The Miscellaneous PC & vidya Games Thread

[Syt]

With John Tiller having passed on, Wargame Design Studio have taken over his games and store. Which makes sense, as I think they were the ones making new titles and updating the existing ones.

Old orders were transferred, and they sent new download links. One per game. So now I have like 90+ emails to go through.

https://wargameds.com/blogs/news/wargame-design-studio-publishes-its-first-game-civil-war-battles-forgotten-campaigns

CIVIL WAR BATTLES – FORGOTTEN CAMPAIGNS RELEASED

Wargame Design Studio (WDS) is excited to release its first game under the WDS label.

Forgotten Campaigns is the next installment in the Civil War Battles series with the prior fourteen titles covering the major campaigns in the American Civil War.

Forgotten Campaigns is a title unlike the others in the Civil War Battles series, in that it covers a wide range of actions from all theaters of the war. In this fifteenth installment of the series, we have rolled up the actions not covered in other titles, and in many cases actions that the historians have not devoted much attention to either. Fighting will range from frontier actions in New Mexico during 1862 to Mobile Bay in 1865. The Red River campaign of 1864 is included as is the War in Mississippi with Brice's Crossroads and Tupelo. Naval combat plays a prominent role in many actions as well, with coastal actions from Charleston to Baton Rouge and many others.

Civil War Battles – Forgotten Campaigns is for sale now and can be reviewed and purchased from this link: https://wargameds.com/products/forgotten-campaigns

WARGAME DESIGN STUDIO PURCHASES THE ASSETS OF JOHN TILLER SOFTWARE

In addition to the release of Forgotten Campaigns, WDS is announcing that it has bought the full John Tiller game catalogue, source code and John Tiller and John Tiller Software name. The deal was finalized in September 2021, and we would like to thank the Tiller family for their support in closing the deal and allowing us to continue to build on John's legacy.

With the purchase behind us, we are also launching our new website at https://wargameds.com/

Our prior sites, https://johntillersoftware.com/ and https://www.wargamedesignstudio.com/ should all start to redirect to this new page.

CATALOGUE REFRESH

The full PC game catalogue has been updated and will be branded as WDS titles from today. With the move to new installers, many enhancements and fixes have been included across almost every series. A summarized list of inclusions in the new installers and patches follows:

American Civil War – significant new code enhancements introduced with Forgotten Campaigns and included in all existing fourteen titles. New 2D & 3D hi-res graphics sets. Newly revised and improved documentation
Early American Wars - New 2D & 3D hi-res graphics sets.
First World War Campaigns – additional content updates for all three titles
Modern Campaigns – new code enhancements and the hi-res graphics engine introduced with Panzer Campaigns Scheldt '44 is implemented in all five titles.
Musket & Pike – new code enhancements in both released titles. New 2D & 3D hi-res graphics sets.
Napoleonic's - significant new code enhancements as introduced with Campaign Waterloo 1.09 and now included in all fifteen titles. New 2D & 3D hi-res graphics sets. Many of the enhancements to this series have been ported across from the previous WDS work on the Civil War Battles series.
Naval Campaigns - significant new code enhancements including weather, damage and other items needed for both current and planned titles. All five released titles have been upgraded.
Panzer Battles – significant new code enhancements including replacements, weather, artillery resolution and optional alternative assault resolution that were slated for the next titles in the series. All three released titles and the Demo have been upgraded
Panzer Campaigns – significant new code enhancements including changes to alternate assault resolution, corps attachment and addition of forts. All titles have implemented the hi-res graphics engine introduced with Panzer Campaigns Scheldt '44. Newly revised and improved documentation.
Strategic War – new code enhancements and new hi-res graphics set for both released titles.
Both the Modern Air Power and Squad Battles series are being released as WDS titles, but their planned enhancements are still work-in-progress. More on that at a future date.

In total, we are releasing installers or patches for all ninety-nine PC titles today.

More information on the above announcements is in the following FAQ.

WDS  F.A.Q.
November 19th, 2021

Q: What is WDS?

A: Wargame Design Studio (WDS) was founded in August 2016 to support and enhance John Tiller's wargame series. In September 2021, WDS bought the full John Tiller game catalogue with a remit to continue to publish and enhance the complete range. We have a robust pipeline of new titles and are excited with what the future holds.

Q: What happens with all the games I've purchased over the years from John Tiller?

A: All games purchase through John Tiller Software are completely supported in the same manner that JTS has supported them for years. All games that were purchased through HPS Simulations and converted to JTS versions over the years are also supported. That migration window has now closed, however. In short – if you have a serial number for your game, you are good to go going forward.

Q: What about getting the games installed? I never made a backup of most and what I do have is very old.

A: This is a multi-part answer:

First off, you should only be doing installations from a digital installer. All CD versions of the games are obsolete and in many cases the file structures are different. They should no longer be used.
We will be "re-opening" all orders from our existing store which will cause an email to be sent to you for each product you have ordered in the past. This will give you an opportunity to grab a new installer for the game that is completely up to date as of the WDS announcement.
If you purchased games through the original JTS store (Dec. 2010 – May 2012) then send an email to [email protected] along with your order number(s) or serial number(s) and new installer files will be emailed to you.
If you were migrated over from old HPS purchases, then send an email to [email protected] along with your serial number(s) and new installer files will be emailed to you. ** You must include a complete listing of all game names and serial numbers you are requesting new installers for.
Q: Will you be continuing to sell games as John Tiller Software?

A: No, all titles and sales will be through WDS going forward. We are a fully incorporated company (WDS LLC) in the United States. All our titles use John Tiller's game system, and we will continue to pay homage to John. If you follow existing links to John Tiller Software, it should route you to our new site at wargameds.com

Q: Why aren't you using the existing wargamedesignstudio.com url?

A: We debated using this as our primary url, but it is l-o-n-g. We have chosen the shorter wargameds.com to simplify the ability to find us – wargamedesignstudio.com will still be in place, but you will be redirected to our new URL.

Q: I'm getting a warning message when I try and launch the game installer or update, what gives?

A: This is to be expected and should go away with time. The reason is, we have a brand-new code signing certificate and up until November 19th, 2021, it has only been used within our development circles. All our software has been scanned and found free of both viruses and malware. As time passes and more installations take place around the world the "reputation" of our certificate will grow, and the warnings will diminish. You can confidently by-pass these warnings and install the software.

Q: Will the games run under Windows 11.

A: Yes, preliminary testing shows that the games will run under Windows 11.

Q: Are you planning just to sell the existing titles or are you planning new content?

A: Civil War Battles – Forgotten Campaigns is the first of a very solid pipeline of games. WDS is continuing the approach started in 2016 of bringing together developers, programmers, and artists to build on John Tiller's work. This means a focus on both new titles and enhancements to prior releases. The solid foundation and research behind each title and game series is a perfect starting point for further enhancement.

Fortunately, you can still log into their (new) web store and download your orders from there.

[Sheilbh]

I am once again weighing up buying Football Manager, or achieving literally anything else for the next few months

[Josquius]

I am once again weighing up buying Football Manager, or achieving literally anything else for the next few months

Yes. This is why I try to steer clear of strategy games these days.

[The Brain]

I am once again weighing up buying Football Manager, or achieving literally anything else for the next few months

Don't you have Game Pass?

[Syt]

Decisive Campaigns: Ardennes Offensive (from the dev who also did Shadow Empire) is out over on Matrix. It seems to improve some aspects over its predecessors, and also have more than just a few scenarios:

https://strategyandwargaming.com/2021/11/20/decisive-campaigns-ardennes-offensive-review-new-golden-standard/

I'll be waiting till it comes to Steam, I think.

[Habbaku]

Decisive Campaigns: Case Blue is $7.59 over on Fanatical if anyone's interested:

https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/decisive-campaigns-case-blue

Barbarossa is $12.49:

https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/decisive-campaigns-barbarossa

I'd happily do PBEM against anyone that wanted an opponent. 

[Sheilbh]

I am once again weighing up buying Football Manager, or achieving literally anything else for the next few months

Don't you have Game Pass?

No. I don't know if it'd be helpful for me either (just looked it up). I have PS4 and certain types of games I mainly do on that.

But I did buy FM2022 so decided to go for that rather than making any progress in my personal or professional life for the next six months

[FunkMonk]

I am once again weighing up buying Football Manager, or achieving literally anything else for the next few months

Don't you have Game Pass?

No. I don't know if it'd be helpful for me either (just looked it up). I have PS4 and certain types of games I mainly do on that.

But I did buy FM2022 so decided to go for that rather than making any progress in my personal or professional life for the next six months

I must admit to have played a few too many hours of FM21 while working from home over the last year 

[The Brain]

So BF2042 seems to be crap. Sad.

[Syt]

Decisive Campaigns: Case Blue is $7.59 over on Fanatical if anyone's interested:

https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/decisive-campaigns-case-blue

Barbarossa is $12.49:

https://www.fanatical.com/en/game/decisive-campaigns-barbarossa

I'd happily do PBEM against anyone that wanted an opponent. 

I have played up to half a turn in these games multiple times (Well, in Case White and Barbarossa, none in Case Blue).  The games feel a tad unwieldy.

[Syt]

On the other end of the spectrum ...

Ozymandias, an upcoming single sitting 4X game.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1768280/Ozymandias/

At the dawn of history, Bronze Age kings built the first empires. Strategize their rise to power in a uniquely streamlined 4X.

DISTILLED DESIGN
Focus on strategy over tactics, we've stripped the busywork out of 4X gameplay.
Combat abstracted via innovative Power system so you need only move armies and fleets.

HISTORICAL MAPS
8 handmade maps charting Bronze Ages around the world, empires in real-world locations.
Empires are tagged from 'Easy' to 'Very Hard' to reflect their unique challenges.

COMPETITIVE AI
Data-driven AI system, flexible enough to succeed in any environment.
Streamlined ruleset is inherently AI-friendly so no 'AI cheating' required.

MULTIPLAYER
Players take their turns simultaneously so there's no waiting around.
Choose to play 'live' (short turn timers) or 'asynchronous' (long game timers).

A DEMO is available on the store page.

[Habbaku]

I have played up to half a turn in these games multiple times (Well, in Case White and Barbarossa, none in Case Blue).  The games feel a tad unwieldy.

Thou art weak.

The great thing about the DC series is that you don't have to get bogged into the details to just learn it. Move some units around. Make some attacks. Get your ass kicked and then spam Hitler for more fuel or blame someone else for your mistake. Then start over!

[Syt]

I have played up to half a turn in these games multiple times (Well, in Case White and Barbarossa, none in Case Blue).  The games feel a tad unwieldy.

Thou art weak.

I know. 

[Syt]

For people seeking some old school DOS wargames nostalgia, Sid Meier's 1980s wargames are now on Steam:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1703040/Decision_in_the_Desert/
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1703100/Crusade_in_Europe/
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1703060/Conflict_in_Vietnam/







Tbh, I can think of no good reason to go back to these games, unless one has an overwhelming feeling of nostalgia for them.

[Razgovory]

"My eyes!  The goggles do nothing!"