Force 21, WarTorn, Panzer General 3dAssault and others; what do they have in common?

We are seeing the emergence of a new genre: the 3d strategy game. This merger of real time strategy with 3d perspective is a step toward greater immersion and more fun. Now instead of only looking at a flat board with moving icons, the player can see the action in a real time 3d world.

Last year we saw a similar direction with simulations, fleshed out in Total Air War. This year the release of Fleet Command gave players a similar taste of action, but lacking the first person control that Total Air War offered. I detailed the emergence of the strategy/sim blend in an editorial one year ago.

Falcon 4.0

Dynamics and Real Worlds

Dynamic campaigns are reaching a breadth of scope and complexity that is truly amazing. The Wargen II engine found in Total Air War evolved from its paternal source in EF2000. Jane's offered real dynamics in Longbow II, and Interactive Magic offered their own take on dynamics in iF22 and F18 Carrier Strike Fighter.

Next along came Microprose, taking the air to ground integration to new heights in Falcon 4.0, with a view to including integration of naval assets in the hoped for F18 add on. Microprose also offered a dynamic engine in the already classic European Air War.

This year we see Rowan making an entry into a truly dynamic campaign system in MiG Alley, with Digital Integration making an entry with Super Hornet. Wayward design will release an incredible looking simulation titled B17 II: the Fighting Eighth. SIMIS will offer Team Alligator, and DiD are working on EF2000 v.3 (Typhoon), which should find its way to a hangar near you in the spring of 2000.

Not all dynamic campaigns are created equal, of course, and both Total Air War and Falcon 4 offered real time campaigns that could simply run on unattended whether the player was involved or not. But why rehearse the history of dynamic campaigns anyway?

Scratch Two!

MiG Alley Tasking

The real world is dynamic, unpredictable, and runs in "real time." Simulations that move toward "the willing suspension of disbelief" (the overworn phrase from Wordsworth) should do the same.

But the games which seem to offer the most satisfaction over the long term integrate a number of factors, and naturally, the bar keeps rising! The heart of these classics is the dynamic campaign (see my argument in last year's May editorial.) But the heart needs other major organs alongside before it contributes to a living body!

Rather than rehearse those factors, I invite you to visit our previous articles. My point here is that the creation of believable worlds is complex and must involve dynamic elements.

The Next Generation

With the emergence of the 3d RTS genre, I think the simulation genre is ready for a new genre of its own: the fully dynamic, real time simulation/strategy game. My suggestion for the first title: The Battle of Britain 3d.

Let's take a sample of the closest merger of strategy and simulation we have to date and then we'll consider what this game would look like with additional strategy elements, but set in WWII.

Total Air War: BoB

Total Air War was one of the best games I played in 1998. I loved the real time dynamics. I loved the ability to determine strategy via the AWACS interface. And I loved the ability to jump in and fly the mission myself when things got rough.

Total Air War came close to my idea of a perfect game. It involved me on a number of levels. It was innovative and it looked good. While not perfect, it deserved every award it won.

TAW AWACS Map

Now imagine the same game, only this time the setting is the Battle of Britain. The historical setting means the stakes are clear. The British are greatly outnumbered, but they also have certain advantages, like radar, some excellent aircraft and a strong network of observation posts.

Of course, the players know the historical situation, but the game allows no time limits on the fight. The battle can rage into 1945 if the situation determines, with all the historical changes in technology impacting the war. This time, the Germans can win and often will do so when the tactical commander is you.

BoB: Luftwaffe Planning Screen

The interface is similar to Talonsoft's Battle of Britain. There is an Order of Battle. You can set AUTO PLANNING, but you can also jump in and modify any mission parameters, given your resources, pilot fatigue etc.

Like Total Air War, there is a real time strategic map. However, unlike Total Air War, there is no all seeing E3 eye in the sky. Instead, the map is modeled after the British War Room and detection follows the reality of the day. You can only see what your pilots report via radio, what is seen by your radar installations or ships in the water, and what ground observers report via telephone and field radio.

EAW Spitfires

Again unlike Total Air War, it is possible to play on either side of the conflict. In fact, it is possible in our design spec to network ten human players. Two players can act as Theatre Commander and issue orders, while eight others fly, up to four on each side, with AI flying the rest of the aircraft. This concept was originally proposed for the now defunct Flying Nightmares II and was also considered for the Total Air War design.

Like Falcon 4 and Total Air War, the battle rages whether you fly or not, or whether you issue orders or not. AI takes over whenever you are absent, managing the war and planning missions. But you have supreme authority and can alter orders under most circumstances.

EAW: P38 Lightning

Like Total Air War, you can jump into almost any mission that is currently in the air or on the tarmac. This time, however, your aircraft will be one of three for the British, or one of three for the Luftwaffe. The classics are likely the Hurricane, the Spitfire, or the Tornado for the British, and the Me 109, Focke Wulfe or the Me 262 for the Germans. MAYBE we'll throw in the Lightning and a light bomber like the Stuka in a later add on ...

Unlike Total Air War, you are not restricted in our theoretical new game to a single monitor display. Instead, you can keep your tactical War Room map on one display while planning missions or flying in real time on another. The Theatre Commander can be planning missions while watching real time 3d action on a second display.

Now, if that weren't enough, all the regular planning features of a MiG Alley are here, and the interface is intuitive and bug free (HA!). You can plan and tweak missions to your hearts content, or jump in and fly, or play at the strategic level and let the AI plan all the missions for you. Granted, the strategic game will be far more interesting from the German side.

The Role Playing Game

But what if we added some of the dimensions of B17 II to our design spec? Suppose we modeled two seater bombers for the Germans for a start, and let you fly with your buddies in these two seaters?

Or suppose we went all the way and released a game a few months later that allowed you to fly in either the B17 or the B24 along with a human crew in multiplayer mode? And you can still have two players acting as Theatre Commander planning the missions on either side.

Sure, I know, dreams are cheap. Someone has to catch the vision and build such a game. Most likely a game like this would have to be built in stages, much as the evolution we saw from F22: ADF to Total Air War. The initial release might contain only the bare outlines of the strategy game, while the second release could weave both games together seamlessly and add the bombers.

P51 Little Friends.

A Hope and a Future

There is one recent start up company out there that is now putting together the design spec for a yet unnamed WWII game. And Rowan, just finishing MiG Alley, are about to embark on their own Battle of Britain effort.

Likely to incorporate the best features of MiG Alley, we can hope they will take their BoB to new places. With a dynamic campaign and some great mission planning features, all it would need is the strategic game and we would have a new Total Air War: Battle of Britain!