Strategy and Wargaming

Treasures, too, in upcoming Europa Universalis IV expansion

With the release of Europa Universalis IV: El Dorado only days away, lead designer Martin Anward has moved to the front of the camera to describe the many changes coming in the latest expansion to Paradox Development Studio’s hit historical empire-building game.

In this seven minute video, Anward describes the new mechanics for Central and South American native states, including three new religions that promise to challenge even the most experienced desktop monarchs. Anward also goes into great detail on the Nation Designer and alternate starting maps that will be available for the first time in El Dorado.

Europa Universalis IV: El Dorado is scheduled for release on February 26, 2015 and will be available on many popular digital storefronts, as well as the Paradox Store.

For more information, please visit www.europauniversalis4.com.

Summer 1943 – The Soviet and German High Commands gather their strength for what they both believe will be a decisive battle. The Wehrmacht wants to retake the initiative on a front that tends to bog down due to the fierce resistance of the Red Army.

Players will be able to relive the key moments of this huge air-ground operation on the Eastern Front in Battle of Kursk, the first expansion of Battle Academy 2, which release is announced for March 26th.

Battle of Kursk offers two campaigns with a carryover system. Often requested by the community, this carryover approach will allow the players to keep units from one scenario to another, forcing them to not be too fool-hardy in order to complete the campaigns!

Get more information on Battle Academy 2: Battle of Kursk from its official product page.

Set sail for adventure, guarding treasure fleets and unlocking the secrets of the Amazon. Sacrifice vassal kings to angry gods to stave off Doomsday. Or, stand outside history, and create a new nation from scratch. More wonders of alternate history are coming very soon.

Europa Universalis IV expands again on February 26 with the release of its El Dorado expansion. This, the fifth expansion to Paradox Development Studio’s best-selling historical grand strategy game, adds greater depth to the New World as your European explorers and conquistadors seek wealth and glory in South and Central America.

With the new Nation Designer, Europa Universalis IV players will be able to create custom challenges anywhere on Earth. Randomized nations with up to 32 user-designed creations open amazing new possibilities for both multiplayer and single player experiences.

El Dorado adds greater depth to the Aztec, Mesoamerican and Incan cultures with new religions and mechanics to help them prepare for the inevitable foreign invasions. Can you ward off Doomsday and hold off the Spanish armies?

El Dorado also introduces a system to automate exploration at sea and on land, where your hardy adventurers will encounter new events and decisions in their quest for cities of gold. There are also treasure fleets, changes to vassal management and many minor changes – as well as the usual pile of content free to all Europa Universalis IV players that accompanies every Paradox Development Studio expansion.

For more information on Europa Universalis IV: El Dorado please visit the official Europa Universalis IV website.

By Stace Harman @ Eurogamer

There’s a lot riding on the arrival of Total War: Attila. While the eponymous anti-hero and fearsome leader of the Huns is borne on box and horse alike, this title also carries with it the hopes of the long-running series’ significant fan base. After the learning process necessitated by Total War: Rome 2‘s post-release incremental updates, this is The Creative Assembly and Sega’s chance to prove their reach no longer exceeds their grasp, and they can launch a stable, balanced and content-rich title straight off the bat.

Read on…

Total War: Attila is now available to purchase at retailers and available for digital download. View the official launch trailer HERE.

The Dark Ages approach. A time of famine, disease and war, where refugees in their thousands flee from a sweeping tide of destruction and death. Desperate barbaric tribes rally against the ailing might of a dying and divided Roman empire; the light of civilization gutters and dims. In the great steppes of Scythia, a vast and terrifying force gathers, led by a warrior king whose thirst for conquest is utterly unequalled.

The Scourge of God, the very herald of the apocalypse, Attila the Hun.

In the next instalment in the multi award-winning Total War series of strategy games, Total War: Attila introduces exciting new gameplay mechanics which improve and add to numerous core turn-based and real-time Total War systems. The world will darken around you as Attila’s forces descend on your homeland creating a unique vision of survival strategy.

For more information about Total War: Attila please visit www.totalwar.com.

I do not believe that the men who served in uniform in Vietnam have been given the credit they deserve. It was a difficult war against an unorthodox enemy..” (William Westmoreland – Chief of Staff of the US Army from 1968 to 1972)

Vietnam ’65, the new counter-insurgency strategy game by Every Single Soldier, has an official release date! We’re releasing on March 5th and streaming it live tomorrow at 2 pm EST/20.00 CET.

Developer Every Single Soldier aims to capture the specifics of the Vietnam War. At the head of the US forces, you will have to forget what you have learnt from other strategy games and think differently to destroy the enemy: building a safe logistic chain, gathering intelligence through the local villages, calling in air support on time, revealing the Ho Chi Minh trail, and minimizing casualties will be crucial to securing political support and eliminating the invisible Viet Cong threat!

Check it out tomorrow as we are going to give you a sneak peak of the game on the official Twitch channel of the Slitherine Group!

Get more information on Vietnam ‘65 from its official product page.

Source: GameInformer

The special edition of Creative Assemblies’ newest strategy sim, Total War: Attila, will include three new playable factions, a 64-page biography, and a double-sided poster, but you don’t want me yammering on about this game. Watch someone take an arrow to the knee while trying to do an unboxing. One of these developers is about to get the short straw when trying to do an unboxing video.

SEGA offers a new video for Total War: Attila, the follow-up title to Total War: Rome II scheduled to be available on February 17th, 2015, across all territories on both physical and digital formats. Developed by Creative Assembly, the next installment in the multi award-winning Total War series of strategy games will include some features that fans have been asking for, such as family trees and skill trees. It also features advanced street-fighting, civilians, complete settlement destruction and dynamic fire that can rage across a city as armies clash.

The Huns’ expert horsemanship makes them formidable foes. In battle, their combination of ranged attacks and the speed at which they can cover ground is breath-taking – and terrifying – to behold. In Total War: Attila the Huns’ starting hordes are strong, but need time to grow before they become a major force with which to scour the world. With their unique, unrelenting faction traits, the Huns could develop into an overwhelming force with the right guiding hand. They will need a legendary leader… will it be you?

Leading Eastern and Central European publisher, 1C Company, announced the release of the Men of War: Assault Squad 2 first DLC named Iron Fist.

Iron Fist contains a set of new features and additional single player content:

• Replays of your multiplayer matches and the ability to save, load and share them with others
• 3rd person direct control feature
• 5 new singleplayer skirmishes in which you fight as a veteran tank crew via the new 3rd person controls
• Free updates include DirectX 10 Support, Multiplayer spectator slots, Unit veterancy, Auto ammo ressuply

Men of War: Assault Squad 2 Iron Fist DLC is set to be released digitally on February 19th 2015, for suggested price 9.99 EUR/9.99 USD/6.99 GBP.

The new screenshots from DLC are available on the Men of War official website.

Battlefront.com is proud to present our latest modern tactical warfare entry, Combat Mission: Black Sea! Combat Mission: Black Sea is now available for PC and Mac OS X as a Download, Mail, and Download & Mail Delivery, starting at $55 (plus S&H if applicable).

Conceived and written before real conflict arrived in 2014, Combat Mission: Black Sea is a military simulation depicting a fictional 2017 conflict between NATO and Russia in Ukraine. Command American, Ukrainian, or Russian ground forces in the increasingly sophisticated and deadly environment that is modern combined arms warfare.

Combat Mission: Black Sea is an all new standalone game and does not require any of the other Combat Mission titles. Black Sea depicts three modern militaries in extreme detail, including the United States Army, Ukrainian Ground Forces, and Russian Ground Forces. Included are the combat formations and equipment used by infantry, armored, Stryker, motor rifle, and tank brigades.

Black Sea also comes with all new game engine features, including:

• Amphibious vehicles
• Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)
• Electronic warfare
• Precision artillery munitions
• Active protection systems
• Surface-to-Air Missiles (SAMs)
• Expanded night vision systems

For more details about the game, an overview of the new features, and a bunch of beta screenshots, jump right here to the Combat Mission: Black Sea game page.