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The release of Tactical Game 3 in 1969 ushered in a new era of gaming which bridged a gap between miniatures and PC/console games. This blog will cast light on the brief and ongoing history of commercial tactical board wargaming, its future, and the lessons and impacts it has had, can have and is having on other gamers. Topics of interest will include the rise of ADVANCED SQUAD LEADER (ASL) to dominance in the field, the struggle among PC games such as Close Combat, Combat Mission and Steel Panthers to establish a similar dynasty, and other selected subjects as they present themselves.
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New Publication Announcement: Tactical Wargamer’s Journal

Posted 26 Oct 09 at 00:48 by Michael Dorosh (The Tactical Wargamer)
Updated 26 Oct 09 at 01:43 by Michael Dorosh
Tactical Wargamer's Journal (ISSN 1918-9729) covers topics of interest on all aspects of the world of commercial tactical wargaming, with its focus set on warfare at the man-to-man, squad and platoon level in the 20th Century and contemporary era. Tactical Wargamer's Journal (TWJ) places emphasis on both military history and the history of tactical level gaming itself, with a spectrum encompassing serious depictions of military conflict at the lowest levels through the mediums of miniatures, military role playing, board wargaming, console and PC games.

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Michael Dorosh's Avatar
tacticalwargamer.com
Posted in Autumn 2009
Views 300 Comments 1 Michael Dorosh is online now
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What Does Worthless Really Mean?

Posted 15 Oct 09 at 20:25 by Michael Dorosh (The Tactical Wargamer)
Updated 15 Oct 09 at 20:28 by Michael Dorosh
There have been many discussions regarding the “First To Fight” modules that started appearing on ebay in 2009. For those unfamiliar with them, they are a series of third party variants for ASL produced by Wild Bill Wilder, whose wargaming credits go back decades now, mostly as an unofficial scenario and variant designer for games such as Squad Leader, Steel Panthers, Combat Mission and others. The First to Fight products gained notoriety for both their quality (or apparent lack thereof) and their method of marketing which resulted in high auction prices.

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Michael Dorosh's Avatar
tacticalwargamer.com
Posted in Summer 2009
Views 238 Comments 4 Michael Dorosh is online now
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DIY and the Decline of Community Standards

Posted 03 Sep 09 at 21:05 by Michael Dorosh (The Tactical Wargamer)
Updated 03 Sep 09 at 21:10 by Michael Dorosh
The self-publishing revolution has had tremendous impacts on the wargaming “industry”, if one wants to refer to the hobby with that term. In 1997, the editor of The General noted the growing rise of Desk Top Publishers (DTP) and had the following to say:
So what if DTP games are skimming sales from a fixed layer of existing consumer demand? Is this so bad? ...This is where the issue of the traditional game company comes back to us front and center. The boardgame company doesn't simply print and ship a paper product. Production isn't really limited by a lack of designs. For the most part,
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Michael Dorosh's Avatar
tacticalwargamer.com
Posted in Summer 2009
Views 195 Comments 2 Michael Dorosh is online now
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Experiential Game Players

Posted 06 Jul 09 at 03:05 by Michael Dorosh (The Tactical Wargamer)
Updated 06 Jul 09 at 03:25 by Michael Dorosh
There is a need in certain quarters to categorize game players, whether it is to gather demographics for advertising, or to attempt to predict future sales, or to better enable fellow gamers to talk to one another. MOVES Magazine printed an article in 1975, breaking down board wargamers into the following:
  • The Military Establishment
  • The Military Historians
  • The Military Buffs
  • The Avengers
  • The Social Wargamers
  • The Mathematicians
  • The Supercompetitors
  • The Accidental Converts
  • The Shut-Ins
  • The Limited Interest Minority
  • The Wishful Thinkers
  • The Reluctant Gift-Receivers
  • The
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Michael Dorosh's Avatar
tacticalwargamer.com
Posted in Summer 2009
Views 265 Comments 4 Michael Dorosh is online now
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The Question of Battle Doctrine and National Mythology in the Second World War

Posted 05 Feb 09 at 22:54 by Michael Dorosh (The Tactical Wargamer)
Updated 06 Feb 09 at 09:36 by Michael Dorosh
The first commercially successful tactical wargames rules were actually based on miniatures, and indeed, the first true tactical wargames were heavily influenced by, and even marketed to, miniatures players. Certainly comparisons to miniatures were rife in articles on PanzerBlitz, and not long after its publication, Strategy & Tactics published its own miniatures rules called T-34, now long forgotten. When Squad Leader hit the scene in 1977, advertising appealed directly to miniatures players by name.

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Tags: waffen ss
Michael Dorosh's Avatar
tacticalwargamer.com
Posted in Spring 2009
Views 897 Comments 13 Michael Dorosh is online now

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