Whats the best modern turn based strategy game?

[blubalou]

I've recently been playing Grigsby's World at War. This is the first turn-based strategy game I've played since Panzer General on my Playstation back in the mid 90s, and over 10 years of some great and some mind-numbing online sports, MMORPG, online RTS, and even FPSs, I had totally forgotten how much I really enjoy the addiction of a good old fashioned TBS game.

The problem with Grigsbys is I've already beaten the axis playing the allies and I think I will have soon played it out.

So considering that every great game in the past few years is still out there for me to discover, what should I get next? Is War in the Pacific or the more manageable (and less life consuming) Uncommon Valor a ' must play'? Or is there an all time greatest turn based strategy that I should now about?

[aletoledo]

I'm nearly in the same boat as you, really the only difference is that instead of sports games I went with RTS games.

to flat out answer your question, War in the Pacific is extrodinarry. it has so much detail to it that I've never seen anything come close to it, but then again I never played uncommon valor. I suppose you really need to enjoy WW2 and the pcific theater to fully understand the game though. just a short 3 month scenario starting on dec. 7th has taken me two weeks of playing to finish (though next time through the same one would likely only take me a week)

I think if you shelve World @ War though without doing any PBEM, you're really missing out. the AI doesn't even come close to a human opponent. playing 2v2 games though make for a slow learning curve of the finer points of this game, but if you get involved in some 1v1 games and speed through a few games with multiple turns per day, you'll see the more to the game than you first imagined.

the nicest thing about W@W over a few other games (like WitP for example) is that you can finish a game sometimes in under a week. a PBEM game with WitP goes for years, real years.

[bluemonday]

When you say "modern turn-based game" I assume you mean "recently released turn-based game" and not "turn-based game about modern warfare?"

The best traditional wargames out today are the SSG games published by Matrix: Korsun Pocket, Battles in Normandy, and Battles in Italy. Those games basically take the conventional wargame paradigm and do it as well as it has ever been done, or is likely to be done. If you like traditional hex-grid wargames, one of those is the logical (and probably inevitable) step.

War in the Pacific and Uncommon Valor are nice, but they are more projects than games. You have to enjoy the idea of immersing yourself in a game rather than worrying about finishing it. I'd argue they're role-playing games in their own right, almost as much as they are wargames.

The best turn-based wargame out now is almost certainly the Combat Mission series by Battlefront - http://www.battlefront.com. If you like tactical combat, you really can't miss with this game. It's also possibly the best play-by-email game ever. I really can't recommend this enough.

[Uncle_Joe]

I really enjoyed the first Combat Mission game. By the Eastern Front one though, I feel they had become too complacent in their data and too big for their britches in response to requests for change or info. They just stonewalled too many player issues and their penchant for attacking people who criticise the game really turned me off from Battlefront.

I dont think I'd buy another product from them unless they showed some sort of willingness to admit that their data might be flawed or that them might have made errors in judgements on certain matters. I think the system is inherently decent, but it has some issues that I dont care for.

Once I discovered the remakes of Steel Panthers, I never went back to CM. CM is light-years ahead in presentation and graphic appeal, but I find that the simpler, cleaner model used in the SP games to be closer to what I want. The combats just 'feel' right in SP whereas there were often situations that left me scratching my head in CM.

At any rate, I'd also recommend Imperialism 2 (its a bit older, but its aged VERY well). Its a TBS set in 1500-1830 or so, but with the emphasis on the strategic buildup rather than on historical accuracy. Its basically a historically flavored conquest game but one I still find engaging even after having played it for years.

[ilovestrategy]

I've played lots of TBS's before and I have to say my favorite of all time is Civilization II. It's an oldie but I still play it. I miss Age of Rifles though, it's a DOS game darn it [:(]

[Alan_Bernardo]

>It's an oldie but I still play it. I miss Age of Rifles though, it's a DOS game darn it


I am able to play Age of Rifles. All you need is the game and a program called "dos box".

Alanb

[ilovestrategy]

Dos box? is it freeware or no? And it'll work with xp? any chance of it messing up windows? I know you can download age of rifles for free but I could never get it to run on my comp after downloading it.

[Alan_Bernardo]

>Dos box? is it freeware or no?

Dos Box is freeware.

Get it here: http://dosbox.sourceforge.net/

The only problem is configuring the sound, which I haven't taken the time to do. The game also runs a bit slow, which is common when trying to run an old DOS game on Dos Box.


Alanb

[Reverend Zombie]

If you are into fantasy games, Dominions II is an excellent turn-based wargame.

[ilovestrategy]

thx!

[Gargoyle]

ORIGINAL: Reverend Zombie

If you are into fantasy games, Dominions II is an excellent turn-based wargame.

I just picked up the Demo for Dominions II. In some ways it is similiar to GGWAW. I like it.

[jchastain]

ORIGINAL: Alan_Bernardo

>It's an oldie but I still play it. I miss Age of Rifles though, it's a DOS game darn it


I am able to play Age of Rifles. All you need is the game and a program called "dos box".

Alanb

I think the old DOS classic Clash of Steel remains the best WWII Grand Strategy game despite its age. I really wish someone would update that title. But unlike any of the recent games of the same genre, it models the fluidity of WWII. Several years ago I saw a write-up that examined why the game was so good. I kept it bookmarked ( See it HERE ) and am still awaiting a game that can compete with it. Like AoR, it runs in "dos box".