Favorite wargame?

[Tim Brooks]

I remember playing an SSI game called Gettysburg: The Turning Point. I used to play this game until my eyes crossed. You couldn't tear me away from it. Awesome. Horse & Musket reminds me of this game quite a bit.

[reimero]

Well, since you asked, the game I liked least was Three-Sixty's Patriot. Man, that game was awful!!! I was sooo looking forward to playing it after playing Harpoon, which was very well done, and it was the pits! The learning curve was steep, the graphics were poor, confusing and cheap, and the realism seemed to be... lacking.

On a related note, the game that got me excited about the possibilities of computer wargaming was Harpoon, which I first saw on an Amiga in Europe. The graphics weren't the most spectacular, but since the designers knew graphics would be hard, they made the interface look like a radar display. It does a great job with FOW (even throwing in fishing trawlers and news helecopters you need to ID.) Actually, I still think it's one of the better-done wargames out there, especially of those designed for DOS. But because the graphics are less than intensive (but by no means crappy - the map modelling is very well done) it means that the game is using even more realistic data and weapons behave as one would expect. I still have it and would play a lot more frequently if I could find a DOS driver for my mouse

[WendellM]

"Well, since you asked, the game I liked least was Three-Sixty's Patriot"

I never played Patriot, but I had similar high hopes for Wargasm. That game's graphics are awesome, but the unit control is terrible. When I play TacOps, I visualize Wargasm - maybe DiD (if DiD is still in business) could sell the engine to Major H! On the other hand, HnM's graphics are my idea of functionality. The icons have more men if the unit is larger, and you can see all the units' disruption or morale numerically at a glance (an improvement over Dragoon, though I prefer that game's sharper unit icons over the newer ones which are smoother, but seem a bit "out of focus," at least in the demo).

Wendell

[This message has been edited by WendellM (edited 15 January 2000).]

[nikb]

In the weekend I fluked a site where you can download old games. I fell upon Perfect General II (it was PG I that I had previously played to death).

Downloaded the beauty and got stuck into the game play.

Wow...its funny how things date and badly at that. It wasn't just the graphics that had dated, it was alot of the actual game play. Now I'm scarred, its ruined a fond memory I have had since the mid 20's.

You tend to forget how things advance over so short of time. I think that game was only put out in the mid 90's. Hell, I would hate to see some of the older games I was playing in the late 80's and thought were super techno games.

I was going to see if I could crank up Tanks - but I do not won't to ruin that memory. I cherish those days!

Nik

[Trekkie]

My favourite war game has got to be Command and Conquer: Tiberian Sun, Firestorm! I love the storyline. It isn't just 'shoot everything in sight', it's 'target this... and this... then capture this...' which is what I like about it. I can create strategies and battle plans other than 'get the biggest gun there is and bLast the enemy into oblivion.'

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(Trust me, I'm a Trekkie!)

[VampiricDread]

Well, that's a difficult question on wargaming. If you're talking about the non-computerized, but cardboarded Versions, I like the ones I've designed (some of them published at a local newspaper long, long ago), some still waiting in the shelf, plus a number of others for entirely different reasons, namely: Starship Troopers (AH), StarForce (SPI), Squad Leader (AH), and Silent Death (ICE). Not to mention Third Reich (AH), The Arab-Israeli Wars (AH), and others...

Computer-wise, I think the offer has surpassed the pockets and available time for most of common mortals: I recall some oldies in different areas of gaming, though I think the Command & Conquer series set a standard and a place for them. PURE wargaming, which is a very difficult thing to define in the times we now live in, is open to discussion.

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I wish I had more time to adventure...

[This message has been edited by VampiricDread (edited 28 May 2001).]

[This message has been edited by VampiricDread (edited 28 May 2001).]

[Argh]

Hrmm. . . some classics, in no particular order, which have caught my attention and been enjoyable:

OGRE, by Steve Jackson Games. Very grim, not terribly detailed but quite well-balanced and fun.

Warhammer 40K, Rogue Trader, by Games Workshop(mainly Jason Priestly).(not the ugly kiddie game that's out now, the original hardback). Again, not a wargame in the classic "armchair general" mold, it was nonetheless a very enjoyable tactical sim.

X-COM Terror of the Deep. In many ways, I feel that this Version of X-COM was the best, even though it recieved very tepid reviews at the time of release. The designers worked very hard to correct some of the obvious holes in play balance of the first title, and made it into an entirely new mess

Squad Leader. Well, gee. . . what can I say about this game that hasn't been said before? If you like detail, this is a great game. . . if you don't, they provide some speed-ups to the rules system that work fairly well. I personally preferred 40K- the models and diorama work made it fascinating when I was 12-13.

Ogre Battle(the Playstation 'gold' Version). A surprisingly intricate and difficult game, combining strategic ruthlessness with odd lessons in Japanese cultural attitudes. A very difficult game to win.

Warhammer, Shadow of the Horned Rat(pc Version, the playstation Version is almost unplayable due to control problems). This has to be one of the most excruciatingly difficult games of its type. The battles are all 'set piece', in terms of timing, and the AI isn't brilliant. What makes the game intriguing is the resource management. Unlike most games of its type, it's very likely you'll want to ditch a game halfway through, because you'd made an error. . . but at the same time, it's such an interesting challenge that I, at least, come back again and again.

Battletech, by FASA Corporation. In its early, pure form, Battletech was a mighty clean game, but I think FASA stumbled later on, as it continued to tinker with its game system, as opposed to its unit lists and terrain rules. Dissapointing, but the early Versions were nice. . .

Anyhoo, these are just my opinions