George Bradford and Michael Duplessis
ABSOLUTE REALISM IN ARMOR WARGAMING
For those of us who remember the joy of playing Avalon Hill board games in the 60's and 70's, and the fledgling computer wargames in the 80's and 90's, COMBAT MISSION has brought us to a pinnacle that we could only have dreamed of in the past. The game comes with 50 scenarios ready to play and a scenario builder that allows you to build your own games. You can auto generate terrain if need be, and the Quick Battle features let's you get the feel of things immediately. You can view the battles from every angle, elevation and size imagineable, and CM features a replay feature for each turn, just in case you missed what happened somewhere else in your attack. You can download a free demo from the Battlefront.com web site.
An example of a Panther Ausf G in a winter scenario, and it also comes with the chin mantlet. Remember, the tracks turn, the turret traverses, and the gun fires. The game designers have even gone as far as incorporating various cammo schemes depending on the time period you have chosen. You are also "limited" to those vehicles and infantry weapons which were available in a given time period. Times are broken down into months of 1944 & 1945: June, July, August, etc. The months of Summer, Fall, Winter and Spring all gives you a slightly different terrain appearance. Leaves change color, snow falls, and spring brings back the greenery.
VEHICLE LISTS:
Besides the 50 scenarios that accompany the game, we are also blessed with a scenario creator where we can create our own battles with the same realistic results as the pros gave us. All the vehicle types available in a given month are listed by nationality: German, British, Canadian, Polish and French. Those vehicles which did not appear until late in the war only appear on the lists when your battle is staged in the final months of WW2.
BATTLE DAMAGE
Damage to vehicles is represented by messages which appear on the screen above the vehicle being fired upon. Depending on the vehicle your tanks will often take 2 to 6 hits before a lucky shot jams the turret or it is penetrated and bursts into flames.
TARGETING THE ENEMY The game uses a system of coloured tubes to indicate if you have a "line of vision" to the target. Then it will designate the range in meters and and what is targeting you, so that you can return fire, lay down smoke, or reverse out of danger.
INFANTRY TROOPS:
Accompanying your armor into battle are very realistic infantry troops that can walk, run, kneel, crawl and lie down. Each nationality has its proper uniforms, and a full range of infantry weapons, including the hand held anti-tank weapons. PIAT, Bazooka, Panzerschrecke and Panzerfaust. Very late in the war the Recoilless Rifle shows up too.
These infantry may be upgraded art modifications done by individual players who wanted to make the men & machines even more realistic. You can download these mods free if you so desire, to replace the fine basic ones that come with the game.
ANTITANK GUNS:
The antitank element has not been overlooked either. There is a full range of Allied and Axis anti-tank weapons to choose from, and they are just as realistic as the rest of the stuff, in the shape of almost every type imagineable. Early in the game you are also allowed to call on the big guns of offshore warships. Once inland you rely on Mortars, Nebelwerfers, 155mm, etc. for indirect fire, plus air strikes.
ARTILLERY & MORTAR SUPPORT:
Artillery support is also available and is called in by forward artillery observers. This results in very realistic explosions and sound effects. For extra punch the Allies are allowed to call in support from the heavy naval guns supporting the invasion.
INFANTRY SUPPORT WEAPONS
Infantry support weapons include the following.
AIR SUPPORT
Aircraft support consists of fighter bombers attacks and carpet bombing. All you see is the shadow of the plane as it flies over, and then the bombs exploding on impact. Accuracy is not one of their attributes!
BUILDING A SCENARIO
TERRAIN FEATURES:
The terrain modules supplied give a range of trees, brush, fields, hills, hedges, bocage, roads, rivers, bridges, buildings and stone walls. You can build your own terrain using a map of the dimensions you prefer. Once you place the terrain items you can preview them to see if you are getting what you want. Then you choose the troops for both sides, and place them on the terrain.
WEATHER EFFECTS:
The scene above shows a scenario with light rain coming down. You can alter the weather to whatever effect you desire. The vehicles can also reflect winter conditions, with snow on the tracks, and winter cammo.
BATTLE PARAMETERS:
BACKGROUND SOUNDS:
Accompanying all the above features is great sound. The men are heard talking to each other with their heads turning as they advance, and the tracks on the tanks grind away as they move forward. In a "spring" scenarios there would be birds in the background. In "winter" scenarios there are blustering wind sounds. The heavy "rain" scenarios are accompanying by earthshaking thunder claps, and distant rolling thunder. These effects have been tried before by other games, but Combat Mission has refined them to be far more realistic and believeable.
Naturally there is gunfire and vehicles reving up, accompanied by crackling fires and very graphic incoming artillery.
FORTIFICATIONS & BARRIERS:
A good selection of mines and roadblocks are provided for both, with pillboxes being allocated to the Germans only. The list includes: Wooden Bunker with MG, Pillbox with MG, Pillboxes with either 75mm or 88mm Anti-tank Guns, Roadblocks, Barbed Wire, Anti-Personnel Mines, and Anti-Tank Mines, etc.
One thing that sets this game apart is its highly modular design. Since the release of the first Combat Mission CD in June 2000 there have been at least six major software upgrades encompassing more than 220 individual refinements to the game logic. As each upgrade has come out it's been posted on the company's website for downloading free of charge.
Another big change to Combat Mission since its initial release has been the look of the game. The game producers have actively encouraged enthusiasts to modify and post their own versions of the game's base artwork. Revised art files can now be downloaded from dozens of independent websites. A search would turn up third-party mods of impressive quality for practically every object in the game, from armor and buildings, down to the grass textures! Many of the screenshots on this site depict scenes composed entirely of third-party modified artwork.
A BIT MORE ON MODS
There are many websites devoted to COMBAT MISSION, but home base for those interested is www.battlefront.com. The game was developed by Big Time Software, and their homepage is BATTLEFRONT.COM. From there you can fan out to CM Discussion Groups, and downloads of improved vehicle images. You can also download a demo of the game wwith several scenarios that let you try out the game. COMBAT MISSION can only be purchased through the internet, and comes on CD disc for both Mac and PC, accompanied by a 170 page manual. The price is roughly $45.00 US. This game pretty well requires the current generation of computers, or a video card upgrade to the older ones.
