American Civil War: Gettysburg is a Strategy game.

Immerse yourself in the action of such famous conflicts as Little Round Top and Pickett's Charge. Let the battle commence!

Immerse yourself in the action in American Civil War: Gettysburg and experience the grandeur of detailed 3D battlegrounds inspired by such famous conflicts as Little Round Top and Pickett's Charge. Take command of both the Union and Confederate forces as they fight their way into the heart of the northern aggressor or hold fast against the rebel invaders. Out maneuver and out flank other armchair generals in intense multiplayer action and secure your place in the annals of history. Let the battle commence!

Unlike most strategy games of this kind, it is beautifully displayed in vibrant 3D. From extremely detailed troops with historically appropriate insignia/equipment, to the actually modeled battlefields of Gettysburg, it’s simply great looking. The environments have a “painting” quality to them, not unlike something from a children's book about the Civil War. They are far from cartoony though. Weapon fire is brilliant; puffs of muskets will cloud the field, along with the smoking holes left by your cannon. Even the menus sparkle with historical flair and design, from the watermarks, candles and other features to re-create an “aged” look.

The battles come alive with full on audio assault as weapons fire, cavalry charge with beating hooves and the cries of soldiers punctuate the bloody act of war. It would even be more chaotic if this was a RTS; as it stands, there are usually some brief respites during movement and planning. The music is simple and involves your usual Civil War snare drum with an orchestral base flavor.

American Civil War: Gettysburg is rich on strategy, yet keeps things fairly simple. You can battle through all the historic missions – 16 in all; like Picket's Charge and the defense of Little Round Top, from either the Confederate or Union forces. Before each mission, you are briefed on the aspects of the engagement, providing a lot insight into the tactics and context of your coming actions. There is also a Skirmish mode where you can set up random encounters to your liking and just go at it.

This is tried and true turn-based action, something becoming a bit of a rarity these days. The map itself is divided into classic war game hexagons, and you have movement restrictions based on these. You really enjoy being able to sit back, examine the field, and apply chess-like ideas… instead of the point-click fest of RTS's these days. Several units are at your disposal, all with different firing and movement ranges. These include soldiers, militia, cavalry and cannons.

The tactics are simple enough such that most people will master them quickly. Utilizing cover and attacking an enemy when he is exposed is the key in most engagements. Also, the cavalry charge can be absolutely devastating to infantry in open fields… but beware of entrenched forces surrounded by forests. The readouts are also ridiculously simple, based on modifiers according to range, cover and morale. You know beforehand what an area will offer in terms of affecting these modifiers, so don't feel like you're leaping into the unknown. Hills of course are huge in these types of games, especially with such simple, grunt-based weapons.

There is multiplayer support included and there is a nice community website to link up with other players, and it was a nice change of pace from the single player mode.

American Civil War: Gettysburg Includes:

• Command an Array of Troops
• Detailed Reference Section
• Strategic Turn-Based Combat
• 16 Mission Campaign
• Stand-Alone Skirmish Battles
• Detailed 3D Landscapes
• Multiplayer Battles

Note: The Download Now link will download a small installer file to your desktop. Remain online and double-click the installer to proceed with the actual download.

Immerse yourself in the action in American Civil War: Gettysburg and experience the grandeur of detailed 3D battlegrounds inspired by such famous conflicts as Little Round Top and Pickett's Charge. Take command of both the Union and Confederate forces as they fight their way into the heart of the northern aggressor or hold fast against the rebel invaders. Out maneuver and out flank other armchair generals in intense multiplayer action and secure your place in the annals of history. Let the battle commence!

Command an Array of Troops. Detailed Reference Section. Strategic Turn-Based Combat. 16 Mission Campaign. Stand-Alone Skirmish Battles. Detailed 3D Landscapes. Multiplayer Battles

Windows 98/98SE/2000/Me/XP. Processor: PIII 800 MHz. DirectX 9. 128 MB RAM. Free hard drive space: 400 MB. 3D Video Card 32MB DirectX 9. DirectX-compliant Sound Card