Panzer General II
Encyclopedia
Panzer General II is a turn-based strategy
computer game by Strategic Simulations, Inc. Released September 30th, 1997, Panzer General II is the sixth SSI game in the "General
" series and the first in the "Living Battlefield " series. It takes place during World War II
, covering events from the Spanish Civil War
in 1938 to hypothetical battles in 1946. In the April 2000 issue of the magazine PC Gamer
, it was voted the 44th best computer game of all time. (The highest rating in the General series.)
, which is divided up into hexagons that represent between one and two kilometers. At the beginning of the game, the entire map is revealed to the player, but enemy units are covered by fog of war
and are not visible.
Each hex is assigned one of thirteen terrain types that penalize or assist the movement of units. Mountain, city, and forest types block line of sight. The game also features four kinds of capatureable hexes marked a flag indicating the country owning it: ownership, designating a player's ownership of a city, town or other important feature; supply, allowing unit deployment; victory, indicating critical cities or objectives; and victory-supply, combining victory and supply. The objective is to defeat an enemy by capturing all of their victory hexes in a specified number of turns.
The player attacks enemies and captures hexes by moving units, which approximately represent a battalion, regiment or squadron. There are eight types of units, each with different properties: Infantry, Tank, Anti-Tank, Recon, Air Defense, Fighter, Artillery, and Bomber. Each unit is assigned a numerical value to represent its movement (in hexes); its line of sight (in hexes); its attack abilities against armored targets, unarmored targets, ships, and airplanes; its defense against ranged, close, and air attacks; as well as a values for initiative
and remaining ammunition and fuel. The final value, health, is represented by a fraction, usually out of 10. When attacking or defending, the unit receives experience points based on the amount of damage inflicted to its enemy. Each 100 experience points correspond to one experience level (a value ranging from 0 to 5). When attaining a higher level, unit may also receive a famous leader, granting it some special abilities. The in-game currency used to measure unit buy and upgrade costs is called "prestige". It is gained by capturing scenario objectives or as a reward for a quick and decisive victory.
The standard game contains many real life scenarios; however, similarly to other games of the series, players will be able to play some hypothetical scenarios if they perform exceptionally in their command career. For example, Germany can invade and capture the British Isles
by capturing Windsor
or they can invade Malta
with Italy. Again, if the player attains victories in the east and defeats the Soviet Union, Germany
can invade the United States
from the Port of Savannah
and then march to Oak Ridge, Tennessee
to capture a prototype of a US atomic bomb.
The player is also allowed to choose which side to play in individual scenarios (but not in campaigns).
There is an open source alternative for the game engine being developed by Luis Guzman & his team, OpenGeneral http://www.luis-guzman.com/OpenGen.htmlhttp://sourceforge.net/projects/opengeneral/. It's still in alpha stage but playable, 0.67.c as of April , 17, 2011 http://www.panzercentral.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=132&t=46481.
Turn-based strategy
A turn-based strategy game is a strategy game where players take turns when playing...
computer game by Strategic Simulations, Inc. Released September 30th, 1997, Panzer General II is the sixth SSI game in the "General
Panzer General
Panzer General is a computer wargame published by Strategic Simulations in 1994 and set in World War II.- Overview:Panzer General is turn-based game, set on operational level hex maps. One plays lone scenarios from either Axis or Allied side and against a computer or human opponent...
" series and the first in the "Living Battlefield " series. It takes place during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, covering events from the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
in 1938 to hypothetical battles in 1946. In the April 2000 issue of the magazine PC Gamer
PC Gamer
PC Gamer is a magazine founded in Britain in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future Publishing. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games magazines in their respective countries...
, it was voted the 44th best computer game of all time. (The highest rating in the General series.)
Gameplay
The game of Panzer General II is divided into scenarios, each representing a specific battle. All are played on a hex mapHex map
A hex map, hex board or hex grid is a gameboard design commonly used in wargames of all scales. The map is subdivided into small regular hexagons of identical size.-Advantages and disadvantages:...
, which is divided up into hexagons that represent between one and two kilometers. At the beginning of the game, the entire map is revealed to the player, but enemy units are covered by fog of war
Fog of war
The fog of war is a term used to describe the uncertainty in situation awareness experienced by participants in military operations. The term seeks to capture the uncertainty regarding own capability, adversary capability, and adversary intent during an engagement, operation, or campaign...
and are not visible.
Each hex is assigned one of thirteen terrain types that penalize or assist the movement of units. Mountain, city, and forest types block line of sight. The game also features four kinds of capatureable hexes marked a flag indicating the country owning it: ownership, designating a player's ownership of a city, town or other important feature; supply, allowing unit deployment; victory, indicating critical cities or objectives; and victory-supply, combining victory and supply. The objective is to defeat an enemy by capturing all of their victory hexes in a specified number of turns.
The player attacks enemies and captures hexes by moving units, which approximately represent a battalion, regiment or squadron. There are eight types of units, each with different properties: Infantry, Tank, Anti-Tank, Recon, Air Defense, Fighter, Artillery, and Bomber. Each unit is assigned a numerical value to represent its movement (in hexes); its line of sight (in hexes); its attack abilities against armored targets, unarmored targets, ships, and airplanes; its defense against ranged, close, and air attacks; as well as a values for initiative
Initiative (role-playing games)
In role-playing games and some table-top wargames, a character's initiative is a statistic which determines the order in which player characters take actions, especially during combat or other forms of conflict resolution....
and remaining ammunition and fuel. The final value, health, is represented by a fraction, usually out of 10. When attacking or defending, the unit receives experience points based on the amount of damage inflicted to its enemy. Each 100 experience points correspond to one experience level (a value ranging from 0 to 5). When attaining a higher level, unit may also receive a famous leader, granting it some special abilities. The in-game currency used to measure unit buy and upgrade costs is called "prestige". It is gained by capturing scenario objectives or as a reward for a quick and decisive victory.
The standard game contains many real life scenarios; however, similarly to other games of the series, players will be able to play some hypothetical scenarios if they perform exceptionally in their command career. For example, Germany can invade and capture the British Isles
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
by capturing Windsor
Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle is a medieval castle and royal residence in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, notable for its long association with the British royal family and its architecture. The original castle was built after the Norman invasion by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I it...
or they can invade Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
with Italy. Again, if the player attains victories in the east and defeats the Soviet Union, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
can invade the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
from the Port of Savannah
Port of Savannah
The Port of Savannah is a major U.S. seaport located at Savannah, Georgia. Its extensive facilities for oceangoing vessels line both sides of the Savannah River approximately from the Atlantic Ocean...
and then march to Oak Ridge, Tennessee
Oak Ridge, Tennessee
Oak Ridge is a city in Anderson and Roane counties in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Tennessee, about west of Knoxville. Oak Ridge's population was 27,387 at the 2000 census...
to capture a prototype of a US atomic bomb.
Strategy
The player's pieces are carried between scenarios: optimizing what is effective in one scenario (say aircraft) may lead to problems in a subsequent scenario where what is effective differs. Optimal strategies, especially between the scenarios in a campaign, can be complex. The Panzer General II Official Strategy Guide (ISBN 7615-0105-3) explains both general concepts, and one strategy among many for winning.Changing game characteristics
At the beginning of a scenario or a campaign, the player can select the amount of points gained for capturing supply points. (This, in turn, affects how many units and how strong the player units are.) The manual states that the intention is to make for a more or less challenging game, but the actual effect is rather different, since to some degree the computer player adjusts strategy to compensate for the human player's strengths.The player is also allowed to choose which side to play in individual scenarios (but not in campaigns).
Patches and modifications
There are only two official game patches released for Panzer General II, 1.01 and 1.02; they are available only for UK, US, German & French language versions (no patch was ever done for the Japanese version). Because the game in version 1.02 had many bugs left and severely limited the freedom of designing custom game data (scenarios, campaigns, maps and units), a number of unofficial patches were made. Latest fan-made executable patch available is v2.20. Any further updates are unlikely, due to lack of activity from the unofficial patch maintainer and because of closed-sourceness of PGII.There is an open source alternative for the game engine being developed by Luis Guzman & his team, OpenGeneral http://www.luis-guzman.com/OpenGen.htmlhttp://sourceforge.net/projects/opengeneral/. It's still in alpha stage but playable, 0.67.c as of April , 17, 2011 http://www.panzercentral.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=132&t=46481.
External links
- Panzer II review from GamespotGameSpotGameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...