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BATTLEFIELD 1942 WAS UNDOUBTEDLY one of the big online gaming hits of 2002. The game gave players the ability to relive the furious combat of World War 2 over some of the most famous battlefields of the war playing either the Axis or Allied sides. Players could choose to play as infantry, tank men, pilots, naval gunners and more in a no holds barred 3D first person shooter. The game allowed for up to 64 players to play online and immediately the game became a big hit with online gamers here in New Zealand.

It is no wonder then that the announcement of the expansion pack Battlefield 1942: Road to Rome has been greeted with such enthusiasm. More so considering that one of the new maps of the game will feature the Cassino battle that epitomised the fighting spirit of the New Zealanders who fought in the war.

Almost from the beginning of the war there were New Zealanders fighting in the European Theatre of Operations. From the fighting retreats from Greece, the stout defence of Crete against incredible odds and the punch and counter punch of the Western Desert was forged a renowned fighting division - the 2^nd Division of the NZ Army. At the end of the desert operations (the 2^nd Division was the only Division to have fought throughout the campaign) the division numbered between some 14,000 to 15,000 men. This was an astounding number considering the size of the New Zealand population at the time. The division consisted of infantry battalions (including the famous 28^th Maori Battalion ), armoured battalions and an artilliary regiment. This was supported by special support and logistical units including a machine gun battalion, anti tank units, and it's own survey unit.

At this time it must be remembered that the threat from the Japanese was still very real back home and after the completion of the desert campaign there was the call to return our troops to defend their own country. With the promise of defence by the Americans and the need to conform to a world wide strategy (a new front being opened to take the heat from the Russian front and to distract the Axis from possible invasion in North-Western Europe) Parliament agreed to make the division available for use in Italy. This was to be a tough test for our troops as they were organised and trained as a light mobile breakthrough division designed to exploit success on the battlefield but instead they were to be used as the spearhead unit to battle against the fixed defensive positions established by the Germans across Italy.

The New Zealand soldiers quickly adapted to this new type of warfare, one that saw them fighting one day on the coastal plains and on the next high up in the mountain spine of Italy. It was a war of extremes in weather with dust making visibility impossible one moment and the winter rain turning the front to a sea of mud the next. Transport units of the division struggled to provision the troops across what were no more than mule tracks (at one stage the division has a sizable unit of mules and handlers). This was to be a battle of hard slog and if one battle was to epitomise this it would be the battle of Monte Cassino and it's township.

In early February of 1944 the 2nd Division was relocated from the Eastern Italy to the Cassino area of operations. The new map in Battlefield 1942: Road to Rome gives a hint at what the Kiwi soldiers must have felt when they first viewed the Mount Cairo, and in its foreground the walled abbey of Monte Cassino. Down below was the township of Cassino, it's railway station and the old military barracks. They must have felt their every move was noted and plotted by the enemy. The accurate and immediate shell fire gave testiment to the enemies eagerness to use this advantage.

Up until this stage of the Cassino operation the Allies had been careful to avoid bombing the Abbey itself, in fact throughout the Italian theatre astounding efforts were made to avoid harming monuments and architecture of significance in an endeavour not to upset the Italian people and the Catholic Church. General Freyberg of the 2^nd Division and his unit commanders were insistant on the Abbey being bombed prior to any attack by the division. There has been much debate on the merits of the bombing however looking at the Battlefield 1942: Road to Rome map gives you a sense of why it was done. Although to this day the Germans deny occupying the Abbey the troops below must have felt a terrible sense of foreboding looking up at the structure and on the basis of morale alone the commanders at the time felt justified in making the decision.

The battle itself was about the opening of Route 6 that was one of the highway routes into Rome (the first European Capital to be taken by the Allies). The Abbey and the township in recognition of it's importance was defended by the German parachutists (the old nemisis of the 2^nd Division from Crete days) backed by tanks and artillary. It must be remembered that on this front both sides were pretty well matched for Battalion to Battalion in numbers, so this whole campaign was about the fighting quality and spirit of the troops and not a battle of material and resources.

On the 15^th of February 1944 the Abbey was bombed as well as the township by some 600 tons of bombs (delivered by American Flying Fortresses who also managed to cause some 24 casualties to our own troops). The initial battles were for the outskirts of the township of Cassino and it is here that the 28^th Maori Battalion covered itself in glory with the capture and valiant defence of the Railway Station. Only after grevious casualties and the arrival of fresh enemy units and tanks were they driven from the main station house.

The main attack came later with the Kiwi infantry all but taking the township itself. The town was largely in rubble and the fighting was from house to house. In this type of battle it is the fighting spirit of the men that is tested to the limit as unit communication becomes confused and shots are exchanged from house to house. Although gallant attempts were made to bring armour up into the township this was largely ineffective with the battered and cratered streets largely being impassable. Some Kiwi units ultimately got onto the slopes of the Monte Cassino but casualties and the inability to bring supporting units into play forced the Kiwis to a standstill. They remained in ownership of most of the town but at the price of some 1600 casualties. As they were in direct observation of the Germans from the ruined Abbey and their many machine guns the town was constantly shelled with smoke shells to protect them. Supply was done largely at night. Despite further attempts to dislodge the Germans and including a go at the Abbey itself the exhausted Kiwis were relieved from the line in April 1944. The Kiwis were to meet the German Parachutists again in Italy and it was the New Zealnders who were to finally defeat them against incredible odds (the Kiwis proved you could take on the Tiger tank with grenades).

So when you get your hands on the new expansion pack spare a thought for the sacrifice our New Zealand soldiers made on the Cassino battlefield and do them proud.

In addition to this epic battle the expansion pack will also include

• Five other new maps from the Sicilian and Italian campaigns including Operation Husky (Sicily), and the battles for Anzio.
• Eight new vehicles including the German BF-110 and British Mosquito fighter-bombers.
• Two new fighting forces including the Free French forces and Italian army.
• New hand-held weapons including the Italian Breda assault rifle, British Sten SMG and bayonets on rifles.
• Proprietary Refractor 2 engine raises bar for graphics and 3D rendering.
• Huge multiplayer component supporting up to 64 players that requires teamwork and cooperation from each member in order to achieve victory for the Axis or Allies.
• Unique single player mode features no scripting, meaning the player gets different experience each time they play.

Gameplanet wish to acknowledge with grateful thanks the good people of the History Group of the Ministry for Culture and Heritage for allowing the reproduction of photos and maps from "Italy Official History of New Zealand in the 2nd World War, Vol 1 by N.C. Phillips". These can be seen by following the screenshot link below.

Show me the screenshots!