Hi All,

Hot on the heels of the release of Campaign Shenandoah, we are releasing the second Invasion of Japan title – Japan ’46. This is the 23rd game released in the Panzer Campaigns franchise and was announced when Japan ’45 was ‘teased’ earlier in the year.

Japan ’46 was built in tandem with Japan ’45 but went through several significant changes based upon review and feedback on the latter title. Areas such as the order of battle as well as game parameters have been reviewed and reworked. Many of these changes were included in the Japan ’45 1.01 patch and there will be a further 1.02 update, post the release of Japan ’46.

Game Overview

With the successful completion of Operation Olympic, the Allies had established air bases and naval ports on the southern half of the Japanese home island of Kyushu from which they could be used for Operation Coronet. Panzer Campaigns: Japan ’46 – Operation Coronet covers the invasion of the Japanese home island of Honshu with the goal being to capture Tokyo and the factories and farmland of the Kanto Plain. Coronet would have been the largest invasion of the war. Two Allied armies, composed of eleven corps, would have participated in the campaign. The Eighth Army had been fighting in the Pacific since 1942 while the First Army had been victorious over Hitler’s legions in northwest Europe. Both veteran organizations would have been called on to endure hardship in a campaign that the experts were saying could have costed the Allies hundreds of thousands of casualties.

The Japanese had at their disposal four armies (corps sized formations) along with the elite Naval Landing Forces and many irregular forces, under the command of the 12th Area Army, to deal with the Allied invasion. Joining the Allies were the French and Commonwealth ground forces. The extensive air and naval forces of the Allies would have been at their disposal in supporting the ground forces. These all would have clashed in the penultimate campaign of the War in the Pacific.

Japan ’46 Operation Coronet gives the players the ability to recreate the entire campaign from the landings at Sagami and Kujukiri Beaches on the southern shores of Honshu to the Battle of Tokyo and later the Battle of the Kanto Plain. Included are 59 scenarios that cover the entire campaign or to play one of the many small to large sized battle scenarios included in the game. Take command of the US XXIX Corps as it struggles at Sagami Beach to build a beachhead or command the Japanese 1st Tank Division as it attacks the Allies southwest of Tokyo.

Included Scenarios

Panzer Campaigns: Japan ’46 Operation Coronet covers the entire campaign to take Tokyo and the Kanto Plain from the beginning of March to the end of April 1946:

The Invasion – March 1-5

The Breakout – March 6-10

The Linkup – March 12-17

The Battle of Tokyo – April 3-15

The Battle of the Kanto Plain – April 20-26

The 59 scenarios range from small actions such as the “Counterattack at Choshi” (19 turns) to the huge “Operation Coronet” (608 turns) covering the entire campaign. The wide variety of scenario length and size will give the players a sense of the scope of the campaign. Weather conditions range from normal to mud. The game map accurately depicts the mix of terrain types that the Allies would have encountered during the operation.

Features

Game features include:

Game scale is 1 hex = 1 km, 1 turn = 2 hours, with battalion and company size units.

59 Scenarios – covering all sizes and situations, including specialized versions for both head to head play and vs. the computer AI.

The master map covers the cities of Tokyo, Yokohama, Kagashima and the outlying areas to include minor islands (90,678 hexes) where Operation Coronet would have taken place.

The order of battle file covers the Allied and Japanese forces that could have taken part in the campaign with other formations added in for hypothetical situations.

Order-of-Battle and Scenario Editors which allow players to customize the game.

Sub-map feature allows the main map to be subdivided into smaller segments for custom scenario creation.

All new images for unit art on both sides, including guns and vehicles covering all of the forces of the Allied and Japanese armies involved in the operation.

Design notes which cover or include the production of the game, campaign notes, sources and a scenario list to include descriptions.

Japan ’46 provides multiple play options including play against the computer AI, Play by E-mail (PBEM), LAN & Internet “live” play, and two player hot seat.Some sample screenshots follows;

You can get the game now from John Tiller Software on this link; JTS Shop Link

You can get more information on the game as well as a number of free downloads here; Japan ’46 Product Page

We hope you enjoy this latest Panzer Campaigns title and I’m pleased that there is no plan for it being the last one!

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