Rob Zacny

Bless you for this. Could fill the entire hour one #1. <kicks back, lights cigar>

I think the reason for that is there's not a proven market for "middle ground" options. If you hang out around seriously grognardy websites, there's a massive amount of enthusiasm for games that let you weigh every possible factor. Like the people who wanted Crown of Glory to model different recovery times for injured generals. There's a real wariness of anything that's streamlined because of how quickly people start worrying about a game being "dumbed down". So as you begin to streamline-away some of the historical detail, you start losing that hardcore audience. But that doesn't necessarily come with an attendant gain of new players who want something more approachable, because the odds are good you're still making a game that's too complex. So the middle ground seems like a tough place to make a successful game, just because it doesn't have a natural constituency. I do think this problem goes back to something Bruce said earlier this year. I can't remember which game we were talking about, but he didn't like the way games like UoC or Ultimate General Gettysburg always have to be labeled "entry level" or "beginner level" wargames, while games like War in the East or John Tiller's Squad Battle series get to enjoy a kind of default status. The way we frame wargame discussion also ends up ceding the field to rivet-counters, which probably skews things away from what most people would actually want.

Bruce and Julian sit down to talk about the often mentioned (but rarely truly discussed) Advanced Squad Leader. Joining them are Jeff Hallet and Dave Kleinschmidt, hosts of what is undeniably the best ASL podcast on the internet, The 2 Half-Squads. ASL holds a reputation for being one of the most detailed and fully fleshed-out wargames available. The flexible combat system lends itself to memorable games that cover a wide variety of scenarios. For even more in-depth discussion of ASL, visit The 2 Half-Squads: http://www.the2halfsquads.com/ Listen here.

Paradox returns to World War II with the upcoming Hearts of Iron IV and a recent press event found Rob, Rowan, Fraser, and Gamers with Jobs' Sean Sands playing a preview build of the simulation. The results? Mixed feelings. Amidst glimmers of hope for an improved HoI on the order of the successful EUIV and CK2, the panelists found a confusing interface, a lack of direction, and plenty of room for improvement before the final build. Listen here.

Jon Shafer returns to the show to talk with Rob and Troy about revisionist history. Everyone thinks the Spanish Conquistadors were jerks, but let's not forget the behavior of the waffling Belgians. Also, where are all the World War I games? Listen here.

Sean Sands from Gamers With Jobs joins Rob to talk about Europa Universalis IV. EUIV has seen several expansions and updates since its launch, and what used to be the unidisputed flagship of the studio is fighting for top dog with Crusader Kings II. Sean has played just a few hours of EUIV and offers his insights into what the game has grown to be and why he keeps coming back. Alternate title: Europa Universalis More Music by Andreas Waldetoft Listen here.

Three Moves Ahead continues to explore World War I in an extended episode that looks at 1997's The Last Express. Rob and Troy are joined by Idle Thumbs' Chris Remo to dive into an adventure game that explores the often-overlooked time in history that preceded World War I. Links: Chris Remo's interview feature at Gamasutra Jeremy Peel's Mechner interview Umberto Eco on Casablanca Rob's article at Gamers With Jobs Listen here.

Roguelikes. They're not strategy games, but they're everywhere. Well, parts of them are. Very specific parts, but rarely all of them, at least not enough to make everyone happy. To discuss these finer points, Rob gathers a veritable rogue's gallery of panelists and experts. Tyler Sigmund: game designer and creator of the upcoming Darkest Dungeon. Darren Grey: Roguelike developer and current host of Roguelike Radio, an entire podcast about the genre. Michael Hermes: 3MA audio guy with the ability to bug Rob until we finally do a show about roguelikes. Absent: Troy "I Only Play Minotaurs" Goodfellow. Listen here. Or here, for Roguelike Radio!

This week, Bruce Geryk hosts Kim Kanger, designer of Dien Bien Phu: The Final Gamble, as well as a series of wargames covering France's 20th century colonial wars. They discuss the appeal and importance of the wars in Algeria and Southeast Asia, as well as the unique challenges of designing games around them. Listen

Open your folder of fanfic and scroll down to the Warhammer and Warhammer 40K crossover you've always wanted to publish, the one where the dark elves fight space marines with acid spitting aliens and dragons flying through the sky next to the Serenity (for good measure). Now close that that .txt file, open Heroes of the Storm, and behold: Blizzard have brought your dreams to life! Warcraft, Starcraft, and Diablo come crashing together in the Lords Management/LOMA that promises to be faster to play, easier to learn, and cost more than other, similar titles. Rowan Kaiser and David Heron join Rob to talk about the current state of HotS and whether it lives up to Blizzard's lofty goals. Listen here.

Rob and Bruce revisit SSG's classic Korsun Pocket in this first episode of 3MA's Winter of Wargaming. Rob tells us how the game holds up to someone seeing it for the first time and Bruce explains what made Korsun Pocket unique and important at its release in 2003. Check out the attached file (sourced from the musty corners of the internet) and read Bruce's original review of the game in Computer Gaming World. The game was also originally part of the now resurrected Tom vs Bruce: Tom vs Bruce #8: Korsun Pocket Listen to episode 247 here. Bruce Geryk Review - Korsun Pocket.pdf

Ils ne passeront pas! The Winter of Wargaming plods forward, inch by inch, straining through the rain and grime amidst a hail of enemy artillery and rifle fire. The trenches never end, a maze of mud and blank-faced soldiers so far beyond rational thought that their only solace lies inward toward thoughts of home and hearth. But wait, who's that ahead going over the top? It's Rob, Bruce, and Troy "Who Took My Cheese Rations?" Goodfellow here to talk about John Tiller's Squad Battles - First World War. Is this entry into the venerable series the volume that finally makes trench warfare fun? Listen here.

Mode 7 developer Ian Hardingham joins Rob and Fraser to talk about Frozen Cortex, the robot football follow-up to 2011's Frozen Synapse. Fighting robots! Running plays! Stats? Wrong end zone! Listen here.

Rob, Rowan, and Troy "I have a Gnoll Friend" Goodfellow talk about the Heroes of Might and Magic series in its entirety, from bright, pixely start to Match Three finish. HD remakes, RPG spinoffs, puzzle games -- HoMM has it all. Listen here.

Do you find the community is getting sharper as time goes by? I haven't played in about a week or so just due to other obligations. But I'm curious whether the online experience is getting harsher as a core of dedicated players forms.

This is, by far, the most drug-filled, corpse-ridden, communism-fueled episode of Three Moves Ahead yet. Cities: Skylines has quickly become the darling of the city management scene and Fraser Brown, Rowan Kaiser, Sean Sands, and Rob Zacny are here to tell you why. Fraser's Review Read Sean's thoughts here Listen here.

Rob, Bruce, Julian, and Fraser set sail in the macabre and fascinating land of Sunless Sea. Based on the setting of the browser game Fallen London, Sunless Sea fills out its bingo card quickly as a roguelite-RPG-text adventure-FTL-Lovecraftian-ship simulator. Learn why this game is generating gobs of praise and high scores and also why there is an island named after Bruce. Listen here.

Just in time for the weekend, it's Rob and Troy "Miscellaneous is my Middle Name" Goodfellow back together to talk about some of the smaller games that fell through the cracks during this holiday season. Listen here.

The Winter of Wargaming continues with Rob, Bruce, and Troy "We Need More Canadians" Goodfellow talking about the Close Combat series. The series saw a refresh in 2014's Gateway to Caen - was it enough of an update or has the series gone stale? Listen here.

Rob Zacny, Fraser Brown, Rowan Kaiser, and Troy "You Say 'Two Piers', I say 'Paradox'" Goodfellow talk about all the terrific and not-so-terrific things that happened in strategy gaming in 2014. Endless Legend appears to win based on the metric of time discussed and we all learn what Rowan really thinks about his cat. Listen here.

The most regular of panels is together to talk about generals: how are they portrayed in games, and do they accurately represent the effect of true leadership on the battlefield? Rob, Julian, Fraser, and Troy "That's not my lieutenant, that's my horse" Goodfellow debate the finder points of leadersihp. Most importantly: Fraser has the itch to write some fan fiction. Listen here.

Baby, why don't we go down to Chocobo At long last, console games are coming to Three Moves Ahead. Michael Hermes and Jenn Cutter join Troy "Zodiac" Goodfellow to talk about Square's 1997 Playstation game Final Fantasy Tactics. Listen in and learn about chocobos, time mages, and questionable translations. I put this into Google Translate, converted to Japanese, and then back to English. That was going to be the show description but I didn't want people to think I was having a stroke. Also, Troy's audio gets a little wonky at the end. Enjoy! Final Fantasy Tactics at Watch out for Fireballs. Listen here.

Kotaku's Evan Narcisse joins Rob and Fraser to discuss This War of Mine. Rather than pushing chits around from the remote general's chair, This War of Mine plunges the player into the lives of the people affected by war. Read Fraser's review here. Read Evan's review here. Listen here.

Rob, Troy, and Bruce discuss Pike and Shot, a wargame about everyone's favorite 16th-century military formation. Listen here.

Rob, Fraser, and Troy "It's my planet I'll do what I want" Goodfellow talk about the latest entry into the Civ franchise, Civilization: Beyond Earth. Is this the game we've all been waiting for? Well, no, not really. Find out why and listen to Troy talk about touching planets, and them touching back. Fraser's review at PCGamesN. Listen here.