Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ?

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Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ?

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All Forums >> [New Releases from Matrix Games] >> Gary Grigsby's War in the West >> Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ?

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Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ? - 8/10/2016 10:35:33 AM

stefankollers

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Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ? Perhaps this question has been asked lots of times. It is the one thing that stops me buying the game. It would be nice to play the campaigns of the early war years Poland "Technically not in the west. Or the Campaigns of 1940, Norway,France, the Balkans, and the desert war up to "Torch".

And perhaps a what if scenerio, Operation Sealion. Are there plans to include a DLC covering this period at sometime in the future. I am currently paying War in the east and loving it.

To me it doesnt seem right starting the western theatre in 1943...Anyway apologies for asking a question that has probably been asked over and over. Thanks for reading.

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RE: Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ? - 8/10/2016 12:07:37 PM

RedLancer

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Yes, it has been asked many times.

To have developed a game with a start date earlier than 1943 would have required a much more detailed naval model. That would have added a considerable workload to a game that still took 4 years to develop. (We pushed the timeline back further with Torch as the scenarios in that timeframe are not full campaigns.)

Before we decided to go back East we had a long debate on whether doing West 39-42 would be a better idea.

Some of the reasons that influenced the decision included:

- Coding a naval model.
- Adding all the naval and early war data.
- How you code mobilisations and the Balkan conflicts with their territory changes and who is on which side.
- How fun would Poland 39 and France 40 be in a handful of week long turns.
- We already had most of the East data already.

I think we all hope for a full War in Europe type game but the challenge of getting there is significant and will take many years.

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RE: Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ? - 8/10/2016 8:45:25 PM

Zorch

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Well reasoned and well stated. Still we can hope for War in Europe someday, right?

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RE: Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ? - 8/10/2016 9:14:16 PM

RedLancer

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I'm hoping, I need something to play in my retirement (when I get there).

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RE: Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ? - 8/11/2016 10:14:58 AM

stefankollers

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Many thanks for your quick and clear answer, I suppose many factors come into play when planning a computer game, I knew the early campaigns Poland, France, Balkans were very short. I have to say I forgot about the week long turns. The French Campaign, maybe 10-12 turns, stretching it. Poland perhaps 4-6 turns and so on.

Oh well, perhaps a talented modder could make a Campaign or two. Although I guess like War in the East the start date is hard coded. Having played War in the East,"badly" I very much enjoy the game and dont fancy playing any other games, so like many others I live in hope. As a side note any plans on bringing out any more DLC'S For War in the West, or is that top secret ?

All the best and I hope you have some good games to play when you retire.

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RE: Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ? - 8/11/2016 2:36:07 PM

Capitaine

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Those turn ranges would be for stand alone scenarios, actually. In a continuous campaign the game would run for many turns without pause after each conquest.

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RE: Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ? - 8/11/2016 5:02:21 PM

Joel Billings

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There are no DLC's in the works now for WitW as we're fully focused on WitE2. Down the road it's possible there might be additional DLC's. Eventually we'd like to get WitE2 in shape so it could handle Western Allies and Soviets, which would open up additional options. We're trying to do things with that in mind as much as possible.

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RE: Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ? - 8/12/2016 1:56:03 AM

Michael T

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If possible, I would dearly love a WITW CG 43-45 that would leave out the Strategic Air War. Tactical air only with historical damage applied to factories.

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RE: Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ? - 8/13/2016 11:35:40 PM

Marvin88

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With such a complex supply model, it seems to me a naval component (even abstracted) is paramount... sigh. Still love WiTW however.... I constantly have a game going.

I guess I still long for the scenario where Bismarck breaks out into the Atlantic and visits the American coast...

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RE: Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ? - 8/14/2016 8:56:11 AM

HMSWarspite

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Wrong game scale. The real Bismarck operation is less than 2 turns. There is a lot lot of improvement needed in the naval aspect before we get to WitP scale ship ops. I want the resource system in Germany to reflect Norwegian imports, and the U.K. one to cover Uboat interdiction better. This gives the strike wings and coastal command units their proper roles and another lever for each side to influence the war. It also removes the exclusively political Uboat bombing points.

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RE: Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ? - 8/14/2016 1:30:39 PM

Marvin88

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quote:

ORIGINAL: HMSWarspite

Wrong game scale. The real Bismarck operation is less than 2 turns. There is a lot lot of improvement needed in the naval aspect before we get to WitP scale ship ops. I want the resource system in Germany to reflect Norwegian imports, and the U.K. one to cover Uboat interdiction better. This gives the strike wings and coastal command units their proper roles and another lever for each side to influence the war. It also removes the exclusively political Uboat bombing points.

It's only 2 turns if you look at it from a scenario perspective. A successful breakout in a campaign setting could yield an impact like you are looking for above, or at least supplement the effects of the u-boat war or Norwegian blockades. I simply mentioned Bismarck as she is well known. It wouldn't have to be (and probably wouldn't work) at the tactical/operational level, but a strategic decision by Germany to pursue naval production/doctrine is certainly a viable alternative reality.

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RE: Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ? - 8/14/2016 8:55:01 PM

HMSWarspite

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quote:

ORIGINAL: Kreole

quote:

ORIGINAL: HMSWarspite

Wrong game scale. The real Bismarck operation is less than 2 turns. There is a lot lot of improvement needed in the naval aspect before we get to WitP scale ship ops. I want the resource system in Germany to reflect Norwegian imports, and the U.K. one to cover Uboat interdiction better. This gives the strike wings and coastal command units their proper roles and another lever for each side to influence the war. It also removes the exclusively political Uboat bombing points.

It's only 2 turns if you look at it from a scenario perspective. A successful breakout in a campaign setting could yield an impact like you are looking for above, or at least supplement the effects of the u-boat war or Norwegian blockades. I simply mentioned Bismarck as she is well known. It wouldn't have to be (and probably wouldn't work) at the tactical/operational level, but a strategic decision by Germany to pursue naval production/doctrine is certainly a viable alternative reality.

Not from a surface ship point of view - the lead time is too long. I was intending an effect like that of bombing resource, not moving individual units around. By 1943 the naval options are fixed but the WA response to them in the air can vary...

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RE: Why does War in the West begin in 1943 ? - 8/15/2016 12:34:26 AM

Marvin88

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From: Santa Fe, NM USA
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quote:

ORIGINAL: HMSWarspite

Not from a surface ship point of view - the lead time is too long. I was intending an effect like that of bombing resource, not moving individual units around. By 1943 the naval options are fixed but the WA response to them in the air can vary...

Good points...

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Post #: 13