Battle Command (video game)
Encyclopedia
Battle Command is a futuristic 3D
tank simulation
game released by Ocean
in . It was written by Realtime Games and is a development of their successful title Carrier Command
.
Unlike Carrier Command
which incorporated significant strategic elements, Battle Command is a simple arcade game reminiscent of Battlezone.
The player views the battle from the forward perspective of the tank. As with Battlezone, the turret is fixed and cannot be rotated or elevated. However the playing area is flat and shells travel in long horizontal trajectories, so to aim the gun the tank is simply rotated left or right.
The player may equip their tank with a variety of weapons, the choice of which will depend on the nature of the mission. The Helicarrier will then drop the tank into the combat zone to carry out its objectives. On successful completion of the mission the Helicarrier will retrieve the Mauler and carry it to safety.
There are ten missions in all to complete.
version was available on cartridge, designed for compatibility with the Commodore 64 Games System
. It was also compatible with the Annihilator joystick, which had a second independent fire button. Pressing the fire button activated a pointer, allowing various functions to be accessed (weapon slots turned on/off, map mode). These could be accessed via keypresses on a standard C64. The cartridge format allowed data to be drawn in quickly, using the extra memory for look-up tables and speeding up the 3D plotting.
3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...
tank simulation
Vehicle simulation game
Vehicle simulation games are a genre of video games which attempt to provide the player with a realistic interpretation of operating various kinds of vehicles. This includes automobiles, aircraft, watercraft, spacecraft, military vehicles, and a variety of other vehicles...
game released by Ocean
Ocean Software
The British company Ocean Software was one of the biggest European video game developers/publishers of the 1980s and 90s...
in . It was written by Realtime Games and is a development of their successful title Carrier Command
Carrier Command
Carrier Command is a landmark 1980s computer game available on Amiga, Atari ST, PC, ZX Spectrum, Apple Macintosh, Commodore 64 and Amstrad CPC computers....
.
Plot
In some unknown time in the future, armies of tanks battle for supremacy as the Ultra War rages between the two dominant races in the New World.Gameplay
The player takes control of a single "Mauler" assault tank in a series of combat missions against other armoured vehicles and stationary targets.Unlike Carrier Command
Carrier Command
Carrier Command is a landmark 1980s computer game available on Amiga, Atari ST, PC, ZX Spectrum, Apple Macintosh, Commodore 64 and Amstrad CPC computers....
which incorporated significant strategic elements, Battle Command is a simple arcade game reminiscent of Battlezone.
The player views the battle from the forward perspective of the tank. As with Battlezone, the turret is fixed and cannot be rotated or elevated. However the playing area is flat and shells travel in long horizontal trajectories, so to aim the gun the tank is simply rotated left or right.
The player may equip their tank with a variety of weapons, the choice of which will depend on the nature of the mission. The Helicarrier will then drop the tank into the combat zone to carry out its objectives. On successful completion of the mission the Helicarrier will retrieve the Mauler and carry it to safety.
There are ten missions in all to complete.
Trivia
The Commodore 64Commodore 64
The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
version was available on cartridge, designed for compatibility with the Commodore 64 Games System
Commodore 64 Games System
The Commodore 64 Games System was the cartridge-based game console version of the popular Commodore 64 home computer. It was released by Commodore in December 1990 as a competitor in the booming console market...
. It was also compatible with the Annihilator joystick, which had a second independent fire button. Pressing the fire button activated a pointer, allowing various functions to be accessed (weapon slots turned on/off, map mode). These could be accessed via keypresses on a standard C64. The cartridge format allowed data to be drawn in quickly, using the extra memory for look-up tables and speeding up the 3D plotting.
External links
- Battle Command at Lemon Amiga
- Battle Command at Lemon 64
- Battle Command at The Little Green Desktop