Battleground (series)

Battleground

Battleground: Bulge-Ardennes cover, the first game in the series.
Genres Turn-based strategy
Developers TalonSoft
Publishers TalonSoft
Platforms Windows
First release Battleground: Bulge-Ardennes
1995
Latest release Battleground 9: Chickamauga
1999

Battleground is a series of turn-based strategy video games developed and published by TalonSoft for Microsoft Windows between 1995 and 1999. Nine games were released in the series, each based on a different historical battle.

Games

Battleground: Bulge-Ardennes

Battleground: Bulge-Ardennes is the first game to be released in the Battleground series. It was developed and published by TalonSoft and released in 1995.

Battleground 2: Gettysburg

Battleground 2: Gettysburg is a turn-based strategy computer game developed by TalonSoft in 1995. It simulated combat at the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg, using both a video version of miniature wargaming and board gaming. Terrain hex maps are 3D or 2D with various scales and sizes.

The basic platform for the Battleground series involves individual infantry and cavalry regiments, artillery batteries, and commanders. All are rated for strength, firepower, weaponry, morale, and movement. As a unit takes fire, it may become fatigued, disordered, or routed to the rear. Players compete against the computer's artificial intelligence or against another player via modem. Players may try a variety of 25 individual scenarios, or refight the entire Battle of Gettysburg. A Fog of War option enhances playing against the computer, as it hides units that are not in direct view of the enemy.

The game features video clips of battle reenactments, as well as Civil War music by folk singer Bobby Horton.

Battleground 3: Waterloo

Battleground 3: Waterloo is the third game in the Battleground series. It was developed and published by TalonSoft and released on May 31, 1996. The game features the Battle of Waterloo which was the final defeat for Napoleon Bonaparte and his French Empire.

Battleground 4: Shiloh

Battleground 4: Shiloh is a turn-based strategy computer game developed by TalonSoft in 1996, the fourth issue in the Battleground series. It simulated combat at the 1862 Battle of Shiloh, using both a video version of miniature wargaming and board gaming. Terrain hex maps are 3D or 2D with various scales and sizes.

The basic platform for the Battleground series involves individual infantry and cavalry regiments, artillery batteries, and commanders. All are rated for strength, firepower, weaponry, morale, and movement. As a unit takes fire, it may become fatigued, disordered, or routed to the rear. Players compete against the computer's artificial intelligence or against another player via modem. Players may try a variety of 25 individual scenarios, or refight the entire Battle of Shiloh. A Fog of War option enhances playing against the computer, as it hides units that are not in direct view of the enemy.

The game features video clips of battle reenactments, as well as Civil War music by folk singer Bobby Horton.

Battleground 5: Antietam

Battleground 5: Antietam is a turn-based strategy computer game developed by TalonSoft in 1996, the fifth issue in the popular Battleground series. It simulated combat at the 1862 Battle of Antietam and the earlier Battle of South Mountain during the American Civil War's Maryland Campaign, using both a video version of miniature wargaming and board gaming. Terrain hex maps are 3D or 2D with various scales and sizes.

The basic platform for the Battleground series involves individual infantry and cavalry regiments, artillery batteries, and commanders. All are rated for strength, firepower, weaponry, morale, and movement. As a unit takes fire, it may become fatigued, disordered, or routed to the rear. Players compete against the computer's artificial intelligence or against another player via modem. Players may try a variety of individual scenarios, or refight the entire battle of Antietam. A Fog of War option enhances playing against the computer, as it hides units that are not in direct view of the enemy.

The game features video clips of battle reenactments, as well as Civil War music by folk singer Bobby Horton.

Battleground 6: Napoleon in Russia

Battleground 6: Napoleon in Russia is the sixth game to be released in the Battleground series. It was developed and published by TalonSoft and released on April 30, 1997.

Battleground 7: Bull Run

Battleground 7: Bull Run is a turn-based strategy computer game developed by TalonSoft in 1997, the seventh issue in the popular Battleground series. It simulated combat at the 1861 First Battle of Bull Run and the 1862 Second Battle of Bull Run, using both a video version of miniature wargaming and board gaming. Terrain hex maps are 3D or 2D with various scales and sizes.

The basic platform for the Battleground series involves individual infantry and cavalry regiments, artillery batteries, and commanders. All are rated for strength, firepower, weaponry, morale, and movement. As a unit takes fire, it may become fatigued, disordered, or routed to the rear. Players compete against the computer's artificial intelligence or against another player via modem. Players may try a variety of individual scenarios, or refight the entire battle of First or Second Bull Run (known as Manassas in the South). A Fog of War option enhances playing against the computer, as it hides units that are not in direct view of the enemy.

The game features video clips of battle reenactments, as well as Civil War music by folk singer Bobby Horton.

Battleground 8: Prelude to Waterloo

Battleground 8: Prelude to Waterloo is the eighth game to be released in the Battleground series. It was developed and published by TalonSoft and released in 1997.

Battleground 9: Chickamauga

Battleground 9: Chickamauga is the ninth game to be released in the Battleground series. It was developed and published by TalonSoft and released in 1999.

Reception

PC Gamer US nominated Bulge-Ardennes and Gettysburg for its 1995 "Best Wargame" award, although they lost to Steel Panthers.[1] Gettysburg was also nominated for Computer Gaming World's 1995 "Wargame of the Year" award. The editors wrote that Gettysburg "is so much sheer fun that it could have captured top honors in many prior years. As the Battleground series continues to mature, it continues to blend the best elements of board games and miniatures with the strengths of computer wargames."[2]

Shiloh won Computer Gaming World's 1996 "Wargame of the Year" award. The editors wrote, "Sure, there's micromanaging. And yes, there's complexity, too. But the learning curve is justified, because this is simply the best 19th-century system ever designed for a wargame—realistic, challenging, and eminently replayable."[3] The three Battleground games of 1996—Shiloh, Antietam and Waterloo—collectively won Computer Games Strategy Plus's wargame of the year award for that year.[4]

Waterloo and Antietam were runners-up for Computer Game Entertainment's 1996 "Best War Game" prize, which ultimately went to Tigers on the Prowl 2. The magazine's editors called both games "top-notch", and summarized Antietam as "the best iteration yet of Talonsoft's successful Civil War game system."[5]

Napoleon in Russia was a runner-up for Computer Gaming World's 1997 "Wargame Game of the Year" award, which ultimately went to Sid Meier's Gettysburg! The editors wrote that Napoleon in Russia "sent the Battleground engine out in style".[6]

The Battleground series, collectively, was named the 75th best computer game ever by PC Gamer UK in 1997. The editors called it "a fine expose of table top wargaming on the PC".[7]

References

  1. ↑ Editors of PC Gamer (March 1996). "The Year's Best Games". PC Gamer US. 3 (3): 64, 65, 67, 68, 71, 73–75.
  2. ↑ Staff (June 1996). "The Computer Gaming World 1996 Premier Awards". Computer Gaming World (143): 55, 56, 58, 60, 62, 64, 66, 67.
  3. ↑ Staff (May 1997). "The Computer Gaming World 1997 Premier Awards". Computer Gaming World (154): 68–70, 72, 74, 76, 78, 80.
  4. ↑ Staff (March 25, 1997). "Computer Games Strategy Plus announces 1996 Awards". Computer Games Strategy Plus. Archived from the original on June 14, 1997. Retrieved November 2, 2010.
  5. ↑ Staff (July 1997). "The Computer Game Entertainment Awards 1996". Computer Game Entertainment (1): 54–58.
  6. ↑ Staff (March 1998). "CGW Presents The Best & Worst of 1997". Computer Gaming World (164): 74–77, 80, 84, 88, 89.
  7. ↑ Flynn, James; Owen, Steve; Pierce, Matthew; Davis, Jonathan; Longhurst, Richard (July 1997). "The PC Gamer Top 100". PC Gamer UK (45): 51–83.
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