A disgruntled Multi-player tanker:

The 3 current Multi-player tank simulations.

Steel Beast Pro PE (SB)

Military Based simulation:  http://www.steelbeasts.com/

SB has a great sensation of driving a tank, the tank is solid and just feels very nice. Optics, we can assume are correct due to this being a mil/sim. Sounds are ok, though the mods really improve the stock sounds. All playable tanks have multi-crewable positions. The green maps are excellent with a large view distance of 3.5k. Realistic ballistics and damage model is also based on military data supplied by the Army that purchases the Professional version. There is also damage to the tank/vehicles systems and the ability to repair the damage or call for a tow, if a human player is on hand to drive the recovery vehicle.

Multi-player works very well once you're ports are configured. A very nice after action tool is also included, so you can watch you're death or victory in all it's glory. Though there is no ability to jump in and take control of the vehicles in the AAR tool.

SB is expensive, with only Western vehicles playable, which means there is no multi-player as East vs West. The game has no shadows at all, or moving wheels (up and down over the terrain), this is possibly due to keep the view distance in the 3,500 meter range. The models have no conformity, some have beautifully realized interiors some do not, just a 2d graphic. The A.I is dumb as dog sh*t, as an example I took a 4 vehicle squad across a map and not one of my wingmen arrived with me. They were either stuck in the woods or sunk in the rivers! Vehicles that can swim in the real world are not buoyant in SB.

The sim has very poor modding capabilities outside of what I previously stated above. All models are locked, so skins, maps and sounds only. That means you are locked into what eSim give you from the fabled list. The game engine used by SB lacks a lot of graphical features we now take for granted, the desert maps look very poor and one in particular is a lag fest.

T34 vs Tiger (TvT)

A very good simulation of the Tiger and T34-85, Interiors are perfect representations as are the optics. Sounds are ok and can be improved upon by adding a mod. Graphics are very nice and the single player is ok, if not short. Maps are big and spacious though there are some odd things going on with trees. To quote a driver of a real Tiger, "they have done a very good job of recreating the whole Tiger tank experience". To drive the tanks in TvT is a real pleasure, they are big and heavy and on full realism are a handful to drive. Ballistics are ok though somewhat canned.

TvT's MP is unreliable and difficult, it requires a 3^rd party application (Gameranger or Tunngle) to make the MP connection. There is no AI in multi-player and the tanks are not multi-crewable. The game as a whole is resource hungry and with only two playable tanks some what limited. Editable skins, maps and sounds are available, though 3d models are possible but with a great amount of difficulty. The publisher pushed TvT out the door early and went into receivership soon after release.

ArmA and ArmA II  http://www.bistudio.com/index.php/english/games/arma-2-series/arma-2

A modern mil/sim with tanks, planes, helicopters, ships and troops. Graphically very nice, the best of the three as you would expect from a modern simulation. The vehicles are well modelled with the same attention to detail as SB or TvT. Sounds are good and there is a monumental  variety of vehicles.

Mods are where ArmA II is at. There are a wide range of different vehicles to choose from, East or West, though none I know of have a fully modelled interior. ArmA has had it's problems in the past with the tank damage model and fire control systems, not any more, the superb Ace mod by Sickboy and crew http://forums.bistudio.com/showthread.php?t=73531 have almost put this on a par with SB, with more mods coming for the tanks. Terrains are vast and varied from snow to desert and anything in between. Multi-player is excellent and very reliable, the A.I is very good, though more orientated towards troops rather than tanks. So ArmA II is a work in progress and I can only see the tanking improve. Also the 6updater http://dev-heaven.net/projects/six-arma-updater makes adding mods to ArmA very easy indeed.

All is not roses and a few issues need addressing as a tanker. The tanks are too twitchy, they do a pirouette on stopping and turning. The graphics and view distance means the view distance needs to be doubled to see the enemy, so 4k view and tanks will disappear at 2k and above. ArmA II requires a very powerful pc to run the high views needed for tank warfare. ArmA can be daunting to get setup with all mods and no MBT interiors being an obvious omission.

So what is the summing up of my waffle.

TvT is good as a single player game but needs the MMP7 mod (MMP7 mod is multi-player) http://panzersim.forumotion.com/t281-beta-test-requests to make it better, the ZW mod (pay-ware) http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=158301 is a slide show for me and does add new vehicles, a new campaign  but does not support multi-player.

SB is a great tank simulation though limited in its vehicle selection and closed nature of adding vehicles. To me this title is the one that saddens me the most. As eSim are missing a golden opportunity to make a great tanking simulation. Not just a simulation for the various armies but also for the tanker. Railworks http://store.steampowered.com/app/24010/ is great example of what can be achieved by the small group of people that Railworks employ.

Railworks create a train simulation that cost £20 or so to purchase, they can then sell over £700's worth of downloadable content (dlc) ranging from a couple of pounds to tens of pounds. This is a great way for Railworks to make ends meet. We often here in the eSim's forum “I will add it to the list” or “we do not have the staff to do it”. The micro transaction would pay for the modeller to make the tank and some! That is what I find so frustrating about SB, it's not what it is but what it could be. I would gladly pay £10 - £20 for a Tiger or a Sherman in SB with interior and optics as would my tanking friends.

ArmA II

A great game, though the tanks have had the least amount of attention by Bohemia and it is left up to the modder's to fix the issues. This they have done and to the point where it really does give the 5 times more expensive dedicated tank simulation a run for the money.

As an owner of all three I find myself playing ArmA II more and more, TvT is a pain to get online, which is a real shame. SB is a very sterile simulation when you get down to it and let down by some very silly things that you would of hoped the developer would have fixed ages ago. So yes ArmA is my main choice at the moment but SB is the missed opportunity, if only...

F.Y.I
I have a Intel Q8300 quad core 2.5ghz
ATI 5770
Win7/Xp