Airborne Assault: Highway to the Reich

Not The Package holiday tycoon sim the title suggests, Conquest Of The Aegean is a detailed WWII RTS simulating Germany's attempt to control Greece, Malta and Crete by paratroopers - not towels - at dawn. This is no Sudden Strike - it looks like postage stamps crawling over an Ordnance Survey map - but it's a pretty engrossing cookie. The level of detail and realism is enough to make most sane people vomit But for those into the simulation side of things, COTA is a treasure trove of tactical realism.

Built like some kind of military training sim, the game models everything from the cohesion, morale and experience of the troops, down to the last bullet, grenade and ration pack each unit has in its stores. You soon realise that under the bonnet an incredible Al engine is churning away, sending out orders, reacting to the enemy, distributing supplies, and firing artillery in support. Once you learn to trust your Al assistant there's no need to laboriously dole out orders to every last Tommy, Dick and Hans. Rather, you can tell a couple of HQs what to do and they'll take care of the cannon fodder. Slick. We hammered the first Airborne Assault a little, largely because the computer opponent can't seem to tell its arsenal from its elbow. This is still somewhat the case, making this primarily a multiplayer melee.

Strategy gaming doesn't get much more hardcore than this. But if you, as I, have ever harboured ambitions of serving as quartermaster to a major military formation, this is for you.