Strategic Studies Group
Encyclopedia
Strategic Studies Group, commonly known as SSG, is an Australian software development company that makes primarily strategy wargames.
The company was founded by strategy game enthusiasts Ian Trout and Roger Keating. Ian was proprietor of a military books store and Roger had had several of his games published by Strategic Simulations Inc. The game that launched the company was Reach for the Stars (1983). This games is credited for having "effectively launched the genre of 4-X space games - explore, expand, exploit, exterminate". Its success was followed by a string of other, mostly historical military games published throughout the 1980s for Apple II
, Atari
, Commodore 64
, and IBM PC
series of computers.
Titles included Reach for the Stars, Battlefront, Battles in Normandy, Halls of Montezuma
, Europe Ablaze, MacArthur's War, Carriers at War, (in three volumes), Rommel, Gold of the Americas, and Decisive Battles of the American Civil War (in three volumes, with the first being Bull Run to Chancellorsville
). Several of these titles were also released for 16-bit platforms including the Amiga
, Atari ST
, Apple IIGS
and Macintosh
during the late 1980s.
From the outset SSG titles were characterised by a challenging level of intelligence (AI
) in the computer opponents provided in the games. Many of the games included scenario editors. For a time SSG published a tie-in magazine, Run 5, that included articles on historical background to the games, game design, game play and data for setting up new or variant scenarios. Subscribers received a disk with the scenario files already created. Published mostly quarterly it ran for 25 issues.
In 1989 SSG published Fire King
an action role-playing game developed by Micro Forte
, another Australian games developer.
SSG also produced the Warlords
series of fantasy turn-based games. In a mutually friendly decision in 2003, Warlords designer Steve Fawkner
broke away from Strategic Studies Group and started Infinite Interactive
to publish further Warlords games.
The company was founded by strategy game enthusiasts Ian Trout and Roger Keating. Ian was proprietor of a military books store and Roger had had several of his games published by Strategic Simulations Inc. The game that launched the company was Reach for the Stars (1983). This games is credited for having "effectively launched the genre of 4-X space games - explore, expand, exploit, exterminate". Its success was followed by a string of other, mostly historical military games published throughout the 1980s for Apple II
Apple II
The Apple II is an 8-bit home computer, one of the first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products, designed primarily by Steve Wozniak, manufactured by Apple Computer and introduced in 1977...
, Atari
Atari
Atari is a corporate and brand name owned by several entities since its inception in 1972. It is currently owned by Atari Interactive, a wholly owned subsidiary of the French publisher Atari, SA . The original Atari, Inc. was founded in 1972 by Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney. It was a pioneer in...
, Commodore 64
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
, and IBM PC
IBM PC
The IBM Personal Computer, commonly known as the IBM PC, is the original version and progenitor of the IBM PC compatible hardware platform. It is IBM model number 5150, and was introduced on August 12, 1981...
series of computers.
Titles included Reach for the Stars, Battlefront, Battles in Normandy, Halls of Montezuma
Halls of Montezuma: A Battle History of the U.S. Marine Corps
Halls of Montezuma: A Battle History of the U.S. Marine Corps is a computer game developed by Strategic Studies Group in 1987 for the Apple II. Ports were later released for the Commodore 64, Amiga, MS DOS and Apple IIGS.-Plot:...
, Europe Ablaze, MacArthur's War, Carriers at War, (in three volumes), Rommel, Gold of the Americas, and Decisive Battles of the American Civil War (in three volumes, with the first being Bull Run to Chancellorsville
Decisive Battles of the American Civil War Volume 1: Bull Run to Chancellorsville
Decisive Battles of the American Civil War Volume 1: Bull Run to Chancellorsville is a computer game developed by Strategic Studies Group in 1988 for the Commodore 64 and Apple II.-Plot:...
). Several of these titles were also released for 16-bit platforms including the Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
, Atari ST
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
, Apple IIGS
Apple IIGS
The Apple , the fifth and most powerful model in the Apple II series of personal computers produced by Apple Computer. The "GS" in the name stands for Graphics and Sound, referring to its enhanced graphics and sound capabilities, both of which greatly surpassed previous models of the line...
and Macintosh
Macintosh
The Macintosh , or Mac, is a series of several lines of personal computers designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. The first Macintosh was introduced by Apple's then-chairman Steve Jobs on January 24, 1984; it was the first commercially successful personal computer to feature a mouse and a...
during the late 1980s.
From the outset SSG titles were characterised by a challenging level of intelligence (AI
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
) in the computer opponents provided in the games. Many of the games included scenario editors. For a time SSG published a tie-in magazine, Run 5, that included articles on historical background to the games, game design, game play and data for setting up new or variant scenarios. Subscribers received a disk with the scenario files already created. Published mostly quarterly it ran for 25 issues.
In 1989 SSG published Fire King
Fire King (video game)
Fire King is a computer game developed by Strategic Studies Group and distributed by Electronic Arts in 1988 for the Commodore 64/128 and PC. It was sequel to another game of the same style titled "Demon Stalkers: The Raid on Doomfane"...
an action role-playing game developed by Micro Forte
Micro Forte
Micro Forté now known as Micro Forté Studios, is an Australian electronic entertainment company with development studios in Canberra, Australia and Sydney, Australia...
, another Australian games developer.
SSG also produced the Warlords
Warlords (game series)
Warlords is a computer game series created by Steve Fawkner, in which role-playing elements are combined with strategy in a fantasy setting. The series has been split into two different games lines, the traditional turn-based strategy Warlords series , and a newer real-time based strategy Warlords...
series of fantasy turn-based games. In a mutually friendly decision in 2003, Warlords designer Steve Fawkner
Steve Fawkner
Steve Fawkner is an Australian software designer, programmer and composer who has worked for several video game design companies.He was originally made famous as the creator of Warlords game series in 1989, but in recent years has found fame once again as creator of the Puzzle Quest series...
broke away from Strategic Studies Group and started Infinite Interactive
Infinite Interactive
Infinite Interactive was a video game developer with headquarters in St Kilda, Victoria, Australia. The company was founded by Steve Fawkner in 1989. After a long alliance with SSG, resulting in the development of the Warlords series of games, Steve moved on to make Infinite totally independent in...
to publish further Warlords games.