The story of HistWar...

HistWar is a project started in 1994...

The basic concept was to put the player in the role of an Army Commander and to simulate the fog of war as best as possible.

To this end, a set of functions had to be put in place.

Understanding a Napoleonic Battle:

First and foremost, understand a battle of the time. I significantly increased the size of my library in the late 1990s, especially as the Internet was in its infancy. One of the books that allowed me to make good progress was Scott Bowden's 'Napoleon and Austerlitz'... but I'm not sure it's still in print.

Game Engine and Basic Logic :

Develop AIs capable of managing groups and units. In addition, to play against the Computer, it was necessary to develop an AI simulating the opposing Army Commander.

Historical Simulation System

Develop algorithms to manage the behavior of regiments during engagements: calculation of losses, morale, reactions, impact of weather, effect of terrain, threat assessment, development of movements

Graphical Interface and Visual Rendering

Develop an efficient human-machine interface and use a graphics rendering system consistent with the power of PCs at the time. To this end, with a professional figurine painter, I created a database of 'sprites' from the photography of a hundred figurines, each character being represented by 4 sprites for 4 orientations (front, back, left, right).

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Develop an AI capable of making realistic tactical decisions, adapting its strategy to the player's actions and battlefield conditions.

Period I

So I worked for seven years, trying to manage my time as best I could between professional activity, family life and game development.

While the software was in its final stages in 2001, I was contacted by MatrixGames, a publisher with whom I signed a distribution contract for a version including d'Austerlitz and Haslach.

Quite satisfied with more than 800 LGAA (La Grande Armée at Austerlitz, in French in the text) and also rather high ratings from the various websites.

Period II

It began in 2002 with the termination of the contract with MatrixGames.

And at the same time, the desire to continue the momentum of LGAA by creating a new game called HistWar and making the decision to take a long sabbatical of 4 years.

The goal is rather ambitious: to develop a game system integrating editors to create Maps, Battle Orders and Doctrine management, capable of playing in Multiplayer on the Internet or by email in turn-based mode.

And to add a little challenge, set up a visual with animated 3D figurines.

And also make a physical package with manual in English and French.

Thus was born HistWar: Napoleon's Grognards...

In 2005, Battlefront, the publisher/developer of Combat Mission, contacted me and we set up a distribution contract.

At the same time, a graphic designer, a bit of a Napoleonic fan, contacted me, and we decided to embark on the journey together. He took charge of most of the creative work.

The addition of these two follies allows us to finish this version in December 2009.

In the meantime, the €/$ parity having jumped against me, the publishing contract with BattleFront was broken... and I created a small company to distribute the wargame.

A community has formed around the project, allowing me to launch a robust beta testing campaign.

Period III

It began in 2013 with the addition of another graphic designer working in the video game industry. He knew his craft perfectly and brought a new lease of life to HistWar's graphics. He developed new graphics and shaders that allowed for more powerful rendering.

Thus was born HistWar: Austerlitz version 5.

For my part, I'm hunting for bugs.

HistWar is a program with over 800 files and about 270,000 lines of code... so there must be a few bugs lurking here and there...

But fixing bugs sometimes creates new bugs.

So, in 2016, I decided to stop hunting and start playing entire games of HistWar again. For example, on the internal engine (IA), which has 265 files, only 18 are older than 2017.

As for the GUI, it has been completely reworked. Of the 306 files in this section, 36 remain...

HistWar: Austerlitz version 6 is very advanced and appears to be working without any critical or even major bugs.

True to our commitment, this new release is being released free of charge to all HistWar: Austerlitz players.

Finally, thank you for supporting our small team.

And HistWar needs you too, don't hesitate to talk about it if the game suits you.