Tactical, Pacific theater, WW2?

[Toonces]

I think I've covered all the bases looking for this game, but maybe I haven't.

All that is really grabbing me is HPS. 

What other options are there for tactical (squads or less) wargames set in the Pacific theater?

[Bison]

I think HPS is about the only game in town at that scale bud.

[jomni]

John Tiller Campaign Series.  But not squad level.

[Bison]

John Tiller Campaign Series.  But not squad level.

This is a good option too.

[Toonces]

I think HPS is about the only game in town at that scale bud.

Kind of amazing, isn't it?

I'm looking through my catalog of games...Company of Heroes, Theater of War, Brothers in Arms, Command Ops, Close Combat, Combat Mission...and I'm saying to myself, "You mean not one of these games is set in the Pacific theater?  Really?"

Really.   >:(

[Bison]

Yeah you would think that there would be more games covering the Pacific theater, but there just isn't at a tactical level.

[Jack Nastyface]

Don't get me started....the lack of tactical games set in the Pac. theatre has been an item of contention for me for some time.  As I have stated here and elsewhere...not to undermine the importance (and difficulty, sacrifice and heroism) of the European theatre, but IMHO the war in the Pacific is the true showcase for the US war effort as it provided the MOST extreme conditions for pretty much everything:  logistics, combined arms operations, amphib landings, naval combat (surface, submarine and naval air war), air power, disease, supply, morale, guerilla warfare, etc.  I think the two things you don't see much of in the PT is large scale (or should we just say "balanced") tank fighting, and vertical envelopment (gliders and paratroop assaults). IMHO (and ONLY IMHO) I think the lack of tank warfare is part of the reason why it doesn't get "gamed" much...as I think most people prefer armor over infantry (see following for a discussion at grognews...http://grognews.blogspot.ca/2012/05/gametalk-poor-bloody-infantry.html)

FWIW...the HPS games are good but have somewhat limited replayability.  Once you've played a map more than once, you kind of "learn" what to do...and not to do.

You COULD use a Steel Panthers custom campaign where you limit the amount of build points to the Allied and Japanese armies to create something to the scale you are looking for, but of course the maps are all going to be generic and not reflect any particular real battle.  You may not get an amphib landing scenario if you do random battle generation...and if you DO get an amphib battle, you may not have enough points to buy landing craft for your force.   Unless they've modified that little problem in recent (ie:  past five years) versions.

And finally...I THINK there was a Pac War mod for one of the Close Combat games, but it probably isn't going to give you the unique tactical experiece you might be looking for (ie: banzai charges, tunnels, naval support, etc)

Yours in gaming,

Jack Nastyface

[bayonetbrant]

if you don't mind pushing around some cardboard:

http://iwantthisgame.com/index.php/discover/10-table-top-game/11-heroes-of-the-pacific

[GJK]

That, or I was going to suggest Combat Commander: Pacific via VASSAL.  I played it online with Mad Russian a number of weeks ago and the module seemed really well done.  I'm still learning the game system but it seemed to capture WWII PacWar tactical battles just fine.

[BanzaiCat]

Don't forget:

http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/1666/battle-hymn

More cardboard-pushing, but still a fun tactical (if somewhat linear) game.

[Jarhead0331]

Men of War: Assault Squad has a Pacific Theater mapset and armies. You can fight battles as Japanese, US or Common Wealth.  The OOBs are very detailed and specifically tailored as to nationality.  I love MoW: AS, but it is fast paced real-time combat, so caveat emptor. 

[LongBlade]

I can't get Steel Panthers to fire up on my Win 8 rig (though a solution was suggested - my fault for not looking into it yet).

However, IIRC Marix's General's Edition has a solid campaign set in the Pacific. Plus there are likely a lot of fan-made scenarios out there.

[MengJiao]

Men of War: Assault Squad has a Pacific Theater mapset and armies. You can fight battles as Japanese, US or Common Wealth.  The OOBs are very detailed and specifically tailored as to nationality.  I love MoW: AS, but it is fast paced real-time combat, so caveat emptor.

  There's the REd Orchestra 2 supermod (something Storm?).  You can get it on Steam.  I played it a few times.  Not my cup of team.

[undercovergeek]

There's a Japanese map and mod over at battleground for cmbn

[Bison]

Pics or it doesn't exist undercovergirlyman!