One of the most famous, and certainly most involved, games published under the Atari Program eXchange. It is a strategic war simulation of the Nazi Germany push into Soviet Russia.
Game turns continue over several seasons (with a total of 41 turns possible), and players plan out their moves for their units ahead of time. When the execute button is pressed, combat and movement is carried out automatically, with the enemy units having more sophisticated moves the longer it took for you to take your turn. Players control the German units, as the real challenge as winter sets in is to maintain lines of supply and prevent armored units from being stuck in terrain they can't negotiate. When the spring thaw occurs, many areas change to mud, further hampering the German advance, reflecting the historical problems faced by the Axis forces during the war in the East.
Different terrain types are in the game, including mountains, forest, river, swamps, seas, and cities, which affect movement and supply lines. There were also several types of units for both sides, with the German armored divisions being the quickest and most durable. Several units from other countries which were historically allied with the Germans are also represented, as well as Russian allies. Russian armor is relatively weak compared to German armor, but Russian units on the whole respond better to poor weather, and have vastly superior reinforcements as the game progresses.
The AI's ability to increase the sophistication of its response had a drawback, though, as players could basically skip entire seasons of unfavorable weather by hitting the execute button repeatedly (though this was fixed in the cartridge version). The computer calculation system was still far more complicated than most strategic systems for home computers at the time.
Players were scored based on their surviving units, how many casualties inflicted on the enemy, and cities that were secured.
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