Codename: Panzers Cold War

There are plenty of real-time strategy games available so to succeed it’s important to have pedigree as well as poise.

The Panzers series has both. Codename: Panzers Cold War had a strange genesis: it was developed originally by Storm Region before that firm went bankrupt, the game being picked up by another developer called Innoglow, and it's now being published under the well-known Atari name.

The story begins in 1949 and charts a fictional war between Soviet forces and the Allied West, following an air crash over Tempelhof Airport during the Berlin Blockade.

Much of the military hardware in the game is accurate for the time, with players taking such tracked goliaths as the American M103 and Russian T-10 into battle.

Single-player action takes players through 18 missions, the aim being to complete an overall objective while picking up points by completing mini-tasks that earn extra attacks such as helicopter support. Players are briefed by the commander before each sortie and the cut scenes are smooth and well presented.

Combat involves air and land units, and while tanks are the main weapon used to wipe out the enemy, along with a healthy portion of each fully destructible environment, foot soldiers add support and can also occupy strategic buildings, adding an extra dimension.

The graphics engine used in Panzers Cold War is excellent. Superb animations and weather effects help create a believable battlefield and razing buildings to the ground is very satisfying. The game ran smoothly on our middle-of-the-road computer, although that was with quality settings turned down – it stuttered a bit on higher settings.

Players can also link up online with friends for cooperative play and there are 20 maps available to go head to head with up to seven others in various multiplayer modes.

The only downside to Codename: Panzers Cold War is the slightly tricky tutorial, which might leave beginners a bit baffled, but experienced RTS players will find plenty here to keep them fighting the Cold War for a long time to come.

PEGI age rating: 12+