The year is 1943. The Wehrmacht has begun Operation Hawk in an attempt to capture Kharkov with its steel claws. The SS Division Totenkopf has moved forward to crush the Soviet tank forces, but the Red Army has held the line, digging in and putting up a fierce resistance. In response, German tank armies have renewed their offensive with Operation Panther, and Soviet tank crews are now finding themselves severely outnumbered.
Want to step into the role of a commander in the very heart of Kharkov’s defense? You'll have everything the officers had back then: tanks, guns, and fearless soldiers. The success of each opposing force hangs in the balance every day. Your decisions will determine who wins the Battle of Kharkov.

Main Features:

High replayability and flexible AI: "smart" AI analyzes the players’ tactical movements and chooses the best strategy based on behavior rather than a script. Scenarios can be replayed using different tactics, as though playing against a human opponent

Painstaking reconstruction of Kharko in scope and size

Detailed recreation of weapons, artillery, and vehicles: all battle characteristics, including missile trajectories and crew numbers, have been modelled according to archived military records and WW2 chronicles

Dynamic day, night and weather effects, all of which affect combat through terrain traversability, battlefield visibility, hidden force capabilities, and more

Destructible environment: nearly everything can be blasted and destroyed, from ground terrain to houses and enemy defenses. All traces of previous battles (shell holes, broken vehicles, corpses, etc.) remain on the battlefield

Realistic ballistics: bullets and projectiles follow accurate trajectories. Proper shot longitude, number of frags, and their range are calculated

Comprehensive vehicle damage system: engine, suspension, weapons, and aiming mechanisms can all be damaged separately, affecting the combat capabilities of the vehicle

Real soldier behavior: every soldier has several basic parameters, such as experience level, fatigue, and morale, which affect their behavior and effectiveness

Military encyclopedia with 3D model viewer and detailed data on all units, describing their historical and in-game characteristics

Fast Facts:

6 scenarios taking place in 1943 during the operation to defend Kharkov

2 playable opposing forces: the USSR Red Army and German Wehrmacht

Up to 250 soldiers and officers and up to 40 vehicles in each tactical battle

Detailed global map: 36 square kilometers in size

87 unit types: infantry, artillery, support vehicles, battle tanks, and aviation

More than 40 accurately and carefully reconstructed weapons and vehicles

2 control modes: turn-based strategic mode and real-time tactical mode

The Achtung Panzer forum is by far the most active third party forum at the moment, if not one of the most active forums overall. Very, very good indication of the interest this has caused in the Wargamer community. 

Gamer reviews

Wargamer forum http://www.wargamer.com/forums/

“The game has EXTREME potential.  As it is, its a steal at $16.95 which is what I paid.  I would have paid $39.99 for it and felt happy with the purchase.  Its a little rough around the edges, but this is a game every wargamer should own.”

“Just want to add my voice to the chorus of praise for Achtung Panzer.  Really, *really* impressed by this game.”

Matrix games forum http://www.matrixgames.com/forums

“I just got Achtung Panzer 1943 today, and I have been playing whole day. I have to say for my point of view Achtung Panzer is the best WW2 tactical combat wargame simulator on PC today. Achtung Panzer is to the WW2 tactical wargames on PC as what IL2 is to the flight sims on PC....it's a benchmark...the best $20 CAD I ever spent on wargame for my computer.”

“Been playing the demo and I love this game. It finally feels like a 3d Close Combat with some combat mission thrown in.”

“I hate RTS games but this is the first one since the CC series that I can handle. One hell of a game that Im going to buy as soon as possible.”

Paradox forum http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/

“Wow! Probably the most important wargame to be released this year.”

“I was a big fan of Close combat ans was waiting for a successor. I think I have found it.”

“The best wargame in a long time.”

“I'm in love :) This is the best Squad based wargame (more like HARD CORE tactical simulator) I have ever played on computer…”

Media reviews

GameOn 8.5/10

”I applaud the developers for their attention to detail and their creation of one of the best strategy games I have seen in a long time.”

http://www.gameon.co.uk/game/review/pc/achtung-panzer-kharkov-1943-pc-review

Eurogamer.dk 8/10

”Achtung Panzer: Kharkov 1943 bliver på min harddisk og jeg vil uforbeholdent anbefale det til folk med interesse i strategi- og krigsspil.”

http://www.eurogamer.dk/articles/achtung-panzer-kharkov-1943-anmeldelse?page=3

EGC Games 78%

” Historical accuracy, vehicular detail, AI and gameplay will not disappoint wargamers. ”

http://www.egcgames.com/content.php?id=1884

GamersAthome 7/10

”All in all I give this game a 7/10 purely for the lack of control of the camera, but with that aside it is a really cool game”

http://www.gamersathome.co.uk/achtung%20panzer%20review.htm

GirlGamers 7/10

”…and you end up with a package which will delight hardcore armchair WWII generals everywhere.”

http://www.girlgamersuk.com/2010/02/achtung-panzer-kharkov-1943-2

Kriegsimulation N/A

”In closing, I'm impressed with APK43 and I will be playing this war game a lot.”

http://kriegsimulation.blogspot.com/2010/02/achtung-panzer-kharkov-1943-review.html