Strategy and Wargaming

Standalone Multiplayer Army Pack Enhances the Depth of Company of Heroes 2

SEGA of America, Inc. and SEGA Europe Ltd. today announced Company of Heroes 2: The British Forces from Relic Entertainment  - an all-new standalone multiplayer army pack launching September 3, 2015 for $12.99, £9.99, €12.99. 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.

An authentic representation of the British army, The British Forces brings to life the iconic vehicles, weapons and multicultural makeup of World War II’s longest standing Allied force. The portrayal of the British army also extends to how their fighting style was implemented into the overall game design. With a military tactical doctrine that balanced mobility and defense, The British Forces gives players a choice in how they progress through the tech tree. They can either follow an ‘anvil’ approach by adopting powerful defensive positions through the use of emplacements or they can take an aggressive ‘hammer’ approach by using fast, hard-hitting units to wreak havoc on the battlefield.

Additionally, coinciding with The British Forces’ release, every title in the Company of Heroes 2 catalogue will receive a major design upgrade that will greatly improve the overall balance of all five factions featured in Company of Heroes 2. The game also features animation and visual improvements to most infantry units in the game, which further increase the authenticity of Company of Heroes 2.

“The British Army has been one of the most requested factions since we first announced Company of Heroes 2 three years ago. The British were a major player in WWII and we are excited to bring their unique makeup and overall tactical doctrine to the Company of Heroes 2 battlefield,” said Greg Wilson, Executive Producer at Relic Entertainment. “Finally, every player – whether they are new to the franchise or a long standing fan – can play The British Forces and have a compelling multiplayer experience with an army that can certainly go toe-to-toe with every other faction in the game.”

The British Forces will be available from September 3, 2015 as a stand-alone package that is the perfect entry point into the vibrant Company of Heroes 2 community. New players will also have access to all pre-existing Company of Heroes 2 maps via auto-match as well as the ability to battle against all other existing factions.

Pre-order on Steam to receive a 10% discount. Owners of any Company of Heroes game will receive a 20% discount. The pre-order incentive will be live from July 9, 10AM PST/6PM BST/7PM CET.

Click here to view the announcement trailer.

For more information on Company of Heroes 2, please visit the games official website.

First published in 1998, this legendary series of operational wargames has seen six releases, including the latest Operational Art of War III, released to the wargaming audience in 2006. Now, as we conclude The Operational Art of War III, we are also taking a new step to continue the series into the future. Publisher Matrix Games and the TOAW Development Team have been working behind the scenes for nearly two years to take this landmark brand to new heights.

First, a long-promised update… with development for The Operational Art of War once again in full swing, many months of development both past and present have allowed us to complete the final update for The Operational Art of War III, version 3.4.1.9! This update allows us to bring the TOAW community a parting gift for TOAW III, including a feature enhancement, quite a few bug fixes and new and revised scenarios, while also laying the groundwork for a new release, The Operational Art of War IV.

The Operational Art of War IV started as an update intended to be TOAW III version 3.5, but when we were able to re-start full development on the series, it allowed us to do much more in the way of significant improvements than we had originally considered and it kept growing until it became a full release plan. As a result, we’ve invested the time and resources to continue the series while also continuing support for TOAW III and the TOAW community in the form of this update. As many bug fixes as possible, basically anything that was not too tightly intertwined with new features and code, were removed from the Operational Art of War IV process and are included in this 3.4.1.9 release.

The Operational Art of War IV will fully support modern computer hardware and operating systems. This will make it more user-friendly and able to scale to higher resolutions, especially in terms of font and button size. It reorganizes and adds functionality to many very useful screens and dialogs to make them more informative and easier to use. Once released, TOAW IV will continue to be supported for some time, hopefully leading to many more updates and improvements. TOAW IV will be the new base point for the TOAW series and future updates will be based on this new release.

For a complete list of changes for the 3.4.1.9 update, check here.

(You can download the patch here)

Get more information about TOAW III from its official product page.

Lead Designer Outlines How Crusader Kings II Will Change

With the newest expansion for Paradox’s hit medieval history game only a week away, Crusader Kings II lead designer Henrik Fåhraeus has taken time out of his busy schedule to shoot a short video outlining some of the major changes that Horse Lords will bring.

From the peculiar succession rules of the nomadic tribes to the trade wealth that passes through the Silk Road, Fahrëus takes you on a tour of the coming attractions in what we think will be an expansion with exciting new ways to plot, marry and fight your way to power in the Middle Ages.

For more information on Crusader Kings II, click here.

The law of the Templar has come to the desert! Today Firefly Studios delivers Stronghold Crusader 2: The Templar & The Duke onto Steam via trebuchet. Available at 33% off this DLC expansion includes seven unique story missions, new castle types and more challenging AI adversaries shaped by player feedback.

View the Stronghold Crusader 2: The Templar & The Duke DLC trailer here.

The Templar

Once a rank and file soldier in King Richard’s army, The Templar has risen to power as a senior military commander in the Third Crusade. A zealot in the truest sense, The Templar was promoted after demonstrating his brutal pursuit of the holy crusade and ability to indoctrinate fellow soldiers. As a former foot soldier serving for years in the Crusades, The Templar now sees himself as a harbinger of justice from God. The Templar personifies the unwavering conviction that the Crusader Lords had in their mission and the lengths they will go to achieve it.

The Duke

Travelling from France to ‘fight the good fight’ The Duke hopes to share in the glory of the holy crusade. Ever the opportunist, The Duke is always prepared to retreat and claim no part in the Crusades. For the moment however he is prepared to lend his vast wealth and political standing to King Richard’s campaign. A foppish and arrogant leader, The Duke gained his lordly air from a pampered upbringing in the French Royal Court. Despite this meticulous outward appearance, The Duke lacks the cutthroat political savvy to make him an effective ruler. The end result is a man who appears confident but is unsure of himself, joining the Third Crusade in a reckless attempt to prove himself.

Free Map Pack DLC

Stronghold Crusader 2 has also been updated on Steam with three new maps, each playable in online multiplayer or offline skirmish mode against the AI. In ‘Tight Corner’ plenty of close-quarters standoffs take place in confined areas. With these conflicts likely to boil over and expand the field of battle, players will often find themselves drawn into skirmishes between their enemies. ‘Outposts’ features bands of AI outlaws in addition to player Lords, roaming the map and controlling areas until they are wiped out. As the name suggests ‘Mountain Climb’ is distinguished by a fortified central position that, once secured, makes defeating the elevated player a literal uphill battle.

Stronghold Crusader 2: The Templar & The Duke DLC is available now on Steam for the promotional price of £2.67/$4.01/€3.34.

Latest Expansion for Crusader Kings II Will Pillage Your Hours

It is rather unlike hordes of nomadic invaders to stick to schedule, but the Horse Lords have told us that we can expect a rainfall of arrows on July 14. Horse Lords is the latest expansion for Paradox Development Studios’s much-loved grand strategy RPG Crusader Kings II and it will bring the hellfire of war on the steppes to glorious map-painting life on your desktop.

With a heavy focus on the Mongol and Turkic invaders of the Central Asian plains, Horse Lords adds an expanded map, new ruling systems for the fascinating culture of the nomadic tribes that changed the course of world history from the saddle. There are also some minor tweaks that will affect everyone, including the construction of temporary forts to hold an area in your control and introducing the Silk Road – the wealthy trade highway that ran from the Mediterranean to East Asia.

To celebrate the July 14 announcement, we’ve decided to release a few screenshots that show off some of the coming changes in the Horse Lords expansion. You’ll see some images of the new map, new cultures and new interface.

For more information on Crusader Kings II, click here.

Experience the story of Belisarius, one of the last great Roman generals, who was tasked with retaking the former Western Roman Empire by the Emperor Justinian

Source: Gamer’s Hell

Scheduled to be released on June 25th, The Last Roman Campaign Pack includes a huge new Campaign Map, a new ‘Expedition’ faction with new gameplay features, 5 playable factions with additional new units, tech and buildings, plus a dramatic story-based, campaign challenge. Specifically, The Last Roman’s Campaign map is a vast and highly-detailed representation of central Western Europe in 533 AD, featuring 35 provinces across over 100 regions, including Italy, North Africa, Spain and France.

The Five playable factions are the following: the brand new Roman Expedition, Ostrogoths, Vandals, Franks, and the Visigoths. Each one features its own faction traits and new campaign starting-position.

View the just released The Last Roman Campaign Pack trailer here.

Scourge of War recreates the Battle of Waterloo 200 years after through Twitch

“The whole art of war consists in getting at what is on the other side of the hill” (Duke of Wellington – British commander and statesman)

In order to properly commemorate the bicentenary anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo, Matrix Games is teaming up with developer NorbSoftDev to reproduce, live, the most dramatic moments of the final great encounter between Napoleon and his opponents. This spectacle will be delivered thanks to a live Twitch stream of Scourge of War: Waterloo, with historical scenarios being played at exactly the same time as events happened in June 18, 1815.

The official schedule of the event can now be revealed (time zone is CEST):

• 11:30 – Initial Attack on Hougoumont (30min)
• 12:00 – Attack on Pappelotte (30min)
• 12:30 – 2nd Attack on Hougoumont (60min)
• 13:30 – Count d’Erlon’s Attack on the Allied left (60min)
• 15:00 – Attack on La Haye Sainte (30min)
• 16:00 – Battle of Mt. St. Jean (30min)
• 17:00 – Defense Against Arriving Prussians (60min)
• 18:00 – Prussian Attack on Placenoit (60min)
• 19:45 – Defence against Napoleon’s Imperial Guard (45min)

So on June 18th, 11.30 (CEST) on the official Twitch channel of the Slitherine Group we will start to bring back to life Napoleon, Wellington, Blucher and the thousands of soldiers who shaped the destiny of Europe!

Additionally Iain Dickie – well-known expert on the Napoleonic era and specialist of the miniature wargames world – will accompany us all day long and share a host of historical details with the public to help us better understand the strategic and tactical aspects of the Battle of Waterloo.

Get more game information here.

By James Cobb @ The Wargamer

Western Civilization Software’s Forge of Freedom is the best grand strategy game of the American Civil War, delving into all aspects of nations at war. However, the tactical mode is extremely abstract. The developer seeks to remedy this with a tactical game, Brother Against Brother: The Drawing of the Sword. However, the computer gaming pool is crowded with tactical American Civil War games. What would make this game float or not be eaten by the sharks?

Read on…

By Nik Gaukroger @ The Wargamer

Hearts of Iron IV is the latest iteration of Paradox Interactive’s successful World War 2 grand strategy title. However, I have to confess that the last version was, for me, a failure as I just couldn’t get into it at all. Therefore, it was with some trepidation that I accepted an invitation from Paradox to a two day multi-player event being held just outside of London – that’s a lot of time to commit to something you really may not like from the off. This was not helped by having very little time to get to know the game with the beta that was kindly provided and having to get going with game from the start of the event. So how did it work out?

Read on…

“The Guard dies but does not surrender!” (General Pierre Cambronne)

It is the morning of June 18th 1815. The whole French army led by his Emperor in person is marching trough Belgium to engage with the forces of the Seventh Coalition. The armies of the Duke of Wellington and Blücher’s are still divided. It is the last chance to defeat them, before they become too organized.

This will be the battle where the fate of Europe is shaped!

Today all of you fans of the musket era have the chance to become immersed in the final chapter of the Napoleonic Wars with the official release of Scourge of War: Waterloo!

From Hougoumont to La Haye Sainte including Placenoit, you will do your best to coordinate your infantry, cavalry and artillery units in order to outsmart your opponent in huge battles counting thousands of soldiers, while seizing the key locations in time.

Along with 20 historical scenarios and a set of multiplayer maps, the new creation from developer NorbSoftDev includes a sandbox campaign for the very first time in the Scourge of War series! This game mode regularly requested by the community finally allows you all to string battles together for a thrilling what-if approach of Waterloo.

Your soldiers are waiting for your command!

Grab the game here!

Get more game information and view the release trailer here!