TimeGate's Ian Klimon offers you the choice of Axis or Allies. Double-click on the video window for a full-screen view.

　　At a recent Atari press event, we had the opportunity to meet with Ian Klimon, director of design at TimeGate Studios, who is currently working on Axis & Allies for Atari. We had enjoyed some hands-on time with this World War II strategy game previously, but during our brief demonstration, Klimon was still able to show us a handful of features that we weren't aware of.

　　The tagline for Axis & Allies is "World War II is in your hands," which, since you have the power to lead Germany or Japan to victory, is very appropriate. You'll also have the option to play as Great Britain, Russia, or the United States. You'll play through a number of historically accurate missions before leading your chosen faction to victory and, in some cases, rewriting history. If you play as Germany, for example, you'll have successfully invaded Great Britain by the time you finish that particular 12-mission campaign.

　　Axis & Allies will feature mobile bases, supply lines, and plenty of on-the-ground combat.

　　In addition to playing through the five campaigns (for a total of 60 missions), you'll be able to set up custom skirmishes on randomly generated maps against the sophisticated AI, or, if you're looking for something to really sink your teeth into, you can check out the World War mode. In World War mode, you'll take turns with the other factions, spreading your forces across any of the 52 territories that make up the board-game-style map. Anytime you attempt to move your forces into a location that's already occupied by the enemy, you'll have the option to determine the outcome of that battle with either a dice roll or a real-time strategy battle on a map.

　　Although randomly generated, the battles will be loosely based on the geography of that area, including whether or not you would have made an amphibious landing to get there. The dice-roll option will obviously take into account the varying strengths of the two forces, so you'll most likely want to use it only when you're more or less assured of victory. When you're really up against it, however, your influence on the battlefield might be just what's needed to swing things in your faction's favor.

　　Tanks will be just one part of putting together a successful military campaign.

　　The other intriguing feature of the World War mode is that you'll have four generals serving under you who, depending on their own unique skills (and history), will make three special abilities available to you on the battlefield. Each of the abilities in the game will have a cost in "general points" and a timer linked to it, ensuring that you can't use them repeatedly. Simple abilities, such as additional supply drops, will cost relatively little and will be available frequently, but major abilities, like dropping an A-bomb, are unlikely to be an option more than once or twice during a typical battle.

　　Axis & Allies is currently in the middle of beta testing and is scheduled for release toward the end of this year. We'll bring you more information on the game as soon as it becomes available.