Rule the Waves 3 Review (PC)

good
key review info
  • Game: Rule the Waves 3
  • Platform: PC
  • Show system requirements
  • Gamepad support: No
  • Reviewed on:
Rule the Waves 3 key art

Brandenburg is the pride of the German fleet, the only battleship built since we refused to abide by the disarmament treaties. The country has quite a few destroyers in the construction pipeline, alongside two very capable heavy cruisers. A few more raider-focused ships are also being prepared, although they don’t always get full funding.

But there aren’t funds for another battleship at the moment and I think it would be better to wait for a few tech breakthroughs before doing the hard work of designing another. Bigger guns would be a great or maybe an innovation when it comes to armor belts. So Germany is funding its scientist and waiting, laying down more escorts than big hitters.

Until, suddenly, a dispute with France escalates quickly, which is good because it leads to increased naval funding. And then an event that pushes up tensions all over the world means its war. The French fleet has four battleships operating, we only have one. A few cruiser actions and convoy-centered battles give us decent victories. But when the full fleets engage, Brandenburg goes down after a flash turret fire. The French will win this war but we will rebuild and challenge them again.

Rule the Waves 3 is developed by Naval Warfare Simulations and published by Slitherine LTD. I played on the PC using Steam. As the name makes clear, this is a strategy and tactics experience that focuses on naval action.

Rule the Waves 3
Rule the Waves 3
Rule the Waves 3
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As with previous titles in the series, players take on the role of naval supreme commander for their chosen nation. These range from the United Kingdom, which is the foremost naval power at the start of all the featured time periods, to Germany, Japan, Italy, Russia, and more. Depending on this choice, the game can be easier or harder when it comes to the resources that can be spent to develop new ships and then produce them. A lot will change in the naval field between 1890 and 1970.

There’s no real narrative in the game, although there are plenty of events that appear when time advances. Gamers will have to make tough choices about discipline, budgets, spies, world tension, and more. The messages sometimes lack context and flavor, which is appropriate for such a rigorous simulation but makes it hard to connect to the experience.

Rule the Waves 3 mixes a few big gameplay systems. The ship design element is the most interesting in itself but the game also has a strategic layer, tactical battles, and some politics thrown in. It’s not complex enough to actually be a grand strategy title. Think of it more as designed to give armchair admirals tools to test our ideas and scenarios.

The title’s biggest component focuses on designing and building ships. Gamers will select the type of vessel and then choose engines, weapons, armor, and other characteristics (an auto-design feature is available), based on the role that the ship class will serve. It’s an intricate system that seems overwhelming initially but works beautifully. As time progresses, one month at a time, and research makes new breakthroughs, players will be able to develop new designs, with missile cruisers and aircraft carriers becoming the pinnacle of warfare in the ‘50s.

Even the biggest country has limited resources, so players have to make tough choices about the vessels they will actually build. Great Britain has trouble funding an early aircraft carrier and one powerful battleship at the same time in the 1936 scenario. Choose wisely, be prepared to make cuts when needed, and consider who you might have to fight.

When the gamer’s chosen nation has a decent fleet, exercises can be used to keep it in top shape, while players also deal with research for improved equipment, the quality of the officer corps, the general organization of the battle force, and the development of naval bases. While this happens, tensions rise and fall between the powerful nations of the era, with war looming at the end of a series of escalations.

Once a conflict starts, players will have to choose where to deploy their various divisions and how to react to enemy movement. When two fleets engage in battle, the choice of realism setting decides which forces players directly control and which ones get orders from the computer.

The tactical engagements are a little disappointing. The action itself is realistic and tense, especially when the fate of expensive assets like a battleship or a CV is at stake. But there’s no way to choose which divisions go into battle or make choices before the two forces actually clash.

Rule the Waves 3 is not a game for newcomers to the strategy space. It will pose a lot of challenges even to those who are fans but don’t have a lot of knowledge about the limits of shipbuilding, the general history of naval warfare, and the most important ways combat on the high seas has evolved between 1890 and 1970. But this is the kind of game that can make someone read up and better understand these topics.

Rule the Waves 3 is a very dry experience when it comes to presentation. The strategic layer, where players are designing and building their ships, benefits from a well-organized, if overwhelming at first, interface. Read the manual to make sure you are not missing anything crucial. There’s a visual representation of the actual battles but it’s pretty minimal.

Players need to use their imagination to make combat come alive and to imagine the many world events that shape how navies evolve and engage. There are decent sound effects for the ship-to-ship engagements but they feel actually intrusive given how quiet the rest of the game is. With no soundtrack, be prepared to queue up some good naval warfare podcasts for company.

Rule the Waves 3
Rule the Waves 3
Rule the Waves 3
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The Good

  • Deep simulation
  • A range of eras
  • Battle scenarios

The Bad

  • Complexity level
  • Limited presentation
  • Limited immersion

Conclusion

Rule the Waves 3 isn’t a visual feast and does not have a deep and immersive set of narrative events. Its systems are deep and well-designed but require the player to have or to seek knowledge about shipbuilding and naval warfare. The interface is very busy and it takes time to learn all its quirks.

These are significant barriers to entry. Even fans of the historical strategy genre might be unwilling to break through them all. But, if you give Rule the Waves 3 time and energy, it can deliver a gaming experience that’s unlike anything else on the market, filled with deep design work and cool combat moments.

A review key was provided by the publisher

story 6
gameplay 8
concept 9
graphics 7
audio 7
multiplayer 0
final rating 7
Editor's review
good
 

Rule the Waves 3 Screenshots (21 Images)

Rule the Waves 3 key art
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