I came up with this idea after
Aeropause made a bet with us about an upcoming Civil War FPS for the 360 (when is it coming out, anyways?). I wanted there to be a good Civil War game that not only allows players to experience the fighting, but also learn something about how the battles were fought, and the entirety of the atmosphere.
A House Divided would be an epic Civil War game, covering the entirety of the Eastern theatre's fight, from 1861 to 1865. Covering all of the major battles, and some of the smaller ones, the game would have the secondary goal of educating the player about the battles in the Civil War. Because of the sheer size of the game, it would pretty much have to be a PS3 exclusive.
First, a little lecture on the basics of combat in the Civil War. Fighting during the Civil War was very much structured around the division fighting, not the individual soldier. Rather, the army was based around the regiment as the basic operating unit. While it could be broken down further, orders were usually just given unto the regiment level. The reason why people still fired in straight lines was because the Civil War took place at an odd point in time. People were still following the Napoleonic rules of war, which was meant for the technology that existed during the Revolutionary War. Now, there was a greater proliferation of rifled muskets, which had a superbly better firing range, and caused a lot more death. Just thought I'd mention that. Now onto the game!
Gameplay
The gameplay would handle much like the way
Batallion Wars handled, with the player mainly controlling an entire squad of soldiers, but at times, especially when the battle comes near to close combat, the player is brought into controlling a single character. From there, the player would be able to fight in either first or third person mode. All in all, there will be 12 different characters that the player will be able to play as, fighting as part of the Army of the Potomac and the Army of Northern Virginia.
For the most part, battles would consist of the overall goal of "defeat the opposing army," but there will be plenty of side missions within a single battle. Those will range from defending/taking a point, like Little Round Top, or to take a wounded soldier back to the hospital, or running messages. Certain times, there will be specialty missions, especially on the Confederate side, with the Confederate Rangers, who would do hit and run missions. Players would end up being part of all aspects of the Army, cavalry, infantry, and artillery.
Plot
The player will be able to experience the war through low ranking officers fighting for both the North and the South. The game will take players throughout the length of the Civil War, touching on all of the major battles throughout the war. Each soldier had their own reason for joining the war, whether it be to save the Union, to free the slaves, or to rid themselves of the oppressive Northerners. Yet, as they fight through the war, they'll notice their comrades dwindle, and see how life was like during the Civil War. Otherwise, history isn't really changing. The game will try to touch on some of the reasoning behind the war, including pro-slavery thought, the ideas of state's rights, and opinions on Lincoln's political tactics throughout the war. Primary documents and photos would help enhance this experience.
Visuals and Audio
The terrain in game will reflect the terrain that actually exists on those battlefields. The designers would have photos and maps of the area in order to accurately reflect the look of the battlefield. The character textures would strive to be as real as possible, including finding injured soldiers. One of the horrors of the Civil War was seeing the wounded soldiers. Bullets would cause serious damage, not to mention shellings from cannons. Players would definitely have to deal with seeing the dead and dying, including your friends.
A good casting for the music would be Randy Edelman and John Frizzell, the men who were behind the music for
Gods and Generals. The music was epic and haunting, and I think it'd be a perfect fit for this game.
Contest:
2:02 PM on 10.20.2006
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