War games is the pinnacle of strategic combat simulation in the digital space, offering the very best simulations that model military, political or strategic operations. While many derive from the tabletop of the same name, others have been more in line with military training exercises, with a focus on realism and recreating (or recreating) real world scenarios.
Despite the assumptions that might come from reading the name, wargaming is more than pitting two opposing forces against each other and seeing who wins. They examine concepts beyond simple numbers and teach players how to assess scenarios and explore how planning and posture affect outcomes. War games are a hyper-evolved subset of a few aspects of war in game form – much different than what most people think of when they talk about games about war.
However, as with any genre, the lines can be a bit blurred, as some wargames can have much more in common with 4X (Explore, Expand, Exploit, Exterminate) titles than other contemporary wargames, and can range from lighter, fantastical affairs to hyper-realistic. As a genre with a long history spanning decades, there's no shortage of games to choose from, but these 11 rank among the very best.
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Steel Panthers World War II
An encyclopedic account of the conflicts of the Second World War
Steel Panthers World War II covers the combat period 1930 to 1946 and aims to capture the full scale of the battles that made up the Second World War. Although this time period may seem short at first glance, the game contains 872 different scenarios, 34 campaigns, 456 custom maps and almost 8400 photographs. A total of 33 nations are represented in the game, 14 of which feature lengthy, scripted campaigns.
The amount of things to do and engage with is staggering, and few games have ever come close to the sheer scale of gameplay and historical detail put into Steel Panthers World War II. When talking about war games with a focus on World War II, this game should be one of the very first that comes to mind.
Advanced Tactics Gold
Infinitely replayable and constantly evolving
Built on the success of the fantastic Advanced Tactics: World War 2, Advanced Tactics Gold pushes itself forward with its introduction of a new game editor, new features and expanded abilities. While the base game already contains a deep and engaging core of systems and many scenarios to play through (including campaigns on the Eastern Front and the Pacific), the real beauty lies in its active community.
Advance Tactics Gold is highly malleable, with the advanced editor capable of editing almost every aspect of the game in detail. Thanks to this, society has created countless new scenarios throughout history and has even allowed the presentation of fantastic battles, rather than realistic ones. All in all, Advanced Tactics Gold is a goldmine of engaging and unique wargaming experiments.
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Steel hex
Dynamic engagement across multiple fronts
While Steel hex It started as a Kickstarter dream and has evolved into one of the deepest and most involved WW2 based war games on the market. The campaigns it entails can go to some interesting places, with the scenarios evolving dynamically through play. Given the huge number of playable nations in the game (45 in total) and the countless customizable scenarios, you'll never run out of unique games to get through – alone or with friends.
Steel hex also has a very active Discord community and is constantly updated with community input, providing an ever-evolving set of rules and engagement to participate in. Games can be played with friends online, via split-screen, and even cross-platform, and the game's mechanics also facilitate alliances.
Hearts of Iron 4
Alternative history provides new scenarios
Even if Hearts of Iron 4 fits more traditionally within the definition of a “Grand Strategy” or “4X” title, its number and depth of combat mechanics lends itself well to wargaming. Despite its obvious implementation of other elements beyond combat, Hearts of Iron 4 allows for layered and cerebral gameplay when managing forces, down to financial details and supply management.
Perhaps what sets it apart the most from most of the other entries on this list is its dedication to the presentation aspect of the game; it looks great in motion, with a beautifully designed user interface and active on-screen combat elements. Where some people can be turned off by the more static elements of most war games, Hearts of Iron 4 enables brutal recreations (or deviations) of World War II conflicts using detailed maps, units and equipment. It is only right that it is considered one of the very best games for nation building as well.
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Command: Modern Operations
A fresh understanding of business across multiple domains
Command: Modern Operations goes beyond the confines of World War II and into modern conflicts, allowing players to simulate every military engagement after World War II up to the present day and beyond. Compared to previous command titles, Modern business comes with some significant improvements to the gameplay, such as improved maps, including more detailed map layers, and includes additions such as a minimap. It also contains remastered and reworked engagements from the original Commandwith the ability to import existing saves and scenarios for continued play in the new system.
Combat Mission Shock Force 2
Hypothetical conflicts between NATO and Syria
Like maybe the very best post in history Combat mission franchise, Combat Mission Shock Force 2 puts players into a hypothetical conflict between Syria and NATO, rather than focusing on actual past conflicts. The scenarios within can be played in either real-time or the WeGo hybrid turn-based mode introduced with the first Combat Mission game 20 years ago. WeGo lets each player plan out 60 seconds of battle and then watch both sides' commands execute simultaneously, and its inclusion helps keep gameplay varied, with players able to choose their preferred style.
One of the most unique aspects of Shock Force 2 is its implementation of “soft” warfare factors, such as experience, morale, leadership, and other elements. This allows for a more detailed look at power management than games that don't take these factors into account, as they need to be managed as effectively as your supply lines and equipment.
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Ultimate General: Civil War
From Aquia Creek to Washington, experience the decisive conflict of the 19th century
Ultimate General: Civil War is perhaps the most thorough and engaging representation of the Civil War in the PC wargaming space. It takes a more real-time approach to wargaming and lets players participate in more than 50 Civil War battles. The game gives players control over the composition and direction of the army, with the ability to completely control units or give them generalized command.
The maps are also exceptional, with the details playing into how the engagements progress. Topography plays a big part in how battles play out, and the AI is thoughtful enough to use it as much as the player.
The Operational Art of War 4
Use forces from land, sea and air to dominate your enemies
The Operational Art of War covering the most iconic battles from the early 1900s to today's modern era, including more than 200 combat scenarios on air, land and sea. The supply system has been revamped and now includes an intermediate phase between supplied and unsupplied, opening up more strategy in these complex scenarios.
Another improvement from previous entries is the game's new naval features. Naval unit modeling is greatly improved, with units treated as complex systems that can be damaged in battle, and ships have unique parameters. The customizability and depth of all systems is astounding and provides a complete wargaming experience.
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Flashpoint Campaigns: Southern Storm
A cold war turned hot
Flashpoint Campaigns: Southern Storm is one of the few games in the genre that excels in both mechanical complexity and scenario design while being set in a fictional conflict. While all equipment and units are based on historically accurate information from the era, the game imagines a world where the Cold War turned hot, with the Soviet Union and the United States in full military conflict.
Modeled features such as electronic warfare, air superiority, realistic weather, line of sight and fire, terrain and altitude, smoke and mines, and human factors such as training, morale and preparedness must all be considered during gameplay. It's an intensively data-rich scenario simulator, and it serves as an interesting thought experiment in how a real war might have played out.
Total War: THREE KINGDOMS
Romance or record, the three kingdoms are yours to conquer
Total War: THREE KINGDOMS more neatly falls under the 4X umbrella of games, but its diverse set of combat scenarios and mechanics lends itself well to wargaming tendencies. It's great balance of 4X strategy and character-focused, emergent storytelling makes it one of the most divergent and unique games in the space, as well as one of the best Total war game, period.
Players must not only manage their units, supplies and territories, but also create and understand relationships between the various factions and generals, which adds an element of strategy to the game that is often missing in the genre – personal ideals and preferences. The game also comes with two distinct game modes: “Romance” is based on the novel Romance of the Three Kingdomsand generals in this mode are given superhuman abilities similar to those in Dynasty Warriors game, while “Records” gives a more historically accurate picture of the conflicts.
