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A grand strategy wargame or simply grand strategy game (GSG) [1] [2] is a wargame that places focus on grand strategy: military strategy at the level of movement and use of a nation state or empire's resources. The genre has considerable overlap with 4X games, but differs in being "asymmetrical", meaning that players are more bound to a specific setup and not among equally free factions in exploring and progressing the game and an open world. [3]
Grand strategy games can be played on a computer or as a board game. They often include a map of the game world, which can range from a single continent to the entire globe. Players typically control a nation or empire and make decisions that affect its development, such as building infrastructure, recruiting and training military units, and negotiating with other players. Combat is often a major part of the game, but it is typically abstracted or simplified compared to more tactical wargames.
Examples of grand strategy board games include Risk , Diplomacy , and Axis & Allies . These games focus on warfare and conquest, but do not include detailed representations of military units or tactics. More realistic grand strategy games, such as Rise and Decline of the Third Reich and Empires in Arms , include specific military units and combat rules. Computer-based grand strategy games, such as Hearts of Iron , Europa Universalis , and Total War , often have more detailed and sophisticated mechanics and can be played in real-time or with turns. [4] Paradox Interactive is one of the video game publishers most active in the development of grand strategy video games through its subsidiary company Paradox Development Studio.
Various games have different methods for resolution of combat results, a central core dynamic for any wargame.
The wargame Panzerblitz is a leading game in the genre of tactical wargames, and was an iconic new type of game when published by Avalon Hill in 1970. In this game, each unit has an attack strength and a defense strength. To resolve combat, the attacker's attack rating and the defender's defense rating are calculated into a simple ratio; the result is rounded off in the defender's favor. One dice cube is rolled. The "Combat Results Table" provides the effect based on which number iis rolled; the results can range from "no effect" to partial damage, or another role, or complete destruction of the unit being attacked. [5] [6] [7]
In the board game Axis and Allies, each unit has an attack value and a defense value. During a single attack, each attacking unit gets one dice roll and each defending unit gets one dice roll. if a dice result is the same or less than the apprpriate value, then that unit succesfully destorys the enemy. it is possible for boith units to be destroyed using this system. [8] [9]
Grand strategy games can be useful in education and the study of international affairs because they allow players to simulate real-world scenarios and make strategic decisions that affect the outcome of the game. They can also provide insight into historical events and the complex interactions between various political, economic, and military factors. Some grand strategy games are based on real historical events and can be used to explore alternative scenarios and counterfactuals. [10] [11]
A wargame is a strategy game in which two or more players command opposing armed forces in a simulation of an armed conflict. Wargaming may be played for recreation, to train military officers in the art of strategic thinking, or to study the nature of potential conflicts. Many wargames re-create specific historic battles, and can cover either whole wars, or any campaigns, battles, or lower-level engagements within them. Many simulate land combat, but there are wargames for naval, air combat, and cyber as well as many that combine various domains.
Axis & Allies is a series of World War II strategy board games. The first version was initially published in 1981 and a second edition known colloquially as Axis & Allies: Classic was published in 1984. Played on a board depicting a Spring 1942 political map of Earth divided by territories, players take the role of one or more of the five major belligerents of World War II: the Axis powers of Germany and Japan; and the Allied powers of the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Turns rotate among these belligerents, who control armies of playing pieces with which they attempt to capture enemy territories, with results determined by dice rolls. The object of the game is to win the war by capturing enough critical territories to gain the advantage over the enemy.
Miniature wargaming is a form of wargaming in which military units are represented by miniature physical models on a model battlefield. Miniature wargames are played using model soldiers, vehicles, and artillery on a model battlefield, with the primary appeal being recreational rather than functional. Miniature wargames are played on custom-made battlefields, often with modular terrain, and abstract scaling is used to adapt real-world ranges to the limitations of table space. The use of physical models to represent military units is in contrast to other tabletop wargames that use abstract pieces such as counters or blocks, or computer wargames which use virtual models. The primary benefit of using models is immersion, though in certain wargames the size and shape of the models can have practical consequences on how the match plays out. Models' dimensions and positioning are crucial for measuring distances during gameplay. Issues concerning scale and accuracy compromise realism too much for most serious military applications.
4X is a subgenre of strategy-based computer and board games, and includes both turn-based and real-time strategy titles. The gameplay generally involves building an empire. Emphasis is placed upon economic and technological development, as well as a range of military and non-military routes to supremacy.
Axis & Allies: Pacific is a strategy board game produced by Hasbro under the Avalon Hill name brand. Released on July 31, 2001 and designed by Larry Harris, the designer of the original Axis & Allies game, Axis & Allies: Pacific allows its players to recreate the Pacific Theater of World War II.
War at Sea is a strategic board wargame depicting the naval war in the Atlantic during World War II, published by Jedko Games in 1975, and subsequently republished by Avalon Hill in 1976 and more recently by L2 Design Group in 2007.
Blitzkrieg is a strategic-level wargame published by Avalon Hill in 1965 that simulates a non-historical attack by one major power against another using the blitzkrieg strategy. It was the first commercial wargame that did not simulate an actual historical battle, and with almost 400 counters, it was a precursor to the "monster" wargames of the 1970s featuring more than a thousand counters.
Battle Cry is a board wargame based on the American Civil War, designed by Richard Borg and published by Avalon Hill in 2000.
Rise and Decline of the Third Reich or more commonly Third Reich is a grand strategy wargame covering the European theater of World War II, designed by John Prados and released in 1974 by Avalon Hill. Players take on the roles of major powers—Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, France, the Soviet Union, and the United States—from 1939 to 1946.
Battle of the Bulge is a board wargame published by Avalon Hill (AH) in 1965 that simulates the World War II battle of the same name. General Anthony McAuliffe (ret.), who had been commanding officer at Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge, was a consultant during the game's development. The game proved popular and sold more than 120,000 copies, but was dogged by criticisms of historical inaccuracies, and was finally replaced by a completely new edition in 1981. A third edition in 1991 was released as part of the Smithsonian American History Series.
A Combat results table or a CRT is used in wargaming to determine the outcome of a clash between individual units within a larger battle.
Tactical wargames are a type of wargame that models military conflict at a tactical level, i.e. units range from individual vehicles and squads to platoons or companies. These units are rated based on types and ranges of individual weaponry. The first tactical wargames were played as miniatures, extended to board games, and they are now also enjoyed as video games.
War in Europe is a grand strategic "monster" board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1976 that attempts to simulate the entirety of the European theatre of World War II from 1939 to 1945. One of the largest wargames ever produced, War in Europe features 4000 counters, four rulebooks, and nine maps that when placed together cover an area of 38.5 ft2. The game is nominally a three-player game, but each side can be represented by teams of players. SPI estimated the full game would take at least 180 hours.
Axis & Allies: Battle of the Bulge is a board game which depicts the Battle of the Bulge, the "last-ditch" offensive of World War II by Nazi Germany. It is similar to Axis & Allies: D-Day in that the game is played on a tactical rather than strategic level, although the gameplay is radically different from D-Day or any other previous Axis and Allies game. It is designed by Larry Harris, and published by Avalon Hill.
A board wargame is a wargame with a set playing surface or board, as opposed to being played on a computer or in a more free-form playing area as in miniatures games. The modern, commercial wargaming hobby developed in 1954 following the publication and commercial success of Tactics. The board wargaming hobby continues to enjoy a sizeable following, with a number of game publishers and gaming conventions dedicated to the hobby both in the English-speaking world and further afield.
Conflict of Heroes: Storms of Steel, the second installment of the Conflict of Heroes board wargame series by Academy Games, was published in 2009. The game simulates the Battle of Kursk on the Eastern Front during World War II.
Axis & Allies: World War I 1914 is a war and strategy board wargame in the Axis and Allies series created by Larry Harris and published by Avalon Hill. Unlike the other games in the Axis and Allies series, it focuses on World War I, specifically the European, African, and Near East theaters.
Le Grand Empire, subtitled "France and Napoleon, 1795-1815", is a strategic board wargame of conquest published by Simulations Canada in 1978 that simulates the European and global wars during the reign of Napoleon.
World War II: European Theater of Operations is the title of two related but dissimilar board wargames that simulate the European Theater of World War II. The first was published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1973, and the second by TSR in 1985 following its takeover of SPI.
The Major Battles and Campaigns of General George S. Patton is a board wargame published by Research Games Inc. (RGI) in 1973 that simulates three battles of World War II in which General George S. Patton played a significant role.
...we've helped establish the category of grand strategy games (GSG)...
So what is a Grand Strategy Game (GSG)?
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