| Battlefront | |
|---|---|
 Apple II box cover | |
| Developer(s) | Strategic Studies Group |
| Publisher(s) | Strategic Studies Group |
| Designer(s) | Ian Trout, Roger Keating |
| Platform(s) | Apple II, Commodore 64 |
| Release | 1986 |
| Genre(s) | Wargame, Turn-based strategy |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Battlefront is a computer wargame developed and published by Strategic Studies Group for the Apple II and Commodore 64 in 1986. The game is a turn-based strategy set in World War II.
Battlefront is a corps-level simulation wargame. Upon starting the game, player chooses from one of four scenarios that depict battles of World War II. The scenarios are based on Battle of Crete, Operation Winter Storm, Battle of Saipan, and Siege of Bastogne. [1]
The game was designed, programmed and finished in 14 weeks. Roger Keating created a dedicated disc operating system for the game that allowed rapid access to the data stored on the disc with subsequent reloading of the game screen. Additionally, Keating wrote a novel pathfinding routine that helped to minimize memory usage. [2]
Jay Selover reviewed the game for Computer Gaming World , and stated that "Battlefront is a very good game which does an excellent job of putting the player into an authentic combat role: that of a Corps commander." [3]
A reviewer of Computer and Video Games praised the game's historical accuracy and the possibility to create custom scenarios, but criticised the graphics. He stated that Battlefront "is a very good attempt, but it is not the perfect game that it might have been". [1]
The game was nominated by Computer Gaming World for Strategy Game of the Year in 1987, but lost to Gettysburg: The Turning Point by Chuck Kroegel. [4] Bruce Geryk in his article "Innovation Wars", published in 2006 in Computer Gaming World described Battlefront as legendary and said that "its landmark gameplay revolutionized the genre". [5]
Panzer General is a 1994 computer wargame developed and published by Strategic Simulations Inc. (SSI). It simulates conflict during World War II. The designers of Panzer General were heavily influenced by the Japanese wargame series Daisenryaku.
Reach for the Stars is a science fiction strategy video game. It is the earliest known commercially published example of the 4X genre. It was written by Roger Keating and Ian Trout of SSG of Australia and published in 1983 for the Commodore 64 and then the Apple II in 1985. Versions for Mac OS, Amiga, Apple IIGS, and DOS were released in 1988.
Strategic Studies Group (SSG) is an Australian software development company that makes primarily strategy wargames.
Under Fire! is a tactical level computer game released by Avalon Hill's computer division in 1985. The game was released for Apple II, Commodore 64, and DOS systems. Initial packaging had the name of the designer, Ralph H. Bosson, over the title on the box front so as to read Ralph Bosson's UNDER FIRE!, but subsequent packaging replaced his name and read Avalon Hill's UNDER FIRE! instead. The C64 port was by Dyadic Software Associates.
Battles of Napoleon is a 1988 computer wargame by Chuck Kroegel and David Landrey published by Strategic Simulations. It was released for the Apple II, Commodore 64, and DOS.
Harpoon is a computer wargame published by Three-Sixty Pacific in 1989 for DOS. This was the first game in the Harpoon series. It was ported to the Amiga and Macintosh.
Roger Keating is an Australian computer game designer. Along with Ian Trout, Keating co-founded of the video game company Strategic Studies Group, which is known for its strategic war and fantasy games with artificial intelligence. Keating and Trout worked together on the majority of SSG titles.
Ogre is a 1986 computer game based on the Ogre board wargame. It was released by Origin Systems for the Apple II, Amiga, Atari 8-bit family, Atari ST, Commodore 64, MS-DOS, and Macintosh.
Bismarck is a turn-based strategy video game developed by Personal Software Services and published by Mirrorsoft. It was first released for the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum in 1987 for the United Kingdom. It was ported to Amiga, Apple II, Atari ST and Atari 8-bit home computers in both the United Kingdom and the United States the following year. The game is the tenth instalment in the Strategic Wargames series. In the game, the player can choose to control either the German battleship Bismarck or command the pursuing fleet of Royal Navy ships.
Europe Ablaze is a computer wargame developed and published by Strategic Studies Group for the Commodore 64 and Apple II in 1985. It is based on air warfare of World War II.
Chronicles of Osgorth: The Shattered Alliance is a 1981 computer wargame published by Strategic Simulations in January 1982 for the Apple II and Atari 8-bit family. Programmed by John Lyon, it relies on a new game engine, called RapidFire, intended to make faster and easier access to wargames published by the studio. During a turn, the program selects the units each in turn and the player only has to order them to move, attack or cast a spell. The order is then executed immediately before the program selects another unit. The game offers two categories of scenarios. The first is composed of medieval-fantasy confrontation, including a free adaptation of the Battle of Gondor against the Mordor forces in the Lord of the Rings. The second is composed of historical battles of antiquity.
Battlefront is a wargame developed by Strategic Studies Group and published by Matrix Games for Microsoft Windows in 2007. The game is a turn-based strategy set in World War II. It is the namesake of an earlier game released by Strategic Studies Group in 1986.
War in Russia is a 1984 computer wargame developed and published by Strategic Simulations for the Apple II and Atari 8-bit family. It was designed by Gary Grigsby.
U.S.A.A.F. - United States Army Air Force is a 1985 computer wargame designed by Gary Grigsby published by Strategic Simulations.
Battle Group is a 1986 computer wargame designed by Gary Grigsby and published by Strategic Simulations. It is a follow-up to Grigsby's earlier Kampfgruppe.
Objective: Kursk is a 1984 computer wargame designed by Gary Grigsby and released by Strategic Simulations, Inc.
Warship is a 1986 computer wargame designed by Gary Grigsby and published by Strategic Simulations. It covers naval conflict during the Pacific War.
Battle Cruiser is a 1987 computer wargame designed by Gary Grigsby and published by Strategic Simulations Inc. (SSI). It is the follow-up to Grigsby's earlier Warship.
Russia: The Great War in the East 1941–1945 is a 1987 computer wargame developed and published by Strategic Studies Group.
Panzer Battles is a 1989 video game published by Strategic Studies Group.