Battle Academy Ends?

[jomni]

Is this true?
Slitherine stops internal development. Meaning it's the end of the line for BA series and the engine?
http://www.wargamer.com/Article/10196

[makigono1]

Uh, that stinks. I hope that if Slithering is not going to continue to develop it internally, that it will be given to someone else to do so. "There are so many battles yet to fight."

[jomni]

Yes l was hoping for a 3rd party to pick this one up.

[vicco]

Hope we can get a response from Ian on this.

[jomni]

RBS of Pike and Shot replied. He said the old dev team will concentrate on supporting the 3rd party devs. It is good for those titles like P&S and Hell but the status of BA is still unclear.

[Adraeth]

If it is true, i think it is a bad strategy, Battle Academy 2 is a fine tuned engine, i strongly believe that Western theatre like Normandy, Italy and Africa .... and more Pacific (with chinese, japanese, anzac ...) would sell well.
I am happy for 3rd party using BA engine ... so i hope for more P&S and for something napoleonic or "age of rifles" .... but i would not suggest to forget BA at all.

[irwinbrown]

Pretty devastating news - I'm still watching and waiting for my Stalingrad and Berlin expansions!

[MacD2013]

I hope to the all mighty this isn't true. I don't know how you walk away from a game like BA2...its a classic with more money to be made on it with expansions. Like Irwin said, no Stalingrad would be a travesty.

[khill9702]

Why would you discontinue your best and most popular game series and one that still has plenty of room for expansions that people are willing to pay for?

[irwinbrown]

Have to say it doesn't look great - someone from Slitherine is usually pretty quick to jump into a discussion like this. Maybe there are still decisions to be made ...

[jomni]

Have to say it doesn't look great - someone from Slitherine is usually pretty quick to jump into a discussion like this. Maybe there are still decisions to be made ...

Probably searching for a 3rd party to continue to BA series.

[jomni]

Pretty devastating news - I'm still watching and waiting for my Stalingrad and Berlin expansions!

Isn't the latest add on made by a 3rd party? Aramis?

[irwinbrown]

I hope so. I'll cry if I don't get to play Stalingrad.

[pipfromslitherine]

Hi guys. As has been said over in the P&S forums, it's pretty much business as usual. We are continuing to support the STUB engine going forward, and it is the basis for the new Archon engine too.

Cheers

Pip

[irwinbrown]

Cool, thanks Pip. You ready to drop any hints on when to expect the next BA2 expansion?

[vicco]

Hi guys. As has been said over in the P&S forums, it's pretty much business as usual. We are continuing to support the STUB engine going forward, and it is the basis for the new Archon engine too.

Cheers

Pip

Great news! Although there are calls for BA2 expansions in the Eastern, Western & Pacific front, I hope you include in the plans an expansion for the Middle East especially for '60s & '70s.

[bobk]

Agree with vicco, a modern age version would be great!

[makigono1]

Great news! Although there are calls for BA2 expansions in the Eastern, Western & Pacific front, I hope you include in the plans an expansion for the Middle East especially for '60s & '70s.

Indeed, well perhaps they will farm said development out? I mean, the game, as it stands now, can do everything from the later period of World War One to say, Suez with units and artwork, in my opinion. To take it into the 1970's you'd need to model helicopters, but really nothing else. That is to say, simulating any of the conflicts in that period would be a matter of new units and artwork, but no other different types of units. Heck if you could model helicopters, you can take it all the way into the early 1990's.

[irwinbrown]

Now you're talking ... Red Storm on the BA engine, here we come!

[Adraeth]

Seriously, i strongly believe that this kind of engine (and the new one) is excellent for many games, so slitherine should expand it for BA and for other games.

I am old ... i played Steel panthers, battles of napoleon and so on ....and only now .... after 15 years .... maybe 20 .... i can play with a game that offers to open it, click just two or three times to have a beatiful skirmish with randon maps and very good AI .... so keep it, expand it ... do not starve this engine and "go west" for BA (and maybe go modern combat )