If you took the intense, brutal conflicts of Battlefield 1 and fused them into the combat simulation of TABS, you’d probably end up with something a lot like Rising Front. The sandbox war game is primarily focused on World War I, but also features scenarios for the American Revolutionary War and the Franco-Prussian War to mix up your play. It lets you simulate massive battles featuring all manner of infantry, ground vehicles, and planes, allowing you to command your army from an aerial strategic view or drop into the action to take control in first-person. And now it’s finally out of early access, complete with a huge upgrade.
Boasting “engagements with 1,000-plus units in action simultaneously,” Rising Front is an impressive WW1 sandbox game that’s ideal if you like re-enacting famous battles, or building your own from scratch with its robust toolset. You don’t necessarily need to do all the work yourself, however, because full Steam Workshop support means you can pull all manner of creations from its community. First launched into early access three years ago, Rising Front has earned an 89%-positive rating from players, and now it’s finally hit version 1.0.
So what’s new? A lot, as it turns out. Rising Front 1.0 has been almost a full year in development. “An incredible amount of work has gone into this update,” primary developer Jack of Sandstorm Studios writes. “I kept adding more and more, and before I knew it, nearly a year had passed since the last release. This is a colossal update that changes a huge portion of the game, and I truly hope you all enjoy it. Thanks so much for your patience, and sorry for the wait.”
The update includes full support for both player-controlled and AI-driven tanks, armored cars, and cavalry, with an extensive list of each joining the fray. Among them are the likes of the iconic British Mark IV tank, the French Renault FT17, the German Sturmpanzerwagen A7v (and its flamethrower-equipped variant), and even some post-WW1 inclusions such as the Char 2C super-heavy tank. On horseback you’ll find dragoons, lancers, carabiniers, and some iconic revolutionary inclusions such as Pulaski’s Legion.
There are a total of seven new maps and one rework to an existing location, six new weapons and plenty of improvements to old ones, dozens of buildables, more weather types, and the ability for bots to use grenades. The developer has also remade all of the official scenarios – yes, all of them – and included full controller and Steam Deck support.
Suffice it to say that now’s the ideal time to jump on board, and there’s even a special discount to celebrate the full release. “I hope you all enjoy this update,” Jack says. He notes that he’ll be watching the Steam forums and Discord for feedback and to support any issues players run into, and adds, “We also have several more updates already almost completed, so stay tuned for that.”
Rising Front version 1.0 is live now on Steam, and you can buy it at a 20% discount through Friday January 23, meaning you’ll pay just $11.99 / £10.23. Find it right here and start putting your long-held wartime hypotheses into practice.