Most tactical games start when your units make contact with the enemy, and bullets start flying. While tactical games will occasionally introduce hidden units, and operational games like Silver Bayonet  require players to conduct recon to find the enemy, most wargames start when the action starts. Fields of Fire is different. Because you control an entire rifle company in Fields of Fire, your mission begins in the planning: What is the mission objective? How will we accomplish it? Who will maneuver? Who is in reserve? How will I coordinate with Battalion HQ?

This distinguishes Fields of Fire from every other wargame I’ve played. While the situation starts static in most tactical games, every mission of Fields of Fire will play out differently as the situation evolves and the enemy disposition is discovered. This narrative and the way that the game puts you in the position to attempt to solve the unknown is what drew me to Fields of Fire and is the main reason I wanted to work with Ben on Fields of Fire: The Bulge Campaign. Since the P500 announcement, I’ve been asked a lot what the next steps are for Fields of Fire generally.

Obviously Ben is hard at work on Fields of Fire: The Bulge Campaign, which follows the 9th Infantry Regiment “Manchus”, 2nd Infantry Division on the offensive and defensive. Wargamers love to joke about the number of Bulge games that are published, but I think Ben has a unique game with a special story to tell – how many Bulge games follow a single company through the entire campaign? Developing Fields of Fire isn’t a single-person effort, so our first job has been to assemble a team. While Ben has great playtesters and seasoned Fields of Fire players working on the expansion, the GMT One team has identified some key people who will be supporting development across the whole series, including Mike Bertucelli and Bruce Mansfield.

There are a few key principles of GMT One that we want to bring to the development of Fields of Fire. First, and most importantly is an uncompromising focus on the designer’s vision. As a developer, our job is not to redesign a game but to make that game the best version of itself. Fields of Fire is a phenomenal game, and an experience unlike anything else on the tabletop: how do we make that experience shine by making the rules, charts, tables, player aids, and cards serve the game’s narrative? Ben has always been clear about what Fields of Fire is, and what it is not, and that will not change.

Second, we aim for usability and accessibility. Don’t misunderstand – accessibility doesn’t mean dumbing the game down, changing the rules, or trying to make it appeal to a general audience. Instead it requires us to ask ‘how would a player learn to play this game?’ and ‘what obstacles will pop up when they play it?’ We want to spend time watching players play the game and see how they get confused, how they use their table space, and where they spend their time. Our goal is to minimize the amount of time they spend in the rulebooks and player aids, and maximize their time making meaningful choices in the game.

Third, is a desire to emphasize clear and understandable game materials, free from errors. We know that this has been a difficult part of playing Fields of Fire for everyone, and we hope that with a little effort we can create new ways to learn the game, and better resources to reference rules. Ergonomically, we know that the game carries a heavy load in rules, table space, and materials to juggle. Improving this is on the short list for GMT One.

Finally, we always seek to find the simplest way forward that works. It doesn’t matter if we have better ways to teach the game if they’re too clever to be usable. To that end, we will seek to revise the materials that are already available rather than rewrite them, and we will get them to players in the quickest and simplest ways possible.

We are hopeful that we will have more to announce in the very near future, but for now please know that the Fields of Fire that veteran players love is not going anywhere. Our goal is to make it easier to play and learn without changing a single rule – just clarifying, fixing any mistakes, and making the ergonomics better. Whether you’re a veteran Fields of Fire player, or a new recruit, stay tuned.

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