Guide to Computer Wargames: Tactical, Operational and Strategic

Welcome to the Strategy and Wargaming Guide to Computer Wargames covering everything, from tactical battles, operational maneuvers, and strategic decisions!

This guide will be useful for you, whether you’re a beginner looking for a place to start, or an experienced veteran of the genre who might be looking for some suggestions and looking for new games to try out.

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What is Wargaming?

The definition of wargaming can vary greatly depending on who you ask. To keep things simple: Let’s define wargaming as the simulation of a military conflict: be said conflict real, or fictitious, grounded in reality, or not. Wargaming isn’t limited to current conflicts, and it can be used to both simulate future scenarios, as well as to learn and build knowledge from past conflicts in history. Wargaming and wargames can be focused on tactical, operational, and strategic decision-making.

What are Wargames?

Wargames can come in various formats, and wargaming is traditionally more associated with board games that use physical components like maps, dice, and chits to simulate a conflict. There are live-action role-playing games, where the participants will study their characters and act according to their roles in a conflict. Lastly, and the focus of this guide, we have computer wargames: these are digital recreations of conflicts, and their digital nature can offer more complex simulations.

Wargames aren’t limited in their sub-genres either. Wargames can be classical, hex-and-counter titles like Gary Grigsby’s War In The East 2 and; Real-time strategy like Armored Brigade, and Scourge of War: Gettysburg; Turn-based like Second Front and Battle Academy; Even simultaneous turn-resolution like the Combat Mission series of games. Some wargames even lean quite a lot into being more simulators, like the IL-2 series of flight simulators, or games like Gunner, HEAT, PC, a tank-based sim-lite. The Armed Assault series, for example, is a great example of a first-person shooter that’s also a wargame.

This versatility is what makes wargames so interesting, yet so hard to define, as there’s not a clear line as to when a game ceases to be a wargame and enters the realm of other genres. I enjoy the broad definition that a wargame is a game whose main focus is on representing warfare, with the intent of keeping some degree of realism. As an example, Combat Mission is a wargame because it intentionally focuses its efforts on representing war realistically. Something like Company of Heroes, despite being set in the same period as some other games from Combat Mission is intentionally providing players with a portrayal of war that’s intentionally non-realistic and focuses its systems instead on providing a fun, balanced, and somewhat grounded in history experience.

What is Wargaming used for?

Wargaming is used to train military personnel on tactics and strategies, decision-making, and to evaluate the potential value of a course of action.

One often overlooked but interesting fact is the capability that wargaming has to help us understand historical decision-making by putting the players in the shoes of historical figures and taking them with the same, or similar dilemmas of their historical counterparts. It’s a tool that serves to understand”why” some decisions were made instead of others, and it allows us to know how things might have gone differently in history.

How can I start Wargaming?

Accessing wargames used to be a very hard and convoluted process. Games used to be spread out across several proprietary stores, each belonging to a specific game development company. In this day and age, things are a bit different, and you can access most wargames in just a couple of locations.

Where can I buy wargames?

Steam Store – Most wargames are currently available on the Steam Store. It has a massive collection of games, both new and old. You’ll find almost all of them under the tag “wargame” or “historical“. With Steam, you can enjoy the benefits of regular sales, and events, and having all your wargames in just one location.

Wargame Design Studio – The only major wargame developer whose games haven’t gone to Steam. They have a massive store with self-published titles that range from the Napoleonic Period, the American Civil War, World War 1, World War 2, and the Cold War. Wargame Design Studio runs a weekly sale on a selected title and a yearly Summer and Christmas Sale.

Slitherine and Matrix – Despite having most of their catalog on Steam, it is still worth keeping an eye on their stores because they have a couple of games that haven’t made their way to Steam. They also run special sales in their stores.

How can I keep up to day with what’s going on?

Since you’re already here, you might have realized that Strategy and Wargaming is a very active website with weekly news updates, a lot of reviews, best-of lists, developer interviews, opinion columns, and a lot more. If you’re looking for other content creators, I can recommend a couple:

Tim Stone from Tally-Ho Corner has the best fâit diver articles;
The Historical Gamer has a great podcast that I highly recommend called Single Malt Strategy;
Wolfpack345 is another youtuber with a lot of quality content, mostly focused on naval warfare;
Taff in Exile is a more generalist Youtuber who plays a lot of different wargames;
Real and Simulated Wars explores how gaming represents the nature of war;

The 5 Best Wargames for Beginners

The best wargames for beginners need to take into account the following prerequisites:

Be cheap – Full-price games are a hard sell when you don’t even know if you’ll enjoy them. Fortunately, for new wargamers, there are a lot of cheap options nowadays. Some games might not be cheap right now, but in one of those frequent sales, they’ll go down to half the price or even lower.
Easy to learn – In less than half an hour you should be commanding your troops on the battlefield, commanding them around, and making massive enveloping maneuvers to outwit your opponents.
Easy to set up – Some wargames require you to pick your scenarios, your troop composition, doctrines, rules of engagement, and so on. Your first couple of wargames should do all of this for you.
Familiar – The entryway to wargaming isn’t the easiest one to reach, hence why familiarity with similar strategy genres is of the utmost importance. There are some great stepping-stone titles that you should play if you’re coming from other strategy genres like RTS, Turn-based strategy, or Grand-Strategy.
Fun – Yes! Games are supposed to be fun and wargaming is no different!

Here are the top 5 recommendations for wargames if you are a beginner:

Battle Academy

Battle Academy is the friendliest of wargames. It’s the easiest game to get going off this list and it frequently goes on sale at Steam for 1 or 2 dollars. The game is set during World War 2 and offers a diverse range of units, including infantry, tanks, artillery, and aircraft, each with strengths and weaknesses. There are dozens of missions, set across various theatres of war, from the North African deserts to the bocage-ridden fields of France.

Ultimate General: Civil War

All of the Ultimate General series of games are delightful, well-crafter titles, but Ultimate General: Civil War ranks the highest. Created by the former Darthmod developer for the Total War titles, and set during the American Civil War, Ultimate General: Civil War expertly combines deep tactical combat with a simple movement system, slick UI, and deep combat mechanics that account for troop morale, conditioning, cover, and range.

Field of Glory 2: Medieval

Field of Glory 2: Medieval treats medieval warfare impeccably and, the occasional flaw here or there can go unnoticed into the sea of content there is to explore. The base game features 29 nations and factions from 1040 to 1270. 57 Army lists, over 100 historical units. 12 Historical scenarios including the battle of Hastings and Bouvines. An unlimited custom battle system and map editor. With the Reconquista, Swords and Scimitars, and Storm of Arrows DLCs, this number is greatly increased, and they make Field of Glory 2: Medieval the best wargame set during the period.

Decisive Campaigns: Ardennes Offensive

Decisive Campaigns: Ardennes Offensive is a standout operational-level wargame that revitalized the wargame genre. The decision to stay away from the more abstract aspects of other operational-level wargames and to bravely implement novel features should serve as a textbook example of how a genre, considered by many to be stale and long past its prime can be propelled to new heights with the right knowledge, passion, and inspiration. Set against the backdrop of the Ardennes Offensive, a favorite theatre for many wargaming enthusiasts it provides an accessible entry point into the world of operational and tactical-level strategy.

Cauldrons of War – Barbarossa

Cauldrons of War – Barbarossa, is a “turn-based strategic wargame you will launch whenever you want your WW2 shot but don’t have time for a monster strategy game”. It’s a nice mix between a choose-your-own misadventure World War 2 game paired up with a turn-based, grand strategy with some superficial management when it comes to battles. It gives you the feeling of being in Berlin or Moscow making high-level, strategic decisions without all the fluff and micromanagement games like Hearts of Iron, and War In The East 2 entail.

The Best Wargames: Tactical, Operational, Strategic

If you’re already a fan of wargames, know the meaning of things like the 4Fs, enfilade fire, and the difference between a M4A1 Sherman and M4A2, and you’re just looking for other titles to sink your teeth into that are more complex, these are the best wargames you can play at each level of warfare: tactical, operational and strategic.

Remember that no matter what kind of level you prefer, every level is interconnected, as tactical successes or failures can influence operational outcomes, and those, in turn, can shape strategic objectives. Games very often blur these lines and will represent more than one level at a time, so don’t get stuck on overly precise definitions.

The Best Tactical-Level Wargames

Tactical-level combat is mostly limited to individual battles, skirmishes, and small-scale engagements. The main objective is to achieve immediate battlefield objectives such as capturing a specific piece of terrain, destroying enemy forces, or disrupting supply lines. The decision-makers are Unit Commanders at the squad, platoon, company, and battalion levels.

Combat Mission: Shock Force 2

Combat Mission: Shock Force 2 is a tactical wargame from the veteran developers at Battlefront that takes place in a hypothetical “modern-day” conflict in the Middle East. Players can take control of either NATO forces or Syrian forces in a variety of scenarios, ranging from small-scale skirmishes to large-scale battles. The game features a wide range of modern weaponry and equipment, as well as realistic terrain and weather conditions, making it a true-to-life representation of modern warfare in its established setting. Check the rest of the Combat Mission Franchise if you’re looking for other theatres of war and different periods.

Scourge of War – Remastered

Scourge of War- Remastered is the only game that manages to perfectly capture the size, scale, and complexity of command of Napoleonic battles. Scourge of War is the definition of extreme realism in the musket era. Researched as deeply as some academic thesis, this game might as well be featured in some History university courses as a mandatory bibliography, because the amount of details it packs is astonishing. From weapons to uniforms, from the chain of command to belt buckles, no other title does Napoleon justice as much as this. Orders are passed down the chain of command via couriers, and battles are slow, drawn-out affairs that might go on for hours, each regiment can be carefully positioned if you wish, or its command delegated to your officers. Scourge of War is the definition of extreme realism in the musket era.. There’s also an American Civil War title called Scourge of War: Gettysburg, which is equally dense and impressive.

Graviteam Tactics: Mius Front

This is the ultimate World War II tactical experience with a 1:1 scale. No game does it better. But be warned, Graviteam Tactics: Mius Front is hard to get into and it’s going to require some tutorial watching and manual reading but when you get around to understanding its UI and how you’re supposed to play it there’s nothing quite like it. The game’s as detailed as they come: you’ll be watching your men as they lay communication wires around the battlefield, which one of your squads is in shouting range, and which ones need radio contact to do their job. No line of communication? How will the artillery commander know when and where to fire? It’s that kind of game. Tank armor, weapon ballistics, and unit morale are all simulated. And it’s better to go in with some understanding of real WWII tactics and unit organization. Graviteam Tactics: Mius Front pulls no punches but it’s marvelous.

Command: Modern Operations

When it comes to simulating the complexity of modern warfare in videogame format, Command: Modern Operations has no equal. Command: Modern Operations is the definitive experience if you want to simulate any military conflict post World War 2 at a tactical and operational level that involves the use of sea and air assets at a massive but at a 1 to 1 scale. Ground, sea, and air operations are all possible to model with this title to an absurd degree of accuracy and complexity. The equipment database alone has around 70K detailed entries of real-world military equipment. The Command Professional Edition is used by organizations such as the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, the Royal Navy, and the Luftwaffe.

The Troop

The Troop is an approachable wargame and acts almost as a direct successor of Battle Academy. The Troop is still a rather basic turn-based tactical combat wargame where the player will be doing 3 things: checking lines of sight, moving units, and giving them fire orders. The game has a lot of content for its low price, it’s very easy to get going even without previous experience in the genre, and, for a game that’s single-player only, The Troop has a great AI that will punish players for their tactical mishaps and will use real-life tactics to that effect, which is a great learning tool.

The Best Operational-Level Wargames

At the operational level, the focus is on individual battles, sometimes campaigns, involving multiple units. The main goal of operational-level commanders is to achieve broader military objectives, such as securing a region, disrupting enemy operations, and isolating and encircling enemy forces. Take, as examples, the Battle of Kursk, the Battle of Fallujah, and even the Battle of the Ardennes.

Flashpoint Campaigns: Southern Storm

Considered by many to be one of the best wargames ever made, the Flashpoint Campaigns games (Red Storm and Southern Storm) should be a part of every Cold War Gone Hot hypothesizer. The game features a unique turn system based on your ability to communicate and issue orders. The better the troops are at communicating, the more agency players will have over their actions, and the faster they can change course if need be. The game features 25 scenarios and 4 campaigns across 40 different maps and players will take the role of commanding officers of the USSR, USA, France, Canada, West Germany, East Germany, and Czechoslovakia.

Wargame Design Studio Panzer Campaigns

The Panzer Campaigns Series from Wargame Design Studio has everything you need covered if you’re looking for a military-focused grand strategy set during World War 2. The scale is 1-kilometer hexes, and each turn has a 2-hour duration. If you’re looking for something on the Eastern Front, maybe Kharkov ’42, Kyiv ’43, or Kursk ’43 will serve your wargaming needs. The Western Front? Have a go with Market Garden ’44 or Normandy ’44. Maybe the Pacific Theatre is what you’re looking after, then the Philippines ’44 is your pick.

Unity of Command 2

Unity of Command 2 is always lauded as the operational-level strategy wargame that every newcomer to the wargaming genre should try. It’s a fun, enjoyable and simplistic take on the classic turn-based, hex and counter formula that’s commonly associated with wargames (imagine titles like Panzer Corps and Panzer General). You’ll be directing divisions of troops, not individual soldiers, and managing the key element to success in warfare: your supply lines. Unity of Command has a very aggressive nature to it, making these lifelines of ammunition, fuel and supplies intrinsical to the success of your offensives. Fog of war adds a layer of tension as you won’t have complete intel on enemy positions, requiring you to use recon tactics to scout before massive armoured trusts.

The Operational Art of War 4

Hailed by many to be the real deal of operational-level wargames, The Operational Art of War 4 is a game with an engine so powerful it can recreate conflicts from the age of gunpowder all the way to the war in the Gulf. What it is, is the ultimate definition of a “traditional wargame”. Its UI is somewhat obtuse by today’s standards (even if the game came out in 2017) but few other games can say that within its content pack lives 200 different scenarios. Some, like the Normandy landings, can last for hundreds of turns. It’s not as detailed as War in the East 2 but it sure is powerful for those who are imaginative enough to create their own scenarios.

War On The Sea

War on the Sea is a real-time strategy wargame set during World War II, focusing on naval combat in the South Pacific. Players can command fleets, submarines, and aircraft as either the Allied forces or Imperial Japan. With over 50 ship classes and dynamic campaigns, it emphasizes tactical decision-making in its battles, with realistic physics, and damage models. At the same time, the game plays in a meta-operational layer where you have to manage your fleets and decide what maneuvers to do next. and managing repairs during battle. The game also offers historical missions, and users can control aircraft for added strategic depth. It appeals to fans of naval warfare and WWII simulation games.

The Best Strategic-Level Wargames

The strategic-level strategy focuses on large-scale planning and theatre-wide operations, having in mind the greater picture of both the overall war effort and its relationship to the country’s policies and war objectives. The decision-makers at this level are military chiefs of staff, defense ministers, and national leaders.

Gary Grigsby’s War In The East 2

The all-encompassing operational simulator of the second world war is a game that amazes and scares in the same measure. An absolute masterpiece of a game, War in the East 2 takes the concept of operational-level wargaming to a sickening degree of complexity and detail. It’s absolutely mesmerizing the work done in this title, but War in the East is a harsh mistress if you lack the patience needed to get up to speed with its mechanics and the knowledge necessary to understand the nuances of the war and on how to conduct military operations in the Eastern Front.

Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865)

Grand Tactician: The Civil War (1861-1865) is now on par with its tactical counterparts like Scourge of War: Gettysburg, and Sid Meyer’s. Can you name another game that allows you to take control of either side in a Grand Campaign while also giving players the ability to lead their troops from the front, Total War style? Even fewer games do the American Civil War as well as Grand Tactician. The campaign is massive and complex, and the battles are big and long affairs that mimic the confusion and order delays (borrowing the mechanics from Scourge of War) of their real-life counterparts. Over 3 years have gone by since its release, and the team behind Grand Tactician has been steadily toiling away and has launched massive patches adding new weapons, quality-of-life upgrades, 3D models and even going as far as revamping the whole economy.

Hearts of Iron 4

Hearts of Iron 4 is an amazing game that managed to introduce a whole new generation of players to the idea of wargames and military strategy. This grand strategy title from Paradox is set before, during, and after the Second World War, and it lives up to its premise of allowing the player to lead any nation on Earth no matter how big or small, and guide its destiny across one of the most convoluted times in History. Hearts of Iron 4 leans more into the grand-strategy aspect of warfare and dropped a lot of the nitty-gritty its predecessor had. If you’re looking for a more military-focused grand-strategy title, Hearts of Iron 3 costs less than 10 dollars and it’s still pretty great for a 15-year-old title.

SGS Heia Safari

SGS Heia Safari will be of interest to two kinds of people. Those with a passing interest in the long-forgotten theatres of the First World War, the specific mechanics, exclusive to the African reality, and the different objectives for both the Entente and German forces make for compelling and dynamic gameplay that’s worth exploring and playing over and over. Coupled with its relatively cheap price tag, Heia Safari’s exotic setting, and simple to pick up and play game mechanics make it a worthy addition to every board wargamer’s collection.

Rule The Waves 3

Rule the Waves 3 is an incredibly detailed title that trades the third dimension for spreadsheets of information. In Rule the Waves 3 players will design and build their national fleet, all within the limits of their technology and budget—just like a real navy. The game’s still receiving updates and refinements, striving for maximum accuracy and detail. Tom was surprised when, in his top 10 list he confessed how much he learned about his production style: “In most strategy games, you can wait for a major tech breakthrough and then quickly upgrade all your units, but in Rule The Waves 3, that approach won’t work. Just like in reality, you need to embrace spiral development rather than the traditional waterfall model”.

What To Look For In 2024 and 2025

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