The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

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Rtwfreak
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by Rtwfreak »

If any game series needs a graphics update it's The Command OPS series. Those nato counter chits are rather boring. Now if that game had better 2D graphics or graphics like a Panzer General or Panzer Corp that would be great and I'd buy more of the series. But, after playing BftB (as great of a game as it is) the graphics just turned me right off to it.
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by wodin »

ORIGINAL: Rtwfreak

If any game series needs a graphics update it's The Command OPS series. Those nato counter chits are rather boring. Now if that game had better 2D graphics or graphics like a Panzer General or Panzer Corp that would be great and I'd buy more of the series. But, after playing BftB (as great of a game as it is) the graphics just turned me right off to it.


No thanks. The counters are very important as they give out much needed info. Infact I wish the counters where a little bigger so there was more space for the info. CO is not an RTS game as such. It's a wargame thats continuous time. Start using 3D units (which make no sense for a game this scale) or anything else other than counters you'll lose alot more customers than you'll gain.
You really can't compare PC to CO. Using those sorts of graphics wouldn't work at all. It strikes me you've never played a Panther game as if you have you'd realise you couldn't use icons like PC has. Also to me it looks silly..one tank representing a company of tanks...The only thing that could improve the game is a 3D map but still use counters. It doesn't surprise me you are a Total War fan. Total War is as grog as Sonic the hedgechog, it's a fun game that looks OK and has mass appeal, something CO would never have even if it looked like a Total War game (which wouldn't work). There is a reason counters are used in wargames that have more complexity than Panzer Corps..it's all about giving out info in a quick and easy to read way. Worrying about graphics in CO sort of shows the game went over your head, a tank moving over the map would look silly and also show you nothing at all about what unit it is who it belongs to it's combat power, it's facing, ammo levels, moral level etc etc all the things you can quickly access from the counter. I can't understand why people want one tank or a soldier graphic that would represent a coy or division or whatever scale it is..the only scale that works at really is squad or 1:1. I do think graphics can be improved in wargames but they need the counter as the Icon.

It's not graphics so much that need to be improved in wargames but gameplay and mechanics.

Sorry mate but I strongly disagree with you here..probably have a stronger conviction for the current look that you have because it looks abit boring. Why not use your imagination?
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by decaro »

ORIGINAL: Joe D.
ORIGINAL: junk2drive

Posted at wargamer discussions by me

RE: consoles
My forecast is that app games will outpace PC and console games. Smartphones and tablets will have docks that attach to a TV screen or PC screen (or those 2 will become the same thing) for those wanting a larger view. Casual gamers will play browser games on google devices like the Chromebook.

PCs and consoles will become nostalgia items ...

I can remember when PC software filled a wall of shelves, but now they occupy a small niche in most retail stores.

I just remembered how I got into war gaming -- my first computer games were UV and the original HttR that I saw on a shelf at Electroinics Boutique, but it's been a very long time since I've seen a Matrix title at a retail store.
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by meskary »

Joe-

I agree...my first "war games" were V for Victory series, I don't count wastelands or pool of radiance on a Commodore 64 war games. Then I saw Close Combat at a retail store (can't remember which one) and when I got home and played with my brother and you know 10 seconds into the game our tanks are destroyed and burning and we are going crazy...well we were hooked, but you are right when is the last time we went into a store looking for computer games?
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by Perturabo »

ORIGINAL: Rtwfreak

If any game series needs a graphics update it's The Command OPS series. Those nato counter chits are rather boring. Now if that game had better 2D graphics or graphics like a Panzer General or Panzer Corp that would be great and I'd buy more of the series. But, after playing BftB (as great of a game as it is) the graphics just turned me right off to it.
Command Ops don't use Nato counters by default. They use silhouettes for marking unit types. Also, I liked graphics in Command Ops, they have very nice colours.

As for the idea itself, I think that it would be very difficult to make animated RTS-style graphics work for a game where multiple unit icons may be in the same place at the same time and where units themselves are usually scattered over a large surface.
Not to mention that it hiring animators to make good looking RTS-style graphics would probably be too costly.
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by Kuokkanen »

ORIGINAL: wodin

It's not graphics so much that need to be improved in wargames but gameplay and mechanics.
I've got an idea regarding this matter. Wargame, where casual player sees only few different counters on the map (but could be many of each), and moves them around as simply as in Battle Isle series with only most important handful of data (speed, weapon ranges, general offensive values, general defensive values, general supply values, experience, morale, and that's it) at the glance. He isn't interested about what machine guns and what tanks are in that force, just that it is either infantry, tank, or artillery regiment (or division or whatever the scale) and general understanding of its capabilities. And game would be playable and winnable as such, at least on easy difficulty level. Out of that same game grognard can dig out very detailed information down to # of different rifles and pistols, models of each and every vehicle, ammo supply for every weapon, full TO&E of the force with options to change things around (veteran tank crews to newest Panther, rookies to PzKpfw IV Ausf F2, old PzKpfw III refitted to Marder III etc.) within limits of available resources. Actually there could be such games already: I played demo of The Operational Art of War as described rookie player and ogled stupidly at text mass of all the detailed information.

What do you think?
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by Perturabo »

ORIGINAL: Matti Kuokkanen
ORIGINAL: wodin

It's not graphics so much that need to be improved in wargames but gameplay and mechanics.
I've got an idea regarding this matter. Wargame, where casual player sees only few different counters on the map (but could be many of each), and moves them around as simply as in Battle Isle series with only most important handful of data (speed, weapon ranges, general offensive values, general defensive values, general supply values, experience, morale, and that's it) at the glance. He isn't interested about what machine guns and what tanks are in that force, just that it is either infantry, tank, or artillery regiment (or division or whatever the scale) and general understanding of its capabilities. And game would be playable and winnable as such, at least on easy difficulty level. Out of that same game grognard can dig out very detailed information down to # of different rifles and pistols, models of each and every vehicle, ammo supply for every weapon, full TO&E of the force with options to change things around (veteran tank crews to newest Panther, rookies to PzKpfw IV Ausf F2, old PzKpfw III refitted to Marder III etc.) within limits of available resources. Actually there could be such games already: I played demo of The Operational Art of War as described rookie player and ogled stupidly at text mass of all the detailed information.

What do you think?
One of my dream games would be a RTS that would have the complexity of games like WITE hidden under the hood. All of it with subordinate AIs that would handle micro-management for the player.
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by Saint Ruth »

ORIGINAL: Perturabo
One of my dream games would be a RTS that would have the complexity of games like WITE hidden under the hood. All of it with subordinate AIs that would handle micro-management for the player.
Like the mythical Road To Moscow game? [8D]

As someone said, I think I'd prefer a Russian Campaign game with 100 units a side rather than having to worry about
how the number of Latrines and kitchens in 1st Company of 2 Battalion, 1 Regiment, 13rd Division, 3rd Corp, 4th Army! [:)]
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by Perturabo »

ORIGINAL: Saint Ruth

ORIGINAL: Perturabo
One of my dream games would be a RTS that would have the complexity of games like WITE hidden under the hood. All of it with subordinate AIs that would handle micro-management for the player.
Like the mythical Road To Moscow game? [8D]

As someone said, I think I'd prefer a Russian Campaign game with 100 units a side rather than having to worry about
how the number of Latrines and kitchens in 1st Company of 2 Battalion, 1 Regiment, 13rd Division, 3rd Corp, 4th Army! [:)]
Would ever a single person directly command 100 units in real life?
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by SLAAKMAN »

As someone said, I think I'd prefer a Russian Campaign game with 100 units a side rather than having to worry about
how the number of Latrines and kitchens in 1st Company of 2 Battalion, 1 Regiment, 13rd Division, 3rd Corp, 4th Army!
So when do you wanna play? [:D]
http://www.vassalengine.org/wiki/Module ... n_Campaign
http://russiancampaign.com/
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by rodney727 »

And geez only after seven years of development ..... Wonder how the programmers are taking this into account .. (See my previous post about the year 2031). Makes me wonder if matrix shouldn't hand this over to slitherine. Call me crazy but I do see slitherine outlasting matrix in the future...they seem to be open to more ideas and willing to implement them. I do not see ONE matrix game being planned for tablets or mobile gaming. Almost reminds me of a grandfather/grandson who are business partners.
ORIGINAL: Missouri_Rebel

HoI 3 has much more than just generals. More of a tactical nature it seems and maybe too much micromanagement, but there is a lot of depth to the game. The scale is both smaller and larger at the same time than WiF. I have to admit that while I own HoI3 and its DLC's, I haven't actually played it that often.

But back to your VASSAL point. I think you may be correct. It might be the only hope for uber complexity as many old games have been made available through VASSAL.

An unnamed member contacted me by PM to discuss WiF. This person is an avid gamer and one very familiar with WiF. He stated that it might not be as good as many think it is. When I asked why, his response was this: (I hope he doesn't mind and of course he will stay anonymous)

My gripes with it are at both high and low levels. I'll start high and work down. Also, bear in mind that the last version I played was 5th Edition, and it's been in the last millenium. I'm sure they have improved a few things.

1. Physical Size of Game: It's too big to play unless you have a very large playing area. The main ET and PT maps are each 44 x 34 inches. Supplements add even more real estate.

2. Unnecessary Complexity: It seems to me as if the designers set about making their game as big as they could, and then designed the combat systems. Each type of combat (land, air, naval, sub, anti-sub, anti-air, etc.) requires a different resolution mechanic. IMO, the designers could have developed more realistic and smoother rules. Had they done so, it would be more playable.

3. It's a monster game. Takes forever to play. The expansions (ships in flames, planes in flames, jeeps in flames, etc.) only make it that much more complex and unwieldy. Now, if you can set up 2 or 3 44 x 34 inch maps for a year while you play one turn a night once a week (avg. wargame group), and you like monster games, it's probably okay.

4. For all of its complexity, it's not particularly realistic.

5. For at least five editions, the rules were just plain broken at several levels (can't remember details, only remember the frustrations of contradictory rules and in some cases, missing rules). I presume that the Internet has allowed them to address this problem to an extent.

Moving to a more tactical level:

1. Ground combat is very odd for the scale. They have an impulse system that governs all their game impulses, but it makes the entire game very unstable. If a particular turn goes long, one side can use it to trounce the other.

2. I intensely dislike the naval system. The game encourages players to just move their massive fleets out of port and park them in a blockade of enemy ports in perpetuity. This never happened, and is extremely unrealistic. (Gets back to my point about how complicated it is vs. how realistic it is.)

3. Many of the rules are out of proportion to the level of simulation. The result is something that calls to mind the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle.

Summary of WiF Peeves:

A. More complicated than it needs to be owning to lazy system and unit design that never evolved through several editions.

B. In most practical gaming situations, it's unplayable because of its physical size.

C. It takes way too long to play it (especially since the usual Axis tactic is that if they don't win by the end of 1942, they give up and want to reset and play again, having just taken 2-3 months of game nights to get to that point—probably happens in other games as well, but it plagues this one as the Axis, if their wheels come off, cannot sustain a prolonged war of attrition because of the impulse system, which makes it impossible for the Axis to replace their losses to the level needed to compete in a long game).

For the record, when I complain about the complexity, I'm also an ASL player, so I'm not just whining—it's way more complicated than it needs to be to simulate what they're trying to simulate.

The root of the problems with the mechanics, I think, is the same as for Third Reich: Their 1st edition had a beer-and-pretzel countermix and mechanical system wrapped with a set of complicated rules the creates unrealistic situations because its the only way they could make the game work. Instead of slapping more and more expansions onto it while increasing the counter density and rules bloat, I think they would have been better served to review their individual subsystems and polish them.


Your response?
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by SeaMonkey »

There is a mechanism for accomplishing a rather complex wargame, but I believe it has to be eased into. The developer starts with a simplified version, building a command, control, supply infrastructure as the foundation, something that allows expansion of the features. The code language would need to be carefully selected as to contribute to the feature creep as the game progresses in sophistication. The developers need only introduce the basics that wargamers are attracted to and allow for a community of modders to help with the progression that will occur over years. It will take committment, perseverance and a viable economic return for the invested developer to continue to grace the community with his work of art and most of all he will have to be interactive with his community through the forum.

As the years, months roll on, as the patrons continue to support the artist and learn the intracacies of the design and manipulation of the features, the game eventually evolves into what this thread has addressed.
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by PunkReaper »

With MTV generation with their short attention spans I believe the future is bleak and will be on the iPad /tablet with the complexity of Battle of the Bulge or Battle Academy...... Sad but probably true.
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by warspite1 »

ORIGINAL: rogo727

And geez only after seven years of development .....
warspite1

This is the board game being talked about - not the computer version...
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by wodin »

You do realise Matrix and SLitherine are the same company now? Slitherine Group is their real name. Matrix was bought out same as Ageod. Thye just kept their own names but really their all Slitherine.
ORIGINAL: rogo727

And geez only after seven years of development ..... Wonder how the programmers are taking this into account .. (See my previous post about the year 2031). Makes me wonder if matrix shouldn't hand this over to slitherine. Call me crazy but I do see slitherine outlasting matrix in the future...they seem to be open to more ideas and willing to implement them. I do not see ONE matrix game being planned for tablets or mobile gaming. Almost reminds me of a grandfather/grandson who are business partners.
ORIGINAL: Missouri_Rebel

HoI 3 has much more than just generals. More of a tactical nature it seems and maybe too much micromanagement, but there is a lot of depth to the game. The scale is both smaller and larger at the same time than WiF. I have to admit that while I own HoI3 and its DLC's, I haven't actually played it that often.

But back to your VASSAL point. I think you may be correct. It might be the only hope for uber complexity as many old games have been made available through VASSAL.

An unnamed member contacted me by PM to discuss WiF. This person is an avid gamer and one very familiar with WiF. He stated that it might not be as good as many think it is. When I asked why, his response was this: (I hope he doesn't mind and of course he will stay anonymous)

My gripes with it are at both high and low levels. I'll start high and work down. Also, bear in mind that the last version I played was 5th Edition, and it's been in the last millenium. I'm sure they have improved a few things.

1. Physical Size of Game: It's too big to play unless you have a very large playing area. The main ET and PT maps are each 44 x 34 inches. Supplements add even more real estate.

2. Unnecessary Complexity: It seems to me as if the designers set about making their game as big as they could, and then designed the combat systems. Each type of combat (land, air, naval, sub, anti-sub, anti-air, etc.) requires a different resolution mechanic. IMO, the designers could have developed more realistic and smoother rules. Had they done so, it would be more playable.

3. It's a monster game. Takes forever to play. The expansions (ships in flames, planes in flames, jeeps in flames, etc.) only make it that much more complex and unwieldy. Now, if you can set up 2 or 3 44 x 34 inch maps for a year while you play one turn a night once a week (avg. wargame group), and you like monster games, it's probably okay.

4. For all of its complexity, it's not particularly realistic.

5. For at least five editions, the rules were just plain broken at several levels (can't remember details, only remember the frustrations of contradictory rules and in some cases, missing rules). I presume that the Internet has allowed them to address this problem to an extent.

Moving to a more tactical level:

1. Ground combat is very odd for the scale. They have an impulse system that governs all their game impulses, but it makes the entire game very unstable. If a particular turn goes long, one side can use it to trounce the other.

2. I intensely dislike the naval system. The game encourages players to just move their massive fleets out of port and park them in a blockade of enemy ports in perpetuity. This never happened, and is extremely unrealistic. (Gets back to my point about how complicated it is vs. how realistic it is.)

3. Many of the rules are out of proportion to the level of simulation. The result is something that calls to mind the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle.

Summary of WiF Peeves:

A. More complicated than it needs to be owning to lazy system and unit design that never evolved through several editions.

B. In most practical gaming situations, it's unplayable because of its physical size.

C. It takes way too long to play it (especially since the usual Axis tactic is that if they don't win by the end of 1942, they give up and want to reset and play again, having just taken 2-3 months of game nights to get to that point—probably happens in other games as well, but it plagues this one as the Axis, if their wheels come off, cannot sustain a prolonged war of attrition because of the impulse system, which makes it impossible for the Axis to replace their losses to the level needed to compete in a long game).

For the record, when I complain about the complexity, I'm also an ASL player, so I'm not just whining—it's way more complicated than it needs to be to simulate what they're trying to simulate.

The root of the problems with the mechanics, I think, is the same as for Third Reich: Their 1st edition had a beer-and-pretzel countermix and mechanical system wrapped with a set of complicated rules the creates unrealistic situations because its the only way they could make the game work. Instead of slapping more and more expansions onto it while increasing the counter density and rules bloat, I think they would have been better served to review their individual subsystems and polish them.


Your response?
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by IainMcNeil »

There is no reason why complex games cant run on tablets. The processor is way more powerful than desktop PC's from a few years ago let alone the classics from the past.

Which complex wargame series that we used to produce have you seen us stop supporting that gives rise to this concern? World in Flames is almost complete and to release this year and War in the West is going well.

If you mean you see less of these releases than the lighter wargames then.... yes of course! These complex games take so much longer to make that you will by definition see less of them.

I think the change we are seeing is that there is an uptake of lighter wargames from the tablet audiences rather than a decline in complex games. It may feel like that as the news for these games covers more sites and there are more releases but I don't see any evidence to back it up. Light wargames are growing and as a result complex games are a smaller % of the total.
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by ComradeP »

There is one thing to keep in mind about the so called short attention span generation (which presumably I also belong to as I'm 25): even if people don't spend a lot of time playing a game during a single session, overall they might spend most of their spare time on a game. It's a guess, but I'm willing to bet that most people playing CoD spend more time on that than most wargamers spend on their PC wargames.

It's one of the reasons why less complex games sell well nowadays: they require less time to play during a single session, whilst you still get something done. You could say it's apples and oranges, but the younger generation certainly doesn't spend less recreational time at their PC or console than most wargamers, the opposite is more likely, if only because younger people generally have more spare time than middle aged people with fulltime jobs.

That doesn't automatically mean complex wargames don't have a market they can aim for. Rather, it could be seen as an incentive to "compartmentalize" complex wargames in such a way that during each session a player can do something that they feel is meaningful (say, attack with a corps or army from an army group instead of being more or less required to attack with the entire army group at once). I enjoy monster wargames as much as a grognard, but sometimes you can play for hours without anything meaningful happening. That limits its appeal, even to many wargamers.

That also brings me to what I still view as one of the main shortcomings of PC wargames and the area where a number of developers have somewhat failed to make the move from tabletop to PC: using the PC as something else than a glorified calculator. For starters: the AI in most wargames I've played is less than stellar. You could counter that is due to the inherent complexity of some monstergames, but even the AI for many less complex games isn't exactly great. That means solitaire play becomes boring after a while. The UI is also often quite primitive and sometimes even looks like it's build up around all the functions described in the manual, instead of the developer trying to see if hotkeys could be made available or if a function could be abstracted due to the benefits given by the PC.

Many wargames also don't have a modern multiplayer component in the sense that you can play them directly against another player. Rather, they rely on PBEM. This is also an area where many wargames are technologically not at the tip of the spear. Opening a game and immediately noticing if opponents are available requires much less effort than trying to find opponents through forums, keeping in mind that we here are a vocal minority and that there are many people both on numerous other forums or not represented on forums at all. Finding opponents through forums is a slower process than finding one simply by opening a multiplayer lobby in-game.

Regardless of the above, the main reason why I stop playing some wargames is that they have a (number of), to me, critical flaw(s) that just really start to bug me after a week/month/year (or two). WitE, for example, is detailed in a number of ways but also quite simplistic in some others. Similarly, I didn't like the way artillery and air strikes worked in Decisive Campaigns. To me, it is just a shame if a developer spends so much time on polishing certain aspects, that others are clearly less functional (or even less balanced).

There's also the tendency of wargames featuring events that, to Americans, belong to their national history because they feature a well known battle Americans participated in, which are presumably attractive from a commercial perspective. To Europeans and other non-Americans, this might not be the case, which has an impact on sales. It's often Overlord of Battle of the Bulge. North Africa and the PTO don't get a lot of love. I don't find battle of the Bulge games particularly interesting, particularly because if they're done well (like Command Ops), the Germans don't have much of a chance at all. Whilst Overlord is covered well, I'm still waiting for a good "Overlord to the Westwall" game, which also includes Dragoon.

Most summer 1944 wargames tend to focus just on Normandy and don't offer a long-term campaign even though the most spectacular part of the entire operation from a military perspective was crushing the German forces in the west (a collapse which in many cases is around the corner but not quite there in June-July 1944 wargames). Playing the same Eastern Front operations over and over is also not all that interesting after a while.

It would be refreshing to play operational wargames covering the less well known operations. Before anyone points me to TOAW: I don't like TOAW's artillery and air system either, nor the way units reconstitute.

Obviously, all of this is just my 2 cents.
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by sterckxe »

ORIGINAL: Saint Ruth
ORIGINAL: Perturabo
One of my dream games would be a RTS that would have the complexity of games like WITE hidden under the hood. All of it with subordinate AIs that would handle micro-management for the player.
Like the mythical Road To Moscow game? [8D]

It's not mythical at all - I've played the beta - my review is up here :

tm.asp?m=891383&mpage=1&key=&#
ORIGINAL: Saint Ruth
As someone said, I think I'd prefer a Russian Campaign game with 100 units a side rather than having to worry about
how the number of Latrines and kitchens in 1st Company of 2 Battalion, 1 Regiment, 13rd Division, 3rd Corp, 4th Army! [:)]

Amen !

Greetz,

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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by wodin »

Iain..why aren't wargames then taking all that PC power and doing something with it. Yes tablets can do this and that but they are still no where nears as powerful as a PC.

Surely something innovative could come along and reshape how we see grog like wargames by using the power of the modern day PC. I'm not talking 3D RTS style or anything here but may really beautiful 3D maps or 3D Overlays..I'm not sure what can be done to be honest to use the power..but surely something can be..surely we haven't gone as far as we can do when it comes to the more Grog like wargames?



ORIGINAL: Iain McNeil

There is no reason why complex games cant run on tablets. The processor is way more powerful than desktop PC's from a few years ago let alone the classics from the past.

Which complex wargame series that we used to produce have you seen us stop supporting that gives rise to this concern? World in Flames is almost complete and to release this year and War in the West is going well.

If you mean you see less of these releases than the lighter wargames then.... yes of course! These complex games take so much longer to make that you will by definition see less of them.

I think the change we are seeing is that there is an uptake of lighter wargames from the tablet audiences rather than a decline in complex games. It may feel like that as the news for these games covers more sites and there are more releases but I don't see any evidence to back it up. Light wargames are growing and as a result complex games are a smaller % of the total.
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RE: The Future Of Complex Wargames Looks Bleak

Post by PipFromSlitherine »

ORIGINAL: wodin

Iain..why aren't wargames then taking all that PC power and doing something with it. Yes tablets can do this and that but they are still no where nears as powerful as a PC.

Surely something innovative could come along and reshape how we see grog like wargames by using the power of the modern day PC. I'm not talking 3D RTS style or anything here but may really beautiful 3D maps or 3D Overlays..I'm not sure what can be done to be honest to use the power..but surely something can be..surely we haven't gone as far as we can do when it comes to the more Grog like wargames?



ORIGINAL: Iain McNeil

There is no reason why complex games cant run on tablets. The processor is way more powerful than desktop PC's from a few years ago let alone the classics from the past.

Which complex wargame series that we used to produce have you seen us stop supporting that gives rise to this concern? World in Flames is almost complete and to release this year and War in the West is going well.

If you mean you see less of these releases than the lighter wargames then.... yes of course! These complex games take so much longer to make that you will by definition see less of them.

I think the change we are seeing is that there is an uptake of lighter wargames from the tablet audiences rather than a decline in complex games. It may feel like that as the news for these games covers more sites and there are more releases but I don't see any evidence to back it up. Light wargames are growing and as a result complex games are a smaller % of the total.
Super-high-quality graphics are very expensive to produce, and yet generally will not give you a huge boost to the sales of a hardcore wargame (there does, in fact, appear to be a % of hardcore gamers that consider good visuals to be a sign that the game can't be very good... [;)]).

Cheers

Pip

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