First Impressions of Pike and Shot
By Boggit, 1 November 2014
Developed by Byzantine Games and published by Matrix/Slitherine
O Lord, Thou knowest how busy I must be this day. If I forget Thee, do not forget me.” It was immediately followed with the order -“March on, boys!”(The Royalist General, Lord Jacob Astley’s battlefield prayer, Edgehill 1642)
Pike and Shot is a battalion/regimental level wargame set during the Renaissance era. It features three conflicts: the Thirty Years War, the English Civil War, and the Italian Wars. It also offers a tutorial campaign, a quick-play skirmish mode, multi-player, and a game editor to allow users to design their own scenarios.
It is described by Slitherine as being heavily influenced by the Field of Glory series, and as a very keen digital Field of Glory player I was enthusiastic about checking it out by way of comparison. It is, however, quite a different game in many subtle respects, and to draw too much comparison with digital Field of Glory can lead to some disappointment if you are expecting a Renaissance clone of that game – since it has a different feel to its play, as I am told by Richard Bodley Scott (the lead designer) that it is based upon the table top game, which for a Grog is a massive bonus for this type of game. If you can dissociate the two games, and play Pike and Shot on its own merits, it is an interesting and absorbing game. The maps and unit blocks all look very clear and nice, giving a good 17th Century impression with the visuals. I’d have liked to have been able to zoom closer to see more of my unit detail than is currently allowed with the system, but that is a minor gripe, with what are essentially nice game graphics. One thing immediately apparent is that generally there are fewer elements in play compared to your average digital Field of Glory game, which may or may not be a good thing depending on your point of view.