R.T. Smith, the creator and programmer for the fabulous game Encyclopedia of War: Ancient Battles, created a trio of World War Two games a few year earlier for the Spectrum computer that were later converted to the PC: Arnhem, Vulcan, and Desert Rats.
Right away with these three games, you'd wish there was mouse support, but alas, the mouse had not yet arrived on the pc scene. Otherwise, for using the arrows keys and the enter key often, you'll find the game interface easy and intuitive.
Arnhem deals with the Allied Campaign into the Netherlands to seize strategic bridges from the Nazis. This included the famous failure to seize the bridge at Arnhem (the bridge too far).
Desert Rats deals with the Italian Invasion of Egypt from Libya in WW2, the arrival of Rommel and the German Forces, and the entire North African war before the United States entered the scene.
Vulcan concludes the North African campaign with the invasion of the American forces to the final expulsion of the Nazis from the continent.
The Three games are all based on the exact same playing system, but the games themselves are not equal in enjoyment, simply due to the military events they cover. For example, Arnhem and Vulcan are both significantly easier for one side vs the other. In Arnhem, it is much easier to play the Axis side, while in Vulcan, it is much easier to be the Allies.
This makes for many imbalanced scenarios within the game. However, Desert Rats is a very balanced game as the North African War after the arrival of Rommel was very closely contested.
In conclusion, Fans of World War Two must give Desert Rats a try. It is an excellent game. The other two are for those fans of the War who want to play campaigns that are not usually found in most wargames. So download Desert Rats today!
Review By HOTUD
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Comments and reviews
@never throw away
We lack those manuals, there aren´t manuals of those games in the web. You must digitize them and upload them to any abandonware web, please, before the community lost them forever.
I still have ancient battles,war of the roses, Cromwell at war the general, Waterloo,blizkreig, desert rats, Vulcan, Stalingrad, avalanche, overlord, battle of the bulge,Yankee,zuluwar and invasion force on zx spectrum which l still play once in a while.Great to see that they are not forgotten.
este y ratas del desierto son los mejores juegos de estrategia que hay.
I loved this in the 1990's and also a similar game for the Amstrad, called Guadalcanal. I agree it would be great if these could be released on Steam. proper, addictive, thinking-person's strategy game with no frills.
I'm 43. I fought the Arnham campaign from my bedroom for several months. I had a hand drawn map on my bedroom wall. My mother thought I was mad. There was no sweeter victory than when I held the bridge long enough for the Garden to arrive.
i can remember laying this on the amstrad computor many yearts ago i enjoyed this game so much lol i can't believe its still going ,,,just great thx
Hi,Have you guys thought about perhaps putting this on Steam?,At the minute these type of games are having a sort of resurgence,and it seems they are very popular too,especially with the older Gamers amongst us.I for one would love to see it there,and would buy it instantly and even gift it too friends,i mean a x4 pack of this wouldnt break the bank,im sure you could implement maybe a PBEM type of multiplay?Just an idea thats all,seems a waste thats all,leaving this great game sat here.regards Antony.
I played Arnhem loads in the mid 1980s. It requires thought and intelligence and I have never found anything to equal it.
No comment nor review for this game at the moment.