I will admit that it was weird to attend an event and not feel any pressure to write about any of it. Over a dozen games were on display, some of them with static images or limited play. But there was still a lot to be excited about.<\/p>\n
First the disclaimer. My employer, Evolve PR, represents one of the games that was on display – Sword of the Stars 2<\/em>. There wasn’t a lot to see in the presentation, but Martin Cirulis, Arrinn Dembo and Chris Stewart’s enthusiasm for the game is still obvious. It’s gotten a major graphical overhaul and the evolving in-game encyclopedia is something new for strategy documentation. There are lots of reasons to wish Kerberos great success with this game.<\/p>\n My take away impressions from the event.<\/p>\n 1) Paradox’s moves outside of strategy are tentative but promising. The action\/RPG Magicka<\/em>, which comes out today, should be huge for them if there is any justice in the world. Salem<\/em> is a free-to-play MMO that emphasizes construction and self-policing the world. Mount & Blade: Fire and Sword<\/em> follows in that franchise’s stabby fun, and I am not sure what to make of Gettysburg: Armored Warfare<\/em> but I love the name. Still, the core business of Paradox is games that, as one colleague put it, are about moving things around until a flag changes color. Given the company’s announced financials<\/a> and its refusal to do things the way everyone else does them, it will be fun to see how far they work outside of their comfort zone.<\/p>\n 2) Strategy games can be a hard sell in a half hour presentation. Though there were some experienced strategy media there, there were also people drawn by specific games like Mount & Blade<\/em> or Salem<\/em> or Magicka<\/em> that weren’t Crusader Kings 2<\/em> or Supreme Ruler Cold War<\/em> or Pride of Nations<\/em>. As I write my own beginner’s guide to Europa Universalis 3, it has become clear how little is obvious, and even with 30 minutes to sell a game a developer needs to be absolutely transparent on what a game is about. Maybe they should have two presentations – one for the familiar, and one for the unfamiliar. It was interesting to see the contrasts from one team to the next. Some people do this very well.<\/p>\n 3) Strategy games can appeal to a wide audience. In spite of the difficulty in making a pitch that makes sense, seeing my less strategy adept peers say “That sounds like something I’d be interested in playing” after getting the sales pitch on Crusader Kings 2<\/em> or Pride of Nations<\/em> or whatever tickled their fancy demonstrates that the biggest barrier between strategy games and a larger audience is not the subject matter but how it is presented.<\/p>\n 4) I want Crusader Kings 2<\/em> now. This was another presentation that didn’t have a lot to show – family trees, some of the building stuff – and the map will look different by the time Q1 2012 comes around. But the presentation reminded me why the first CK is my favorite Paradox grand strategy game. The whole soap opera medieval Sims thing will have me reinstalling the first game by week’s end. Just watch.<\/p>\n 5) Naval War: Arctic Circle<\/em> might be the long term sleeper here. The prospect of a major naval war in in near future is remote, but the whole hide-and-seek thing and sensor warfare is why I loved Harpoon<\/em>. If you can see it, you can kill it. This game is quickly moving up my watch list.<\/p>\n More on this week’s podcast.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I will admit that it was weird to attend an event and not feel any pressure to write about any of it. Over a dozen games were on display, some of them with static images or limited play. But there was still a lot to be excited about. First the disclaimer. 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