14 DAY TRIAL // 
The Red Army is fond of preparing for assault with infantry riding on the back of tanks. It allows the troops tactical flexibility as long as they don’t dismount too early, making it easy for gamers to get them to a place in the battle line where they are needed the most. No one ever falls off and no one gets injured when climbing down, although enemy fire can quickly take them out even if the T-34 emerges unscathed.
My Soviet troops ride into battle, targeting a narrow bridge and the woods beyond it, infested with German troops on the defensive. The tree line gives them cover for machine guns and anti-tank guns. So I need to move fast, accept some losses, and hope that I have enough troops to overwhelm them and complete the assault.
Fast movement orders for infantry will result in tiredness, which does affect performance, but they’ll be happy to be (mostly) alive. My specialist machine gunner team offers important support, as do the tanks that fire from good positions after silencing enemy heavier weapons. I make the mistake of trying to push in too many areas at once. But I then consolidate my forces, focus the attack, and finally manage to achieve my objectives.
Combat Mission: Red Thunder is developed by Battlefront and published by Slitherine Ltd. I played the game on Steam, where it arrived after a long wait. The title was first launched in 2014. This is a strategy game that uses a pause-able real-time system.
The game takes players to World War II, the most simulated conflict of the gaming world, more specifically to the Easter Front. It’s the start of Bagration, the strategic offensive that will, in time, bring the Soviet forces to Berlin. The Third Reich is on the defensive, clearly unable to win the war, but needs to mobilize a ton of resources to slow down the Russian advance. Both sides are using their most powerful equipment but also rely on numbers to either force a breakthrough or create solid defensive positions.
Red Thunder has two core campaigns, one for each side, and each of the two downloadable content packs available, Battle Pack 1 and Fire and Rubble add two more, expanding the scope to other operations on the way to Berlin. They offer a good selection of interesting and challenging engagements between the Wehrmacht and the Red Army. The game also features a selection of standalone battles and a Quick Battle option that gives players free rein to define the parameters of the fight they want to control.
It’s a lot of content for World War II fans who want a deep tactical approach. And the game comes complete with a scenario editor that gives the community the ability to put together their own scenarios. It’s a good way to bring a ten-year-old experience to Steam.
Once players pick a scenario, they’ll get an informative but pretty spartan briefing and then it’s time to create an initial setup for their forces before battle is engaged. This Combat Mission title uses a real-time system, meaning gamers are always able to stop time, take a closer look at a situation, and issue orders. Information about enemy forces is imperfect, which makes good reconnaissance one of the most powerful assets in the game.
These will vary depending on the unit selected, its capabilities, and its status. A full ballistics simulation is complemented by battlefield factors like morale and fatigue. Red Thunder features detailed scenarios that increase in complexity as a battle develops and offer players a lot of tactical choices.
A wide variety of infantry forces and mechanized hardware is featured. Always take a look at all their movement and combat options to have an understanding of how they are best used. Successful commanders also know that no plan survives contact with the enemy and solid improvisation is always an asset.
The simulation elements are strong enough that real-world tactics offer the best path to victory. Find solid chokepoints, get infantry in solid cover, try to have as much recon as possible before engaging, mass tanks to force a breakthrough, and try to layer defenses.
Soviet forces tend to have more troops on the map and commanders should care less about infantry losses in scenarios that ask them to take ground. The Germans have more capable individual units but often cannot counter all enemy probing actions.
It’s awesome seeing a sole Panzer IV emerge from a forest, push toward a field, guided by recon from a sniper team, and catch a dozen enemy vehicles unaware. Just after all get destroyed by shells, a pair of Russian tanks flank and render it unable to move after firing two times each. Red Thunder does tend to make German hardware somewhat more capable than it was in the real world but its scenarios are well-designed.
Combat Mission: Red Thunder looks like a game that was first launched 10 years ago. The interface feels dated in places but the game does a good job of offering a high-level tactical overview of the battlefield. Zooming in shows a variety of World War II hardware and troops, all decent looking, but players will probably spend most of their time taking in as much of the map as possible, guessing enemy plans, and preparing their own moves. The sound design is decent, with the soundtrack dropping out during engagements so gamers can make tactical decisions accompanied only by battle effects.
The Good
- Solid tactical simulation engine
- Variety of scenarios
- Included editor
The Bad
- Limited presentation
- Takes time to learn the core ideas
- Some ideas show their age
Conclusion
But this remains an older game, which is reflected in its presentation and some of its historical assumptions. The Combat Mission gameplay system is relatively easy to learn and offers plenty of tactical freedom. Red Thunder will appeal to fans who like Eastern Front World War II action and want to craft complex battleplans.
A review key was provided by the publisher
