Are you ready for the Desert War?

[Daniele]

[North Africa] was the only theatre where the principles of motorized and tank warfare, as they had been taught theoretically before the war, could be applied to the full-and further developed. It was the only theatre where the pure tank battle between major formations was fought." -- Field Marshall Erwin Rommel

Matrix Games is very proud to announce a new wargame is in the making, Desert War 1940 – 1942!

Take the lead of the Italian-German forces or the Commonwealth and relive the key moments of the war!

In Desert War, your main concern will be the safety of your supplies! Make sure to not overstretch your lines and be prepared for enemy incursions within your perimeter!

The game employs a WEGO system that will make you plan your moves very carefully: will you wait for reinforcements, leaving the initiative to the enemy or will you try to exploit his mistakes, possibly risking your entire frontline?

The choice is yours!

Get more information about Desert War 1940 – 1942 from its official product page!

[jamespcrowley]

This is an interesting one!

Spotted this several years ago as a free game but lost touch with it and finally forgot all about it.

Good to see it re-emerge, hopefully fully fleshed out, particularly in the AI department.

More scenarios now but has lost 1943 so no Americans this time round. Something for later perhaps?

Looking through the last iteration of the manual, I can't see a reference to scale of map or duration of turns.

Looks to be about 4-5 miles per hex and maybe four turns (of 3-4 hrs per turn) per day?

Hopefully the scenarios will have some internal variations - in set-up at least - to allow replayability.

Looking forward to this one because of the theatre and WEGO. Hope it lives up to expectations.

[Phoenix100]

WEGO is fantastic. Look forward to this for that - much more realistic. But key to this will be the AI and the map. The maps shown in the (very few) screenshots look lacking in detail, but maybe that's because I can't judge the scale too well. I hope to God there's an option to switch off the hexes. I hate hexes. Many like, many hate - it's nice to have a switch (as in WitE and WitW, all the JTS games etc).

Is the scale of the map not more like WitW (10 miles per hex) than the 4 to 5 miles suggested above? If it is only 4 to 5 miles then I would hope for more detail, otherwise the map might as well be blank. The desert is a bit like that, of course, but even so. And, for my taste, I would like a map that looked like...well, a map...as naturalistic as possible. Can't we have normal, top down 2d map representations of towns (like Tobruk) etc. for example? Instead of those little 3d pics. The pics don't match the nice Nato type unit symbols. Either 2d or 3d, I think (and for me, always, 2d). Just my tuppence worth.

What's the unit scale - division?

[Saint Ruth]

ORIGINAL: James Crowley

This is an interesting one!

Spotted this several years ago as a free game but lost touch with it and finally forgot all about it.

Good to see it re-emerge, hopefully fully fleshed out, particularly in the AI department.

More scenarios now but has lost 1943 so no Americans this time round. Something for later perhaps?

Looking through the last iteration of the manual, I can't see a reference to scale of map or duration of turns.

Looks to be about 4-5 miles per hex and maybe four turns (of 3-4 hrs per turn) per day?

Hopefully the scenarios will have some internal variations - in set-up at least - to allow replayability.

Looking forward to this one because of the theatre and WEGO. Hope it lives up to expectations.

Hi, yes, the "Desert War 1940-43" has morphed into "Desert War 1940-42" so no Tunisia. And yes, perhaps later. We'll see how it goes.
Scale is 2 miles / 3.2 km per hex and 3 turns per day.
Map of the largest scenario is 220 x 118 hexes, but the map that the scenarios were created from (344 x 118 hexes) is also included for those who want to make their own scenarios.

[Blond_Knight]

I see he's disabled the download for Desert war and Peleliu on his site. Sure glad I backed those up myself. But I'll still buy this version.

[Saint Ruth]

ORIGINAL: phoenix

WEGO is fantastic. Look forward to this for that - much more realistic. But key to this will be the AI and the map. The maps shown in the (very few) screenshots look lacking in detail, but maybe that's because I can't judge the scale too well. I hope to God there's an option to switch off the hexes. I hate hexes. Many like, many hate - it's nice to have a switch (as in WitE and WitW, all the JTS games etc).

Is the scale of the map not more like WitW (10 miles per hex) than the 4 to 5 miles suggested above? If it is only 4 to 5 miles then I would hope for more detail, otherwise the map might as well be blank. The desert is a bit like that, of course, but even so. And, for my taste, I would like a map that looked like...well, a map...as naturalistic as possible. Can't we have normal, top down 2d map representations of towns (like Tobruk) etc. for example? Instead of those little 3d pics. The pics don't match the nice Nato type unit symbols. Either 2d or 3d, I think (and for me, always, 2d). Just my tuppence worth.

What's the unit scale - division?

At the moment you can't switch them off, but sure, I can look at that.
Scale as 2 miles per hex and units are Battalions / Companies / Platoons.
The map is designed like that as there are different zoom levels so too cluttered when zoomed in means yuo can't make out the wood from the trees (or the sand from the gullies ) when zoomed out.

[Saint Ruth]

ORIGINAL: Blond_Knight

I see he's disabled the download for Desert war and Peleliu on his site. Sure glad I backed those up myself. But I'll still buy this version.

[:D][8D]

[stormbringer3]

This title is under coming soon. Any guess as to an eta? I completely understand that if a guess is given, it can change many, many times.
Thanks.

[Phoenix100]

Thanks Saint Ruth. I will certainly buy it, because there is a complete dearth of wego games, and I think it's the best system, for this kind of scale. Sorry I missed getting the freebie from the site to try it out (as Blonde Knight notes, it seems to have been taken down). But as for map detail, I would heap praise upon the CSME maps (also a Matrix title), which (designed by a cartographer, I believe) are beautiful, informative, clear and natural, with ample detail. Yours - at present - look very sparse and simplistic (no offence meant, since you intended it that way) by comparison, imho, and I don't know why if they can produce gorgeous maps with a nice level of detail it can't be done in other titles? The interaction between the map and the units is absolutely key, is it not, and if there's only the barest details in the map then it's an impoverished interaction. Your maps look to have slightly less detail than the WitE and WitW maps and yet they are a much closer scale. They are not the same scale as CSME, of course - so that much detail isn't needed - but if you're going down to Bn level and 2 miles per hex then I think you should have more detail than WitW, especially if you're doing 3 turns a day. And those little 3d town tiles aren't as good as you can get, I assume. Why not a decent serious map graphic? They look like toys. Lol. All these games are toys, of course, but it's not always helpful to be reminded of that. All meant helpfully, and just my relatively worthless opinion. The counters look great, by the way.

[kipanderson]

Hi,

fantastic to see things reach this stage.

Looking forward to its release[:)].

All the best,
Kip.

[Franciscus]

I will also follow this with interest, I can't get enough of North Africa campaign games. Glad it's Wego, too.

I see the unit's scale is small, Battalions / Companies / Platoons. I haven't tried the "free version", and I rather prefer operational level wargames, (like DC:B) although I also enjoy squad level games (ToTH)

I am rather intrigued how the gameplay will be, at the battalion level with such relatively large scale map and what appears (by one of the screenshots) three turns per day...?

Sad it does not have a grand campaign scenario, but for that I will wait for TOAWIV and also wait for the completion of Schwerpunkt's WWIIE North Africa scenario (Naval AI still almost inactive...)

Regards

[Blond_Knight]

I gave up waiting on Schwerpunkt's WWIIE to be fixed/completed. Glaciers have moved faster.

[Franciscus]

ORIGINAL: Blond_Knight

I gave up waiting on Schwerpunkt's WWIIE to be fixed/completed. Glaciers have moved faster.

I have not given up, and enjoy the small scenarios, but for sure, Ron is taking his time...[:D]

[Saint Ruth]

ORIGINAL: stormbringer3
This title is under coming soon. Any guess as to an eta? I completely understand that if a guess is given, it can change many, many times.
Thanks.

Not decided fully yet. Beta should be starting soon so this year I hope! [;)]

[Saint Ruth]

ORIGINAL: phoenix
Thanks Saint Ruth. I will certainly buy it, because there is a complete dearth of wego games, and I think it's the best system, for this kind of scale. Sorry I missed getting the freebie from the site to try it out (as Blonde Knight notes, it seems to have been taken down). But as for map detail, I would heap praise upon the CSME maps (also a Matrix title), which (designed by a cartographer, I believe) are beautiful...all meant helpfully, and just my relatively worthless opinion. The counters look great, by the way.

Cheers phoenix. all opinions welcome. [;)] But a bit late to change the map as it's a big PNG file...

[Saint Ruth]

ORIGINAL: kipanderson
Hi,

fantastic to see things reach this stage.

Looking forward to its release[:)].

All the best,
Kip.

Thanks Kip!

[Saint Ruth]

ORIGINAL: Franciscus

I will also follow this with interest, I can't get enough of North Africa campaign games. Glad it's Wego, too.

I see the unit's scale is small, Battalions / Companies / Platoons. I haven't tried the "free version", and I rather prefer operational level wargames, (like DC:B) although I also enjoy squad level games (ToTH)

I am rather intrigued how the gameplay will be, at the battalion level with such relatively large scale map and what appears (by one of the screenshots) three turns per day...?

Sad it does not have a grand campaign scenario, but for that I will wait for TOAWIV and also wait for the completion of Schwerpunkt's WWIIE North Africa scenario (Naval AI still almost inactive...)

Regards

Well, the "Enter Rommel" scenario is 41 turns so 2 weeks, so lots of time and space for manoeuvre.
Yes, I know what you mean about a grand operational level game. I originally had the intention of doing something like that, but this isn't my day job so it evolved in another direction. The big problem with a game of the entire Desert War is that, as you know, not a lot happened for a long time while they were building up supplies, training etc, so there short burst of intense activity followed by long delays (which drove Churchill to distraction). So this game just concentrates on the "bursts of activity".
So, it'd be great to do, but it's not this game. [;)]

[Alan Sharif]

So looking forward to this.

[waverick]

Congratulations on your determination! [&o]

And hooray for a Java written wargame! (Any JavaFX in it?)

[Franciscus]

ORIGINAL: Saint Ruth

ORIGINAL: Franciscus

I will also follow this with interest, I can't get enough of North Africa campaign games. Glad it's Wego, too.

I see the unit's scale is small, Battalions / Companies / Platoons. I haven't tried the "free version", and I rather prefer operational level wargames, (like DC:B) although I also enjoy squad level games (ToTH)

I am rather intrigued how the gameplay will be, at the battalion level with such relatively large scale map and what appears (by one of the screenshots) three turns per day...?

Sad it does not have a grand campaign scenario, but for that I will wait for TOAWIV and also wait for the completion of Schwerpunkt's WWIIE North Africa scenario (Naval AI still almost inactive...)

Regards

Well, the "Enter Rommel" scenario is 41 turns so 2 weeks, so lots of time and space for manoeuvre.
Yes, I know what you mean about a grand operational level game. I originally had the intention of doing something like that, but this isn't my day job so it evolved in another direction. The big problem with a game of the entire Desert War is that, as you know, not a lot happened for a long time while they were building up supplies, training etc, so there short burst of intense activity followed by long delays (which drove Churchill to distraction). So this game just concentrates on the "bursts of activity".
So, it'd be great to do, but it's not this game. [;)]

Thank you for taking the time to comment on my post.
I understand your reasoning and appreciate your effort !
Your game looks like a first-day buy for me.

Regards