Panzer Elite

by ACTIVISION

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00001QHWT
• Media: CD-ROM
• Release Date: October 11, 1999
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #51,283 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Panzer Elite puts you in command of a World War II tank platoon. Engage the enemy in strategic battles. Using a highly realistic tank model, you'll see action across North Africa, Italy, and Normandy as you take on historically accurate missions. Challenges include scouting, protecting truck convoys, sealing off villages, and the search-and-rescue of missing units.

GameSpot

1998 was to be the year that tank simulation fans would have their long-standing wish fulfilled for a realistic World War II tank sim. No fewer than three such games were scheduled for release: Interactive Magic's iPanzer '44, SSI's Panzer Commander, and Psygnosis' Panzer Elite. iPanzer and Panzer Commander were released on schedule, and SSI's game was generally considered the better of the two. However, Psygnosis elected to hold on to Panzer Elite for another year of development by German developer Wings Simulations. It would appear that the extra time paid off, because Panzer Elite is without a doubt the most realistic 1940s tank sim yet released. Even so, the game contains numerous bugs out of the box, requires a fast system, and has a steep learning curve. In addition, the campaigns covering battles between the Americans and Germans in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, and Normandy limit the game's scope.

It's inevitable that comparisons will be made between Panzer Elite and SSI's Panzer Commander. The most glaring omission from SSI's game was infantry, but Wings did not make the same mistake with Panzer Elite. Although the bitmapped infantry units won't wow you, driving your tank platoon into a town occupied by enemy infantry is a sure recipe for disaster - as it should be. American infantry armed with bazookas and German infantry armed with panzerfaust and panzerschreck antitank weapons will move about in close terrain and pick off your vehicles one by one. Therefore, making use of combined arms (armor, infantry, and artillery) is a necessity.

Panzer Commander featured air and artillery support, but you had no control over it. Panzer Elite lets you put artillery and air strikes where you need them, when you need them. The only problem with Panzer Elite's treatment of artillery is that it seems unrealistically deadly as a tank killer and is perhaps more lethal than it should be against infantry under cover.

Panzer Commander's terrain was good, but Panzer Elite's terrain is better. The dips and folds in the ground that can provide armor with cover and concealment, even in relatively flat desert terrain, are present in both games. What sets Panzer Elite apart is the close terrain. Forests are made up of individual trees and bushes. Towns consist of walls, fences, ruins, and buildings that can be smashed through by your tanks.

Panzer Elite also deserves credit for having better artificial intelligence that not only makes enemy units fight smarter, but also helps the members of your tank platoon stay near your command tank. This lets them make a real contribution in battle. In too many Panzer Commander scenarios, you sometimes felt as if it was your tank against the world because your platoonmates either got stuck on an obstacle or were quickly destroyed. Panzer Elite provides an innovative feature that lets you maneuver your tanks individually to locations you select. However, this doesn't always work as it should. Sometimes your tanks will end up in positions far different than you intended or will take convoluted routes that unnecessarily expose them to danger. It's a great idea that's flawed in execution.

The game's interface relies heavily on a mind-boggling array of keyboard commands. The "mouse tank" feature, an onscreen line diagram showing your tank's heading and the relative position of the turret and hull, lets you give basic commands through a pop-up menu to members of your tank platoon, either individually or as a group. You can also use the pop-up menu to jump to different crew positions, such as the loader, gunner, driver, radio operator/hull machine gunner, and commander. However, you'll soon discover there are many other useful commands that aren't displayed on the menu. Plus, in the heat of battle, the keyboard commands can be issued far more quickly. -- Patrick C. Miller
--Copyright ©1999 GameSpot Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of GameSpot is prohibited.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally a tank game worth investing my free time., January 14, 2000

By 

Blake C (Kansas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Panzer Elite (CD-ROM)

Panzer Elite is the game I have been searching for years. I have been playing tank games on paper and on computers for years. I admit to having had some flight simulator envy with their great first person perspective. Now I need not envy anymore. I can hop into my trusty Sherman (or Tiger) and let the lead fly. This game is very immersive. It gets all the essentials of tank combat right. The terrain is modeled in great detail with trees, hills, nooks and crannies great for hiding behind. Tanks are modeled in appearance (insides too), but also in how they respond to damage. Damage to can range from a catastrophic 'brewing up' to a damaged radio. The player can command an American or German platoon in combat from Tunisia to France, by way of Sicily and Italy. The learning curve is steep, but is mostly developing situational awareness and learning to deal in real time with hairy situations. The game ran great for me out of the box. There is great support on the web for any that encounter problems. There is an active user's community growing for Internet play and user enhancement. Panzer Elite has become the new standard that all tank sims will be judged by.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good, but you need power, November 15, 1999

By 

M. Lamb (Rocky Mountains, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Panzer Elite (CD-ROM)

I bought this game with the premise that Wings Simulations web site was correct, a minimum requirement was P166 with a 3D board; on the box, the minimum is a PII and a board. On my system [pentium pro 200 with Voodoo], it runs, but slowly. After tweaking the setup, it is acceptable, but lacking since the graphics move slowly and jerky. The game itself is well done, and the play-time is fun and seems to be pretty realistic. It is a 3 star overall, 4 to 5 with a power system.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best armor sim ever. Panzer Elite sets the mark !, November 15, 1999

By 

Michael Peters ([e-mail]) (Windsor, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Panzer Elite (CD-ROM)

Panzer Elite is one of the best sims I have ever played. I have been computing for the last 15 years with a background in studying military history, specifically armor combat of WW2 for the past 20 years. Panzer Elite models all the details of armor combat and it truly gives you the flavor of WW2 tanking.

I had zero problems installing and running the SIM, most users who experience problems do so because they do not have updated drivers necessary for running Panzer Elite proper. I have followed Wings Simulations tech support board for sometime now and to see how they support their clients. Wings has developed patches for those experiencing problems that need addressing a common practice for software publishers patches are part of life for software users. The developer of Panzer Elite has done so with blinding speed and support second to none. In short they are the best company I have ever dealt with. The graphics are gorgeous and immerse you in combat. Enemy AI is top notch and a challenge. Multiplayer support, 80 missions. Varied campaigns make this a must have for anyone who enjoys sims and armor. They are also expanding the product and will enhance Panzer Elite further with addons. Varied realism options help beginners as well as hardcore sim options for those wanting utmost realism.

To sum it up if you want a quake or doom experience of shoot the bad guys, Panzer Elite is not for you. If you want a quality product, the most realistic tank sim on the market, a company who cares about putting out excellent product then Panzer Elite is for you! Buy it, learn it, live it!