Close Combat Series » The Thrill of Combat, The Power Of Command

Typical Close Combat Engagement Close Combat is a real time strategy game that first debuted in 1996. As the commander you control a platoon sized fighting force consisting mainly of types of infantry and and support weapons such as tanks, mortars and anti tank guns. Each of your units has a certain amount of ammunition which they may run out of in close quarter fighting, they will be killed or wounded if hit once, and may experience cowardice, extreme bravery or go fanatical during intense fighting. Morale of your men is the single most driving factor that determines who will survive, and what battles will be won or lost. You can follow your men through campaigns as the progress in rank and experience. Grand campaigns are also available where you take command of up 32 battle groups and deploy them throughout Normandy, Russia, Ardennes and many other pivotal battles. Fight over beaches, mountains, forests and many other geographical features, many historical.

There were hundreds of mods created for most versions. All of these mods are available for download. They have created the ultimate real time gaming experience by expanding Close Combat to virtually every theatre of war during World War II.The original Close Combat games are not sold in stores anymore. You can find them for sale online at places such as EBay or Amazon. Used or new copies are still being sold, even boxed originals. Matrix Games has made the game more available by remaking the originals and selling them online.

	Close Combat the Longest Day commences with the first Airborne drops of Operation Overlord. The Longest Day is a remake of the original, Invasion Normandy. The Grand Campaign included has been expanded to all beaches on D-Day, whereas the original only covered American beaches. New maps, battles, units and sounds have also been created for this version. Some maps from the Invasion Normandy mods Gold Juno Sword and Bloody Omaha were added. The main new features include night fighting, which reduces visibility and adds the option to deploy mortar illumination. Graphical enhancements to the battle debrief screens now show cohesion and percentage of victory locations held by each side, this is also shown in the campaign debrief screen. The original version of Invasion Normandy has been included with the Longest Day. The Longest day is available for purchase at Matrix Games for $39.99 USD.
	Close Combat Wacht Am Rhein begins the morning of Germany's last great offensive. Wacht Am Rhein is a remake of the original version, Battle of the Bulge. Many of the great features of the original have been included here. Supply drops, misguided American battlegroups and the difficult terrain of the Ardennes. The Germans are very heavy with armoured groups which are equipped with Panthers, other heavy battle groups are equipped mainly with fighting vehicles. Specific german battle groups also have the option to reinforce, a feature not seen in the original or Invasion Normandy. The Grand Campaign has been expanded to 64 maps, and more battle groups have been added to each side. Wacht Am Rhein is available for purchase at Matrix Games for $39.99 USD.
	Close Combat Cross of Iron recreates the battle for Russia which began in 1942. Cross of Iron is the remake of The Russian Front. The main improvements to this version were to make it more compatible with new operating systems, smaller improvements were also made to the artificial intelligence. CoI offer a linear type campaign system, as you win or lose battles the computer will decide where to send you for your next battle. You can follow your men from 1942 to 1945 while improving their equipment along the way. The greatest improvement was in inclusion of MMCC3 which stands for Massive Multiplayer online Close Combat 3. With MMCC3 you can connect Cross of Iron to a variety of game servers and battle online against the AI or a human opponent for control of the Russian Front. these online campaigns last 24/7, you may take part in the action any time you wish. Wacht Am Rhein is available for purchase at Matrix Games for $39.99 USD.
	Close Combat Modern Tactics is the first of the Close Combat series to introduce 5 vs 5 head to head action. You can play as either US Forces of the fictional Opposing Force (OpFor). There is no campaign, only single battle engagement. These engagement can be on training grounds modeled from actual U.S. bases or fictional Middle East areas. Weapons of OpFor are typically Soviet and Chinese such as AK47 assault rifles and RPGs. you also have all sorts of jeeps and trucks they ride in. American have their choice of most modern weapons which range from the M1A1 Abrams, Squad Automatic Weapons and grenade launchers. Other improvements include the ability for your troops to dig a trench while in combat, load and unload onto troop carrying vehicles and have multiple support missions during a battle. Weapons in Modern Tactics are extremely powerful and you have to make a large shift in your tactics if you are used to playing the versions set in World War 2. Wacht Am Rhein is available for purchase at Matrix Games for $29.99 USD.
	Close Combat 5 Invasion Normandy drops you onto the beaches and hedgerows of Normandy. Your Airborne troops have landed behind the beaches while your main attacking force just butted heads with the German bunkers towering over them on the beaches. One of the main shifts from Battle of the Bulge to Invasion Normandy is the reliance on infantry once again and the ability to customize the platoon you enter battle with. Many of your battle groups do not contain massive numbers of tanks. Fighting and defending the cities and hedgerows with infantry through the hedgerows bring an immense satisfaction to any war gamer enthusiast. You can get lucky and still find this version in stores, its unlikely in most cases though as it was released in 2000. You can find used copies and duplicates at Ebay or Amazon.com
	Close Combat 4 Battle of the Bulge recreates the German Offensive in the Ardennes named Wacht Am Rhein. The campaign starts as the heavy German battle groups pour over into American sectors overrunning many of them. Fighting as the Americans in the beginning days you have little to stop thier advance. A shortage of bazooka teams, 57mm and heavier anti tank guns will plaque you at the onset. As the Germans you must be meticulous in your battles, your men and machines must survive to the end of the 25 day campaign. Supply drops will be made available for surrounded American battle groups and the German may decieve American battle groups into moving places they dont wish to go. Close Combat 4 Battle of the Bulge was released in 1999 and is not available at retail stores anymore. You can find used copies and duplicates at Ebay or Amazon.com.
	Close Combat 3 The Russian Front takes you to the unforgiving Eastern Front. beginning in the early 1940's you command a small group of German soldiers during the initial attack into Russia. As you progress in rank by winning battles you can enjoy choosing more equipment and men to fight with with. As time progresses through your campaigns, equipment will be upgraded and new equipment will become available. You can rest or refit your units as they get fatigued or take losses in battles. Alternatively you can drive off the Germam attackers with heavy Joseph Stalin tanks. Close Combat 3 The Russian Front was released in 1998 and is not available at retail stores anymore. You can find used copies and duplicates at Ebay or Amazon.com.
	Close Combat 2 A Bridge Too Far focuses on the Airborne drops into Holland during Operation Market Garden. You can play as the Americans, British, Polish or Germans. The battles are heavily dependant on your skills an as infantry platoon commander, there are not near as many vehicles in A Bridge Too Far as there are in later versions. You can play battles, operations and campaigns. Some of the battles include those that took place at Oosterbeek and Arnhem. The fight takes place on very small maps which leads to very intense close quarter fighting, watch your ammo count! The artificial intelligence of A Bridge Too Far is arguably the best in the series to date. Close Combat 2 A Bridge Too Far was released in 1997 and is not available at retail stores anymore. You can find used copies and duplicates at Ebay or Amazon.com.
	The game that spawned a new era of realistic tactical real time strategy. The very first version of Close Combat, released in 1996 by Atomic Games. The original versions puts you back into Normandy, right into the hedgerows and small towns. Close Combat 1 introduced the psychcological factors of your soldier for you to manage. You troops could gain experience, leadership or turn into cowards. If your soliders were wounded all thier characteristics would suffer. You can find used copies and duplicates at Ebay or Amazon.com.


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