Game of the Week, Feb 10 to 16

Hi everyone,

It’s Monday again, and it’s time for Game of the Week!

Continuing the winter theme as the Northern hemisphere shivers through the winter, we have decided that this week’s Game of the Week is Panzer Campaigns: Bulge ‘44. The 80^th anniversary of the battle was only last December, so it is fitting to highlight this title.

Panzer Campaigns: Bulge ‘44 (Operation Wacht am Rhein) covers one of the most gamed situations in war gaming. The last-ditch attack by heavy German units to recreate the successes of 1940, was to result in further attrition of the overall Axis strength. The failure of the attack in the Ardennes was to directly influence the eastern front, where the reserves needed to slow the Soviet advance, in Poland, Hungary, and East Prussia were either diverted or lost. Rather than divide the Western Allies as Hitler hoped, it saw Germany lose both land and partners in the east. For the Allies, it was a wake-up call. The resilience of the Germans genuinely surprised them, and it was an indication that more hard fighting would be needed to conclude the war.

Panzer Campaigns: Bulge ‘44 is the latest 4.05.1 version, and our product description encapsulates this campaign well:

It is late 1944 and the Western Allies are catching their breath after racing across France. Standing at the frontier of Germany, the end of the war seems at hand. The Germans have other ideas, however. For the second time in the war, the Germans pull off a surprise attack in the Ardennes. Under the cover of bad weather that grounds Allied air power the secretly assembled Panzer Armees shakes the ground with a dawn attack. Allied units, shocked and alone in their scattered positions are grimly determined to accomplish the impossible. In the desperate hours ahead, these brave and heroic men will decide the war on the Western Front.

There are 45 Scenarios included. All the historical forces that had been allocated to Operation Wacht am Rhein are included.

The longest campaign scenario is 198 turns, with most scenarios a very playable sub-30 turns.  

The master map (19,380 hexes) covers the entire area from Charleville-Mézières in the west to Trier in the east.

Panzer Campaigns: Bulge ‘44 includes the aforementioned playable scenarios, and campaigns, as well as a Getting Started scenario to introduce new players to the game system. The included scenarios are a good mix of small (company), medium (battalion) and large (regimental) engagements.

The Order of Battle has over 5,880 units from the German, German SS, Luftwaffe, American, American-AB. British, British-AB, Belgian, Canadian and French forces that participated in the campaign.

We included a lot of historical documentation and notes with this title, you can review each by clicking on the links below.  

Getting Started Guide

Design Notes

Campaign Map

Planning Map

Planning Map Full

There has been a range of books covering the Operation Wacht am Rhein. Following are some representative books for anyone that would like some more background on the campaign. You can click on the book images below to be taken to the Publisher or Amazon, if applicable.

Informational

“The Battle Of The Bulge: The German View: Perspectives From Hitler’s High Command” by Danny S. Parker. This book brings together a wealth of primary source material - including German documentation and debriefs of German generals - to tell the story of this famous campaign from the German point of view.

“A Time For Trumpets: The Untold Story Of The Battle Of The Bulge” by Charles B. MacDonald. MacDonald was Deputy Chief Historian for the United States Army and authored a number of the official histories of World War II. In A Time for Trumpets, he blends firsthand experiences with historical insights to give the Bulge the scope it deserves. His perspective is enhanced by being a company commander during the battle.

“Wacht Am Rhein” by Timothy J Thompson.  From a reviewer: What separates Mr. Thompson's book from all the rest is the fact that he details the crucial months leading up to the ferocious German attack; something that is either ignored in most other books on the subject, or at best, simply glossed over.

Wacht Am Rhein covers every single major event leading up to December 16 1944, placing special emphasis upon the deception that cloaked the German buildup in the Eifel, as well as the monumental blunders the Allies' made in constantly misinterpreting and even outright ignoring obvious tell-tale signs of a major counter offensive.

“The Longest Winter: The Battle of the Bulge and the Epic Story of WWII's Most Decorated Platoon” by Alex Kershaw. A thought-provoking first-person view of the battle and the aftermath of capture for one platoon. A must read to understand the human dimension of war.

“Peiper’s Last Gamble: Hitler’s Panzer Spearhead in the Battle of the Bulge, December 1944” by Danny S Parker. Mr Parker’s brand-new book covers off the ostensibly most (in)famous German formation in the Ardennes battle.

“Snow and Steel: The Battle of the Bulge, 1944-45” by Peter Caddick-Adams. "[Peter Caddick-Adams] has woven the threads together skillfully and written a book which analysis and narrative combine to provide a brilliant anatomy of a modern battle. Above all, and this is what makes the book enjoyable for the general reader as well as the military buff, Caddick-Adams explains the context of the battle and examines the strengths or weaknesses of the antagonists, their leaders, equipment, ideologies, economic resources, and intelligence systems." --The Times (UK)

Now for video content:

The Mack has a great series on this title. He first played the game 6 years ago and revisited it in the last 6 months. Here is his channel listing for all episodes. To start you off, here is the first episode from his recent review and play through.

Real Time History has an excellent documentary on the Bulge here:

The Intel report has a video from the German perspective:

Following are some in-game screen shots of what to expect. Each image can be clicked for a full-sized view.

As mentioned, the build we are making available today is a the latest 4.05.1. A range of new features were included, and you can read the Changelog here. All new purchases will be this latest version.

If you don’t already own this title, what are you waiting for? You can buy it directly from the dedicated product page.

We hope you enjoy this week’s, Game of the Week. Like all WDS titles, there is a lot of game play included at a very attractive price.