Category: Interviews

11/8/14

The JTS Interview

By Boggit, 8 November 2014

John Tiller and Ed ‘Volcano Man’ Williams take us on a tour of their new releases

 

German infantry advance though a ruined East Prussian Town ©Deutsches Bundesarchiv
German infantry advance though a ruined East Prussian Town ©Deutsches Bundesarchiv

John and Ed, thank you for agreeing to talk to Grogheads about your recent work. Both East Prussia ‘14, and Panzer Battles: Kursk, the Southern Flank are recent releases and show some interesting developments in John Tiller Software games

Ed, I know that you’ve put many years of research into the First World War Campaigns. What attracted you to the period in the first place, and do you have any favourite campaigns you’d like to explore?

Ed Williams: I have always been interested in World War One for as long as I can remember. I am not sure what initially attracted me to the subject, perhaps it was the movie Lawrence of Arabia, but I recall my desire to read and watch movies and documentaries about the war all the way back in grade school. About ten years ago I was attending college and I took a history class taught by an excellent professor (Dr. Robert Bruce) and the class covered the war, but not all the boring economic and political stuff, it was purely about the battles and the conflict itself.

I suppose it was that class that piqued my interest, but it did so at a perfect moment since I had just finished the HPS Korea ’85 game some years before and I was basically twiddling my thumbs with nothing to do.

So, I had the experience to develop a new title, the free time to do it, and a renewed spark of interest in the subject matter. I took the interest and came up with an idea of a World War One game using the Panzer Campaigns engine at its core, but of course it would need to be modified. I set about creating a list of modifications that were necessary and I presented them to John, and he was receptive to the idea, made the appropriate adjustments, and so I intentionally charged forward before I had time to think about how difficult of a task it would be.

As for my personal favourite campaigns, I am interested in all campaigns of the war but my personal favourites would have to be anything in Palestine and Mesopotamia, the Galicia campaign, and the 1918 battles.

The first bombardment at Tannenburg by I ArmeeKorps field artillery starts auspiciously with the disruption of a Russian unit - an assault will soon follow. New features like radio intercepts now add to the game experience in East Prussia 1914
The first bombardment at Tannenburg by I ArmeeKorps field artillery starts auspiciously with the disruption of a Russian unit – an assault will soon follow. New features like radio intercepts now add to the game experience in East Prussia 1914

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08/27/14

An Interview with Hunted Cow Games

As you can imagine, the emergence of a wargames shop that’s built on the Apple Mac/iOS platform set hearts aflutter (OK, maybe just one heart, but it’s mine, so it counts!) here at GrogHeads.  So welcome Hunted Cow Games and let’s get to know these fine Scotsmen

Interview by Brant Guillory, 27 August 2014

huntedcow_previewFirst things first – what cow are we hunting?

That most glorious, most stately and above all hirsute example of the bovine race: the Highland cow.

What happens when the cow gets caught?

Sadly, the cow has thus far eluded our grasp. However, when we do finally get our hands on it, it will end up the way most food does in Scotland – coated in batter and deep-fried.

Why a cow and not, say a Vietnamese water buffalo?

The Highland cow is the most famous beast of the Highlands of Scotland, and given that we’ve always been based here, it seemed like a good fit for us. We did actually consider flying a water buffalo over to Scotland, but the cost was ridiculous. It also seemed a little cruel.

For our readers that might not know who you are (bastards!) what’s the ‘TV commercial’ pitch for Hunted Cow Studios.

We are a team of 30 zealot gamers. Based in Elgin in the Highlands of Scotland. Most of the games are a co-operative between the guys at HexWar (who are just a few miles away) and Hunted Cow. We focus on making great games that are aimed at the wider gaming community. Most of our games are pitched at entry-level prices where we think we have managed to get to a lot more players than any other wargames company. Continue reading →

08/6/14

Interview with Tim van der Moer of the Lordz Game Studio

Boggit interviews Tim van der Moer of the Lordz Game Studios at the Home of Wargamers 2014 Conference

click image to enlarge; go on – you know you want to!

Aside from being a popular Grogheads forum member, Tim van der Moer (aka Lord Zimoa on the forum) first gained his reputation as modder before moving into games design. Here he gets the opportunity to say how he got involved in games design and about his plans for the future.

Tim van der Moer (right) and Alex Shargin (Flashback Games) demonstrate Warhammer 40K Armageddon at HOW 2014
Tim van der Moer (right) and Alex Shargin (Flashback Games) demonstrate Warhammer 40K Armageddon at HOW 2014

Tim, tell us a little bit about yourself. I know you come from a modding background. Tell us how you moved from modding into game design.

I think back in 2000, or 2001 when I got a phone call from an old chap called Iain McNeil who was on the phone from the UK and asked if I was Lordz’ Tim Moer. For years we were running a modding community, and we got some attention in the international press with our mods, especially our Napoleonic mods, our Lotus fantasy mods, and basically he wanted to ask who I was and what I was doing. I gave some of my personal background, but basically I was totally not into the industry.

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07/30/14

GrogHeads Interviews Mark H. Walker

Jim Zabek & Mark Walker, 30 July 2014

GH: Hi Mark. It’s been a while since we last chatted. A lot of events have transpired since then, not the least of which is your latest book, Desert Moon. Can you tell us how you took your first novel, A Craving for Blood, and updated it to Desert Moon?

Mark: It’s been completely re-edited. Both a copy and structural edit. Additionally I rewrote passages that I didn’t like, and deleted others. The basic story remains the same–the enslaved people of a planet fight against overwhelming might with ancient military hardware. Ancient being Abrams tanks and their ilk. Additionally, I felt that the new cover and title better fit the novel. Finally, it’s great to expose the vast Kindle Direct Publishing audience to the book.

 

Of course, writing novels isn’t the only thing you’ve done. After successfully launching a game publishing company, Lock n Load, and running it for several years, you turned around and sold it. Can you tell us more about that decision?

It was part financial and part total-freaking-burnout. I’m proud of the fact that between June of 2006 and March of 2013, I was able to not only make and produce some pretty damn good products, but also support a family of five with those products. But I grew tired of living on the financial edge, and even more tired of working seven days a week, 52 weeks a year. Make no mistake, I understand how lucky I was. It’s a dream job, but I was ready to move on.

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07/27/14

GrogHeads Interviews Heather Brown of Proving Ground Games

With an Origins Award-winning game already on the market, Proving Ground Games is getting ready to branch out with a Kickstarter campaign for a more traditional board game.  Heather Brown, business manager and game designer for Proving Ground, was kind enough to give us a few moments to talk about 1740, and the launch of their Kickstarter campaign.

 

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So 1740 appears to be a pretty wide change of direction for the company that just won the award for Best Historical Minis game at Origins. What’s the thought process behind 1740 and how did become the “next game out the door” for you guys?

1740 has been in the back of my head for years. We went with Fields of Fire first because we had a well-tested set of beta rules from the 90s that just needed updating and tweaking. Books are less expensive and easier to publish, so we wanted our first foray into game production to be something that we knew we could get off the ground.

Now that we have that experience behind us, we’re poised to launch additional projects with a much better handle on the process. 1740 is a departure from Fields of Fire, but it still falls within our core game development philosophy. Our mission statement, if you will, is to produce games that are historical, accurate, fun to play, and easy to learn. 1740 fits that to a tee.

As far as why 1740 and not something else? I’ve loved 18th Century history since I was a girl. I grew up reenacting and actually my husband Mark and I met at a reenactment. One of my favorite books in high school was Outlander. It’s the story of a woman from 1945 being thrust back into Scotland in the 18th C. That kind of thing resonates with a reenactor. When I met Mark, he was portraying a Scottish loyalist regiment in the Revolution. So, 1740 brings together a lot of my passions into one place.

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