Steel Thunder
| Steel Thunder | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio |
 Accolade
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| Publisher |
Accolade
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| Senior Developer | Tom Loughry | ||
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
1988 | ||
| platform |
Commodore 64 Apple II DOS |
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| genre | Tank simulation | ||
| Subject | Cold War | ||
| Game mode | Single player | ||
| control | Keyboard , joystick | ||
| medium | diskette | ||
| language | English | ||
| Age rating |
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Steel Thunder is a computer game by Accolade from 1988. The tank simulation was developed for the Commodore 64 home computer and converted a year later for the DOS operating system and the Apple II microcomputer . The game simulates four different armored vehicles in a fictional armed conflict with the Eastern bloc and combines elements of an action game with those of a simulation .
development
Tom Loughry developed and programmed the game, the graphics were drawn by Roseann Mitchell. Garell Eskow designed the background noise and composed the music. The national anthem of the United States is played in the intro to the game .
Game mechanics
initial situation
The single player takes on the role of a US tank commander in one of three fictitious conflicts on a battlefield in Cuba , Syria or West Germany . There is no explanatory background story. A total of four armored tracked vehicles of the United States Army are simulated: The three main battle tanks M1A1 Abrams (from 1985), M48A5 Patton II (from 1975) and M60A3 (from 1978) as well as the M3 Bradley CFV reconnaissance tank (from 1994). Before each mission the player has to choose a tank, assemble the crew and ammunition the vehicle.
conflict
Depending on the mission objective, ammunition and fuel depots, convoys, artillery and air defense positions as well as SS-20 nuclear weapons launch systems must be destroyed on the battlefield . The Soviet opponents defend themselves with tank grenadiers , 155 mm artillery , rifle ( BTR-70 , BMP-2 ), floating ( PT-76 A) and main battle tanks ( T-55 , T-80 ), which are also combated have to.
Active agent
As ballistic hard core and explosive ammunition, you can choose between the projectile types hollow charge , squeeze head and flechet . The M3 Bradley also has wire-guided anti-tank missiles of the type BGM-71 TOW . In addition to their main armament, all tanks also have secondary armament consisting of a machine gun or an on- board cannon for fighting infantry and weakly armored vehicles.
Victory conditions
The aim of the game is explained in a mission description and includes the destruction of specified soft (infantry, unarmored vehicles) or hard targets (headquarters, bunkers, nuclear weapons silos, artillery and tank groups). The victorious achievement of the main objective is rewarded with promotions . The campaign comprises a total of one training and 20 combat missions, seven per country.
user interface
The tanks are controlled from the three operating perspectives of the commander, the driver and the gunner; the control of the driver or gunner can optionally be delegated to the computer. In the upper third of the screen, the outside world is shown through three horizontally arranged windows, below are status displays, switches and round instruments.
The control options at the three stations are extensive: In addition to controlling the drive and weapon systems, the grenade, smoke and apron lights can also be used, the fire extinguishing equipment activated and the type of ammunition changed. At the beginning of the mission, the on-board electrical system, the engine, the hydraulics and the weapon system must be activated manually. A keyboard template included with the game explains the keyboard layout and makes it easier to operate the three battle stations. A digital situation map provides information about the military situation using military symbols .
The player can move the tank over the orthogonal map , rotate the tank turret horizontally, align the weapon system vertically with targets, select ammunition and fire.
distribution
The English-language sales designation Steel Thunder [ sti: l θʌndəʳ ] means steel thunder , the tagline reads American Battle Tank Simulation . A competing product was the tank simulation Abrams Battle Tank from Sega for the DOS operating system. The printed instructions are only in English. The DOS version supports graphics cards from Hercules and the graphics standards CGA , EGA , MCGA and VGA .
Reviews
“For fans of strategic action programs, Steel Thunder is exactly the right mix of both game genres. This game combines, if not in a new or innovative way, the hectic pace of an action game with the approach to strategy programs. Steel Thunder is nothing exciting, but at least it is a nicely made game that can entertain the passionate computer soldier for a few hours. "
“The carelessness with which American and British programmers deal with the subject of war is always amazing: They can shoot infantry units with the on-board machine gun and watch one soldier after another fall. Such less tasteful details do not change the fact that Steel Thunder is technically very well done and offers a lot of simulation fun for the money. "
"I'm not too sure about its long-term appeal: the three global warzones are very much the same graphically which can lead to repetitive play, and unfortunally the gameplay doesn't done more sophisticated with each new mission."
"I'm not sure about the long-term motivation : the three global war zones are graphically almost identical, which can lead to repetitive game events, and unfortunately the gameplay doesn't get more challenging with each new mission."
Web links
- Steel Thunder . In: C64-Wiki . November 27, 2014.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Peter Braun: On the move with the chain mule . In: Current software market . No. 10 , 1989, ISSN 0933-1867 .
- ↑ a b Knut Gollert: Steel Thunder . In: Power Play . No. 8 , 1989, ISSN 0937-9754 , pp. 48 .
- ↑ Robin Hogg: Steel Thunder . In: Zzap! 64 . No. 59 , 1990, ISSN 0954-867X , pp. 14 .