Some good older TBS games

So I got my parents a new laptop for Christmas. It's got an AMD Turion X2 RM-72, 4GB RAM, Vista Home Premium x64, and an HD3200. I know this card is pretty decent, right behind the 9400M in terms of IGPs and almost on par with an 8400GS, right?

In any case, I'm looking for a decent turn-based strategy game to get for my dad that will run pretty well on this computer. Not all settings at max, but medium or so with playable frames. The game doesn't have to be new, in fact it would be preferable to save on horsepower requirements and money. He mainly enjoys WW2 turn-based games. If anybody's ever heard of PTO by Koei (started on SNES and ended on PS2), that's his favorite video game franchise.

So anyway, does anybody have a recommendation for a good game in this genre that will run well on his new computer? Any ideas would be appreciated. It would also be nice if the games had a demo so he could check it out before buying. Thanks in advance.

 

I'd check out civ 4

 

If he likes Napoleonic wargames I would recommend Cossacks 2 although it is realtime it has pretty good AI and is fun to play. Not to mention the graphics is really good and 2D isometric.

Else you have Combat Command 2 series. Well you have lots. HPS First Blitzkrieg is very good. Check out www.hpssims.com or www.matrixgames.com.

East Front and East Front 2 is very good along with West Front.

I did the graphics for the Combat Command 2 series Danger Forward and Desert Rats by Boku strategygames and the Ancient series on www.hpssims.com, Punic Wars and Gallic Wars

The turnbased wargames is like an other dimension compared to FPS´s and 3D games. Many turnbased games gets released every year, deep wargames that no FPS snot of a kid would even dare to try )

 

I own Civilization 4, and he's not a big fan of that. He doesn't like the the fact that it takes a long time to get to war-time strategy situations, which is what he's really into.

Thank you for the suggestions, Magnus72. I will certainly look into those games.

Any suggestions are welcomed, guys.

 

Gal Civ 2 is imho a superior turn based strategy game to civ iv and there is a greater emphasis/depth to the combat. Heroes of Might and Magic III is also a classic turn based franchise.

 

Here're a couple of thoughts:

http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/garygrigsbysworldatwar/review.html

http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/silentstorm/review.html


But, yeah, TBS as opposed to RTS in the WWII genre is definitely lacking. If you're dad has at all an interest in fantasy or sci-fi themed games then I agree about the Gal Civ series for sci-fi. A good one for fantasy is the Age of Wonders series.

 

oops didn't see the WWII part. Well in that case korsun(or maybe korson?) pocket is free and the panzer general series (the latest one is also free) are great games. Shrapnel games is a great place to look for others.

 

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I downloaded the World at War demo. We'll see how he likes it.

Also, for reference, he's a big fan of the old board strategy games like Flat Top and Panzer Assault. He's really into games that take like a month to complete a campaign.

 

Then the HPS series of games is something for him. Oh yeah Age of Wonders series is awesome. Why can´t they make more games like that today and with 2D graphics which actually looks better than low poly 3D graphics with some nifty effects thrown behind.

Strategy/Wargames should be 2D/3D isometric, that´s where they are best.

 

Panzer General (DOS-based so grab DosBox to run it)
Panzer General 2

Both of the above are very easy to learn, tactical (with some supply considerations), graphical and based on World War 2 (Europe)...you can find the first at some DOS abandonware sites...

People's General is the same type of game as above but based on a 1990's conflict between Russia, China and the U.S...

Then there are the Steel Panther games which are a bit more detailed, and more on a platoon level, and, in my opinion, a bit more difficult to learn...Steel Panthers covers WW2...I believe there is some company that purchased the source code from whoever owned the intellectual rights, so there are updated versions that should run under XP/Vista...look up Steel Panthers in wikipedia and it will point you in the right direction for the modernized versions...

There are also the TalonSoft games, but these are difficult to find and some are finicky under XP (and may be near impossible to get running under Vista...I don't know about Vista)...

East Front 2
West Front
Operational Art of War (Century of Warfare includes all of TOAW stuff...if you can find it, but is tricky to get running under XP)

You might also consider Empire: Deluxe or Perfect General...not really based on World War 2...in fact, it's more of a paper, scissors, rock thing like Advanced Wars with, what I consider, 1940s/50s military hardware...both have been updated for use under XP/Vista by Killer Bee software...

Finally, there's always the Axis and Allies game based on the board game...I haven't played it personally, but my bro-in-law who plays the board game religiously says it's ok when he can't hustle someone into playing him on the board...you can find it at most bargain shelves in Target or Wal-Mart...I believe it can be played as an RTS or TBS...