iPanzer '44 (PC)

GameSpot editors' review

• CNET editors' rating: 1.5 stars Poor
  Detailed editors' rating
  Overall score: 3.3 (1.5 stars)

• Reviewed by:
  Patrick Miller
• Reviewed on: 05/18/1998
• Updated on: 05/01/2000
• Released on: 03/31/1998
• Originally published on GameSpot: iPanzer '44 (PC) Review

For years, armor fans have been waiting for a realistic World War II tank simulation. Most publishers have followed in the tracks of MicroProse's 1989 classic game, M1 Tank Platoon, basing their simulations primarily on the American M1 Abrams. In 1995, it appeared that MicroProse would break through with its World War II game, Across the Rhine. However, as a simulation, it was a disaster and not well received as a tactical real-time game.

With iPanzer '44, Interactive Magic had the opportunity to exploit the wide-open market for a serious World War II tank simulation. Unfortunately, those who pinned their hopes on this game are in for a major disappointment. The game plays slow, even on a high-end Pentium II system with a 3Dfx Voodoo2 card. It is a buggy, graphically unappealing game with the misfortune of being released at almost the same time as M1 Tank Platoon II, which, for all its faults, looks fantastic and plays wonderfully on less-powerful systems.

Gameplay in iPanzer is similar to tank sims of the past, except that you have the choice of commanding either German, Russian, or American forces - a notable plus. Play options include instant action, single missions or a series of battles in a dynamic campaign. Your persona earns medals, and your tankers gain experience with each successful engagement. Multiplayer support, which was originally promised, is absent from the game.

In battle, you control a company-sized task force and fight from one of the vehicles in your personal tank platoon. When playing the Germans, you use the Panther. As the Americans, you use the M4A3(76) Sherman and, as the Russians, the T-34/85. You can move between the gunner's, driver's, and commander's stations and switch to different tanks within your platoon. There are a wide variety of support units, including armored cars, light tanks, assault guns, tank destroyers, self-propelled artillery, anti-tank guns, and infantry (but no heavy tanks). Commands to support units are issued from a map screen.

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