WW2
Heroes of Stalingrad — Video
Matrix Games posted some videos of the upcoming computer wargame Heroes of Stalingrad based on Lock ‘n Load Games’ Lock n Load WW2 board wargame. Overall the game looks interesting and appears to be even more of a direct port of the board wargame than we initially thought. Hopefully the AI will be good enough for a challenge.
Line of Fire #2 — Review
Lock ‘N Load Games just released the latest edition of their house PDF-magazine, Line of Fire #2. They did not quite make the quarterly deadline but close enough. LNL is selling Line of Fire #2 for a couple dollars cheaper ($14.99) than Line of Fire #1 but the issue is a bit shorter than the first. Read the rest of this entry »
Dark July: The Battles for Prokhorovka Announced
Lock ‘n Load Publishing announced a new title for their Lock ‘n Load: Band of Heroes game system, Dark July: The Battles for Prokhorovka.
The game depicts the battles fought west of the Russian city of Prokhorovka on July 10-12, 1943.
Designed by Juan Carlos Cebrian (A las Barricadas!), the game features 85 new counters; a 22” x 34” historically accurate map complete with the famed Hill 252.2, the Soviet trenches to the east, and the Oktiabrskii State Farm to the north; and six historical scenarios. Here’s every gamer’s chance to be a part of one of the Second World War’s climactic battles on the Eastern Front; and the squad-level nuances of the Lock ‘n Load gaming system will put you in the middle of it. Be the Germans, be the Soviets. Be there!
Panzer Command: Kharkov Released
Matrix Games quietly released Panzer Command: Kharkov. This is a World War Two, tactical, computer wargame. It is an update to the original Panzer Command: Operation Winter Storm game from two years ago.
I have only played the training mission so far but it looks like a minor update to the original game. PC: Kharkov now has smoke but some of the same movement and AI annoyances still seem to be present. But I will provide more details once I have had more time with the game. The original PC:OWS was a solid game; It had some issues but was enjoyable. PC: Kharkov will probably be at least as good.
The Wargamer has a preview of the game.
If you enjoy World War Two tactical wargames you should give it a look.
Get the 1.01 update.
[Updated: 28MAY08]
Patton Drives East Announced
Battlefront announced a pre-pub offer for Patton Drives East, its upcoming expansion to its Strategic Command 2 grand strategy game series. Unlike previous expansions, PDE takes SC2 into one of the great hypothetical conflicts of World War Two — What if the U.S. Army, led by Gen. Patton, had attacked Russia? Patton Drives East is scheduled for release in May.
[Update 8MAY09: Patton Drives East is now available.]
New Combat Commander Titles
GMT Games announced two new Combat Commander titles for release in September. First is an expansion, Combat Commander Battle Pack #2: Stalingrad, and the second is a full game taking the system into a new theater, Combat Commander: Pacific.
Noville – Bastogne’s Outpost Announced
Lock ‘n Load Publishing announced another new title. This one is an expansion for Band of Heroes.
Designed by Lock ‘n Load guru, Robert Herzner, Lock ‘n Load:
Noville – Bastogne’s Outpost is an expansion to Band Of Heroes that depicts the intense fighting for the small town of Noville. Located northeast of Bastogne, Noville was defended by Team Desobry, straggers from a handful of shattered American formations, elements of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division, and a handful of M-18 Hellcats from the 609th Tank Destroyer Battalion. This patchwork quilt of men and machines held Noville for two days against the onslaught of the German’s 2nd Panzer Division and 26th Volkgrenediers.Noville – Bastogne’s Outpost depicts this fierce struggle on a verdant 22″ x 34″ map created from actual maps of the period. There are six scenarios (listed below) featuring tense battles between American tank-infantry teams against Panzer Grenadiers, Volksgrenadiers, and Panzers of the Wehrmacht. New counters include American M4A3E8 East Eight Shermans, M-18 Wildcats, M8 Armored cars, German Jagpanthers, Volsgrenadiers, and more.
White Star Rising Announced
Lock ‘n Load Publishing announced a new title:
Nations at War: White Star Rising is on P500! White Star Rising is the first game in Lock ‘n Load Publishing’s Nations at War (NAW) game system.
Based on the popular World at War, NAW depicts platoon level combat in World War II. Here you’ll find everything your looking for in a platoon-level game, armor, artillery, infantry that serves as more than cannon fodder, command and control, air support, amphibious landings, desperate close assaults that leave the victor in possession of the ground and the defeated in headlong retreat, all in eight pages of rules.
White Star Rising includes two counter sheets replete with the vehicles, men, and weapons of both the American and German armies that fought in France, Belgium, and Germany in 1944-45. You’ll fight battles at Omaha Beach, in the Lorraine, on the outskirts of Belgium, and in Germany itself. There are 16 scenarios (18 for those who preorder), played out on four 11” x 17” geomorphic maps with ¾” (.75”) counters. That’s right, no more squinting to make out that tank platoon’s range. It’s all included in an attractive, bookcase-sized box.
Victory at Sea — Bandits at Six O’Clock
The latest edition of Mongoose Publishing’s Signs & Portents pdf magazine, issue 54 (now in a new combined format), has additional aircraft stats for their WW2 naval miniatures game Victory at Sea.
Nine pages of material add almost 300 aircraft to VaS. Much of this material consists of the ‘missing’ stats from the original work done for the Order of Battle expansion. Why it was not simply provided there is anyone’s guess but it is great to have it now. New rules are provided for level bombing and, finally, skip bombing! Oddly, rules for guided missiles, such as the German Hs293, are also included. Another mystery is the inclusion of the early jets, such as the P-80, F-86, and Mig-15. Perhaps this is a peek at what will be available in the modern version of the VaS rules? It does allow players to make-up some interesting Korean War scenarios.
Overall this is a very welcome addition to the VaS system and we finally get our B-25s!
Victory at Sea: Order of Battle — Review
Order of Battle is the latest expansion for Mongoose Publishing’s Victory at Sea WW2 naval miniatures game. Order of Battle is a 111-page hardcover book. It also includes ten pages of black and white ship counters that can be photocopied and cut out for use instead of miniatures. [Note: You can also order OoB as a downloadable PDF.] Unfortunately, Mongoose continues to have quality issues. I have seen three copies of the book including one ordered direct from Mongoose. Two had significant warping of the cover and crinkled pages at the binding when opened. The one direct from Mongoose is much better but still has a ‘wave’ to the cover when viewed end on. If Mongoose cannot get these issues under control they should simple use soft covers.
Order of Battle provides one page of new rules that mostly makes official what many users had been doing as house rules — Most significantly, observation aircraft are no longer used except for ASW operations. Read the rest of this entry »
The View from the Turret 
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