Last, but not least, if you're into
hardcore wargaming:
HoI 3: Semper Fi
Like most Paradox Interactive games, it can give you a headache for the first few hours, until you get your bearings...but the payoff is worth it.
Need 2 games for that, HOI3 and then Semper Fi, But neither is that expensive. Current patch is 2.03b with 2.03c in beta and available. Works pretty good. Been out long enough for Paradox to have fixed most of the nasty bugs. Don't know of any crashes or disaster bugs. I play it.
It is real time pausable. Each tick of time is one hour with 5 speeds on that tick. The game can start as early as Jan 1 0100 1936 and the standard game goes til Dec 31 2400 1947. It can be modded to go longer.
Basic building blocks for units are brigades. Land units have 2 types of Brigades, combat and support. Basic Divisions can be 4 brigades with research able to expand a Division to 5 Brigades. You can build divisions you have designed, build divisions provided by the game for that Country, you can also just build brigades and combine them after they are produced.
Air builds are by air craft type. Each unit is a group I guess. Basically you can combine them anyway you want but stacking penalties occur if more then 2 groups are used together.
Naval wise destroyers are represented by a single counter being a small group of destroyers, and you have single ships for Light Cruisers, Heavy Cruiser, Battle Cruisers, Battle Ships, Super Battle ships, Escort Carriers , carriers and Transports. This can be grouped any way you want but after about 6 in a group you get stacking penalties.
Production uses resources to run your industries. crude oil is just for fuel to run your ships, aircraft and motorized units. You have Rare materials, Metals, and energy. Each country produces some of these, some countries are self sufficient, others need to trade for raw materials. Your usage depends on how many factories you have and what level of mobilization the factory is at. Basically for ever point of production you can produce you need 1 of each of the 3 basics. You make other items as well.
There is a basic political system and an intelligence system. You have research for numerous fields. Production wise you have to upgrade your existing units as you increase in technology.
I like the game.
