The retail version of Panzers is a real joy to play and its one of the few games that I now actually look forward to playing again. At its heart it’s yet another WWII RTS game, but like many of the more recent examples of the genre you no longer have all the resource management and base building to slow the game down – right from the very start the game is full-on action and strategy. Even its tutorial mode is great and means that you never even have to touch the manual as every aspect of the game is explained in great detail.

Anyone familiar with the RTS genre will feel right at home, and as said the excellent tutorial will soon make anyone able to spend time having fun playing the game and fighting the enemy rather than fighting the interface. The game also follows the trend for putting the strategy back into the RTS genre. Here you have to think not only where you move your troops but also how you move them, making them crawl forward is the more stealthy option, you can hide in bushes and if unnoticed lay some very clever ambushes. Actions like these are needed as the game is very realistic and so it’s much easier to take down a tank by hiding from it then attacking from the rear, as an attack from the front soon sees your entire force falling under the heavy firepower and tough front armour.

As mentioned the game features no resource management other than that of keeping your men alive for as long as you can, by doing this you are rewarded RPG-style by them levelling up. The longer they stay alive the better they get – what is in many games just another soldier, actually becomes a veteran, someone you want to keep alive to make use of their improved accuracy and skills. It may seem like a small thing but it again adds loads to the game, with you having to think even more about how to keep your men alive rather than just sending them to their deaths on a suicide mission.

So there we have it – what was once a game which left a bitter taste in my mouth is now probably the best available of its type. The WWII RTS genre is now flooded with games but Codename: Panzers is now top of them, it has hours of strategy gaming to offer and its excellent graphics mean it really looks the part. Whilst it provides some fun with neat gameplay touches and is easy to get the hang of, it also supplies plenty of depth.