Le bien connu concepteur de wargames John Tiller a annoncĂŠ dĂŠbut dĂŠcembre son dĂŠpart de HPS Simulations et la crĂŠation de sa propre plate-forme de distribution pour ses nouveaux jeux, le premier d’entre eux ĂŠtant Kharkov 43, un nouvel ĂŠpisode de la sĂŠrie Panzer Campaigns, et le second ĂŠtant Modern War, une dĂŠclinaison de la sĂŠrie Squad Battles sur le thème des conflits actuels en Irak et en Afghanistan.
HPS Simulations et John Tiller continueront d’assurer le suivi des nombreux titres signĂŠs « John Tiller » disponibles au catalogue de l’ĂŠditeur. D’ailleurs Panzer Campaigns Normandy 44 et Sealion 40 viennent tout juste de passer respectivement en version 1.01 et 1.12 (cf. changelog ci-dessous). HPS continuera aussi de publier des jeux, par exemple ceux rĂŠalisĂŠs par Scott Hamilton, Paul Bruffell & Jim Lunsford. Un nouveau titre devrait ĂŞtre annoncĂŠ prochainement.
John Tiller et son ĂŠquipe vont donc dĂŠsormais distribuer leurs wargames en tĂŠlĂŠchargement, par le biais du site www.johntillersoftware.com. Sachez toutefois que, DRM oblige, ces jeux tĂŠlĂŠchargĂŠs ne pourront a priori ĂŞtre activĂŠs que sur deux machines diffĂŠrentes (ex : PC portable et familial ; cela au lieu d’une unique activation prĂŠvue initialement, ce qui a dĂŠclenchĂŠ la colère de nombreux joueurs, ĂŠvidemment).
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John Tiller Software has been developing quality computer wargames for both commercial and military customers since 1995. In that time, John Tiller Software has developed over 70 commercial wargames and successfully performed over a dozen research and development contracts for the Air Force and Navy. Wargames developed by John Tiller Software have received many awards including Wargame of the Year from industry media on multiple occasions. In military education, over 21,000 officers of the United States Air Force have used John Tiller Software’s Modern Air Power in the Air University at Maxwell Air Force Base. Wargames developed by John Tiller Software are known for both their user-friendliness and accuracy. They cover the range of military conflict from the time of the musket and pike to present day and the future.
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Squad Battles Modern War
Ranging from operations in Afghanistan such as Anaconda to the initial invasion of Iraq and subsequent fighting in cities like Fallujah, Squad Battles: Modern War covers the major battles and engagements in Afghanistan and Iraq. Modern War provides a unique perspective to how modern combat is being fought at the squad level and how it might be fought in the future.
* 44 scenarios covering actions such as Operation Anaconda, Fallujah, Mosul and Sadr City.
* Scenarios range in length from 10 to 25 turns and cover actions from small firefights between a handful of men to hundreds of men battling it out for key strongpoints on a variety of battlefields.
* Close quarters urban fighting all the way to remote terrain ambushes are modeled and various points in between.
* 2 linked scenario campaigns.
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Panzer Campaigns: Kharkov ’43
Covers the three major offensives during the period from late January through mid March 1943:
* The Soviet Offensive: The Star & Gallop Operations – Feb 2nd to Feb 19th
* Manstein’s Backhand blow against the South Western Front – Feb 20th to Mar 5th
* The German recapture of Kharkov and the shattering of the Voronezh Front – Mar 6th to Mar 18th
* Operation Star – 149 turns
* Operation Gallop – 179 turns
* The Initial Soviet Offensive – Operation Star & Gallop – 179 turns
* Drive on Belgorod – Golikov’s Right Hook – 57 turns
* Manstein’s Backhand Blow – The German Riposte – 69 turns
* Stemming the Flow – Vatutins Desperation – 99 turns
* Manstein Pushes North – The Road to Kursk – 129 turns
* Kharkov Envelopment – Disaster on the Donets – 80 turns
Additional scenarios ranging in length from 9 to 80 turns, averaging 25 turns, will provide players with plenty of challenges and battles of variable length and size.
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Sealion ’40 V1.01
- Added new Night Move Disruption parameter data value which determines
probability of night movement by non-rail and non-travel or
non-road movement units causing Disruption.
- Change so that Interdiction attacks have twice the chance of Disruption
and can cause the loss of up to half the movement allowance in movement
points.
- Added new Bunker and Mine Prob Parameter Data Values and allowing
non-bridge engineer units to construct Bunkers.
- Added a range 1 hard target artillery fire modifier (see Users Manual
under Firing).
- Added Optional Rule for delayed reporting of enemy Disruption.
- Change so that towed AT gun unit which changes to Travel Mode without
expending any movement points prior to that change will not trigger
enemy Opportunity Fire.
- Added Quality Fire Modifier Parameter Data Value which applies to
quality A and B units.
Normandy ’44 1.12
- Change so that Disrupted units do not receive replacements and
Detached units receive replacements at one-fourth (not one-half) the
normal rate.
- Change so that for an HQ unit, both the actual and nominal command range
are displayed in the alternate hex info area (actual/nominal), the
Command Range view option uses the actual Command Range, while the
Maximum Range view option shows the Nominal Command Range (see the
Command section of the Users Manual).
- Change so that F quality units can recover from Disruption and Broken.
- Added ability for engineers to abandon an engineering bridge (see
Engineer Menu).
- Added current date and time to Scheduled Dialog.
- Change so that Saving Movement Points will save enough points for a
towed artillery unit to unlimber at the end of its movement.
- Added the ability for commandos to blow bridges and damage AT trenches.
- Change so that Partisans and Commandos can move from one enemy ZOC to
another.
- Change so that Commandos are always in command and never isolated.
- Change to allow Battleships to fire AA at high flying aircraft.
- Added new Forced Bridge Crossing Rule which allows units to force a
bridge crossing against enemy ZOC (see Users Manual under Movement).
- Increased Engineer digging in bonus from 2x to 3x.
- Added toolbar button for highlighting units in Travel Mode.
- Added new Bunker and Mine Prob Parameter Data Values and allowing
non-bridge engineer units to construct Bunkers.
- Added new Night Move Disruption parameter data value which determines
probability of night movement by non-rail and non-travel or
non-road movement units causing Disruption.
- Change so that Interdiction attacks have twice the chance of Disruption
and can cause the loss of up to half the movement allowance in movement
points.
- Added a range 1 hard target artillery fire modifier (see Users Manual
under Firing).
- Added Optional Rule for delayed reporting of enemy Disruption.
- Change so that towed AT gun unit which changes to Travel Mode without
expending any movement points prior to that change will not trigger
enemy Opportunity Fire.
- Added Quality Fire Modifier Parameter Data Value which applies to
quality A and B units.
- (Editor) Added ability to determine units which have no on-map HQ under
File Menu.
- (Editor) Added Reinforcemnts to Scenario Summary file under File Menu.
- Added new Submap Editor (pcsub.exe).
Fichiers en tĂŠlĂŠchargement chez HPS.