Answering in new thread.
My players and I are all long time gamers that have played a lot of wargamey-type RPGs. They enjoy games where you count squares, consider positions, move for flanking and other strategies that add mechanical bonuses.
BUT, after one session of MG they love it. I’m lucky that I have mature players and also that each of them is a good friend. We talked before we started playing MG and we made sure that everyone at the table didn’t bring their wargame strategies with them and that everyone approached MG the way the game expects you to approach it. It was also helpful that everyone had read the book before we played our first session and knew what to expect.
If you play this game in the spirit of the comics and follow Luke’s excellent descriptions of how to apply the rules, you should have a great time with this game. If you read the comics and want to play a story like the ones from the comics, then you should love this game. If you come to this game with expectations of wargamey-like combats, then you’re gonna be disappointed.
We have no problems with the conflict system - other than me being a little overzealous when I threw a Fox at them on their first mission! And you’re right, your players do want to make sure they have clear goals (I would’nt use the word intent).