by James Cobb

  These are all of Panzer Elite's main features. Is it easy to run? Is it flawless? By no means. From gritted teeth comes the tale of its warts. With all the details and features, Panzer Elite is very demanding. The recommended specs are:

• 233 Mghz
• 64 MB RAM
• 4x CD-ROM
• · DirectX 6.1

In fact, these should be minimum specs as the game is wry difficult to run with less. Some common video cards like the Voodoo 2 may require new drivers to run the simulation. Problems with sound cards have been discovered. Some gamers have experienced freezes and crashes. Wings has been extremely responsive with work-arounds and interim patches but be prepared to do a little research to make this game run. WingsSimulations has a beta patch and is a good starting point.

As good as they are, the campaigns, like those of Close Combat 3, are a bit hollow. With no branching system, good play is awarded with points, not a feeling of making history. A little alternative history could send a very victorious American from North Africa to a 1943 invasion of France.

Nobody wants Nazi Germany to win but a strong German showing might allow the Wehrmacht to succeed in a coup in Berlin. Alternatively, the player could be assigned to the same outfit through out the war. These ideas, far-fetched though they may be, could be in the promised editor or add-ons.

Other points that detract from the game are:

• Graphics which, though fine, suffer from comparison with games like Hidden & Dangerous
• A damage model which allows many hits to units that should succumb earlier
• Some mis-labeling of shells
• Gun barrels swivel through buildings and are not damaged
• Orders from radio messages during the game sometimes contradict mission goals
• Non-catastrophic damage can kick the platoon leader from his vehicle and not allow him to climb aboard another of his platoon's tanks
• Conversely, there's no bail-out key so the platoon leader must choose between taking more hits or ending the scenario if serious damage does not boot him out
• Wingmen sometimes lock together
• Some translation problems such as "heavy" instead of "severe" wounds and some "unter"s intsead of "under"s

Click to continue

This close up view was taken during an MP game.

Most of these are minor but annoying. All of them are being patched. Until they are, ratings of 100 are not possible.

Panzer Elite may not be the alpha and omega of tank sims. Improvement is possible. Is there a better tank sim? No. Does it do what it claims? Yes, for the most part. All of my connections aside, this engine is now the definitive tank sim for World War II in my opinion. If a better one comes along, it will only be because Panzer Elite failed to evolve and somebody copied it.

RATINGS:

Core: 95

• Gameplay: 97
• Graphics 89
• Sound 80
• Intelligence/AI 94
• Interface 95
• Fun Factor 97
• Learning Curve 10 hours

• Overall 95

For innovation and excellence, we award Panzer Elite our "Top Pick." Look for the final patch in the next ten days or so.

Join a discussion forum on this article by clicking HERE.