This has been discussed in other threads, but it deserves its own thread.
Demo is now available on Steam
Gameplay
Rapto asking the real question
special attention to authenticity and fun.
Oxymoron of the day.
Really.
I tried some of the demo missions. No clue what’s going on, really. I just drove forward and occasionally shot some things. I like the general feel of the game, or sim, or whatever it is. The after action x-ray diagrams of shell impacts and stuff are cool. Controls are kind of clunky, and I have zero clue about what is going on beyond my own vehicle. As of yet there doesn’t seem to be a clear sense of being in a battle with other units, or having goals beyond go there, shoot what you see. Perhaps that is in the works, or I simply didn’t get to that in the couple of missions I played. But it seems really promising.
I’m confused by the layout of this AFV. What is this component that is smack bang in the way of the turret’s traversal arc? It looks to be some fire control doohickey? Does it retract or move out of the way during turrent traversal? Is that a real AFV?
That looks like the commanders position on a BMP. But it doesn’t look like a hatch… Not sure what it is.
It does the thing I like, where dead units keep on trucking.
Looks like a spotlight.
Edit: possibly the “pulsed laser spotlight” for the TKN-AI commander’s periscope? Hard to get info on what this stuff looks like.
I like the mechanics of it. They basically made the tank an FPS, but at least the gunnery seems fairly realistic. But there’s a lot of work that needs to be done in terms of situational awareness/AI. Sure, your tank commander is screaming at you if a tank comes into view, but I wish the M60s that are getting chewed up nearby would let us know what’s happening.
Yeah, lot of stuff still to add but the core game mechanics seem pretty solid and get the classic era Microprose balance right between realism and fun realism - e.g. having the ready rack/hull storage distinction for ammo but allowing you to shift between commander and gunner by a single press.
The “exploded” views never get old.
Pop goes the weasel
This crew is having a no good, very bad day.
OMG OMG OMG. YES!!!
Errr why does it have such a stupid name?
It’s a command a tank commander would give. It’s shorthand for telling the gunner (and the loader unless it is a Russian tank with an autoloader) to load & prepare to fire a HEAT round next, because he has identified a Personnel Carrier as the next target.
So I like it as a title, because it immediately conveys the scale of the game if you’re the kind of person who would buy a tank sim game.
It’s the commander’s hatch. In the game, if the crew is not killed when the vehicle is knocked out, they pop the hatches and bail out (they just vanish, they don’t show up as infantry, though I think they said that is going to be added at some point). So that BMP is dead, but it didn’t burn.
In a Russian tank, the command is “Ivan, prepare for liftoff!” as the turret flies into the air…
I love me M1 Tank Platoon! Is this anything like it?
I kinda get that vibe, yeah. Not finished yet, and still needs more in the mission/game structure, but the basic sim engine drive tank/blow up tanks stuff seems solid and familiar in a good way.
The game looks good, but I have to say I hope the voicework is just placeholder.
That’s great to hear, it’s been too long since I last played a good tank sim. If they could simulate the full platoon, and other support units, that would be perfect. I recall trying to find a good hulls down position for my crew, reverse slope ambush positions and long-range HEAT sniping.
Thank you! I was wondering the same thing. Now that I know what it is, I actually like the title.
-Tom