Author: Edward Hayes

Overview

The latest version of The Operational Art of War, Volume I: 1939-1955, maintaining its position as one of the best wargames ever, a good buy if you’re new to the game, definitely of interest if you create your own scenarios, but otherwise probably not worth it.

Introduction

TalonSoft have a reputation for launching modified versions of many of their wargames. Indeed few companies correct and upgrade their products with such speed and regularity as TalonSoft, improving product performance and adding further scenarios and features. There have been several versions of East Front, a second West Front is due and now we have a further version of The Operational Art of War I.

The Operational Art of War, Volume I received the "Wargame of the Year 1999" award from several independent sources. Pitched at the "Operational Level," covering the 1939-55 period, it was hailed as a major breakthrough in wargaming and was an immediate success. There was some grognard criticism of "unrealistic combat results," particularly with tanks, but this has hardly deterred the game from continuing to have a strong following. Several upgrades up to Version 1.07 have been released incorporating new features to both the game and editor, along with a Battle Pack I Scenario Add-On Disk, containing twelve new scenarios.

TalonSoft followed this success with an improved engine in The Operational Art of War, Volume II: 1956-2000, which covered modern day warfare from 1955 to the present day.

To celebrate their success, TalonSoft have now launched this latest version, The Operational Art of War, Volume I (Wargame of the Year Edition), using The Operational Art of War, Volume II engine, which thereby makes the combat results more realistic, modifies some of the game mechanics, expands the unit database and associated icons, revamps several reporting screens, and includes nine new scenarios. Many new features have also been added to the editors which, among other things, should enhance the AI performance.

Installation

I was a little concerned about the required upgrade to DirectX 7 and the problem of compatibility of my existing scenarios. However, the process was simple and effective the first time. If, like me, you are already using an earlier version of The Operational Art of War Volume I, then you need to un-install it, put your scenarios in a separate folder, install the new version of the game, and then transfer the old scenarios to the new installation’s Scenario folder.

Go to the next page

© 2008, The Wargamer, LLC, a TM Interactive Publishing company. All Rights Reserved. Protected under copyright and international treaties. No portion of this web site or the files contained therein may be obtained for other than personal non-commercial use nor may they be reproduced or otherwise redistributed. Violations will be prosecuted to the maximum extent possible under the law and may result in severe civil and criminal penalties. All other copyrights and products mentioned on The Wargamer are the property of their respective companies.