Strategy and Wargaming

The Command LIVE project has officially taken off. The first release, Old Grudges Never Die, is available for purchase at the Matrix Games Store and on Steam.

We are really proud of this first episode and of the project as a whole. Developers WarfareSim and Bart Gauvin, an experienced designer from the community, have worked hard to bring this project to life and this is only the start. It’s the first time a detailed simulation takes on real life events to create such detailed fictional, but true-to-life scenarios.

Old Grudges Never Die, in particular,features a highly detailed geopolitical what if scenario, set in the present day Syrian Civil War.

Two playable factions, Turkey and Russia, have been engrossed in this conflict, where every false step could further destabilize the entire region. With dozens of actors involved, the slightest incident could ignite a war.

Take command and avoid escalating the conflict to an all out war, or be ready to face the consequences!

Command Live: Old Grudges Never Die now and play history as it happens. Live!

The game is an expansion for Command: Modern/Air Naval Operations and require the base game to be played.

Check for more details from the Command Live: Old Grudges Never Die product page here!

Command LIVE. Play history live, as it happens.

Command LIVE is a very ambitious project. Its aim is to recreate highly accurate scenarios from real-world situations and events, as they happen. WarfareSims has teamed up with the best editors and modders from the community, to create short, engaging scenarios that re-create real life events. Where geopolitical instability calls for military power to come into play, the Command LIVE project calls for players.

The first DLC to be released under this name is Old Grudges Never Die. Players take control of either Russian or Turkish forces in the attempt to maintain national honor and pride, while keeping a lid on hostilities to prevent the outbreak of larger conflict.

This scenario follows on from the real events of November 2015, when a Russian Su-24 was shot down by a Turkish F-16. The consequent geopolitical situation and the interests at stake, including the involvement of NATO, Syrian and rebel forces and ISIS, create a set of circumstances where every false move can end up in a bloodshed.

To better understand the historical landscape and the forces in play, the Command LIVE News Network has put a reporter on the ground and we have just received her video report! Watch it here!

The editorial team has also sent a report that we have published into the first issue of a newspaper (.PDF link) that will be published alongside each Command LIVE scenario.

Command Live: Old Grudges Never Die is an expansion for Command: Modern/Air Naval Operations will be available on July 19th on our stores and on Steam!

Check for more details from its product page here!

Winter (War) is coming!

The news many of you were waiting for: are you ready to brave the frozen lakes of Finland and the thick snow of Karelia? Order of Battle: Winter War is going to be released this summer (ironic, isn’t it?) on July 21st!

Order of Battle: Winter War brings the highly praised and extremely successful Order of Battle formula to a conflict never covered before by any other game in such detail.

Will you manage to lead the outnumbered Finnish forces and stop the red tide in the Winter War? Will you regain ground in the Continuation War? Will you master arctic warfare in the unique Finnish landscape? Will you be able to make the best out of the many new units at your disposal?

A campaign of 13 new linked scenarios, more than 90 new units and a new way to wage war: Winter War will be available on our store and on Steam on July 21st.

Me taistelemme kodin, uskonnon ja isänmaan puolesta! (We are fighting for home, religion and on behalf of the motherland!)

It’s time to take your skis out.

Find out more at the official Order of Battle: Winter War webpage.

By James Cobb @ The Wargamer

After three years of meticulous preparation, the fighting can begin. For this part of the review, I’ve gone straight in with the ’1939′ starting option – trying out both Germany and Japan as they present very different starting positions.

Read on…

By Matrix Games

Matrix Games has published an interview with Lukas Nijsten, game designer behind the Order of Battle series. He speaks at length of the upcoming expansion, Winter War, as well as the saga in general, and gives us a hint on what we can expect next.

“The Winter War turned out to be an ideal step toward the European theatre of WW2. Because the Chinese forces in Morning Sun use a lot of Soviet aircraft and vehicles from the 1930′s, a substantial number of required unit models were already available. In addition, it allowed us to create a small subset of German and Soviet WW2 units, as well as the new winter climate, as a stepping stone toward future Eastern and Western Front campaigns.”

Read on…

Field of Glory re-released in a new engine and new exclusive content!

The day has come: Field of Glory is being re-released today! Alongside two new DLCs: Oath of Fealty and Wolves from the Sea.

The game has been completely remade using the Unity engine, allowing a greater than ever flexibility and sporting enhanced mechanics. This new release contains plenty of new scenarios and game settings both in Single and Multiplayer, a completely new and functional UI, a greatly improved AI, a new full game replay system, as well as countless fixes and improvements to the data files!

And the best news is that all of this is completely free to all those who already own Field of Glory!

This new version is stand alone and you won’t need to install it on the previous version. It’s also highly recommended that you read these threads to understand what is different and how the transition between the two engines will work:

• Field of Glory Unity – General FAQ
• Field of Glory Unity – How to download and Install
• Field of Glory Unity – How to convert custom scenarios

Please note that this version will be supported in the future and patched: the work on Field of Glory is not done and we’ll continue to work on it and bring you even more content and features.

This new release is coming with a 50% permanent price reduction on all Field of Glory DLCs! From now on, all DLCs are priced at $ 9.99.

Complete your collection: it’s now cheaper than ever. These price changes also apply to the two newly released DLCs, Oath of Fealty and Wolves from the Sea.

Get more game information about Field of Glory at the games official product page.

By James Cobb @ The Wargamer

Grand strategy games have always had two components: civilian and military. Although intertwined, one part usually dominants the other. Paradox Interactive’s fourth rendition of its World War II series, Hearts of Iron, may hay hit upon a way where each component is equal. To do this, the game is now very deep and comprehensive – so much so that each part, civilian and military, deserves its own review.

Read on…

We are finally there. The new and updated Field of Glory is finally coming!

The game has been completely remade using the Unity engine, allowing a greater than ever flexibility.

What is new in this version? Plenty of new scenarios and game settings both in Single and Multiplayer! A completely new and enhanced UI! A greatly improved AI! A full game replay system! Countless fixes and improvements to the data files!

This update will be released for free to all those who already own Field of Glory on the 7th of July!

But it’s not all: two new DLCs are being released alongside the update!

In Oath of Fealty you will relive the heroic deeds and epic feats of the age of Chivalry in medieval Europe. From England’s Anarchy to the slaughter of the Albigensian Crusade, kings, nobles, and clergy all vied for power and wealth. Out of this bloodshed, however, arose one of the most honored ideals of history – the Code of Chivalry. With new troop types, historical backgrounds and accompanying maps and artwork, Oath of Fealty allows Field of Glory generals to take up arms in defense of honor, Faith and liege lord.

Get ready to experience the brutality of the Dark Ages in Wolves from the Sea. Attack from out of the sea mist to bring fire and sword to the peoples of Europe as a Viking Jarl, or stand in the Saxon shieldwall in defense of your homes with Wolves From the Sea, the new Field of Glory army pack. With the decline of Rome, the Empire fell prey to barbarian hordes – the dark ages had come. With hundreds of new troop types this army pack allows gamers to recreate and rewrite the entire history of this savage period, from King Arthur to Alfred the Great.

Hearts of Iron IV Gets Some Expert Analysis - Swedish Officer Evaluates the Wargame as First Major Patch Arrives

One test of a strategic wargame is whether real-world military expertise and planning translates to the virtual space. We invited Lieutenant-Colonel Conny Hansen of the Swedish Armed Forces to play Hearts of Iron IV in our studio so he could get the measure of Paradox Development Studio’s newest grand strategy wargame.

In this short video, you can watch Lt. Col. Hansen plot an American war strategy that puts the Pacific theatre first. What will await him when he finally looks across the Atlantic? Stay to the end for his final verdict on Hearts of Iron IV.

Meanwhile, away from Central Command, the Paradox team has been busy patching Hearts of Iron IV. Here’s a quick rundown of the improvements you can expect in this first major update to the game:

• Command Group Postures: Your armies can now carry out orders Carefully, Balanced, or in a Rush.
• New Template Design: An empty template for new division designs is now available in the edit division drop-down tab.
• AI Production Priorities: Computer controlled opponents will have a greater emphasis on infantry and fighter production.
• Making Friends: Computer controlled opponents will be more likely to grant military access to countries fighting a common enemy.
• Boys From Brazil: Germany less likely to spam South America with justifications for war
• Bug Fixes: Tweaks to warscore calculation, the peace process and King George V only dies once, now.

For a complete list of the fixes to Hearts of Iron IV, check this thread on our official forum.

For more information on Hearts of Iron IV, check out the games official website.

A new update is ready for this revolutionary wargame! Version 1.03r is now available and it brings a lot of important improvements!

Among all, the Hugo’s (War Diary) unit is given a darker shade to ID it in counter mode 1, a Soviet Instant Win Victory not triggering in unusual circumstances has been solved, and numerous text and typos are now fixed.

Be sure to check the entire list of changes here.

You can download the update following this link.

Decisive Campaigns: Barbarossa is also on Steam.

Get more information about Decisive Campaigns: Barbarossa from its official product page!