Quote:
|
Originally Posted by WargamerScott
Some interesting replies here. My main point was that the line between professional and hobby wargames is starting to blur.
|
I think that's fair. There was an interesting conference recently on "Serious games," with some people from the Center for Naval Analysis speeking. They also had a good article in a National Defence Weekly about it.
Quote:
|
To play any of these games is to get a real education in real world strategy and tactics.
|
Potentially, however, as a "pro" who plays wargames for analytical work as well as for fun, my experience is that scenarios I create for the purpose of studying real world tactics are frequently boring to entertainment oriented gamers. They play slower and they're usually very difficult. I think the biggest thing is patience. ASW sims are potentially really bad in this respect.
Quote:
|
Point is, from the POV of being a player or being a designer of modern hobby wargames is no longer that far removed from working with the professional stuff.
|
The difference has always been very blurry. Look at James Dunnigan, besides being a long time defense analyst he also has been heavily involved in wargaming as a hobby. Frequently, while the DATA is often different, the METHODOLOGY is the same or similar. The methods of operations research, modeling and simulation are not classified and they've been around a long time. You can order books on it from the Military Operations Research Society (MORS). You can find pictures dating back to the first world war of a bunch of mathematicians and naval officers gaming things out on table tops with miniatures.
P.S. I found out someone at work has the demo version of Kill Chain. I'll let you guys know how it's different. It looks kinda neat. At first glance, though, it's definitely a tool before a game. The graphics aren't quite as flashy as you see these days and there's a lot of stuff for outputting data. I can't wait to play with it.