We are a little over three months away from our projected release date for Air Assault Task Force (more on that in a minute), and the final shape of the project is a lot more than we had hoped for.  There were some ups and some downs in the development, but, in the end, it is turning out to be the best game ProSIM Company has ever produced.

Since this is probably my last blog post before gamers get their first taste of the game (more on that in a minute as well), I thought it made since to tie up the lose ends I left in the last update, as well as answer some of the questions that arose from some recent press about myself and ProSIM Company.
So, here it goes… 

When the hell do I get to play the game!

The downside of “throwing your hat over the wall” is that sometimes you’re not going to get it back.  Such was the case with our announcement, early in the development cycle, that we would have an Alpha Technology Release of the game out in the spring of this year.  Well, obviously, that didn’t go as planned.

But we have completed work on the BETA DEMO, and hope to have it in gamers’ hands on the same day the Final BETA disks ship to our external BETA team, 15 September 06.  Stay posted at this blog, the Shrapnel Games Intel Forums, our website, and the ATF/BCT forum at StrategyZoneOnline to find out how to get your hands on the DEMO.

The BETA DEMO version will include all of the functionality of the final version of the game, except that loading saved games, multiplayer, and importing scenarios from earlier Armored Task Force Engine games will be disabled (the release version will allow you to play any of the scenarios from the ATF Engine series in the new Air Assault Task Force interface!)  It will feature two scenarios, a “mini-campaign” from the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk Louisiana.  The two scenarios are an airfield seizure and a MOUT (military operations in urban terrain) attack on the fabled village of Shugart-Gordon.

September!?!  I thought that was the release date!

So did we. 

The short answer is that the new release date is 15 December 06.  We expect to “Go Gold” (i.e. ship the game to Shrapnel Games for publishing) on 15 November 06. 

The long story is that we just didn’t want to rush the game.  ProSIM Company, since its inception, has been blessed by relatively bug-free first releases.  We didn’t want to do anything to break that winning streak.  This has been, by far, our most ambitious project yet, in terms of technology, production value, and scale.  It was important to us that we get this one right.

The fruit of our labor is even more than we had hoped for when we began the project.  It has all of the detail and nuance of the Armored Task Force games, but with the most intuitive user interface we have ever built.  You really do forget about the interface as you play the game, and are immersed in the tactical problems with which you are presented.  To find out more, check out the AATF website at:

http://www.prosimco.com/aatf.htm

We have added some new screenshots recently.  Be sure and check them out!  The website’s “Features” tab explains a lot about Air Assault Task Force, so I won’t review everything.  The highpoints:

• Like Armored Task Force, Air Assault Task Force is a “command real time” (e.g. the game runs in real time with the player able to speed up the action with compression or pause the action and continue to give orders) simulation.
• The game runs in full screen, and we have included features to allow the player to adjust the resolutions or possibly run the game in windowed mode (this feature is still tentative). 
• The biggest change is new interface.  Rather than using the “select order-select unit” paradigm, we are now using the “select a unit-select order” paradigm that is immediately familiar to any RTS or wargame player.  Information for selected units is immediately displayed in an easier-to-read, graphical format.
• Other improvements in development include modeling of vehicle damage (as opposed to the live-or-dead model currently used) and a new, direct fire targeting system.

And remember, we have maintained backwards compatibility throughout development. That means that, when you get AATF, you can install it over your earlier, ATF Engine games, and give them an instant upgrade to the new interface and features!

We brought all of the development teams, from all of our previous projects together to work on Air Assault Task Force.  Curt Pangracs, project lead for Raging Tiger and The Star and the Crescent, developed all of the artwork, maps, and scenario briefings for the game.  Gary Bezant, team lead for The Falklands War, led the effort on research and scenario design.  The missions in the game are the most accurate recreations ever of their respective battles.  The War in Afghanistan team reorganized to develop a campaign based on Operation Anaconda for this game. 

The scenarios.

The game is pretty much complete, so I can finally let you in on everything we have lined up for the release version of the game.

Much like the original Armored Task Force, Air Assault Task Force is an “exploration” of the many facets of its topic: air assault infantry violently seizing objectives.  Unlike Raging Tiger, The Falklands War, or The Star and the Crescent, Air Assault Task Force does not focus on one geographical location or time period.  Instead, it provides several “campaigns” from different periods of history and technology in air assault operations.

The first routine use of the helicopter as a method of moving infantry into contact with the infantry was Vietnam.  And this is where we start our exploration, with 1-7 CAVs fight in the Ia Drang Valley.  This campaign will allow the player to fight the battle from the first infantry to hit the ground at LZ X-Ray to Hal Moore’s victorious departure from the battlefield.

Perhaps one of the most famous air assaults was the Ranger mission in Mogadishu, Somalia, now immortalized in the book and movie, Blackhawk Down.  We have faithfully recreated this fight, from the first assault on the Olympic Hotel to the Ranger’s arrival at the Olympic Stadium. 

The Global War on Terror is also represented, with the coalition fight in the Shah-i-kot Valley in Afghanistan.  The three day fight, known as Operation Anaconda, is also included as a campaign (with all that fight’s “warts” included).  I could be wrong, but I believe Air Assault Task Force will be the first wargame to simulate this battle.

Air assault operations are complex.  That means they must be trained relentlessly.  That is what happens every month at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, Louisiana.  So we have included a couple scenarios that will be instantly familiar to any US light infantryman.  (These scenarios are the same that will ship with the BETA DEMO in just a few days.)

That is enough “spoilers” for now.  Stay tuned to this blog and our website.  We will be releasing more info as we can.  The next milestone for us is the final BETA test (sorry, the casting call is over).  We have already done a huge amount of internal play testing.  Now we will be turning our baby over to Shrapnel’s BETA test team to see if they can break it (be gentle).

What’s this crap about no more tactical games?

I am afraid I started something of an uproar with my comments in an interview with Jim Zabek at Origins, which appeared in a very well done article at Wargamer.com:

http://www.wargamer.com/articles/prosimco_2006_interview/

Let me set the record straight.  I said that I would not be doing any more tactical games.  ProSIM Company has a lot of projects in the works, and no plans to stop doing games at the tactical level of war for the foreseeable future.  So stop sending me e-mails!

I, personally, have started work on a game that focuses on the operational level of war.  I have become fascinated by some of the unintended consequences of the military revolution started by the dawn of the information age.  Yes it gives us smart bombs, GPS, and near-omniscient situational awareness.  But it also gives us the “CNN Effect,” information warfare, and televised terrorism.  All of the games at this level of war are really good, and good at what they do.  But they are really silent on this new dimension of warfare.  So…

I have set out on a journey to fill this void.  I hope to return from this exploration with a game that does both the kinetic and the non-kinetic well, simulating full-spectrum operations at the operational level of war.  Wish me luck!

What else we are working on.

We are working on new upgrades for all of our current releases, and should have something out prior to the release of Air Assault Task Force.  Please stay tuned to the Shrapnel Games website and Intel Forums for more information on how to get a hold of these upgrades. 

Our World War II title is still in development for the Air Assault Task Force Engine.  (Don’t worry, we will continue to support the ATF Engine as long as we are still around; hell, we have designed our entire next-generation engine to support it!)  This title is an Eastern Front, Germany v. Russia, game.  The designer threatened me with the Gulag if I say anything more.

On a personal note…

I have just found out that I will be staying here at sunny Fort Leavenworth, at least until the summer of 2008 (perhaps with some temporary duty in even sunnier locales).  This seems to be a Mecca for wargamers, and there always seems to be a few ATF/BCT fans moving through here. So, if you are going to be here in the next year or so, please drop me a line at my e-mail address and we can link up!  And, while you are here, try the Baan Thai restaurant, a few blocks south of the main gate.  The food is great and the owner is good-looking, too  

That’s a wrap!

I have said everything I can think of. Please, if you have any questions I did not cover here, do not hesitate to ask by replying to this blog.

And, while you are waiting for Air Assault Task Force, I will just remind you of our other titles that are out now:

• BCT Commander 
• Armored Task Force
• Raging Tiger: The Second Korean War
• The Falklands War: 1982
• The Star and the Crescent
  

Playable demos are available for all of these games at the Shrapnel Games website.

I apologize, personally, for the slight delay in AATF.  I hope that, when you see the final product, you will feel it was worth the wait.  For now, I will close by saying thanks, again, to all of our fans for their patience, input, and support through the years. This is the best gaming community, period.

Pat Proctor
President, ProSIM Company, Inc.
http://www.prosimco.com