WW1
Naval Thunder: Clash of Dreadnoughts — Review
Naval Thunder: Clash of Dreadnoughts: A Game of Naval Warfare 1906-1918 is the premier game from the small new publisher Steel Dreadnought Games. Naval Thunder: COD is a tactical naval warfare miniatures game. It is available as a PDF only publication and it comes with two versions of the main rulebook (both in black and white); a graphics heavy version and a print ready version with no background or images. The graphics heavy version is 50 pages and includes a number of period photos as well as a page of color counters. The print ready version is 45 pages in a basic, straightforward layout with a few tables and graphics. The game also includes a two page quick reference card as well as 45 pages of ship data cards (78 ships) for the Kaiserliche and Royal Navy only. The cards are similar to those in Starmada and fit two to a page (destroyer flotillas one to a page). The cards are clear and contain the relevant information but unfortunately contain no image or even silhouette of the ship they represent. Read the rest of this entry »
The Best Games Not Yet Published, 2009
With the New Year upon us it is time, once again, for our annual look at the games we are most anxiously awaiting in 2009. Our 2008 prognostications did pretty well so we thought we would keep the tradition going. As always, there is no guarantee any of these titles will be published in 2009, nor that they will be any good if they are, but we are optimistic. Read the rest of this entry »
Jutland — Released
Storm Eagle Studios released its long awaited computer naval wargame Jutland. Jutland is based on their Distant Guns engine. The game comes in two versions: standard and pro. Pro provides a scenario editor. There is a demo available for download and there is also an online tutorial.
Storm Eagle Studios is proud to present the sequel to it’s 2006 Wargame of The Year Distant Guns!
JUTLAND covers the 1916 Noth Sea Naval actions between Germany, England, and France.
Featuring an astounding 900+ historically accurate, highly detailed 3D ship models, Jutland delivers the most realistic, True Physics Ballistics ever released in a commercial wargame.
JUTLAND features as easily accessable user interface that allows the novice game to quickly dive into the game. For the seasoned vertern, it also provides access to advanced features and detail that will satisfy the most demanding Admiral of the Fleet!
Landmark 15mm Buildings — Review
It has been awhile since we first looked at some pre-painted 15mm building choices. Unfortunately, Battlefront has still not released any northwest European buildings in their Battlefield in a Box line. Luckily we recently discovered the 15mm buildings from Landmark. They are very nicely done resin-cast pre-painted buildings. They have a feel closer to china or ceramic as opposed to the more plastic feel of other resin buildings (I think this is due more to the crisp casting than the actual material). The castings are extremely crisp and clean and the painting is also very clean and well done. So much so that they almost look too nice on the table! They certainly give a pre-battle feel to the tabletop. Read the rest of this entry »
A Wave of New Naval Warfare Games
Well it has been well over a year-and-half since we did our first naval wargaming review in our A Tsunami of Naval Warfare Games article. At the time we were surprised at the number of new naval titles that had been released. Even more surprising is that the trend has continued.
A couple more card games were released. GMT Games released Pacific Typhoon, a simple card game for 3-7 players (it plays better with more players rather than less) that covers naval combat in the Pacific in World War Two. In a unique twist each player plays both the Allied and Japanese sides. This allows for lots of backstabbing as players vie for leverage to help ‘their’ side win. A new publisher, DVG Games, released Modern Naval Battles – Global Warfare. This is an update to the original 1989 game and includes the material in that game’s two expansions. MNB-GW covers naval warfare during the Cold War, Falkland Islands War, and Post-2000 era. Neither of these games are a simulation but both are interesting, fun games. Read the rest of this entry »
Jutland — Preview
Jutland Annoucement
Well some more good news on the naval front.
Storm Eagle Studios is proud to announce JUTLAND, the 2nd installment utilizing our ground breaking Distant Guns 3D Combat Engine!
Set in the treacherous waters of the 1916 North Sea, JUTLAND delivers the most detailed World War One naval experience ever released for PC Wargaming!
In addition to covering the largest clash of Battleships in history, current plans for JUTLAND include many additional North Sea battles and the huge 1916 North Sea Naval Campaign pitting Kaiser Wilhelm’s glorious Dreadnaught Fleet against Britain’s finest.
CEO of Storm Eagle Studios, Jim Rose, said “JUTLAND is the natural next step for the Distant Guns 3D engine. The success of our award winning debut title, DISTANT GUNS, yielded a solid 3D code base for JUTLAND to expand and build upon. Sixteen (16) mile ranges, improved fire control, and the first modern naval architecture are just a few reasons that we are excited about it! Norm Koger, our Chief Technology Officer, has raised the bar again. Our development team continues to deliver an amazing consistency of detail and game experience.”
Projected Release Date: Fall 2007
See a preview of Jutland.
15mm Pre-Painted Buildings — A Few Choices
We recently picked up some new pre-painted 15mm buildings.
The 15mm buildings from The Miniature Building Authority are part of the EuroVillage series. They have a number of designs including a new apartment building and factory. We got the Townhouse rows. The buildings are cast in something that feels like a ceramic but is probably not. The molding and detailing is crisp and clean. The painting is also well done and should be acceptable to all but the most discriminating painters. All the buildings have a nice feature where you can take the top off and it leaves a ‘ruined’ bottom half. This is great for destroyed areas or just for access to the interior. The only problem is, at least with the Townhouse Row, the inside is too small to fit a regular infantry stand for Flames of War. Smaller stands, including FoW leader stands, fit fine. Read the rest of this entry »
A Tsunami of Naval Warfare Games
The past year or so, especially the past few months, has seen a huge wave of new naval warfare games. First we have two card games, Phalanx Games’ ‘Naval Battles’ is a great WW2 game of naval combat and covers carrier combat as well as submarines. Secondly is Decision Games’ second title from their ‘Lightening War’ series, ‘Midway’. Neither game is a simulation by any stretch but both are fun, fast playing and have a nice naval feel to them.
Omega Games redid two older naval games and released them as new titles. There is the WW1 ‘Line of Battle’ and the WW2 ‘Battleship.’ Both titles focus on combat between capital ships but also include smaller vessels as squadrons. Read the rest of this entry »
The View from the Turret 
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