cross-posted from: https://atomicpoet.org/objects/325eaecd-46ae-40fd-93f5-e3e5fa9b3a7e
The original Combat Mission Trilogy, a turn-based strategy game, was just re-released on PC via Steam—and wargaming history has just been unearthed.
Back in 2000, Big Time Software (later Battlefront) launched Combat Mission: Beyond Overlord. It was unlike anything else at the time. Instead of cardboard counters and hex maps, you got a fully 3D battlefield and WEGO turns: both sides issue orders, then a one-minute replay unfolds in real time. It was janky, cinematic, and mesmerizing. Reviewers called it revolutionary, and they weren’t wrong.
The sequels arrived quickly. Combat Mission 2: Barbarossa to Berlin (2002) dragged the system east, where Soviet swarms clashed with German armor in brutal mud and snow. It expanded everything—hundreds of vehicles, a staggering variety of infantry, and endless historical battles. Then Combat Mission 3: Afrika Korps (2003) shifted to the Mediterranean, with desert warfare in North Africa and grueling campaigns in Italy. By then, the CMx1 engine was straining under its own weight, but each game felt like a different slice of WWII. Together, they were a trilogy that combined obsessive detail with unpredictability. Units panicked, tanks bogged down, shells ricocheted in improbable ways. Every replay was a little war story.
And quirks—oh, they had quirks. Tanks crab-walked across slopes. Infantry looped animations until they looked like clones. Explosions puffed politely instead of roaring. Yet that awkwardness added charm. You forgave the creaky graphics because the battles felt alive. No two scenarios ever played the same, and the chaos kept you hooked.
Now in 2025, they’re back via SNEG, sold separately or in a bundle called the “Classic Collection.” The premise remains the same: small-unit tactical combat across the big theaters of WWII. Graphically, nothing’s been touched. Expect blocky models, stiff animations, and maps that look like green rugs. Still, a Canadian Red Ensign waving above Shermans triggers nostalgia in a way modern engines can’t fake.
Sound hasn’t aged gracefully. Rifles crack thinly, tanks hum like cheap appliances, and artillery feels more like a pop than a shockwave. It’s functional, not immersive. Controls are unchanged: mouse-and-keyboard only. No controller support. With the exception of Steam Cloud, no modern QoL updates—just the same old interface you fought with twenty years ago.
Platform support is the big news. Officially these run on Windows 10/11, with Steam Cloud and digital manuals included. Specs are almost nonexistent—if your PC can boot, it can run these games. But what about Linux? Proton compatibility isn’t officially mentioned on the Steam pages, but testing shows they run fine. They’re lightweight DirectX 9 titles with no DRM, so Proton handles them without much fuss. You’ll likely need to tweak resolution settings or disable fullscreen shenanigans, but once you’re in, the trilogy is fully playable on Linux. Steam Deck included.
Reviews are already split. Veterans are thrilled to have the classics preserved in a convenient package. Newcomers recoil at the dated visuals and clunky UI. Both perspectives are fair. Price is modest—each game is affordable on its own, and the bundle undercuts a single modern AAA release.
I played the originals when they were new, sitting in front of a humming CRT. Beyond Overlord was my first taste of tactical chaos. Watching replays felt like watching a war film unfold in miniature. Barbarossa to Berlin became my favorite—the Eastern Front was tailor-made for the WEGO system. Afrika Korps was the odd one, with open desert maps that sometimes felt empty, but the Italy campaigns delivered misery in spades. Uphill assaults, fog, machine guns waiting behind every hedge—it was brutal, and unforgettable.
What stuck with me wasn’t polish, but unpredictability. You’d plan every detail, only for one panicked squad to unravel the whole attack. Or you’d watch a tank bounce three shells before firing back with a kill shot straight out of Hollywood. It was frustrating. It was exhilarating. It was war, but digitized through a very specific early-2000s lens.
So here we are again—blocky, stiff, unapologetic. They don’t look modern. They don’t sound modern. But they’re alive in a way many modern strategy games aren’t. And thanks to Steam (and Proton), they’re finally accessible again. Rough edges and all, the Combat Mission Trilogy still hits harder than it has any right to, twenty-five years later.
The price for each individual game is about C$7.01 (introductory discount, -10%). The bundle of all three (the “Classic Collection”) is around C$16.83.
Considering the content—three full games, scenario editors, lots of replayability—it’s well worth it if you’ve ever been curious. If you already own one or two, the individual price is fine. And if you want the whole trilogy, the bundle is a good deal.
https://store.steampowered.com/bundle/58546/Combat_Mission_Classic_Collection/