Like everybody else on this planet, except the game developers, we were getting really tired of titles based on the World War II - we want something new, unique, a different experience. Strangely, such a title will come from the developers of Pacific Storm (yes, that game based on the WWII), Lesta Studio. 9th Company: Roots of Terror is an action-oriented RTS game for the PC based on the Soviet campaign in Afghanistan that took place 20 years ago.

The story is not exactly a happy one, as no war should be presented as a "cool" thing: the 9th company of the Airborne Regiment will have to withstand heavy fire on a nameless mountain in Afghanistan we'll know as "Hill 3234". The real attack happened on the 7th of January 1988 and a total of 39 Soviet men had to fight against an estimated 400 Mujahideen and Pakistani mercenaries - and they really managed to do it, holding their position for two days. Six of them died and all the other were wounded. Just two of the 9th Company soldiers were awarded, posthumously, the Golden Star medal and the title of Soviet Hero.

9th Company: Roots of Terror follows the story of these recruits fighting against the odds, against the numerous enemies in what seems to be the modern Battle of Thermopylae. No "This is Sparta" jokes allowed!

This attractive title promises to bring you a two level warfare: you can use the area operation map to choose a mission or explore the 12 highly detailed tactical maps from Afghanistan. Still, the most important feature the game comes with is the one that can be associated with the tactical part. First of all, there will be a complex reward and in-combat reward system for every character, as well as an advanced hit location system for the mechanized units, that will make battles even more realistic. All these are divided amongst 80 different unit types and a non-linear mission structure.

9th Company: Roots of Terror is set to be launched during the second quarter of 2008 by hell-tech.