As usual, we would like to ask you to share your feedback with us. Community threads are waiting for your thoughts.
Starni Games and HYPERSTRANGE teams can't wait to hear from you. And if you are more of a Discord or Twitter person, let’s chat:
PS. We would like to ask you for support. If you find the Spirit of Liberty demo worth playing, we would be honored if you could share it with your friends and content creators who might be interested in what we’re doing. Promoting games like that, dedicated to a specific niche of players is ultra-hard, so we would use some support in the battle against algorithms.
All the best Starni Games x HYPERSTRANGE
Strategic Mind: Spirit of Liberty - Prologue 1939 OUT NOW for FREE
Greetings Commanders!
The fifth installment of the Strategic Mind series is still in development. Planning to release later this year. Check out the trailer to find out when. But to satisfy your urge to prove that you truly own a Strategic Mind, we would like to invite you to play for FREE Strategic Mind: Spirit of Liberty - Prologue 1939.
The Prologue includes the first 3 operations of the historical campaign:
Border Crisis
Battle of Taipale
Battle of Tolvajarvi
Download now and share with us any feedback you have. We will use it to improve your experience as we continue to work on a full release.
We'll await you on Steam Discussions, Discord, and Twitter.
Please add Strategic Mind: Spirit of Liberty to your Wishlist, and mark the game as Followed. To get all updates regarding our progress.
This also helps us a great deal with putting our work in front of other Steam users. We hope to reach more Players like you.
Please note that the whole Strategic Mind series is now on Sale. If you didn't have a chance to pick up any of the other Strategic Mind games, now's the perfect chance to purchase.
Strategic Mind's Publisher HYPERSTRANGE also invites you to browse their games catalog, where most of the titles are currently on heavy Discounts to celebrate the anniversary of one of their flag games, Frozenheim.
Best Regards from Starni Games x HYPERSTRANGE
Allied Forces Inbound! Strategic Mind Joins Forces with Hyperstrange
At ease commanders and freedom fighters!
Today we have a special announcement for you, Strategic Mind series and Hyperstrange are joining forces to propel the series into new heights. You are probably wondering what it means for the games themselves, so let’s unpack
Giving honors to the old guard
Strategic Mind: The Pacific, Fight for Freedom, Spectre of Communism and Blitzkrieg along with their OST are available at a discounted price during the Spring Sale. In addition to that, these titles will be bundled with three note-worthy games: Frozenheim - an RTS with city-builder elements where you lead your viking clan through the seasons and to the glory of battle. For the fans of exciting turn-based combat Jupiter Hell takes the 'lone hero against the world' formula and gives it a roguelike, sci-fi horror spin. And War Mongrels - an isometric real-time tactics game that takes place on the eastern front of World War II. This means that you can not only complete your collection, but also grab Frozenheim, Jupiter Hell and War Mongrels at a discount! You will find all the special deals at the bottom of this announcement.
Supporting the new troops
Strategic Mind: Spirit of Liberty will be arriving at your doorstep later this summer. Stay tuned for more information, as soon we will be sharing additional information about the title and what it will bring to the Strategic Mind series.
Hyperstrange is a games development and publishing studio based in Warsaw , founded, as the legend has it, on the day of 2015 Solar Eclipse. Since then, we continue to bring Metal, Fantasy, Action and Hyper-strangeness to gamers worldwide.
If you'd like to know more about Hyperstrange, come to the Steam Spring Sale!
First of all, news of how we cope with the ongoing war in Ukarine. Russia keeps its missile strike schedule making a large attack every two weeks, and some smaller ones when it pleases. The last big attack was on February 10, with 71 missiles (61 were downed by AA fire, 10 around Kyiv). Fortunately, there was no major damage in Kyiv and the power supply did not suffer much.
On the biright side, last week was the first week without the power cuts - for the first time since October 2022 Ukraine has enough power supply. Of course this may change, and we have our power generator at the ready, but this is definitely very good news. We hope that the power of the light will be victorious both in terms of power supply and in the war in general.
Also, I would like to share with you our latest updates:
Indie Cup Celebration 2023
Learn more about the Indie Cup Celebration Steam event:
Hello This week the entire Strategic Mind series participates in the Indie Cup Celebration 2023 - a Steam event where you can see many indie titles featured in the Indie Cup competition over the years.
As you can guess, all our games were battling it out in different seasons of the Indie Cup event. There is no discount on our titles at the moment, but you can see some discounted titles by other devs there. So, feel free to explore the event, as it went almost unnoticed by the general Steam audience, despite having some quite interesting titles in there.
Also, expect to hear more news from Starni tomorrow.
With Best Regards from Kyiv Starni Games team
Scenario overview #4: Finnish Invasion of the Karelian Isthmus
It is summer 1941, and the world is in flames. The Wehrmacht is rolling across the Soviet border, taking town after town in its sweeping Blitzkrieg. The Red Army is routed, desperately holding on to its Western strongholds – yet losing more and more every day. Every man is needed on the front, leaving parts of the national border exposed.
It is during such times that one usually finds out how many enemies he's made over the years.
The Finnish Invasion of the Karelian Isthmus happened at the beginning of the Continuation War, Finland's payback for the humiliating peace treaty a year prior.
It was an exciting time for the tiny nordic democracy: its army was rapidly modernizing and rearming, the public approval for the upcoming "just war" was incredibly high, and more than that, Finland stood a real chance to win back its lost territories and even hold them. All because of the plan's timing: the liberation of Karelia was to take place just as the Third Reich entered the USSR.
The Finns weren't thrilled about their partnership with Germany – the amount of coordination between the two was certainly insufficient to call it an "alliance" – but with an enemy like the USSR, Finland wasn't going to pick and choose where its material aid came from. The Germans had their own designs for the Soviet North, and saw Finland as a convenient staging ground – they didn't even coordinate their invasion with the Finnish High Command. Luckily, the USSR was as heavy-handed as ever – expecting Northern aggression well in advance, the Soviet High Command decided to deter Finland by launching a strategic bombing campaign on June 25th. With the casus belli presented to him, President Risto Ryti declared war the very next day, announcing it over the national radio.
"Citizens! For the annihilation of this eternal threat from the East, for safeguarding the happy and peaceful life of future generations we now take up arms!"
The careful push across the border began immediately, but a few weeks later, in late July, the Finnish Army entered Karelia in full force. General Paavo Talvela led the offensive into Ladoga Karelia (and was the first among the generals to achieve his strategic objective), while General Karl Lennart Oesch led the IV Corps across the Isthmus. Poor communication with the HQ resulted in heavy delays, but thanks to Oesch's initiative, the attack began right on time, turning the Red Army's organized retreat into a rout. Not only did the IV Corps trap the enemy in numerous encirclements, it chased some 26,000 Soviet troops to the islands of Lake Ladoga, forcing them to be evacuated or destroyed.
Oesch's forces liberated Viipuri within mere weeks, completing their strategic objective and allowing the Finns to keep pushing forward. And with the defeats the Red Army kept suffering down South, in the Baltics and Ukraine, its forces in Karelia were in no position to push back or even halt the Finnish Army.
Viipuri, Finland's second-largest city, was where the four months long Winter War had ended. Now, it was the city where the Continuation War had properly begun, and it wouldn't be over nearly so soon.
In the game
It is probably the first large-scale strategic offensive operation carried out by the Finnish Army. It is a signature type of operation in the Strategic Mind series - where you have to advance fast and complete the side objectives. While it may sound straightforward, it is much easier said than done.
Units In Spirit of Liberty #7 | Finnish fighter aircraft
Hello
Buckle up as we take off to discuss the Finnish airforce of the Winter (1939-1940) and Continuation (1941-1944) Wars. More specifically, we are talking about the Finish fighter aircraft today.
The Winter War
As in many other areas of the Winter War, the Finnish side started as an underdog in the fight. The Soviet airforce had twenty times more planes than the Finns. Anyone would bet on the Soviets here, right?
Fokker D. XXI was the most prominent fighter airplane to oppose the Soviet aerial invasion and subsequent bombardments. It was designed in 1935 by Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker and could be considered modern by all standards. This inexpensive and compact plane performed well against the enemy at the beginning but appeared overpowered and too lightly armed against the newer Soviet models.
However, the Finns could only go so far with their dwindling numbers. Sooner or later, it would prove harder to fight off the Soviet aerial forces with a dozen planes. Therefore, a number of foreign planes were commissioned by the Finns, many of which would arrive by the end of the Winter War.
The ones that made it in time were the French Morane-Saulnier M.S.406, or as the Finns called them - Murjaani (Moor), Mätimaha (roe-belly), and Riippuvatsa (hanging belly). It was a sturdy and highly maneuverable plane that managed to strike down Soviet planes but wasn’t modern enough to keep up with the newest enemy planes.
The Finnish force had to be more innovative to make up for the lower numbers and technological inferiority. They had already adopted the four-finger formation, which proved more effective against the Soviet’s Vic formation. And to prevent their forces from being destroyed on the ground, the Finns spread their planes to various improvised airfields, hid them in forests, used lakes to take off, constructed decoys to fool invaders, and attacked the enemy only when those were at a disadvantage. The Continuation War
The planes late for the Winter War party were used in the Continuation War. In addition, some of the Soviet planes were captured and used to fight back. Thus, the Finnish airforce grew to more than 500 planes.
The American F2A Buffalo (called Brewsters) and P-36 Hawk 75A (Sussu, “Sweetheart”) were a considerable and helpful addition to the Finnish Air Force. Both models were responsible for more than 600 Soviet warplanes destroyed (in contrast, the Soviets managed to shoot down less than 50 of those “American birds”).
German Messerschmitt Bf-109 G, coming later to fight, was meant for the Finns aces and the frontline, replacing the Buffaloes and claiming 664 air victories with only 20 being shot down by the enemy.
In the game
You will have to be extra careful with preserving each of your fighter units, making sure they gain experience, and assigning hore pilots to them. This is the only way to ensure that the Red Army does not get air superiority over the limited finish units. Also, Finns could not churn out new planes, like their opponent - so you have to hold on to anything you could get your hands on.
If you are smart about developing your Air Force you could very well contest the Reds' air superiority with much fewer aircraft.
War in Ukraine - despatch 14 | New year, new challenges
Hello
We had some winter holidays, despite the new Russian missile and drone attacks on New Year's eve day and night and the following night. Two more attacks on the 14th and 26th of January. Still, life in Kyiv seems to run unperturbed and the power supply issues seem to gradually diminish. Having a power generator in the office - we have no problems whatsoever. So, we are really happy that this year we can work more or less normally.
Here is a summary of some key news from our team of the last month:
Starni Games 2022 Report
If you have missed our yearly report - make sure to check it out here: https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1474770/view/3602348353234222462?l=english
Dev Q&A #3
Here is our latest Dev Q&A: https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1474770/view/3655267554774248669?l=english
Recent units posts: Units In Spirit of Liberty #5 | Finnish artillery 1939-1945 https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1474770/view/3602348353259206353?l=english Units In Spirit of Liberty #6 | Scouts & Kaukopartio https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1474770/view/3644009189550887218?l=english
Recent scenario overviews: Scenario overview #3: Battle of Suomussalmi and Raate Road https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1474770/view/3655267554752408995?l=english Scenario overview #4: Battle of Viipuri Bay https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1474770/view/3644009824649755060?l=english
With Best Regards from Kyiv Starni Games team
Scenario overview #4: Battle of Viipuri Bay
The Mannerheim Line is pierced! The Finnish defenders are regrouping after a hasty retreat, while the Red Army is bearing down on them with the might of its combined arms, adapted tactics, and new heavy tanks, invulnerable to most weapons.
The quartermaster Wolf Hasti, who later became a war historian, writes in his diary:
"The tactical situation in and of itself if not hopeless! Only the means to deal with it are lacking! If only we had some heavy weapons! … What a pleasure it would be to form a battalion out of politicians and bureaucrats and then order them to make such an attack, without the tanks and artillery their stupidity has deprived us of today."
The frontline is crawling towards Viipuri, a city of 86,000. The civilian population receives an evacuation notice: pack your belongings and rations for 5 days, remain calm, and be ready to walk – horse transport is only for the infirm. At the same time, the government is in the middle of peace negotiations. But to have its position considered, the Finns must demonstrate: they won't be an easy conquest.
The Finnish Defense Forces are preparing to fight to stall the Soviet army in the sky, on the land, and even on ice.
The Battle of Viipuri Bay was the last battle of the Winter War, only coming to a close with the signing of the truce. It was by far the hardest trial for the Finnish army up to date: its soldiers were exhausted and few in number, while Soviet forces, having learned from humiliating mistakes, began utilizing novel tactics and coordinating much more effectively.
Knowing what likely awaited them on the streets of Viipuri, the Soviets decided to encircle the city and cut it off from Helsinki. And now, the anomalously low temperature worked in their favor – entire units hopped across the frozen Viipuri Bay and cut the city's principal supply line from the West.
The situation got so dire, all of Finland's finest commanders were called to the defense: Lieutenant-General Carl Lennart Oesch, Mannerheim's second-in-command and the Chief of the General Staff, came in person, and so did the legendary Major-General Talvela. They oversaw counterattacks, reigned in panicked retreats, and worked tirelessly with one goal in mind: to win more time for the Finnish delegation in Moscow.
Knowing that the defenders of Viipuri were on their last legs, and with Soviet forces taking position north of the city, poised for a full encirclement, Soviet General Meretskov threw everything he had at the city. His orders were to secure Viipuri no later than March 14.
And yet, the defenses held on. On March 12, the Finns began an organized retreat, leaving behind only a few regiments to hold the frontline in place. And on March 13, before the Soviet forces could take the almost entirely evacuated city of Viipuri, the Finnish delegation signed the peace treaty.
In the end, the last of the Finnish forces would only leave the city on March 15, after lowering the national flag.
Only now did the war exhaustion begin to catch up with the Finns. But it didn't last long – soon came the resentment, and the thirst for vengeance. It was March 1940, the world was still barreling towards disaster, and nobody expected the peace to last.
The rematch was coming, and Finland, better armed and prepared, was about to surprise Stalin again.
In the game
You will have to break the encirclement and level the front, reestablishing a connection with the capital and bracing for the final stand. Then do a daring counterattack, or just hold the line in the city proper, keeping the Red Army hordes at bay and winning time for the Finnish diplomats in Moscow to get a more favorable agreement signed. This was a unique scenario for teh Dev team to design - as this is the battle in Strategic Mind that ends with the peace treaty and not the elimination of the enemy on the battlefield.
