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Old 10-11-21, 12:48 AM   #12
RetroGamer
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Join Date: Sep 2021
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Polak2 View Post
Your posts are inspirational to me.
And I too have very soft spot for some of the old simulations.

By no means do I say this to discourage you from exploring this tank sim. To the contrary, I am as you see very eager for any news of your exploits and experiences which maybe I had missed. So keep on posting your story and perhaps we can find more fun and entertainment in this old Microprose gem.
Thanks, Polak2!! When my neighbor was about to toss those old desktops, I explained to him that PC gaming peaked right around the time those machines were sold. Back in the late ‘90s developers were producing great programs for desktops. Mechwarrior 2, Earthseige, The Armored Fist series of tank games, etc. Not being a gamer, he kinda just laughed and said, “take ‘em. Just wipe the hard drives.”

It was really fun wiping the drives, cleaning the hardware, replacing the broken CD-ROM drives, and reinstalling everything!!

Regarding M1 Tank Platoon 2, I noticed the gunnery is very similar to the original Steel Beasts which I also have installed on the IBM Aptiva. Sometimes, I’ll do the gunnery range in Steel Beasts, then jump into M1 Tank Platoon 2. I programmed my joystick to operate the same in both sims.

I’ve also got iM1 Abrams installed as well as all 3 Armored Fist sims.

I was in a Bradley Mech Infantry Natl Guard unit when all these tank sims came out so I was really really into it. The ones below are the most significant to me and I’ve got them all installed and running.

M1 Tank Platoon, 1989 - classic sim. Played it for hours, great manual.

Armored Fist, 1994 - Everybody expected this to be a sequel to M1 tank Platoon. It was kind of an arcade type sequel and if you have a gameport joystick with a hat switch, you can manually target enemy tanks and make it more realistic. I’ve beaten all 47 missions dozens of times. This game runs better in DOSBOX than it ever did in true DOS with mechanical joysticks. This is one game that I intend to get an advanced programmable joystick and HOTAS controller and tear through the entire game once more without ever touching the keyboard or mouse.

M1 Tank Platoon 2 - 1998

Steel Beasts - 2000

T-72 - 2005. A great Russian game that the Steel Beasts community (foolishly) rejected. This begins the new era of WinXP and above sims. I’ve lost all interest in anything that came out afterward.

Hopefully, Gunner, Heat, PC will be good. I will need to get out my new computer for that one.

Anyway, absolutely - stay inspired, keep those skills sharp and those PCs running fast!!!

Last edited by RetroGamer; 10-11-21 at 12:59 AM.
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