Slitherine

O.M.G. Could it really be. Could Matrix/Slitherine product selection once more include a WW2 WEGO system based game? It's only been 28 years since Atomics' V4V series came out for Microsoft's DOS OS. And 25 years since the follow up World at War series that included the Crusader campaign came out. I for one look forward to this title and hope the programming mistakes of the past are not repeated in this release, but rather serve to build and improve on those great titles that for whatever reason have never been re-booted.

I had the same reaction. It almost sounds to good to believe. I still have all of the Atomic/AH titles but they are very difficult to play on a new OS. Those old titles are still the apex of operational wargaming design in my opinion and DW looks very similar but with a broader focus and a strong editor. On the Matrix forums the Dev said he loved the old Operation Crusader and Stalingrad games so I assume they will have influenced his design somewhat. An easy day one purchase for me. I have wasted what life and relative youth I have left waiting for this day!

I can say without any reservation that I too treasure the moments I spent playing those games as well as the follow up titles in the Close Combat series. These electronic gems are forever etched in the annals of strategy and tactics gaming as classics and a testament of the longevity of a good title. Alas we live in a society where the love of money makes the world go round and any projects embarked on must make business sense. I just hope that with the amount of commercial success the PanzerCorpse (Panzer General) title has received, the game publishing houses crunch the numbers and realize that there is a market for this type of games and put a rush on re-booting these old favorites.

I can't speak for the devs but I remember the Operation Crusader game fondly as well (never played Stalingrad)
One of my 'favourite battles' from WW2

We're recruiting now for beta testers for Desert War

regards
Ben Wilkins

Ben, if you'd like to re-live your glory days... all V4V titles (Utah Beach, Velikiye Luki, Market Garden - my favorite, and Gold-Juno-Sword) as well as WaW (Stalingrad, Crusader, and D-Day America Invades) are still available for download from various paid and free sites. With a DOS emulator, they work perfectly on both current Windows or MAC platforms. It may be worthwhile to have those too young to remember see the mechanics to give context as to why these titles invoke such fond memories. There is no point in reinventing the wheel, doubly so if the wheel you've invented is substandard to one that came out 25 years ago...

BETA testing?!? where do I sign up?

Hi, I'm the developer for Desert War and yep, I loved those V4V games Crusader and Stalingrad and played them over and over and over again.
I can't believe it's what, 25 years?, since I bought the boxed copy in Virgin Megastore!
I've tried to create a game in the mold of those games, even though there are many differences between them and Desert War.
Did I succeed? You'll have to be the judge of that!
/Brian

Well than it sounds like the game is in good hands Brian. As a project manager I tend to improve on previous iterations of the same product. Thus I'm sure your changes will serve to enhance the user experience. looking forward to the release.
/Martin

Hi,

Is there a WEGO game similar to this but not at the scale of Desert War 1940-1942?
I can't deal with hundreds of units. I prefer more of a beer & pretzels game with the number of units in the low double digits.

Does Desert War 1940-1942 share its engine with WEGO World War II: Stalingrad? They look identical as far as the UI is concerned.