Wargame

A wargame is a simulation or game that models armed conflict, focusing on strategy, operations, and tactics. Wargames can be played as board games with maps and counters, as computer or video games, or as live-action simulations. They are used for analysis, training, and entertainment, and may emphasize realism or abstract play.

Modern wargaming traces its origins to 19th century Prussia with Kriegsspiel, a rules-based training tool that allowed officers to plan campaigns and receive feedback without real combat. The concept spread internationally and evolved into classroom simulations and professional exercises. In the 20th century, hobby wargaming flourished with publishers such as Avalon Hill and SPI, popularizing hex-and-counter board games that cover strategic, operational, and tactical scales.

Board wargames use maps, counters for units, and rules for movement, combat, supply, weather, and line of sight. They span strategic to tactical levels and may include scenarios and fog of war. Computer wargames range from turn-based simulations to real-time strategy, often with AI opponents and evolving scenarios. In professional settings, exercises, injects, and debriefings analyze decision making and doctrine.

Applications include military education, defense planning, policy analysis, and crisis simulations. Wargaming can reveal operational risks and help test courses of action, but criticisms include potential biases, overemphasis on hardware, and challenges translating simulated results into real-world outcomes. Ethical considerations concern the realistic depiction of violence and the portrayal of contemporary conflicts.

Notable examples span Kriegsspiel in its modern forms, historical board games from Avalon Hill, and computer wargames such as the Wargame series (Wargame: European Escalation; Wargame: AirLand Battle; Wargame: Red Dragon), which explore Cold War and post-Cold War military scenarios. The genre also influenced broader strategy games and educational simulations used in military education and think tanks.