Wargame Design Studio

Game of the Week, March 2-8 This week’s Game of the Week turns to the Maryland Campaign of 1862 and the climactic battle that became the bloodiest single day in American history. From March 2 through March 8, Civil War Battles: ...

This week’s Game of the Week takes you to the Maryland Campaign, 1862: Lee goes north, McClellan closes in—and Antietam becomes America’s bloodiest day. Mar 2–8: Civil War Battles: Campaign Antietam is 25% off.
wargameds.com/blogs/news/g...

From Archive to OOB, Part II Part I of this series lived in the world of uncertainty: We discussed Bronze Age warfare in Kadesh, talked about Caesar and Belisarius,

From Archive to OOB, pt II: When sources start being overwhelming. WWI’s Eastern Front shows how attrition breaks “paper” OOBs; WWII’s Kursk shows how definitions and myths distort the numbers. OOB work isn’t transcription—it’s detective work for designers.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/f...

Game of the Week, Feb 23-Mar 1 Next week’s Game of the Week returns to the Western Desert, where long distances and limited supply shape every operation. From February 23 through March 1, Panzer Battles: North Africa 1941 will be o...

This week’s Game of the Week leads you to the desert of Libya and Egypt. Feb 23–Mar 1: Panzer Battles: North Africa 1941 is 25% off. Tactical combined-arms fights, 117 scenarios, huge maps—plus the 1941 Crete campaign.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/g...

Red Victory version 4.03.4 released. Today, we are releasing the new 4.03.4 version of Squad Battles: Red Victory. Following on from the release of the latest Advance of the Reich on February 9th, we are bringing Red Victory up to the s...

Squad Battles: Red Victory is now updated to v4.03.4! Relive the Eastern Front from Kharkov and Kursk to Berlin across 97 scenarios. Featuring upgraded 2D/3D graphics, four seasonal biomes, enhanced effects, music support, and multiple engine improvements.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/r...

YouTube video by Zilla Blitz Sword & Siege Crusades Book 2 Overview | PC Hex & Counters Turn-Based Game | Wargame Design Studio

First impressions video up from @zillablitz.bsky.social on our newest game, Crusades Book II youtu.be/jWdLxRZ93zc

Game of the Week, February 16-22 This week’s Game of the Week takes you into the waters around Guadalcanal in 1942–43, where the struggle for a single island became, in practice, a struggle for the sea lanes that kept it alive. Naval...

Guadalcanal Naval Battles is our Game of the Week (Feb 16–22) — 25% off. Command pausable real-time naval combat: night surface actions, carrier strikes, convoy runs, and dawn air attacks across the Solomons and beyond.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/g...

Crusades: Book II Released! We are pleased to announce our latest new title, Crusades: Book II which is the second title in a planned trilogy documenting the Crusades launched against the Levant over several hundred years. In th...

Crusades: Book II is here—the second title in our planned trilogy covering the Crusades.

Command the era of Richard the Lionheart, Philip Augustus, Frederick Barbarossa, and Saladin, from after the Second Crusade to the Fourth.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/c...

Game of the Week, February 9-15 This week’s Game of the Week puts you at squad level on the Eastern Front from the opening shock of Barbarossa to the ruins of Stalingrad. Squad Battles: Advance of the Reich is available at 25% off f...

Squad Battles: Advance of the Reich is 25% off. Fight squad-level actions from Barbarossa through 1942 to the road to Stalingrad—where fields of fire and support weapons matter. Now with a major visual overhaul + seasonal biomes.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/g...

The Boy who cried ‘Wolf’ We feel like the boy who cried ‘wolf’!     Can you count them, first the Quick Take: Squad Battles blog post, and then the Advance of the Reich 4.03.4 Beta release, followed by an entry in the News S...

Squad Battles’ Eastern Front facelift will hit a new milestone on Feb 9: Advance of the Reich is scheduled for the first official 4.03.4 release (and GOTW). Read everything about the latest changes—new biomes, sharper effects, and deeper updates across game files.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/t...

Game of the Week, February 2-8 This week’s Game of the Week marches you into one of history’s most monumental and fateful campaigns: Napoleonic Battles: Napoleon’s Russian Campaign. From February 2nd through 8th, this classic title...

Today’s GOTW leads you into the vast expanses of Russia in 1812, where Napoleon’s Grande Armée met distance, logistics, and an enemy trading space for time. Napoleon’s Russian Campaign is 25% off Feb 2–8—a deep look at one of history’s most fateful retreats.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/g...

From Archive to OOB, Part I Back in 2016, Mike Avanzini published a multi-part WDS blog series on researching Orders of Battle. He explains where the data comes from, how it’s validated, and how a designer turns that research in...

How do you turn documents into a fighting force on a hex map? This post shows how we build Orders of Battle from archival records and historical sources—sorting contradictions, filling gaps, then translating names and numbers into units that play like the real battle.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/f...

Game of the Week, January 26 - February 1 This week’s Game of the Week puts you on the Cold War’s most dangerous fault line: Central Europe in 1985. Modern Campaigns: Danube Front ’85 is 25% off from January 26 through February 1, giving you ...

This week, we visit the battlefield of Central Europe in a Cold War gone hot with Modern Campaigns: Danube Front ’85 — 25% off Jan 26–Feb 1. June 1985: airfields struck, bridges fought over, armor surges down the Danube corridor. Can NATO hold?

wargameds.com/blogs/news/g...

Ukraine and the Summer of 1943 With the recent announcement of Donbas ’43, we thought it worthwhile to cover some of the history and development behind the growing stable of 1943 Eastern Front titles. Looking back at Panzer Campai...

With Donbas ’43 on the horizon, we explore how Panzer Campaigns has been fleshing out the 1943 Eastern Front.
Get a glance at our ‘Donets Front ’43’ mega-campaign idea for a handful of huge, linked scenarios built for head-to-head play. Tell us what you think!

wargameds.com/blogs/news/u...

Game of the Week, January 19-25 This week’s Game of the Week leads you to the 18th century and the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–1748), as chronicled in Musket & Pike: War of the Austrian Succession.  The game is on sale at 2...

First-ever discount since launch: Musket & Pike: War of the Austrian Succession is 25% off through Jan 25. Relive Maria Theresa’s fight for her inheritance and Frederick the Great’s grab for Silesia—set-piece battles and careful maneuver across 18th-century Europe.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/g...

Forgotten Campaigns of the Civil War The Civil War is usually remembered for its iconic battles in the East, yet some of its most intriguing episodes played out far from those fields. In the deserts of the Southwest, the swamps of Louisi...

Civil War isn’t only Gettysburg. Explore three overlooked Western campaigns—Sibley’s New Mexico gamble (1862), the Red River fiasco (1864), and Price’s Missouri raid (1864)—where deserts, bayous, and logistics crush plans. Play them in CWB: Forgotten Campaigns.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/f...

Game of the Week, January 12-18 This week’s Game of the Week takes you to the forests, marshes, and road junctions of Belarus in the summer of 1944. Panzer Campaigns: Minsk ’44 puts you in command during Operation Bagration, the Sov...

This week’s Game of the Week takes you to Belarus, summer 1944. Panzer Campaigns: Minsk ’44 Gold covers Operation Bagration—breakthroughs, river crossings, and encirclements on a huge operational map. 25% off through 18 Jan.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/g...

2025 End of Year Update Hello everyone, Happy 2026 to all! Another year has rolled by, our fourth, and we though it worthwhile to reflect on the year that was, 2025. Firstly, we provided several operational updates during t...

Happy 2026! Our 2025 Year in Review: four releases (Poland ’39, War of the Austrian Succession, Crusades: Book I, Age of Longbow Vol. I), big updates and Game of the Week highlights—plus a look ahead to 2026 (Crusades: Book II, American Revolutionary War, Donbas ’43).
wargameds.com/blogs/news/2...

Game of the Week, January 5-11 The year's first Game of the Week takes us into the tangled Wilderness of Virginia in the spring of 1863, where one of the Civil War’s most daring and dramatic battles unfolded – Civil War Battles: Ch...

Our weekly Game of the Week promotions are back. We’re leading off 2026 in the tangled Wilderness with Civil War Battles: Chancellorsville—25% off thru Jan 11. Relive Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville as Hooker’s bold plan meets Lee’s audacious counterstroke.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/g...

'25 Winter Sale Live As the year winds down and winter closes in, our prices are heading south – the WDS Winter Sale is back, and every game in our catalog that has been out longer than 12 months is going on sale. Additio...

The WDS Winter Sale is winding down... we now have roughly 34 hours left for you to take advantage of the discounted pricing currently in effect. The sale closes at 10 PM Eastern US time on Sunday, January 4th.

For full sale details read our Sale launch post here: wargameds.com/blogs/news/2...

Anatomy of a Siege From Walls and Ladders to Rubble and Cellars Siege warfare is where war slows down and closes in. Instead of sweeping flanking moves across open plains, you get trenches, walls, ruined streets, and a ...

In our first blog post of 2026: Anatomy of a Siege—four WDS lenses, from medieval walls (incl. a peek at Crusades Book II ladders) to Petersburg trenches, Stalingrad rubble, and Panzer Campaigns encirclements, relief efforts, and final collapse.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/a...

News Shorts – December 2025 Hello everyone, Not every bit of news can fill a blog post, so today we are grouping some of the more noteworthy (small) items to share with you. Winter Sale Just a reminder, we are entering the last...

Not every bit of news can fill a blog post, so today we’re grouping a few noteworthy items. We touch on upcoming blog content, share community-made campaign docs/maps for PzC Stalingrad ’42 & Moscow ’41, and give a Squad Battles graphics progress report.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/n...

From Cataphract to Tank The Eternal Logic of Shock Warfare For thousands of years, commanders have sought the same decisive battlefield effect: to shock the enemy into collapse. From the thunderous charge of ancient armored ...

In our new blog post, we follow shock warfare’s enduring logic from Carrhae’s cataphracts to WW2 armoured spearheads and Vietnam’s Air Cavalry—linking the history to WDS games across Sword & Siege, Musket & Pike, Napoleonic Battles, Panzer Campaigns, and Squad Battles.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/f...

What If? – The Long Tradition of Alternate History in Wargaming and Beyond (Part IV) In Part III of this series, we peered into a hypothetical World War III of the 1980s, watching the Cold War burst into open conflict. Now, in Part IV, we turn back the clock to earlier centuries – to ...

Our “What If?” series concludes with a look at WDS campaign games as alt-history machines. From Crusades to the American Civil War, branching choices and linked battles let you refight entire campaigns along plausible new paths–and watch your alternate timeline unfold.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/w...

American Revolutionary War Preview Today we are bringing you a look at the upcoming American Revolutionary War (ARW) title. As with all our previews we are reasonably certain this will hit the streets within the next six months. Also, ...

Today we’re sharing the latest info on our upcoming American Revolutionary War game! Check out the blog for the full preview.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/a...

What If? – The Long Tradition of Alternate History in Wargaming and Beyond (Part III) Across the first two parts of this series, we’ve been circling around a single question: what happens when history refuses to stay put? In Part I, we traced the long tradition of “what if?” storytelli...

In our latest blog post, we take the “What If?” of history into June 1985—when deterrence fails and the Cold War turns hot—and draw comparisons with past and current crises. Part III follows Modern Campaigns: Fulda Gap, North German Plain, Danube Front and Korea ’85.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/w...

'25 Winter Sale Live As the year winds down and winter closes in, our prices are heading south – the WDS Winter Sale is back, and every game in our catalog that has been out longer than 12 months is going on sale. Additio...

'25 Winter Sale is Live Now!

The WDS Winter Sale runs Dec. 12th–Jan. 4th, 2026! Almost all titles older than 12 months are 25% off and drop to $29.95. Orders over $199 unlock an extra 20% bulk discount for up to 40% off. Log in and stock up your collection today!

wargameds.com/blogs/news/2...

Game of the Week, December 8-14 This week’s Game of the Week returns to the frozen approaches of Moscow. Panzer Campaigns: Moscow ’42 takes you into the brutal winter fighting of 1941–42, when the Red Army’s counteroffensive hurled ...

WDS Game of the Week: Panzer Campaigns: Moscow ’42. Relive the Red Army’s winter counteroffensive, fight to keep Heeresgruppe Mitte intact, or explore the Fall Kreml “what if” second drive on Moscow – all at 25% off until 14 December.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/g...

What If? – The Long Tradition of Alternate History in Wargaming and Beyond (Part II) In Part I of this series, we ventured through the fertile grounds of alternate-history fiction – from Harry Turtledove's imaginings of a Confederate victory to Eric Flint's time-displaced West Virgini...

Part II of our ‘What If?’ series looks at WDS alt-history campaigns: Panzer Campaigns Sealion ’40, Japan ’45/’46, and Moscow ’42 – Fall Kreml – battles that never happened, but could have.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/w...

Game of the Week, Dec 1-7 This week’s Game of the Week marches you to the hills, rivers, and fortress towns of Spain and Portugal. Wellington’s Peninsular War, from our Napoleonic Battles series, puts you in command of coaliti...

This week’s Game of the Week is Wellington’s Peninsular War – command British, Portuguese, Spanish, and French forces across Iberia from Corunna to Vitoria in 184 scenarios and 3 campaigns. 25% off until 7 Dec.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/g...

What If? – The Long Tradition of Alternate History in Wargaming and Beyond (Part I) There’s something irresistible about asking “What if?” It’s the spark behind countless late-night conversations between history buffs, the driving force of many great novels, and, for us at Wargame De...

New blog post: Part I of our two-part look at alternate history, from classic novels to games that let you explore roads not taken and see how small changes reshape campaigns.

wargameds.com/blogs/news/w...