Moscow to Berlin is technically the fourth game in a series that commenced with Desert Rats vs. Afrika Korps, a smart little WWII RTS that grabbed modest critical praise. If you liked that game and its successors (D-Day andBattle of the Bulge), you'll probably enjoy MtB despite its dings and scratches. And if you didn't, well, who can blame you - World War II titles are a dime a dozen these days.

What you get for the not-quite-budget price of $30 are twenty missions overlapping three campaigns that range from Berlin to Moscow and back again, 100 weapons and units, a beautifully bleak 3D engine and a few new AI tricks. The word "campaign" is a bit misleading: while the missions proceed chronologically per each, there's no unit carryover. You simply drop into a scenario with pre-fab units and either win or lose. As such, the game feels less like a standalone WWII game per se, and more like a dolled up mod.

Tactically, MtB controls just like any other conventional RTS, of course with an interface so transparent that the only reason to play the tutorial is to scope unit special abilities. The new and much ballyhooed AI does indeed result in, say, riflemen squads that retreat when they're staring down tanks, discerning infantry that hop out of half-trucks when under fire, and though it's never clear how morale works (or if it's even gauged), soldiers that will indeed occasionally surrender. But so what? With other designers doing as much (or more), that's like touting a video card because it supports 3D gaming