Game of the Week, February 2-8

This week’s Game of the Week marches you into one of history’s most monumental and fateful campaigns: Napoleonic Battles: Napoleon’s Russian Campaign. From February 2nd through 8th, this classic title is on sale for 25% off, giving you a chance to relive the drama and challenges of Napoleon’s ill-fated 1812 invasion of Russia. It is a journey of grand armies, harsh winters, and desperate battles – an epic test of strategy and endurance that remains one of the defining campaigns of the Napoleonic era.

The Road to Moscow

By 1812, Napoleon Bonaparte stood at the height of his power. Most of continental Europe lay under French control or influence, and only one major rival remained unconquered: the Russian Empire. Napoleon believed that defeating Russia would finally secure his dominance and force Britain into isolation. The campaign he planned would be the largest of his career, stretching across immense distances and involving armies on a scale Europe had never seen before. In ambition and destruction, it foreshadowed the mass warfare of a later age.

Relations between France and Russia had deteriorated steadily since the Treaty of Tilsit in 1807. Tsar Alexander I had agreed to join Napoleon’s Continental System, which aimed to strangle British trade, but the embargo inflicted severe damage on the Russian economy. By the end of 1810, Russia effectively abandoned the system, reopening trade with Britain. To Napoleon, this was both an economic blow and a political betrayal. Tensions increased further with the expansion of the Grand Duchy of Warsaw, which raised Russian fears of a revived Polish state under French influence. By 1812, diplomacy had failed, and war appeared unavoidable.

Napoleon assembled an enormous multinational army for the invasion. French troops were joined by contingents from across the empire and its allied states, forming a force that would eventually number over 600,000 men. Confident in his reputation and past successes, Napoleon expected a rapid campaign that would end with a decisive victory near Russia’s western frontier. Although supply depots were established, they were wholly inadequate for the vast distances involved. On June 24, 1812, the Grande Armée crossed the Niemen River and entered Russian territory.

The Russian response was cautious and deliberate. Their commanders, most notably Barclay de Tolly, understood that a direct confrontation with Napoleon’s massive army risked annihilation. Instead, the Russian forces retreated steadily eastward, trading space for time. Villages were evacuated, crops destroyed, and supplies removed or burned. This scorched-earth strategy denied the French the food and shelter they desperately needed. The summer heat, disease, and exhaustion soon began to erode Napoleon’s army. Within weeks, tens of thousands of men had been lost without a major battle being fought.

As the French advanced deeper into Russia, frustration mounted. Napoleon captured Smolensk in August after heavy fighting, but once again the Russian army withdrew before it could be destroyed. The hoped-for decisive victory continued to elude him. Tsar Alexander replaced Barclay with the veteran General Mikhail Kutuzov, who continued the retreat but prepared to make a stand closer to Moscow.

That stand came on September 7, 1812, at Borodino. It was one of the bloodiest battles of the Napoleonic Wars, fought over a single day with extraordinary intensity. French and Russian armies clashed in brutal assaults and counterattacks, producing enormous casualties on both sides. By nightfall, the French held the field, but the Russian army had not been destroyed. Kutuzov withdrew in good order, preserving his forces. Napoleon had won a tactical victory, but not the decisive triumph he needed. The losses were so severe that even his most experienced commanders questioned whether the campaign could be sustained.

Battle of Moscow (Borodino), 7th September 1812 by Louis Lejeune (Public Domain)

 

"Французская армия растает в Москве, как губка в воде"

"The French army will dissolve in Moscow like a sponge in water"

Mikhail Kutuzov, at the Council of Fili

A week later, Napoleon entered Moscow. Instead of the political and logistical prize he expected, he found a nearly empty city. Fires soon broke out and spread across large parts of Moscow, deliberately set by the Russians to deny the French shelter and supplies. The ancient capital burned as Napoleon waited in vain for Tsar Alexander to negotiate. No peace offer came. Napoleon remained in Moscow for over a month, hoping for a diplomatic resolution that would justify the campaign. As autumn deepened and winter approached, it became clear that staying longer would be fatal.

In mid-October, Napoleon ordered a retreat. His army was already weakened and undersupplied, and the route back led through territory devastated during the advance. An attempt to move south toward untouched regions was blocked by Russian forces, forcing the French back onto their original path. As temperatures dropped and snow began to fall, the retreat turned into a catastrophe. Starvation, frostbite, disease, and constant Russian attacks decimated the columns. Cossacks harassed the flanks, while peasant fighters ambushed stragglers and isolated units.

"Un maréchal de France ne se rend pas, et ne parlemente pas sous le feu"

"A Marshal never surrenders. And we do not parley under fire"

Michel Ney, during the retreat from Moscow 

The final stages of the retreat were marked by desperate battles and chaos, particularly at Krasnoi and during the crossing of the Berezina River. Improvised bridges allowed part of the army to escape encirclement, but at terrible cost. By the time the remnants of the Grande Armée staggered out of Russia in December 1812, the once-mighty force had been virtually destroyed. Of the more than 600,000 men who entered Russia, only a small fraction survived.

Napoleon's retreat, after the Battle of Krasnoi. Painting by Vasily Vereshchagin (Public Domain)

The consequences were enormous. Napoleon’s aura of invincibility was shattered, and the balance of power in Europe shifted rapidly. Former allies sensed weakness and soon joined a new coalition against France. Although Napoleon would fight on for several more years, the disaster of 1812 marked the beginning of the end of his empire. The Russian Campaign stands as one of history’s greatest military catastrophes – a cautionary tale of overreach, logistics, and the unforgiving power of distance and climate.

What’s in the Game

• Napoleon's Russian Campaign includes 124 Scenarios (60 stand-alone and an additional 64 in the campaign folder) – covering all sizes and situations, including a solo tutorial scenario plus specialized versions for both head-to-head play and vs. the computer AI.
• Over 20 maps are included, covering major points along Napoleon's invasion route up to the gates of Moscow.
• The order of battle files cover the French and Coalition forces that participated in the campaign, with additional formations included for hypothetical scenarios.
• Campaign and Scenario Editors, which allow players to customize the game.
• Design notes, campaign notes, and a bibliography that includes the sources used by the designer team to produce this simulation game. You can read the Design Notes here.
• Napoleon's Russian Campaign offers multiple play options, including play against the computer AI, Play by E-mail (PBEM), LAN & Internet "live" play, and two-player hot seat.

Book and Video Recommendations

Below you will find a list of book recommendations to dig deeper into the campaign as well as some historical documentary videos.

Zamoyski, Adam. 1812: Napoleon’s Fatal March on Moscow. New York: HarperCollins, 2004. - A modern classic and probably the best single-volume narrative of the campaign. Excellent balance of high command, diplomacy, and the soldier’s experience.

Riehn, Richard K. 1812: Napoleon's Russian Campaign. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1990. - 
More analytical and operational in tone. Strong on logistics, attrition, and why the Grande Armée collapsed long before winter alone could explain it.

Chandler, David G. The Campaigns of Napoleon. New York: Scribner, 1966. -
The classic reference work. The 1812 campaign chapter remains foundational and is still frequently cited.

Lieven, Dominic. Russia Against Napoleon: The True Story of the Campaigns of War and Peace. London: Penguin Books, 2009. - Essential for understanding the Russian side of the war, coalition strategy, and why Russia could absorb losses that would have destroyed other states.

Mikaberidze, Alexander. The Battle of Borodino: Napoleon Against Kutuzov. London: Pen & Sword, 2007. - A focused study of the campaign’s central battle, useful for wargamers and readers interested in tactical detail.

 

Screenshots

Below, you can see screenshots from Napoleonic Battles: Napoleon's Russian Campaign to get a feel for the 2D and 3D views and the scale of the engagements. Clicking a screenshot opens it in full resolution.

We hope you enjoy this week’s Game of the Week: Napoleonic Battles: Napoleon's Russian Campaign. Like all WDS titles, it provides countless hours of rich gameplay at a very attractive price.