How did you find out about Combat Mission?

[ChrisND]

Just curious how everyone here, regulars and newbies alike, first came across combat mission, and what hooked you.

Myself, it must have been around 2003. I was in the military, and while shopping at the PX randomly decided to pick up a computer game to play while I was pulling company CQ shift. For the non-military folk, this involves sitting at a desk for 24 hours answering the phone occasionally and generally doing a whole lot of nothing. Therefore in the wee hours of the night a laptop comes in really handy. Anyways, I saw CMBO on the shelf and decided to pick it up, mainly because the box art looked cool.

I was hooked as soon as I realized it was like Squad Leader on steroids and in 3D. The tutorial mission is what got me. For the life of me I can't remember the name, but it was a inf plt+2 tanks fight for a crossroads. Most fun I had had in a long time.

[Michael Emrys]

In my case, I had already bought two games designed by Big Time Software and published by Avalon Hill, Over the Reich and Achtung Spitfire! and was registered on BTS' discussion board. And either there or in The General came across an announcement that BTS would be developing a new game, which eventually became CMBO. And the rest is history.

Michael

[zukkov]

a friend bugged me to try it. i had played steel panthers and kampfgruppe before that and really wasn't looking for another tank game. but he insisted and came over for a visit and loaded his disk into my computer. we started up with the wittmann scenario and i got hooked. and the community here is excellent. lots of feedback and much more mature than your average game forums. most of the time anyway :-p

[MikeyD]

I got an email from George Bradford claiming that there was this company I had never hear of before who was looking for beta testers.

[Pvt. Ryan]

I saw an ad on the back of a bottle of maple syrup.

[Sivodsi]

I read reviews about this game on the internet, extolling its realism, fun and destructible terrain.

This was after CMBB came out because I bought double pack with CMBO, so must have been what, late 2002. It was an ideal game because my job at that time was editing and making test items, which was often a hard slog in front of a computer screen. Me and a buddy could surreptitiously flip PBEM files for those ever so important 'refresh' breaks.

Been hooked ever since.

[tagge]

A friend told me 2002 about this WW2 game that you could play by email. I became an instant CMoholic and haven't been able to go cold turkey since. Not that I would even want to...

[Vein]

I came across a download link for CM:BO on some game blog in 2000 and knowing nothing about it downloaded it. It MAY have been a pirate version. I downloaded it thinking due to its size and the fact that there was no serial number requested that it must have been a demo, but there was definitely a campagn there (So sorry for that!).

Although I enjoyed the stategy and the pace etc, my artist's eye never really got comfortable with the 'lego' people and I wasn't a fan of all the abstraction going on, so I uninstalled it and confined it to the trash bin.

Something about it stayed with me though, and as I got more and more disillusioned with the other 'strategy' games I thought I'd hunt it down (and buy it this time), and then I came across all the pre-release media for Strike Force on the battlefront site. Now THIS is more like it I thought.

I've played it ever since, I've got all the modules and Afghanistan, have pre ordered CM:BN.

Battlefront have in me a customer for life.

[LJFHutch]

Starting with my very first RTS with Lords of the Realm in '98 I gradually worked my way through AOE2, stronghold, company of heroes, then Men of War. Then in 2008 I found the demo for CMSF while browsing around and, always up for a new military strategy game, I downloaded it. I convinced a friend of mine to let me try it on his PC (mine didn't support open GL back then) and we were kind of disappointed, only playing it for about 10 minutes or so. I was a little interested though and in 2010 I decided to try it out again when I finally upgraded my PC.

I was absolutely stunned! After getting past the retro graphics and seemingly ridiculous interface (I can't go back to a simple RTS now because of the lack of control alone that the CMSF interface gives) I was hooked, it was the realism I'd dreamed about. I was (and still am) thoroughly sick of games that hold your hand and simplify everything, Combat Mission is a series that's not afraid to kick you in the nads and tell you you suck.

[Fenris]

Can't remember how exactly but I do remember downloading (painful on 56k dial-up) a short video that had a few units moving on a road and I think it ended by zooming out straight up from the map. Was very crude, even more so than CMBO, think it was a good while before it came out. Anyway I book marked the site as something to keep an eye on and I'm still here.

-F

PS - owned Over the Reich too, maybe that led me here. Can't honestly remember.

[theFightingSeabee]

In 2001/2002 I was working at a military museum while I was processing out of the military for a busted back. The museum had me opening and closing on Saturdays and Sundays and I was the only one there. They had a computer for me to use and I was bored as hell. I had actually been daydreaming of a game like this for a long time. One day I got the wild hair and searched for tactical wargame and found the demo. I could not believe it worked on the museum computer and had a blast with it.

Later in 2002, I saw it up for sale for really cheap and bought it. This ofcourse led to the two modules and eventually purchasing the whole collection set. I never really joined in on the forum until about 2007, where I've had a lot of fun bs-ing with all you guys since.

[scottie]

CMBO ? , gees that was a while back. Think i got the demo after spotting a review in a PC gamer magazine back in 1999 (maybe early 2000). Was a Close Combat fan prior , the benefits of 3D were obvious and i was hooked.

[goodwood]

Searching the web in 1999 come across the demo played it more than any other game that year, the first TICP I ever played in fact the only one CMBB almost cost me my marriage

[tdogg]

^ That wouldn't be the Seabee museum at a certain Seabee base north of LA would it ?

I came across CMBB in 2002 while looking for close combat 3. The search directed me to an AAR with pics and I thought this game is way better than CC3. A few minutes more of seaching and I found the site and ordered the game.

[Danny Chung]

It (the demo for CMBO) came as part of a disk of free games that came with a Mac magazine in the UK in year 2000.

I thought it was great. Endlessly replayable. After getting through the demo, bought the full game, then CMBB. Played it until my early period Mac bought the farm in late 2004.

[WineCape]

I was bored and wanted to give good wine/whisky away to get rid of millennium angst. Found (then) a outlet with BTS/Battlefront. These gorgeous pictures, don't you think they just are pretty purdy ....http://www.battlefront.com/products/cmbo/FAQ.html

[phil stanbridge]

I really can't remember much about it! I just remember CMBO well after it was first launched and thinking to myself how amazing it was.

[GonzoAttacker]

A good friend(armedchairgeneral) of mine came over and said fire up your PC. BTS made an announcement about a demo coming out soon. Then the Demo broke and it was history. 1999... Have been a forum member since day one also known as Rooster in the community too.(Long retired that name).

Michael "Gonzo" Gonzalez

[Vark]

Played AH and SPI games and did 1/300 wargaming so naturally gravitated to Steel Panthers but was a bit fed up with it's limitations. Whilst doing my MBA (1999-2000) saw the ad on the internet and thought interesting, but the hyperbolic description, only sold over internet and naff graphics put me off. I then got into CivII, Rainbow 6 and IL-2 Still there must have been a mental seed slowly germinating because I found myself looking at the Combat Mission Depot? website and reading the AAR's and the screen shots for CMBB looked beautiful (especially those Panthers). Finally 2003 I saw the game as a boxed set of all three games in the local HMV and DIDN'T buy it! Instantly I regreted the decision and had to wait two months to find it again, bought it and had difficulty loading the damn thing! I must have had the bug bad because I returned two dodgy copies to HMV before it loaded.

Finally all the games were loaded and the rest is history.

Moments to remember (in no particular order)

1. Playing the intro module, I had a dry mouth when I pushed that go button for the first time!

2. Watching my Panther use realistic 3D, yes 3D, terrain to flank and destroy an attacking US armoured platoon.

3. Playing CMBB and feeling sorry for my troops as they assaulted a hill in a winter blizzard, at night!

4. Downloading SP WaW and WinSP WWII and MBT and playing them for only a couple of weeks, no 3D, no command orders, only IGYG blech! To the recycle bin with you!

5. Finding the forum, I have learnt more about WWII, from this forum, than any other web resource, either directly, following links or purchasing recommended books, thanks to all who have contributed to this enlightenment.

6. Watching as a Pz IV, who is about to destroy my US company assault, explodes 30 metres from my Co HQ and wondering what the hell caused that! Then spending an hour replaying and realising that a shell from the last salvo of 105 shells, called in as FPF, has scored a direct hit!

7. Playing a game that is evolving all the time not just reissuing stale upgrades (Sid Meier take note!)

Good, thread, it's interesting to see the similarities and differences between the stories.

[bodkin]

Came across CMBO boxed version in a gaming store in small country town, probably around 2003-4, thought it looked interesting and the addiction started there.

[Sergei]

I noticed an interesting banner on a wargaming site, might have been Wargamer.com. This was right at the time of the Beta demo. I downloaded it and was impressed, and even more so when the Gold demo came. At that time I started to grace these forums with my insights, earlier I had blessed them by lurking. But I didn't actually order the game until a few months later because the ordering process seemed a bit complicated.

[umlaut]

In 2004 I had played Panzer General (I, II and III) for some years and had been dreaming about/looking for a turnbased game that was more focused on the tactical level.

One day I came across CMAK in a game store and even though I´m not much for desert warfare, I soon knew that this was what I had been looking for.

And when I the year after found CMBB (on sale for around 12 dollars), I knew I had found the real thing. Havent played much else since. Never tried CMBO, though - the graphics put me off.

Preordered CMBN immidiately and can´t wait to play it - but the main thing for me will be the east front release.

[Peregrine]

Stumbled on it while looking for something better than Steel Panthers II I think.

Downloaded CMBO demo, blown away by chance encounter and by that stage CMBB was out so immediately bought the bundle.

My machine was low spec for CMBB so only played CMBO as I didn't think I was interested in the Eastern Front. One machine upgrade later installed and tried CMBB and never played CMBO again.

If I could only pick one year of one front to play it would probably be 1943 in the East. Were T34/85mm available then, if not I might change my mind to 1944. I like the tank match-ups and prefer big battles and in this environment the bloodiness of some of the battles doesn't make me feel like such a butcher.

[UsF]

I started with the CMSF release and quickly lost interest. My interest was reignited after the recent news on RockPaperShotgun as I hope that it will be a better starting time.

haven't played any other games yet, since the DRM system was always a turnoff, but with Empires of Steel going blank and the commitment to wargames you show, I figured I'd give it another chance.

[Jaws]

1999 was playing all kind of ww2 games like Steel Panthers and Close Combat series when I saw a review on a site (could be SimHQ), downloaded demo and got hooked for ever.

It took me one more year before I dare to post something on a forum