IE 18 PC games review – Across the Rhine (1995)

This is a nostagic review from IE (Interactive entertainment) episode 18 , a CD-ROM game magazine.

Across the Rhine: 1944 – 1945 Armored Combat in Western Europe is a mix between strategy and simulation game set during WWII. The game focuses on single tank battles during the Allied invasion of Normandy – this means the player can’t influence the overall outcome of the war. The battles are mostly historically accurate but some of them use hypothetical situations.

The basic situation however is always the same: the player is in charge of tank battalions and tries to defeat his enemy. The player is presented with several windows which show different information, e.g. a tactical map, a strategical map or a battlefield from a tank’s view. The size and position of these windows can be freely arranged. From these windows he also gives orders to his tanks, e.g. assigning waypoints or changing the behaviour. All this is in real-time. The player has also the opportunity to directly take control over a tank – there he has the choice between several viewpoints, including the driver’s or gunner’s view, and controls movement and turret. Optionally the AI can take care of the movement. This part of the game is more simulation than action game.

During the three campaigns the player takes control over both parties. He assembles a soldier which, depending on the battle performances, gets promoted during the course of the game which results in the command over more units. There are also many options to set the realism of the game in different areas, e.g. manual fuel distribution, limited ammo, morale, air support or even invulnerability.

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