V for Victory: D-Day Utah Beach

Last updated
V for Victory: D-Day Utah Beach
V for Victory D-Day Utah Beach.png
Developer(s) Atomic Games
Publisher(s) Three-Sixty Pacific
Series V for Victory
Platform(s) MS-DOS, Macintosh
Release
Genre(s) Computer wargame
Mode(s) Single-player

V for Victory: D-Day Utah Beach is a 1991 computer wargame developed by Atomic Games and published by Three-Sixty Pacific. It was widely lauded and repeatedly reviewed as the best wargame of its era. Its success led to three further games in the V for Victory series, and then the similar World at War series published by Avalon Hill.

Contents

The game simulates the D-Day invasion on the area surrounding Utah Beach and the greater Cotentin Peninsula area. The player takes the role of overall commander of the US forces or the German forces opposing them. The game includes six scenarios to play as either side, one of which covers the entire invasion area up to the period just prior to Operation Cobra.

Gameplay

The game was played on a top-down 2D hex based map, with numerous terrain types. Each combat scenario has two phases. During the Planning phase, the player clicks on the unit icons to drag them to new locations. In the Execution phase, the player's battle plans are carried out. [1]

The game engine included many features that could not be simulated in traditional board games in order to eliminate drudgery. For instance, each unit individually tracked its supply status and local reserve. New supplies were delivered at night, using a system that simulated flow from one of a number of "supply points", the beach area for the US, or roads to the south for the Germans. Cutting a supply route would cause the supplies to be re-routed onto other roads, which might lead to choking. Artillery fire could also be used to delay the flow. All of these effects were simulated, added to the on-hand supply level, and then displayed to the user as a series of optional colorings that indicated current status. Reduced supply levels dramatically reduced the combat and movement capabilities of the units, and represented the majority of the effects on fighting strength of the armies as a whole. Straying too far from a source of supply would render a unit impotent, while surrounding one would quickly lead to its elimination. In the same manner, the game tracked fatigue levels, unit cohesion, level of command, casualties and other effects for every unit on the map. Even weather became important, as it changed the supply deliveries and interdiction.

The amount of information held by the system might be overwhelming, but the majority of it was hidden and automated. Supply level, for instance, only became visible if the player selected an option to show it. In this case, it would be displayed as a colored outline around the units, from green (combat ready) to black (out of supplies). The player could generally ignore these details and leave it to the computer AI to handle these issues. This went as far as allowing the computer to plot artillery fire missions for supply interdiction. In most cases, the player was tasked with the movement of units and direct artillery support for attacks. Even these could be automated if desired, and were for the non-player side.

Many aspects of the game were designed to improve playability, especially for non-hardcore war gamers. For instance, the game used small icons of men or tanks to indicate unit types, instead of the more opaque NATO unit markers that are commonly used in the wargame field. On the Macintosh platform, existing UI guidelines were used for all operations. The game eschewed the traditional highly-modal interfaces of most games, using Mac menus, mouse commands and dialogs boxes for most interaction. For instance, giving commands to a unit to move was handled simply by clicking on the unit and then dragging it to the desired location, stacks of units could be moved with a shift-drag. This UI element has since become common.

Plot

V for Victory: D-Day Utah Beach is a World War II battle simulation wargame based on the Normandy invasion. The player takes the role of a commander for either the American or German forces. [1]

The game comes with six scenarios, with the first five simulating individual battles. In the first scenario, which is also the tutorial scenario and used for the free demo version, the player commands the 9th Infantry Division to eliminate the remaining German resistance behind American lines, or alternately, plays the collection of German units attempting to frustrate their advance. In the second scenario, the objective is for the 101st Airborne to take control of Carentan within three days. In the third scenario, the player must defeat an SS Panzergrenadier Division counterattack attempting to recapture Carentan. In the fourth scenario, the player attacks Cherbourg using four divisions, and in the fifth, the player attempts to completely isolate Cherbourg. The sixth scenario is a full campaign game that will take hours of play to complete. [1]

The game also allowed the player to select a number of optional adjustments that influenced the battle. This included the ability to adjust the relative air strength of the two sides, from the default overwhelming advantage that the Allies had historically, to the unlikely event that the Germans might have slight air superiority - the manual stated that the events would not have taken place had the Germans maintained any major superiority in the air. Changing these settings has a dramatic effect on the amount of supplies flowing to the two sides; under the normal settings with complete Allied superiority, the Germans are constantly starved for supplies. The game also allowed the player to select the original airborne plan, which dropped the 82nd Airborne Division much further west; this plan had been changed just before D-Day after the discovery of new German units in the area. Additional German units, historically available but not committed to the battle, could also be brought into play.

Much of the battle follows historical lines, with the US slowly expanding their beachhead in the face of German troops entrenched in the bocage. Eventually their numerical superiority becomes overwhelming and the German forces are unable to cover all the gaps in the front line facing them. The slow movements through the bocages makes breakouts and encirclements difficult. Playing the Germans is significantly easier, consisting of a series of short retreats to new defensive lines as the US forces destroy the German units piecemeal.

Games are "scored" by capturing and holding strategic locations on the map. These vary from mission to mission, and the points that are scored in one mission may or may not appear in others. Generally speaking, the game rewarded fast advances toward major strategic locations, like Cherbourg. Points were also awarded for minimizing losses and maximizing enemy casualties, and removed for using limited resources like battleship fire.

Development and production

V for Victory was initially developed under the name Cherbourg: The Battle of Utah Beach, and was set to be published by Interstel. It was purchased by Three-Sixty Pacific and renamed V for Victory. [2] The cover art for the Utah Beach edition of the V for Victory series was created by Marc Ericksen.

Reception

The Macintosh version of the game was reviewed in 1992 in Dragon #180 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 5 out of 5 stars, and noted "There is little doubt in our minds that this game is probably the best war simulation ever produced for any computer." [1] Computer Gaming World in 1992 similarly praised the Macintosh version, stating that Three-Sixty Pacific "appears to have come closest to a perfect synthesis of the board and computer formats". The reviewer described the game as among the "'must-haves' ... a wargame designed by wargamers for wargamers". [3] That year the magazine named it one of 1992's best wargames. [4] A 1993 survey of wargames gave by a second reviewer the game four stars out of five, describing it as "perhaps the smoothest conversion of a boardgame-style wargame to computer format ever done". [5]

It won the best wargame for 1992 in Computer Games Strategy Plus, [2] and the overall Game of the Year. The magazine's Brian Walker wrote that it "achieved what many computer wargames have been trying to do for years: successfully convert a board wargame onto computer." [6] V for Victory won the 1992 Origins Award for Military or Strategy Computer Game of 1992. [7]

In 1994, PC Gamer US named Utah Beach the 14th best computer game ever. The editors wrote, "The V for Victory series is quite simply the most playable war games available, with an easy-to-master interface and admirable depth of game play." They continued, "We single out Utah Beach because it launched the series — but by all means, check out Velikiye Luki, Gold*Juno*Sword, and Market Garden, too." [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wargame</span> Strategy game that realistically simulates war

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.

<i>Panzer General</i> 1994 video game

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carentan</span> Delegated commune of Carentan-les-Marais in Normandy, France

Carentan is a small rural town near the north-eastern base of the French Cotentin Peninsula in Normandy in north-western France, with a population of about 6,000. It is a former commune in the Manche department. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Carentan-les-Marais. The town was a strategic early goal of the World War II landings as capturing the town was necessary to link the lodgements at Utah and Omaha beaches which were divided by the Douve river estuary. The town was also needed as an intermediate staging position for the capture of the cities of Cherbourg and Octeville, with the critically important port facilities in Cherbourg.

Battle Cry is a board wargame based on the American Civil War, designed by Richard Borg and published by Avalon Hill in 2000.

<i>Eastern Front (1941)</i> 1981 video game

Eastern Front (1941) is a computer wargame for Atari 8-bit computers created by Chris Crawford and published through the Atari Program Exchange (APX) in 1981. A scenario editor and assembly language source code for the game were also sold by APX as separate products.

<i>Battle of the Bulge</i> (board wargame)

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.

<i>Panzer General II</i> 1997 video game

Panzer General II is a computer wargame by Strategic Simulations, Inc. Released October 15, 1997, Panzer General II is the sixth SSI game in the Panzer General series and the first in the "Living Battlefield" series. It takes place during World War II, covering events from the Spanish Civil War in 1938 to hypothetical battles in 1946. In the April 2000 issue of the magazine PC Gamer, it was voted the 44th best computer game of all time, and the highest rating in the Panzer General series. The game was re-released in 2010 on GOG.com.

<i>Battleground 2: Gettysburg</i> 1995 video game

Battleground 2: Gettysburg is a 1995 turn-based computer wargame developed and published by TalonSoft. It the second game in the Battleground series.

<i>Battleground 4: Shiloh</i> 1996 video game

Battleground 4: Shiloh is a turn-based computer wargame developed by TalonSoft in 1996 and the fourth issue in the Battleground series.

<i>Empire</i> (1977 video game) Wargame

Empire is a 1977 turn-based wargame with simple rules. The game was conceived by Walter Bright starting in 1971, based on various war films and board games, notably Battle of Britain and Risk. The game was ported to many platforms in the 1970s and 1980s. Several commercial versions were also released, often adding basic graphics to the originally text-based user interface. The basic gameplay is strongly reminiscent of several later games, notably Civilization, which was partly inspired by Empire.

<i>Close Combat: A Bridge Too Far</i> 1997 video game

Close Combat: A Bridge Too Far, or Close Combat II, is a World War II real-time computer wargame, developed by Atomic Games, and released on October 13, 1997. The second installment of the Close Combat series, the game is played on a two-dimensional map, between two players.

V for Victory, or V4V for short, is a series of turn-based strategy games set during World War II. They were the first releases for Atomic Games who went on to have a long career in the wargame industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Computer wargame</span> Wargame played on a computer or other digital device

A computer wargame is a wargame played on a digital device. Descended from board wargaming, it simulates military conflict at the tactical, operational or strategic level. Computer wargames are both sold commercially for recreational use and, in some cases, used for military purposes.

<i>The Universal Military Simulator</i> 1987 video game

The Universal Military Simulator is a computer game developed by Rainbird Software in 1987 for the Macintosh, Tandy 4000, and IBM PC compatibles. In 1988, both Atari ST, Amiga versions were released. The game was created by Ezra Sidran. The PC and Amiga versions were ported by Ed Isenberg. The game spawned two sequels: UMS II: Nations at War and The War College: Universal Military Simulator 3.

<i>Harpoon</i> (video game) 1989 computer wargame

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.

Panzer Campaigns is a series of operational level wargames originally developed by John Tiller Software, and currently by Wargame Design Studio. The games were originally published until 2010 by HPS Simulations, then self published by John Tiller Software until being bought out by Wargame Design Studio in 2021, after Tiller's death. There are currently 29 titles in the series, spanning the various fronts of World War II.

<i>Fire-Brigade: The Battle for Kiev - 1943</i> 1988 video game

Fire-Brigade: The Battle for Kiev - 1943 is a computer wargame developed and published by Panther Games in Australia in 1988. The game is set around the historical WWII Eastern Front Battle of Kiev in 1943.

<i>V for Victory: Velikiye Luki</i> 1992 video game

V for Victory: Velikiye Luki is 1992 computer wargame developed by Atomic Games and published by Three-Sixty Pacific. It is part of the V for Victory series.

<i>Carriers at War</i> (1992 video game) 1992 video game

Carriers at War 1941-1945: Fleet Carrier Operations in the Pacific is a 1992 wargame by Strategic Studies Group for MS-DOS and Macintosh. It is a remake of the 1984 Carriers at War. An expansion pack, Carriers at War: Construction Kit, was released in 1993. A sequel, Carriers at War II, was also released in 1993.

<i>Atlantic Wall</i> (wargame) Board wargame

Atlantic Wall, subtitled "The Invasion of Europe June 1944", is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1978 that simulates Operation Overlord during World War II, when Allied forces landed on Normandy beaches and attempted to break out into open country.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Lesser, Hartley; Lesser, Patricia & Lesser, Kirk (April 1992). "The Role of Computers". Dragon (180): 57–61.
  2. 1 2 Syzmonik, Peter (February 1993). "Best of 1992... Wargames". Strategy Plus. p. 48.
  3. ↑ Vanore, John J. (May 1992). "An Answer for Bored Boardgamers". Computer Gaming World. No. 94. p. 86. Retrieved 24 November 2013.
  4. ↑ "CGW Salutes The Games of the Year". Computer Gaming World. November 1992. p. 110. Retrieved 4 July 2014.
  5. ↑ Brooks, M. Evan (October 1993). "Brooks' Book Of Wargames: 1900-1950, R-Z". Computer Gaming World. pp. 144–148. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  6. ↑ Walker, Brian; Syzmonik, Peter; Clarke, Theo; McKeown, Joan; McCullough, Joseph; Commander Crunch (January 1993). "The Best of 1992...". Computer Games Strategy Plus (27): 46, 48, 52, 54, 56, 58, 60.
  7. ↑ "Origins Award Winners (1992)". Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts & Design. Archived from the original on 2008-04-15. Retrieved 2008-03-24.
  8. ↑ Staff (August 1994). "PC Gamer Top 40: The Best Games of All Time". PC Gamer US (3): 32–42.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.