| Close Combat | |
|---|---|
The official logo of the franchise as used in the third game of the series | |
| Genre(s) | |
| Developer(s) | Atomic Games CSO Simtek Strategy 3 Tactics |
| Publisher(s) | Microsoft Strategic Simulations, Inc. Matrix Games |
| Creator(s) | Keith Zabalaoui |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows, Mac, Xbox, Wii |
| First release | Close Combat January 1, 1996 |
Close Combat is the name of a series of real-timecomputer wargames by Atomic Games. In the Close Combat series, the player takes control of a small unit (platoon or company sized) of troops and leads them in battles of World War II from a top down2D perspective.
History[edit]
Combat Mission is the name of a successful series of computer wargames simulating tactical battles.The series has progressed through two distinct game engines.The original game engine, referred to as 'CMx1' by the developer, Battlefront.com, powered a trio of games set in the Second World War. Mortar Combat is an artillery tank battle game, heavily influenced fromby the old PC games Mortar Mayhem and Scorched Earth. The game brings back those good old days, but this time on modern touchscreen phones and tablets. So get together with your friends and play this simple and yet skill-based game in a deathmatch with many weapons and gadgets. Halo: Combat Evolved is a sci-fi first-person shooter created by Bungie Studios for Microsoft and released for the Xbox in 2001, then ported to Windows and Macintosh by GearBox in 2003. We usually publish games that are at least 20 years old, but this time we made an exception. Mortal Kombat is back and better than ever in the next evolution of the iconic franchise. The all new Custom Character Variations give you unprecedented control to customize the fighters and make them your own. The new graphics engine showcasing every skull-shattering, eye-popping moment, brings you so close to the fight you can feel it. And featuring a roster of new and returning Klassic. The mortar is an indirect fire weapon that rains freedom down from high angles onto an enemy within a (relatively) short range. But the compact and mobile mortar systems we have today are the result of a long history of indirect fire systems in the American military.
Close Combat was developed as a computer game version of the acclaimed Avalon Hill board game Advanced Squad Leader (ASL). The primary consultant for the morale model was Dr. Steven Silver, a specialist in combat-related trauma. Atomic Games had already developed several games for Avalon Hill, such as Operation Crusader, and Stalingrad. However, with Avalon Hill embroiled in a financial crisis that would ultimately lead to its demise, Atomic Games took what work they had completed, severed ties with the board game franchise and completed the game's development for Microsoft. The first three Close Combat games were notable, at the time, for being among the few games published by Microsoft. The final two games in the original series were, however, published by Strategic Simulations, Inc (SSI).
Close Combat I and II were distributed for both Microsoft Windows and Apple Mac OS. Later versions were released for Microsoft Windows only.In 2005, Atomic Games was bought by Destineer. Destineer licensed the game to Matrix Games to develop three more Close Combat titles. Matrix Games hired first CSO Simtek and later Strategy 3 Tactics to develop these titles.
The five original Close Combat games were real-timecomputer wargames, with a top-down perspective and two-player capabilities. Each was set in a different European theatre of the Second World War. Each game included a mixture of infantry and armoured units, whilst the later games also included artillery, mortars and air support. Although viewed from a top-down perspective, the later games modelled terrain elevation, and included buildings with multiple floors and viewable sides. The overall tone emphasised realism, and modelled the emotional or physical state of the soldiers and equipment which included, panicked, berserk, burning, incapacitated, pinned and many others.
Games[edit]
| Year | Game | Platform | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Close Combat | Windows, Mac OS | First Close Combat game released. Set in Operation Cobra |
| 1997 | Close Combat II: A Bridge Too Far | Windows, Mac OS | Set in Operation Market Garden |
| 1998 | Close Combat III: The Russian Front | Windows | Set in the whole Eastern Front (1941-1945) |
| 1999 | Close Combat: Battle of the Bulge | Windows | Set in The Battle of the Bulge |
| 2000 | Close Combat: Invasion: Normandy | Windows | Set in Operation Overlord |
| 2004 | Close Combat: Marines | Windows | First modern day Close Combat game. Only available to members of the USMC |
| 2004 | The Road to Baghdad | Windows | First commercial modern day Close Combat game |
| 2005 | Close Combat: First to Fight | Xbox, Windows, Mac OS X, Wii | First and only game to be a first person shooter. |
| Cancelled | Close Combat: Red Phoenix | Windows, Xbox | Based on the Red Phoenix novel by Larry Bond. Planned for release in Q4 2005 but got cancelled |
| 2006 | Close Combat: RAF Regiment | Windows | Modern day Close Combat game. Only available to members of the RAF |
| 2007 | Close Combat: Cross of Iron | Windows | Remake of Close Combat III: The Russian Front |
| 2007 | Close Combat: Modern Tactics | Windows | Remake of Marines and last commercial modern day Close Combat game |
| 2008 | Close Combat: Wacht am Rhein | Windows | Remake of Close Combat IV: Battle of the Bulge |
| 2009 | Close Combat: The Longest Day | Windows | Remake of Close Combat V: Invasion Normandy |
| 2010 | Close Combat: Last Stand Arnhem | Windows | Development (Remake) based on Close Combat II: A Bridge Too Far and The Longest Day; developed by Matrix Games. |
| 2012 | Close Combat: Panthers in the Fog | Windows | First game to feature 32-bit graphics. Set in Operation Luttich |
| 2014 | Close Combat: Gateway to Caen | Windows | First release on Steam. Set in Operation Epsom |
| 2019 | Close Combat: The Bloody First | Windows | First 3d game in the series. Set in the Tunisia Campaign, Operation Husky, and Operation Overlord |
Gameplay[edit]
The game contains a number of gameplay elements:
- Mental condition: Close Combat used a psychological (morale) model for each individual combatant. The combatant's morale would be affected by factors such as being near officers, being supported by other units, being under fire, taking casualties, and being left without orders. Troops would be Stable when they were in no danger; Cowering when pinned down by enemy fire; or Panicked when surrounded by dead comrades, wounded or near enemy flamethrowers. The use of a psychological model made certain tactics, common in RTS games where the units will follow suicidal orders, impossible in Close Combat. For example, attempting a 'rush' in Close Combat would result in units seeking cover, refusing to obey orders or even deserting.
- Experience: In Close Combat, reserve units or newly replaced troops would fire and move more slowly and be more likely to panic. Because of this, they would be unlikely to prevail against veteran troops. This is unlike most RTS games where all troops of a particular type act similarly.
- Ammunition levels: The game also modelled the amount of ammunition each unit possessed. Troops in a heavy fire-fight would quickly run out of ammunition. Once out of ammunition they would resort to bayonet fighting, or surrender to any enemies that approached them, although they could also scavenge weapons or ammunition from fallen friendly and enemy soldiers. This is in contrast to most RTS games, where units have unlimited ammunition supplies.
- Scavenging: Starting from the third installment in the series, soldiers that expended all ammo could be moved into close vicinity of dead soldiers to take their ammunition. If no ammunition was present at times they would pick up whatever weapon the dead soldier had. Enemy weapons could be picked up as well. However, enemy ammo cannot be scavenged by itself.
- Physical state: In Close Combat, troops could be Healthy; Injured by enemy fire (in which case they would move and fire more slowly); Incapacitated if enemy fire caused the soldier to be unable to fight; and finally Dead. This is in contrast to most RTS games, where units fight and move regardless of their closeness to death.
- Stamina: In Close Combat, troops could be Rested; Winded after exerting themselves, in which case they would move slowly until they were rested again; and Fatigued, after prolonged exertion, slowing them down for the rest of the battle. This is in contrast to most RTS games, where units do not tire.
Tactics[edit]
The factors above meant that the game required realistic military tactics, such as careful placement of troops in cover, ambush, advancing under cover and using terrain or smoke-screens to cover advancing troops. Effective management, such as keeping teams near their officers, not sending green recruits on assaults and maintaining fire discipline so as not to run out of ammunition were also necessary for the player to prevail.
Players also have to make effective use of combined-arms tactics to be successful in Close Combat. Infantry assault require support from machine guns, tanks, and mortars, to suppress enemy fire. Armor units also require screening from infantry units. Although they possess superior firepower, tanks are vulnerable to ambushes from bazooka or panzerschreck units, especially in close quarters such as a town or forest, where the ambushing infantry can wait to have a shot at a tank's vulnerable flank or rear armor. Tanks are also vulnerable to fire from concealed anti-tank guns, or ambushing tanks, which may wait to fire until the enemy presents his flank or rear.
Multiplayer[edit]
All versions except Close Combat: Modern Tactics offer only one vs one multiplayer. Modern Tactics offers three on three and Close Combat: Marines offers four on four, although these versions added more multiplayer ability.
Remakes[edit]
Four of the five original games, A Bridge Too Far, The Russian Front, The Battle of the Bulge and Invasion Normandy have since been remade with new units and maps, updated graphics (maps and sprites) and sound, updated map editors, menus, as well as fixing the compatibility issues that the older iterations of each game had with modern operating systems. Each remake, with the exception of Last Stand Arnhem, also includes the original version of the game that can be played without any of the additions included in the remake.
Reception[edit]
Close Combat was commercially successful,[1] with worldwide sales of roughly 200,000 units by 1999. Zabalaoui said that the game outsold Atomic Games' earlier efforts by around ten to one.[2]
Like its predecessor, A Bridge Too Far achieved worldwide sales of roughly 200,000 units by 1999. Atomic Games' head Keith Zabalaoui said that the first two Close Combat titles each outsold the company's earlier games by around ten to one.[2]
In the United States, Close Combat III sold 45,438 copies during 1999,[3] and was the year's best-selling wargame.[4]
The first five Close Combat games totaled 1.2 million units in sales by April 2004.[5] By 2018, the combined sales of the series' 17 entries had surpassed 5 million units.[6]
References[edit]
- ^Coleman, Terry (October 1997). 'Does Microsoft Know Games?; Briefing'. Computer Gaming World (159): 307, 309.
- ^ abBates, Jason (February 4, 1999). 'Close Combat: The Interview'. IGN. Archived from the original on June 13, 2002.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
- ^Staff (April 2000). 'PC Gamer Editors' Choice Winners: Does Quality Matter?'. PC Gamer US. 7 (4): 33.
- ^Dunnigan, James F. (January 3, 2000). Wargames Handbook, Third Edition: How to Play and Design Commercial and Professional Wargames. Writers Club Press. pp. 14–17.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
- ^B2B Staff (April 2, 2004). 'Due nuovi titoli targati 'Close Combat' per Take2'. Multiplayer.it (in Italian). Archived from the original on August 23, 2004.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
- ^Robinson, Joe (February 6, 2018). 'Matrix & GOG Are Bringing Back Close Combat'. Wargamer. Archived from the original on February 18, 2018.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
- Trotter, William R. Microsoft Close Combat – A Bridge Too Far: Inside Moves. Microsoft Press. ISBN1-57231-634-9.
External links[edit]
- Close Combat series at MobyGames
Mortar Combat Mac Os Download
The Slacker's Guide - Desert Combat and Wesnoth
by Chris Barylick
October 14th, 2005
Battle for Wesnoth:
'I love it when a plan comes together,' exclaimed George Peppard, typically through a cigar and ear to ear grin at the end of each episode of 'The A-Team'. Words to live by, and likely gray matter I'll never get back, come to think of it.
But sometimes a plan does come together, with or without the discharge of approximately 50,000 rounds, excitingly flipped cars, homemade weaponry and an amazing 'building' sequence. Long the object of mixed criticism, the open source scene has been seen as something between the software industry's greatest and most altruistic achievement (a group of programmers working to make something better for no money), and its black sheep (a group of programmers working without the set focus of the commercial software industry and thus flawing potentially great software).
In the case of Battle of Wesnoth by the 'Wesnoth' Open Source Developers, open source shines again with the version 1.0 release of their long-awaited fantasy role playing game.
Developed over the past few years with source code available to anyone who wanted to contribute or help develop the game, Battle for Wesnoth functions as a turn-based strategy RPG in which players can either fight to regain the throne of their kingdom or lead the undead to conquer everything in sight. Somewhat similar to the Civilization games in terms of the overhead map and unit movements, players must recruit new units, gain resources and pay attention to changing stats that may help or hurt their units while trying to gain control of the surrounding area.
A 52.2 MB download for the Mac OS X version, Battle for Wesnoth requires Mac OS X 10.2.8 or later to run and also includes a full level editor with which to create new maps, units, campaigns and story lines. The engine, which is fully scriptable, allows players to write shortcuts for common tasks and the game includes full multiplayer support over LAN and Internet connections with an official network having been created to easily find or create new campaigns.
Finally, a rich and detailed tutorial engine explains the basics in a clear, graphical style while having the player move through the basic steps of the game, thereby reducing the learning curve to almost nothing; and better graphics and sound than one might expect emanate from the computer, making for a surprisingly fun game experience even within the first few minutes.
Battle for Wesnoth, which hit version 1.0 on October 2nd, is completely free and available for the Mac, Windows and Linux operating systems.
Desert Combat:
When Battlefield 1942 came out for the Mac last year, I saw what had made Windows users flock to the game in the first place. Here was a classic first person shooter with some terrific tactical elements as well as different roles that could be played to help support the battle.
If heavy artillery was needed, a player could spawn in as an anti-tank unit when the next wave of reinforcements was called in. A couple turns later, you might have a go as a sniper, clearing the way for a capture point to be taken and your side to move up. Factor in some incredible vehicles, amazing terrain and realistic weapons and you had a title worthy of its marquee status.
Leave it to a mod group to make a great thing even better. Desert Combat, a free total conversion modification developed by Trauma Studios, which in turn was purchased by Digital Illusions, makers of Battlefield 1942, has hit version 0.80 and breathed new life into one of my favorite FPS titles for the Mac platform.
Free to anyone who wants it (easy download links can be found over at macologist.org, just create a free account to download files), the mod works as a total overhaul of the items, characters, models, textures and sounds of the original Battlefield 1942 (the Road to Rome and Secret Weapons of World War II play as their original selves) and stages the player in the middle of the Desert Storm campaign with the United States fighting Iraqi forces.
Where detail and precision are concerned, this simply blows everything out of the water. Extensive weaponry and vehicles have been added for both sides with the original, balanced feel of the title remaining. Standard infantry units will carry machine guns, a hand gun and grenades while specialized support units vary the game play, medics carrying health kits while engineers can repaired damaged vehicles and support units will be equipped with binoculars with which to call in artillery strikes as well as smoke grenades to aid their teammates. Additional weaponry for each unit almost pronounces the role they offer to the battle; anti-tank units now carry a second, faster-firing rocket unit while grenade launchers have been attached to heavier infantry units. A deployable mortar has been added to both sides which can be accessed by anyone yet disappears from the map when the character that placed it has been killed.
Gunning from a helicopter in the Desert Combat 0.8 conversion of Battlefield 1942.
Specialty vehicles both add to the fun of the mod as well as support the overall balance. Standard Humvees and tanks are complimented by units with rocket launchers while a wide aircraft selection serves a variety of combat roles from tank hunting and heavy bombing to standard attack fighters to gunships that can be used for prevision suppressing fire to a stealth bomber that's still in development. The idea of a mobile aid station has been added with the inclusion of a non-combative Humvee that serves as a dispenser for health and ammunition while a medevac helicopter performs the same task but with a longer range.
Hitching a ride from a passing tank in Desert Combat.
Seeming to pick up where Secret Weapons of World War II left off, Desert Combat offers mobile anti-aircraft units to both sides as well as rocket launchers, a set of full attack helicopter systems (few things are as fun as manning one of the two mini-guns while a friend flies over an enemy capture point and strafing an area) and a transport helicopter. Entirely new play styles can be seen via the inclusion of technical pickups, automobiles and tankers, which may not be equipped with weaponry, but seem to be more centered around the idea of using the vehicle to race towards an intended objective or simply running down an opponent.
Where mods have been considered cool but finicky to install by nature ('OK, take the third file and move it into the fourth subfolder of the game's data folder, the one with the cryptic name...'), the Macologist Team has done a bang up job with their Mac installer, courtesy of Jason Harris.
The program, which runs as a standard graphical installer, places the files where they need to be and provides a dedicated launcher program that can be easily added to the Dock. Hunting for Desert Combat multiplayer games is a cinch thanks to the distinctive Desert Combat helmet by hosts running the mod and games synch and run as expected across the GameSpy network. Just make sure you're up to date via Aspyr's latest update for Battlefield 1942 (grab it via MacGameFiles.com and have both Desert Combat 0.7 and 0.8 installed (0.8 installs on top of 0.7 and despite the 464 and 539 megabyte file sizes, it helps to play it safe), enable PunkBuster in the multiplayer mode and you're good to go.
From a quality perspective, this may just trump the original, and it's easy to see why Digital Illusion bought Trauma out. The models are amazing, the levels fun and the attention to detail are second to none. Gunfire and close hits resonate almost perfectly and carry grittier, more convincing tones than the original title.
Mortar Combat Mac Os 11
Battlefield 1942 is available from Aspyr for US$38.99 before delivery (direct Amazon link for $38.99).
System requirement are: Mac OS X 10.2.8 or later, an 867 MHz or faster G4 processor, 256 MB of RAM, 1.6 gigabytes of hard drive space, a graphics card with 32 MB of VRAM and a DVD-ROM drive to run. Desert Combat 0.8 is available as a free download via the good folks at macologist.com.
As always, if you've seen anything cool or new in the Mac universe, please let me know.
Chris Barylick covers games for The Mac Observer, and has written for Inside Mac Games, MacGamer, UPI, the Washington Post, and other publications.
Send polite comments toChris Barylick, or post your comments below.
Most Recent Columns From The Slacker's Guide
- Tetris Brought Up to Speed: Quinn - September 15th
- Something Cool For the Nerds: GLTron - September 11th
- Open Source Meets Soul Train: StepMania - September 1st
The Slacker's Guide Archives
