Strategy and Wargaming

Wargame managed to attract a large player base, by offering radically different gameplay from other RTS games, featuring original mechanics, spectacular visuals, and a gaming experience of extreme realism and unprecedented tactical depth, with the series becoming richer and more ambitious with every new game. Today, the Wargame franchise reaches a major milestone with its millionth copy sold!

Faithful to their principles of consistent post-launch game support – notably with free additional content – Eugen Systems celebrates this event by offering to all Wargame: Red Dragon players its first free DLC, fittingly named The Millionth Mile!

Focusing on the Eastern Bloc coalition, The Millionth Mile features more than 60 new units for Poland, Czechoslovakia, and East-Germany, bringing them into the 90′s and on an equal footing with Red Dragon’s main nations. The entire range of units are represented in the DLC: Infantry, tanks, planes, troop transports, and of course helicopters.

But The Millionth Mile also introduces a brand new kind of unit, in the form of an AShM (anti-ship missile!) truck carrier. These units, whose main function is to engage ships over long distances from the land, increase the tactical depth of the game while redefining Wargame’s naval warfare!

Wargame: Red Dragon players will find their game has been automatically updated with the DLC The Millionth Mile next time they launch the game. Reinforcements have arrived, the battle continues!

Get more game information at the official Wargame: Red Dragon Website.

Acclaimed by the press and rewarded by the community with the Digital Strategic Game of the Year 2012 title attributed by the Grogheads readers, Commander: the Great War is reduced in price, and is finally reaching new platforms with its releases on both the iPad App Store and Steam today.

In the iPad version of the game you will find all the elements that contributed to the success of the PC version, giving you a unique wargaming experience on your tablet. Creating such a complex wargame on a tablet device was a huge challenge and The Lordz Games Studio has been optimizing this gem for months so as not to sacrifice any feature from the game on PC. The huge campaign map, 5 grand campaigns, unit customization, research and technology panels, realistic combat model, cross platform multiplayer and gameplay adapted to the touchscreen platform turns Commander: The Great War into the deepest World War I simulation on iPad.

And we should not forget our PC community! We are glad to announce that the game is releasing on Steam as well (later today). Faithful to our habits, we are also going to offer a free Steam key to anyone who has a copy of the PC game, wherever they bought it from, once the game is available on this digital platform!All they have to do is register their serial here and they will be able to redeem a free key to add the game to their Steam library!

Developed by The Lordz Games Studio, Commander The Great War is a turn-based strategy game that captures this time of war with unprecedented realism and accuracy. A huge-hex based campaign map that stretches from the USA in the west, Africa and Arabia to the south, Scandinavia to the north and the Urals to the east, is the setting for 5 grand campaigns, each starting in a different year of the war.

Click here for the official Steam product page.

Click here to get Commander: The Great War on iPad.

Muzzy Lane Software announced today that their WWI grand strategy title Making History: The Great War will remain in development through August. The game will continue to be available to players at a discounted price as part of Steam’s Early Access program as well as here at GHQ and at Gamer’s Gate. A new release date has been scheduled for September 9th.

“We’ve been pushing very hard to meet the July 28th date for release,” says Muzzy Lane CEO Dave McCool, “But we also have committed ourselves from the start to not release the game unless we feel it’s ready to go. We feel TGW will benefit greatly from these additional weeks of polish and balancing, which are critical to getting the best player experience from a strategy title such as this.”

Muzzy Lane will continue to release regular updates throughout the extension, just as it has during the entire time the game has been in early access. The company feels confident players will support their decision. “Our community wants the same thing we do,” says McCool, “The best possible WWI strategy game. We believe this is the best choice we can make to be certain that happens.”

The current discounted price of $29.99 will remain until the time of the official release, after which the game will sell for $39.99. More information as well as community discussion of TGW is ongoing at the Steam community hub and at the game’s website.

Paradox Interactive and Paradox Development Studio today released Res Publica, the newest expansion for Europa Universalis IV, the award-winning grand strategy game of empire-building and global domination. Res Publica provides eager emperors and dedicated dictators with new options for trading and governing their empires, and is available now for Windows, Mac, and Linux for $4.99. Players can purchase and download the expansion now at www.europauniversalis4.com.

System Requirements Revealed

Firefly Studios has just released the minimum system requirements for their long awaited ‘castle sim’ sequel Stronghold Crusader 2. Having entered closed Beta last week, most of the remaining developing time on Crusader 2 will be spent optimising the game’s performance on PC and tweaking gameplay.

“When we first announced Stronghold Crusader 2 one of the first pieces of information released was that the game will use a newly enhanced 3D engine. By this point the team was so experienced with the Havok Vision Engine that learning something completely new and moving away from 3D would be a waste of that knowledge. Our stated goal with Crusader 2 was to create the best 3D Stronghold game yet and that’s exactly what we intent to deliver.

Everyone here at Firefly wants the playability of the 2D Stronghold titles within a 3D space and our enhanced version of the Vision Engine has thankfully provided us with the tools needed to achieve this. Naturally a concern for players at the time was ‘Will the game run on my machine?’. This is a fair question and of course we are aiming to get the game running on a wide range of systems, performance being just as high on our list of priorities as bug fixing. With the game currently in beta and as such feature-complete, we have already had time to focus on optimisation and performance testing. As a result, we have been able to determine the minimum system requirements for Stronghold Crusader 2.”

The minimum PC system requirements for Stronghold Crusader 2 are as follows:

• Operating System: Windows® XP/Windows Vista/Windows 7/Windows 8 (latest service packs) with DirectX 9.0c
• Processor: Intel Core2 Duo 2Ghz or equivalent
• Memory: 2GB RAM
• Video: NVIDIA® GeForce® 8800GT 512MB or AMD Radeon™ HD 2900XT 512MB or better
• Storage: 6 GB available HD space
• Internet: Broadband Internet connection

The latest entry in Firefly’s best selling series of medieval real-time strategy games, Stronghold Crusader 2 is set to appear online and in store shelves on September 2nd 2014.

For more information please visit the official Stronghold Crusader 2 website.

Enhanced simulation mechanics, new features and expanded database.

Acclaimed by both modern warfare specialists and wargaming enthusiasts, Command: Modern Air/Naval Operations has swept the awards since its release last September, including the Usenet’s Wargame of The Year 2013 and the gold medal for Grogheads Game of the Year 2013 readers’ award. Developers Warfare Sims have not rested on their laurels though as they have been working on several updates since the release of the game. These patches, including the newest 1.04 released today, have included a whole host of new features, improvements on the simulation engine and user interface, bug fixes and a veritable avalanche of database updates and additions.

Here is the list of some of the major improvements implemented in this new version:

• Configurable strike auto-planner. Your planes plot intelligent paths for their missions (complete with multiple off-axis ingress and egress lines, split-to-attack and form-up waypoints, suitable altitudes for each leg etc.). As always you can tweak the strike plan to perfection.
• An extensive array of UI enhancements such as wireframe-only map view, selection-only range symbols, new hotkeys, menu list for quick-jump slots, additional information on the database viewer, configurable ghosted-unit visibility, configurable plotted course visibility, one-click jump to unit mission, single-icon enemy groups and more.
• AI and mission editor additions such as configurable sprint-and-drift, optional prosecution areas for patrols (goodbye fainted drawn-out patrol assets and edge-of-envelope SAM shots, hello true SAM-ambushes!), new doctrine options and more.
• Improved simulation mechanics such as multiple cloud conditions, refined offboard-sonar modelling, ABM/ASAT guidance refinements, realism improvements for anti-missile engagements, longer-range AI torpedo shots and more.
• Significant performance & stability improvements.
• A mile-long list of database additions including future Virginia SSGN versions, Tomahawk MMT, M982 Excalibur guided 155mm artillery, KC-46 tanker, MC-130 with the BLU-82 “Daisy Cutter” & GBU-43 MOAB mega-bombs, Chinese “High New” C4-ISR series, the entire Ukraine naval OOB, Oscar-III SSGN, JLENS, tons of Vietnam-era units, hypothetical systems like the F-19A, A/F-117X, Boeing 747 ALCM carrier and generic CATOBAR mini-carrier, and much more.

Grab the patch here.

Click here for the full changelog.

Get more information on Command: Modern Air/Naval Operations from its official product page.

SEGA of America, Inc. and SEGA Europe Ltd. today announced that Company of Heroes 2: The Western Front Armies, the much-awaited first big content offering for the tactical strategy blockbuster Company of Heroes 2 is now available in store and online. Company of Heroes 2: The Western Front Armies brings players back to the Western Front first introduced in the original award-winning Company of Heroes. The Western Front Armies introduces two unique collections of new content – the US Forces and the German Oberkommando West.

Each individual army will also be available as a standalone purchase via digital download, providing new players with a minimal entry point into the massive Company of Heroes 2 multiplayer community, regardless of which content they own. A ll Company of Heroes 2 players can then battle across 31 maps (along with more than 1000 community maps available on Steam Workshop) in auto-match multiplayer.

The addition of US Forces has been the most requested army since Company of Heroes 2 first launched, by a large margin. Each new army has distinctive tactical gameplay options, new infantry, team weapons, vehicles, abilities and upgrades on a total of eight seasonal multiplayer maps set on the Western Front. They have been carefully balanced to ensure optimal game play with previously released armies.

For more information, please visit the official Company of Heroes 2 Website.

A stunning illustration of just how terrifying even the ‘quiet’ moments in war can be

Source: Gamer’s Hell

SEGA has released a new video for The Western Front Armies, a standalone multiplayer expansion for Company of Heroes 2 due to arrive on June 24th. Customers who pre-order The Western Front Armies will receive two unique vehicle skins (one for each faction) with matching faceplates.

Bringing players back to the Western Front first introduced in the original Company of Heroes, The Western Front Armies introduces two unique collections of new content – the US Forces and the German Oberkommando West. Each army has distinctive tactical gameplay options, new infantry, team weapons, vehicles, abilities and upgrades on a total of eight seasonal multiplayer maps set on the Western Front.

The Western Front Armies also includes a new progression system that introduces other unique content into the game and enables players to dive deeper into the tactical and strategic aspects of the game.

WATCH VIDEO IN HD (Hosted by YouTube – 01:17)

Today we are happy to share with you that Germany at War: Barbarossa 1941, the approachable and historical Eastern Front strategy title developed by Phobetor, is now patched to version 1.05. This patch fixes a number of issues, fine tuning the game more than ever before. Other than these fixes and changes, patch 1.05 includes several new additions, including a whole new multiplayer map!

Get the latest patch HERE. (Direct Link)

CLICK HERE for the full changelog.

CLICK HERE for more information about Germany at War: Barbarossa 1941.

“If we come to a minefield, our infantry attacks exactly as if it were not there.” (Georgy Zhukov – Marshal of the Soviet Union – 1945)

June 21, 1941 – Germany opens a new front in World War II with the launch of its ambitious military plan designed to lead its armies to Moscow. This was the starting point of a terrifying conflict that lasted almost 4 years and engaged millions of men, tanks, planes and weapons of all types.

In Battle Academy 2, players will be able to take command of Soviet and German forces at the tactical level. While this sequel includes everything that made the previous game so absorbing and accessible, it also introduces new features for a deeper and richer strategy experience. With more than 130 units, a brand new skirmish mode, random map generator, 4 single players campaigns, versus and cooperative multiplayer modes and enhanced with new tactical tools, players are bound to fight some unforgettable battles in Mother Russia.

Today, we are proud to share some screenshots taken from the current version of the game. They feature combat in various environments – from Russian frozen steppes to huge devastated cities – including plenty of historical units that fought on the Eastern Front between 1941 and 1945.

Director of Development, Iain McNeil, said “The Early Access Program for Battle Academy 2 has really helped focus in on what the players want and make sure we’re making the game they want to play. The improvements over the last few months have turned this from a good game in to a great one and we couldn’t have done this without the community.”

Battle Academy 2 is currently available with an Early Access Program on PC. By joining the program, the players will support the development and get a chance to contribute to the game directly.

Battle Academy 2 is set to be released July 2014. Get more information on the game from its official product page.