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.
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