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Scourge of War: Gettysburg 150th Anniversary Collection

Scourge of War: Gettysburg 150th Anniversary Collection Civil War games into one bundles several comprehensive package. Players can fight engagements from Gettysburg, Antietam, Chancellorsville and Brandy Station – all critical battles from the war’s Eastern Theater.

The Scourge of War game system features infantry regiments, artillery batteries and cavalry troops maneuvering in real time over a 3-D landscape. However, players don’t command the entire Army of the Potomac or Army of Northern Virginia. Instead, they control subordinate brigades, divisions or corps fighting a portion of the larger battle, while the built-in artificial intelligence handles supporting units on the flanks or rear.

The game’s interface allows players to give orders to their regiments and guns, but in the heat of battle it is more sensible to issue them at brigade or division level and let the computer-controlled commanders manage the details. The overall effect is to realistically re-create the command and control difficulties of a Civil War battlefield. The stunning 3-D graphics give the impression of a painting in motion, further enhancing the sense of authenticity.

Scourge of War: Gettysburg 150th Anniversary Collection is a wonderful addition to any wargamer’s library. The engagements are challenging and engrossing as well as historically accurate.

Command Ops: Battles for Greece

Command Ops: Battles for Greece is an operational level game in which German forces invade Greece to bail out their Italian allies in the spring of 1941. Played on a 2-D military-style topographic map featuring company-sized maneuver units, the game is built on a wealth of detail, with every imaginable factor accurately modeled.

The superb Command Ops game system is refreshingly realistic, allowing players to manage battles in the same manner that actual commanders would. Though units can be controlled individually, the pressures of real-time combat effectively force players into the roles of brigade or division commanders who issue orders through the chain of command. The artificial intelligence then models the activity of the staff, promulgating the orders to sub units.

Events on the battlefield unfold in a convincing manner – perhaps more so than with any other operational-level game system. To achieve success in this fast-paced environment, players must plan ahead and develop a feel for the everchanging battlefield situation.

Command Ops: Battles for Greece is a fun and challenging game. Players will enjoy fighting some of history’s lesser-known engagements.

 

 Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) Jeffrey Paulding is a lifelong student of military history and science. He has been playing wargames since he was a child.

Originally published in the March 2014 issue of Armchair General.