy loss we have borne will lead to disorder and confusion in our ranks. But their expectations are in vain: bitter disillusionment awaits them. He who is not blind sees that our party, during its difficult days, is closing its ranks still more closely, that it is united and unshakable.(c) Lavrentiy Beria
Disclaimer: This time we had to use the wiki text https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavrentiy_Beria , as in this case it was both very informative and well-written. Additionally, it touches on very sensitive matters, so we decided to leave it as is. All in-game characters are written in bold.
Lavrentiy Pavlovich Beria (/ˈbɛriə/; Russian: Лавре́нтий Па́влович Бе́рия, 17 March 1899 – 23 December 1953) was a Georgian Bolshevik and Soviet politician, Marshal of the Soviet Union and state security administrator, chief of the Soviet security, and chief of the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (NKVD) under Joseph Stalin during World War II, and promoted to deputy premier under Stalin from 1941.
Beria was the longest-lived and most influential of Stalin's secret police chiefs, wielding his most substantial influence during and after World War II. Following the Soviet invasion of Poland in 1939, he was responsible for organizing the Katyn massacre. He simultaneously administered vast sections of the Soviet state and acted as the de facto Marshal of the Soviet Union in command of NKVD field units responsible for barrier troops and Soviet partisan intelligence and sabotage operations on the Eastern Front during World War II. Beria administered the vast expansion of the Gulag labour camps, and was primarily responsible for overseeing the secret detention facilities for scientists and engineers known as sharashkas.
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Beria attended the Yalta Conference with Stalin, who introduced him to U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt as "our Himmler". After the war, he organized the communist takeover of the state institutions in central and eastern Europe and political repressions in these countries. Beria's uncompromising ruthlessness in his duties and skill at producing results culminated in his success in overseeing the Soviet atomic bomb project. Stalin gave it absolute priority, and the project was completed in under five years.
After Stalin's death in March 1953, Beria became the First Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers and head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. In this dual capacity, he formed a troika, alongside Georgy Malenkov and Vyacheslav Molotov, that briefly led the country in Stalin's place. A coup d'état by Nikita Khrushchev, with help from Marshal of the Soviet Union Georgy Zhukov in June 1953, removed Beria from power. He was arrested on charges of 357 counts of rape and treason. He was sentenced to death and was executed on 23 December 1953.
"Now it's not a bouquet, it's a wreath! May it rot on your grave!" (c) Lavrentiy Beria
At Beria's trial in 1953, it became known that he had committed numerous rapes during the years he was NKVD chief. Simon Sebag-Montefiore, a biographer of Stalin, concluded the information "reveals a sexual predator who used his power to indulge himself in obsessive depravity". After his death, charges of sexual abuse and rape were disputed by people close to him including his wife Nina and his son Sergo.
According to official testimony, in Soviet archives, of Colonel Rafael Semyonovich Sarkisov and Colonel Sardion Nikolaevich Nadaraia – two of Beria's bodyguards – on warm nights during the war Beria was often driven around Moscow in his limousine. He would point out young women to be taken to his mansion, where wine and a feast awaited them. After dining, Beria would take the women into his soundproofed office and rape them. Beria's bodyguards reported that their duties included handing each victim a flower bouquet as she left the house. Accepting it implied that the sex had been consensual; refusal would mean arrest. Sarkisov reported that after one woman rejected Beria's advances and ran out of his office, Sarkisov mistakenly handed her the flowers anyway. The enraged Beria declared, "Now it's not a bouquet, it's a wreath! May it rot on your grave!" The NKVD arrested the woman the next day.
"Scream or not, it doesn't matter." (c) Lavrentiy Beria
Women also submitted to Beria's sexual advances in exchange for the promise of freedom for imprisoned relatives. In one case, Beria picked up Tatiana Okunevskaya, a well-known Soviet actress, under the pretence of bringing her to perform for the Politburo. Instead he took her to his dacha, where he offered to free her father and grandmother from prison if she submitted. He then raped her, telling her: "Scream or not, it doesn't matter." In fact Beria knew that Okunevskaya's relatives had been executed months earlier. Okunevskaya was arrested shortly afterwards and sentenced to solitary confinement in the Gulag, which she survived.
Stalin expressed distrust of Beria. In one instance, when Stalin learned his daughter Svetlana was alone with Beria at his house, he telephoned her and told her to leave immediately. When Beria complimented Alexander Poskrebyshev's daughter on her beauty, Poskrebyshev quickly pulled her aside and instructed her, "Don't ever accept a lift from Beria." After taking an interest in Marshal of the Soviet Union Kliment Voroshilov's daughter-in-law during a party at their summer dacha, Beria shadowed their car closely all the way back to the Kremlin, terrifying Voroshilov's wife.
Before and during the war, Beria directed Sarkisov to keep a list of the names and phone numbers of his sexual encounters. Eventually, he ordered Sarkisov to destroy the list as a security risk, but Sarkisov retained a secret copy. When Beria's fall from power began, Sarkisov passed the list to Viktor Abakumov, the former wartime head of SMERSH and now chief of the MGB – the successor to the NKVD. Abakumov was already aggressively building a case against Beria. Stalin, who was also seeking to undermine Beria, was thrilled by the detailed records kept by Sarkisov, demanding: "Send me everything this asshole writes down!" Sarkisov reported that Beria had contracted syphilis during the war, for which he was secretly treated (a fact Beria later admitted during his interrogation). The Russian government acknowledged Sarkisov's handwritten list of Beria's victims in 2003; the victims' names will be released in 2028.
Evidence suggests that Beria murdered some of these women. In the mid 1990s, the skeletal remains of several young women were discovered in the garden of his Moscow villa (now the Tunisian Embassy). According to Martin Sixsmith, in a BBC documentary, "Beria spent his nights having teenagers abducted from the streets and brought here for him to rape. Those who resisted were strangled and buried in his wife's rose garden."
The testimony of Sarkisov and Nadaraia has been partially corroborated by Edward Ellis Smith, an American who served in the U.S. embassy in Moscow after the war. According to historian Amy Knight, "Smith noted that Beria's escapades were common knowledge among embassy personnel because his house was on the same street as a residence for Americans, and those who lived there saw girls brought to Beria's house late at night in a limousine."
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New units in Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism | Part 2
Thu, 24 September
Soviet Air Force: Fighters “La” and “Yak”
The Soviet Air Force modernization was just a bit behind the schedule. While there were plenty of advanced technologies and “know-how”s developed, a solid portion of which were bought in Germany, the mass production of the latest models was lagging behind the German rearmament.
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The new quite decent Yak-1 fighters were not available in mass in the frontline units on the fateful day of 22 June, while the LaGG 3 fighters had rather serious shortcomings and were inferior to their German counterparts. Because of its varnished wooden hull, the LaGG abbreviation (officially Lavochkin-Gorbunov-Gudkov — designers’ family names) was read by some pilots with dark irony as Guaranteed Varnished Coffin (has the same capitalization in Russian).
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One of the reasons behind the Soviet engineers’ failings was the infighting and political struggle between the KB’s (Engineering bureaus). The easiest way to get “your” aircraft mass-produced was to make the competing bureaus fail. Various tactics were employed: political lobbying, diversions during the test flights of new models, that in some cases led to ace pilots deaths, and so on, and so forth. Additionally, some talented engineers, who fell out of favor, were subject to forced labor in the special labor camps for scientists. That certainly cannot be called an inspiring working atmosphere…
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Despite all hurdles, by 1943 the Soviet aircraft technology had caught up with the German one. At the same time, USSR was churning many more aircraft in terms of raw numbers throughout the war. Thus, in 1943 Germany found itself heavily outmatched. The Soviet air force was much more numerous and featured comparable models, giving the Luftwaffe a very hard time.
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The later La-5 and La-7 models were big improvements on the promising albeit faulty LaGG-3 model. By correcting the existing issues, the engineers finally caught up with the German counterparts.
We will keep posting new units that will appear for the first time in the Strategic Mind series, so stay tuned!
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Spectre of Communism Saturday GIF
Sat, 26 September
The Reich's dusk
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New units in Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism | Part 3
Thu, 1 October
Rare Soviet prototype weapon: SU-14
The idea behind this heavy self-propelled gun was to create a self-propelled and armored version of the B-4 203-mm artillery pieces. Not only would this monstrosity have a larger caliber than any mass-produced artillery of the time, but also be self-propelled and have decent armor planting. In 1937 its development was reaching the final stages before entering mass production when the Chief Designer P. N. Siachyntov was arrested. He was soon sentenced to death and executed. The project was halted seemingly forever.
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Yet, the project was restarted after the outbreak of the Winter War.
The idea was to put the armor planting on the existing prototypes and use them in battles against Finland. However, by the time they were combat-ready, the war was over, and the SU-14 forgotten again.
It was brought up again in 1941 after the German invasion of the USSR and the 2 existing prototypes participated in the Battle of Moscow. They were not used afterward.
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In the Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism the player will be able to obtain 1 core unit of SU-14 if he completes one of the secondary objectives, during the Battle of Moscow. It is a really powerful and mobile unit. The Red Army is renowned for its large-caliber artillery pieces, but having one of these as an armored vehicle is even more imposing.
We will keep posting new units that will appear for the first time in the Strategic Mind series, so stay tuned!
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Historical personalities in Spectre of Communism | Part 3
Fri, 2 October
Kliment Voroshilov
Whoever can lift a rifle, should have one. (c) Kliment Voroshilov
Kliment Yefremovich Voroshilov, popularly known as Klim Voroshilov (4 February 1881 – 2 December 1969), was a prominent Soviet military officer and politician during the Stalin era. He was one of the original five Marshals of the Soviet Union (the highest military rank of the Soviet Union).
In the game: During the operation in Poland, Zhukov suggests remaining the captured “Smialy” Polish Armored train into “First Marshal” to appease Voroshilov if you complete one of the secondary objectives) First Marshal (Первый маршал) was a honorific name for the original five Marshals of the Soviet Union, used in songs, etc.
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In 1925-1940 Voroshilov was People’s Commissar for Defense (in modern terms: Minister of Defense). So, over 15 years he was responsible for expanding, modernizing and training the Red Army.
In the game: Voroshilov starts out as your superior. Historically, he lost his People’s Commissar position after the Winter War, afterward he still held various prominent positions in the Government. But in the game, he manages to cling to it for longer, due to the player (acting as Zhukov) being a bit more successful than it was historically.
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Many types of military vehicles were named after Voroshilov. The most renowned ones being KV-1 and KV-2, where KV stands for Klim Voroshilov. Additionally, his hometown was also named after him - Voroshilovgrad. Nowadays, it is a city of Luhansk in Ukraine.
In the game: The KV-1 and KV-2 tanks are present.
If we enjoy the benefits of peace, it is only because we have an excellent armed force and a fine socialist economy. Let us exert all efforts so that our further development may be strong and mighty, so that our numerous enemies may think well and long before they decide to attack our fatherland, and so that if they attack, they will quickly regret it. (c) Kliment Voroshilov
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Historical personalities in Spectre of Communism | Part 4
Wed, 7 October
Konstantin Rokossovsky
The German army is a machine, and machines can be broken! (c) Konstantin Rokossovsky
Konstantin Konstantinovich (Xaverevich) Rokossovsky (Polish: Konstanty Rokossowski; 21 December 1896 – 3 August 1968) was a Soviet and Polish officer who became Marshal of the Soviet Union, Marshal of Poland, and served as Poland's Defence Minister from 1949 until his removal in 1956 during the Polish October. He was among the most prominent Red Army commanders of World War II.
Rokossovsky got himself a reputation of Soviet most gallant commander, who cares for his troops, and for whom words honor and duty are not the empty words. He was calm, composed, and courteous with both his subordinates and superiors. His military talent and expertise are also highly acclaimed.
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In Russia, they say I'm a Pole, in Poland they call me Russian. (c) Konstantin Rokossovsky
He was born and brought up in Poland, his mother being Russian, and father a Pole. He was serving first in the Russian army during WW1, then in the Soviet one. It’s during his Soviet career he had to pretend he had no Polish father (hence made up patronymic “Konstantinovich”, Xaverevich being the real one), and was unrelated to a Rokossovsky noble family of his ancestors. Nonetheless, the highest authorities knew of it and did take it into consideration when they planned to appoint Rokossovsky. After the war, he was posted in Soviet Poland, where he did not live for 35 years, and the locals were considering him a Russian overseer. The ultimate irony.
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In 1937 during the Army purges, he was arrested and taken prisoner for almost 3 years. He was accused of being both a Polish and Japanese spy, based on the fresh testimony of a person 10 years after death.
According to Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Rokossovsky endured two mock shooting ceremonies where he was taken out at night by a firing squad, but then returned to prison. He was set free in 1940 when the lack of qualified General Staff became glaringly apparent. Despite all the hardships, he remained loyal to the Soviet state.
Rokossovsky was an imposing figure, tall, very good-looking, and well dressed; I understand he was a bachelor and was much admired by ladies. (c) Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery
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New units in Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism | Part #4
Fri, 9 October
Soviet Assault Guns SU-122 and SU-152
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In Strategic Mind: Blitzkrieg, we introduced new unit classes, one of them being the Assault guns. Now, we present to you the Soviet units of this class.
When Soviet troops met the German StuGs on the battlefield, the question of implementing similar design ideas was raised.
To minimize development and production time, as well as, minimize potential design issues, the T-34 tank chassis was picked for the new vehicle. The T-34 tanks have proven to be a very reliable and durable model, so picking their chassis for SU-122 was only logical. In the end, the Red Army got a powerful and mobile 122-mm Assault Gun.
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/83d25b94beed69f5313c197d443cb0b6f0a91672.png)
SU-152
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In addition to SU-122, a lager caliber Assult gun SU-152 was developed. It was mounted on a KV-1 chassis and had a 152-mm gun, as well as, thicker armor compared to SU-122.
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/37d456635d54609a5a6f9ec63e6a5ece2bfa3681.png)
The vehicle was designed as an Assault Gun, but it was often used as a heavy tank destroyer, dealing with Tiger tanks and other heavily armored targets quite efficiently. No wonder it was nicknamed Zveroboy ("Beast Slayer").
We will keep posting new units that will appear for the first time in the Strategic Mind series, so stay tuned!
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Historical personalities in Spectre of Communism | Part 5
Wed, 14 October
Vyacheslav Molotov
Life has improved, and now as never before the doors to a happy and cultured life for all the peoples of our Union stand wide open. (c) Vyacheslav Molotov (1930 speech)
Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov (real family name Skryabin) was a Soviet politician and diplomat, an Old Bolshevik, and a leading figure in the Soviet government from the 1920s, when he rose to power as a protégé of Joseph Stalin. Molotov served as Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars from 1930 to 1941, and as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1939 to 1949 and from 1953 to 1956. Skryabin took the pseudonym "Molotov", derived from the Russian word molot (sledgehammer) since he believed that the name had an "industrial" and "proletarian" ring to it.
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The trouble with free elections is that you never know how they are going to turn out.
(c) Vyacheslav Molotov (1954)
Molotov was the principal Soviet signatory of the German-Soviet non-aggression pact of 1939 (also known as the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact). He was also known for following a very aggressive and uncompromising politics, although it is hard to tell to which degree it was his own incentive and to which he followed Stalin’s vision. In 1939 he replaced Litvinov, who had a somewhat softer approach to foreign politics. "Molotov was always resentful of Litvinov's fluency in French, German and English, as he was distrustful of Litvinov's easy manner with foreigners. Never having lived abroad, Molotov always suspected that there was something impure and sinful in Litvinov's broad-mindedness and appreciation of Western civilization.”
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Ours is a righteous cause. The enemy shall be defeated. Victory will be ours. (c) Vyacheslav Molotov (Radio address to the Soviet People on June 22, 1941)
After the German attack on the Soviet Union on 22 June Molotov addressed the People of the Soviet Unit in a famous radio broadcast. This attack and the following disaster for the Red Army had left USSR no choice but to join forces with the Allies. Nonetheless, the Soviets remained very cautious and reserved in their relations with the Western powers, as they were considered ideological enemies, despite the temporary alliance. Up to WW2, the Soviet Union’s ultimate goal declared on numerous occasions was establishing World Communism. It is only after the war that they had to renounce such views and publicly declare, that they are content with building a happy and prosperous Communist country within its current borders.
There is no alternative to class struggle. (c) Vyacheslav Molotov
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New units in Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism | Part 5
Tue, 27 October
IS-3 and IS-4 tanks
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We have already talked about IS-2 (The IS acronym is the anglicized initialism of Joseph Stalin (Ио́сиф Ста́лин, Iosif Stalin) before. Now we will proceed to its successors. It had certain engineering novelties, such as the cone-shaped frontal part of the hull. The idea was to improve defense, but in fact, it made a production process more complicated and the effectiveness was questionable. So, in the next IS-4 model that change was reverted. Overall, IS-3 had more armor than its predecessor, making it one of the heaviest tanks of the time.
IS-4
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IS-4 had even more armor than IS-4. However, it turned out that additional planting had little effect: the guns that could not harm IS-3, still could not do it, but the guns that were able to penetrate IS-3 armor, could penetrate the reinforced planting of IS-4 as well. Combined with the growing power of top anti-tank guns, it was unrealistic to create an impenetrable tank in 1945. The reputation of KV tanks in 1941 as being nearly impossible to kill, was largely due to the fact that the German army lacked powerful anti-tank guns at the time.
The main armament of the IS-2, IS-3, and IS-4 tanks was a solid 122-mm gun D-25T.
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/0350c7b8d123b2c71548099ec2f7732c8cde7dd4.png)
We will keep posting new units that will appear for the first time in the Strategic Mind series, so stay tuned!
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Historical personalities in Spectre of Communism | Part 6
Fri, 30 October
Aleksandr Vasilevsky
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By seizing the formerly little-known Height 102.0 – the Mamayev Hill - the Red Army fought its way to the fascists' den – Berlin. We are proud to say that our victory in Stalingrad radically changed the whole situation in the Second World War. And this victory meant that our Motherland had withstood one of the most difficult tests in its history. (c) Aleksandr Vasilevsky
Summary
Aleksandr Mikhaylovich Vasilevsky was one of the best Soviet commanders over the course of WW2. One could argue who was the top commander, but officially, Vasilevsky was recognized as the number 2 commander after Zhukov - he was receiving all the top awards shortly after him. Additionally, he was arguably the best USSR strategist. His unofficial ranking as a number 2 commander made him most likely replacement for Zhukov, should he fall out of Stalin’s favor.
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Family
As a senior officer, Vasilevsky met frequently with Joseph Stalin. During one of these meetings, Stalin asked Vasilevsky about his family. Since Vasilevsky's father was a priest and thus a potential "enemy of the people", Vasilevsky said that he had ended his relationship with them in 1926. Stalin, surprised, suggested that he reestablish his family ties at once, and help his parents with whatever needs they might have.
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Visit to Germany in November 1940
Accompanied Molotov and the Soviet delegation in a diplomatic visit to Germany in November 1940 for negotiations. Many historians think that the German dissatisfaction with the results of the negotiations was one of the key factors that led to the German attack in June 1941.
A man who knew his job as he spent a long time commanding a regiment and who earned great respect from everybody. (c) Georgy Zhukov about Vasilevsky
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Weekly intelligence report #9
Mon, 2 November
Cinematic trailer, Release date, Starni release celebration
General!
Our ever-vigilant intelligence service summarized all the most important information for you in the weekly report. This top-secret data will allow you to gain a tactical edge during the upcoming release. As true secret service specialists, we will not mention any names - you know perfectly well what we are talking about.
New cinematic trailer was spotted
Our upcoming title recently got itself a new cinematic trailer:
https://youtu.be/OuG8x3IadnQ
New cinematic screenshots were obtained
Our agents got their hands on the new cinematic screenshots that will be added to the Store page soon. Be the first to have a look at them:
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/c6a91fc22a5ce820fb8cddd0788866ee1598ea89.jpg)
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/e6cc1a5eb6c2aec3813c8fb090fa575b3c32393c.jpg)
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Starni Games release celebration rumors
Our spies within Starni Games report that some discounts and new bundles are getting prepared for the upcoming release. We hope that in the next report our agents will uncover all the specifics.
Friday 13 November 2020
We look forward to the upcoming release and work really hard to get everything ready for it. Stay tuned for more information and content!
This is it for this week’s report.
Ever vigilant
Starni Games intelligence service
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10 days left! New units in Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism | Part 5
Tue, 3 November
MiG-9
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In Strategic Mind: Blitzkrieg we introduced the jet fighter planes by adding a German Me-262. This time around we are happy to add the Soviet MiG-9 jet fighter plane. It was introduced only after the end of the war. However, in Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism we have 3 alternate history operations in 1946, that allows us to give the stage to the first mass-produced Soviet jet plane.
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/57ad294f9c500faa8cda372368fadc7182fd11aa.png)
MiG-9 used a reversed engineered version of the German BMW 003 engine. Like every pioneer model, it had its flaws. For example, it suffered from persistent problems with engine flameouts when firing its guns at high altitudes due to gun gas ingestion. Yet, despite all the shortcomings, the model was moderately successful and established the future line of Soviet jet planes. Like any jet fighter, it was largely superior to the planes of older generations. Thus, having such a modern weapon at one’s disposal provided a huge tactical advantage.
We will keep posting new units that will appear for the first time in the Strategic Mind series, so stay tuned!
With best regards
Starni Games team
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9 days left. Developers' Diaries #5
Wed, 4 November
Undo feature, new music, and hilarious moments
Hello guys!
With the release fast approaching it’s time to recall some of the hilarious moments throughout the development and give you an update on how things are going.
The implementation of the “Undo” button
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Here is probably the most asked-for feature of the Strategic Mind Series - the “Undo” button.
We have been working hard on implementing this feature that is called to help players how miss clicked during the movement. Before starting to work on it, we asked the community its thoughts on how it should work in this thread.
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Summarizing the players’ feedback we got the following features of the Undo button:
1. It reverts the only movement.
2. It is ineligible if anything of the following happens:
• Any attack has happened (including overwatch etc)
• The objectives were affected
• The unit has embarked or disembarked
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The implementation was very tricky and gave us all sorts of headaches, like these:
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Or the button just randomly disappearing, when it was not supposed to…
Despite all the difficulties, we are on the finishing line right now, and the Undo button is finally ready for release.
Oh Fields, My Fields
One of the three community-supported tracks (by buying our soundtrack), is a historic one. Here is it for your listening pleasure:
https://youtu.be/7eWqqKlMRIg
Surprise
Recently we stumbled upon The Battle of Russia (1943) documentary film for the US military about the war in the USSR and guess what music plays there, performed by the US military orchestra?
Can you find a difference?
In one of our earlier posts there was a mistake in Beria’s uniform, that we later corrected.
Can you spot it at a glance?
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/34062974/95ab07de36d9e01f9a97980e2ece576d02030e60.jpg)
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/34062974/3c44115de3c3cef7f26a791a80a6317f7db43e90.png)
We will post the next issue of the Developers’ Diaries as soon as we can, so stay tuned.
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Historical personalities in Spectre of Communism | Part 7
Thu, 5 November
Joseph Stalin
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If you are afraid of wolves, keep out of the woods. (c) Joseph Stalin, 25 November 1936
A lot can be said about a prominent historic figure, like Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (real name: Ioseb Besarionis dzе Jughashvili). A lot of opinions exist on his deeds. Opinions may vary, but facts are facts.
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We are fifty or a hundred years behind the advanced countries. We must make good this distance in ten years. Either we do it, or they will crush us. (c) Joseph Stalin 1931
Stalin was a ruthless political leader, who took over from Lenin and ruled USSR with absolute power over almost 30 years. He was an intelligent person, with impeccable cold logic in his decision making. He was doing everything to grow the USSR’s power, territory, and influence to the best of his ability. Even more grand plans were nursed before the disastrous summer of 1941. His aim was to spread the communist state across the entire globe. Yet, his ruthless path to that goal resulted in millions of ruined people’s lives.
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Life has improved, comrades. Life has become more joyous. (c) Joseph Stalin, 17 November 1935
The radical measures both in the country’s economy, and its “internal affairs” led to mass executions, deportations, and imprisonments. The aim was to bend the country to his will and instill his absolute and undisputed power over the USSR. The Soviet Union was to become his personal finetuned instrument in establishing the new world order. It is no coincidence that the USSR coat of arms had the entire globe with no country borders on it.
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Education is a weapon whose effects depend on who holds it in his hands and at whom it is aimed. (c) Joseph Stalin, September 1937
Communist propaganda was the key instrument of Stalin’s regime. It used all sorts of tricks to make people work for the “greater good”. It also helped to locate the people with a more skeptical attitude and take preemptive measures against them. In most cases, they were sold out by the other people, who were more ardent believers, or sought personal benefits in “whistleblowing”.
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A sincere diplomat is like dry water or wooden iron. (c) Joseph Stalin, 1913
There are lots of controversies in terms of whether the harsh and often even inhumane decisions were a necessity or a folly. However, one thing is certain. If some of the modern people want to live under Stalin’s rule, most likely they have to learn history better.
The Communists base themselves on rich historical experience which teaches that obsolete classes do not voluntarily abandon the stage of history. (c) Joseph Stalin, 1934
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7 days left before the release
Fri, 6 November
New cinematic screenshot, Blitzkrieg on YouTube and Cinematic Series: Episode 9
Comrades are waiting for the Spectre of Communism release. Are you waiting for it as well?
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Hello, guys!
While, you are waiting for the Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism release, we offer you to take a look at Strategic Mind: Blitzkrieg gameplay by Night Phoenix. The Invasion of France is quite an eventful scenario with lots of things going on at the same time.
Strategic Mind: Blitzkrieg | Mission 04 | Invasion of France (1/2)
https://youtu.be/M8WI57GXF8M
Strategic Mind: Blitzkrieg | Mission 04 | Invasion of France (2/2)
https://youtu.be/vjXKyLFrXlg
Have a good weekend!
We also invite you to watch the latest episode of Blitzkrieg Cinematic Series our YouTube Channel. (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuanlWlol8gved2OQ0zsZvw?view_as=subscriber) Unfortunately, we can not provide you with a direct link to the episode of the series on YouTube. We apologize for this.
With best regards
Starni Games team
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6 days left! Saturday GIF #1
Sat, 7 November 2020
Demining ... failed. Combat engineer is a tough job
(https://media.giphy.com/media/xebbXANUNCzFo9QMt5/giphy.gif)
Which unit in your opinion suffers the most in the Strategic Mind series?
We will post a gameplay or cinematic gif every Saturday. So, stay tuned for more gifs representing various aspects of the game.
Starni Games team
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2 days left! New units in Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism part 7
Wed, 11 November 2020
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Katyusha multiple rocket launcher
BM-13
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Katyusha multiple rocket launcher is a type of rocket artillery first built and fielded by the Soviet Union in World War II. It was a surprise for the Germans early into the war in 1941, however, they did not consider it a big threat. Only massive Katyusha fire, the USSR troops adopted in 1943 cand later, turned out to be the effective way to employ this weapon.
The BM-13 model was usually mounted on top of the ZIS truck.
BM-13N
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The improved BM-13N model was usually mounted on the US lend-lease Studebaker US6 trucks. There were other modifications, like BM 31, also on Studebaker chassis, but with larger caliber rockets.
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Katyusha MLRs have become a part of folklore, making popular the Russian song about a girl named Katyusha (Russian name). It was considered an instrumental weapon of Soviet victory. Although it’s precision left much to be desired, the massed Katyusha’s fire had, according to many accounts, a devastating effect on the German troops’ morale.
In the game, Katyusha rocket launchers, have quite low attack values, but they can attack two times every turn and move 3 hexes away after each attack. Combined with high mobility, that makes Katyusha MLRs a very versatile tool. We had MB-13 in our previous titles, but we added two more models, adjusted their stats, and added special skills. So, now this is a much more potent instrument of war.
We will keep posting new units that will appear for the first time in the Strategic Mind series, so stay tuned!
With best regards
Starni Games team
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1 day left. Developers' Diaries #6
Thu, 12 November 2020
Designing winter operations
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Hello guys!
With only one day left before the release, we would like to tell you more about the winter operations in the upcoming Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism.
Where it all started
In Strategic Mind: Blitzkrieg we had the German drive towards Moscow. However, it was set in November and at first, there were heavy rains, then Rasputitsa followed, and only later the Frost would set in freezing all the rounds and solving the issue of Rasputitsa. At the same time, it was only the first snow, which melted quickly and would not result in thick snow until later into the winter. All other operations were spring to autumn.
Winter is coming!
In the upcoming Spectre of Communism title, we added a number of winter operations, including the Battle of Moscow set in December 1941, where you have to make sure the Germans do not end up storming the Kremlin.
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The Winter War
The toughest winter operation is probably the Winter War against Finland. Only here, Frost effect changes to a Severe frost, which applies penalty even for units with Winter equipment. While units without the winterized equipment have their movement points reduced to a maximum of 1 on top of other penalties. So, it is crucial to supply all of your ket units with proper equipment in this operation and be ready that Severe frost will slow down the latter part of the operation.
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Attempt number 763 to break through the Mannerheim line
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A frozen river
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A proper warning
Before every winter operation, we would warn the player about it in the operation info, below the campaign map.
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The Battle of Moscow
Can you defend the capital of the Soviet Union? Will the winter be your ally or your adversary? Everything depends on your troops’ equipment and tactics.
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Snowy Moscow of 1941, battered yet undefeated
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Lifting the siege of Leningrad
In this operation, you will have to break the German encirclement of the city. A couple of secondary objectives involve the action on the “ice roads” - the ways across the ice.
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Note: We are still working on making the ice look more natural, so the look of it will likely change.
Let us know what you think of the new addition to visuals and gameplay.
Do not forget about tomorrow’s release:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1341170/Strategic_Mind_Spectre_of_Communism/
Stay tuned for more Developers’ Diaries next week.
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Released
Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism | Release Trailer
https://youtu.be/yzqDFwZDPuY
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Update 1.01
Mon, 16 November 2020
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Fixed bugs, corrected localization
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Comrade!
Today, we deliver the first regular update. We did a 5-day-plan in 3 days, just as the Party declared. We had two hotfixes over the weekend, which are included in these patch notes.
Update 1.01
Bug fixes:
• Fixed randomly occurring crashes when finishing any operation.
• Fixed crash after Poland, if the Khalkhin-Gol was completed in the Demo version and the same save file was used in Full release. (Note: We strived to make Demo and the Full game save files compatible. Now that this issue was fixed, they are.) [Reported by N0n4M3]
• Fixed certain localization issues that could cause crashes.
• Fixed PTRS-42 description [Reported by Foxador]
• Fixed Objective description in Barbarossa operation missing turn timer. [Reported by Neuropit]
• Fixed Kharkov operation info missing the “Winter operation” info. [Reported by Foxador]
Localization fixes:
• Corrected Marina Raskova (Hero for the bomber) condition description in Chinese. Now it says 30 damage to Anti-aircraft guns.
• Corrected operation info in Russian.
• Added some missing Ukrainian translations.
Many thanks to all you guys for your helpful comment and feedback. With your help, we will be able to further polish and improve the game much better.
We will keep polishing and improving the game.
Looking forward to more feedback.
Join our Discord server: https://discord.gg/WMsZVNDrHR
With best regards
Starni Games team
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New units in Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism | Part 8
Tue, 17 November 2020
ISU-122 and ISU-152 assault guns
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Glory to the artillery and mortar crews of the Red Army!
ISU-152
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/34062974/e7d88f64fe0bac29cd1d9be75aa9c1d2fccbbf06.jpg)
ISU-152 assault gun is the next generation of Soviet assault artillery based on the IS tanks chassis that entered service in 1943. It was unofficially nicknamed Zveroboy (Russian: Зверобой; "beast killer") in response to several large German tanks, including Tigers and Panthers. It was armed with a 152.4 mm ML-20S gun-howitzer. It proved to be successful both as mobile artillery and as an anti-tank weapon. A total of 4,635 units were built.
ISU-122
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/34062974/c7107125081e38e436e0bebba34718f97b063a42.jpg)
ISU-122 entered service later, in 1944. It had a smaller caliber but was faring better against the enemy armor. The ISU-122 name is an acronym of Iosif Stalin-based - Samokhodnaya Ustanovka (self-propelled gun) 122. A total of 2,410 were built.
While both ISU-152 and ISU-122 were suitable for artillery and anti-tank roles, the ISU was generally used as artillery, and ISU-122 was more widely used in an anti-tank weapon role.
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/34062974/487270b7c7475339976dbe48893c18545d218bd6.jpg)
We will keep posting new units that will appear for the first time in the Strategic Mind series, so stay tuned!
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Developers' Diaries #7
Wed, 18 November 2020
5 days after the release, new ice visuals
Hello, guys!
Now that the game is out, we can finally sit down and see what we have delivered :). Of course, there are some issues that need fixing. Many of them already fixed in Monday 1.01 update, but overall the launch went pretty smoothly.
We plan to issue the 1.02 update tomorrow, fixing all of the outstanding reports and adding some visual improvements.
New ice visuals
Last week we posted some winter operation screenshots, but that was not the final ice visuals, so we want to give you a couple of fresh ones to show the progress in that regard:
The frozen Moskva river in Moscow
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/31809087/ff5a9de8a9dfcaf4e4d184bf0c387e18b6bf5f4d.png)
The “ice roads” in Leningrad vicinity
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/31809087/8bc6409c32e4cda4575d905fd65600759c09584c.png)
Half-frozen Volga river during the Battle for Stalingrad
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/31809087/a0277445d9b2801e351fe3c3fdb8b9ed178912a0.png)
Eastern bank of Volga, Soviet artillery positions in Stalingrad. The battery is ready to fire
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/31809087/611dd18a02ba901c6ca2cd48b5c09ac2c4c053bb.png)
Rocket weaponry for aircraft
Additionally, we added new attack animation for air-to-ground rocket weapons equipment:
(https://media.giphy.com/media/lEKH9J4NH6fhvX5qMs/giphy.gif)
New artillery fort model
As well as the new Artillery forts model:
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/31809087/a5d90f0958c3d1bd7e31ea800e8474c20a48926d.jpg)
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/31809087/5fa41a131d01662cacbba30fd4420df5800ba4cd.png)
All of this will be delivered on Steam in Thursday’s update 1.02.
Share your feedback
Overall we are happy with how the release went, but we would like to know your perspective, so please, leave your comments below with your impressions of the release process and post-release support.
Stay tuned for more Developers’ Diaries next week. And don't forget to join our server on Discord.
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Update 1.02
Thu, 19 November 2020
Visual improvements, bug fixes, and other stuff
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/1881a07bb94177e6a1157562c4f4636bd5dd44cc.png)
Comrade!
Today, we deliver the second regular update. We fixed almost all of the reported issues and added more visual polish.
Update 1.02
Added:
• New attack animation for air-to-ground rocket weapons equipment for aircraft.
(https://media.giphy.com/media/Wkgs6AaNMe016skria/giphy.gif)
• New Artillery forts model.
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/a5d90f0958c3d1bd7e31ea800e8474c20a48926d.jpg)
Changed:
• Marina Raskova’s hero condition to fit the mechanic. Instead of 30 damage to anti-aircraft guns, it is now “Deal 30 damage to Tanks, Assault guns, Recon”. [Reported by Jedi and others]
Bug fixes:
• Added missing armored train model. [Reported by Foxador]
• Reduced the percentage of the enemy troops that must be eliminated during the Battle of Kharkiv to get “Clear all enemies” victory points. Before you had to eliminate 65% of enemy troops, now it is 45%. [Reported by grom87111]
• Fixed missing river visuals in Battle of Moscow. [Reported by Aero橙子]
Localization fixes:
• Added some missing bits of non-English localization.
Visual fixes:
• Minor visual polish of the game.
Many thanks to all you guys for your continuing helpful comments and feedback. With your help, we will be able to further polish and improve the game much better.
We will keep polishing and improving the game.
Looking forward to more feedback
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Camerawork in Strategic Mind
Thu, 19 November 2020
Some beautiful GIFs for you to enjoy
Even a war game can be beautiful.
Our cinematic director is doing his best to provide you with high-quality camerawork. What do you think about it? Please let us know in comments.
(https://media.giphy.com/media/kSiUf1vUa9gpMNhaNc/giphy.gif)
(https://media.giphy.com/media/FYCcKCp75a5J33wptS/giphy.gif)
(https://media.giphy.com/media/lkBWtxYmGeZVFtA5f9/giphy.gif)
(https://media.giphy.com/media/bj11BGm0xJxd9Hu4cD/giphy-downsized-large.gif)
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Saturday Screenshots from the community
Sat, 21 November 2020
Comrades, we want to share with you some nice screenshots from our community.
If you want to share great moments from your playthrough with the community make sure to add them to our community hub. We will post regular news reports with the best ones. You can also send them to our Twitter account.
1. Thanks to Sorgsor
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/7e23e2db03a8335e48db3b2bd5dea335237d24f0.jpg)
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/21da5585bed165d46d3e0e74113ed99999d0388c.jpg)
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/5ed4cf0d6722134f9ab09354f3fc836c47aa1e4c.jpg)
2. Thanks to *猎奇君*
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/840e4aa3b8a5ba3a3a0accc5e9ef6c6202a5d83a.jpg)
Looking forward to more great community feedback!
With best regards
Strani Games team
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New units in Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism | Part #9
Tue, 24 November 2020
T-34 legacy: T-44 and T-54-1 tanks
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/34062974/f84494e7ee06191d3d0a0374c709ae0920297bb8.png)
The legendary T-34 Soviet medium tanks were instrumental in turning the tide of war in Europe against Germany. It had decent armament and medium armor - in 1941 T-34 was superior to the German tanks of the time.
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/34062974/2fdcb4c393d7cd8962f4a8d48e6bf2a633c71e7c.png)
The model was further polished and refined resulting in T-34-85 modification that was used until the end of the war. It was not as powerful as heavy tanks, but its mobility and the ability to cover large distances with relatively minor repairs was what made all the difference.
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/34062974/eca1c1fde6082ccc42db75190abf7fab33a189c2.png)
T-44 was developed in 1944, but its production was suspended to avoid the reduction of T-34 production. Overall, the model was deemed unsuccessful, as its medium armor was easily pierced by all anti-tank guns in use as of 1945.
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/34062974/5742ed60293bb1d89599432ba4c2056a3262f1b8.png)
To compensate for the faulty T-44 model, the improved T-54 tank was developed and introduced in 1946-1947. The rework optimized all aspects of the tank. It was a success - the tank started its service in 1947, and it is still in service in many countries as of 2020. The T-54/55 series eventually became the most-produced tank in history. Estimated production numbers for the series range from 86,000 to 100,000.
In Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism you can use T-54-1 in 1946 to fight the Allied forces in Europe in the alternate history portion of the game. Although not as powerful as an IS-4 heavy tank or Koenigstiger, it is still a viable option, as it has higher mobility and allows it to cover larger distances.
We will keep posting new units that will appear for the first time in the Strategic Mind series, so stay tuned!
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Update 1.03
Thu, 26 November 2020
Further polish
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/3bdd1d25d1a0895d5a0458f14214ccb2018be337.png)
Comrade! Today, we deliver the third regular update. We fixed almost all of the reported issues and added yet more polish to the game.
Update 1.03
Added:
• Series (DB-3F) for Il4 bombers (cheaper to upgrade)
• Series (T-34) for T-34-85 (cheaper to upgrade)
• Series (ISU-152) for ISU units (cheaper to upgrade)
Changed:
• T-54 and SU-100 now have a higher Hard attack parameter (increased from 17 to 19).
• SU-122P now has a higher Soft attack and Hard attack. Soft attack increased from 12 to 16, Hard attack increased from 18 to 19
• Operation Bagration: Polish partisans (Armia Krajowa) are now more powerful, and can survive longer, giving the player a bit more time to reach them.
• Operation Bagration: After helping the Polish partisans (Armia Krajowa), when they become hostile to the player, the German troops no longer see them as allies, making partisans fight both against Germans and Soviets.
• Invasion of Poland: Upon finishing the objective to capture Polish troops, the message saying you should be trying to capture them will no longer appear.
• Marina Raskova’s hero skills. Removed the “Fire discipline” skill that duplicated the Tactical bomber skill set. Instead, the “Communist” skill was added. [Reported by Aero橙子]
Bug fixes:
• Removed German unit lines from trophy Me-262 and Koenigstiger. [Reported by Foxador]
• Localization fixes:
• Added updated Manual texts in Chinese
• Added some missing localization in German
• Corrected Ukrainian localization
• Fixed minor localization issues
Many thanks to all you guys for your continuing helpful comments and feedback. With your help, we will be able to further polish and improve the game much better.
We will keep polishing and improving the game.
Looking forward to more feedback
With best regards
Starni Games team
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New units in Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism #10
Tue, 1 December 2020
Soviet bombers: Pe-2 and Il-4
Ilyushin Il-4 (DB-3F)
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/34062974/24e8772cb41f0ea3593af5b2cd29373bb150385b.png)
A modification of earlier DB-3 bomber models. Despite being far from the best design as of 1941, these long-range bombers did perform several daring raids on Berlin in the summer of 1941, proving to Germans that their homeland could also suffer from war. Overall, more than 6000 planes of different modifications were built.
Petlyakov Pe-2
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/34062974/e9876bb4514b9817a2ccab1463e298366f2a069c.png)
A twin-engined Soviet dive bomber, Pe-2 is considered one of the best aircraft models the USSR produced during the war. Its production numbers went over 11 000 units built.
The Pe-2 was designed in a prison design bureau (sharashka); Vladimir Petlyakov (head engineer) had been arrested and imprisoned in 1937 for allegedly delaying design work on the Tupolev ANT-42 bomber. Petlyakov was given the task of designing a high-altitude fighter, which he successfully accomplished. However, operational experience in the Soviet-Finnish War of 1939-1940 showed that this was not what the Soviet Air Force needed, and Lavrentiy Beria, head of the NKVD and of the sharashka system, ordered that the fighter be redesigned as a dive bomber, with the promise that Petlyakov and his colleagues would be released on its successful completion. The resulting aircraft, the Pe-2 proved to be one of the most successful designs of World War II.
Petlyakov was released in 1940, and was awarded a Stalin Prize in 1941. However, at Kazan, Petlyakov faced increasing difficulties, with many of his trained technicians and machinists conscripted into the Soviet military and sent to the front lines, which adversely affected the aircraft production. He protested to Soviet senior leadership, and was on his way to Moscow in January 1942 (flying in a Pe-2), when he died in an air crash near Arzamas.
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/34062974/e30c4730ed0701406fa4b918d3dd56be7988848e.png)
We will keep posting new units that will appear for the first time in the Strategic Mind series, so stay tuned!
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Community items added!
Wed, 2 December 2020
Get promoted to a Marshal rank
Comrades, today is a glorious day!
Today, the Community items for Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism were finally allowed into Steam. Today, Comrades, the trading cards of prominent Soviet leaders will establish order in this capitalists’ den.
Meet the Stavka
We have added 7 Steam trading cards with key characters from Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism. Be the first to get your hands on all of the Stavka members:
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/7d9931d6fea96e1b91e06fd60f48742605378d94.png)
Collect the Stavka members and get a promotion
If you collect 7 different trading cards from Spectre of Communism you will get yourself a Kombrig rank:
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/0385c20bd3a289a74a458449b6704e278767670b.png)
You have to repeat that to be promoted to a Komdiv rank:
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/689a27d1e5c647af91900fc01b5d6540d9d46b7c.png)
Next in line are:
• Komkor
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/c3ed39c4c1e5e864193e297848a766e747c032f2.png)
• General of the Army
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/8478af4d952587a29337c9c239f0729895d4b7db.png)
• Marshal of the Soviet Union
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/6bf014922edaab2d16a650b80fb344a83a68874a.png)
Additionally, if you collect a rare set of trading cards, you will get a special foil badge — Order of Victory:
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/8ed873541ea9657212ab21fd191d4e18b166f160.png)
Exclusive Profile backgrounds, only for the top Party members!
By getting promotions, you will also gain emoticons and Profile backgrounds granted by the Party to its most ardent supporters.
Another way to get all the goodies is to go to the “Beryozka” store (Point buy shop on Steam). Only top brass is allowed into the Beryozka store, where everything could be bought in capitalists’ dollars, and not an honest man’s roubles. So, you can use Points, instead of trading cards to get whatever Community items you want.
Here is an example of colored and black-and-white versions of a Profile background:
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/cb5534ef4e4905e0f423f1df045b930cc75b1b76.png)
Let us know in the comments below what you think of the new Community items. Do not worry, the NKVD staff is on holiday today and won’t be reviewing your posts.
With best regards
Starni Games Stavka
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Update 1.04
Thu, 3 December 2020
Further polish
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/6a2d4cb07d915756b4d76855f911651bdfcc9e73.png)
Comrade! This is a quick fix update for the issue with the 20th operation.
Update 1.04
Bug fixes:
Fixed crash that would happen in some playthroughs (depending on your actions in previous operations) at the very beginning of 20th operation. If you had this issue, you have to restart the operation from the Headquarters room. Reported by Problem Solver, Liberty-kun (◕‿◕) and others.
We will keep polishing and improving the game.
Looking forward to more feedback
With best regards
Starni Games team
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List of operations in Spectre of Communism
Thu, 3 December 2020
We were asked to list all the operations in Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism, so here it comes
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/31809087/14f9deb5bbdb8d3b77dfa95d71f4d387ce5e0cc9.png)
Hello guys. Some of you have asked us for a full list of operations in Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism on our community hub. So, here is the list. We did not want to spoil all the operations for those who want to find out the exact order of events for themselves. So, we think that the middle ground will be posting the operations using spoiler text .
See here for list without spoilers (https://steamcommunity.com/games/991810/announcements/detail/2886208158603965019)
All operations in chronological order:
1. - May1939
2. - September 1939
3. - December 1939
4. - June 1941
5. - September 1941
6. - December 1941
7. - November 1942
8. - February 1943
9. - July 1943
10. - October 1943
11. - January 1944
12. - June 1944
13. - January 1945
14. - March 1945
15. - April 1945
16. - April 1945
17. - August 1945
18. - March 1946
19. -
20. -
We wish you the best of luck in completing the whole campaign.
With best regards
Starni Games team
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New units in Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism | Part #11
Tue, 8 December 2020
Soviet Anti-tank self-propelled guns: SU-85 and SU-100
SU-85
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/31809087/37bc76834c2809966afacf046558379b707125b3.png)
A Soviet self-propelled tank destroyer based on T-34 chassis and armed with a long-barrel 85 mm gun. SU-85 was a fearsome foe for German tanks, designed to counter the German heavy Tiger tanks.
🕹 In the game: you can use these powerful anti-tank units to fight the hard targets effectively. They are both mobile and pack a heavy punch. On top of that, being an armored unit they have a solid defense, allowing them better sustainability on the frontline.
SU-100
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/31809087/27d0e3379cd8ab6f5f4d9e72659a306260e248ba.png)
A major improvement when compared to SU-85. SU-100 was based on the newer tank chassis of T-34-85. It had a modern 85 mm gun D-10S, which proved to be even more effective against the enemy armor. Additionally, SU-100 had much thicker armor plating.
🕹 In the game: you can upgrade SU-85 into SU-100 taking advantage of its better offensive and defensive capabilities.
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/31809087/dcb9c9b2174d4dbb175a11ea0d35f8ed3603dabf.png)
This was the last dispatch about new units in the Spectre of Communism. However, in just a few days we will start updating you on the new units in Strategic Mind: Fight for Freedom, so stay tuned!
👉 Learn more about the upcoming project and add it to wishlist
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/1381850/header.jpg?t=1606824349)
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1381850
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Update 1.05
Thu, 10 December 2020
Poland fixes
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/d4bd80c1bb689a9999188eb9d72ac9c1dead4efe.png)
Comrade! In today’s update, we fixed several minor issues with Poland scenarios. However, if you started playing the second operation (Poland) before this update, you may encounter some issues due to these changes. We are sorry for the inconvenience, but we have to ask you to restart this operation from the HQ room if that is the case. To clarify: the issues can only be with Poland save files made prior to the 1.05 update. To be safe, restart the 2nd operation for the headquarters room save file.
Update 1.05
Bug fixes:
• Fixed crash in Poland operation when the Armored train objective was completed during the AI turn. For example, if the last unit guarding it was killed by Fire support or Return fire.
• Fixed several minor issues with the scripts.
• Fixed major issue with the Command points being lower after loading the save file. The bonus from Global effects was missing.
• Fixed incorrect reward description in the secondary objective in the 18th operation.
Thank you very much for all the feedback and support.
We will keep polishing and improving the game.
Looking forward to more feedback
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Watch the Developer's Gameplay #1: Khalkhin Gol Scenario
Tue, 15 December 2020
Hello, guys!
Today we bring you our first ever Dev's gameplay.
The Lead game designer will play the Battles of the Khalkhin Gol scenario from the Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism with the commentary, explaining the game mechanics and telling you more about the game development process. What do you think of this idea and the video? Please let us know in the comments on YouTube 😉.
https://youtu.be/out9Rh8xRvQ
Save 20% on 'Startegic Mind: Spectre of Communism':
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Developers' Diaries #9
Wed, 16 December 2020
(https://cdn.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38607672/4f7762eccb1749859bebb1b41bc57c61e9b57cd7.png)
Communist Economy
Hello, guys! A month has passed since the Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism release and we are ready to share some insights into the financial results of the release for our company.
Bad news for Stalin
In the first two weeks since release, Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism has two times fewer copies sold and twice lower gross revenue than its predecessor Strategic Mind: Blitzkrieg over the same 2-week period after release. There are a couple of possible reasons:
• End of the year clutter in November with lots of big titles being released. Although, Strategic Mind: The Pacific was more successful during the same period.
• The USSR theme is less interesting/popular than the German one. (Seems the most likely reason)
• Something else.
Games quality
One might think that the game quality was the reason, but that is not the case. The games are quite close in terms of quality and gameplay. Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism has higher Steam reviews score than Blitzkrieg - 94% positive reviews at the moment - and it was more polished at launch. Thus, in terms of quality, we can say that the bar was raised higher this time and the community feedback tells us as much. Does that mean the higher quality of the game does not directly translate into higher sales?
Wishlists comparison
Both games had very close wishlist numbers prior to the game launch. That brings us to the question, what affects the game release the most?
On the bright side
The Spectre of Communism is more popular in China and Russia.
To be, or not to be?
Despite the unsuccessful start of Stalin’s career on Steam, we keep working on our next project Strategic Mind: Fight for Freedom that is scheduled for Q2 2021. We hope that the upcoming title will gather more attention from the audience, considering that it features both US and British campaigns, as well as alternate history scenarios.
“It seems that the 5-year-plan will not be completed this time around. Bear with us, Comrades, the next 5-year-plan will most certainly be fulfilled within 4 years.”
Oleksandr Sienin, Lead game designer at Starni Games
In wishlist we trust
Despite the unsuccessful launch of the Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism, a wishlist count remains the best way to estimate the game’s potential at release and help the game get more attention on Steam.
You can support our team and help us with the future release by adding the upcoming Strategic Mind: Fight for Freedom to your wishlist: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1381850/
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Update 1.06
Tue, 22 December 2020
Winter clean up
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/c9458158d30e2f6438059adfadabb745d7a3661b.png)
General! In this update, we fix some of the most annoying long-standing issues to enter the new year with our head held high.
Update 1.06
Changes:
• Fixed the incorrect awards discount for purchasing units. Now everything works correctly. Huge thanks to all of you who reported this issue.
• Fixed issue with Command points being lower after save/load. Huge thanks to all of you who reported this issue.
We already have a bunch of new reports and will address them as soon as possible, so do not worry that we missed your issue - it will most likely hit the next update.
Looking forward to more feedback
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Update 1.07
Thu, 24 December 2020
Minor fix 🛠
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/6a1001cf06b595767a9070b6589b2d85ae538b32.png)
Comrade! 🌟
In this update, we fix a pesky mistake that slipped through in the 1.06 update. Some mysterious events led to the British flag in the HQ room replacing our proper Red Banner.
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/386b79e97e2c1bc4a69e1e34a0f1c3e087389d90.jpg)
We are sure that Comrade Beria will have to investigate this outrage. The NKVD staff is already looking into this matter.
Update 1.07
Changes:
Fixed an incorrect flag in the HQ room that was changed by mistake in 1.06 update.
We already have a bunch of new reports and will address them as soon as possible, so do not worry that we missed your issue - it will most likely hit the next update.
Looking forward to more feedback.
With best regards
Starni Games team
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Developer's Gameplay #1: Khalkhin Gol Scenario
Tue, 5 January 2021
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steam/apps/1341170/ss_d033c572fe92f4734927543a7e6fac7267f48f3f.1920x1080.jpg?t=1607608663)
Watch the first stream on Steam by our team
Hello, guys!
This is the first stream on Steam by our team. It has already premiered on YouTube, but now we are working on producing Developer's streams on Steam. Let us know what you think of the first episode.
This is a Developer’s gameplay series by Starni Games. In these episodes the Lead game designer of the Strategic Mind series Oleksandr plays our games with the commentary, explaining the game mechanics and telling you more about the game development process. Today, he plays the Battles of the Khalkhin Gol scenario from the Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism. The footage was prerecorded.
https://youtu.be/out9Rh8xRvQ
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Watch the Developer's Gameplay #3: Invasion of Poland
Fri, 15 January 2021
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38153924/559b5e0e1a53cd70ff43205c6471e24bdf9aa7e4.jpg)
🔴 Watch the Developer's Gameplay #3: Invasion of Poland | Spectre of Communism
https://youtu.be/zJvOJDlJIPk
Hello, guys!
This is the third gameplay by our team and it features the Invasion of Poland scenario from the Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism.
Do not forget to give us your feedback about the game in the comments on YouTube 😉. Also if you leave your questions about gameplay or mechanics, we will record some short tutorials about the game mechanics that are especially tricky to understand.
About Developer’s gameplay series
This is a Developer’s gameplay series by Starni Games. In these episodes the Lead game designer of the Strategic Mind series Oleksandr plays our games with the commentary, explaining the game mechanics and telling you more about the game development process. Watch all the episodes on YouTube. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=out9Rh8xRvQ&list=PLnfx9IlBrrg3OsMPTZFVibhGNFphUArQu)
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Happy World Snow Day! ☃
Sun, 17 January 2021
Get holiday greetings and screenshots from Spectre of Communism
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Hello, guys! As you may know today is World Snow Day ❄.
Parents all over the world take kids outside and spend some time together: playing winter games or doing winter sports. If there is snow in your country, of course.
In Kyiv, where the Starni Games office is located, it is a true winter right now: a -17 celsius frost (1.4 degrees Fahrenheit), everything is white and snowy and the parents together with their children ride sleigh in all of the city parks 🛷.
We wish you too would be able to spend a weekend with your family and friends, doing your favorite kind of winter activities.
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38607672/04ffa7c227150c94d6ff6e7438bda5d3e4193b07.jpg)
If there is no snow in your country, or you dislike winter sports - you can always play Strategic Mind: Spectre of Communism, as it has lots of snow and winter "activities". The game does a pretty good job at translating the harsh winter conditions and makes one wonder about how lucky we are to live in a time when the most popular winter activities are throwing snowballs, riding a sleigh, skiing, and snowboarding.
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/38607672/5544305b6e65cf076eb21fbe5b7e665b2d2d90a1.jpg)
(https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/34062974/c58a7f05d25f718a9a24ce1e39abb4d5ac3fd8b6.png)
Happy World Snow Day!
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Update 1.09
Wed, February 24, 2021
Comrade! The year 2021 is upon us and it brings along new game updates.
Changes:
• The “End turn” button was moved to the top-right corner of the screen to minimize the possibility of clicking it by accident.
• Reworked lighting - during all types of turns: day time / night time, rain, etc.
• Removed Chaff equipment that was mistakenly added (instead of the upcoming Fight for Freedom). Those who already got this equipment would still be able to use it. In case you discard it, you will still have access to a limited number of it labeled as the British trophy. You will no longer be able to acquire new ones.
• Some visual changes.
Fixes:
• Mines no longer gain +1 Spotting during the Night.
• The “Undo” button can no longer be used after the aircraft units landing or take-off.
• PTAB bombs now have the acquisition cost of 0 (instead of 50), but still require 2 Prestige per use.
• Heroes with a “Scouting” skill (for example, Vasiliy Zaitsev) no longer lose the ability to move hex-by-hex if they have ground transport equipped.
• Global effect “Family safe” now has the correct description. It provides a Command points bonus instead of +1 to HQ unit combat parameters.
• Other minor issues
This is not the full list of changes that we plan to deliver, so stay tuned for more fixes and improvements to come.
We will keep polishing and improving the game.
Looking forward to more feedback
With best regards
Starni Games team