Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

The Combat 6+1 Pack delivers a sprawling assortment of gameplay styles, ranging from boots-on-the-ground infantry combat to high-octane aerial dogfights and even submarine stealth missions. In World War II: Frontline Command and G.I. Combat: Episode 1 – Battle of Normandy, you lead squads through historically inspired battlefields, coordinating suppressive fire and flanking maneuvers. These entries emphasize tactical pacing and positioning, rewarding patience and situational awareness over run-and-gun chaos.

War Times and Red Shark shift you into the role of mechanized forces and undersea operators, respectively. War Times focuses on combined arms tactics, blending tank assaults with artillery barrages, while Red Shark immerses you in sonar pings and torpedo volleys. Each mission requires careful resource management, from ammo and fuel to hull integrity, reminding players that attrition warfare can be just as tense as close-quarters firefights.

Strike Fighters: Project 1 and Air Raid: This Is Not a Drill broaden the pack’s scope into air combat, offering a spectrum of flight models. Strike Fighters features detailed avionics and a dynamic mission editor, granting freedom to reenact iconic Cold War and modern scenarios. Air Raid delivers arcade-leaning action with simplified controls and fast-paced sorties to intercept incoming threats. Meanwhile, Vendetta Online—the “+1” in this compilation—catapults you into persistent online skirmishes where teamwork and aerial tactics define success.

Across all seven titles, control schemes vary widely. Players accustomed to modern hotkeys and streamlined HUDs might face a learning curve adapting to dated interfaces and manual loadouts. Yet this diversity is the pack’s strength: by blending simulation and arcade elements, it caters to both newcomers intrigued by military history and veterans craving granular authenticity.

Graphics

Visually, the Combat 6+1 Pack spans several generations of game engines, resulting in a mixed bag of textures, polygon counts, and lighting effects. Frontline Command and G.I. Combat appear distinctly early-2000s, with flat terrain meshes and modest draw distances. However, their gritty color palettes and period‐accurate vehicle models still evoke the brutal atmosphere of Normandy and the Eastern Front.

War Times ups the ante with improved weather effects and smoke plumes, giving mechanized clashes a palpable sense of scale. Red Shark’s underwater vistas rely on muted blues and caustics, though the murky environment sometimes hinders visibility—an intentional design choice that amplifies tension but can frustrate players seeking crisp visuals. Particle effects for explosions and depth charges remain serviceable, even if they lack modern shader sophistication.

Strike Fighters stands out with more detailed cockpits, realistic horizon lines, and configurable post‐processing that modernizes its appearance. Aircraft liveries are crisp, and ground textures benefit from generous draw distances, making each aerial engagement feel expansive. Air Raid opts for a simpler, sprite-based presentation that emphasizes readability during high-speed encounters.

Vendetta Online, as an MMO, balances performance and fidelity to maintain server stability. Its space environments feature colorful nebulas and reflective ship hulls, but background geometry can appear sparse. While none of these titles compete with today’s AAA engines, each game’s aesthetic evokes its era and genre effectively, offering charm rather than cutting‐edge polish.

Story

The narrative elements in this compilation vary dramatically. World War II: Frontline Command and G.I. Combat craft linear mission campaigns tied together by briefing cutscenes and period footage. While character development is minimal, the historical context and mission objectives—destroy enemy supply lines, defend strategic positions—lend authenticity and a sense of purpose to each engagement.

War Times and Red Shark take a more mission-driven, less character-centric approach. Story beats are delivered through radio chatter and debrief screens, framing each operation as part of a wider conflict. Though these titles lack deep protagonists, they succeed at immersing players in Cold War brinkmanship and cat-and-mouse submarine warfare, respectively.

Strike Fighters: Project 1 introduces more flexible storytelling via its mission editor, allowing players to craft bespoke scenarios that extend beyond the base campaign. This emergent narrative approach fosters community creativity and keeps the experience fresh. Air Raid is purely arcade-focused, with minimal plot—its tagline “This Is Not a Drill” serves as enough justification to blast waves of incoming enemies without further backstory.

Vendetta Online’s story unfolds in an MMO framework, where players choose factions, engage in dynamic events, and interact with NPC story arcs. This persistent universe offers the richest narrative depth in the pack, featuring political intrigue, trade routes, and PvP conflicts that evolve over time. While less structured than a single‐player campaign, its living storyline rewards long-term investment and social cooperation.

Overall Experience

The Combat 6+1 Pack is a compelling value proposition for enthusiasts of military and flight simulators who appreciate both breadth and depth. With seven distinct experiences spanning infantry tactics, armored warfare, aerial combat, submarine operations, and a persistent online universe, there is little overlap and countless hours of varied gameplay. This diversity makes it ideal for group sessions where different players gravitate toward different roles.

Installation and compatibility can be a hurdle, as some titles require manual tweaks, community patches, or legacy compatibility modes. However, most games in the pack have active fan communities providing mods, updated controls, and high-resolution texture packs. The extra effort pays off by breathing new life into otherwise outmoded engines.

While no single game here matches the graphical fidelity or convenience of contemporary releases, the pack shines through its authentic atmospheres and mechanical depth. Tactical veterans will appreciate the unforgiving difficulty and detailed mission planning, while newcomers can sample milder arcade entries like Air Raid before diving into the more demanding sims.

In sum, the Combat 6+1 Pack offers an eclectic military gaming anthology that rewards curiosity and perseverance. Whether you’re looking to reenact pivotal WWII battles, pilot jets in Cold War dogfights, stalk targets in the depths of the ocean, or join a living online combat theater, this compilation delivers a trove of historical and speculative engagements that cater to a wide spectrum of playstyles.