The reason it has taken me a bit longer than I had anticipated to cover this sim is due to the fact that the "Gold" I had received from SSI was not really THE Gold. Only after speaking with Producer Rick Martinez at length and running the sim together at the same time while on the phone as well as speaking again at E3 did we realize the build I had was NOT the final product.

Rick was very surprised that I had not seen the final game and quickly took care of this by overnighting me a copy of the final. After getting my hands on the finished product I found myself very much pleased with what I saw and quickly noted that alot of the original flaws I had seen in my initial exposure were dealth with. With the new game in hand I set about the task of going over the game further and checking up on the original points I found, both good and bad. Thankfully, most of the bugs I found had been squashed.

With the success of the latest armor release from Microprose M1TPII, the stakes are higher than ever. I knew that Panzer Commander would be under the microscope and under special scrutiny as a result. After seeing the lukewarm reception given to iPanzer '44, I had hoped a polished Panzer Commander would step up to plate and fill the void. The team at Ultimation and SSI have both heeded and answered the call for a good quality WWII armor sim that armor fans should not miss.

Most people are going to automatically think of the photo-rendered graphics of M1 Tank Platoon II and use them as a measuring stick from which they will judge all other armor sims. As much as I truly enjoyed M1TP, I've found this is both unfair to the other sims as well as cheating yourself by basing a game more on appearance than substance. Panzer Commander, though not as pretty in the eye candy department, has the substance and does an outstanding job in the graphics department.

Each vehicle is easily distinguishable from another, which is essential in deciding who's who in those fast paced knife fights, as well as just being damn important to give you that immersion factor we all need from any sim. All the tanks and other armored vehicles are nicely done and one of the things I enjoyed greatly is that they really do feel like individual tanks, not just copies of the same model. There are some shortcomings in the graphics with the old "floating tank" syndrome we've seen before in other sims, but SSI is aware of this and is working on a patch as well as adding a few more features.

Color My World

The paint schemes are authentic to the era and are nicely done, not to mention motion in the road wheels that not only rotate but ride up and down as you cross over the terrain. I really enjoy when a developer adds touches like these - they are essential to immersion in an armor sim.

You can play campaigns from either the German or the Russian sides, as well as 40 stand-alone scenarios from the Russian, German, American and British sides. There are also 12 multiplayer scenarios that can be played as either co-op or head to head mode. Authentic radio chatter using true Russian and German speech is a nice atmospheric that gives you a "you are there" feel.

As for customization, the scenario builder is a value added feature that allows building a bigger scenario library and enhances Internet play with unending possibilities. All the game features from level of difficulty (there are three Recruit, Commander and Ace) to all of your detail settings can be manipulated individually to tailor the game to not only your desired play level but to make most efficient use of your exisiting hardware.

And there's plenty of objects to see and see and use in Panzer Commander: from farm houses to villages to stonewalls and hedgerows it's there. It's important to note that although these objects may seem like mere graphic fluff they add a strong tactical aspect to the game. There's been several times I've gotten behind a stone wall, hull down to engage enemy tanks and was saved by that walled surface.

Playability

This is a sim that takes a little bit of time to get set up for your own personal feel. I've found the joystick support works rather well, but does take a bit of time to set up and experiment with to get it just right for your personal taste. You can easily maneuver, fire and give orders right from your keyboard as well, for those out there who aren't into joystick use.

The only drawback I found to the controls was that braking could be a bit better. To brake you use the Delete key on the keyboard (or your joystick equivalent based on how you set it up), but I've had some troubles with this at times when engaging targets. What seems to happen is the tank will start to roll again when on uneven terrain after firing your main gun. This is truly realistic but can be a bother when you are forced to act as both driver and gunner. It's not a constant problem but one you may see when playing through your missions.

Missions are run on a time limit to keep the action moving along, but don't fear. Your drive time from start point to targets isn't too long, just long enough to let you get your bearings and forumlate your plan.
Times range from 5-20 minutes and can easily be completed in the time given, granted you stay alive.

Playability is further enhanced using options you set by either making the sim harder for yourself or easier. For example, both unlimited intelligence map and chase view are disabled in Ace mode. Using these helps you are able to spot enemy tanks on your map and adjust your tactics accordingly, as well as go outside your vehicle to see and correct your hull down positions.

I must also add here that there was NO slowdown at all with any engagement I have been in to date. The gameplay is extremely smooth and I've been in some engagements with as many as 20 + vehicles and there has yet to be a single slowdown. This is a very strong point of gameplay, and I was very pleased since some sims can have a serious degradation in frame rate when multiple vehicles are present.

The one annoying characteristic in this game is the AI for both enemy and friendly units, which is often weak. While this is a problem (SSI is aware and this should be addressed in the patch) it does not kill gameplay. One way I found to deal with this is to increase the difficulty level, once you bump the game up to Ace level things get very interesting and your lifespan can dwindle quickly if you don't use intelligent tactics and pay strict attention to your environment.

Game Environment

While a lot of attention gets paid to the eye candy in new games, people tend to forget that a good looking product does not always make a good playing product. I for one would rather have a game a little rough looking but more true to life than a sweet looking game that lacks in substance. I suspect you the reader feel the same, otherwise you wouldn't be reading the articles and reviews on this website!

When it comes to gameplay Panzer Commander shines, and much of this is due to the environment Ultimation and SSI have created. The greatest example of this is the rolling terrain, which makes for great tactical use for you as well as the enemy. When you turn off your intelligence map you must find targets with your own eyes and in a rolling terrain that can be rather difficult, as it should be. If you aren't constantly scanning your area you can easily find yourself being flanked or even back-doored before you can even start to react. I've had this happen to me a couple times while driving merrily along, and the next thing I know I have a couple of Panzers blazing away at me on my left and my left wingman is dead!

I'm sure all the developers ears were ringing as I was cursing whomever ordered those tanks to roll up on me like that. Afterwards both worn out and pleased with the outcome of the scenario I realized it was due more to my own lack of attention than anything else. I had decided to just putt-putt along without a care, drinking in the scenery, and meanwhile the Panzers were using the terrain and flanked me. Situations like this taught me that the this game has created true to life situations where all is going well in the world and then all of a sudden all hell breaks loose and you're trying to do several things at once.

The terrain is also something you must learn to use to your tactical advantage while giving your platoon movement orders. A good tactic is to move your platoon into a hull down position and then order them to hold in place while you move forward. This way you are keeping the main part of your element in an overwatch position and they can engage any targets that may place you in danger. You can also assign individual targets to separate tanks in your platoon and in this way bring maximum firepower to bear on the enemy. The AI here works rather well and can save your butt if used effectively.

Gunnery is much different than what we're used to compared to modern armor sims, since there is no stabilization as we know it today. To fire you must first stop then fire, which you must do rather quickly as when you are stopped you make for a very inviting target to your enemy. Another aspect of WWII tank gunnery is the need to range your targets manually, which Panzer Commander models quite well. It's easily done, but this is something you only really need to worry about if you are planning on doing the firing manually as opposed to playing TC and just designating targets to your AI gunner.

Why assign targets to your gunner? Your AI gunner is quite good, and if you assign him to do the job then you can concern yourself with the movement of your own tank as well as the tactical movement of your platoon. This is one approach to the game that works very well, and its a good way to learn tactics. You can then allow the computer to engage targets for you.

Another tactical tip involves the range as to which you set your views Rick Martinez suggested that I set my view distance out to the max. When I did this I was able to see more clearly and had a much better time discerning targets, and it also took care of some of the "floating tank" syndrome. This is not the way it necessarily should be in the game but it has worked for me and I suggest others try it as well.

One of the things I felt was lacking in the game that will also be in the patch is the need for tracer rounds from your coax and bow mounted machine guns. While your rounds will kick up dirt when you fire and hit the ground, there are no tracers from which you can "John Wayne" it and range and adjust your fire. Rick agreed that this is very useful and I look forward to seeing tracers in a patch.
No doubt about it, Panzer Commander is a great simulation. But there were times I would see no flash before my primary gunners sight when I fired a main gun round. In these cases neither did I see any impact. It's not a constant problem but be aware it can happen. While this doesnt' kill gameplay its another bug for the list.

Targeting and firing are easily accomplished through the game but not easily in gameplay. What I mean by this is simply an example of the level of realism this game models. For example in a modern armor sim you have the technology to both see and engage targets out to 4000-5000 meters. In WWII that technology just wasn't there, and engagement ranges were more severely limited. So you will not see targets out at 4 or 5000 meters let alone hit them. Keep in mind when playing this sim, this is NOT your son's M1, its your grandads Edsel! In the 1940's armor was still in its pre-adolescence and was going through rapid changes and growth.

There are some other graphics issues as well that need mentioning so that you don't think your system is glitching. Turrets do sometimes disappear and reappear. I was once preparing to engage a German tank when suddenly his turret vanished into thin air.. er, thin pixels! Shades of Klingon technology! I still had my ranging reticle on him but could only see sky where the reticle was. the funny thing is you can still hit and kill the target in his "stealth" turret. Again this is another point that SSI is fully aware of and I urge all of you out there to take full advantage of SSI's tech support. (more on this later)

One of the things I personally didn't like was the map that you can access from your F4 TC Cupola buttoned position. The reason is it is a very small map and is not as detailed as I would personally prefer. It is completely useful and does show you the terrain you are going through, but its not as big as I would like.

Nonetheless the map serves its purpose well and shows you all prominent terrain features as well as all other objects in the area again based upon the level of intelligence you set to be shown in your options setup. As I said the map is very detailed and easy to use and is another essential component for survial.

With regard to the AI, one of the factors I found quite alarming and felt was a bug was the fact I would sometimes have enemy vehicles drive right by at top speed. After asking Rick about this I now understand why this happens. One of the orders you can give a unit in the scenario editor is "Rush". Once you give this order the unit just rushes through their waypoints with a total disregard to you and your platoon as well as any of your other friendly units. Through this you may see one of the situations I have observed a couple of times.

I once had a pair of Bren Carriers headed towards me at a couple hundred yards. I decided to take out the leader, whereupon the trailer rode right up his leaders tail pipe and stayed there! This is due to several factors such as the original Rush order the unit is continuing to follow as well as morale checks to see if he can get himself out of the pickle on his own.

This is a situation those of you out there who want to build their own scenarios should learn from. Use the Rush command only when you are ready to kill units, units WILL die when you give this order. They are so intent on getting to their objective they fail to protect themselves properly and can easily become sitting ducks as that one Bren Carrier did. It is a very useful command but should only be used by a blitzing unit that has some flank coverage.

Forests are again handled in much the same way as they are in M1TP with blocky forest walls that from a distance are not much more than square objects. This is not really a big thing as you have plenty of other objects from which to hide and ambush the enemy as well as be ambushed.

#3. Be careful when giving orders beofre crossing a bridge and also along banks of rivers. Make sure you call an in-line formation prior to crossing a river bridge so your platoon can fall in behind you and cross safely, otherwise they have a tendency to just head right into the water and swamp their engines. The same can happen along a riverbank if you're not careful; since they readjust their place in formation they can easily wander into the water and again swamp their engine.

One of the most fun parts of this game is the driving, which many people had wished to see in M1TP but didn't. In Panzer Commander you WILL drive the tank, and let me tell you it's not only fun, but very realistic.

As I said before the terrain is fully modeled on real terrain and as in real terrain has differing effects on your vehicle. Hills can be steep to climb and sometimes can be impassable at points, so you must pay careful attention to where you're driving especially when under fire. When doing some "off-road" driving you must realize that you will not attain your tops speeds and your speed can drop to a mere 6-9 kph, but then again that is the trade off when being able to use the terrain to your advantage.

A variety of other factors also come up. You must keep in the forefront of your mind the engine overheat issue (unless you turned it off in your options). Your engine has a tendency to overheat if you stress it too much so go easy on it and save it for when you really do need it. If you receive an overheat warning message from your crew, by all means SLOW DOWN!

As for enjoyment of the experience, I recommend anyone to switch to the outside view when you can as you are driving and just pan around and enjoy the excellent physics modeling of each of the tanks, watch as the roadwheels roll and bounce and the track moves and leaves those treads in the soil. It's a real treat, but don't stay out there too long or you could be toast!

Issuing platoon orders is very easy, but be careful when in the heat of battle as I've found myself sometimes moving when I didn't want to after placing an individual tank fire command. To issue a platoon fire order you must use the shift key in conjunction with the numbers at the top of the keyboard that correspond to the tank you wish to give the order to.

However, there is a problem here since those same number keys also control your throttle, and when you give that order you also change your speed according to which key you press, which will slow you down if moving full speed or make you move forward if you are stopped. This can sometimes cause you to move when you don't wish to so it's something to be aware of while you are playing.

One thing I wish to make clear is that SSI intends to give great support on their products; they ARE listening and WANT your feedback on this game. If you see something that you feel, SSI is asking you the player to send them e-mail. It is only in this way they can fix any problems and at the same time make the game even better with everyones input.

There are also alot of things in this game that do allow for easy customization, so you hackers out there don't have to work too hard to change things in this one. The vehicles and scenarios have been constructed around an open file structure so as to allow gamers to really dig their hands into it and tweak it as much as they want.

Ever wondered what an M1 would do in WWII? Got the stats for one? Then jump right into any of the .VDF (vehicle definition files) files and change the stats. Next thing you know you have a fully modern M1 running rampant through Africa tearing up Rommel! Want to play a German scenario with an American vehicle? What would the Americans have done with the King Tiger in their arsenal? Chnage settings in the .PZS files and you can see.

As you can see, in a similar way to MPS with M1TP2, SSI has gone out of their way to allow the game to be manipulated and tweaked by the gamer by allowing use of these text files. You can even create your own briefings for missions through this architecture. To get some more information on this as well as winnign strategies and breakdowns of the missions you can also purchase the strategy guide by Mark Cohen. Bottom line on this one, if you are into realistic WWII armor sims, this is one you cannot be without.

Ratings:
Core Rating : 75
Gameplay : 85
Graphics : 85
Sound : 85
AI : 60
User Interface : 80
Fun Factor : 90
Learning Curve : 4-6 Hours (depending on level chosen)
Overall Rating : 80

This is a truly enjoyable sim and the only drawback to it is the AI for both friendly an enemy. let's hope SSI gives us a patch to fix these issues and if so this one will be a real winner.