7 – Call to Arms – Gates of Hell: Ostfront
I’ve had a lovely relationship with the Men of War video games since I first played them back in 2009, and I have played every iteration of it from start to end, from the standalone expansions of Red Tide to Condemned Heroes. I even played Vietnam and Assault Squad and Assault Squad 2, even when the game started to focus a lot more on its multiplayer experience. Unfortunately, after 2014’s Assault Squad 2, the series won’t see a new entry until the disappointing release of Men of War II in 2024.
Fortunately, my love for the formula was kept alive by a new, better entry called Call to Arms – Gates of Hell: Ostfront, a game developed using the same engine, but made by a team of Men of War modders, which went on to become one of the best strategy games of all time. Now, with 6 solid DLCs, a big emphasis on small-unit tactics, over 1000 vehicles, 60 missions, and 135 multiplayer maps alongside a very strong modding scene, Gates of Hell: Ostfront is the best small-scale tactics wargame that isn’t a fully hardcore wargame.
6 – Wargame Design Studio: Battles of Normandy
It wasn’t until I started playing Wargame Design Studio: Battles of Normandy that I understood just how “uncomplicated” more hardcore wargames were. l Until then, the titles from WDS were something I postponed starting, over and over again, just because of how ridiculously complex they looked. I was missing one of the best World War 2 games of all time.
Well, color me surprised when, after finally forcing myself to give it a try, it wasn’t nearly as obtuse as I thought it was going to be. In fact, it was quite straightforward and super-easy to get going, and once I got into the rhythm of playing it, everything started to piece together, and the gameplay flowed like a breeze. If Battle Academy was the game that broke the entry barrier for me, I guess you could say that Battles of Normandy was the game that finally destroyed that wall that was keeping me from enjoying some of the most complex experiences the genre has on offer. Before letting you jump to my next entry, I want to give you some advice, especially if you’re in this weird spot I was when I started trying to get into these games: pick a subject you enjoy and know about, and things will be significantly easier.
5 – Field of Glory 2: Medieval
Having written extensively about the medieval period on the website, you probably already noticed that I’m quite a fan of the medieval period, and I’m quite fond of games set in that era, to the point that, at the time of writing this article, I’m even going through Kingdom Come: Deliverance. While there isn’t a lack of choice when it comes to real-time strategy games set in the medieval period, with titles like Age of Empires, Stronghold, and Total War instantly coming to mind and being, possibly, the biggest franchises in the genre. And while I do love those games, they’re not the same; however, they’re more realistic and grounded games. Enter Field of Glory 2: Medieval, the second game in the Field of Glory 2 franchise, and this one blew my mind due to the amount of historical outcomes it could output. With hundreds of factions, units, and an unlimited amount of maps, Field of Glory 2: Medieval is my go-to wargame whenever I feel like commanding troops in medieval Europe.
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