Strategy and Wargaming

For centuries, the European steppes were dominated by a unique warrior culture. The Cossacks were fiercely independent soldiers, and some of the elite cavalry of Poland and Russia through early-modern history.

The Cossacks, the newest expansion to Paradox Development Studios’ best-selling historical grand strategy game Europa Universalis IV, pays homage to this legendarily proud people with a ton of new features that enhance the diplomatic game and give you new things to tend to during peacetime. The Cossacks will come to digital retailers and the Paradox store in late 2015.

Check out the announcement trailer here.

The central new mechanic is the Estate system. You can assign control of your provinces to local factions – priests, nobles, or even Cossacks! – sacrificing some income in the name of lower unrest, more manpower or cheaper cavalry. You must keep an eye these Estates, though! If they get too strong, they may make a move on your throne. If they feel neglected, they may interfere with efficient governance.

Other features include:

  • New Diplomatic Options: Let the world know what you think of your neighbors by setting a public attitude to foreign powers.
  • Tell The World What You Want: Designate neighboring provinces as “places of interest”, build trust with other nations, and entice allies with the promise of land for their support.
  • Tengri: Tengri is now a Syncretic faith, allowing it to tolerate a secondary religion as if it were a national faith.
  • Horde Unity and Razing: Nomadic nations now must pay attention the horde unity of their tribes – a unity that can only be maintained by the occasional pillaging
  • Improved Culture Change: You can now restore a previous culture to a converted province, or convert a province you hold to a culture that is not your own.
  • Native Policies: Set your policy for colonial encounters with natives. Are you focused on quick subjugation, peaceful growth or trading advantages?
  • Improved Espionage: New spy actions allow you to study the technology of more advanced countries and prod your rivals’ subjects towards independence.

And, as always, even if you don’t buy The Cossacks, its release will be accompanied with a free major content update for all Europa Universalis IV players.

gary-grigsbys-war-in-the-west-logoAlmost one year ago, Gary Grigsby’s War in the West amazed fans of detailed wargames and critics alike. But even though the scope of the original game was impressive, developer 2by3 Games wanted to cover this part of the war more extensively.

Today they are back with the release of a new expansion called Operation Torch. This introduces a set of new scenarios covering the African and Western European operations between late 1942 and 1945.

On top of that the expansion benefits from an enhanced version of the engine that brings the air war to a higher level with improved navigation panels and scenarios specifically designed for this aspect of the war. Players who like action in multiplayer have now the chance to join bigger games including 3 or 4 players and also play as co-operative air and ground commanders with another human player against the AI!

As part of the release, War in the West is also getting a major free update, with dozens of new features, fixes and data and scenario tweaks. Download it here!

For more information about Gary Grigsby’s War in the West: Operation Torch, check the product page.

company-of-heroes-2-the-british-forces-logoA look at the level of detail and attention that went into each audio line for the British faction to truly convey each unit’s unique character

Source: Gamers Hell

SEGA and Relic Entertainment have released one more video developer diary for Company of Heroes 2: The British Forces, a new standalone multiplayer expansion pack for Company of Heroes 2. The British Forces features 15 new units, six new commanders with unique abilities and a total of eight new multiplayer maps portraying historic battlefield locations representing the shattered infrastructure seen throughout Europe at the end of World War II.

Please visit www.companyofheroes.com for more information.

heroes-of-normandie“To a New Yorker like you, a Hero is some type of weird sandwich, not some nut who takes on 3 Tigers” – Oddball, in Kelly’s Heroes

Listen up soldiers! Let me refresh your empty brains on what is happening! A game like no other has been released today. It’s engaging, fast-paced, with big explosions, and it can provide you a real challenge with four gameplay modes. And, most important of all, the good guys and the bad guys are perfectly recognizable so you dunces don’t risk shooting each other!

The wait is finally over! The PC adaptation of the famous board game Heroes of Normandie is out and is ready to blow your mind!

In this stunning turn based strategy game you will command small group of gallant soldiers in tough fights through dense French countryside in six distinct campaigns against the AI or another human opponent in furious multiplayer battles! Heroes of Normandie comes with multiple game modes including campaign mode, rogue campaign, skirmish and multiplayer.

Customize your Army with a wide set of units with specific equipment , deploy powerful Heroes, give your orders on the battlefield and lead your men to victory!

Get more game information and view the release trailer on the games official webpage.

campaign-series-middle-east-1948-1985His Majesty’s government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country.

The Balfour Declaration, November 2nd 1917

Never a wargame has depicted in such fine detail one the most controversial parts of contemporary history. The proclamation of the Israeli state in 1948 and the US recognizing the state in that exact same day, opens up over four decades of conflicts, key battles, struggles and hostilities. This was also the time of landmark progression and evolution of tactics and weapons systems, where the weapons of NATO and the WARSAW PACT were tested on the battlefields.

The Middle East is on fire!

Campaign Series: Middle East 1948 – 1985 has been released and this great wargame is ready to bring to life many of the tactical and technological innovations developed for the first time in the Cold War era!

Ten historical conflicts are covered in 3 Linked Campaigns and 65 scenarios (along with over a thousand of unique platoons available), this title describes the struggle for ascendancy in the Middle East with depth and with a military precision rarely achieved in a videogame!

Face off in an ancient conflict fought with modern weapons!

Get more information on Campaign Series: Middle East 1948 – 1985 from its official product page.

The German Invasion of Great Britain is probably one of the most momentous what ifs of the Second World War: what was the German plan? What were the key objectives of the invasion?

To answer these questions Panzer Corps is back with a huge DLC, comprised of over 30 scenarios covering all the possible phases of the invasion: Operation Sea Lion!

Designer Nico has worked hard alongside the core developer team to make this expansion one of the most challenging ever created for Panzer Corps. The complex structure of the campaign allows you to choose between different attacking vectors depending on your actions on the battlefield. The campaign can be started with the core force from DLC 40, so you can begin the invasion of England with the core forces that emerged victorious in France. Alternatively you can start with a preset core force.

Be prepared! Operation Sea Lion will release on October 15th!

Operation Sea Lion is an expansion for Panzer Corps and requires Panzer Corps to be played.

Get more information on Operation Sea Lion from its official product page.

 

Panzer Corps Strategy and Wargaming | Donster | |

command-northern-infernoBetter’ is the enemy of ‘Good Enough – Sergey Gorshkov, Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union

The countdown has started! Warfare Sims, award-winning developers of Command Air/Naval Operations – the extraordinary real time wargame that changed the face of modern warfare simulations – today announce a new, stand-alone game that uses the latest version of CMANO: Command Northern Inferno!

Through 15 scenarios accurately written by Paul A. Bridge, active Royal Navy officer and Falkland’s veteran, you are cast into a fictional conflict between the Soviet Union and the West, shortly escalating to a full conventional war.

With a very detailed unit and weapon database at their direct control, you will get the chance to lead the most lethal and advanced armed forces at sea, on land and in the air!

This is great opportunity, both for newcomers and for hardened veterans of CMANO: Northern Inferno can be played as a separate game (with the possibility to upgrade it to the base game with all the available database and scenarios at any point in time). Alternatively, it can be integrated as a new set of scenarios for owners of the original Command: Modern Air/Naval Operations Game of Year Edition!

Click here for the Command: Northern Inferno teaser trailer.

Get ready for the Apocalypse! Stay tuned for further updates!Get more information about Command: Northern Inferno and Command Air/Naval Operations from their official Product pages!

total-war-attila-boxThis content requires the base game Total War: Attila on Steam in order to play

Source: Gamer’s Hell

Available now on Steam, the Empires of Sand Culture Pack brings three new playable factions to Total War: Attila: Aksum, Himyar and the Tanukhids. Part of the new Desert Kingdoms cultural group, the pack also features new campaign and horde gameplay mechanics, events, enhanced religion features, and adds over fifty unique units to the grand campaign.

Note that because of the dramatic impact religious changes had on these cultures in this period, the Empires of Sand Culture Pack includes a number of changes that increase the importance of religion including building chains, victory conditions, events, technologies and overall campaign bonuses.

Watch the Empires of Sand Culture Pack release trailer here.

order-of-battle-pacific-boxOrder of Battle: Pacific has been updated with free special content celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain!

The scenario starts on 12 June 1940 and lasts until 20 September 1940. The map covers England and the northern French, Belgian and Dutch coasts. It accurately portrays the changing German tactics in the battle, first focusing on the RAF airfields and later switching to the strategic bombing of cities. Several event pop ups help tell the story and outline the strategic situation of the battle.

You control the men and machines of the Royal Air Force and must protect British shipping and cities to keep the British Morale up. You win the scenario by destroying the German command’s desire to fight by downing bomber wings and reaching out to disrupt their preparations for Operation Sea Lion.

AI controlled allied convoys sail from the western edge of the map along the English Channel towards ports in London. Protecting these convoys not only prevents a morale penalty, but each ship arriving at the destination also provides the player with additional resources to assist the war effort.

Secondary objectives include protecting the vital Radar chain, the destruction of Stuka bomber units harassing the Atlantic Convoys and taking out a heavy German coastal gun battery which is bombarding the area around Dover.

Get more information about Order of Battle: Pacific from its product page.

You can download the patch from here (PC) or here (Mac).

battle-of-the-bulge-box16 December 1944 – The once quiet Ardennes forest erupts with the shells of thousands artillery guns. Under the snow lie the bodies of the first American soldiers caught by a completely unexpected large-scale German offensive.

The Allies have underestimated the Reich’s ability to mobilize its resources, and now they are facing the OberkommandoWest’s charge towards the river Meuse. They race forwards, aiming to gain the banks of the Meuse before the allied air forces can react to stop the panzer march.

Who will win this race against time?

Battle of the Bulge is releasing today for Pc, Mac and iOS platforms, and is putting you in charge of the German or Allied forces during one of the toughest battle fought on the Western Front!

Directly from the product description:

“Command infantry, mechanized and armoured units in hard fights through the various phases of the offensive, taking into account the nature of the terrain and its effects on the assailants and defenders”

The game features an updated AI opponent, a new multiplayer system supporting cross platform battles, private and paired matches plus access to a new tournament system!

Grab the game now!

Do you want to see some action? Join us today on our Twitch Channel as we stream the game at 20:00 CEST / 18:00 UTC / 2:00 PM EDT!

Find out more about Battle of the Bulge and view the release trailer here.