Line #32 VideoGame/HerzogZwei


1	[[quoteright:215:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/herzog_zwei.png]]
2	''Herzog Zwei'' ([[GratuitousGerman German for "Duke Two"]]) was an early RealTimeStrategy game developed by Technosoft and released in 1989 for the UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis. It is the sequel to the Japan-only 1988 StrategyGame ''Herzog'' for the {{Platform/MSX}}.
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4	''Herzog Zwei'' is an early influential example of a game with a feature set that falls under the contemporary definition of modern Real Time Strategy (RTS). It was the TropeMaker that spawned the genre, being the common ancestor of every modern RTS (it inspired 1992's ''VideoGame/DuneII'' by Creator/WestwoodStudios), as well as the TropeNamer ("RTS" was coined in this [[https://shmuplations.com/thunderforceiii/ 1989 interview]]). The game is also a predecessor to a more modern strategy/action hybrid, the MultiplayerOnlineBattleArena (MOBA). ''Herzog Zwei'' was also a precursor to the HeroShooter, as it was also a shooter/strategy hybrid with a HeroUnit.
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6	In the game, two opposing players each control a robot that can transform into a fighter jet. This robot is used to build and deploy weapons such as motorcycles and tanks across a battlefield. Infantry can be used to capture neutral and [[AllYourBaseAreBelongToUs enemy bases]], which provide fuel for the mecha, money, and places to deploy weapons from. If one player's mecha is destroyed, it simply regenerates at its headquarters after a few seconds. The game is won by using units to destroy the enemy's headquarters.
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8	''Zwei'' is the end of the series, but ''VideoGame/{{Airmech}}'' is [[SpiritualAdaptation heavily enough inspired by it]] to be nicknamed ''Herzog Drei'' by some. It's also received a Sega AGES release for the Platform/NintendoSwitch in 2020, with the addition of online play.
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10	!!This game features examples of:
11	* AllThereInTheManual: No, really, all of it. All information in the game is represented through symbols and abbreviations that will be incomprehensible unless you have a reference on hand.
12	* AllYourBaseAreBelongToUs: The game introduced the ability to capture bases and the goal of destroying the enemy base.
13	* ArtificialStupidity: Given that it was an early real-time strategy, the unit pathfinding abilities are...less than impressive. It's not uncommon to see, for instance, tanks driving into ravines.
14	* CompetitiveMultiplayer: The game introduced the competitive multiplayer feature to the strategy genre.
15	* EasyLogistics: Early aversion. Both the mecha and units require fuel and ammunition; the mecha regains them from a base (in addition to repairs), while the units regain them from supply trucks.
16	* ExcusePlot: The entire plot is summarized on the back of the box and never mentioned in-game outside of the ending.
17	* GlassCannon: The cannon unit. It can kill even the player mecha in a few shots, but has little health for its price.
18	* GratuitousGerman: The title and level names.
19	* GuideDangIt: If you don't have the manual, you're screwed.
20	* HeroShooter: ''Herzog Zwei'' was a precursor to the Hero Shooter, as it was a shooter/strategy hybrid with a hero unit.
21	* HeroUnit: The mecha, from which the player does ''everything''.
22	* {{Mecha}}: The game's hero unit.
23	* MoneySink: Issuing orders costs money. For the most part, this is cheap enough that it only slightly slows the player down, but ordering a unit to attack the enemy headquarters will often cost more than the unit itself. This can either [[EndingFatigue drag things out]] or give the losing player [[BackFromTheBrink the edge needed to make a miraculous recovery]].
24	* MultiplayerOnlineBattleArena: A strategy/action hybrid, it was a predecessor to the modern MultiplayerOnlineBattleArena (MOBA).
25	* RealTimeStrategy: An early influential example of the RTS genre, as well as the genre's TropeMaker (establishing many genre conventions) and TropeNamer (coined in a [[https://shmuplations.com/thunderforceiii/ 1989 interview]]).
26	* SplitScreen: Required for two-player play, as you might imagine, but the single-player mode lets you decide whether to use it, ostensibly to allow people still learning the gameplay to keep tabs on the CPU's actions and counter them early.
27	* TacticalShooter: The first game to combine tactical strategy with ShootEmUp gameplay.
28	* {{Techno}}: The game has a techno music soundtrack, making its soundtrack unique for the RTS genre.
29	* TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou: Inverted. The mecha's weapon can't damage a headquarters, so it must be done by deployed units.
30	* TransformingMecha: The player's vehicle.
31	* TropeMaker: It is the trope maker of the RTS genre, establishing the genre's conventions.
32	* TropeNamer: It is also the trope namer of real-time strategy games (coining the "RTS" genre name in a [[https://shmuplations.com/thunderforceiii/ 1989 interview]]).
33	* WorkerUnit: The introduced the creation and use of worker units to collect resources.
34	* YouRequireMoreVespeneGas: The game introduced the need to acquire resources in order to construct more units.

Context VideoGame / HerzogZwei