You might have noticed a new guy hanging around our Strategy and Wargaming lair. He’s Tom, and Tom is a true wargamer. I decided it was time to challenge him to provide us with a list of his top 10 favourite videogames of all time and he so happily obliged.
Command Ops 2
A real treat for any commander wishing to test themselves at the operational level. Whilst there is no campaign and the tactical level is abstracted, Command Ops 2 more than makes up for it with its detail, plausibility and challenging AI. Little details like intelligence reliability and age really can test a commander – have your poorly trained and tired troops mistaken two light scout vehicles for heavy tanks? And how do you respond to that, and add to the fact that in Command Ops 2 your orders are not instantaneous, just like in real life they have to be disseminated through the chain of command- to make things even more complicated and realistic.
Europa Universalis IV
Released over a decade ago and still receiving updates Europa Universalis 4 has really set the standard in Grand Strategy games. The sheer number of options and choices you can make are breathtaking and you really can guide a nation through hundreds of years of history. The game features clever mechanics that (mostly) constrain completely outrageous alternative histories – this makes a playthrough really feel like a realistic representation of history. Furthermore, Europa Universalis 4 is full of historical details and information which are educational, and informative and add so much flavour.
Gary Grigsby’s War in the East 2
What strategy list isn’t complete without a homage to a Gary Grigsby game? Gary Grigsby’s War in the East 2 is perhaps the most refined version of the war on the Eastern front so far. Turns can take hours as you manage hundreds of unit counters across the Eastern Front. For someone with limited knowledge about the war in the East, this game doubles up as a history lesson too. Special attention should also be paid to the logistical aspect of the game because without robust logistics your military machine will grind to a halt, just like we have seen repeatedly throughout history.
Distant Worlds 2
Distant Worlds 2, whilst perhaps overshadowed by the glitzier Stellaris, is another great game that pays tribute to logistics and supply lines. Not many games require your fleet to take fuel tanks along them when they conduct interstellar war! Distant Worlds 2 is still being updated and refined, I’d suggest it’s actually more complex than Stellaris and has an interesting feature where you can all but completely automate your empire and leave the game to play itself – or you can micro pretty much anything! I think it’s a great feature and really lets the player play the parts they enjoy. Distant Worlds 2 goes from strength to strength with each update.
Flashpoint Campaigns: Southern Storm
The successor to Flashpoint Campaigns: Red Storm. The team at On Target Simulations really did take this game to the next level. The game pits NATO forces against Pact forces and features Standard Operating Procedures which are very customisable. Appreciation must also be given to the GUI – it’s very well presented and gives the play good levels of information whilst carrying out loads of data checks in the background giving you really authentic outcomes in battle. Flashpoint Campaigns: Southern Storm is also a WEGO game – meaning anticipating your adversary is critical and gaining initiative is key.
Steel Division 2
Whilst not very realistic Steel Division 2 is still a fun WW2 RTS game. Its graphics are great and you can zoom in to specific units and then zoom all the way out to see the whole map. It has several campaigns and also an interesting deck-building system allowing you to design a force around your preferred play style, without allowing you to go too crazy. It can become a click fest as you mercilessly throw units into the meat grinder.
Tank Warfare: Tunisia 1943
It’s a Graviteam game set in Tunisia during World War 2 rather than the usual Eastern Front. Whilst the game still has the same frustrating UI as all other games in the series, it is a really fun game. I chose Tank Warfare: Tunisia 1943 rather than the more renowned Mius-Front because it features British and American units, which I found refreshing. The attention to detail in the game is wonderful and at least for me, it runs more smoothly than the combat mission games – so it’s easier to get my realistic WW2 fix that way. – Oh, and it also features a campaign mode.
Kerbal Space Program
Wait this is Strategy and Wargaming what heresy is this!? Well, the Kerbal Space Program is one of those games that makes you try, fail and then iterate – if that’s not the essence of strategy and wargaming I don’t know what is! The only casualties in this game are my dignity and a few Kerbals. In all seriousness, I think the Kerbal Space Program is a great game where you learn from your mistakes and it drives you to try again. It encourages good traits that I try and replicate when I wargame.
Rule The Waves 3
A great naval game that whilst not visually stimulating, unless spreadsheets are your thing, is still captivating. Design and build your national naval fleet within the constraints of your technology and budget. – just like real navies! The game is still reviving updates and refinement to ensure it squeezes out as much accuracy and details as possible. I think I hadn’t anticipated learning about my production style, in most strategy games you can often wait for a big tech discovery and then quickly upgrade all your units. In Rule The Waves 3, just like in real life, this won’t work. You need to adopt spiral development rather than waterfall in my experience. – fun stuff to learn hey!
Command: Modern Operations
The Command: Modern Operations database alone almost makes this sim worth it. It contains hundreds if not thousands of real-world and hypothetical platforms with great levels of detail. It provides content creators the ability to create almost any scenario you can imagine, with a particular focus on air and sea combat. The game is often updated and can be used with Tacview giving players some great insight when they investigate the results of combat. It’s not for the faint-hearted and really does need the player to invest time in understanding the technical aspects of combat, patricianly when using more modern platforms.
Hope you guys enjoyed. Don’t forget to let me know down in the comments if you agree with me or not! Post your top favourite games too!
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