Turn-based strategy game

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
OpenCiv, open source version of the computer strategy game Civilization

Turn-based strategy games ( English . Turn-based strategy , abbreviated TBS ) are games in which the actions of the players are carried out in individual rounds. This can mean

  • that the players plan and execute their moves alternately or one after the other, such as in chess or mill , or
  • that they plan their moves at the same time in rounds and that the moves are then executed simultaneously or at least not in order of play. This is e.g. This is the case , for example, with the board game Diplomacy and sometimes with role-playing games .

Characteristic

Turn-based strategy games are characterized above all by the fact that the players have enough time between the individual rounds to plan their moves precisely. This is why postal games or e-mail games are widespread and, in the case of chess, for example, can drag on for months. Representatives of turn-based strategy games are mostly board games and tabletop games, but also various types of computer strategy games . Examples are Battle for Wesnoth , Battle Isle , Heroes of Might and Magic , Jagged Alliance , Civilization , Age of Wonders or Total War .

The latter contrasts with the real-time strategy games , in which the game time continues to run during strategy planning. Real-time strategy games are now much more common than turn-based strategy games, since the computational effort of such games is no longer a problem for current computers . Real-time strategy games are also more lucrative for developer companies: players who play turn-based strategy games stay loyal to a game for a very long time, while players who play real-time strategy games are much more likely to buy new games. This can be explained, among other things, by the fact that real-time strategy games are much more often graphically beautifully represented and these are getting better and better very quickly due to technical progress. The individual missions in these games can also be played through much faster, usually in one to two hours, while in turn-based games, due to the longer strategic planning, two hours are to be seen as a minimum, but can also take days, e.g. B. in the online game Land of the Chiefs or Ostfrieslandspiel.

Sub-genres

Board, role and card games

One of the most famous turn-based games is probably chess that has been played for several centuries.

Many modern board games such as chess , reversi , checkers and go are turn-based. The same applies to well-known card games . Particularly this trading card games such as Yu-Gi-Oh! , Magic: The Gathering and Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft , which usually have several phases in addition to the individual rounds. In addition to classic games and video games, the games can also be played as mail games or e-mail games . Classic role-playing games and tabletop games can also be turn-based.

Turn-based global strategy game

Global strategy games or 4X games are played on one card. The player must manage, equip and control units and erect buildings. New technologies are activated via a technology tree. Well-known example is z. B. Civilization .

Turn-based tactical games

In the game The Battle for Wesnoth , the player controls military units typical of a turn-based tactical game.

In turn-based tactical games (TBT for short), the player controls armed forces, for example to carry out a military operation or a rescue mission. In contrast to the pure turn-based strategy game, the focus is less on business , diplomacy , administration , building construction and research . Instead, the focus is on direct executive force. For example, the player takes care of the transport, healing and arming of units, attack and defense tactics and the formation and mutual support of units.

The first games of this kind emerged in the late 1980s. Battle Isle from 1991 is the first German turn-based tactical game. The genre's origins can be found in turn-based board games such as chess and tabletop . The possibilities of movement on the battlefield increased over time and the interactions increased.

Turn-based tactical games can be divided into:

Mixtures with other genres such as real-time strategy can also be present.

Turn-based artillery

The Worms clone Warmux as an example of a turn-based artillery game

In artillery games , the player controls his characters from the point of view of a platformer in a turn-based manner and tries to eliminate the enemy by shelling them. The best-known example is the Worms series.

Business simulation and life simulation

Although games like SimCity (here the free variant Lincity) run in real time, the game world usually changes in rounds, which corresponds to the time in the game.

Business simulations and life simulations often represent a mixture of real-time and turn-based strategy. B. fights problems in real time, but the economy, society and ecology of the game world changes turn-based, which z. B. days, months or years in the game. All moves can be paused and thus theoretically played purely on a turn-based basis.

Auto battler

A player is playing Dota Auto Chess.

An Auto-Battler (also Auto Chess ) is a concept that combines the game of chess with a multiplayer online battle arena game. The term auto refers to the automatic fighting of placed units. Well-known examples are Dota Auto Chess , Dota Underlords and League of Legends : Teamfight Tactics. Also tower defense games may belong to the Car Battler, provided they run turn-based.

Web links

literature

  • Keith Burgun: Game Design Theory: A New Philosophy for Understanding Games, CRC Press, 2012, ISBN 9781466554214

Individual evidence

  1. Turn-Based versus Real-Time RPG: What's the Difference? Retrieved July 30, 2019 .
  2. a b c d Turn-Based Strategy: Genre Overview · Chaotik Blog. September 4, 2018, Retrieved July 30, 2019 (American English).
  3. Ultimate List of Different Types of Video Games | 49 genres & subcategories. Retrieved July 30, 2019 (American English).
  4. Essential Turn-Based Strategy & Tactics Games. Retrieved October 30, 2019 .