Wargame Design Studio’s quiet release of Panzer Campaigns Japan ‘45 two weeks ago caught me by surprise. Only really aware of the studio’s work remaking older JTS titles, I hadn’t noticed Japan ’45’s development until the full game was knocking at my inbox’s door. I’m glad it took the time to stop by though. Japan ’45 is a bit of a daring take, focusing as it does on a single short hypothetical campaign, the Allied invasion of the southern third of the Japanese island of Kyushu in November-December of 1945. This plan, Operation Olympic, would have been the largest naval invasion in history had it happened, and has been a fascinating facet of discussion for those interested in the final days of the Second World War, both Allied and Japanese decision making, and the debate surrounding the way the war was ended. I think the gamble pays off marvellously, giving players a chance to engage with both the game designers and the historical record in analyzing a truly titanic ‘what if’ of the Second World War.

As for the core system, it remains a Panzer Campaigns game. If you’re familiar with the John Tiller/Talonsoft system and user interface, you’ll fit right in with Japan ’45. I personally had a great time with Wargame Design Studio’s Battles of North Africa 1941 late last year. The aging system held up and after a bit of learning provided an easy window to the crags and dunes of North Africa and the strategic challenges they presented to both Italian and British forces. Though the scale is different between the Panzer Battles and Panzer Campaigns series, it took few little adjustments and after a run through the brief tutorial scenario, I was ready for Japan ’45. Any experience with a similar game will see you ready to hit the beaches almost immediately. For those who aren’t experienced with the system, the game comes with a detailed manual, a walkthrough-assisted tutorial, and design notes to help get you acquainted with the designer’s vision and decision making, complete with brief historical context and explanation of forces. Overall, an excellent package.

The scope of the game is not as massive as some other Panzer Campaigns offerings. The 44 scenarios included all revolve around the three Allied beachheads and the subsequent struggle to link up and secure the landings. Despite this the game is large enough to keep players engaged for quite a while. Playing the full campaign scenario, involving the simultaneous invasions of three beaches across southern Kyushu by the US Army, Marines, and naval and air support, is involved without being too overwhelming. The first few turns of organizing landing support, getting men on the beaches, and then pushing through the maelstrom to get inland ended up taking about an hour or so per turn, with the AI Japanese resolution taking around 10 minutes to go through all of their return fire and repositioning. Yet I never felt that this hampered the game. I was just as invested in watching my men fight their way onto Kyushu in the large scenario as I was in smaller engagements like the two-day pre-invasion assault on Tanegashima and its radar station.

Japan ‘45 takes great pains to illustrate the difficulty facing any invasion of the Japanese home islands but does so in what I believe to be an elegant way. Rather than individually including kamikaze units and other smaller elements in the Japanese OOB, Japan ‘45 rolls their impact into the US casualty calculations during the landings. It was not uncommon in my playthrough to see casualties in the double digits, or rarely triple digits, as the beaches crowded with subsequent waves, taking fire from Japanese guns, entrenched positions, and the simulated kamikaze strikes by midget subs and aircraft on transports. This means that the lengthy game turns are not bogged down by individual one-use units that the Japanese player must account for, and it also forces this unpleasant and unsettling part of late-war Japanese desperation into player planning without input (or attempts at refusal). It was wasteful and distasteful, even to several Japanese commanders, but sadly it was a reality of the conflict.

The greatest enemy here for players of the US side will be the terrain of Kyushu. US planners were grim in their assessment of the number of men and equipment that would have to be spent to occupy even the southern half of the island, and players will find themselves forced to climb hand over hand to take commanding mountain views while unfortunately relegating their armour to the coastal roads. The Japanese player will have to deal with overwhelming naval and air superiority from their enemy. This reality is reflected in the relative ease with which the allies will take the beach head (and I mean relative!), and supports the Japanese decision to pull most defences back into the hills and mountains. Playing as either side presents myriad difficulties that players will have to overcome. It makes for good gameplay that brings the strategic and logistical concerns commanders on both sides faced directly to the player, but may limit replayability depending on individual player’s commitment to different offensive and defensive plans.

Now, if one is not interested in fighting over the southern half of Kyushu, then Japan ‘45 will not do. There are no diversions to other theatres, like Greece in North Africa 1941. The remainder of Operation Downfall will also have to wait until the hinted sequel Japan ’46. Yet for the price point I believe Japan ‘45 has a lot to offer. Playing through the major scenario alone and then with a friend alone will provide at least a couple dozen hours of content, if my current time investment versus current turn is any indication, while the smaller scenarios break the larger game down into something more manageable for a weekend’s solo play.

The hypothetical scenario is fresh, interesting to explore, and sobering when one considers the abhorrent decisions facing Allied commanders in the failing months of the Second World War. It is a grim scenario, but Japan ‘45 feels to me like it approaches the topic with a suitable level of realism and tact, allowing players to experience a horrible campaign that the world thankfully never had to see, though none of the choices available in the summer of ’45 were pleasant.

UBOAT has been creating quite the stir in the wargaming community recently for its fresh take on submarine warfare, and before playing, I got a good look at it through a couple of different streamers. I was impressed with what I saw, and happily picked it up to see what amazing escapades I would have as well. Here are some things I spent doing in the various, lengthy downtimes I faced when playing UBOAT: played three separate mobile games, made myself food downstairs, and actively started typing this up as the game played in the background. I returned each time to find that my sub had been mostly happily chugging along, and there would still be nothing for me to do for another 15 minutes or so.

UBOAT is certainly a game with potential, but it’s currently unpolished. To be fair to UBOAT, it is in Early Access and I’ve already seen improvements over the time I’ve been playing, but it is still rough around the edges. Sub sim enthusiasts could find a real treat here, but I can’t fully stamp it with my seal of recommendation quite yet.

WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU’RE EXPECTING DEPTH CHARGES

UBOAT places you in the commander’s shoes of a World War 2 German U-Boat. You directly control the five officers on board, instructing them on what actions to take, such as spotting for vessels topside, performing maintenance on the engines, plotting navigation courses, etc. You can also assign these officers some sailors to assist them in their duties, who will work with the officer until you direct the officer to get rest. The officers all have levels, and can acquire new skills in their profession such as “Leaders” (Captain for example) acquiring torpedo targets faster, or engineers making quicker repairs to the sub.

The game, which currently consists of a tutorial and sandbox mode, places you at La Rochelle, a French port, in early 1941. From here, you can accept missions from the HQ officer, recruit new men for the ship, and requisition supplies and upgrades for your ship. Once that’s all taken care of, you can plot a course for the open sea and get to stalking Allied ships. While you’re out at sea, you monitor most of the sub’s functions and stores, from the reserves of fuel and electricity to the food and morale of the crew, but most of what you’ll be doing is staring at a map as your sub slowly moves to where you want to go. Even at high speed, it can take a very long time to get anywhere. This is a game that you can feel comfortable playing your mobile games during… at least when you’re alone.

Any contact coming into range out on the water will snap you out of fast travel and bring you back to your sub immediately. Combat is where the game really thrives, as you rush to get your ship submerged before you’re spotted, or you plot a course to intercept the oblivious cargo ship ahead. It can be very tense, but the feeling of working your spotting team in tandem with your targeting team and landing a hit on a ship without ever physically seeing it is incredibly satisfying. Even when things start off poorly, such as the time I was brought back to my sub mid-bombing run, salvaging (or at least surviving) a bad situation can be an enjoyable experience. That’s not to say everything about UBOAT is shipshape, however…

“…DID I JUST MINE MYSELF?”

I am not good at UBOAT. I will openly admit this: UBOAT is not a game that treats you kindly. I have experience with sub sims before, but UBOAT forces the player to pay attention to the abstract without telling the player they need to do that. Many of the actions you want to undertake are not clearly automated or manual. Even now, after several hours of puttering about the Bay of Biscay, some things are only now becoming clear. Your engineers will indeed fix leaks on their own, something that was never stated. But your radioman/sub medic won’t just get up and go heal a hurt crewman…. Unless he feels like it? Much of what goes on in your sub seems to be erratic and spontaneous, as if the crewmen themselves are unsure what you’re allowing them to do at any point in time.

Even more challenging is the fact that several integral parts of the sub aren’t explained, and the game just expects you to already understand that you should be using your electric and diesel compressors when you surface to restore air to your hull, or that switching to using blue lights underwater will increase air filtering. Further frustrations come when asking your officers to perform actions that aren’t immediately on the sub. You can click boxes out of the water to scavenge them for supplies, or send your officer to check out the abandoned ship nearby. However, there’s no specific radius around the ship that shows you what is actionable and what isn’t. I did indeed mine my own sub at one point because I was under the impression that I had to pull up close to the other ship to get my officer to go set charges. The second he finished, the ship exploded, and I ended up sinking directly to the bottom.

This is coupled with a fair amount of very annoying bugs, which have forced me to crash the game and reboot several times. The UI disappeared at one point and would not return, so I couldn’t order my men to do anything until I had restarted. Similarly, twice I have had the misfortune of inventory windows just opening. Every. Time. They. Were. Closed. They even got in the way of me trying to exit the game, appearing over the Escape menu, forcing me to Alt+F4 to get the menacing torpedo menu from following me any further. Even through the fun I had with the game, I could recommend giving it a pass currently purely for the way the bugs detract from the experience. To the developer’s credit, they have launched two patches to fix bugs from when I started playing to when I’m currently writing this line one week later. They are nothing if not committed to making UBOAT better, which is commendable in an age of games abandoned in Early Access.

NOT QUITE A SILENT HUNTER OR A COLD WATERS

UBOAT enters a genre that’s not quite crowded, but it certainly has some classics, such as Silent Hunter and Cold Waters, that UBOAT clearly wants to emulate, but it’s not there yet. There’s a familiar tension to the stress of submerged combat and similarities in how detailed the games can be with their modeling, but familiar and similar don’t mean as good as. UBOAT has failed to make me as attached to my submarine as I have been with a less personified sub in Cold Waters, even though I see and know the names of every crewman aboard my sub in UBOAT. The crew are largely stilted and lifeless, even with names and faces, they aren’t the actors from Das Boot. Executing a sailor for burning scrambled eggs was absolutely comical rather than dramatic, and I couldn’t care less about the crew when the game reminded me on several occasions that “many joined for ideology.”

On top of this, your actions as the collective officer hivemind of the ship feel insignificant overall. Perhaps it’s because you as the player don’t get to see the effect you’re having on the war, or maybe the achievement of sinking an enemy vessel feels less earned than in other sub simulators. But even while completing objectives does not bring the sense of satisfaction it would in a Cold Waters, it still does feel impressive. And it does bear repeating that UBOAT did only just emerge into Early Access, so there is plenty of time for us to see improvement. With this in mind, UBOAT has set off in choppy waters, but there could be a break in the storm ahead.

There’s a new Hearts of Iron IV dev diary out today, and in it, Paradox goes into some detail on features coming to the game with the 1.7 “Hydra” update. There’s some nifty new stuff on its way to the game, which is just about to turn three years old - more on that later.

While it doesn’t impact the mechanics of gameplay at all, one of the neatest new features coming to Hearts of Iron IV is a radio. No, it won’t help call in artillery strikes any more effectively, but it will let you pick out music you want to listen to, and it’s coming with 35 new tracks. The “Radio Pack” is going to add an in-game music player and several “stations” to choose from, so you’ll be able to select Allied, Communist, or Fascist-themed stations to listen to as you play. Paradox is also including 35 “best of” tracks from Hearts of Iron II and III.

As in the Winamp days of yesteryear, you’ll have a distinctive skin for the player to match the music. Axis Radio has a blood-red faceplate designed after popular German radios, while Radio Comintern features a lacquered wood face emblazoned with a red Soviet star.

An Axis Armor pack is also on the way, and that’s going to add more than 60 3D vehicle models to the game, including eight German tanks that were previously only available with the Colonel edition of Hearts of Iron IV. The renders look quite nice.

The update also details some balance changes coming to mechanics for convoy raiding, naval battles, and land commanders, who are getting their wings clipped significantly in order to re-emphasize ground combat tech research.

Paradox will also be celebrating the three-year anniversary of Hearts of Iron IV’s launch next week by running a “3-day war” live on Twitch, along with some of the biggest Hearts of Iron IV streamers and YouTubers. It’ll kick off June 2 at 18:45 CEST.

Well, it’s about time for Matrix to remind me why I will never, ever paint up those five armies of ancients and medievals I have sitting on the shelf. Yes, this means another DLC for the company’s uber-popular Field of Glory II (FOG2) computer game covering tactical combat from the Biblical era thru the Dark Ages and likely beyond, looking very miniaturish as well. Literally. To remind everyone, FOG2 is a product of Byzantine Games, namely one Richard Bodley Scott, who also designed FOG for tabletop and pewter. This is why FOG2 works and looks (with armies far better than I could ever paint them) exactly like its toy soldier counterpart.

This time, the wolves are at the gates, so let’s stand to and advance to contact.

The Armies Assemble

Wolves at the Gate is the name for the expansion this time around, and seems to be the paper army list books Decline and Fall plus Wolves from the Sea fused into a single digital product. The two books, in turn, were likely based off an old Wargames Research Group classic by Ian Heath called Armies of the Dark Ages 600 – 1066 AD. In other words, this DLC covers the Dark Ages, to include the decline of the Byzantines, the rise of Islam, the Viking scourge, Charlemagne, pretty much all the head bashing that went on in Europe up to 1049 AD. And the end date is really the only difference with Heath’s book. Wolves at the Gate does not go to 1066 and thus does not include Stamford Bridge or Hastings. The next DLC down the pike should cover the Crusades, so we will just have to see if this is where the designer decides to stick 1066 and all that.

But like all DLCs for this franchise, a great deal of what you get for the assumed price of $14.99 (or your non-US equivalent – Ed.) are new armies, new countries and new troop types. In this regard, Wolves at the Gate delivers, to the tune of 19 new national or tribal armies, called "factions" in the game. These are Andalusians, Bulgars, Croatians, Dailami, Fatimids, French, Ghaznavids, Khazars, Khorasanians, Magyars, Moravians, Navarrese, Normans, Pechenegs, Polish, Rus, Scots, Serbians and Vikings.

Supporting these and previously designated factions are 76 new Army Lists; folks like Abbasid Arabs, Late Byzantines, Rus, and all the other likely suspects you’d expect to find roaming the fields in an age where lighting was dim. There are also 55 new units, and I was particularly struck by the amount of Byzantine and Islamic units represented, which are accompanied by some unique units not based on any ethnic affiliation or combat kit, but on the formation they habitually used on the battlefield. In this case I am talking about a couple of listings for Offensive Shield Wall Infantry, a novel concept to be sure. And as for the Byzantines, now we have the opportunity to play an army near and dear to the hearts of Ancients miniature gamers everywhere: Heraclean Byzantine. Why? Because this army has within its ranks the undisputed main battle tank on the hoof of the ancient world, the Klibanophoroi. Think Kataphraktoi on steroids (a lot of steroids) and no, these lads aren’t new, but with this DLC you now have a couple of armies that legitimately used them, and used them a lot. For the non-drilled, Ragnar Lothbrok types, there are also Berserkers, Huscarls and Hirdsmen.

To put these doughty warriors through the paces, Wolves at the Gate contains 74 new quick battles, six new campaigns and six new historical battles. The former includes Arab Conquest, Basil II (Byzantine Resurgence), Charlemagne, Mahmud of Ghazni, Wolves from the Sea (Viking point of view) and Wolves from the Sea again (their victims’ point of view). The battles included are Yarmouk 636 AD (Byzantines vs Arabs), Ashdown 871 AD (Anglo-Saxons vs Vikings), Lechfeld 955 AD (East Franks vs Magyars), Apamea 998 AD (Byzantines vs Fatimid Egyptians), Chach 1001 AD (Indians vs Ghaznavids), Clontarf 1018 AD (Irish and Vikings vs Vikings and Irish).

I would be remiss if I did not say this was one of the only areas of personal disappointment for me. I can agree to disagree not including Hastings, but leaving out Charlie the Hammer and his victory over Islam at Tours in 732 AD just seems odd. There seems to be plenty of information available, and as is made clear from Hans Delbruck to Edward Gibbon, the importance of the battle cannot be understated. Indeed, the latter noted that had Charles Martel failed, “Perhaps the interpretation of the Koran would now be taught in the schools of Oxford, and her pulpits might demonstrate to a circumcised people the sanctity and truth of the revelation of Mahomet.” Likewise, and unless I missed it, I am still eagerly awaiting an Arthurian campaign along the battle of Camlann. Fortunately, the new material in Wolves at the Gate has everything for a modder to rectify the situation, with models and units exquisitely detailed and historically accurate down to the sandal strap level. I know, because I own a copy of Heath and I checked.

Under the Longhouse Roof

The other thing highly touted for this DLC is the concept of allies. It’s a new option for custom battles and here is how it works. When you set up a new battle depending upon the time frame and the opponents selected, the software will given you an option of adding an historical ally to the force pool of either or both antagonists, though obviously you will have to have all the other DLCs installed for everything available. For example, in the test game I ran this weekend, I had 24 turns of hack and slash fun as Medieval Franks 751-887 AD took on Abbasid Arab 874-946 AD. With these two opponents there were no Allies available to the Holy Warriors of Islam, but the UI gave the Franks a choice of three. These were Lombard, Viking and Moravian. I chose the latter and the game produced a combined army list for the Franks and Moravians (Allied units are marked with an asterisk) as if they were one entity. I was able to pick and choose or simply let the AI auto-populate and deploy my combined army. I chose the latter and the game began.

Or didn’t. I waited for about four turns for the Arabs to do something, as I figured that, since a large chunk of my horde was a Defensive Shield Wall, it was likely wise to sit and let the enemy come to me. When they didn’t, I recognized the fear in their eyes and advanced. The first unit I hit was a long line of black robed Moslem infantry that kinda looked like the Ninja Immortals from the movie Three Hundred. And, oddly enough, they were supported by some light infantry chaps who lobbed naphtha grenades (really?) at my infantry line, often killing 24 soldiers a swat. Then two turns into this struggle, a large mounted Moslem flanking force came on board behind my left rear. Although confirming the AI still cheats - really gotta fix that, guys - I gambled I could punch through the Arab line with my stirrup enriched heavy armored cavalry before the flankers could reach me. Did I mention my wife won’t let me within two blocks of a casino when we vacation in Vegas? A smart lady, obviously, but the game was still a hoot anyway.

In any case, playing this contest not only provided me a look at how the new “allies” option works, but also gave me an overall feel for how this DLC played, and yes, it is different. First, it seems the further you move away from the Mediterranean, the more cluttered the battlefield becomes, especially with farmland and forests. One reason for this was Europe becoming more cultivated than it ever was back in 490 BC when Greek Phalanxes had a lot of barren, open real estate in which to deploy. Now, sadly, the Hobbit hovels and the trees only Tyrion Lannister could love are still there, but, hey, you get the picture. Also, more and more units have a nasty little “Undrilled” designation attached to their specs, and this means everybody tends to move slower and they do not turn quickly to face threats. This means complicated battlefield maneuvers will simply not work because a lot of armies are not quick or nimble enough to pull them off.

Similarly, outside state-equipped armies like the Byzantines, there are a lot of troops that come to fight with nary a piece of armor, not even a helmet, to their name, particularly in northern Europe. This means heavy casualties and units that break early, especially when facing missile-heavy armies like the Byzantines and Arabs. Given the complexity of such technological miracles such as the bow and arrow, if you are Frankish or Viking, count on not having a lot, which makes the situation all the worse. Yes, in this DLC, warfare often doesn’t work the way it used to.

Now the rest of the story. The game also comes with a very large update outside of what you see in the formal Wolves at the Gate package. Here we are talking about 20 bug fixes alone, along with numerous other changes that directly impact what happens in battle. Drum roll, because here are a few samples, to include Gameplay with nine changes (eg, Kataphraktoi now get +50 POA for swordsmen capability vs steady Pike, Offensive Spearmen or Defensive Spearmen unless these are defending an obstacle), Unit Cost Adjustments 19 changes (Veteran Dailami Foot – increased from 54 to 60 points), Army List Changes (Greek Armored Cavalry added to Roman 105-25 BC list; huge revamp for Thracians), swamps as a new terrain type, plus UI and AI changes and a whole lot more. You’re talking five-plus pages (note to Matrix - page numbers would be nice) so read or no complaints when you get hammered out of nowhere.

Finishing with a Button

But perhaps the biggest change of this entire package is one few will notice: a button, and it’s found on the Battles menu screen. One up from the bottom is a clickable button that says 'EMPIRES BATTLE.' I did click it, and low and behold was told there were no Field of Glory Empires battle data to import or use. In other words, with Wolves at the Gate and its associated update, FOG2 is now ready to integrate with the AGEOD strategy game of the same name. Hopefully this means release of said AGEOD title isn’t that far off as well.

In conclusion, this DLC is well worth the shekels being asked for it. But with Field of Glory Empires integration ready to go in addition, Wolves at the Gate just became an exceptional bargain.

If you’ve pre-ordered Steel Division 2, you can jump in and start playing right now. The game’s final beta period began this week, and it’ll be running through to the official launch June 20th. This is the most extensive look at the game we’ve gotten yet, with a sizeable chunk of Steel Division 2’s tactical battle side represented.

This time out, you get access to all 18 divisions and more than 600 units appearing in the full game, as well as four game modes across five maps. Eugen has created a few gameplay videos as development has finalized, and here’s a sample battle.

There's also a beta manual to help get everyone up to speed on the basics you'll need to know in order to play.

So far, it seems to be fairly similar to Steel Division: Normandy 44, but what’s really going to distinguish Steel Division 2 from its older sibling is the Army General Mode, which seems to be adding a much more traditional wargame campaign layer over the tactical battles.
I’ll be spending quite a bit of time with this now that the final beta is live, and should have a full review prepared for when it launches. In the meantime, head on out there and dominate the Eastern Front.

Also, a housekeeping note: Editor Joe will be back first thing Monday, so expect normal programming to resume at that time.

Field of Glory II (FOG2) is a direct port of the popular ancients and medieval miniature wargaming rules to the PC, and probably the best ever done with any game. Like the mini rules and their army lists companion books, supporting DLCs directly based on these pubs are now available to expand the temporal and geographic scope of the base software.

The base FOG2 software actually includes a digital Rise of Rome Companion Guide. It covers everything between Britannia and India from 275 thru 25 BC, to include Hannibal, Scipio, the wars of Carthage and Republican Rome, all backed by 48 factions divided into 75 army lists with 86 troop types. The four included campaigns are Hannibal, Mithridates of Pontus, Julius Caesar and Pyrrhos of Epeiros and the historical battles list Bagradas 255 BC, Trebia 218 BC, Cannae 216 BC, Ilipa 206 BC, Zama 202 BC, Magnesia 190 BC, Pydna 168 BC, Chaironeia 86 BC, Tigranocerta 69 BC, Bibracte 58 BC, Carrhae 53 BC and Thapsus 46 BC. 

So, with a combined 281 army lists, here’s a look at the game's current DLCs:

IMMORTAL FIRE ($14.99) (Review)

Highlights:

• Primary Era and Region– rise of the Phalanx, Persian Wars, Alexander the Great and his Successors in Greece, North Africa and Asia Minor.
• New Factions - Achaemenid Persians, Etruscans, Antigonos, Lysimachos, Spartans, Latins, Lydians, Kyrenean Greeks, Thessalian Greeks.
• Army Lists– 30 additional with 10 new unit types such as Macedonian Promodroi and Persian Immortals.
• Historical Campaigns -Xenophon, Philip of Macedon, Seleukos I Nikator, Seven Hills of Rome. 
• Historical Battles - Thymbra 547 BC, Marathon 490 BC, Plataea 479 BC, Cunaxa 401 BC, Chaironeia 338 BC, Granikos 334 BC, Issos 333 BC, Gaugamela 331 BC, Hydaspes 326 BC, Raphia 217 BC.
• Game Changers– Roman auto deployment areas widened for large battles, bows on higher ground now shoot over friendly units, close order Warbands no longer receive +1 Cohesion Test modifier for being heavy infantry.

It’s worth your shekels . . . If you are a fan of one of the greatest military commanders in history, Alexander the Great, with infantry heavy Greek Phalanxes transitioning to the combined arms warfare of the Macedonian army at the pinnacle of conquest. This makes the DLC popular with gamers who enjoy a variety in the types of armies they can command, especially those curious as to what really would have happened if Legion met Alexander in combat. Besides, the sight of a Macedonian Phalanx with its 25-foot Sarissas is drop dead awe inspiring, especially as your pike pinned opponent gets hit in the flank and rear by Companion heavy horse

LEGIONS TRIUMPHANT ($14.99) (Review)

Highlights:

• Primary Era and Region–the rise and expansion of the Roman Empire from Caesar Augustus until 476 AD when the last Western Emperor was booted by barbarian mercenaries, fighting on real estate pretty much everywhere in Europe, Asia Minor and North Africa.
• New Factions -Alans, Anglo-Saxons, Caledonians, Goths, Hephthalites, Huns, Palmyrans, Picts, Romano-British and Sassanid Persians.
• Army Lists– 22 additional army lists with 17 new troop types such as Roman Legio Palatina, Legio Comitatensis, Auxilia Palatina, Limitanei and so on.
• Historical Campaigns - Third Century Crisis, King of Kings (Sassanid Persia), Stilicho and Empire of the Huns.
• Historical Battles - Watling Street 61 AD, Adamclisi 102 AD, Hormozdgan 224 AD, Emesa 272 AD, Argentoratum 357 AD, Maranga 363 AD, Adrianople 378 AD, Frigidus 394 AD, Chalons 451 AD, Nedao 454 AD. 
• Game Changers– Ability to fight on after losing a battle, evaders now suffer losses even if they outrun their pursuers, chargers now follow normal pursuit rules if their adversaries break on contact (infantry will not pursue horse, etc).

It’s worth your shekels . . . If you like; no, wait. Seriously? You’re kidding, right? This is Imperial Rome, arguably the deadliest army in history, the proverbial 800 lb gorilla with a really nasty attitude of the ancient world, at the absolute height of its power to boot. The army is infantry heavy, shock oriented but possesses through the roof high quality everything. Its an army that historically won even with the dumbest of commanders because it was simply that good. What’s not to like?

AGE OF BELISARIUS ($14.99) (Review)

Highlights:

• Primary Era and Region– the rise of the Byzantines and the reconquest of the Roman Empire 476 – 600 AD, covering former Imperial territory in Europe, North Africa and Asia Minor.
• New Factions -Avars, Byzantines, Franks, Gepids, Lombards, Ostrogoths, Slavs, Turks, Vandals, Visigoths, Welsh.
• Army Lists– 29 extra army lists with 17 new troop types to include Byzantine everything.
• Historical Campaigns–Belisarius, Clovis I of the Franks, King of Kings 2 (Sassanid Persia) and Rise of the Avars.
• Historical Battles -  Dara 530 AD, Tricamarum 533 AD, Taginae 552 AD, The Volturnus 554 AD, Bukhara 557 AD, Raith 596 AD.
• Game Changers– Light cavalry and infantry now more likely to evade from melee even if they have a missile advantage, a lot of changes to reflect the unique fighting capabilities of the early Byzantine military to include deep infantry units forming square, maximum armor advantage vs foot increased to + 100 POA, armored cavalry given + 12 % casualty mitigation against missile fire, some mounted troops may now dismount as their infantry equivalents and more.

It’s worth your shekels . . . If you want to run the proverbial Rolls Royce of ancient armies, the Byzantines under Generals Belisarius and Narses. Armies become exquisitely balanced, fielding more and heavier cavalry but with less shock infantry in particular. Many units, however, have multiple capabilities such as Byzantine Kataphraktoi armed with both bow and lance. Thus, missile fire becomes more important. Armies are smaller but far more flexible. It all makes the DLC a must for players who enjoy quickly adapting to changing battlefield situations.

RISE OF PERSIA ($14.99) (Review)

Highlights:

• Primary Era or Region– Fall of Assyria and Babylon, the rise of Achaemenid Persia under Cyrus the Great, covering Eastern Mediterranean and Asia Minor plus.
• New Factions -Assyrians, Babylonians, Cimmerians, Cypriots, Egyptians, Elamites, Hebrews, Kushites, Mannaeans, Medes, Phoenicians, Urartians (like I said, look them up).
• Army Lists– 21 new army lists with 32 new troop types such as Assyrian Heavy Chariots and Mede Spearman.
• Historical Campaigns -Ashurbanipal (Neo-Assyrian Empire), Fall of Assyria, Nebuchadnezzar II (Neo-Babylonian Empire), Rise of Persia.
• Historical Battles -Ulai 653 BC (Assyrians vs Elamites), Nineveh 612 BC (Babylonians and Medes vs Assyrians), Megiddo 609 BC (Judeans vs Egyptians), Carchemish 605 BC (Babylonians vs Egyptians), Pasargadae 550 BC (Persians vs Medes), Opis 539 BC (Persians vs Babylonians).
• Game Changers– There are new mixed units with front rank heavy spearmen and second rank archer, heavy weapons + 100 POA against both mounted and foot troops, units with 50% heavy weapons or spears now melee at full effect, shock troops with missiles no longer default to shooting vice charging, AI infantry less likely to charge cavalry, AI infantry now moves early to keep up with cavalry.

It’s worth your shekels . . . If you like very colorful armies, exotic units like camels and chariots, and lots and lots of firepower, this archer heavy DLC is for you. Melee specific troops are very few, so you will have to learn how to out maneuver and shoot your opponent to death. This makes this DLC radically unique when compared to the others and the toughest of the four to master IMHO. It’s a real struggle not to succumb to the traditional wisdom of closing with the enemy and lopping heads. But try this, and you will lose.

WOLVES AT THE GATES ($14.99) (Review)

Highlights:

• Primary Era or Region – The 'Dark Ages' through to 1040 BC, covering everything from the Viking invasions of Britain, the struggles of Byzantium and the appearance of the Magyars in Europe.
• New Factions - Andalusians, Bulgars, Croatians, Dailami, Fatimids, French, Ghaznavids, Khazars, Khorasanians, Magyars, Moravians, Navarrese, Normans, Pechenegs, Polish, Rus, Scots, Serbians, Vikings.
• Army Lists – 76 new lists with 55 new units, with examples including three different Anglo-Saxon lists, an Anglo-Danish list; Magyars, Germans and and several Indian-themed lists.
• Historical Campaigns - Arab Conquest, Basil II (Byzantine Resurgence), Charlemagne, Mahmud of Ghazni, and two Wolves from the Sea campaigns.
• Historical Battles - Yarmouk 636 AD (Byzantines vs Arabs), Ashdown 871 AD (Anglo-Saxons vs Vikings), Lechfeld 955 AD (East Franks vs Magyars), Apamea 998 AD (Byzantines vs Fatimid Egyptians), Chach 1001 AD (Indians vs Ghaznavids), Clontarf 1018 AD (Irish and Vikings vs Vikings and Irish).
• Game Changers – The free update comes with a new 'Allied' feature allowing you to mix units from a couple of different lists, no matter how crazy. This brings the theoretical number of Army lists to over 700, if you're crazy enough to try them all.

It’s worth your shekels . . . If you like chaos. This period provides a lot of contrast depending on which army and which era you choose to fight in. In general, the discipline of the ancient world's professional armies is collapsing, leaving a lot of lightly armoured and poorly trained warrior-armies in its wake. From the shores of Britain to the sands of Anatolia, new players are emerging on stage that will shape the world as we know it today. Expect high attrition and lots of breaking units with these new eclectic lists and units.

BACK TO THE FUTURE

Well no, I don’t have the Slitherine/Matrix corporate offices wire tapped. Yet. But given the assumption that future FOG2 DLCs are forthcoming and they are likely duplicative of each related miniature rules Companion Book, here is what you might expect to see in the future competing for your hard-earned coin:

Swifter than Eagles– 48 army lists covering Old Testament, Biblical Warfare with such forces as Sea Peoples, Sumerian, Old Kingdom Egypt, the list overlaps with the FOG2Rise of Persia DLC.

Swords & Scimitars– the Crusades in the Outremer, 11^th thru 13^th Century AD, some 20 army lists covering the usual suspects plus more exotic fare such as Komnenan Byzantine.

Oath of Fealty– Europe at war during the Dark Ages (outside the Christian – Islam spat in the Middle East during the Crusades), 56 army lists ranging from Feudal Catalan and Crown of Aragon to Middle Plantagenet English.

Eternal Empire– covering the armies and rise of the Ottoman Empire 1299 – 1500, its enemies and allies, 17 army lists to include the legions of the Porte, Hussites, Teutonic Knights and more.

Storm of Arrows– the armies of Western Europe 1300 – 1500, with 26 army lists to include pike toting Swiss, Burgundian Ordonnance, Joan of Arc and all that other chivalry stuff.

Blood & Gold– a book of 27 army lists covering warfare in North, Central and South America prior to the arrival of Europeans, including Aztecs, Mayans, Incans, Forest Tribes and other friendly, war painted folk.

Empires of the Dragon– covering ancient and medieval warfare in the Far East to include China, Japan, Korea, Hindu Kingdoms, Khmer, Tibet, Sun Tzu for a total of 38 army lists. As a bonus, Matt Damon is present to command the Great Wall.

Lost Scrolls– a catch-all book of 42 miscellaneous army lists not captured elsewhere in the series, all eras, including Beja and Tuareg hordes to Vietnamese and German City League armies.

In addition, the miniature Field of Glory family also includes a complete Renaissance and Napoleonic series, so might we see digital versions somewhere on the horizon? Well, let’s just say I’ve opened a special savings account just in case. Life is good.

Naval warfare has a rich history dating back to ancient times, spanning countless conflicts that have relied on access to the world’s oceans. Fleets and flotillas have been crucial for the logistical transportation of materials, goods, treasures and troops. In combat, naval vessels have the capability to strike a decisive battle against the opponent or interdict against their supply lines. Undoubtedly, this is an important branch of a nation’s military, but how does this element of warfare translate to videogames?

Feeling a bit sea sick? How about checking the best ancient and medieval war games instead?

Those who are looking for naval warfare can find games that are worth an investment, whether more arcade-style combat, or developing the strategy for an entire battlefleet. The following titles are absolute plays for the admiral-minded types looking to expand their naval-themed experiences.

Primarily, the games presented are of two sorts: the wargame-likes – where it is more about an arcade or pure battle experience, and the simulations – where understanding of mechanics and planning accordingly can take a whole afternoon if need be.

Recently Released & Community Suggestions

Not every naval wargame release necessarily earns itself a place in our top spots, but that doesn't mean they don't deserve to be highlighted. Here's a summary of recent releases you might also be interested in:

• Rule the Waves 2 - review in progress!
• Naval Action - AoS game from the makers of Ultimate General (Early Access)
• UBoat - WW2 Submarine simulator in Early Access (Preview)
• Clad in Iron: Sakhalin 1904 - new updates!
• Victory at Sea: Pacific - Header Image.
• Carrier Battles 4 Guadalcanal - Currently only on iOS, but a PC version is coming.

Supremacy at Sea WW2 (Review)

Developer: Naval Warfare Simulations
Tags: WW2, Strategic, Management, Pacific, Atlantic, Mediterranean, Operational
Purchase:Direct

In many ways SaS is a counter-point to NWS' other entry on this list, Rule the Waves. It's not getting a sequel and hasn't had the same amount of support as the below game, but provided you can still get a hold of it (you can only purchase what few physical copies remain from the NWS store) it's a very engaging naval warfare game that focuses on the big-picture. There are three campaigns covering the Pacific, Atlantic and Mediterranean theatres, and you're tasked with managing and deploying fleets and task forces based on operational needs of the campaign. Along with fleets and ships, you can also manage air assets, and even intervene in ground battles.

It's a little bit fiddly to get working on Windows 10 machines, but it is doable and this is one of those rare games that clearly has been designed by someone with immense knowledge and passion for the subject, and have offered a unique take that makes best use of the resources and technology they had available. The quintessential 'indie' war game.

Rule the Waves (Review)

Developer/Publisher: Divide By Zero Software Inc./ Strategic Simulations, Inc.
Tags: Naval, Real Time, Various Theatres, Strategy, WW1, Management
Purchase: Direct

No naval wargame has come close to the possibilities available in Rule the Waves. This is equal parts grand-strategy as it is naval management and engagements. With the turn to the 20th century, you act as a developer for the nation in the great naval arms race ever. Design pre-dreadnoughts and dreadnoughts as an assortment of great naval powers, and either stick to history or decide for your nation in your own creative way.

Although graphics are simplistic, the sheer amount of content and strategic depth of this ship of the line hasn’t been surpassed yet. For those who are less about the chivalry of ships lining up and more about the naval arms race and its consequences, Rule the Waves is an absolute gem of a naval wargame and a must own by anyone who prefers the smell of sea salt over soil. Our review of its recently released sequel - Rule the Waves 2 - is currently in progress, so we'll see which version triumphs.

Cold Waters (Review)

Developer/Publisher: Killerfish Games
Tags: Naval, Real Time, Various Theatres, Strategy, Simulation, Submarine
Purchase: Steam

Killerfish Games manages to hold two titles on this list, and with good reason. Cold Waters manages to walk a perfect line between arcade and simulation with this submarine-based naval game. Establishing itself in a modern setting, the player sets out in nuclear submarine and strike against surface targets and warships while evading modern ASW countermeasures. Great mission and unit variety, outstanding visuals and intuitive UI enables Cold Waters to stand tall among the greatest naval wargames out there.

Content for Cold Waters is still being released, with the latest addition being a South China Sea campaign. Those looking for a more immersive sub sim, please note that this isn’t Silent Hunter– you may be disappointed if that’s what you’re looking for here.

Atlantic Fleet (Review)

Developer/Publisher: KillerFish Games
Tags: Naval, Turn Based, Atlantic Theatre, Strategy, WW2, Arcade
Purchase: Steam, iOS

Initially released on iOS as a sequel to Pacific Fleet in 2015, Atlantic Fleet excels as an arcade-style turn-based naval strategy game. Slug it out in single battles, scenarios or an Atlantic campaign as the Kriegsmarine or the Royal Navy. Both factions offer a wide variety of naval vessels, from famous ships such as the Hood and Bismarck, all the way to “paper” battleships such as the Lion-class and H-44! The use of land based or carrier aircraft for strikes against ships is also present and can give an edge over the enemy.

The turn-based combat is perfect for the surface ship engagements, but submarine and aircraft carriers are a bit sub-par. The price of admission is just right for the amount of content in the game.

Victory at Sea

Developer/Publisher: Evil Twin Artworks
Tags: Naval, Real-Time, Various Theatres, Strategy, Arcade, Moddable, WW2
Purchase:Steam

Victory at Sea is an excellent game for those who want a fast-paced experience of WW2 naval warfare across multiple theatres of operation. Simplified combat controls and real time management allows for the action to be quick and engaging. Nation variety spans the traditional naval powers of British, American, Japanese and German fleets to the lesser represented Dutch, Italian and French forces for custom battles.

There is a lot of content for Victory at Sea due to free updates from the developers, coupled with a cheap purchase price. Along with modding tools that expand unit rosters (such as can be found here) and ship variety this is a great title for people looking to expand their naval libraries. 

This game also received a sequel - Victory at Sea: Pacific. Sadly, the added campaign layer has added a whole new pool of potential problems for the developer. It's got a solid foundation, but it's still got some time yet before it's in a good enough place to knock the original game off its perch.

Silent Hunter 3

Developer/Publisher: Ubisoft
Tags: Naval, Real Time, Various Theatres, Strategy, Simulation, Submarine, WW2, Moddable
Purchase: Steam, Direct

As a U-boat captain of the Kriegsmarine, you will find yourself prowling for unsuspecting targets, ambushing convoys, or fighting against aircraft as you’re surfaced. Interacting with the ships interior is also a major component of managing your submarine. Of the Silent Hunter series, Silent Hunter 3 easily remains the undisputed champion.

What pushes Silent Hunter 3 beyond it’s sequels is the incorporation of the GWX3 GOLD mod. This mod gives the game an even more immersive experience, with quality of life changes, environment improvements and added variety still unmatched by the later titles. If you can sacrifice the visual fidelity that the later versions have, you’ll find afternoons and evenings lost as you develop into a successful U-boat Commander. Alarm! Fluten!

Ironclads 2 Collection (Review)

Developer/Publisher: Totem Games
Tags: Naval, Real Time, Turn base, Various Theatres, Strategy, Simulation, 19th Century
Purchase:Steam

Where previous Totem Games releases can be considered misfires, the Ironclads 2 series of games bundled as a collection on Steam are a great addition for any Armchajr-Admiral out there. This collection of games has you fighting forgotten engagements in the late 19th century. While the strategic element is turn based, engagements are in real time. But don’t be fooled; managing ships can get complicated when you split columns or try and envelope an opponent’s fleet.

Opponent AI, ship models and unique settings allow these naval engagements to really come alive and provide wonderfully varied experiences. However impatient players or newcomers might be frustrated by the lack of tutorials (other than just a manual) and hardcore sim fans might be disappointed by the basic mechanics for tactical engagements. However, for the price of four games, and the unique setting each brings, these titles definitely deserve the attention they get.

Command: Modern Air / Naval Operations WOTY (Review)

Developer/Publisher: WarfareSims / Matrix Games
Tags: Naval, Real Time, Various Theatres, Strategy, Simulation, Grand Strategy
Purchase: Steam, Direct

You would be hard pressed to find something as intricate and detailed as Command: Modern Air/ Naval Operations is, apart from maybe the Harpoon series. Aspects to manage are satellites, aircraft wings, and navy fleets while the database includes WW2 era ships all the way into modern future weapons. This gives an excellent overview of what you are going to be working with through what spans almost a century of air and naval warfare. The base game has over 40 scenarios, and further DLC and expansions have been released in the years since.

While older titles rely on a flat image, or map, CMANO is globe based, delivering even greater immersion for the armchair commander. The amount of management and systems available is staggering. Realism is a cornerstone of CMANO and while other naval sims and wargames are more approachable due to their low price or lesser complex systems, CMANO revels in its ability to be a serious simulation. For those who are willing the opportunities are near limitless and there's a great stable of DLC for you to check out at your leisure.

Enigma: Rising Tide

Developer/Publisher: Tesseraction Games/Dreamcatcher Interactive
Tags: Naval, Real Time, Atlantic Theatre, Strategy, First Person, Arcade
Purchase: Free

Enigma: Rising Tide is a very strange but excellent naval wargame. What makes it so strange is the alternative history the game is based upon; the Germans won the first world war, and everything stems from that. Now that you’ve digested that twist, it is easy to see what makes Enigma: Rising Tide such a compelling game to play. Focusing on small unit actions, such as operating a corvette, submarine or a destroyer.

The game pits the player on the bridge of these vessels and manages to operate a fine balance of arcade action and command options. Where it lacks in patience and finesse, the pace of the missions and the satisfaction of a ship sinking is still gratifying in this title. Enigma: Rising Tide is for those who are wanting to take a break from the hard-fought battles of stratagem and are looking add a few more hulls to the bottom of the sea in at what sometimes can be a neck breaking pace.

Navyfield

Developer/Publisher: SDEnterNet / Naiad Games
Tags: Naval, Real Time, Pacific Theatre, Atlantic Theatre, Arcade, WW2, Multiplayer
Purchase: Free, Free (Steam)

Navyfield is a curious naval game. Recommending it is like telling somebody to go see Woodstock today. As an MMO, it’s time in the sun has passed by a few years, but at it’s peak it was a phenomenal game. Although Navyfield has been overshadowed by modern releases, the game is still strong to this day. Pitting up to 32 players and an assortment of ships together, Navyfield has a surprising amount of variety and modes, backed by quick and addictive battle sessions.

Typically, fleets are a combined assortment, battleships, carriers, cruisers, destroyers and even frigates are some of the options available (unless the hosted room decides otherwise). The beauty starts with as you see the players naturally forming to picket the larger ships or the carriers and the ships with greater agility either lay torpedoes or scout for incoming spreads. Players that aren’t apart of the pack and are unexperienced can find themselves isolated and destroyed. Anti-Aircraft is also an important element, as although machine gun fire from your ships are automatic, it requires a keen eye to manage those flak bursts to take out incoming aircraft which can sway the battle in mere seconds. Matches are quick and full of action in an easy to look at isometric view.

Navyfield was and still is grindy, making the drive to those bigger ships a pain if you’re unwilling to cough up some compensation. Levelling up your crew and unlocking newer arsenals are still very much a mechanic here. However, a side benefit of this is understanding the types of ships and the benefit of different play styles. Rushing to be the King George V-class may not necessarily be as enjoyable as wiping out many unsuspecting players with a perfect torpedo spread from a Japanese light cruiser. Every faction has a distinct feel and doctrine.

Although there is a Navyfield 2, it tries too hard to compete with World of Warships, rather than capture the magic in a bottle that the first game had and suffers for it.  Both newer titles feel more about smaller engagements and which captain has the widest bow (a matter of speaking). Navyfield managed to capture fleet combat exceptionally well in a multiplayer setting the first time around and is still supported and played by players today.

Fighting Steel: World War II Surface Combat 1939-1942

Developer/Publisher: Divide By Zero Software Inc./ Strategic Simulations, Inc.
Tags: Naval, Real Time, Pacific Theatre, Atlantic Theatre, Strategy, WW2
Purchase: Free (Abandonware)

Fighting Steel is a lesser known title for those looking into the war chest of naval wargames; as a game, it primarily focuses on fleet action. Pitting capital ships against others in often historical context or user created scenarios, in real time ships square off to lob shells until somebody capsizes or breaks off under the cover of smoke screen. What Fighting Steel does well is the variety through a large variety of ships and how they perform in battle, and it’s attempt of authenticity, through its scenarios and mechanics. Although the graphics are simple and dated, they are crisp and serviceable. It’s easy to distinguish targets by their silhouettes for the experienced admiral.

For Jutland players, the games are very similar, only standing out on a few overlay mechanics and time period of course.   A rocky release might have damaged the hull of Fighting Steel a bit, but since 1999, the game has improved to be a compelling and immersive through patches from the dedicated. Work such as Fighting Steel Project which delivers an improved combat simulation and fixes a lot messy bugs along the way has Fighting Steel still on the fleet roster for those looking to see if their admiralty skills are still sharp.  

World of Warships

Developer/Publisher: Wargaming.net
Tags: Real-time, action/arcade, WW1, WW2, Online Only, Multiplayer
Purchase: Free

While its definition as a war game is understandably debatable, Editor Joe decided to include this on our list because not only does it offer a refreshingly different experience to everything above it, but it's also a fun a surprisingly cerebral game. Featuring ships that range from WW1-era right through to the end of WW2 and a bit beyond, World of Warships is what happens if you take the concept of something like Battlefield, or Call of Duty, except everyone is controlling a warship.

What sets it apart from most free-to-play arcade games though is that there's a surprising amount of forethought required in order to play well. You've got to consider your direction and the time it'll take you to change course, fun placements can take time to turn (especially in the big battleships), and when it comes to attacking your distance and lead-time with your shots are also important. It's a lot more fun to play with friends, and being free-to-play means a grind does start to set in at the higher tiers, but once you get to Tier 6 you can do the special PvE scenarios which are a nice change of pace. The late James Cobb was always a quiet fan of this arcade 'war' game, and we can easily see why.

Hall of Fame

We regularly update these lists with new or looked-over games, and to keep things manageable we'll rotate out some entries to make way for others. Past members of this list include:

• Battlestations: Pacific
• Fleet Command
• Dangerous Waters
• Action Stations
• Jutland Pro

What would your list of top naval war games look like? Let us know in the comments!

The long-expected 1.7 'Hydra' Patch for Hearts of Iron 4 has released today, ushering in a glorious new 64-bit era for the grand-strategy WW2 war game. Current checksum on steam should now read d12e. NOTE:Patch 1.7 is not save game compatible with saves from 1.6.2 or older. Check out the official forum post with instructions on how to keep your game fixed to older versions of the game.

Apart form the move to 64-bit, this is largely a bug-fixing and quality of life update as the only new ‘feature’ to speak off is some functionality and UI improvements around frontlines. Frontlines have been reworked so that army fronts link together under army groups and playing army group only has more UI support to reduce clutter.

There’s been a lot of balance tweaks around naval combat, including some to make engagements less bloody. Lots of the newly introduced naval modules have also had stat tweaks, and subs/convoy raiding have also been given a pass. Check out the full patch notes for more detail.

Don’t forget to make sure your mods are also compatible with the new update before launching a game.

If there’s one thing we know you grogs love, it’s a good deal. I mean, when something like one of Gary Grigsby’s epics retails for $80 or so full-price, you can’t afford not to be frugal. Lucky for you we’re here with something that might help with that…

Humble, if you don’t already know, is a company that mainly specialises in running time-limited cheap deals on videogames where the customer chooses how much money to give to the publisher, and how much goes straight to one of any number of supported charities. They do good work, by and large so if you’re going to pick up a game on the cheap, doing it via these guys is pretty cool.

Humble’s latest sale is titled ‘The World at War’ and has a range of games (some war games, some not) going for up to 75% off, probably to mark the 75^th Anniversary of the D-Day operations.

The games on offer are all WW2 themed, but more importantly they are all games that are on Steam, as Humble works by sending you a Steam code (so there’s no physical product involved, and they can’t support games that aren’t on Steam).

That means that a lot of the games you’ll see are more on the mainstream side of the fence, and it doesn’t look like Slitherine/Matrix Games have chosen to take part in this particular activity, although they are running sales elsewhere on places like GOG.com. Still, there are some potential gems to be found. Here’s a round-up of some that have caught our eye:

Hearts of Iron 4

There’s several different HoI 4 editions on sale for 60%, with individual expansions going for 50% off. Even the most recent release, Man the Guns, is running a 25% discount. Don’t forget the game’s also just been updated to version 1.7.

Men of War

If you don’t yet own Men of War: Assault Squad 2, I demand you rectify this right now. Both the basic and the ‘Deluxe’ editions are 80%, with the various mini-expansions going for 75% cheaper.

Beyond that, there’s one of the Men of War spin-off games, Condemned Heroes, going for 75% off, and if you want to experience a piece of history the two games that started the series – Faces of War& Soldiers: Heroes of World War II– are going for £1 each.

Theatre of War 2

You know, it’s a shame 1C aren’t properly in the war games business anymore. They really gave it a decent try a few years ago but now it seems they’re trying to diversify in less violent directions. One of their other classic series was the Theatre of War franchise.

There are two different stand alone games available on this sale – Theatre of War 2: Kursk 1943& Theatre of War 2: Africa 1943.

These are the ones that caught our eye: if you’re into your shooters, there’s a range of games available from the newly released Battalion 1944, Post Scriptum, Red Orchestra and a few others.

Wargamer is a Humble Affiliate, which means we’ll get a bit of money if you do end up spending anything during the sale, which is running for the next five days.

One of the neat things about historical miniatures wargaming is its cottage industry status. In other words, although there are some full-time major players pumping out rules, figures and accessories, there are also oodles of smaller firms, some full-time and some not, doing great work as well. So while Flames of War (hammer) might be the 800 lb gorilla in the realm of 20th Century armored warfare, the Seven Days to the River Rhine rules by Great Escape Games is a top notch alternative using the same scale and basing system.

And, IMHO, it’s also easier to play, very realistic and a Hell of a lot more fun. Here’s why.

Sikorsky’s Revelation

Seven Days to the River Rhine (Семь дней до реки Рейн, or SDRR for all you non-Russian types) was the name given to the top secret 1979 Soviet plan for the invasion of Western Europe, a document that became not so top secret when Polish Defense Minister Radislaw Sikorsky released it to the public in 2005 to 'educate the Polish public about the old regime.' Moscow was less than amused, particularly when it was revealed that several Warsaw Pact nations considered the time schedule far too ambitious and current NATO analysts labeled it downright nuts.

This is the setting for SDRR, NATO vs the Category 1 Divisions of GSFG (Group of Soviet Forces Germany) sometime in the 80s and 90s. The time frame is important because it means that while some relatively modern equipment packages like the British Challenger tank are on hand, the ultra-modern French AMX-56 Char Leclerc is not. Default game scale is 15 mm where each mech model represents one real vehicle and the infantry represent squads, fire teams or specialty sections such as heavy machine guns. Mounting seems to be exactly like Flames of War (FOW), and in fact starter SDRR starter sets are bundled with Battlefront Team Yankee miniature sets. There is no time or ground scale given – I swear this must be a British thing designed to drive us Colonials nuts – but given the only weapons systems in the game that do not have unlimited range are light AT weapons like the US M-72 LAW (12 inch range), my guess is maybe 20 yards per inch.

The rule book is full color paperback, though I snagged mine digital as a free perk from WI Prime, with a cost of £15.00 to include card deck. National Command Tokens are an additional cost, but quite frankly I used a lot of those unprinted, extra counters from boardgames and they work just fine. The book itself is 44 pages long of easy to play rules, plus four generic scenarios (Meeting Engagement, Escalating Engagement, Capture and Breakthrough), data sheets on the Soviet army plus all opposing NATO countries, a single page quick reference sheet and special sections for fighting multi-player games and so on. Print is large, spacing wide and illustrations plentiful, so this is not a complex game, though some of the Queens English may take a bit of deciphering for Americans. And for those of us who actually did this for real (that would be me, US Army intel type, in Germany dealing with guess who), some of the phrasing did evoke a chuckle. For example the US Army’s M-901 ITV (Improved TOW Vehicle) is called a “cherry picker” by the authors because of its lift up ATGM launcher. However, in 1^st“Old Ironsides” Armored Division and everywhere else in Uncle Sam’s army, we lovingly called them “Hammerheads.” Nevertheless, this was the kind of stuff that made reading quite enjoyable.

One thing that I really liked was the use of QR codes within the rules. This allows the reader further explanation of important sections by scanning a QR Code that will take him directly to a YouTube video which explains the appropriate process in painstaking detail, with examples to boot. To me this is a pretty forward thinking way to do business. Instead of adding extra verbiage and pages the customer will ultimately pay for, why not leverage the technology of the digital age. This is the shape of things to come.

Gunner, Sabot, Moving Tank . . . Fire!

Winning in SDRR requires mastering the ability to control tabletop chaos which comes in two forms – Command Tokens and Tactical Advantage Cards (TACs). The game uses a highly integrated sequence of play, so the ability to react to the unexpected both offensively and defensively, is far more important than detailed planning. Consider the typical two player game.

Prior to the beginning of each turn each player collects Command Tokens for his side, one per vehicle, APC with squad, foot only squad or speciality section, plus an additional two for any unit designated as the Battlegroup Commander. If a unit is lost, so is one Command Token permanently. Then at the beginning of the turn the two players have a 1D10 roll off, with the high die winning the Initiative and thus deciding whether he or his opponent will start first. Initiative remains with this player until he a) expends all his Command Tokens, or b) he voluntarily passes the Initiative to his opponent or c) his opponent steals the Initiative away when expending one of his own Tokens in Reaction.

Whenever a player wants a vehicle or squad to perform a function, one Command Token must be expended. Possible functions include Move, Shoot, Embark and Disembark, and one Token will allow any two of these Actions to be performed in combination. For example, a tank may Shoot and Move using one Token, or Move and Shoot instead. Certain single functions, however, count as two Actions.  For example, firing an ATGM counts as two Actions, as does a Rapid Move. Later in the turn a unit can use another Token again if any are left, but here a 1D6 must be rolled and the resulting number must be greater than the number of Tokens already used. Again as an example, if a BTR60P has already used two Tokens, to use a third it must roll above a two.

But your enemy can React, and here is where SDRR gets REAL interesting. When a player attempts to activate a vehicle or squad to perform Actions using a Command Token, his opponent can attempt to supersede him by using one of his own. Assume the player directs a German Leo II tank to rumble across the road. The Soviet player could React by expending his own Token and announcing an opportunity fire against the Leopard. A 1D6 is rolled and depending upon target type and terrain, various results are needed to succeed. In this case, the Russian would need to roll a 3+ to React to a main battle tank doing something in the open. After the Reaction function is finished, the original player continues unless the Reaction roll was a six, which additionally passes the Initiative over to the enemy player who begins the same process.

If you figured the game couldn’t get any dicier, you would be wrong. This is where the TACs come into play of which each player gets five with the ability to discard two he doesn’t like and select two more. These may be expended at any time by both players, to include playing a TAC to counter your opponent’s playing a TAC. Typical TACs include the ability to call in a one-time Precision Guided Munitions artillery strike, or allow an MBT to use Depleted Uranium Munitions. Call in an Airstrike? Yup, there’s a card for that, as well as an Anti-Air card that could be played by your opponent to negate the bombs dropping. Heck, moving vehicles thru rough terrain is damned unpredictable. Here a 1D6 die roll is need to determine whether the unit moves on through or stops dead when entering. There is no flat, degraded movement rate for such real estate, thus its difficult to predict how far a unit might maneuver until it tries

All above is the heart and soul of SDRR. Nevertheless, I did notice a couple of other bits of chrome worth mentioning. First, there are rules for formations and tactics, to include expending a single Token to activate an entire multi-vehicle platoon, or cutting a vehicle’s movement in half if within 12 inches of enemy infantry without friendly “Grunts” in support to counteract them. And as one might expect,  the general rule of thumb in the game is that NATO equals quality, the Soviets quantity. Thus there is a rule for catastrophic explosion on Soviet vehicles due to lowest bidder designed ammunition storage, while taking out the Battlegroup Commander results in a permanent loss of Command Tokens equal to the number on a 1D6 roll for NATO, but a 2D6 for the Soviets. Actual fire combat and the like is reasonably standard.

After Action Report

I don’t play this period much because its too much like what I did in the service for 20 + years. But then again when you assist training the US Army’s 32d Guard Motorized Infantry Regiment for the National Training Center, you emerge with a pretty good inkling on at least how the Russians were supposed to do business. Now combine this with numerous Reforgers over in Germany, courtesy of the US army. No its not the same as having the pleasure of a Soviet 120 mm APFSDS round whistle by your ears, but IMHO more than enough to conclude that real war does not operate according to a formal, scripted, alternating sequence of play. Its unanticipated unpredictability wrapped around an enigma times 10, making you realize when Napoleon said the best generals were the one’s “who were lucky,” he wasn’t kidding.

It all means Seven Days to the River Rhine does an excellent job of capturing this uncertainty, making gameplay a nail biting quality vs quantity showdown, often not decided until the last turn. If you really want to move closer to the way it really could have been and are up to the challenge, this game is an exceptional choice. I’m impressed and I highly recommend it.

If 2018 tended to play things pretty safe, 2019 is looking to mix things up in a big way for computer war games - even well-known, returning franchises are making major leaps forward, or at least experimenting with big new ideas.

Don't forget to check out what’s coming up in the world of table-top wargaming as well!

We’ve got a lot to look forward to, with titles like Unity of Command 2, Panzer Corps 2, and Steel Division II - all sequels, technically, but each of them is coming to the table with something big and fresh and new. Here are the very best war games expected to release this year:

WarPlan - 2019 (we think)

Four years in the making, this is another grand-strategy WW2 game that attempts to strike a balance between offering omnipotent levels of information, but little-to-no micro-management. It seems like the interface itslef is going to be the main selling point here, and it's been reported that this game derives its design from over 50 years experience playing similar games on table-top and PC. I'll be honest, I'm not sure the world needs another WW2 of this nature, but maybe it'll become another half-way house between Hearts of Iron and Gary Grigbsy, although again one can argue Strategic Command is alraedy doing an admirable Job there.

Still, it looks quite nice, all things considered, and the beta is already running so we should have a better idea as to what it's all about by the time we run the next update. We're pretty confident this will release this year, as Matrix have been trying to get better with the announcement timetables.

Strategic Command: World War I - 2019

Not to be confused with last year's Strategic Command Classic: WW1, Fury Software are taking all of the new engine and technology improvements made in the recent War in Europe & World at War releases, and applying them to The Great War. It's nice to see someone finally making a new WW1 game, especially given the 100th anniversary was last year. If you check out the announcement post you can see all of the improvements that this new game will have over the original, including things like a better interface, hexes and better fog of war.

We hope that the developers will be able to balance the need to capture the rather static trench-warfare of the western front, as well as the more dynamic, yo-yo-ing that happened in East. That's nor forgetting the campaigns Greece and the Near-East.

Fantasy General II: Invasion - 2019

Of all the things we expected to the be announced this year, a sequel to the classic Five-Star General game Fantasy General was not one of them. Officially our 6th favourite 'General' game, Fantasy General took the iconic Panzer General formula and applied it to a medieval fantasy setting. Fantasy Generals II looks to carry on that tradition with a new reimagined game. They've partnered up with Slitherine/Matrix Games - those what make the current Panzer General successors - Panzer Corp & Order of Battle.

Fantasy General 2 will feature turn-based tactical battles with over 75 unique unit types, and these units can grow and evolve overtime provided they can survive the tough fights ahead. Terrain and the environment will be the key to victory, and eveything is beautifully rendered in 3D. Definitely one to watch for 2019. It seems to be basing its core design of Fields of Glory II, just with a fantasy setting and enhanced campaign/map features.

Gates of Hell - Early Access TBD 2019

The one franchise I've always wished would be given a second (or third? fourth?) shot was Men of War. 1C tried their best, but they took the series in odd directions and then just kind of gave up after Assault Squad 2. 1C are not the creators of the engine that powers Men of War, or even the concept of Men of War however. That honour belongs to Best Way Soft, and despite being largely silent this past decade they've now decided to make a return.

Gates of Hell represents a spiritual successor to all of Men of War, and a rallying cry for the community. It promises gritty realism, the best of WW2 real-time tactical gameplay, as well as a decent learning curve and approachable interfaces. The graphics look gorgeous, and it's going to have singleplay and multiplayer. In short, they're promising the world to a community that very much wants something like this to exist, and has been largely neglected recently. We're interested in seeing how it pans out. It's due to release into Early Access on steam sometime this year and we're trying not to have our hopes raised too high.

Terminal Conflict - Spring 2019 (Currently in EA)

Fun fact: at least one of the main designers behind Terminal Conflict was also a big part of the ill-fated Cold War spin-off game for Hearts of Iron 3, East vs. West. It was a bonkers project that promised the world, but ultimately didn't deliver. It's fascinating then to see that dream re-imagined in Terminal Conflict. Using very stylised graphics that make it look like you're using an actual Cold War-era computer, Terminal Conflict is a grand-strategy political/war game that sees you trying to navigate the tense realities of the post-WW2 era.

We were supposed to feature this game last time but we forgot, which is why it's still getting an entry now despite being in Early Access already. I've dabbled a little bit in it and while the mechanics seem engaging, there's some issues with presentation and presenting information that left me horribly confused much of the time. Still, as a concept it looks great and we'll be keeping an eye on this as it heads towards a full release in the Spring.

Valor & Victory - Q3 2019

Yobowargames are essentially a one man team like Digitalgameworks, so their projects can be a bit hit and miss at times. They recently released Battle for Korsun & Invaders From Dimension X!, and as far as we know they're working on an adaptation of Barry Doyle's squad-level WW2 tactics game of the same name. It's going to be hitting Early Access first when it releases later this year, and will feature 12 scenarios and AI opponents. And Tanks, we can't forget those. Hit up the Steam page to find out more.

While we're not sure if this will effect Valor & Victory specifically, it was recently announced that Yobo have now partnered with Matrix and Slitherine, who are publishing the developer's first two games.

Axis & Allies Online - 2019

While a digital adaptation of the iconic WW2 board/war game isn't a surprise, the fact that it's Beamdog making it is rather unexpected. If you're not sure why, feel free to Google what they've done so far. Don't get me wrong, they've done very good work, but until now it's all been in the tactical RPG space. Now the studio is bringing a new digital version of Axis & Allies to digital later this year. It's using the 1942 Second Edition rules, and will allow 2 - 5 players either Hotseat or over the internet to compete as they attempt to win the second world war. There will also be a competent AI that you can play against solo, and even the option for 'real-time' or 'asynchronous' play. Sounds like they're ticking all the boxes, so we're looking forward to seeing more of this.

We're not sure when it's going to be releasing, but according to Steam it'll be hitting Early Access first.

Lock'n Load Publishing

This more of a quick note, as details are sparse. We've known that Lock'n Load have been working on digital products for a while now, but news has been few and far between. The most recent update involved a couple of gameplay videos for Nations at War and Lock'n Load Tactical Digital, so we'll leave you with those in the meantime.

Field of Glory: Empires - June 2019

Announced towards the end of last year, this is AGEOD’s newest game. Set in the ancient world, it’s using the Field of Glory IP but is essentially a WEGO turn-based grand-strategy war game in the same vein the developer is known for. The key difference here is that this is now using Slitherine/Matrix’s new Archon engine, so hopefully this will escape the studio’s typically obfuscated design tropes and horrible interface.

At the time of writing there's currently seven dev diaries, so we're learning more about the game as time goes on. It has a prominent war game flair which is why it’s on this list (although comparisons to Paradox’s Imperator: Rome wouldn’t go amiss, which is why it may also appeal to general strategy fans). One of the more interesting features is the fact that you can take battle data from Empires, and feed it into Field of Glory II, fight the battle out in full, and feed the result back into Empires.

Radio Commander - Q3 2019

This is an interesting project that cropped up on our radar recently. This games puts you in the shoes of an American military commander serving in US Army during the Vietnam War, coordinating military operations taking place between 1965 and 1967. It's an RTS, but instead of being able to see and directly control your units, all you have is a command tent and an operation map. Icons will flash up to denote the presence of troops or other bits of information, and you must use your radio to issue orders. It's technically an RTS, and you can drag and drop icons onto the map to issue new orders.

Radio General - TBD 2019

Surprisingly enough, there's another game similar to Radio Commander also in the works, only this one covers WW2. Radio General has only recently put its Steam page live, but it sports much the same kind of concepts that Commander does. The single-player campaign follows the 1st Canadian Army, which rarely gets much love from WW2 entertainment. There will also me multiplayer and a map editor.

Klotzen! Panzer Battles - Early 2019

Zoran Stanic is completely forthright about Klotzen! Panzer Battles being his own spin on the Panzer General formula, and he’s walking into a crowded space: We’ve already seen Panzer Corps take up that mantle, and Order of Battle has been steadily churning out modules for a couple years now.

However, Maxim Games’ Klotzen! Panzer Battles is making enough changes and additions to the operational turn-based WW2 formula that it’s something we’re very interested in. Klotzen! is adding expanded rules for air and naval combat and has a dynamic campaign that allows for Hearts of Iron-style “what if?” scenarios. You might be able to delay Operation Barbarossa by a year, for instance, or even stage an invasion of US and UK soil. Add to that an aggressive and adaptive AI that Maxim promises scales meaningfully for beginners and seasoned grogs alike, and Klotzen! has the makings of an exciting entry into the Panzer General pantheon. Haven't heard anything on this one in a while.

Unity of Command 2 - You know, it might actually be this year

We’re not into wargaming to win any beauty pageants, and neither are our games - but if we held one, Unity of Command 2 is likely a shoo-in for the top spot on the podium. It’s just flat-out gorgeous in screenshots, and it’s clear from 2x2’s dev diaries that the studio is putting a lot of thought and effort into presentation.

That’s not something we generally run into a lot around these parts, but it’s part of what makes Unity of Command 2 such a potentially exciting title: It’s lovely to look at, and it may be an entry point for a lot of non-wargamers into the hobby thanks to 2x2’s mindful approach to tutorialization and simplification. We still don’t have a release window, but from the looks of things, UoC2’s bright and beautiful take on World War II shouldn’t be too far out. We’re hoping to get our hands on it this year.

Burden of Command - TBD

Green Tree Games announced late last year that their leadership role-playing game, Burden of Command, was going to take a bit longer to finish than they’d initially estimated. They haven’t committed to a new date yet, instead promising that Burden of Command will be done - “When it’s done right.”

While it’s of course disappointing that we won’t be able to see this new vision of military leadership in games for a while yet, a delay was likely the correct move. Burden of Command is doing something genuinely novel: it wants to convey the emotional, physical, and spiritual toll that wartime leadership exacts on the people who take on a captain’s bars and lead soldiers into what Vietnam War veteran Karl Marlantes called “The Temple of Mars” in his memoir, What It Is Like To Go To War.

Close Combat: The Bloody First - TBD 2019 

Matrix Games’ new take on the Close Combat series probably won’t make the dais in our would-be Wargamer beauty pageant, but the US 1st Infantry Division isn’t going to be all that fussed about that. What we’re looking forward to with Close Combat: The Bloody First is a modernized version of the classic, and even if the transition to 3D is still a little rough-looking aesthetically, the amount of information and the level of detail look like more than enough to make up for any visual warts.

I love the look of the high-res maps (I am a bit of a sucker for topo lines), as well as the refocus on soldiers rather than squads. Moving to 3D means there’s space to simulate line of sight dynamically, as well as model individual ammunition types and more kinds of damage. Joe got an early hands-on with an alpha build last year, and he wrote at the time that combat feels very familiar - which is exactly what I imagine fans of the series were hoping to hear. If you're interested in helping out and getting your hands on the game early, Matrix are taking Beta sign-ups.

General Staff Wargaming System - TBD

Dr. Ezra Sidran has been working on this suite of software for the past several years, and he’s bringing to it a lot of academic heft - he’s a computer scientist who has devoted his career to wargaming and artificial intelligence, and his previous work in military simulations has been supported by the likes of DARPA.

Over the course of 2018, he released several pieces and beta builds of his powerful suite of wargame design software, map editing software, and army editor, and we’re looking forward to seeing the finished project, hopefully sometime this year. At the base level, there’s General Staff, the Game of Military Tactics (the “beer and skittles” Kriegsspeil mode), and then there’s the Wargaming System, which allows armchair designers to put together their very own rulesets and scenarios, or even more complex simulations.

Sidran’s work will likely have impact well beyond the usual scope for consumer wargames - we’re looking forward to the research published based on this as well.

Steel Division II - June 20th, 2019

The first Steel Division took some of the Wargame series’ sleekest ideas and turned them into the largest-scale World War II real-time strategy battles we’ve ever seen, so naturally we’re champing at the bit to try the next iteration. Developer Eugen has clearly taken feedback from the original Steel Division into account as they’ve built this Eastern Front sequel, which features a new turn-based strategic campaign - a single-player element that was the major fly in the ointment the first time around.

Steel Division II’s real-time battles will benefit from the context of this strategy layer, which will have players managing supply and manoeuvre over the course of several in-game weeks. This takes place on a fantastic map drawn in classic cartographic style and judging from the leap the Wargame series took from European Escalation to Air Land Battle, Steel Division II is looking like a major step forward.

Of possible concern is Eugen’s rocky past year as a studio - employees went on strike last February over wages and allegations of crunch culture, and several ultimately left the company. We’re certainly eager to play the sequel, even thought it keeps getting delayed. You can check out our coverage of the Beta in the mean time.

Panzer Corps 2 - 2019

Panzer Corps was an early entry into the modern generation of approachable wargames, and after a foray into the world of Warhammer 40K, developer Flashback Games is returning to battlefields of earth for a full sequel, this one built in Unreal Engine 4.

This time around, in addition to a brand-new Wehrmacht campaign, there’s going to be a random map and scenario generator, providing an endless supply of tank battlefields on which to go to war with some 450 different lovingly-modelled 3D units. Panzer Corps 2 also has a shifting day/night cycle and changing seasons, all of which are reflected on the beautiful map.

Flashback’s latest dev diary expressed some disappointment at the fact that they weren’t able to ship Panzer Corps 2 in 2018. And while that’s frustrating for the studio (and for players eager to jump into the commander’s hatch), our takeaway is that it won’t be a long wait.

Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865) - TBD 2019

The idea behind Grand Tactician is to create a detailed, historic recreation of the American Civil War in a real-time tactics game that allows you to re-fight the major battles of the war, while also giving you the chance to rewrite history in a powerful strategic layer. It’s an impressive project - all the more so when you realize it’s being developed by a three-man production team!

It’s easy to get caught up in the lovely maps and order of battle diagrams, which evince the 19th century brilliantly through design aesthetic and even typeface selection. Instead of a mini-map, for instance, you’ll zoom out to a hand-drawn terrain map. But on the ground, the level of detail is amazing: your men will respond more quickly when they’re in bugle range, for instance, and you can set orders for movements at specific times or signals. Battles can range from small skirmishes to massive engagements, with artillery, infantry, and cavalry all present and correct.

Grand Tactician also promises hundreds of historical officers and generals to lead your armies, footage of historical re-enactments, and the ability to play “what if” with scenarios like major European intervention or Lincoln losing the presidency. Look for it on Steam late in the year.

War of Rights - Currently in Early Access

War of Rights is another U.S. Civil War title, although instead of taking command as a Grant or Lee, here you’re given the perspective of an individual soldier on the ground at Harpers Ferry or Antietam. While it’s technically a first-person shooter rather than a proper wargame, War of Rights takes pains to make the experience more like participating in a re-enactment rather than running around like Rambo in a Battlefield game.

You’ll have to follow orders from sergeants and lieutenants (or take charge of a platoon as one of these leaders). You’ll form firing lines, shoulder to shoulder with other players, and painstakingly reload your Springfield with shot, wadding, and powder. And you’ll get to do all this on stunning recreations of Civil War battlefields rendered with CryEngine tech.

War of Rights is currently in early access on Steam, and Campfire Games says its current plans are to continue developing the game and adding features - there’s no set date for a “full release” just yet. But having played a few rounds since the latest backer build was sent out in December, I’m excited to see where this goes this year. When it works, and players are working together and taking it seriously, it’s one of the most immersive historical experiences I’ve had on my PC.

Other things to watch out for:

Military Operations - This ambitious WW2 RTS/Simulation caught our eye last year when it was announced, but there's been no information on how the project is shaping up in 2019. We're not sure it'll release this year, but it's good to remember that it exists as it's probably the most fascinating war game project around right now. We took the free Benchmarking Tool that was released last summer for a spin, if you want to small insight as to what it's about.

Battlefront - Combat Mission Shock Force 2 may have been the main talking point for this company in recent months, but they are supposed to have other things in the works as well. There's still bits of CMSF2 that haven't been finished yet as far as we're aware, and there is also supposed to be a new module for Combat Mission Fortress Italy titled Rome to Victory. Whether we see any of this or the as-yet unnamed Red Thunder module anytime soon, or even this year, is anyone's guess.

UBOAT - this is a new WW2 Submarine simulator that features crew management and survival elements, whilst also throwing you into the midst of the Atlantic theatre of the naval war. It's currently in Early Access but is not due to leave until 2020, but we wanted to give it a brief mention here anyway. Check out our preview.

Order of Battle WW2 - Matrix Games' other long-standing Panzer General-like series is coming to console later this spring. You could describe it as Panzer Corps but with supply, and it will launch as a premium package with the base game bundled with the U.S Pacific expansions. The rest of the DLCs will be made available as separate purchases on launch day as well.

Ultimate Admiral: Age of Sail - The studio who brought you Ultimate General has officially revealed their next project. Ultimate Admiral will offer tactical naval & land combat set in the backdrop of the Napoleonic wars. It's early days yet, so we don't know much more than that - we'll move it up top when we do. There's also another game in the works - Ultimate Admiral: Dreadnought.

Waterloo 3D - This cropped up earlier in the year as well. This is a new RTS war game that looks to recreate the Battle of Waterloo in high-end 3D graphics.

Campaign Series: Vietnam - The new game from CS Legion, who previously did Campaign Series: Middle East under Matrix. We were expecting it last year, but it never showed up. We're told that it's definitely coming this year, however.

Strategic Mind: The Pacific - The Pacific-focused sequel to last year's Panzer Strategy. It released into Early Access on April 30th, and is due to be there for six months. We haven't given it a full entry because the first game was a bit... eh. Panzer General-like experience made in Unreal. Hopefully the team have learned from their experience of the previous game, although our initial impressions aren't promising.

Digital gameworks - This one-man band indie studio creates some niche, if sometimes limited, war games. We’re not sure what they’re currently working on but keep an eye on them.

Wargame Design Studio - These guys are finally finished with their 'Gold' upgrades for all of JTS' Panzer Campaign games, and are not hard at work on their new stuff. Hopefully we should see at least one new game from them by the end of the year.

Wolfpack - This is more sub-sim than war game, but it allows for small groups of people to 'crew' a German U-Boat and pit it against AI-controlled flotillas and fleets. You can even team up with other crews to form the 'wolfpack'. It's currently in Early Access.

Seen any computer war game projects you’re excited about? Let us know in the comments!

To be fair, despite everything making a big deal about the D-Day remembrance this year with it being the 75^th Anniversary, Slitherine & Matrix Games have always run a sale on D-Day, and this year’s no exception.

You have from until June 9^th to get 30% off a range of titles from Slitherine/Matrix’s catalogue using the discount code ‘D-Day30’. Remember you have to use this during the check-out process – if you’re at the point where you’re giving over your card information, you’ve gone too far.

Matrix & Slitherine’s catalogue is quite extensive, as is the list of games that are eligible for the discount, so there’s bound to be something you’ll want to consider. Here are a few specific highlights:

Strategic Command WW2: World at War– the most recent Strategic Command release, this is an excellent time to pick up this grand-strategy WW2 game if you haven’t already.

Battle for Korsun– this is a more light-weight hex-and-counter wargame developed by one-man band Yobowargames, who’ve recently partnered with Matrix to publish their games. His other title, Kursk – Battle at Prochorovka is also in the sale.

There’s also games like the Gary Grigsby’s titles in the sale, although be aware that they’ve had a far better price as recent as February 2019, where they were discounted by 70%. If you’re waiting for a good deal to pick them up, you can probably wait a little longer.

Let us know if you do pick anything up!

Despite covering some individual items during the week, there’s still been plenty of other news to round-up for this week’s regular update. Next week we’ve got a review or two, and a couple of gameplay features planned.

Meanwhile, in the world of wargaming…

Interview with Rule the Waves 2 Designer Fredrik Wallin

We’ve partnered up once again with the guys over at Single Malt Strategy. They recently interview RTW 2’s lead designer, and we’ve been allowed to share the episode with you below. Our own review of the game will be dropping on Monday, so keep an eye out for that!

Matrix Games & Slitherine

It’s been another high-profile week for our Lord and Saviour(s). First and foremost, we were treated to around 30 minutes of live gameplay footage from Close Combat: The Bloody First. This ‘reboot’ of sorts for the series has been in the works for, like, ever, but we should finally be seeing a release sometime this year. Here’s the video:

At the start of that clip, and mentioned my us in our update yesterday, Matrix also announced a new entry in the Strategic Command series, this time going back to the First World War. This new WW1 grand strategy war game will use all of the engine improvements developed for the more recent WW2 games. It’s nice to finally have a new game set in this era, although I can’t help but feel it would have been better timing to release it last year. Oh well.

Last but certainly not least, Matrix Games have formed a partnership with Yobowargames. This is a one-man band studio who focuses on more light-weight hex-and-counter style games. Matrix are now publishing his debut titles, Battle for Korsun& Battle at Prochorovka.

Yobo is also supposed to be working on a port of Valor & Victory, but we’re not sure how this new deal applies to that particular project.

Hearts of Iron 4 Turns Three

Hearts of Iron 4 is now three years old! Hurrah! Have some… DLC? The grand-strategy WW2 war game has had a troubled journey, and while they’re not out of the woods yet the game is in a far better place than it was even last year. Where they go from here, we’ll have to wait and see.

A little bit bummed because when Stellaris was celebrating its third birthday, they had a play-for-free weekend. But I guess if you really like Tanks or Radio Stations, the new celebratory add-ons will be right up your street?

Of more interest though is the development diary they published on Wednesday where Podcat reflects on the development time. I’ve always had concerns that Hearts of Iron 4 specifically was a game trying to serve two masters, and it seems judging by some of the diary notes that it still hasn’t changed. There’s roughly an even split between those playing historical options, and those playing ahistorical, with a third smaller group of hardcore MP players.

I’ve always said that if you wanted a more on-rails WW2 experience, there are better games for you, even Hearts of Iron 3. I don’t think HoI4 can ever really be the historical replay many want to be, but there’s a real question still as what the effect is of still trying to cater to the historical chain of events. Food for thought, for sure.

On a final note, you can now purchase Combat Mission: Beyond Overlord, Combat Mission II: Barbarossa to Berlin and Combat Mission 3: Afrika Korps over on GOG.com now, completely DRM free. Which is… yay? Not sure what to make of that one.

That’s all we’ve got time for this week. Enjoy your weekends and happy gaming!

Yes, William Tecumseh Sherman was right and "war is hell", regardless of when in time it happens, but something about laser guided munitions and modern tanks ups the ante for those of us here in the 21st century.

Too much tech for your liking? We've got some great ancients and medieval war games you might like.

Which is not to say to say the following list of the best of modern warfare games snubs the 1900's, as the vaunted Soviet v. NATO showdown that thankfully never happened is perfect fodder for games wishing to demonstrate why we should give peace a chance.

Other Recommendations

If you're looking for something really complex. it may be worth checking out Command: Modern Air/Naval Operations. You can read more about it on our list of the best Naval War Games, although you could make a case for it to be on either list. It's just received a new expansion based on Operation Desert Storm, which is an excellent depiction of the Air and Naval aspects of that conflict.

For a token table-top wargaming suggestion, Bill recently reviewed Great Escape Game's Seven Days to the River Rhine rule-set which offers an excellent alternative to heavy-weights like Team Yankee, although it's still compatible with all the same miniatures!

Armored Brigade (Review)

Developer: Matrix Games
Available From: Direct
Tags: Real-Time, Tactical, Battalion/Task Force, Cold War/WW3, European Theatre, 2D

We've been waiting for this game for a while, and it did not disappoint. Considering AB's routes as a freeware game developed in someone's spare time, it's amazing what a little publisher support can achieve. If you're looking for a game with the complexity and tactical depth as, say, Combat Mission or even CMANO, but the style and presentation of old-school Close Combat, than Armored Brigade is right up your alley. 

Set in Eastern Europe and Finland, AB is a 'Cold War gone hot' game where you can play as either NATO or Warsaw Pact factions. Create your task-force, define your map (using the excellent map generator), and fight it out on the plains of Europe. We suggest reading our review for more detail - this is certainly one of 2018's stand-out releases, and well deserving of a space on this list. The game's recently been updated with the first iteration of a 'campaign generator', giving you the chance to fight a successive series of battles to give you some extra context, and the inclusion of two new nations via the Italy-Yugoslavia Nation Pack has made this game even better.

Combat Mission: Black Sea

Developer: Battlefront
Available from: Direct
Tags: WEGO, Tactical, Company scale, Editor, 3D, European Theatre 

Battlefront’s venerable Combat Mission series, best known for its uncompromising vision of small unit tactics and fastidiously researched content (and, also, really slow development-ED), is a shoo-in for our best modern war gfames list, with Combat Mission: Black Sea (CMBS) taking the cake. Depicting a fictional 'WW3' style conflict between Russian, American, and Ukrainian forces in 2017, CMBS can be a rude awakening for those used to Battlefront’s WW2-focused titles. Night vision, UAV’s, active protection systems, and electronic warfare list just a fraction of the new goodies CMBS brings to the table.

CMBS as it stands offers one campaign per belligerent along with a modestly priced 'Battle Pack' that expands the content to include two more campaigns and a handful of handcrafted scenarios. As with the rest of the Combat Mission line-up, CMBS also includes a 'quick battle' option wherein you can set the parameters of the battle and build your force using points, much in the same way miniature wargames are played.

Jury's still out as to whether Combat Mission: Shock Force 2 is necessarily the better game - Bruce liked it enough when he did our review, and has been putting together some guides for us bit by bit, but there are still several parts of the game that haven't been fully ported onto the new system yet. We'll let you know if the situation changes.

Flashpoint Campaigns: Red Storm (Review)

Developer: Matrix Games
Available From: Direct, Steam
Tags: WEGO, 2D, European Theatre, Cold War, Operational, Hex

Flashpoint Campaigns features the tried and true  'cold war gone hot' situation, with the player at the helm of either NATO or the Soviet Union as they duke it out over central Europe. FC features dynamic weather effects, exhaustive TO&E’s, and a game engine that accounts for a variety of soft factors such as troop morale and training, sensors, and even the effect of weather on unit optics. And this is just scratching the surface of FC’s fulsome list of features, all of which translate into a decision-making space for the player that really captures the feeling of commanding a combined arms force.

What also makes Flashpoint Campaigns a special modern war game, though, is its focus on command and control and the Clausewitzian “friction” that occurs when two armies start shooting at one another. FC utilizes a WEGO structure for its turns, wherein players assign orders to their units and watch them play out in real-time concurrently with one another. FC throws a wrinkle in this, however, by introducing variable turn lengths. In other words, through proper use of command and control, and keeping units in proper formation, a player can “get inside” another player's turn loop. And of course, the inverse is true: being on the receiving end of a particularly nasty attack you may find it difficult being effective with your units, what with having to wait two in-game hours to your opponent’s 25 minutes.

Wargame: Red Dragon

Developer: Eugen System
Available from: Steam
Tags: 3D, Operational, East Asia Theatre, WW3, Cold War, Real-Time

Eugen’s popular Wargame series offers a fresh take on the real-time tactics genre. Spread out over three titles, the first  two of the trio focus on a fictional clash between the Warsaw Pact and NATO. The third title, Red Dragon, expanded the fracas to southeast Asia and added, among others, Chinese, Japanese and both North and South Korean militaries to the series’ growing roster of playable nations. Red Dragon is also the only game of the three to feature naval combat and amphibious landings. It’s also inclusive, adding all of the erstwhile Wargames’ units and many of their maps into multiplayer. This compilation of units has resulted in Red Dragon having a whopping 1,450 units to play with.

Easily the Wargame series’ most unique and endearing feature since its inception in 2012 is its deck system. Imitating popular games, players prepare their customized armies (“decks”) before the match, and then use those 'cards' to deploy their troops to the battlefield. There's no random 'draws' or hands though - you get access to everything from the start, with the only variables being whether or not you have the resources to bring the unit to the field. The depth of this system cannot be overstated, with bonuses for deck doctrine (Infantry, Mechanized, etc.), mixed nation and “coalition” decks, and even manpower bonuses for using decks with dated kit, building your customized force is almost a game within a game. This card game-like experience lends itself well to a multiplayer community, where killer deck combinations and the state of the meta are often hot topics of conversation (and contention).

Full Spectrum Warrior

Developer: Pandemic Studios
Available From: Steam
Tags: 3D, Infantry, Tactical, Squad, Military, Co-Op, Real-Time, Shooter,

Full Spectrum Warrior (FSW) and its follow-up Ten Hammers are, together, a crash course in “The Four F’s” of modern infantry combat: namely, find, fix, flank, and finish. Originally released in 2004 with the sequel following two years later, FSW has its origins in the U.S Army’s Science and Technology Community’s attempt at training software, and this ethos shows in the gameplay.

The player commands a squad that can be broken up into teams and must utilize the aforementioned “Four F’s” to navigate the war-torn streets of the fictional Zekistan. In addition to its slavish devotion to real-world small unit tactics, Full Spectrum Warrior turned heads upon release by not allowing players to directly control any of their units, despite FSW’s action game style of presentation. Ten Hammers slightly loosened this prohibition and allowed the player to control an M2 Bradley IFV in a few scenarios.

Steel Beasts Pro PE

Developer: eSim Games
Available from: Direct
Tags: 3D, Simulation, Tank Warfare, Tactical, Squad, Real-Time

The end-all-be-all of modern war tank sims, Steel Beasts puts the player in the position of a crew member of an AFV. The game’s roster of hyper-detailed vehicles includes (but is not limited to) iconic tanks such as the M1 Abrams, T-72, and Leopard 1A5 & 2. Even though the title’s emphasis is on armor, it does an amazing job of depicting combined arms on the contemporary battlefield. Infantry, APC’s, Choppers, and ATGM’s are also stunningly realized, both in their detail, as well as role in the greater battle going on around the player.

Steel Beasts also supports multiplayer for up to eight players—which, when you consider that each player can command NPC units, can lead to a wargaming experience very different from the normal “eye-in-the-sky approach” to virtual commanding. With a $125 price tag and 100-page manual, Steel Beasts is not for the faint of heart. For virtual treadheads not intimidated by a learning curve, however, Steel Beasts leaves its competition in the dust.

Afghanistan ‘11 (Review)

Developer: EverySingleSoldier
Available From: Direct, Steam
Tags: 3D, Turn-Based, Tactical, Middle-East, Hex, COIN, Modern War,

The follow-up to 2015’s Vietnam '65, Afghanistan ‘11 builds off of developer Every Single Soldier’s counter-insurgency sandbox and improves on the formula in every way. Putting the player in charge of US Military operations in Afghanistan circa 2011, Afghanistan ‘11 is a wargame about winning over the local population. Combat still plays a central role, but even when it does happen it's towards the end goal of promoting stability and diminishing the influence of the Taliban.

Afghanistan ‘11 flips so many wargame conventions on their head, it may take even seasoned grogs some time to fall into the titles rhythm of sending out patrols, sweeping the mountainous terrain and nursing your limited cadre of US forces. The title features both a campaign, as well as randomly generated “skirmish” mode for you to test out your approach to COIN operations in a consequence free environment. The Royal Marines DLC also adds British forces in addition to a slew of new gameplay features for players who have fully groked the base game, or simply want more variety.

Graviteam Tactics

Developer: Graviteam
Available From: Steam
Tags: 3D, Strategic, Tactical, DLC, Modern War, WEGO, Various Theatres,

Although known primarily for their World War Two scenarios, both Graviteam Tactics games, Operation Star and its successor Mius Front, are home to some excellent DLC featuring modern conflicts generally unsung in the wargaming world. Operation Star’s DLC Operation Hooper offers players a slice of the Angolan Bush War, specifically the Battle of Cuito-Cuanavale. Graviteam Tactics signature dual strategic/tactical gameplay moves significantly faster here than the Ostfront, with BMP’s, choppers, and speedy modern tanks turing the strategic layer into a lightning fast game of maneuver. Operation Star’s other modern offering, Shield of the Prophet, features a counterfactual 1979 military contest between the Soviet Union and Iran.

Mius Front’s upcoming DLC Operation Modular is taking the series back to Angola, once again during the Battle of Cuito-Cuanavale. The titular Operation Modular saw South-African forces squaring off against the Angolan forces of the MPLA. In addition to the new scenario specific vistas and units, Modular will also come bearing all the Graviteam gameplay and engine enhancements found in Mius Front.

Call To Arms

Developer: Digitalmindsoft EU
Available From: Steam
Tags: 3D, Real-Time, Tactical, Company Level, MP, SP, WW3, Modern War, Various Theatres

Ostensibly the modern warfare incarnation of Digitalmindsoft’s Men of War (MoW) series and sharing the same engine, Call To Arms enjoys many of the same features that have made MoW a fan favorite for years, albeit with a WW3 twist. Although only currently featuring two factions, the United States Army and the Global Revolutionary Movement, Russia and Germany are purported to be in the works.

This is an exciting prospect for modern military aficionados as Call To Arms shares the same persnickety attention to detail as it’s WW2 forerunners with each individual unit having its own inventory of authentic kit. One exciting new feature Call To Arms brings to the table is the ability to take control of any unit from the first-person perspective. This feature combined with fully destructible environments and the lethality of modern weaponry really brings Call To Arms into its own, as dictating orders to your units and then participating in the attack yourself or providing cover with the PK light gun is a feeling unmatched by most wargames. There is a free trial lets you play around in multiplayer with the basic factions, and then the premium versions unlock single-player and more advanced features.

ArmA 3

Developer: Bohemia Interactive
Available From: Steam
Tags: 3D, Shooter, Tactical, Combined Arms, Modern War, Fictional Theatres,

As the game that launched a thousand mods, and even a hit stand-alone game, 'vanilla'Arma isn't often talked about as much as the games/mods derived from this venerable consim. And this is a shame because it is prerequisite playing for anyone with even a passing interest in contemporary warfighting. The base game’s campaign does an admirable job of easing the player into navigating the waters of modern war military simulation, and soon enough your commanding AFV’s, calling in mortar strikes and adroitly toggling between the game's multitude of firing positions.

Assuming you tire of the Mediterranean vistas of Atlis and Stratis, Arma 3’s DLC Apex offers up the south-east Asian themed Tanoa, and along with it a suite of new weapons, vehicles and factions. And of course, this being Arma, just about every military conflict of the last 50 years can be found in the workshop. Rarely trodden topics like the Falklands or First Chechen War are only a download button click away for Arma-ites looking for something beyond the stock campaign(s). Don't forget to check out our extensive Mods guide if you want to take your game to the next level.

WinSPMBT

Developer: Shrapnel Games
Available From: Direct
Tags: 2D, Various Theatres, Modern War, Cold War, WW3, Operational, Editor,

If I were pressed to describe WinSPMBT in one word it would be 'breadth'. Meticulously researched, and with OOB’s for the game’s 92 nations (!!) ranging from the end of World War 2 up until 2025, WinSPMBT quite literally has it all.'Out of the box' it features over two hundred scenarios and 13 campaigns, and that's before considering the bottomless amount of user created content available courtesy of WinSPMBT’s robust editor. Although pushing nearly two decades since coming into being, WinSPMBT still enjoys an avid following judging by the throngs of fresh AAR’s and “Opponents Wanted” postings over at developer Shrapnel Games forums, which bodes well for the continued life of the game.

What are your favourite modern/world war 3 war games? Let us know in the comments!

I've been doing this for a long time, so it takes a lot to impress me. When I saw Thrustmaster's secret announcement of its new 1:1 metal replica of the F/A-18C Hornet approved by Boeing, I was intrigued. When I opened its box, I was amazed. When I plugged it in and took a virtual Hornet out for a spin pulling 5G on a reverse Cuban Eight, I was pretty much sold for life.

Thrustmaster were kind enough to send us some physical samples for this article. Wargamer is an Amazon Affiliate.

Thrustmaster's F/A-18C Hornet flight stick is the closest you'll come to owning a real working F-18 hardware. Modelled and built just like the real one used by the Navy (which is also almost identical to the controls of the AV-8B Night Attack and the F-15E Strike Eagle), the stick features 19 buttons -- including a 2-step trigger with the most satisfying double action I ever felt and an 8-direction point-of-view hat switch -- and is built of real metal, weighting almost a whole kilo.

The most important thing to get out of the way is that the F-18 Stick is not a standalone product, but an add-on; it screws to the base of Thrustmaster's HOTAS Warthog (or Cougar), replacing the A-10's control column with the F-18's. That does mean you require the expensive HOTAS Warthog to use it, but it also means you can keep the same amazing throttle box that comes with it and just change sticks on the fly (though not actually in flight, as that would lead to the airplane crashing).

In terms of quality, the stick completely delivers -- it feels less like a gamey peripheral and more like a piece of a real machine that was ripped off from its panel, which works wonder when playing something as involved and demanding as a proper flight simulator. I’ve used a lot of flight sticks in my time, having played flight games for nearly three decades now, and the F-18 stick provides one of the best tactile sensations I’ve ever in a virtual environment.

Since the base is actually the Warthog’s, the grip uses the same magnetic sensor system for an amazing amount of accuracy and auto-centering feedback. The buttons, however -- and in fact, the stick itself -- feel noticeably rougher and denser than the A-10’s, creating a rugged feel that really brings into focus the idea that this little metal stick is supposed to direct a 30 ton quasi-rocket blasting through the air.

If there’s one problem with the F-18’s, is that it shares the Warthog’s inability to turn sideways, forcing users to either adapt the controls through the TARGET software or rely on external (and expensive) pedals for yaw control. The TARGET software can be downloaded from Thrustmaster’s support website and is surprisingly versatile, though it requires a lot of input to fully customise something of this magnitude.

For testing purposes, I used the F-18 for nearly three weeks straight on over 10 different flight titles, both sims and arcade. While some titles like IL-2 Sturmovik Battle of Stalingrad and even the old TIE Fighter games work amazingly well after some TARGET tinkering, the biggest synergy came from Eagle Dynamics’ Digital Combat Simulator. I flew about 12 different airplanes from World War II to modern era originating from various countries, but the stick natively integrates with the new F/A-18C module -- and it feels unbelievably amazing. More than just the consistency of looking down in-game and seeing your actually stick on the screen, the button mappings and general feel of the product feels like the closest most humans on Earth will ever come to piloting the real strike fighter, and I couldn’t wait to get home from work to log in some flight hours on my F-18.

The Thrustmaster F/A-18C Hornet flight stick is available to pre-order right now on Thrustmaster’s website, with out retailers going live soon. At £179,99/€199,99/$229,99, it is a very expensive piece of engineering -- but it’s one virtually unmatched by any other on the market, and which is built to last a considerable amount of time. If you want to experience what it feels like to fly a real jet fighter from the comfort of your own home, definitely gives this flight stick a shot.

The F/A-18C Hornet is due for release on July 25th, 2019.

Coming away from Rule the Waves 2, I realize that I’ve never had a more engaging or heart pounding time looking at data and numbers on a screen, except perhaps during tax season. To the outside observer, like my wife who wandered by, glanced at the screen and asked, “I thought you were working on your game review tonight?”RTW2 might look at little esoteric, perhaps a little too much like the work players hoped to avoid by firing up a video game at the end of a long day. And to some it might actually be that, but I’ll wager anyone currently reading this review with even the slightest interest in naval warfare in the age of steam, iron, and eventually airplanes would do well to check out RTW2.

In RTW2, like its predecessor, you take on the role of an especially long-lived ‘Grand Admiral’ who is responsible for: organizing naval research, designing new ships, fighting the nation’s wars, personally commanding fleets, and deciding a surprising amount of foreign policy. Did I mention you also wrangle with the budget, the prestige of the navy, and uppity neighbours? It’s a full plate, but the majority of your time will be spent building and managing your nation’s fleets. Play oftentimes feels like a desperate game of “keeping up with the Joneses” as your closest rival lays down a shiny new battleship with 12-inch guns making a mockery of the 9-inch simpleton you just commissioned.

The main screen of RTW2. Each rectangle is a zone in which you station ships and manage bases.

The struggle of one-upmanship and chasing the dream of a Fleet in Being is one of the things I enjoyed most about RTW2. Playing initially as Japan in the earlier start date (1900 vs 1920) with a historical budget meant I had to walk a tightrope of acquiring new technology, weighing the cost of refitting against building new vessels, and worrying about the downtime in which my beloved if underwhelming battleships were strung up in port, getting shiny new guns but unable to defend my shores.

The rate of technological development and the game’s clever technology tree forces you to decide on priority research in different areas, like ‘torpedo technology’ or ‘fire-control systems’ with semi-randomized discoveries (an option for further randomization exists if you want it). This means it is impossible to game the system completely and beeline straight for the best technologies. We all know that carriers and naval aircraft became a dominant force during the Second World War, but in the 1920s there was a lot of soul searching to do and RTW2’s system of semi-random development reflects that quite well. Also, the fact that so much technological development happened in such a short period means you will have some tough decisions to make while playing. Often times you’ll be half-way through your government mandated queue of a half-dozen new destroyers when your researchers develop a new technology that renders them all subpar. Therein lies a wonderfully stressful gamble between actually putting ships in the water and chasing after the latest tech. If only that dang government would increase the naval budget!

RTW2 throws a lot of information at you, some of which will require research, but it is manageable after a few minutes and seeing what your opponents are building.

Ah but that’s where your forays into foreign policy come into play. In an interesting system that I wasn’t sure about at first, you’re never really making proactive policy or engaging with other nations, you’re only reacting. On each turn there’s a chance for an event to pop up for you to deal with. They’re not entirely random but there seems to be an element of chance in their occurrence. How you deal with them will affect your tension levels with different nations, your prestige, or your budget. Upon seeing a brand new Russian cruiser come to port to show off, I was given a choice of responses for an interview, going with something along the lines of, “Well we could have nice things to protect us too, if the government cared about security” which both made me smile over its pettiness and over the fact that it resulted in a potential for an increased budget. Similarly, while you can push towards war by choosing the right responses, you don’t actually make the decision, and the decision to end a war will be made by the government, who only ask you your opinion on the ability of the navy to keep up the good fight.

RTW2 gives you a great sandbox to play in, with a different experience waiting for you each time. In my current Japanese game, now in 1911, We’re embroiled with a third war against Germany, who decidedly didn’t like my nighttime sneak attack against their port in China back in 1902 and have been hounding me ever since. Alternatively, in my 1920’s start as France, I decided to go full Napoleon and try to conquer Europe, only eventually being brought down by an especially daring Italian led coalition. RTW2 creates an emerging and engaging narrative that is every bit as fun to lose yourself in as other games that may be a little more visually spectacular.

Things can get crowded in larger engagements but turn by turn play sorts that out.

But now for the technical. RTW2 is ugly. It is a series of spreadsheets, a clear if dull world map, and a tactical combat map that, while impressive in its scale, is entirely made up of blue, grey, and green shapes overlaid with text. Period pictures are peppered throughout to give a bit of substance to the menus, and there is an exceptional little visual designer for your ships if you’re so inclined. But the lack of visuals never bothered me. The amount of information available to you is staggering, and the depth of the design and combat mechanics make it clear that visuals were sacrificed for efficiency and depth.

The Steam & Iron system that RTW2 uses for its tactical battles feels perfectly equipped to handle what RTW2 throws at it, and even the larger fleet engagements are manageable once you’ve given yourself a minute to glance at the manual or check out a Youtube video. Ships should perform the functions they did historically, and the combat feels authentic with the right feel of cat and mouse. When you’ve managed to corner an enemy battleship and can go in for the kill, or when your lone armoured cruiser fights a desperate rearguard for a fleeing trade convoy, you feel a thrill that only comes from games that force such an investment in time, resources, and energy into each ship. It was rough finally losing my grand French fleet off the coast of Sicily, but it was equally thrilling to sink two Russian battleships in open combat the engagement before. Airplanes helped.

Little period photos help liven up the menus, but the game is engaging enough not to be bothered.

Oh yes, the elephant in the room for players of RTW1. There are now aircraft, both planes and lighter than air ships available, along with different types of carriers to be built or converted. I didn’t have as much time with the airplanes as even my game set during the 1920s start was slow to build up enough aircraft for them to be a useful force, but considerations for air warfare add to the expanding list of decisions you are forced to make. Carriers also go hand in hand with the game’s new treaty system, which can bind players to certain tonnage limitations in a blind stab at world peace, though craftily creating smaller ships that can be re-purposed later is always an option (same with fudging the numbers if your government isn’t on the up and up).

I only occasionally saw bugs, like the Royal Navy laying down a ship with a complement of anti-aircraft guns in 1902. Highly suspect, Admiral Nostradamus. But there are reports on the forums of others I have not experienced.  I understand some players may be put off by some of the game’s hands-off systems. It is no longer possible to paint the map your colour, as invasion range limitations force you to squabble over neighbours and colonial possessions rather than conquer the world. Similarly, the game’s system of randomizing which elements of a fleet actually find each other to engage in each battle might feel arbitrary, but I felt it kept battles fresh and forced some interesting engagements and felt true to the many examples of squadrons bumping into each other or lone raiders sneaking in for a kill.

The heroic defense of a trade convoy by Armoured Cruiser Aso. When darkness fell he limped, damaged but proud, back into port having seen the German raiders off.

Overall, I adore Rule The Waves 2. It does everything I think a strategic naval game set in this period should do, with enough changes for the better from RTW1 to make it worth the upgrade. It’s clear that a lot of passion went into this game and I know I’ll be spending quite a bit of time in the near future chasing that elusive decisive battle, and the ships that can win it.

If you’re British you probably remember the word BROM from your early school days, meaning Blenheim, Ramillies, Oudenarde and Malplaquet. These are the four big battles of the Duke of Marlborough, the first three which he won (and before anyone says, “but Malpla . . .” remember "Si Dieu nous fait la grâce de perdre encore une pareille bataille, Votre Majesté peut compter que tous ses ennemis seront détruits."), with the first his greatest triumph. Now fast forward to 2018.

Last year US gaming concern Legion Wargames graced us with a refreshing new look at The Battle of Blenheim 1704, boasting a radical new yet old design concept concocted by Steve Pole. It’s called the Seven Hex System (SHS), and after plunking over $46 US plus postage during a post release sale (MSRP is $60 US),  color scanning the counters to heavy cardstock for cut out (as I always do, to keep a pristine copy; don’t tell Joe, he might think I’m odd), I was able to play two games over the weekend. I found the game very enjoyable, one big reason being the SHS is not the only unique process presented in the game.

Interested? Read on and learn, young Padawan.

Inside the Arsenal, er Box

The game comes in a well decorated box listing contents thereof, and also noting high solitaire value (yup) and medium-low complexity (agree). The trinkets include a 22 x 34 inch map, a 20 page players manual, one counter sheet with 88 unit counters and 88 game markers, two each player aid cards and one of the most attractive set-up cards I’ve ever seen. Units are actually brigades or artillery groups, the former represent three plus battalions or 10 plus squadrons. Each hex (hex, remember this) represents 500 yards across and each turn duplicates 20 minutes of real time. There is only one scenario, the battle itself, and the game box quotes a max playing time of about three hours. I didn’t time my games, but they went pretty darn quick and I know you can finish the battle in a single evening. There are also poly bags for counters and two small 1D6.

Overall the graphics and presentation are quite nice and modern, though perhaps not quite as sharp as done by the big boys like GMT, as I did note some slight shadowing around the text on some cards. Language is very precise, and proofing was very good though not perfect, e.g. Combat Example 3. In the game manual only a little over 11 pages are devoted to the actual rules of the system, the others being some well-illustrated examples of play, an historical description of the engagement and mini-bios of the opposing commanders complete with color portraits thereof. A nice bibliography completes the sets, mostly popular works so don’t worry about learning German for Der Feldzugen von Prinzen Eugen von Savoyen. Overall the rules are done in outline style and closely follow the sequence of play.

The info counters in the game mostly involve the unit orders of Charge, Countercharge, Attack, Defend and Ranged Fire. The unit counters are in blue for the Franco-Bavarians under Marshal Tallard, and brown for the Allies under Lord Churchill. Leader counters have a portrait and a flag or fleur-de-lis, while units use a generic infantry, cavalry or cannon model plus the same flag or symbol as their leader. For example, Marlborough’s wing has St George’s Cross flag. The only thing printed on the counters is a single combat strength number (but three digits for guns at different ranges) and an Occupancy Value (OV, think stacking points). The reverse indicates the unit disrupted. Overall, the counters are attractive  and pretty close historically, with different uniform colors applied to the models to represent different troop types or nationalities.

The game map is where it gets interesting. The design style uses softer colors and resembles period maps in presentation, and from an aesthetic perspective I like the top down look at things like trees with shadows added. History wise, the map is pretty spot on as well. Where Blenheim differs from most games of its ilk is by regulating movement, range and combat with what the author calls Areas, but for this tome I will call Megahexes, or MHs. Each MH consists of a central hex with six additional hexes wrapped around its edges, thus the SHS. The MH is totally outlined on the map, but the seven hexes proper within are marked only at the junction of two edged, plus an aiming dot in the center.

Different, right? Well grab some coffee while you wrap your head around that, because this concept is about to get real important.

Line of Battle

Each turn of Blenheim is divided into the following phases – friendly Strategic Movement, enemy Ranged Fire, friendly Operations (Orders, Tactical Movement, Combat), friendly Morale and finally friendly Command Unit Movement. Strategic Movement comes in three flavors, the first for movement solely along roads, the second not on roads and the third for redeployment between normal hexes within a single MH. If along roads, the units may not move or end its march adjacent to an enemy occupied MH, though if not on roads this is permitted. Artillery, conversely, may use neither making it virtually immobile. Movement for infantry is 4 MHs on the road, 8 MHs for cavalry, or if off road, 2 and 4 respectively. Note this is from center of one MH ( and remember that’s the 7 hex Megahex) to the center of the next MH. Thus for cavalry on the roads,  that equates to a total of 21 regular hexes and “Vorwarts marsch!” is automatic.

The next phase allows your opponent to shoot at you with his artillery. Ranges are 3 MHs for all but heavy guns which have a range of 4 MHs. There is a priority for unit targeting and a die roll determines whether a hit is scored or not, the closer the target MH the more a hit is likely. A hit causes a unit to go Disrupted, and any subsequent hits eliminates the unit

The third phase is a combined Orders/Tactical Movement/Combat process and really concerns units who wish to attack enemy formations in an MH adjacent to their own. To attack all friendly units must be stacked in the center hex of the MH ( two brigades due to OV, with leaders and guns having an OV of 0), because deployment along the outside hexes indicates a defensive posture. In addition each army has an Order DRM that ranges from +3 (Allied) or +2 (French) down to – 6. For the first Order given, you add the highest number such as Marlborough’s +3, and then roll a die to see if the order is obeyed. If it is, the function is executed and a second stack may be activated, but this time the DRM is +2 for Lord Churchill and the lads, the third time +1, the fourth 0, the fifth -1 and so on. Anytime an order fails, the player immediately stops and moves immediately into the Morale Phase. This means if you roll low and the first order activation fails, you do nothing, nada, zilch, zero that phase. And trust me, you will never get to activate as many units as you want, ever. Cavalry units Charge instead and there is also an opportunity for Countercharge.

In Combat, each unit (as in individual counter) has both a universal combat value, and these are added together then modified up or down cumulatively per unit based on things like the defender having a unit on an outside MH hex next to where the attack is launched (+2 per unit) or not (-2 per unit). If the defender has battalion guns +1 per qualifying unit, if the attacker has platoon fire infantry +2 per qualifying unit and so on. The attacker and defender both have their final totals – I assume to produce an average between different unit types whose modifiers might be different – and a roll off occurs with the results of the 1D6 added to the final, aggregate attack/defense values. If an Experienced leader is attached, you get an extra 1D6 to roll, and if the leader is Exceptional you get an extra 2D6 to roll instead, highest result selected. All Franco-Bavarian commanders are rated Experienced (Tallard, really?) and of course both Eugene and Marlborough are Exceptional. The highest score wins, and one half the difference is the number of hits the loser takes, the winner half as much again. The owning player decides how many hits each of his units takes and thus becomes Disrupted or dead, and if the difference is +4 in the attacker’s favor, a retreat of two MHs follows as well.

The Morale phase follows and here Disrupted units stacked with a leader auto-recover while those that aren’t and adjacent to an enemy MH have to roll for their fate. Leaders move in the final phase of the turn which then shifts to the other side for the completion of one full game turn. Here and there one also notices nice bits of period chrome such as distinguishing cavalry between Pistoliers and Trotters, or not permitting Tallard’s cavalry to stack  with horse from Marsin’s or Elector Max’s wings of the army due to an outbreak of glanders. The author did his homework, an A to boot.

Final Camp Roster

I really only have a couple of negatives about the game, one being cost, something I have discussed before. The game is not expensive in comparison to similar products, its just I wonder how long this price point is sustainable. The demand for top notch graphics and low print runs demands legitimately demands lots of shekels, and now with upcoming tariffs likely impacting off-shore printing, I just don’t know. The other issue is a combat system that seems a tad convoluted with all the adding of modifiers then halving, then halving again. The process works and works well, but I wonder if it couldn’t work easier.

But now about my two games. Both were French victories and I kinda expected that. The French army was the 800 pound gorilla of the period and likely of higher quality than what Marlborough and Eugene fielded that day, even though surprised. Indeed, observers were astonished how quickly and smoothly the French broke camp and deployed as if acting out a script. But when your boss, commissioned an officer at the ripe old age of 15, is boss because he’s the king’s drinking buddy, that doesn’t help. Blenheim was where Marlborough – not his army - unmercifully drubbed Tallard the man, as opposed to his army. Given most gamers can see everything happening and aren’t brain dead, this battle is really tough for the Grand Alliance.

But more important is the way this game shows how this happens. The SHS is innovative and unique, but I really like the way the Orders and the Strategic Movement concepts worked in tandem. Together they show that while marching into battle is easy, maintaining control within musket range, not so much. As Prussian Count Yorck von Wartenburg noted, “In modern battles the commander-in-chief has only two lines of action available – the direction in which to introduce fresh troops, and the moment at which he may do so. Once in action the troops march straightforward, they may indeed leave the field again, but cannot be withdrawn at will.” Its why many generals at the time rode to crisis areas to take personal control vice sending a messenger. It does sound complex, yet after about the first three turns, the game went very quickly at least in part due to the low unit density and the Orders system restricting what could be done. In my second game,  the closest of the two where I used a nifty optional rule on a more integrated sequence of play, I had either one side or the other do absolutely nothing five turns total. Regardless, as someone who plays this period a lot in miniature, the results were quite historical.

I really wanted to review another upcoming volume in the series, this time covering battles from the Great Northern War between Russia and Sweden. More than one engagement is included, and the battles are as esoteric as the SHS system is itself. Alas, the project does not seem to be getting enough preorders to move forward, so I opted for Blenheim. I hope that changes because I like games that limit a player’s unrealistic control over his cardboard legions. Its more challenging, more realistic and here Blenheim delivers.

And if you don’t believe me, download the rules for free and see for yourself.

Outside World War II, no other period of armed conflict offers as much variety and depth as does the ancient world, if for no other reason than the temporal length of the period. Using the time-honored Wargames Research Group miniatures rules convention, ‘ancients’ actually covers from 3000 BC to 1485 AD, although this is because the WRG lumps ‘ancient’ and ‘medieval’ together into one grouping. 1485 signifies a commonly accepted time where gunpowder use became widespread, and also marks the end of the War of the Roses, as it happens. That should provide enough armies to make everyone happy.

My picks for the best games in this category are below, and if you see a lot of famous titles missing, don’t despair. Excluded from the list are games that are primarily empire or nation building platforms, and pretty much anything with Total War in its title. With that in mind, let’s begin.

Reader Favourites

There are probably more games out there than we've had a chance to play, or perhaps have a difference of opinion on how good they are. Still, it's good to try and represent a topic as thorough as possible, so we're going to list any games that haven't made the main list but are still worth considering:

• Hannibal: Rome and Carthage in the Second Punic War

XIII Century Gold Edition (Review)

Publisher/Developer: 1C Entertainment / Unicorn Game Studios 
Tags: Medieval, Real-Time, Tactical, 3D
Purchase: Steam

This one's towards the end of the time period we'd consider to fit within the definition, but we were reminded of this gem when Bill decided to dig it up from his archives. Back when Russian publisher 1C was making a decent attempt at strategy and war games, they helped release games like XIII Century as a more hardcore counter-point to the Total War series. XIII Century itself doesn't have a strategic layer (although one of Unicorn's later games, Real Warfare: Northern Crusades did), but it made up for it with some excellent detail and gritty tactical combat.

It's especially geared towards grogheads because a lot of emphasis is placed on your initial troops deployments and the robustness of your battleplan - once contact is made with the enemy it's hard to change things on the fly (unlike similar games). In true Bill fashion, it was also praised for its attention to detail with regards to the coats of arms displayed in the game. If you like that sort of thing. You'd be hard pressed to find a better real-time medieval war game in digital, and it's a shame we don't more like this today.

Hegemony III – Clash of the Ancients

Publisher/Developer: Longbow Games
Tags: ancients, tactical, operational, strategic, logistics, 3D, RTS, RTT, area, Pyrrhus.
Purchase: $29.99 digital direct and on Steam

While it pains me immeasurably to admit my Editor was right, this game is a hidden gem. It does the same job as games at this level of play (as in Alea Jacta Est), but in a real time and 3D format. The player can seamlessly zoom from a strategic one-dimensional map of the entire area down to a very granular tactical resolution a la Cossacks III and similar games. At this point instead of an abstract battle resolution system with little player input, 3D units of soldiers appear, and you can move, turn, shoot and cleave heads as you would in any RTS game.

This game is the third game in the series, the others being Hegemony Rome (header image) and Hegemony Gold Ancient Greece. Clash of the Ancients looks at the rise of the Roman Republic against sundry adversaries like the Etruscans, and this may not interest a lot of would be players. There is, however, The Eagle King DLC that shifts the time-frame forward to Pyrrhus of Epirus, with an amazing looking naval model.

DLC-Expansion Modules:  The Eagle King

Field of Glory II (Review)

Publisher/Developer: Matrix Games/Byzantine Games
Tags: ancients, tactical, grid, 3D, miniatures, turn based IGOUGO
Purchase: $29.99 direct, also on Steam and Amazon

This game is the current standard in ancient’s computer gaming. It is an uber faithful direct port of the Field of Glory miniature rules, also published by Matrix/Slitherine. The game uses accurately detailed 3D units that mimic the tabletop version down to having in grid the same number of figures by type as the corresponding stand of miniatures in the pewter version. Aside from the ubiquitous Hobbit hovels and dwarf forests, the visuals rival some of the best miniature painting. Unlike the tabletop edition, the game features campaigns and lots of historical battles.

There are 281 army lists in support while the base game comes with a free DLC, the Rise of Rome. The most recent DLC is Wolves at the Gate.

DLC-Expansion Modules: Check out our DLC guide for the full list!

Sengoku Jidai (Review)

Publisher/Developer: Matrix Games/Byzantine Games
Tags: ancients, tactical, grid, miniatures, China, Japan, turn based IGOUGO
Purchase: $29.99 direct, also on Steam and Amazon

Developed by the same team as Field of Glory II, this older game mimics Pike & Shot in its presentation. Rather than a miniatures look; the game has 3D units that look like actual troops on the ground, resembling a (historical and realistic) Hollywood reenactment with thousands of extras. Like Field of Glory II, the software uses the Battle Academy engine which provides for easy learning, simple play as well as realistic results.

The base rules expansion Genko campaign of 1281 (Mongol invasion of Japan) and the Gempai Kessan 1180 campaign DLC allow entry into our period of interest. Byzantine Games, BTW, is one Richard Bodley Scott, the original author of the Field of Glory miniatures product line to include Field of Glory Rennaissance.

DLC-Expansion Modules: Gempei Kassen, Mandate of Heaven

Mare Nostrvm (Review)

Publisher/Developer: Matrix Games/Turnopia
Tags: ancients, tactical, hex, miniatures, naval, Trireme, Mediterranean, turn based WEGO
Purchase: $19.99 direct, also on Steam and Amazon

Outside Peter Turcan’s buggy Trireme Commander, this game stands unique because of its maritime perspective. Mare Nostrvm uses 14 types of individual ships to fight 24 historical battles including Salamis, the defeat of Xerxes’ Persian navy, and Actium, downfall of Anthony and Cleopatra. There is also a point system for skirmish battles as well as a command apparatus similar the line command concept in many board games. Under the hood perks include fatigue, variable wind and fog. Unfortunately, no, Eva Green is not featured in the Salamis scenario as Artemesia.

DLC-Expansion Modules: None.

Alea Jacta Est

Publisher/Developer: Matrix Games/AGEOD
Tags: ancients, operational, strategic, area, Rome, turn based WEGO
Purchase: $24.99 direct, also on Steam and Amazon

This game uses the venerable but reliable Adaptive Game Engine Online Distribution (AGEOD, get it) core to simulate five different campaigns 87 BC to 197 AD allowing for battles against the likes of Sertorius and Mithridates. Players manage diplomacy, recruitment and supply for their armies as they move from region to region simultaneously with the AI. Alea Jacta Est has a very professional looking presentation using leader portraits that gives it a more serious feel while the wealth of detail is truly impressive.

Status and record keeping for things such as battle losses are by individual units such as Legions, Auxilia or similar. The title is Latin for “the die is cast,” supposedly muttered by Julius Caesar when he crossed the Rubicon and the game won the Bronze award for Best Strategy Game at Strategycon Interactive 2012.

DLC-Expansion Modules: Hannibal: Terror of Rome, Parthian Wars, Cantabrian Wars, Spartacus Revolt, Birth of Rome

Ancient Warfare: Punic Wars

Publisher/Developer: HPS Simulations
Tags: ancients, tactical, hex, miniatures, John Tiller, turn based WEGO, Hannibal.
Purchase: $39.95 digital direct

Part of the company’s Ancient Warfare series, this game is based on John Tiller design concepts, but uses a WEGO turn system rather than the normal alternating turn sequence. Each hex is 20 meters while each turn represents 15 minutes of real time. There are 41 scenarios (17 historical, 8 hypothetical, 16 Table Top Series) covering actions such as Cannae, Asculum, Heraclea & Trebbia.

Table Top series engagements provide equally matched armies based on miniature wargaming points systems. The graphics are dated, and really no one has every matched the old Talonsoft painted look, but the game does allow for modification of both units and terrain under a “Paint Your Own Army” option.

DLC-Expansion Modules: None.

Ancient Warfare: Gallic Wars

Publisher/Developer: HPS Simulations
Tags: ancients, tactical, hex, miniatures, John Tiller, turn based WEGO, Julius Caesar.
Purchase: $49.95 direct

This game is part of the company’s Ancient Warfare series. There are 52 scenarios included (21 historical, 9 hypothetical & 22 from the Table Top Series) covering actions such as Alesia, Sambre, Vosges & Chaeronea. Siege warfare plays a much bigger role in this game vice others in the series.

DLC-Expansion Modules: Two free expansion packs for download, adding a total of 40 new scenarios.

Ancient Warfare: Alexandrian Wars

Publisher/Developer: HPS Simulations
Tags: ancients, tactical, hex, 3D, miniatures, John Tiller, turn based WEGO, Alexander the Great.
Purchase: $49.95 direct

Another in the series, there are 44 scenarios included (20 historical, 16 hypothetical & eight from the Table Top Series) covering actions such as Chaeronea, Pelium, Gabai and Hydaspes.

DLC-Expansion Modules: None.

Ancient Warfare: Greek Wars

Publisher/Developer: HPS Simulations
Tags: ancients, tactical, hex, 3D, miniatures, John Tiller, turn based WEGO, Phalanx
Purchase: $39.95 digital direct

This game series entry includes 60 scenarios covering the Persian Wars and various Greek vs Greek conflicts such as the Peloponnesian war between Athens and Sparta. This allows for battles such as Marathon, Thermopylae (and as with Salamis, no Gerard Butler as Leonidas) and Plataea. Like all the other games mentioned, there is an option to play  battles  from an overhead perspective with NATO unit symbology.

DLC-Expansion Modules: None.

Ancient Warfare: Roman Civil War

Publisher/Developer: HPS Simulations
Tags: ancients, tactical, hex regulated, miniatures, John Tiller, turn based WEGO, Julius Caesar, miniatures
Purchase: $39.95 digital direct

This game is listed only in the left sidebar of the HPS Ancient Warfare downloads page, so its availability is uncertain as is that of another product in the series, Diadochi covering the wars of Alexander’s successors. Roman Civil War covers the time frame of the Republic and Early Empire, 55 BC to 10 AD.

DLC-Expansion Modules: Two free expansion packs for download, one on the German Wars with 15 new scenarios, the other on the Jerusalem Wars with five new scenarios.

Great Battles Collector’s Edition

Publisher/Developer: Erudite Software/iEntertainment Network via GOG
Tags: ancients, tactical, hex, miniatures, GMT, turn based IGOUGO, Julius Caesar, Hannibal, Alexander the Great
Purchase: $5.99 digital direct from GOG

This game includes all three 1997 computer games – the Great Battles of Caesar, the Great Battles of Alexander and the Great Battles of Hannibal. It was a port of the GMT Great Battles of History series from cardboard to PC and was known for its attention to detail and accuracy, with particular emphasis on troop cohesion and routing.

One review summed it up by noting anyone can figure out Total War, “but if you want to replicate Hannibal's exploits, you'll need to put in the work!” Contains 30 scenarios and be advised the software defaults to Windows 95 Compatibility Mode automatically.

DLC-Expansion Modules: None.

What are your favourite war and strategy games covering this (admittedly expansive) period? Let us know in the comments!

We're going to be playing Steel Division 2 during its Beta period, keeping you updated on our thoughts and impressions before delivering our final review on launch day. This article is now updated with impressions from the final phase of the beta, which will be running right through till launch on the 20th June. The original text from past phases is below.

Ralph Peters, author of one of the better Cold War technothrillers: Red Army (thanks in no small part to it basically avoiding technology) once said that often his students would ask what the Soviet Army was “like”. He admits it’s a difficult thing to tie up an army in a few pithy phrases. At its heart, it’s what his book is about. His answer more or less went something like this: the Soviet Army is a bit like sex – when it’s good, it is extraordinary, amazing, but when its bad, it is so incredibly bad it is absolutely mortifying.

So, having played the beta of Steel Division 2 extensively over the past few months, what’s my opinion in the run up to launch? Look no further than the above.

Yesterday I played a game which was tooth and nail. We had barely two minutes on the clock before our team would lose. My ally beside me couldn’t push forward, the other two were stuck in messy street fighting. I had a tank division in front of me, and I myself had a very traditional infantry division whose biggest tank was an M3 Stuart (good for shooting infantry and nothing else much). Yet if I didn’t push right then we were certain to lose. In classic Australian army fashion, it was time to go: “up the guts with lots of smoke” – which is precisely what I did. The victory point before me was taken, any German tanks which dared show their face were covered off in more smoke, and we came back from certain defeat. Terrific stuff.

Other times? Well – let’s see. There was that time when, my Hungarian infantry having somehow advanced against an armoured division, I found the rest of my team to suck so hard that it all meant nothing and the entire other half of the map had fallen whilst I was working so hard to get a win. Then there’s this particular position on a particular map which has reinforcement points so poorly placed that if the enemy has half a brain he can cover the road your units arrive on with AT guns with the result that you cannot reinforce a third of the map – brilliant design work there Eugen. In a nutshell, you will encounter games which will make you swear on your life that you will uninstall the game at once and never play again.

All of this means it’s very hard to say definitively whether or not I can give a definitive answer on Steel Division 2. That, in itself, will depend heavily on your style of gameplay, your willingness to learn and, not least, your blood pressure. 

I can say one thing about it however. You should, if you have any interest in it at all, try it. Without a doubt; Until its release and if you pre-order it on Steam, you can refund the pre-order at any time if you don’t like it and get your money back pretty much no questions asked (just make sure you know when that release day is!) Better to find out whether it’s for you now rather than later where two hours mightn’t be enough to find out that Eugen’s brand of obsessive detail paired with fast paced button mashing isn’t for you.

Steel Division II really is a complex game and I pity anyone entering skirmishes and multiplayer (still the only gamemode really available) blind. Even someone with in-depth knowledge of World War II hardware will probably struggle. Tigers and Panthers are all very well, but the differences between a Horch 108 and a Kfz.70 are a bit more arcane. Multiplayer gamers are also, of course, less than understanding of new players and whilst the community isn’t the worst I’ve seen, it’s hardly the best either. The addition of levels being placed beside each player’s name in lobbies will mean that a newbie arriving on one side will see that side more than likely empty, as people have inevitable second thoughts about having to handhold a newbie.

On the other hand, certain bugs that were beginning to get very annoying have since the last update been fixed, and the arrival of new divisions (including some from the previous game) have added even more diversity to gameplay. Purists will grumble about a US Armored Division in Belarus, but the new options offered won at least this purist over (who doesn’t like an overload of .50 cals?) and settings are set to come that will allow a host to restrict available divisions to Eastern Front only ones if they are minded to.

And that, really, is all I can say for now. I myself will be buying the game (whilst I got beta access free, I’ll be handing over the proper review to a good comrade who can do the single player components better than I ever could).

For me, ultimately, it came down to the good games just about to outweighing the bad ones (plus the inclusion of Soviet Assault Engineer-Sappers, but that’s another story). That said, I can guarantee I will question my purchase more than once in times to come. Do try it; but be prepared to recognise that it mightn’t be for you, and if that is the case, life’s too short to waste on the rage I guarantee will flow from you. If you do push on, I may well see you on the battlefield. If you do, please be kind. Dasvidaniya.

Beta Phase 3 Update

This week, partly by popular demand but mostly because I’ve finally beginning to understand how it works, I’ll be look at all that’s going on behind the frontline in Steel Division II. We’ll look at supply, artillery and the role of higher commanders in multiplayer games. As this remains a multiplayer beta, we’re still unable to comment on single player aspects, but I suspect that a large amount of multiplayer will be applicable in tactical single player battles.

So – let’s begin with logistics. For those used to Eugen’s other offerings little has change. For those who haven’t, here’s the deal: you have a dedicated supply truck, you drive it to your forces in need of resupply, it refills them and after a certain amount of time it’s out of supplies and you’ll be in need of another truck. But Steel Division II does change things up a little. For a start, the arrival of APCR rounds (i.e. rounds that punch through armour better but do less damage) that are few in number means that you’ll want to have supply trucks on hand quickly to keep those weapons fighting most effectively.

Trust me, if a Panther or IS-2 is in the area then you will want them available. Similarly, the intensity of combat in Steel Division II means that you’ll be burning through artillery rounds (especially mortar rounds) very quickly. In sum, whilst supply has always been mandatory, you’ll be finding you’ll need specific supplies sooner than you’d expect.

Talking of artillery, let’s say it has changed quite a bit. I suspect it’s a while before we see its true depth, but my experiences suggests that if you want flexible artillery, which gets rounds on target now rather than next week, then you actually have to put some effort into tailoring your deck to allow that. The addition of radio equipped spotters (that help you aim shots better), as well as dedicated artillery commanders to improve veterancy, means that your artillery tab can end up having rather a lot of things which are not artillery in them.

Gone are the days when a solitary mortar could be set up and firing accurately in seconds. Artillery pieces, without command units, aim at a glacial pace. But, when those guns have proper commanders giving them veterancy, their rate of fire can reach absurd levels.

So let’s finish off with commanders. Basically, they’re a unit you plonk down somewhere and as long as they’re within radio range of subordinate commanders improve the quality of troops already in command. When they’re combined with artillery commanders in particular, they become a must buy.

I’d should emphasize the “must buy” feeling I get with these units. At this point, that is what concerns me most about their arrival. When I’m setting up my decks, I feel I have no choice but to include these units in my deck. The alternative (get more units) doesn’t seem worthwhile compared to these very useful force multipliers. What’s the point of having an extra set of artillery pieces if they are going to spend less time shooting than artillery that is in command range and able to barrage constantly. Perhaps as the game changes these concerns will be revealed to be baseless. We shall see.

Phase 2 Update

So – with a second beta done and dusted – how have my thoughts changed? First and foremost, I now suspect that a lot of my problems stemmed from the maps we were playing on being too small. The larger the map and the less players there were, the more tactical I felt the game becoming. Mindless spam gave way to a more careful balancing of options as the situation developed. The ability to flank and manoeuvre, denied to me in games with more players, were possible for me to undertake in the smaller games I played (or rather, they were undertaken on me!) With that in mind, I can only hope that maps that are suitable for larger numbers of players are added to the mix.

Doubtless, a number of you will be interested in the surprise coop feature that was added in the second beta. I’m afraid I have bad news. It is simply a standard skirmish game you can set up against the AI, but with one extra player a side. Make no mistake, Steel Division 2’s AI is no push over, but the fact remains that anyone looking for anything more will be left disappointed. The mode might as well be the (equally ordinary) historical scenarios of the previous entry – though without objectives to at least provide some relief from the standard skirmish format.

The new divisions added are interesting. As the English-speaking world’s only specialist on Soviet Assault Engineer-Sapper Brigades (by virtue of being the one I know of to have written anything in English on the subject!), it warmed my heart to see those arcane formations represented faithfully in the new Soviet deck – although some might question their balance. On the other hand, my experience of the new German infantry deck left me cold. More than likely this was because of its very different play style to the armoured deck we received in the first beta. With a quite weak selection of tanks and a set of poorly armoured tank destroyers to back them up, made up for by a superb collection of infantry units, I felt altogether exposed playing these guys! I sense however that; in skilled hands they could be a deadly foe.

This current beta has to an extent assuaged the concerns I set out below. The new divisions, particularly the German one I mentioned, suggest there will be a lot more ways to play – a long range deck that prefers to stand off from its opponents on account of weak armour is a relatively novel experience for this Steel Division player. Other concerns haven’t gone away, and I doubt ever will. Lobby multiplayer is what it is – be glad the business is hopefully done in under an hour. We still have yet to see the single player, but I think it is worth stressing the potential for a lot more variety in playstyles in Steel Division 2. Tank combat’s range increase, in particular for lightly armoured tank destroyers, may well make for a larger variety of engagements and options than we’ve seen previously. Time will tell on this one. I look forward to what the next beta offers.

Original Story

I was, and still am, really impressed with what I see in Steel Division II. First impressions matter and so far this game feels right. The sound of gunfire is superb (mostly, the less said about the .50 cals the better) and the graphics upgrade alone is magnificent. Shot down aircraft rival flight sims for looks, smoke from burning wreckage rising from the battlefield is suitably ominous and the sight of tracer fire rising over the battlefield are some of the best-looking effects I’ve seen in any game.

Then there’s the sheer amount of different hardware that you can bring to each game. Eugen’s trademark for a while now has been putting in as many different kinds of stuff they can. I’d swear they’ve outdone themselves with the number of types, models and variants in even this small beta. As a long time 'enthusiast' for the period, and with aspirations to study it academically, seeing so vast a range of weaponry in just this first beta makes me very happy indeed. 

Nor, pleasingly, does Steel Division II fall into the trap that certain other popular RTS games (not looking at you Company of Heroes 2) fall into whereby the Soviets are portrayed monolithically as lumbering morons. By 1944 the Soviets (with much trial and error) were truly a match for the Wehrmacht and its allies and the game reflects this with options you have available.

But, make no mistake, despite those options, it is a small beta. Two maps, one 'division' (the term is flexible on the Eastern Front) a side, and that’s about it. You’d think it’d get old fast. Yet Eugen’s deck-building shines through and the range of setups, especially with the new options to deckbuilding, are even larger than before. 

Now – at this point – you’d be forgiven for thinking that the rest of this article is going to be the same fawning as has gone on so far. Let me be clear. I’m giving you all the good things because I want to prejudice you toward liking Steel Division II. It’s a beautiful game, there’s more options than ever, there’s more action than ever – that is all good. Yet I find myself, even at this very early stage of the beta, having issues with it. These issues are in addition to the largely unrectified problems that were present in the previous entry that resulted in two-thirds of my time with it being categorized under 'waste'. 

Even before you enter a game, there’s the lobby system with all its 'quirks' to contend with. Between stacked teams, first minute dropouts and questionable settings and game modes that favour one side overmuch, getting an even half decent game is about one in three. Then there’s the gameplay itself. The reasons for my unease are somewhat complex and it’s hard to cover them all together since they all feed off one another. Nevertheless, let’s start off with the maps. I’m afraid to say they disappointed me. Whilst Eugen claim they’re derived from genuine period maps, I find that claim extremely doubtful. We’ve seen genuine maps before – in Steel Division: Normandy '44. They had their flaws (like whole sections of the map being inaccessible to one side due to there being no roads to them which didn’t go via the frontline), but each had their own character and had that ring of truth that added to the experience. Then we come to Steel Division II where the maps feel decidedly artificial (if pretty) and furthermore don’t take advantage of being artificial to make gameplay better. 

This brings us to the second part of the issue. The firing range of tank guns (as well as field and AT guns) have almost doubled from the original Steel Division. You would think the maps would compensate for this – but they do not. Although they are approximately the same size as the original’s, the general lack of cover, as well as the increase in range, combine to mean that the maps if anything feel smaller. All these factors combine to shut down the ability for players to come back from reverses. The maps only make things worse. On the maps available capture of the center capture point on either flank and the hill that came with it gave the defender the ability to make any counter-attack exceptionally difficult. When you have a Tiger overlooking a road from atop a hill that can shoot almost two-thirds of the way to the edge of the map – reinforcing other threatened areas and trying to maneuver around that 88mm armed problem is exceptionally difficult. Instead of giving me ways to manage the problem and options to work around it, all the maps do instead is to make me think resistance is futile. 

“But! What about smoke?” I hear you cry. “What about artillery?” That brings me to my final problem that only magnifies my issues above. The sheer amount of stuff available to both sides. Do not think that Tiger is alone. This isn’t the original Steel Division and the enemy hasn’t spent their entire income for two minutes on that one AFV. Steel Division II’s battlefield is a lot busier. A single card of tanks in SDII would be a whole division’s worth in SD:44. They’re cheaper too. If I saved up a little (not hard depending on how your deck is fitted out), I could have 10 T-34s arriving to support an attack. Nor is such largesse limited to the late game. Depending on settings, it is perfectly possible to deploy for battle with two Tigers ready to go. The end result is that, even if, with much work (and luck), you crack that Tiger, the chances are there’s a Panther or three arriving – and you’re back to square one. By the second day of testing, the meta had formed, which was to pile on as many artillery pieces and tanks you could get as early as you could. Even if you win an engagement, you’d be punished by the enemy artillery ranging in on you and making sure the frontline didn’t move a centimetre. It wasn’t fun and if the enemy had the upper hand it just felt like a waste of time.

Coming from my initial praise, it might feel like I’m being hard on the game; but all these factors combine to make the experience dangerously unfun. As a veteran of Steel Division and Eugen’s other games, I have at least some grounding in the series’ foibles and I fear for anyone coming tp this as a fresh-faced recruit.

As an additional defence for SDII, I should emphasize how subject to change much of this is. It could well be everything is bigger so that Eugen had thoroughly test the game and discover as much weirdness hidden in the code as possible. If so, they’ve done it right and much of what's defined the beta's current meta is actually down to cost, something which is easily tweaked and balanced. The new capture point system rewards fighting over objectives rather than creeping forward until you own 52% of the map and stopping. It makes for more action and gives each action more purpose. But it is all, for the present, undermined by the game not realizing that its grown a lot bigger now and needs to give players some breathing room to fight their battles.

I know I’ll be returning to Steel Division II as soon as the next beta appears. It may well be that the very next beta invalidates most of this article. I hope it does. For the moment however, whilst I’ll gladly return to it personally, it's hard to make a general recommendation based on the strength of this first beta. Granted, we've only played a limited slice of the game's multiplayer component, which is only half the story. The 'Army General' campaign is going to be an entirely different beast altogether (and much of what I'm worried about above doesn't apply to it) and we're very interested in seeing how that plays. Still, those on the fence might as well perch there a little while longer.

Steel Division 2 is due out on June 20th. Anyone who pre-orders the game will be given access to all of the Beta tests from now until launch.

So I’ve been playing an unhealthy amount of Rule the Waves 2 this week – what a revelation. It’s both utterly compelling and maddeningly obtuse at the same time – but only to my modern sensibilities. I’ve quite enjoyed it, although trying to keep up with the AI in terms of ship advancements is tough, especially as a smaller nation with limited budget.

My own personal tastes lean towards science-fiction, so I’d love to to play something like this set in space. Doesn’t even have to be grand sci-fi – an Expanse like scenario set in the Solar system would also be quite cool. Beyond that, I’d love for Rule the Waves to expand it’s emergent narrative elements – there’s a lot of really cool potential here. Also for the love of god, get some tooltips.

Meanwhile, in the world of wargaming…

Matrix Games & Slitherine

Armored Brigade is getting more love this week: not only is a Steam version finally happening, but Matrix have also opened up a sub-forum to assist with collecting research on various countries during the period. So far they have forums for France, Belgium, Czechoslovakia and Canada, and you can suggest additional ones if you want.

Note this doesn’t mean they are guaranteed to appear in the next DLC, or any DLC for that matter, it’s just the devs want to start creating easily accessible places for research materials on Cold War armies and Orbats, to assist in the devs own work but also for any modders who want to make their own content for the game.

Also note the disclaimers on the news post so you don’t get into trouble.

In other news, Field of Glory: Empires now has a release date – July 11^th. It’s a bit later than we were expecting; the last report we had indicated by the end of June but it’s not a big deal. Here’s a quick trailer recapping everything you need to know about the game.

Speaking of Field of Glory - it seems we're not the only ones who go in for super in-depth guides on niche subjects. A Matrix forum user has compiled a complete guide to all of Field of Glory II's available Army Lists as of Wolves at the Gate. There's nearly 300 of them now, in case you were wondering, so this is a pretty hench document. but it provides a little blurb on each army/faction combo available with some images. Check it out here.

We’ve also got our first Dev Diary for WarPlan, the new grand strategy WW2 game that’s in the works. It’s mainly an introduction from the lead developer Alvaro Sousa, and covers his own personal history and his inspirations for the game. We’re still not really sure what to make of this project – we have a beta article in progress which we’ll be able to share with you soon.

Last but certainly not least, there’s also been another dev diary for Fantasy General II. This one covers the combat system in general:

Naval Action Leaves Early Access

Game-Labs – the creators of Ultimate General: Civil War– have finally released their Age of Sail-era hardcore naval simulation Naval Action from Early Access.

Be careful when rushing to check it out though – there community itself already seems a bit unhappy with how things have turned out, and the presence of at least £100’s worth of DLC that all seems to be ships has me suspicious – Wargaming.net struggles with accusations of ‘pay-to-win’ amongst its own premium vessels in World of Warships, and similar accusations are being brought against Naval Action.

Coupled with reports of a lot grind, and lack-lustre PvE features, this might be one to wait out and see where the wind blows.

That's all we have time for this week - if you spot anything else of interest, let us know in the comments!