by James Cobb

  Right off the bat, let me say that I've already written two previews of Panzer Elite and am listed as a tester. Some may say that detracts from my credibility as a reviewer. Be that as it may, our family and friends can often gives us the clearest and most painful assessments of ourselves. They know our capabilities better than others and have reasonable expectations which can generate rage when disappointed. Let's see what a dose of "tough love" can reveal about this product.

Panzer Elite is the creation of Wings Simulations and represents World War II platoon-level tank warfare. It is extremely focused on details and realism. This focus shows in the scope of the game. It is limited to German/American actions from late 1942 to mid-1943, the theaters of operations of North Africa, Sicily, Italy and Normandy.

Two Mrk IVs appear in the commanders periscope of a Sherman.

Of these campaigns, only Sicily is covered in its entirety. The others portray key battles such as Kasserine, Salerno and the Cobra breakout. Gamers who miss the expansiveness of playing the entire European war or following a specific division will find this partially offset by simulation depth.

Players can control 22 different tanks used by both sides in 40 missions per side. They will encounter over 80 computer-controlled units over the course of play. The North African campaign has long, medium and short versions; the Italian campaign has medium and short version while Normandy is represented by a short, vicious campaign.

The terrain for each theater is very authentic and detailed. The graphics show region-specific buildings, individual trees, poles, and rocks. These visuals are not eye candy; they provide cover and obstacles to movement. In fact, tipping a tank over a steep slope is a particularly inglorious way to lose a scenario. Damage to terrain is also done well. Shell craters can render a road impassable and buildings housing infantry can be whittled down chunk by chunk.

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An external view of your company of Mark IIIs and IVs in the North African Campaign.

The complexity of Panzer Elite requires a steep learning curve. The game is so deep that players should approach training in two separate stages. First, they should learn how to handle their own vehicle in combat. After they feel comfortable in the first person, then they should learn to use all their resources to win scenarios and survive campaigns. This review will use this procedure not only to describe the game but to give players insight into games.

From the first glance at a tank, players will be impressed at the level of detail shown. Even bolts and rivets can be seen. Those little things that distinguish a Model H from a Model J are visible. Well, play is just as detailed and therefore daunting. Each vehicle has weapons, armor, and engine data taken from the original design specs and actual field performance.

This means that gunnery has a ballistic model only a math teacher or an artillery officer could love, bringing in gravity, weather, etc. Player who choose to fire guns themselves will have to learn the different optic and ranging systems of both sides. Terrain and weather affect speed and maneuverability with a possibility of throwing a tread or overheating the engine; real masochists can choose to manually shift gears. The crucial factor of varying turret traverse speeds is simulated with great accuracy.

Depending on their vehicle, players can choose from over twenty kinds of main gun rounds, if the supply carriers have done their job. Armor takes in the various concepts such as thickness, slope and type. The armor model differs from the damage model in that a shell may penetrate but not hit anything affecting performance.

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