Register at the AGEOD forums and help them choose what their next mini-game should be.
Almost all of the settings have something to offer.
Frederick the Great – These are the wars of the various Successions and the Seven Years War, so far only really covered in the very good (but sadly out of print) Horse and Musket series from Boku/Shrapnel. Great selection of powers with very similar armies. It helps that this era is already handled well in Birth of America.
English Civil War and Jacobite Rebellions – Roundheads and Cavaliers! Bonnie Prince Charlie! Claymores! Plus lots of stuff that depends on local support for your cause. Very neglected in the computer wargame world.
Thirty Years War – This was my vote, since I have a soft spot for the period. Well, mostly a soft spot for Wallenstein and Tilly. The Thirty Years War is one of the great tragedies of European history, and was the deadliest conflict it saw until World War I. To do it right would require a lot of diplomatic stuff, I think, but mini-campaigns like those in Birth of America could do it.
Mexican Wars – No thanks. Not interesting enough for me, especially the horribly one-sided Mexican-American War.
Taiping Rebellion – This is my second pick, largely because the rebellion itself is another great tragedy. The Taiping leader was one of those charismatic cultist types who usually fade away with a few of their followers, but he tapped into a larger resentment against Imperial mismanagement and European encroachment to produce huge armies. Hundreds of thousands of Chinese died in this protracted conflict. I’m not sure how interesting it is from a military standpoint, but it has the same regional loyalty thing that makes the English Civil Wars such a ripe field for exploration.
Libertadors – Simon Bolivar rocked. Probably one of the top ten people in the history of the Western Hemisphere, maybe top five. But the wars don’t have the same underdog vibe that the American Revolution has. Britain was the most powerful country in the world in 1775. Spain was a fading also-ran in 1810.
Since their next game is the US Civil War, it’s nice to see AGEOD filling out the “ignored wars” list. Here’s hoping they can do one of them justice. (Spotted at Tacticular Cancer.)
What did they do before Birth of America? And I play Wallenstein all the time, especially online, but what’s Tilly? Never heard of it.
I’ve got to vote for Taiping and then Liberadors.
Birth of America was AGEOD’s first game, though the lead developer Philippe Thibaut has a history. Or record. Depends how you look at it.
He was the lead on two rather sad historical strategy computer games – the hopelessly broken Pax Romana and dismally confusing Great Invasions. Great Invasions is only now getting wider North American release.
His not-very-good games before are what make the triumph of Birth of America all the sweeter. It’s like he finally honed down a design into a small and manageable size and ended up with a real gem.
On the positive side of the ledger, he designed the Europa Universalis board game and cooperated in the translation of that game into the Paradox masterpiece. You will often see Thibaut credited as a designer on the PC Europa Universalis, though, strictly speaking, this is not the case.
Wallenstein and Tilly are references to two of the greatest generals of the 30 Years War. Very interesting people.