Podcasts by Three Moves Ahead
Three Moves Ahead is the leading strategy game themed podcast on the internet. Every week a panel of knowledgeable gamers with strong opinions meets to talk about the strategy and war games of the day, design issues and games in the wider world.
Further podcasts by Idle Thumbs
Podcast on the topic Videospiele
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Three Moves Ahead 602: Patreon Preview: An Interview with Michele Pirovano (dotAGE) from 2023-11-29T19:27:51
Listen to the first five minutes of our November Patreon episode for free, and then hear the full one hour and 15 minute interview by subscribing at Patreon.com/3MA! Len had a chance to chat this ...
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Three Moves Ahead 601: Victoria 3: One Year Later from 2023-11-26T04:16:30
Len is joined by Dr. Bret Devereaux and Chapel Comic creator Father Lorris to take a look at Victoria 3 one year later. Is this a game that deserves to stand beside Paradox's best yet? And if not, ...
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Three Moves Ahead 600: dotAGE from 2023-11-19T00:20:19
100 episodes ago, we declared that video games are over. Did they ever come back? Also, what's this dotAGE game with authentic medieval chiptune music Overwhelmingly Positive user reviews?
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Three Moves Ahead 599: Cities: Skylines 2 from 2023-10-28T18:02
Len and Jon are joined by Sin Vega and Well There's Your Problem's Justin Roczniak (donoteat01) to discuss Cities: Skylines 2. We have some mixed feelings about this much anticipated sequel, and we...
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Three Moves Ahead 598: Total War: Pharaoh from 2023-10-15T00:12:54
Len and Ian are joined by freelance writer Josh Broadwell to discuss Total War: Pharaoh, the first properly historical Total War in an actual age. We dig into the new campaign mechanics, the feel o...
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Three Moves Ahead 597: Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew from 2023-09-30T01:13:52
This week, Jon is joined by RPS Editor in Chief Katherine Castle and freelance writer Dominic Tarason to discuss Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew. Mimimi's swan song, as we sadly learned after record...
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Three Moves Ahead 596: Baldur's Gate 3 from 2023-08-19T16:38:08
Len, Jon, and Ian are joined by Brian "Chef Lu Bu" Smawley to delve into Baldur's Gate 3. We discuss what really makes this a CRPG that can be enthusiastically recommended to tactics fans, what our...
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Three Moves Ahead 595: Aliens: Dark Descent from 2023-07-29T19:49:54
Rob, Len, and Rowan are in the pipe, five-by-five, to discuss Aliens: Dark Descent. An unconventional squad-based stealth game that brings James Cameron's sci-fi classic to a new (and dare we say b...
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Three Moves Ahead 594: Jagged Alliance 3 from 2023-07-22T04:42:03
This week, Len is joined by Sin Vega and Dominic Tarason to discuss Jagged Alliance 3, the long-awaited sequel to one of the greatest tactical games of all time. Did they do a good job of recapturi...
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Three Moves Ahead 593: Rule the Waves 3 from 2023-07-01T03:45:20
It's the... Summer of Wargaming? When a game comes along that's even too obscure and spreadsheet-y for our normal panel, we light the Grognard Beacon. And this week, first-timers Wesley Livesay and...
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Three Moves Ahead 592: Age of Wonders 4 from 2023-06-10T03:53:29
Len, Rowan, and Jon step through the portal into Age of Wonders 4, the latest fantasy 4X from Triumph and Paradox. We dig deep into the strategic and tactical pacing and why so much of it hits the ...
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Three Moves Ahead 591: Darkest Dungeon 2 from 2023-05-22T02:36:17
Rowan, Len, and Nerium hitch their wagon to Darkest Dungeon 2 and set in for the long haul on this epic-length episode. We discuss some of the ways this sequel is an improvement over one of 3MA's c...
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Three Moves Ahead 590: Wartales from 2023-05-14T02:06:42
Rowan, Nerium, and Luke set off into the fantasy landscape of Wartales to give a glimpse at one of the most robust tactical management games we've seen in a while. They discuss how it's a counterpo...
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Three Moves Ahead 589: 'Board Game' vs 'Simulation'-style Strategy Games from 2023-04-21T22:42:06
It's an all-star panel as Len and Mike Williams are joined by Mohawk Games' and Idle Thumbs' own Soren Johnson and Paradox Tinto's Johan Andersson to chip away at a tricky target: the different des...
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Three Moves Ahead 588: The Great War: Western Front from 2023-04-15T03:04:42
This week, Len and Ian welcome military historian Brett Devereaux back to the show to talk about The Great War: Western Front. We discuss what it gets right and what it gets wrong about the trenche...
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Three Moves Ahead 587: Terra Nil from 2023-03-31T04:48:26
This week, Rowan teams up with Fanbyte's Mike Williams and Kotaku's Luke Plunkett to discuss Terra Nil, a "city builder in reverse" about restoring the natural ecosystem of a devastated planet. We ...
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Three Moves Ahead 586: Industrialization and Snowballing w/ Bret Devereaux from 2023-03-24T20:33:24
Len and Ian are joined once again by our official unofficial historical consultant, UNC Chapel Hill's Dr. Bret Devereaux, to discuss a couple of interrelated topics: Snowballing in strategy games a...
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Three Moves Ahead 585: Phantom Brigade from 2023-03-11T00:44:35
We have a packed panel this week as Jon is joined by Fanbyte's Mike Williams and Nerium Strom, Waypoint's Renata Price, and Freehold Games' Brian Bucklew to hop into the cockpit on Phantom Brigade....
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Three Moves Ahead 584: Company of Heroes 3 from 2023-02-25T22:22:04
Rob and Ian are joined by Kotaku's Luke Plunkett to dig in to Company of Heroes 3. The long-awaited World War II RTS left us with mixed feelings, between a dynamic campaign that just doesn't really...
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Three Moves Ahead 583: Religion Revisited from 2023-02-18T02:48:09
Len, Jon, and Ian kick off what is to be an ongoing series revisiting some big ideas in strategy games that we haven't covered since Ye Olde Podcast Days of Yore. This time around, we're taking a f...
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Three Moves Ahead 582: Europa Universalis IV - Anbennar from 2023-01-28T03:22:21
It's a NoCBcast semi-reunion as Len is joined by Lambert (https://www.youtube.com/Lambert2191) and Father Lorris (https://www.chapelcomic.com/) to discuss Anbennar, our favorite Europa Universalis ...
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Three Moves Ahead 581: A Look Ahead to 2023 from 2023-01-21T03:28:38
Len, Rowan, and Mike Gillis take peek ahead at the roster of strategy games that are maybe, probably, or definitely coming out (or coming out of Early Access) in 2023. We also take an aside for som...
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Three Moves Ahead 580: 2022 in the Rear View from 2023-01-06T22:27:14
Len is joined by PCGamesN's Ian Boudreau, Fanbyte's Mike Williams, and 3MA Janitor Emeritus Mike Gillis to give a thoughtful post-mortem on the year that was 2022. What were the big ideas? What wer...
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Three Moves Ahead 579: Marvel's Midnight Suns from 2022-12-23T22:15:52
Len and Fraser are joined by PC Gamer's Evan Lahti to discuss Marvel's Midnight Suns. This tactical card battle RPG from Firaxis is a big departure from XCOM... or is it? We gush and grumble about ...
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Three Moves Ahead 578: Slaves to Armok: God of Blood Chapter II: Dwarf Fortress from 2022-12-16T21:13:47
Jon and Len are joined by Fanbyte's Mike Williams and freelance writer Gita Jackson to celebrate and discuss the steam release of Dwarf Fortress. We dig greedily and deep into what makes this game ...
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Three Moves Ahead 577: Marvel Snap from 2022-12-03T04:23:06
Len and Rowan are joined by Brian "Chef Lu Bu" Smawley and Axe of the Blood God's Eric Van Allen to discuss Marvel Snap, the latest free-to-play comic book card battle sensation. We talk about how ...
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Three Moves Ahead 576: Mount&Blade II: Bannerlord from 2022-11-26T01:47:39
Len and John are joined once again by UNC Chapel Hill's Dr. Bret Devereaux to finally, at long last, discuss Mount&Blade II: Bannerlord. We have some mixed feelings about it. What did we love and w...
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Three Moves Ahead 575: Total War: Warhammer Immortal Empires Interview from 2022-11-19T04:11:44
Len is joined this week by a full squad of developers from Creative Assembly to talk about Total War: Warhammer 3's Immortal Empires beta launch, and what may be to come in the near future. DLC Dir...
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Three Moves Ahead 574: Victoria 3 from 2022-11-01T04:07:27
The long-awaited steel and steam macroeconomics simulator from Paradox has finally graced us with its presence, and we've assembled a League of Extraordinary Lady and Gentlemen to discuss it. Len a...
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Three Moves Ahead 573: Crusader Kings 3 in 2022 from 2022-10-29T01:24:31
Rowan is joined by Firaxis Narrative Lead Cat Manning and freelance writer Ruth Cassidy to discuss Crusader Kings 3, two years on. How do we feel about it after all the patches and DLCs? What's gr...
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Three Moves Ahead 572: Forever Games from 2022-10-15T05:31:56
This week, Len and Jon discuss the concept of the Forever Game: the strategy game you could keep playing from now until the end of time. Do they even really exist? What has come closest for us? And...
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Three Moves Ahead 571: Terra Invicta from 2022-09-30T00:48:21
SPOILER WARNING! Skip from 44:00 to 58:43 if you want to experience your first playthrough blind to the truths behind the alien threat. Len and Jon take to the stars with Terra Invicta: a wildly a...
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Three Moves Ahead 570: Grand Tactician: The Civil War from 2022-09-16T20:44:49
The promise of the Civil War game that does everything is enticing but elusive. Now that it's out of early access, is Grand Tactician: The Civil War that game? Is it even close? Rowan and Rob get i...
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Three Moves Ahead 569: Immortal Empires from 2022-08-31T19:40:15
Len, Rowan, Jon, and Kotaku's Luke Plunkett take the plunge into Total War: Warhammer 3's Immortal Empires beta. It's the fullest realization of the promise Creative Assembly made six years ago and...
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Three Moves Ahead 568: Farthest Frontier from 2022-08-26T06:11:38
Len and Jon are joined again by UNC Chapel Hill's Dr. Bret Devereaux to discuss Farthest Frontier, a survival city-builder with an uncommon level of historical authenticity. From clearing brush to ...
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Three Moves Ahead 567: Two Point Campus from 2022-08-13T04:00:03
Len and Jon are joined once again by Fanbyte's Mike Williams to talk about their semester abroad in Two Point Campus. Is the humor a bonus or a drawback? How is it, really, as a management game? An...
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Three Moves Ahead 566: RTS Esports and Stormgate from 2022-07-30T04:29:07
Len is joined by two special guests, Strategy Lead at Vortex Games Trent Murray and Head of Esports at Frost Giant Studios, Trevor "TorcH" Housten. From the glory days of Brood War in Korea to the ...
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Three Moves Ahead 565: Strategic Command: American Civil War from 2022-07-22T23:54:21
Rowan, Troy, and Ian Boudreau dig into Strategic Command: American Civil War. Taking a very high-level look at the conflict, the focus is much more on the operation than individual battles. It's a...
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Three Moves Ahead 564: Company of Heroes 3 North Africa Interview from 2022-07-13T20:44:11
Rob sits down with Company of Heroes 3 Lead Gameplay Designer Matt Philip and Senior Designer Will Ward to talk about the recently-released North Africa alpha, which you can play from today until J...
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Three Moves Ahead 563: Starship Troopers: Terran Command from 2022-07-01T02:06:06
Len is joined by Sin Vega to discuss Starship Troopers: Terran Command, a bug-splattering RTS that happens to be the first licensed Starship Troopers game in far longer than you may realize. And th...
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Three Moves Ahead 562: Songs of Conquest from 2022-06-25T17:14:42
Len and 3MA Radar Technician Mike are joined by Sports Business Journal's Jason Wilson to talk about Songs of Conquest, an early access aspiring successor to Heroes of Might and Magic. We've got fr...
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Three Moves Ahead 561: Warhammer: 40,000: Chaos Gate: Daemonhunters from 2022-05-28T23:42:42
Len and Rowan are joined by Kotaku's Luke Plunkett and Twitch streamer Casey Explosion to talk about Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate: Daemonhunters, and also more than a little bit of Mechanicus since...
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Three Moves Ahead 560: Old World Interview from 2022-05-20T19:08:36
Len and Jon are joined by Leyla and Soren Johnson to talk about Old World's Steam launch and its first big expansion. We got their thoughts on the Early Access process, figuring out how to depict h...
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Three Moves Ahead 559: Off Duty - May 2022 from 2022-05-15T02:45:18
Len and Rowan are joined by Fanbyte's Steven Strom to test fly a new episode format. Our usual episodes covering a specific game or digging deep on a single topic aren't going anywhere, but this we...
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Three Moves Ahead 558.5: Movie Night: Gettysburg (Patreon Preview) from 2022-05-01T04:28:25
Over on Waypoint I’ve spent about a month looking back at Sid Meier’s Gettysburg and teaching the game to the rest of the crew (with varying levels of success). But since I was already hip-deep in ...
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Three Moves Ahead 558: Dune: Spice Wars Early Access from 2022-04-30T02:22:56
Len, Fraser, and Jon take a look at Shiro Games' Dune: Spice Wars, which just launched into early access. Is this the modern Dune RTS we've been waiting decades for? As it so happens, it ends up ig...
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Three Moves Ahead 557: Cantata Interview from 2022-04-25T01:54:52
We explore our impact on the strategy game world as Jon sits down with creative director Kyle Kukshtel to talk about Cantata, an indie space tactics game directly inspired by a conversation we had ...
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Three Moves Ahead 556: Ethics in Strategy Games from 2022-04-15T05:41:26
Rob and Rowan are joined this week by freelance writer Ruth Cassidy, whose article, "Ethically designing unethical worlds" (https://www.gamedeveloper.com/design/ethically-designing-unethical-worlds...
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Three Moves Ahead 555: Triangle Strategy from 2022-04-01T17:57:51
This week, Rowan recruits Fanbyte's Mike Williams, freelance writer Kendal Erickson, and 3MA's Correspondent for All Things Three-Sided, Brian Smawley, to discuss Triangle Strategy. The Switch has ...
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Three Moves Ahead 554: Empires and Imperialism with Bret Devereaux from 2022-03-14T01:29:46
Len and Mike are joined once again by Dr. Bret Devereaux (@BretDevereaux), Visiting Lecturer in the Department of History at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and author of the blog A...
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Three Moves Ahead 553: Total War: Warhammer 3 from 2022-03-01T07:02:49
Len, Rowan, Fraser, and Jon join forces on one episode for the first time in a long time to talk about Total War: Warhammer 3. With nine new factions, a new story-driven campaign, and a customizabl...
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Three Moves Ahead 552: Crusader Kings 3: Royal Court from 2022-02-22T03:34:43
Len and Ian take a look at the first full expansion for Crusader Kings 3, and it's a chunky one. Royal Court adds a full 3D throne room and the ability to interact with your subjects at eye level f...
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Three Moves Ahead 551: HighFleet from 2022-02-12T02:14:06
This week, Jon and Rob dig in to what Rob has dubbed "yet another entry in the crowded Lunar Lander Bullet Hell Naval Wargame Roguelike Visual Novel genre." It's not an easy game to get into, so ho...
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Three Moves Ahead 550: Expeditions: Rome from 2022-02-01T22:23:19
Len and Troy plunge gladius-first into the Late Republic to win victories on the tactical and strategic scale in Expeditions: Rome. The third installment in the series has more going on than ever b...
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Three Moves Ahead 549: The Strategy Outlook for 2022 from 2022-01-21T20:06:46
Len and Rowan come in for a low glide over 2022's calendar of strategy game releases to discuss what excites us, what worries us, and what smaller stuff we're keeping an eye on. Will Victoria 3 liv...
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Three Moves Ahead 548: 2021 Recap from 2022-01-15T00:06:20
Troy and Len are joined by PCGamesN's Ian Boudreau and Fanbyte's Mike Williams to look back on a year that's a bit hard to summarize. Why can't we find a theme to slap on 2021? What were some of th...
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Three Moves Ahead 547: Hearts of Iron IV: No Step Back from 2021-12-24T22:20:18
Len and Kotaku's Luke Plunkett dig into the logistics-laden recent expansion and patch for Hearts of Iron 4 with No Step Back and the Barbarossa Update. How has it changed how we play, and how does...
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Three Moves Ahead 546: Company of Heroes 3 Multiplayer Interview from 2021-12-04T03:03:22
Rob got to check out a pre-alpha build of Company of Heroes 3's multiplayer, and now he's sitting down with lead gameplay designer Matt Philip and map designer Will Ward. Among the topics on the do...
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Three Moves Ahead 545: Against the Storm from 2021-11-19T04:38:49
Rowan, Jon, and Ian Boudreau talk about Against the Storm, an early access city-builder that forces you to abandon your cities after a set amount of time. How do these shorter runs affect how we ap...
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Three Moves Ahead 544: Darkest Dungeon II Early Access from 2021-11-12T08:20:28
Rowan recruits Fanbyte's Steven Strom and long-lost guest Jason Wilson to take a look at Darkest Dungeon II in early access. That's right, five years later we finally put out an episode with Darkes...
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Three Moves Ahead 543: Age of Empires 4 from 2021-11-05T21:08:54
Len and Ian Boudreau discuss Age of Empires 4, the long-awaited return of one of the RTS genre's defining franchises. What's new and what's been kept the same? And where would we like to see it go ...
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Three Moves Ahead 542: The State with Bret Devereaux from 2021-10-29T03:55:37
Len, Rowan, and Mike are joined by Dr. Bret Devereaux (@BretDevereaux), Visiting Lecturer in the Department of History at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and author of the blog A Co...
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Three Moves Ahead 541: Strategy Games As A Service from 2021-10-22T04:48:38
Len and Rowan discuss the concept of"games as a service" as it relates to the strategy space. Is it a good thing? Has it always been around and we just called it something different? Can you ever r...
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Three Moves Ahead 540: A Send Off to Civilization 6 from 2021-10-08T18:59:50
Troy, Len, and Jon sit down to discuss the Civilization 6 New Frontiers DLC pass and where the king of 4X stands in 2021. How does Civ 6 now compare to launch five years ago? How have its modern co...
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Three Moves Ahead 539: Conquest of Elysium 5 from 2021-09-18T04:39:39
Jon and Ian Boudreau talk Conquest of Elysium 5, a lo-fi fantasy tactics game with Dwarf Fortress-like procedural world generation. Lead armies of moose, visit other planes of existence that are do...
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Three Moves Ahead 538: Hell Let Loose from 2021-09-04T04:53:38
This week Rob is joined by Ranged Touch's Cameron Kunzelman and PCGamesN's Ian Boudreau to discuss an unusual World War II military shooter that feels more like a tactics game: Hell Let Loose. Hear...
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Three Moves Ahead 537: Humankind from 2021-08-20T02:02:04
Len, Rowan, and Fraser gather to discuss Amplitude's Humankind, the Civ competitor that has been looming large over our release radar for the past couple years. How does it compare to Sid Meier's f...
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Three Moves Ahead 536: Slipways from 2021-08-13T04:56:34
Len, Jon, and Mike discuss the indie space "4X without two and a half of the Xes" Slipways. We dig into the benefits of games designed with very strict rules that eventually let you break most of t...
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Three Moves Ahead 535: Deck Builders from 2021-08-06T08:32:38
Rob is joined by Nicole Clark and Cameron Kunzelman to discuss two recent deck builders: Klei's Griftlands and Abrakam's Roguebook. What do we like and what brings us dismay about each? How do they...
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Three Moves Ahead 534: Dark Deity from 2021-08-01T05:14:48
Rob and Rowan are joined by PCMag's Mike Williams to discuss Dark Deity, a JRPG-inspired indie tactical RPG. What lies beneath the outward riffing on Fire Emblem? What kind of characters will we be...
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Three Moves Ahead 533: Old World from 2021-07-23T10:25:16
Troy, Len, and Jon gather by the fire to discuss Old World, the new ancient world 4X from Civilization IV designer and prolific 3ma guest Soren Johnson. Does the tighter timeframe help or hinder it...
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Three Moves Ahead 532: Company of Heroes 3 Interview from 2021-07-13T15:36:49
Relic has announced Company of Heroes 3! Rob and Len were given a chance to give a bit of the new dynamic campaign map a go. Now they're joined by Relic's David Littman and Matt Philip to discuss w...
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Three Moves Ahead 531: Siege Survival: Gloria Victis from 2021-07-02T00:54:35
Rob, Troy, and Fraser have only a curtain wall and a micromanagement puzzle between them and the invading hordes as they discuss Siege Survival: Gloria Victis. Who will hold out, and who will secre...
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Three Moves Ahead 530: Total War: Three Kingdoms: Endgame from 2021-06-28T01:43:24
Rob and Rowan are joined once again by Three Kingdoms opinion-haver Brian "Chef Lu Bu" Smawley to discuss Creative Assembly's very odd pronouncement of ending support for Total War: Three Kingdoms....
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Three Moves Ahead 529: Early Access City Builders from 2021-06-20T19:21:05
In one of our biggest panels ever, Rowan, Fraser, Len, Jon, and Mike are joined by Sin Vega to discuss the many city builders currently stewing in Early Access, or which had a long tenure there. Wh...
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Three Moves Ahead 528: Hundred Days - Winemaking Simulator from 2021-05-29T23:46:48
Rob and Len are joined by behind-the-scenes mastermind Mike to pursue some millennial agriculture fantasies, step on some grapes, and grit their teeth through a bit of sus localization. Will they t...
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Three Moves Ahead 527: Ultimate Admiral: Age of Sail from 2021-05-25T04:15:38
Michael Hermes makes a port of call as Rob, Nick Capozzoli, and Matt Flanigan take to the high seas in Ultimate Admiral: Age of Sail. Rob hates the land combat, Matt hates the way the ships behave ...
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Three Moves Ahead 526: Total War: Rome Remastered from 2021-05-08T00:01:18
Rob, Jon, and Len have taken up their swords and strapped on their sandals to party like it's 2004. What did the original Total War: Rome do right that the series hasn't since? And does it hold up ...
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Three Moves Ahead 525: Unity of Command II - Barbarossa from 2021-04-30T04:51:21
Troy and Rob are joined by Kotaku's Luke Plunkett to discuss Unity of Command II's Barbarossa expansion. How much of the frustration you feel leading the Germans on the Eastern Front comes from any...
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Three Moves Ahead 524: The Total War: Rome Remastered Interview from 2021-04-23T06:32:16
This week, as we prepare for the release of Total War: Rome Remastered, Rob welcomes Creative Assembly's Kevin McDowell and Guy Davidson, who both worked on the original Rome. They talk about the s...
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Three Moves Ahead 523: Workers and Resources: Soviet Republic from 2021-04-09T05:48:21
Len and Jon are joined by Alice Caldwell-Kelly and Justin Roczniak of Well There's Your Problem to talk about Workers and Resources: Soviet Republic. May contain revisionism. Check out Well There'...
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Three Moves Ahead 522: Suzerain from 2021-04-02T04:07:43
Rob is joined by freelance writer Sin Vega to discuss Suzerain, a branching narrative head-of-state simulator that asks you to make complex decisions about the politics of a small, Cold War nation....
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Three Moves Ahead 521: Shadow Empire from 2021-03-26T07:10:47
Rob, Jon, and shadow councilor Mike are joined by 3ma Panelist Emeritus Tom Chick to discuss Shadow Empire, a post-apocalyptic sci fi colony management sim with a 300+ page manual.
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Three Moves Ahead 520: An Interview with Dana Lombardy from 2021-03-12T01:48:50
Bruce takes the Winter of Wargaming to the Streets of Stalingrad as he interviews acclaimed wargame designer Dana Lombardy to discuss his past, present, and future work. Check out lombardystudios....
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Three Moves Ahead 519: Field of Glory II: Medieval from 2021-03-05T07:17:35
Rob, Troy, and Jon discuss Field of Glory II: Medieval as the Winter of Wargaming enters the Middle Ages. Who are these guys Alexander Nevsky brought to war today? Anybody? Pyotr, are they friends ...
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Three Moves Ahead 518: PanzerBlitz from 2021-02-25T16:02:48
As the Winter of Wargaming presses on, Rob and Bruce discuss the Avalon Hill classic PanzerBlitz and the interplay between game mechanics and the awesome war movie you see in your head. Support us...
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Three Moves Ahead 517: An Interview with Lou Coatney from 2021-02-12T23:41:01
Note: Since this episode was recorded, one of the designers discussed, Tom Russell, has come out as transgender. Please note that while he / him is used on the podcast, her correct pronouns are she...
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Three Moves Ahead 516: Total War: Warhammer 2 and 3 from 2021-02-06T20:35:01
Len, Rowan, and Fraser ally up to discuss all of the updates to Total War: Warhammer 2 since its launch, as we've miraculously not done a show on it since then, and the piping hot announcement of T...
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Three Moves Ahead 515: Faction Design from 2021-01-29T03:59:23
Rob, Rowan, and Len discuss how faction design in strategy games has changed over the years, and the trend toward more specific and asymmetrical mechanics which started in RTS before spreading to t...
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Three Moves Ahead 514: Airborne Kingdom from 2021-01-15T00:00:10
Fraser and Jon are joined by PC Gamer's Rachel Watts to discuss high-flying city builder Airborne Kingdom. Can this unorthodox spin on the classic genre keep our interest aloft?
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Three Moves Ahead 513: 2020 in Review from 2021-01-08T06:39:41
Rob, Rowan, Jon, and Len discuss the year in the rear view. 2020 was a year we'll never forget. But can we say the same about its strategy games? How good was Crusader Kings 3, really? What could o...
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Three Moves Ahead 512: Per Aspera from 2020-12-18T03:50:55
STORY SPOILERS! Skip ahead from 58:30 to 1:13:05 to avoid. Rowan, Jon, and Len discuss the new Mars colonization game Per Aspera, and how it weaves branching story into a classic colony builder.
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Three Moves Ahead 511: Wingspan from 2020-12-12T06:52:26
Troy and Jon are joined by Dicebreaker editor-in-chief Matt Jarvis to discuss the PC version of the award-winning avian card game Wingspan. What are these birds up to? Where are they coming from? S...
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Three Moves Ahead 510: Möbius Front '83 from 2020-12-04T04:43:40
Rob, Troy, and Jon discuss Zachtronics' Cold War wargame Möbius Front '83. What has it borrowed from the genre's storied past? And what might it have missed from recent years?
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Three Moves Ahead 509: The Insider and All The President's Men from 2020-11-24T03:52:50
Troy and Rob discuss two films about exposing the seedy underbelly of the institutions of power: Michael Mann's Insider and Alan J. Pakula's All The President's Men. How has the film industry's por...
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Three Moves Ahead 508: Star Renegades from 2020-11-09T06:18:13
Rowan and Jon Bolding are joined by Fanbyte's Steven Strom and Waypoint Radio's Ricardo Contreras to discuss spacefaring tactical roguelike Star Renegades.
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Three Moves Ahead 507: Sid Meier's Sid Meier's Memoir from 2020-11-02T21:34:52
Troy and Rowan are joined by Paradox's Johan Andersson and Mohawk Games' Soren Johnson to discuss the august Sid Meier's recent book, Sid Meier's Memoir.
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Three Moves Ahead 506: Iron Harvest from 2020-10-09T03:18:39
Rob, Troy, and the prodigal panelist Jon Bolding discuss the alt history interwar RTS Iron Harvest. Can a strategy game be good in single-player for the same reasons it's bad in multiplayer? Aren't...
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Three Moves Ahead 505: Crusader Kings 3 from 2020-09-23T05:08:07
Rob, Rowan, Fraser, and Leana discuss their feelings on Crusader Kings 3 a few weeks after launch. How do we feel now that we've spent more time with the full version? Why does Rob keep sleeping wi...
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Three Moves Ahead 504: Troy and Kingdom of Heaven from 2020-09-14T22:15:03
Rob and Troy are walking the battlements as they revisit Wolfgang Peterson's "Troy" and Ridley Scott's director's cut of "Kingdom of Heaven". What do these two movies about major siege-battles foug...
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Three Moves Ahead 503: Total War: Three Kingdoms - The Furious Wild from 2020-09-04T03:09:18
Rob and Leana are joined by Creative Assembly's Simon Mann to talk about the latest DLC for Total War: Three Kingdoms, The Furious Wild.
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Three Moves Ahead 502: A Total War Saga: Troy from 2020-08-29T14:26:09
Rob, T.J., and Fraser are joined by freelance writer Dia Lacina to discuss A Total War Saga: Troy. The ancient city, not the creator of this show.
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Three Moves Ahead 501: Othercide from 2020-08-13T04:49:23
Rob and T.J. are joined by freelance writer Astrid Johnson to discuss goth girl tactics game Othercide.
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Three Moves Ahead 500: Origins from 2020-08-02T22:46:12
For our landmark 500th episode, Rob sits down with Rowan, T.J., Troy, and Bruce to discuss the formative games that made us strategy fans. Buckle in - it's a long one!
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Three Moves Ahead 499: Desperados III from 2020-06-30T00:52:45
USgamer's Mike Williams and Kotaku's Luke Plunkett join Rob to talk about Desperados III, the stealth tactics puzzler from Mimimi. They talk quicksaving versus flow, stealth tactics vs stealth imme...
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Three Moves Ahead 498: Crusader Kings 3 Hands-On from 2020-06-06T14:54:24
Rob and T.J. got some hands-on time with an in-development build of Crusader Kings 3, and they have a lot to say about it. Can the medieval strategy sequel live up to its now august predecessor?
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Three Moves Ahead 497: Gears Tactics from 2020-05-29T04:00:21
Rob is joined by Cameron Kunzelman and Evan Lahti to discuss Gears Tactics, which adapts the familiar rhythms and dynamics of Gears of War to a turn-based, squad-tactics format with generally posit...
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Three Moves Ahead 496: XCOM: Chimera Squad from 2020-05-13T03:52:25
Rob, Rowan, and Bruno Dias start working the mean streets of City 31 as they discuss XCOM: Chimera Squad.
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Three Moves Ahead 495: Sports from 2020-05-01T02:53:22
With the sports world mostly on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic, sports games have emerged to take their place in some of the oddest ways. Rob discusses this weird moment for sports sims with Tro...
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Three Moves Ahead 494: Stellaris Federations from 2020-04-23T23:48:22
Rowan, Jon, and T.J. are joined by Waypoint and Friends at the Table's Austin Walker to once again ask the immortal question: Is Stellaris good now? On the heels of a diplomacy rework and four year...
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Three Moves Ahead 493: Animal Crossing New Horizons from 2020-04-16T20:10:22
Fraser is joined by Jon Bolding, Dia Lacina, and Philippa Warr to discuss Animal Crossing: New Horizons, from the ways it connects to the city builder genre to the oddities of the game's premise.
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Three Moves Ahead 492: The Last Autumn (Frostpunk) from 2020-04-09T03:11:16
Rob is joined by Cameron Kunzelman and Ethan Gach to return to the world of Frostpunk before the frost as the panel considers the game's latest DLC, The Last Autumn. In some ways it's an expansion ...
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Three Moves Ahead 491: Master of Magic from 2020-03-25T16:40:40
This week we are going all the way back to 1994 to discuss Master of Magic. MoM, though not quite as popular as its bovine counterpart, was a very forward-thinking game. It offered many levels of c...
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Three Moves Ahead 490: Micro-RTS Games from 2020-03-02T17:59:59
Not every novel must be Inifinite Jest, not every RTS game must be Starcraft 2. Sure, sometimes you need to hold your copy of Starcraft 2 with the cover facing out so people at the coffee shop KNOW...
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Three Moves Ahead 489: Mandate of Heaven from 2020-02-13T05:03:35
Rob, Brian "Chef Lu Bu" Smawley, Rowan, and T.J. discuss the Mandate of Heaven expansion for Total War: Three Kingdoms. Brian has been radicalized the populist vision of the Yellow Turbans and feel...
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Three Moves Ahead 488: The Decade in Retrospect from 2020-01-20T16:04:23
Rob, T.J., Rowan, and Fraser gather to consider the last ten years in strategy games. There is a stark division about what happened to the RTS, as well as how the concept of a game being "finished"...
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Three Moves Ahead 487: Best of 2019 from 2020-01-09T16:23:41
Rowan, T.J., Jon, and Rob look back at 2019 and the games that most delighted or dismayed them.
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Three Moves Ahead 486: Lion in Winter from 2019-12-29T16:38:52
It's Christmas at the Plantagenets as Rob and Troy watch the superb Lion in Winter and the less superb Becket. What do these movies have to say about history and politics, and is any of it related ...
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Three Moves Ahead 485: Phoenix Point from 2019-12-20T17:59:41
Jon and Rob welcome back Paul Dean to discuss Julian Gollop's and Snapshot Games' Phoenix Point, which tries to blend some of the old-school systemic realism of the original X-COM games with the ea...
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Three Moves Ahead 484: Unity of Command 2 from 2019-12-12T16:38:59
Rob and Troy are joined by Kotaku's Luke Plunkett to discuss Unity of Command 2, the long-awaited sequel to on of Three Moves Ahead's favorite wargames. How does the new setting change the game, an...
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Three Moves Ahead 483: Planet Zoo from 2019-12-02T21:37:55
T.J. and Fraser are joined by Bruno Dias (@NotBrunoAgain) to talk about Planet Zoo, Frontier's spiritual successor to zoo tycoon. Animals are great, but is managing everything around keeping them h...
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Three Moves Ahead 482: Radio Commander from 2019-11-22T01:08:16
Troy, Jon, and Rob have been to The Nam and deep in "The Shit" this week as they play Serious Sim's narrative wargame, Radio Commander. To what extent is Radio Commander an actual wargame versus a ...
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Three Moves Ahead 481: Close Combat: The Bloody First from 2019-11-05T22:00:50
Rob and Troy play the new, 3D Close Combat: The Bloody First and see how it measures up to the series' history.
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Three Moves Ahead 480: 1999 from 2019-10-11T07:14:39
Rob, Rowan, and Sean welcome Jeff Green to discuss what might be the greatest year in gaming. Looking down the release slate for that year, it was obviously stacked with brilliant games like Alpha ...
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Three Moves Ahead 479: Age of Wonders: Planetfall from 2019-09-25T20:44:44
Rob, TJ, Ian Boudreau, and US Gamer editor Mike Williams discuss the very pleasant surprise that is Age of Wonders: Planetfall. From initial skepticism over the fantasy series' pivot to science fic...
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Three Moves Ahead 478: Oxygen Not Included from 2019-09-13T00:03:29
Nicole Clark joins Rowan and Rob to talk about Klei's Oxygen Not Included and its punishing model of offworld colonizaiton.Learn how everything that can go wrong does go wrong, and how well the gam...
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Three Moves Ahead 477: Fire Emblem: Three Houses from 2019-08-29T00:59:55
Rowan, Fraser, and Rob are joined by Kotaku's Gita Jackson to discuss their tenure as teachers at Garreg Mach Monastery. The gang talk about the really thougthful politics and characterizations tha...
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Three Moves Ahead 476: Pericles from 2019-08-23T22:12:09
Rob, Troy, and Bruce get together to discuss Mark Herman's epic wargame of the Peloponnesian Wars, Pericles. How does it capture the sweep of a vast historical subject that was only sometimes decid...
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Three Moves Ahead 475: Gerykon 2019: Reiner Knizia Games from 2019-08-06T04:14:06
The Tehran Conference. The meeting at Appomattox. The Council of Elrond. All historical gatherings that pale in comparison to the summit that occurred in late July 2019 as the Three Moves Ahead tea...
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Three Moves Ahead 474: Steel Division 2 from 2019-08-01T12:02:19
Rob and the gang are deeply conflicted over Steel Division 2. A good multiplayer game with some genuinely impressive detail about the armored combat on the Eastern Front, it's also a game that has ...
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Three Moves Ahead 473: Historical Guardrails from 2019-07-12T12:17:36
Rob, Rowan, TJ, and Sean discuss how "historically" they like their games to play out and whether that wish is incompatibile with player freedom and variety.
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Three Moves Ahead 472: We. The Revolution from 2019-06-27T12:08:36
Rob and Troy are bad revolutionary judges in We. The Revolution. But is there such thing as a good judge on a tribunal as compromised as this? It doesn't look like it in Polyslash's grim political ...
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Three Moves Ahead 471: Anno 1800 from 2019-06-13T18:38:42
Nice island you got here, shame if it wasn't fully industrialized! Fortunately Jon, Troy, and Rob are here to strip mine, clear-cut, and redevelop the hell out everything in sight. Troy puts this l...
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Three Moves Ahead 470: Total War: Three Kingdoms from 2019-06-01T14:00:59
This week's show is the alternate universe version of our 2013 episode on Total War: Rome II. It was two hours of non-stop slamming that poor game - a real massacre. But here we find ourselves in 2...
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Three Moves Ahead 469: Imperator: Rome from 2019-05-21T12:34:14
Rob, TJ, and Jon are not quite sure what to make of Imperator: Rome, the latest historical grand strategy game from Paradox Development Studio. Should a Hellenistic warlord have such fine control o...
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Three Moves Ahead 468: Same Thing, Different Place from 2019-05-10T02:22:35
The gang has been playing the Steel Division 2 beta and wow, things are different on the Eastern Front. That leads to a discussion of how familiar series and systems take on new life, or fail to, w...
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Three Moves Ahead 467: Hard Times or Easy Living from 2019-04-25T16:53:19
Rowan, TJ, and Rob and joined by Jon Bolding to talk about how the difficulty discussion and "designer intent" maps to strategy games... or doesn't. We discuss games that go out of their way to hig...
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Three Moves Ahead 466: Dawn of Man from 2019-04-12T21:20:51
Troy, Jon Bolding, and Rob discuss Madruga Works' Dawn of Man, a prehistoric and ancient history city builder and survival game. The gang is charmed, but also feel like there are some big gaps in t...
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Three Moves Ahead 465: Mark Herman's Empire of the Sun from 2019-04-05T02:08:25
Rob and Bruce are here to sing the praises of Mark Herman's Empire of the Sun, a brilliant adaptation of the war in the Pacific. Enjoying the game through the magic of VASSAL, our wargaming duo des...
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Three Moves Ahead 464: Dota 2 Auto Chess from 2019-03-28T01:31:22
Here's the word cloud for this week's episode: Dota2, mod, sports management, moba, battle royale, open world survival game with roguelike elements (jk but we need that SEO), deckbuilding, tower de...
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Three Moves Ahead 463: Classic Year in Review: 1994 from 2019-03-19T03:02:26
Sound Blaster! 3DFX! Games that go unpatched because there's no way to fix them! That's right, we're going back 25 years to 1994. Yes, 25 years. We're all hella old, in case that had not occurred t...
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Three Moves Ahead 462: Sid Meier's Civilization VI: Gathering Storm from 2019-03-05T03:53:13
The seas are rising. The air is getting worse. Rock bands are forming. Fraser, Sean Sands, and Troy "The Diplomatic Juggernaut" Goodfellow go for Just One More Turn (tm) with Civilization VI: Gathe...
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Three Moves Ahead 461: Three Kingdoms as a Setting from 2019-02-12T04:33:10
It's rare, but sometimes companies that aren't Koei make a game about the Three Kingdoms. During the runup to the new Total War game, we thought it would be fun to talk about the Three Kingdoms as ...
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Three Moves Ahead 460: Looking Ahead to 2019 from 2019-02-02T14:15
2018 has come and gone, its crusty remains pushed to the side for new buffet plate (always get a new plate) of games coming out in 2019. Rob, T.J., and Ian Boudreau talk about the games they're exc...
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Three Moves Ahead 459: Warhammer 40,000: Gladius - Tyranids from 2019-01-22T02:33:38
In the grim dark future there is only war. No, really. In Warhammer 40,000: Gladius - Relics of War, there is no diplomacy system. All of that nonsense has been put aside in lieu of 40K chainsword ...
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Three Moves Ahead 458: Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden from 2019-01-12T03:41:20
This week Rob, Jon Bolding, Giant Bomb's Alex Navarro, and Troy "I can't find the bard class" Goodfellow take a look at Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden by The Bearded Ladies game studio. Mutant Year...
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Three Moves Ahead 457: A Look Back at 2018 from 2018-12-31T18:51:15
We threw restraint to the wind with our 2018 wrapup this year, so you get TWO episodes for for the same great price. Session one has Rob, Troy "this is the year my musical theater career takes off"...
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Three Moves Ahead 456: Crusader Kings 2: Holy Fury from 2018-12-26T03:33:39
It's been a minute since we've talked about Crusader Kings 2, so why bring it up now? Holy Fury - the latest major DLC - is one of the most significant changes to date, moving CK2 even closer towar...
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Three Moves Ahead 455: Classic Year in Review: 2003 from 2018-12-20T04:20:19
From the dizzying highs of the Frozen Throne to the baffling lows of Master of Orion III, 2003 was a darn good year for games. Prince of Persia: Sands of Time became a hallmark for many gamers, and...
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Three Moves Ahead 454: Armored Brigade from 2018-12-14T03:36:53
If the notion of the modern RTS makes you break into a cold sweat as you think about APM and wrist pain, we have good news for you: Veitikka Studios has created a more elegant weapon for a more civ...
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Three Moves Ahead 453: Black Hawk Down and Zulu from 2018-12-06T04:18:34
We're trying something different at Three Moves Ahead this week. Rob and Troy "am I Siskel or Ebert?" Goodfellow take a brief respite from gaming to to discuss two historical military films: Zulu (...
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Three Moves Ahead 452: After Dark 2018 from 2018-11-22T04:17:53
Every once in a while we like to kick back, pour a drink, and check in with the crew to see what's going on. This week it's Rob, Rowan, and Michael on the air to discuss what they've been playing -...
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Three Moves Ahead 451: Cities: Skylines - Industries from 2018-11-16T20:21:16
Cities: Skylines has continued to grow, adding expansions like so many strip malls to suburban hell. The latest DLC, Industries, shines a light on the utilitarian but necessary underbelly of any ci...
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Three Moves Ahead 450: Two Point Hospital from 2018-10-24T02:25:58
Are you down with PPO and dyslexia treatment? If so, this week's show may be for you. Rob, Jon Bolding, and T.J. Hafer dive into Two Point Hospital, a spiritual successor to the U.K.'s favorite sim...
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Three Moves Ahead 449: Frozen Synapse 2 from 2018-10-12T01:53:10
Frozen Synapse 2 is here, bringing combat that is an intricately planned and delicate ballet that ends with a shotgun to the face. Rob, Jon Bolding, and Troy "Wait, you said we were just going out ...
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Three Moves Ahead 448: Valkyria Chronicles 4 from 2018-10-04T01:41:49
Sega's not-really-World-War-II set in kinda-Europe returns in Valkyria Chronicles 4. Valkyria Chronicles marries tactical military gameplay with anime style and story. This extra long episode of 3M...
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Three Moves Ahead 447: Tactical Management Games from 2018-09-21T03:30:42
This week features a veritable smorgasbord of strategy games as we try and define the Tactical Management Game. It's not quite a management sim and not quite a tactical strategy game. We're lookin...
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Three Moves Ahead 446: Phantom Doctrine from 2018-09-13T02:15:43
Phantom Doctrine promises a combination of tactical combat and sleuthing with cold war-era spycraft and compelling procedural narratives. Its delivery on those fronts is charming but ultimately fal...
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Three Moves Ahead 445: Mark Herman's Fort Sumter from 2018-09-05T03:30:28
Bruce is joined once again by noted game designer Mark Herman to discuss Fort Sumter: The Secession Crisis, 1860-61. Fort Sumter is a short-form card driven game that highlights the tumultuous time...
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Three Moves Ahead 444: Six Ages: Ride Like the Wind from 2018-08-31T02:44:07
King of Dragon Pass, a longtime cult favorite, is one of gaming's best storytelling platforms. In a fantasy world older than Dungeons&Dragons, King of Dragon Pass combined elements of choose your o...
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Three Moves Ahead 443: The Best RTS Comp Stomps from 2018-08-24T04:12:01
The future will not be pretty. Advances in AI and robotic mobility makes it clear that we are only years, if not months away from Skynet becoming self-aware. When it does, it will look back on what...
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Three Moves Ahead 442: Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle from 2018-08-16T02:48:46
Ever since Troy Goodfellow founded Three Moves Ahead in the mid-60s, the same question has been asked over and over: When will you cover a Mario game? Your emails, faxes, and mimeographed tracts ha...
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Three Moves Ahead 441: Rob&Bruce&WWI from 2018-08-10T02:41:25
This week: Dr. Bruce Geryk, Sommelier of the Somme, guides Rob through several unconventional takes on WWI combat. World War I poses a serious challenge to the game designer, but Bruce takes us thr...
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Three Moves Ahead 440: Cultist Simulator from 2018-08-02T03:31:55
Cultist Simulator is a game - maybe - that revels in its own vagueness. Not knowing what it's about or what you're supposed to be doing at a given time seems to be the point. There's a story in the...
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Three Moves Ahead 439: Cataclysm: A Second World War from 2018-07-23T02:56:12
In a rare live and in-person episode, Rob joins Dr. Bruce Geryk in his mountain lair to talk about GMT Games' Cataclysm: A Second World War. Cataclysm is a board game that offers a deep political s...
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Three Moves Ahead 438: Procedural Content and Strategy Layers in Games from 2018-06-23T04:11:08
It used to be enough for mainstream games to claim they had "RPG elements". Now we see games with base-building and "strategic layers" - what does that mean? Can one truly take two disparate genres...
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Three Moves Ahead 437: Slay the Spire from 2018-06-14T02:53:43
Slay the Spire, a deckbuilding game that won't require you to take out a second mortgage on your house, has captivated the members of our panel. Its crisp gameplay and tight design has the internet...
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Three Moves Ahead 436: To Infinity Engine and Beyond from 2018-06-07T02:30:40
Games like Baldur's Gate cast a long shadow but, like a racist grandparent, come along with too many caveats of being a product of their time. There have been many attempts to capture the magic of ...
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Three Moves Ahead 435: Omnia vincit Roma from 2018-05-28T14:17:40
This week we explore Rome. Not the Total War game (though it gets mentioned), but Rome itself - as a historical interest and as a touchpoint in gaming. If you've listened to the show in the past, i...
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Three Moves Ahead 434: Total War Saga: Thrones of Britannia from 2018-05-16T03:40:48
Rob, T.J., and Fraser sharpen their berserker axes and talk about Total War Saga: Thrones of Britannia. This new offshoot of the main series changes the scope by zooming in on the British isles at ...
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Three Moves Ahead 433: Frostpunk from 2018-05-08T04:45:51
It's the most Hobbesian Three Moves Ahead ever as Rob, Jonathan Bolding, and Xalavier Nelson talk about Frostpunk. This episode covers all of the pillars of Three Moves Ahead's moral compass: Megal...
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Three Moves Ahead 432: BATTLETECH from 2018-05-01T04:14:24
Harebrained Schemes' BATTLETECH is here and it has stomped its way into our hearts. The strategy game based on the PC simulations based on the RPG based on the tabletop game (or something like that...
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Three Moves Ahead 431: Hearts of Iron IV: Waking the Tiger from 2018-04-21T04:03:37
T.J. Hafer is our host with Rowan Kaiser and author April Daniels as we look at the latest Hearts of Iron IV expansion, Waking the Tiger. Released long with the major game patch "Cornflakes", Wakin...
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Three Moves Ahead 430: Classic Year in Review: 1998 from 2018-04-14T16:37:49
The year is 1998 and the 500 lb. gorilla in the room is Starcraft. Blizzard creates the finest Warhammer 40K game ever made and changes the RTS landscape forever. Half-Life. Ocarina of Time. Baldur...
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Three Moves Ahead 429: Subterfuge from 2018-04-06T02:37:39
Do you like submarines? Do you like being irrationally angry at your best friends? How about checking your phone at 2 AM? Subterfuge may be the relationship ender you've been looking for. Rob is jo...
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Three Moves Ahead 428: Gary Grigsby's War in the West from 2018-03-30T02:57:01
The Winter of Wargaming marches on with Gary Grigsby's War in the West. Bruce joins Rob and Troy "No, really, the Canadian military was actually very invol-" Goodfellow to talk about the the thunde...
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Three Moves Ahead 427: Northgard from 2018-03-24T21:35:38
This week Rob and Troy "Canadians are just as tough as Vikings" Goodfellow are joined by Waypoint's Ian Boudreau and Cameron Kunzelman to talk about Shiro Games' Northgard. A reasonably-paced RTS s...
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Three Moves Ahead 426: Into the Breach from 2018-03-18T03:05:49
Our cadre of mechs is at full capacity as Rob, Rowan, PC Gamer's Evan Lahti, and Troy "Tide pods, time pods, either way put me down for two" Goodfellow talk about Subset Games' Into the Breach. Fol...
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Three Moves Ahead 425: Stellaris 2.0&Apocalypse from 2018-03-09T04:02:58
It's a full house as Rob, Fraser, Sean Sands, and T.J. Hafer talk about the large 2.0 update to Stellaris and its Apocalypse expansion. Do you hate planets? Do you often think about blowing them up...
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Three Moves Ahead 424: Command Ops 2 from 2018-03-02T03:36:47
The Winter of Wargaming continues with Panther Games' Command Ops 2. Released a while ago under a different name under a different publisher under a different moon, Command Ops 2 is real-time warga...
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Three Moves Ahead 423: Civilization VI: Rise and Fall from 2018-02-23T03:04:28
Civilization VI is a complex game. Not in terms of its rules, or how it plays, but in the reaction it garners from fans and critics. Of course it's a good game. Is it a great game? What parts of it...
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Three Moves Ahead 422: Command: Modern Air / Naval Operations from 2018-02-16T02:32:20
We kick off the Winter of Wargaming with a whale of a first show: Command: Modern Air / Naval Operations. CMANO is a simulation built for the military and played by you, the military enthusiast at ...
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Three Moves Ahead 421: Nantucket from 2018-02-08T03:14:49
Call me Zacny. Some years ago—never mind how long precisely—having little or no money in my Steam Wallet, and nothing particular to interest me on shore... you know what, you get it. It's Moby Dick...
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Three Moves Ahead 420: Classic Year in Review: 1993 from 2018-02-02T16:04:14
Rob, Rowan, and Troy "my arcology's economy is based on poutine" Goodfellow fire up the Wayback machine once again to visit the pixely past of 1993. It is a monumental year for games as Doom is unl...
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Three Moves Ahead 419: Europa Universalis IV in 2018 from 2018-01-23T04:34:05
This week we return to an old friend, a stalwart companion, an evergreen delight that has been with us for years and years and years and years. Europa Universalis IV received several updates and ex...
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Three Moves Ahead 418: They Are Billions from 2018-01-14T02:21:38
This week Rowan, Fraser, and Troy "Why are you slathering me in zombie-q sauce?" Goodfellow talk about They Are Billions by Numantiam games. Zombies are back, but there are even MORE of them in thi...
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Three Moves Ahead 417: 2017 in Review from 2018-01-04T05:07:37
Another year of strategy gaming has come to a close. Rob, Rowan, and T.J. are here to tell you what they liked, what they didn't, and what left them vehemently ambivalent. Rob doesn't bury the lede...
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Three Moves Ahead 416: Dominions 5: Warriors of the Faith from 2017-12-20T04:57:37
This week Michael, Bruce, Jonathan Bolding, and Troy "I've never met a succubus I didn't like" Goodfellow talk about Dominions 5: Warriors of the Faith. Illwinter Games continues their long-running...
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Three Moves Ahead 415: Endless Space 2 Revisited from 2017-12-12T04:20:24
We put the call out to our Patreon backers: What game would you like us to circle back on? The winner of a heated battle was Amplitude's Endless Space 2. Released in May of 2017, Endless Space 2 to...
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Three Moves Ahead 414: 1997 in Retrospect from 2017-12-04T03:48:31
1997. Garry Kasparov loses a monumental chess match against Deep Blue, changing the state of chess forever. Troy Goodfellow acts as a body double for Leonardo DiCaprio in the recently released Tita...
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Three Moves Ahead 413: Myth from 2017-11-16T03:53:41
It's time for another patent-pending Three Moves Ahead Classic Game Analysis as Rob, Gamers with Jobs' Shawn Andrich, and Rock Paper Shotgun's Adam Smith discuss Bungie's Myth series. Myth holds a ...
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Three Moves Ahead 412: XCOM 2: War of the Chosen from 2017-11-10T03:47:55
Rob, Rowan, and David Heron take a deep dive on XCOM 2: War of the Chosen. XCOM 2 received a tepid welcome from the Three Moves Ahead panel when it first came out in early 2016, and Three Moves Ahe...
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Three Moves Ahead 411: Total War: WARHAMMER II from 2017-11-02T03:36:13
Are you ready for morehammer? Nah, just kidding, we won't do that bit again. Guest host Rowan Kaiser talks to T.J. Hafer and Kotaku's Luke Plunkett about Total War: WARHAMMER II. The Warhammer trai...
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Three Moves Ahead 410: Franchise Hockey Manager 4 and Motorsport Manager from 2017-10-25T01:43:59
It's time for a racing and hockey double-header as Rob, Michael, and Troy "My favorite movie is 1992's The Cutting Edge" Goodfellow talk about sports management sims. The beginning of a new NHL sea...
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Three Moves Ahead 409: Field of Glory II from 2017-10-18T04:04:46
It's an ancients kind of week as Rob, Rowan, and Troy "I'm so good with the elephants my mates call me 'Elephant Man'" Goodfellow talk about Field of Glory II by Byzantine Games. FoG II started as ...
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Three Moves Ahead 408: Tooth and Tail from 2017-10-03T03:16:20
Tooth and Tail has turned out to be a game of note for several reasons. First, it deftly executes the short-form RTS genre while providing luscious artwork and pleasing visuals. Next, it provides a...
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Three Moves Ahead 407: Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun from 2017-09-26T03:29:58
Tarou was awake and alert despite the chill and the early hour. Normally, drawing last watch was one of the worst tasks imaginable: a tortuous eight hours of mind-numbing circuits and bitter cold. ...
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Three Moves Ahead 406: Battlestar Galactica Deadlock from 2017-09-20T02:52:19
Rob, Rowan, and Kotaku's Luke Plunkett pull up a space chair and talk about Battlestar Galactica Deadlock. In addition to the admirable lack of colons in the title, Deadlock manages to take a licen...
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Three Moves Ahead 405: Lords of Waterdeep from 2017-09-08T04:50:15
This week's Three Moves Ahead stretches the boundaries of the podcast medium to bring you LIVE audio via recording. Rob, Rowan, Fraser, and Troy "always a bardsmaid, never a bard" Goodfellow share ...
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Three Moves Ahead 404: Total War: Warhammer Revisited from 2017-08-26T23:17:44
It's episode 404hammer and Rob, Fraser, and T.J. Hafer revisit Total War: Warhammer. With the sequel fast approaching, Rob had the itch to play some morehammer and see how the series has evolved. F...
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Three Moves Ahead 403: Survival Strategy from 2017-08-18T02:39:52
Survival: it's what separates people from animals. How far we've come from punching a tree until it explodes into logs that we can craft into workbenches. What began as humble topiary assault sprea...
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Three Moves Ahead 402: Battle Brothers from 2017-08-11T02:43:13
This week Rob, Rowan, Obsidian's Josh Sawyer, and Troy "I told you, these leeches are medicinal" Goodfellow discuss Overhype Studios' Battle Brothers. It's been a while since the panel has been smi...
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Three Moves Ahead 401: Kingdoms and Castles from 2017-08-04T19:56:07
Troy returns from vacation just as Fraser prepares to sail the wine-dark Aegean. But they pause long enough to talk about Kingdoms and Castles with Rob, a fun little medieval tower-defnse-city-buil...
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Three Moves Ahead 400: Dream Daddy Civil War from 2017-07-22T19:08:14
Forgive us. The title was Rowan's fault. Rob and Rowan have been playing Ultimate General: Civil War and Gettysburg: The Tide Turns, and those games have got them thinking about what they really, t...
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Three Moves Ahead 399: Air Combat from 2017-07-02T18:01:50
Bruce sits down with James Crate, a former naval aviator, and discusses various efforts at designing and playing games about air combat. Crate discusses how a lot of Cold War era wargames reflected...
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Three Moves Ahead 398: Taking the L from 2017-06-25T14:39:02
Rowan, Sean, and Rob discuss what goes into a "satisfying" setback as opposed to something that sends one running to the quickload button. Rowan possibly solves game design.
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Three Moves Ahead 397: Meta Campaigns from 2017-06-16T07:29:35
Rob, Fraser, and Rowan look at the game outside the game. What are the ways that strategy and tactics games contextualize our actions and decisions, and which approaches do we tend to prefer. The c...
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Three Moves Ahead 396: Endless Space 2 from 2017-05-31T04:04:14
It's a giant-sized gulp of Three Moves Ahead as Rob, Rowan, Fraser, and Sean "The Game Horatio" Sands discuss Endless Legend 2. Amplitude Games brought a competent - if not a bit bland - entry into...
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Three Moves Ahead 395: Jack Greene from 2017-05-24T04:21:26
Dr. Bruce Geryk is back to host and talks to legendary game designer and author Jack Greene. Jack has contributed several seminal games over the years, such as Bismarck Second Edition, Iron Bottom ...
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Three Moves Ahead 394: Expeditions: Vikings from 2017-05-09T03:30:05
When is a Viking not a Viking? When he's a farmer. Or a trader, maybe? Or maybe just a really sad dude that's down on himself. Rob and Troy "How hard can it be to build a farm, guys?" Goodfellow ta...
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Three Moves Ahead 393: Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War III from 2017-05-04T02:57:19
Rob, Fraser, and guest Ian Williams pick up their chainswords and head to the far-flung future to play Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War III. The original Dawn of War remains a favorite of the panel, a...
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Three Moves Ahead 392: Steel Division: Normandy 44 from 2017-04-24T02:06:24
Do you like wargames in Europe... that escalate? Do you like air AND land battles? Then Eugen games and their partners at Paradox have a game for you in Steel Division: Normandy 44. The creators of...
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Three Moves Ahead 391: Crusader Kings II: Monks and Mystics from 2017-04-11T02:50:55
The stranger's arrival coincided with omens that the villagers could not ignore. A calf born with two heads. Flocks of crows circling the village green silently as the night, their voices stolen. M...
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Three Moves Ahead 390: Medieval II: Total War from 2017-03-29T03:43:42
Rob, Fraser, and Troy "No One Expects the Canadian Inquisition" Goodfellow return to the Total War series in a Patreon-patron chosen topic. Medieval II was far and away the most voted-for game in o...
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Three Moves Ahead 389: Winter of Wargaming 2017 Wrapup from 2017-03-20T01:52:19
Rob and Bruce wrap up this year's winter of wargaming by looking back at some of the games they played and some of the trends they've seen in the wargame space. From boutique games to the pros and ...
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Three Moves Ahead 388: Scourge of War: Waterloo from 2017-03-13T03:07:49
Rob, Rowan, and Troy "As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster" Goodfellow talk about Scourge of War: Waterloo. Waterloo is the first departure for the Take Command series in...
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Three Moves Ahead 387: Churchill AAR from 2017-03-07T04:05:15
It's a very special Three Moves Ahead as we find Rob visiting Bruce in person to play a variety of wargames. The star of the weekend is Mark Herman's Churchill (previously covered in 3MA #330), a g...
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Three Moves Ahead 386: Steel Panthers from 2017-02-27T03:59:08
Fun fact: Did you know that if you search for "Steel Panthers" on Google Images you will find both A) screenshots of the Steel Panthers series and B) photographs of an active glam rock band named S...
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Three Moves Ahead 385: Star Wars: Rebellion Board Game from 2017-02-21T04:15:13
Rob, Sean Sands, and Jonathan Bolding get together to talk about Star Wars: Rebellion. No, not that one, the board game one. Fantasy Flight's take on the Star Wars universe offers an asymmetrical e...
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Three Moves Ahead 384: Hearts of Iron IV: Together for Victory from 2017-02-13T02:58:42
Hearts of Iron IV has received its first beefy chunk of DLC with Together for Victory, and Rob, Fraser, and T.J. Hafer are here to tell if you it's worth your hard-earned post war dollars. In short...
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Three Moves Ahead 383: Distant Worlds and Aurora from 2017-01-23T04:05:31
The title of the patron backer poll was: "What two (2) inscrutable games do Rob and Troy have to explain to each other?" We found the most incrutabl-iest games we could for our list and the backers...
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Three Moves Ahead 382: Battlefield 1 and First Person Shooters from 2017-01-14T20:42:19
The Winter of Wargaming is upon us once again, and to kick things off we look at a different kind of wargaming - the first person shooter. Battlefield 1 tackled the often-neglected first-person are...
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Three Moves Ahead 381: Ultimate General: Civil War from 2017-01-07T05:25:42
Rob, Rowan, and Troy "My favorite civil war documentary was F Troop" Goodfellow get together to talk about Ultimate General: Civil War. Game-Labs had an impressive debut with Ultimate General: Gett...
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Three Moves Ahead 380: The Best Strategy Games of 2016 from 2016-12-30T02:14:30
Hey there, friend. How's it going? Have a seat here next to your Uncle Rob. You can have a sip of my brandy old fashioned if you don't tell your mom. Why the long face, ace? 2016 got you down? Yeah...
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Three Moves Ahead 379: Duelyst from 2016-12-23T03:35:34
Our Patreon patrons have spoken, and the winner of our "Let's talk about an online CCG that's NOT Hearthstone" poll was Duelyst. Rob and Julian have a very un-3MA discussion in which all parties ag...
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Three Moves Ahead 378: EUIV and Rights of Man from 2016-12-19T03:36:40
Nothing is certain in this world except death, taxes, and Paradox expansions. Time marches on and EUIV, the elder statesman of the Paradox stable, the well-rounded workhorse, the stalwart represent...
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Three Moves Ahead 377: Warhammer, Glorious Warhammer from 2016-12-12T01:26:06
This week Rob, Fraser Brown, and Jonathan Bolding get together to talk about the Warhammer universe. There has been no shortage of Warhammer (both 40K and non-40K) games lately, with Games Workshop...
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Three Moves Ahead 376: Underrepresented Theaters and Conflicts from 2016-11-28T01:47:11
Rob, Bruce, and Troy "I was named after a siege" Goodfellow get together to talk about battles that just don't get enough love. Our Patreon donors voted and decided that this week the panel was to ...
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Three Moves Ahead 375: Rule the Waves from 2016-11-18T19:36:04
Bruce and Troy "Bury me with the HMS Niobe" Goodfellow welcome Matthew Flanagan to this week's show as they talk about 2015's Rule the Waves. Rule the Waves is a game about designing post-dreadnoug...
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Three Moves Ahead 374: Civilization VI from 2016-11-12T04:56:46
Troy "I hate that jerk-ass Montezuma" Goodfellow is joined by Rowan Kaiser, Fraser Brown, and David V. Heron to talk about one of the biggest strategy games of the year: Civilization VI. A new Civi...
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Three Moves Ahead 373: Amplitude Studios and the Endless Series from 2016-11-07T04:06:29
This week Rob and Fraser welcome special guest Jeff Spock, Narrative Director at Amplitude Studios. The Endless Series has garnered a large amount of praise with its impressive debut in Endless Spa...
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Three Moves Ahead 372: Chris Park and Arcen Games from 2016-10-20T02:27:52
This week, Michael and Troy "Benevolent Dictator for Life" Goodfellow welcome Chris Park of Arcen Games back to the show. Arcen has recently posted their Kickstarter for AI War 2, followup to the o...
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Three Moves Ahead 371: 3MA After Dark from 2016-10-02T01:27:33
Three Moves Ahead is serious business. We spend weeks - sometimes months - planning stimulating topics and tantalizing shows. But this week it's time to unwind. It's time to pour some scotch, dim t...
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Three Moves Ahead 370: Dean Essig from 2016-09-24T14:52:19
Bruce welcomes award-winning game designer Dean Essig of The Gamers to talk about his long history of designing wargames. Dean's experience in the military and attention to detail have helped him c...
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Three Moves Ahead 369: The Banner Saga 2 from 2016-09-16T01:58:10
WARNING: The Banner Saga 2 is a story-driven game. Certain plot points will be talked about. Major plot points from the first game are discussed. Such is life in a podcast where the point is to tal...
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Three Moves Ahead 368: Dark Reign: The Future of War from 2016-09-09T04:49:16
This month's patron-selected game is 1997's Dark Reign: The Future of War. It wasn't the prettiest game, or even the best game. But it was an RTS that existed in the glorious sepia-tinted days when...
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Three Moves Ahead 367: Bite-sized Strategy from 2016-08-31T03:29:50
Rob, David Heron, and Troy "It's dignity, gah - don't you even know dignity when you see it?" Goodfellow get together to talk about strategy games that don't take 100 hours to play. Whether you're ...
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Three Moves Ahead 366: Modern Warfare from 2016-08-12T02:57:55
Bruce is joined by game designer Mitch Land to talk about the Next War series of games and modern warfare. Modeling modern warfare is its own challenge as designers attempt to get the most accurate...
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Three Moves Ahead 365: Rimworld from 2016-08-05T02:44:55
Rowan Kaiser, Gita Jackson, and Jonathan Bolding join Troy "Why do I always have to clean the airlock" Goodfellow to talk about Rimworld. Rimworld joins a prestigious line of games in the relativel...
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Three Moves Ahead 364: Pet Peeves from 2016-08-01T03:53:03
Certain sins are unforgivable. Poor interface, an over-abundance of tooltips, and apparently ship designers. Let's get one thing straight: I - Michael, who writes these notes every week - like ship...
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Three Moves Ahead 363: Sid Meier's Pirates! from 2016-07-11T01:13:30
Rob, Fraser, and Troy "I'm tired of swabbing the poop deck" Goodfellow get together to revisit Sid Meier's Pirates! We all know who Sid Meier is, and we all what pirates are. So let's just cut to w...
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Three Moves Ahead 362: Alternate Histories from 2016-07-05T02:02:57
Rob Zacny, Rowan Kaiser, and TJ Hafer range the hills of Gettysburg and traverse the Pacific in a show that talks about games that alter the course of history. Hearts of Iron IV inspired this discu...
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Three Moves Ahead 361: Pacific War Strategic Games from 2016-06-24T02:05:38
Bruce welcomes back game designer Mark Herman to talk about games covering the Pacific War in World War II. Mark's expertise comes in the form of his two Pacific games, Pacific War (1985) and Empir...
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Three Moves Ahead 360: Hearts of Iron IV from 2016-06-17T01:51:13
Rob is joined by Bruce, Jonathan Bolding, and Fraser Brown to discuss the latest in Paradox Interactive's stable of historical games, Hearts of Iron IV. This latest entry in the series returns us t...
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Three Moves Ahead 359: Chess in 2016 from 2016-06-10T02:05:24
The inmates are running the asylum as Three Moves Ahead producer Michael Hermes takes over the show to talk about the state of chess in 2016. Joining Michael is chess professional and Youtuber John...
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Three Moves Ahead 358: Battlefleet: Gothic Armada from 2016-06-03T01:44:14
This week's show features another game chosen by our Patreon backers: Battlefleet: Gothic Armada. In the grim dark future there is only war, but here in the present there is... well, still only war...
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Three Moves Ahead 357: Total War: WARHAMMER from 2016-05-25T03:52:25
Good news, Games Workshop fans: your long wait is over. After literally days without a single new Warhammer or Warhammer 40K video game being launched, Total War: WARHAMMER is upon us. Fraser Brown...
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Three Moves Ahead 356: Ashes of the Singularity from 2016-05-18T03:23:05
Ashes of the Singularity is hard to pin down. It's not fast, like Starcraft. It doesn't have the same swagger as Grey Goo. The single-player campaign leaves much to be desired. Yet there are still ...
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Three Moves Ahead 355: Stellaris from 2016-05-09T04:31:54
It's a very special, gas giant-sized podcast as the panel discusses Paradox's newest grand strategy game, Stellaris. Stellaris takes the Paradox formula and flings it into space, replacing trade me...
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Three Moves Ahead 354: Offworld Trading Company from 2016-04-29T02:04:41
Game designer Soren Johnson returns to the show to talk about his new game, Offworld Trading Company. Built in spirit of M.U.L.E., Offworld Trading Company is an economic RTS that has the player hu...
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Three Moves Ahead 353: Twilight Struggle from 2016-04-23T03:07:25
It's an uncommonly ebullient episode of Three Moves Ahead as Rob, Julian, and Troy "Please Speak Louder Into My Bowtie, Comrade" Goodfellow talk about Twilight Struggle on the PC. This Cold War era...
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Three Moves Ahead 352: Atlantic Fleet from 2016-04-17T14:48:59
Our Patreon patrons have spoken and they chose Atlantic Fleet, a World War II naval warfare game available on mobile and PC. Rob, Bruce, and Troy "Lining Up Shots to Fire Out the Rear" Goodfellow f...
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Three Moves Ahead 351: Weekend of Wargaming from 2016-04-12T02:33:57
In order to dispel the notion that we are all just disembodied voices generated by an algorithm programmed to please fans 82% of the time, Rob and Bruce got together - in real life - to play board ...
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Three Moves Ahead 350: Aging Gracefully from 2016-04-04T03:05:29
Nostalgia is a powerful thing. Softened memories of sunlit rooms on Saturday mornings and brilliant panzer strategy replace the reality of grueling turn counts and CD-ROM issues. Can you ever reall...
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Three Moves Ahead 349: Satisfying Party Games from 2016-03-25T03:49:17
Rob Zacny gets together with Rabbitcon host Julian Murdoch as well as game designers Rob Daviau and David Heron to talk about party games. The term "party game" can conjure up a variety of games, f...
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Three Moves Ahead 348: Civilization at 25 from 2016-03-17T03:28:53
In this very special Three Moves Ahead, Rob is joined by Civilization designers Jon Shafer and Soren Johnson to talk about Civilization. The venerable strategy series turns 25 this year, and Rob al...
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Three Moves Ahead 347: Dwarf Fortress and World Simulators from 2016-03-10T00:56:33
After many requests, the Dwarf Fortress show is finally here. 3MA editor Michael Hermes and Troy "Wait, how does vomit work again" Goodfellow are joined by Gaslamp Games' Nicholas Vining and freela...
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Three Moves Ahead 346: Silver Bayonet from 2016-03-03T02:50:56
Bruce continues the Winter of Wargaming and brings on Gene Billingsley and Mitch Land of GMT games on to talk about the 25th Anniversary Edition of Silver Bayonet. Silver Bayonet was the first game...
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Three Moves Ahead 345: Decisive Campaigns: Barbarossa from 2016-02-26T02:06:56
Bruce and Troy "I know his ideas are weird but let's just hear him out" Goodfellow are joined by Rod Humble to talk about Decisive Campaigns: Barbarossa. The latest entry in the Decisive Campaigns ...
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Three Moves Ahead 344: Sekigahara: The Unification of Japan from 2016-02-21T02:22:54
Rob is joined once again by David Heron as well as the elusive Julian Murdoch to discuss Sekigahara: The Unification of Japan. Sekigahara fills a fascinating niche in the wargame space by giving a ...
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Three Moves Ahead 343: XCOM 2 from 2016-02-12T18:23:32
It's a full panel tonight as Rob, David Heron, Rowan Kaiser, and guest Jonathan Bolding discuss the newly released XCOM 2. XCOM: Enemy Unknown was a darling of the strategy game space, garnering ra...
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Three Moves Ahead 342: Satellite Reign from 2016-02-07T04:39:32
Satellite Reign is more cyberpunk than anything has a right to be. It deftly combines quality gameplay with all of the hallmark features of the often overplayed or misinterpreted genre. Giant Bomb'...
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Three Moves Ahead 341: Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak from 2016-01-28T02:58:04
It's a full house as Rob, Rowan, Fraser, and guest T.J. Hafer get together to talk about Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak. The original Homeworld games were in space. Deserts of Kharak, believe it or n...
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Three Moves Ahead 340: Hegemony 3: Clash of Ancients from 2016-01-21T02:55:27
The Patreon backers have spoken, and the listener's choice game for January is: Hegemony 3. Rob and Troy "I can tirones my own sandals, thank you" Goodfellow take a good, long look at Longbow's lat...
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Three Moves Ahead 339: Ancient Warfare from 2016-01-14T02:26:05
Spears! Cavalry! Dirt in your sandals! Rob, Bruce, and Troy "Is my pilum showing?" Goodfellow continue with the Winter of Wargaming and their discussion of ancient warfare. Learn more about history...
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Three Moves Ahead 338: Legion Wargames from 2016-01-07T02:41:20
Bruce kicks off the 2016 Winter of Wargaming by interviewing publisher Randy Lein of Legion Wargames. Legion is the publisher of many storied titles, such as B-29 Superfortress and Dien Bien Phu: T...
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Three Moves Ahead 337: 2015 Wrap-up from 2015-12-31T01:35:06
2015 has come and gone, cast aside like an empty yogurt container. "It's time for a new yogurt," you think. "I am done with this one, even if there is a little left in the bottom." Still, we should...
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Three Moves Ahead 336: Star Wars: Rebellion from 2015-12-24T02:46:01
In an episode that is in no way a cross-promotional marketing tool funded by Disney - but call me if you are interested in cross-promotional marketing - Rob, The Verge's Rich McCormick, and Idle Th...
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Three Moves Ahead 335: Thea: The Awakening from 2015-12-18T02:56:48
Rob, Fraser, guest Tim McDonald, and Troy "I've got fur, let's make hats" Goodfellow talk about Thea in language that makes it seem like they really, really like the game. Yet that's not entirely t...
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Three Moves Ahead 334: Comebacks from 2015-12-14T03:29
This week on The Game Design Rountable we have Dirk, David, and Rob talking to - wait, no. This is Three Moves Ahead and Dirk - no Rob - talk to the other Rob. Rob Zacny. I don't even know any more...
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Three Moves Ahead 333: Prison Architect from 2015-12-07T02:40
Rob Zacny and special guest Paul Dean talk about Prison Architect, a game that has recently been released yet seemingly been around forever. Rob and Paul are both quite keen on the game and its sen...
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Three Moves Ahead 332: Chaos Reborn from 2015-11-26T03:05:11
This week Rob, Bruce, and Troy "I'm not playing unless I can summon a unicorn" Goodfellow discuss Chaos Reborn. In 1985, game designer Julian Gollop released Chaos: The Battle of Wizards for the ZX...
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Three Moves Ahead 331: Starcraft 2: Legacy of the Void from 2015-11-22T16:08:59
Rob, Sean Sands, and Kotaku's Jason Schreier take a comprehensive look at Starcraft 2: Legacy of the Void. The campaign is coming to an end as long-remembered friends from the original game are bac...
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Three Moves Ahead 330: Churchill from 2015-11-12T12:43:28
Bruce sits down with renowned game designer Mark Herman to talk about his latest offering, Churchill. Combining historical personalities with the tension of negotiation, Churchill is not a wargame ...
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Three Moves Ahead 329: Civilization: Beyond Earth - Rising Tide from 2015-11-05T02:42:42
Civilization(R): Beyond Earth(TM) had a bumpy start. Despite Firaxis's's...s attempts to distance Beyond Earth the from the venerable Alpha Centauri, the game was inevitably compared to the genre f...
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Three Moves Ahead 328: King of Dragon Pass from 2015-10-29T03:18:12
It's another Classic Game Analysis as Bruce, special guest Jon Shafer, and Troy "But Being One With the Cows IS My Religion" Goodfellow talk about the venerable King of Dragon Pass. This essential ...
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Three Moves Ahead 327: Kingdom from 2015-10-25T03:31:54
Rob, Rowan, and Fraser apparently got into the catnip this week before getting together to talk about Kingdom. Kingdom is a game about chasing rabbits, usurping monarchies, and losing your hat. It ...
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Three Moves Ahead 326: State of the RTS from 2015-10-16T03:16
This week Rob, Fraser, and Troy "More Than a Phalanx" Goodfellow take a look at the RTS genre. Rob has concerns about the health of this stalwart of the strategy space, where innovation seems low a...
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Three Moves Ahead 325: Nobunaga's Ambition: Sphere of Influence from 2015-10-09T02:13:10
Rob, Gaslamp Developer Nicholas Vining, and Troy "Notice me, senpai" Goodfellow sit down to talk about Nobunaga's Ambition: Sphere of Influence. Koei has a long history of strategy games that dates...
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Three Moves Ahead 324: Tower Defense from 2015-10-05T01:47:02
Rob, Sean Sands, and Troy "I play Plants vs Zombies for the lore" Goodfellow hunker down to defend their glowing orbs and talk about tower defense. The genre is still alive and well, but did it eve...
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Three Moves Ahead 323: Company of Heroes from 2015-09-25T03:09:52
The true measure of a game's greatness is how many game developers play it during their lunch breaks. This week we learn that Company of Heroes validates this universal truth with its compelling ga...
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Three Moves Ahead 322: Wing Leader from 2015-09-17T02:41:12
Bruce and Troy "I really made a Messerschmitt" Goodfellow are joined by noted game designer Lee Brimmicombe-Wood to talk about Lee's new game, Wing Leader. Wing Leader is a side-view aerial combat ...
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Three Moves Ahead 321: Act of Aggression from 2015-09-10T03:38:24
This week is a full house with Rob, Troy, Tom, and Fraser all weighing in on Eugen Systems' Act of Aggression. Tom stands alone as the half-hearted bastion of defense for a game that underwhelmed t...
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Three Moves Ahead 320: Game Designer Brian Train from 2015-09-03T23:34:15
This week Bruce sits down with prolific game designer Brian Train. Brian's games span a wide range of conflicts and scenarios, including Greek civil war, fighting in Algeria, and Special Forces act...
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Three Moves Ahead 319: Armello from 2015-08-26T15:41:55
Rob, special guest Paul Dean, and Troy "Blue Balls Appear Irregularly" Goodfellow talk about Armello, an Early Access game available on Steam. Armello combines charming graphics and design with a g...
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Three Moves Ahead 318: Warhammer: Shadow of the Horned Rat from 2015-08-21T21:09:34
Warhammer: Shadow of the Horned Rat (1995) is a gem of a game that has recently been made available again through the magic of digital publishing. The game was ahead of its time: the 3D tactical co...
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Three Moves Ahead 317: Crusader Kings II: Horse Lords from 2015-08-06T03:09:29
TJ Hafer and Rowan Kaiser joing Rob Zacny to discuss the latest expansion to CK2, Horse Lords. Horse Lords allows the player to assume the role of the eastern hordes, galloping across Europe and th...
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Three Moves Ahead 316: Starcraft II: Legacy of the Void from 2015-08-02T03:37:54
Starcraft II remains one of the most popular Esports, BUT... It's one of the most-streamed games, BUT... the new game mode will attract new players, BUT... listen in to hear what Rob and 3MA's very...
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Three Moves Ahead 315: Fixing Franchises from 2015-07-24T03:28:59
Things can change quickly. One day all of your fans are happy, the positive reviews flow like wine, and phrases like "a return to form" are bandied about by critics. Then, when you least expect it ...
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Three Moves Ahead 314: Massive Chalice from 2015-07-17T02:59:41
It's our Pi-eth episode! Rob is joined by game designer David V. Heron and OG panelist Tom Chick to discuss Massive Chalice. Doublefin's take on squad-based tactics has Tom all aflutter while David...
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Three Moves Ahead 313: Listener Mail from 2015-07-09T03:24:06
Rob, Bruce, and Troy "They Call Me Pony Express" Goodfellow attack the mailbox. We asked 3MA listeners for questions and got them in spades, so tune in to find out the panel's favorite games, podca...
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Three Moves Ahead 312: Historical Accuracy from 2015-07-02T02:56:10
Bruce and Rob are joined by game designer Ananda Gupta to discuss the idea of historical accuracy in games. Bruce gets down to the point by looking for a definition of "historical accuracy" and whe...
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Three Moves Ahead 311: Total War: Attila from 2015-06-27T03:53:42
Rob Zacny and Troy "Flava Flavius" Goodfellow examine the latest Total War game, Attila. Following the dizzying heights of Shogun 2 and the despair-filled depths of Rome 2, Attila shows that Creati...
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Three Moves Ahead 310: EU4Ever: Common Sense from 2015-06-22T01:49:53
Rob, Rowan, and Sean Sands fulfill our listeners' requests by taking a deep dive on the newest expansion for EU4: Common Sense. The latest DLC (and associated free update) brings notable changes to...
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Three Moves Ahead 309: Hearts of Iron IV Preview from 2015-06-10T03:27:57
Paradox returns to World War II with the upcoming Hearts of Iron IV and a recent press event found Rob, Rowan, Fraser, and Gamers with Jobs' Sean Sands playing a preview build of the simulation. Th...
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Three Moves Ahead 308: Order of Battle: Pacific from 2015-05-27T02:54:04
In the beginning, there was Panzer General and it was good. Soon after that came Panzer General 2 and it was even better. After that was another game we don't talk about. Fast forward a decade or s...
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Three Moves Ahead 307: Roguelikes from 2015-05-20T03:21:27
Roguelikes. They're not strategy games, but they're everywhere. Well, parts of them are. Very specific parts, but rarely all of them, at least not enough to make everyone happy. To discuss these fi...
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Three Moves Ahead 306: Invisible, Inc. from 2015-05-14T03:02:43
Rob and Troy talk to Jamie Cheng and James Lance of Klei Entertainment, developers of Invisible, Inc, a turn-based tactical game that focuses on stealthy people doing stealthy things.
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Three Moves Ahead 305: Kim Kanger and French Colonial Wargaming from 2015-05-07T15:34:58
This week, Bruce Geryk hosts Kim Kanger, designer of Dien Bien Phu: The Final Gamble, as well as a series of wargames covering France's 20th century colonial wars. They discuss the appeal and impor...
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Three Moves Ahead 304: Star Drive 2 from 2015-05-01T02:01:08
MoO-ve over, other space 4X games -- Star Drive 2 is here and ready to impress. Fraser Brown (it's definitely Fraser this time) and Rob discuss the finer points of perpetuating genocide on a mass s...
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Three Moves Ahead 303: Heroes of the Storm from 2015-04-24T03:32:25
Open your folder of fanfic and scroll down to the Warhammer and Warhammer 40K crossover you've always wanted to publish, the one where the dark elves fight space marines with acid spitting aliens a...
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Three Moves Ahead 302: The 4X Genre from 2015-04-15T02:30:43
Have you ever felt unable to articulate the gnawing doubt that paws at your mind as you play another 4X strategy game? Wondered at the tickle of weariness that plays at your mind as you once again ...
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Three Moves Ahead 301: John Tiller's Squad Battles - First World War from 2015-04-08T01:25:02
The Winter of Wargaming plods forward, inch by inch, straining through the rain and grime amidst a hail of enemy artillery and rifle fire. The trenches never end, a maze of mud and blank-faced sold...
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Three Moves Ahead 300: Vietnam '65 from 2015-03-30T02:32:05
Three Moves Ahead extends a warm welcome to founding member and persistent barista Tom Chick for our 300th episode. Tom, Rob, Bruce and Troy "I Hate Nicknames" Goodfellow discuss Vietnam 65, a PC a...
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Three Moves Ahead 299: Earliest Access from 2015-03-19T02:36:03
Rob is joined by Darkest Dungeon developer Tyler Sigman as well as Jon Shafer and Soren Johnson to talk about Early Access. As more games come onto the market in Early Access, gamers are getting mo...
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Three Moves Ahead 298: Cities: Skylines from 2015-03-15T01:58:03
This is, by far, the most drug-filled, corpse-ridden, communism-fueled episode of Three Moves Ahead yet. Cities: Skylines has quickly become the darling of the city management scene and Fraser Brow...
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Three Moves Ahead 297: Frozen Cortex from 2015-03-07T03:47:58
Mode 7 developer Ian Hardingham joins Rob and Fraser to talk about Frozen Cortex, the robot football follow-up to 2011's Frozen Synapse. Fighting robots! Running plays! Stats? Wrong end zone!
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Three Moves Ahead 296: Sunless Sea from 2015-02-25T19:48:02
Rob, Bruce, Julian, and Fraser set sail in the macabre and fascinating land of Sunless Sea. Based on the setting of the browser game Fallen London, Sunless Sea fills out its bingo card quickly as a...
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Three Moves Ahead 295: Heroes of Might and Magic from 2015-02-20T16:25:44
Rob, Rowan, and Troy "I have a Gnoll friend" Goodfellow talk about the Heroes of Might and Magic series in its entirety, from bright, pixely start to Match Three finish. HD remakes, RPG spinoffs, p...
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Three Moves Ahead 294: Fifty Shades of Grey Goo from 2015-02-04T03:53:04
Rob is joined by freelance writer T.J. Hafer and Gamers With Jobs' Shawn Andrich to talk about Grey Goo, a new RTS with a classic aesthetic and modern conveniences. Also, goo.
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Three Moves Ahead 293: Close Combat from 2015-01-29T03:23:20
The Winter of Wargaming continues with Rob, Bruce, and Troy "We Need More Canadians" Goodfellow talking about the Close Combat series. The series saw a refresh in 2014's Gateway to Caen - was it en...
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Three Moves Ahead 292: Advanced Squad Leader from 2015-01-19T01:42:29
Bruce and Julian sit down to talk about the often mentioned (but rarely truly discussed) Advanced Squad Leader. Joining them are Jeff Hallet and Dave Kleinschmidt, hosts of what is undeniably the b...
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Three Moves Ahead 291: Europa Universalis IV in 2015 from 2015-01-13T03:16:44
Sean Sands from Gamers With Jobs joins Rob to talk about Europa Universalis IV. EUIV has seen several expansions and updates since its launch, and what used to be the undisputed flagship of the stu...
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Three Moves Ahead 290: Odds and Ends from 2015-01-03T04:17:50
Just in time for the weekend, it's Rob and Troy "Miscellaneous is my Middle Name" Goodfellow back together to talk about some of the smaller games that fell through the cracks during this holiday s...
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Three Moves Ahead 289: 2014, King of Years from 2014-12-24T08:28:55
Rob Zacny, Fraser Brown, Rowan Kaiser, and Troy "You Say 'Two Piers', I say 'Paradox'" Goodfellow talk about all the terrific and not-so-terrific things that happened in strategy gaming in 2014. En...
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Three Moves Ahead 288: Ardennes Assault from 2014-12-18T03:10:47
Rob and Fraser talk about Company of Heroes 2: Ardennes Assault. Someone, on this very show, declares Ardennes assault to be the best - the BEST - that Company of Heroes has ever been. But who? Who...
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Three Moves Ahead 287: General Mayhem from 2014-12-04T03:08:55
The most regular of panels is together to talk about generals: how are they portrayed in games, and do they accurately represent the effect of true leadership on the battlefield? Rob, Julian, Frase...
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Three Moves Ahead 286: Valkyria Chronicles from 2014-11-27T04:43:26
Valkyria Chronicles: a product of Sega's ill-fated R&D development team that was sort of set in Holland and loosely based on a conflict that may have been World War II (but wasn't). Rob is joined b...
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Three Moves Ahead 285: No Coffee, No Smokes from 2014-11-21T02:37:02
Kotaku's Evan Narcisse joins Rob and Fraser to discuss This War of Mine. Rather than pushing chits around from the remote general's chair, This War of Mine plunges the player into the lives of the ...
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Three Moves Ahead 284: This is My Arquebus from 2014-11-15T03:59:36
Rob, Troy, and Bruce discuss Pike and Shot, a wargame about everyone's favorite 16th-century military formation.
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Three Moves Ahead 283: A Sterile Future from 2014-11-07T02:16:29
Rob, Fraser, and Troy "It's my planet I'll do what I want" Goodfellow talk about the latest entry into the Civ franchise, Civilization: Beyond Earth. Is this the game we've all been waiting for? We...
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Three Moves Ahead 282: Surrender or Die in Obscurity from 2014-10-30T02:40:09
At long last, console games are coming to Three Moves Ahead. Michael Hermes and Jenn Cutter join Troy "Zodiac" Goodfellow to talk about Square's 1997 Playstation game Final Fantasy Tactics. Listen ...
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Three Moves Ahead 281: Black on Red from 2014-10-22T21:27:12
The original panel gets together to talk about an original game made by our original intern, Soren Johnson (also known for designing Civilization IV). Rob, Julian, Bruce, and Troy "The Wolf of Ni...
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Three Moves Ahead 280: Have Fun Storming the Castle from 2014-10-17T02:34:30
You think you can get into my castle? You can't. I've got a moat. I've got a moat, and I've got some big-ass walls. See those arrow slits? We're going to shoot arrows at you, and there's not a damn...
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Three Moves Ahead 279: Teenage Zombie Insects from 2014-10-10T02:35:29
Fraser Brown and Rowan Kaiser join Troy "Restart" Goodfellow to talk about Endless Legend. Most of them agree that Endless Space was good... but not great. Does Endless Legend pick up the slack and...
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Three Moves Ahead 278: Troy Goodfellow Simulator 2014 from 2014-10-03T02:44:59
Kotaku's Patricia Hernandez and Eurogamer's Paul Dean join Troy "Morris Windsor" Goodfellow to talk about the latest installment in the Sims Franchise. Discussion abounds regarding pools, toddlers,...
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Three Moves Ahead 277: Separate Ways (Worlds Apart) from 2014-09-25T02:25:24
Planetary Annihilation is finally here, and Rob is joined by Fraser Brown (PCGamesN) and Brendan Caldwell (Rock Paper Shotgun) to discuss their differing views on the game.
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Three Moves Ahead 276: Functional Cogs Only from 2014-09-18T02:00:32
The crew from Gaslamp Games talks to Rob and Troy about their upcoming (but available in early access) simulation game, Clockwork Empires. Daniel Jacobsen, Nicholas Vining, and David Baumgart answe...
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Three Moves Ahead 275: The Rise of Nations Show from 2014-09-12T03:04:04
Where does one begin to discuss what has been called "The Official Game of Three Moves Ahead"? Tom would say: by describing the sublime user interface, or maybe the clever ways the game handles t...
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Three Moves Ahead 274: Mail Call! from 2014-09-04T02:22:38
What's the craziest thing you've ever seen a computer AI do? What kind of product does Rob use in his hair? Does Troy really sing showtunes all the time? (Yes.) Some of these questions are answered...
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Three Moves Ahead 273: The Guns of August from 2014-08-22T02:16:02
Rob Zacny and Troy "Vimy Ridge" Goodfellow continue the discussions of World War I with Slitherine's Commander: The Great War. Alternate episode titles:Slow Your Kaiser Roll World War Fun
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Three Moves Ahead 272: Knights of the Sky from 2014-08-13T23:20:59
In a feat more rare than a perfectly executed Reverse Cuban Eight, the entire panel is on board for this week's show. Rob Zacny, Julian Murdoch, Bruce Geryk, and Troy "Sopwith Camel" Goodfellow tal...
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Three Moves Ahead 271: The Last Express from 2014-08-08T02:41:47
Three Moves Ahead continues to explore World War I in an extended episode that looks at 1997's The Last Express. Rob and Troy are joined by Idle Thumbs' Chris Remo to dive into an adventure game th...
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Three Moves Ahead 270: Gaul Stones from 2014-07-24T02:55:31
Today's episode on Hegemony Rome: The Rise of Caesar is all about learning. We learn that Troy's eloquence is as fleeting as the wind. We learn about Fraser's dark side. We also learn that Rob, ah,...
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Three Moves Ahead 269: Crisis Management from 2014-07-17T01:49:07
Game Designer Chris King joins Rob and Troy to talk about crisis management and political tension in video games. In this anniversary year of World War I it's only fitting to discuss the systems an...
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Three Moves Ahead 268: Pickett's Charge from 2014-07-09T22:41:26
Rob, Julian, and Troy "Stonewall" Goodfellow get together to talk about Ultimate General: Gettysburg. Is this the bargain we've been waiting for? The next great Gettysburg game? The game that final...
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Three Moves Ahead 267: Revising History from 2014-07-03T02:32:02
Jon Shafer returns to the show to talk with Rob and Troy about revisionist history. Everyone thinks the Spanish Conquistadors were jerks, but let's not forget the behavior of the waffling Belgians....
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Three Moves Ahead 266: Relaxing by the Hearthstone from 2014-06-26T01:39:47
An all-star panel of Julian Murdoch, David V. Heron, and Troy "Well Played!" Goodfellow get together to talk about Hearthstone. Blizzard's CCG seems to be the darling of the gaming community, but D...
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Three Moves Ahead 265: Tally Me Bananas from 2014-06-19T03:21
Pork sandwiches. Salsa music. Awesome hats. Politically motivated murder. Tropico is back again and Polygon's Charlie Hall is here to talk to Rob and Troy about the latest installment in the long-r...
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Three Moves Ahead 264: Building vs Battle from 2014-06-10T04:47:02
Rob is joined by game designers and 3MA regulars Soren Johnson and Rob Daviau to talk about the balance between building an empire and going to war. Sometimes you just want to build a sand castle. ...
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Three Moves Ahead 263: Winter of Wargaming Wrapup from 2014-06-02T22:30:15
This week Rob and Bruce round out the evergreen Winter of Wargaming by talking about wargames with Firaxis Games' Ananda Gupta. Any topic related to strategy gaming is in play, ranging from solitai...
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Three Moves Ahead 262: A Thousand Shards of Light from 2014-05-28T02:50:13
Rob is joined by a full complement of guests with Rowan Kaiser, Kat Bailey, and Jason Wilson on board to talk about Warlock 2: The Exiled. The original Warlock was regarded as a solid foundation of...
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Three Moves Ahead 261: Hearts and Minds: Vietnam 1965-1975 with John Poniske from 2014-05-19T01:40:58
Bruce concludes his three-part series with game designer and Vietnam veteran John Poniske. The pair discuss John's game Hearts and Minds: Vietnam 1965-1975 and its inspiration and design decisions.
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Three Moves Ahead 260: The empires of EVE from 2014-05-14T03:24:07
Rob is joined by author and EVE historian Andrew Groen as well as fleet commander Manny and alliance leader Molle to discuss EVE Online. Player machinations form the base upon which EVE Online is b...
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Three Moves Ahead 259: Vietnam 1965-1975 with Nick Karp from 2014-05-05T23:21:30
Bruce talks to Shenandoah Studio founder and game designer Nick Karp about his 1984 game, "Vietnam 1965-1975". The pair discuss the challenges of designing a game around a conflict still fresh in t...
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Three Moves Ahead 258: A Land War in Asia from 2014-04-28T23:06:41
Rob, Troy, and regular panelist Fraser Brown try to figure out just what Wargame Red Dragon is. Is it a wargame? RTS? A real-time wargame? A platforming roguelike? Tune in and find out where Red Dr...
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Three Moves Ahead 257: Vietnam Solitaire with Dave Kershaw from 2014-04-21T22:39:35
Bruce Geryk begins his three-part look at games based on the Vietnam war by talking to game designer Dave Kershaw. The pair talk about Dave's game Vietnam Solitaire, the assumptions that it challen...
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Three Moves Ahead 256: The Days of Yor from 2014-04-15T01:00:57
In our 2^8 episode, Rob and Troy talk about Galactic Civilizations 3 with lead designer Paul Boyer. Paul explains the goals of the alpha and what early backers can expect at this stage of developme...
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Three Moves Ahead 255: Wizard from 2014-04-07T00:58:02
Rowan Kaiser and Fraser Brown fill in for an ailing Rob Zacny and talk about Age of Wonders 3. After a dearth of fantasy strategy games over the years, how does Age of Wonders 3 set alongside the W...
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Three Moves Ahead 254: Putin on the Ritz from 2014-03-24T23:40:43
Troy and Bruce conclude the Winter of Wargaming by talking about Flashpoint Campaigns: Red Storm. Does Red Storm fit the mold of a traditional wargame? Quit Stalin and give this show a listen.
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Three Moves Ahead 253: From Tabletop to PC from 2014-03-10T02:22:35
Rob and Bruce continue their Winter of Wargaming by talking about Conflict of Heroes and the critical changes that took place as the game transitioned to the PC. Come for the gaming discussion, sta...
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Three Moves Ahead 252: Magic Hills and Body Count from 2014-02-28T21:58:21
Rob and Troy talk about wargame scenario objectives and the balance between one-off tactical battles and the larger strategic picture.
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Three Moves Ahead 251: We Built This City from 2014-02-22T03:21:06
Rowan Kaiser, Cassandra Khaw, and Greg Tito join Troy to talk about a return to the city-building genre with Banished from Shining Rock Software. Alternate titles: Tales from Rowan-oke, Miners&Min...
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Three Moves Ahead 250: It's More Than A Box from 2014-02-07T20:08:29
Troy and Rob mark episode 250 by looking at a new game from Proxy Games and Matrix. Does Pandora live up to its ambitions as a spiritual successor to one of strategy gaming's most beloved titles? L...
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Three Moves Ahead 249: Pressing Through Mud and Snow from 2014-01-30T01:19:44
Mohawk Games' Soren Johnson joins Troy and Bruce to talk about Drive on Moscow, the followup to last year's Battle of the Bulge. Bruce gives some insight from behind the scenes and Soren explains w...
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Three Moves Ahead 248: The Dredge Report from 2014-01-23T00:01:06
Polygon's Danielle Riendeau joins Rob and Troy to talk about the long marches and difficult decisions in Banner Saga.Well-marked spoilers are present between 30:58 and 38:26.
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Three Moves Ahead 247: Korsun Pocket from 2014-01-16T01:20:44
Rob and Bruce revisit SSG's classic Korsun Pocket in this first episode of 3MA's Winter of Wargaming. Rob tells us how the game holds up to someone seeing it for the first time and Bruce explains w...
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Three Moves Ahead 246: Commentarii de Bello Gallico from 2014-01-11T01:35:32
Rob and Troy go deep into Roman history to talk about the expansion to Total War: Rome II - Caeser in Gaul. Have Creative Assembly turned their trireme around? Listen in to see if Rob is less irate...
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Three Moves Ahead 245: Auld Lang Zerg from 2013-12-31T22:27:06
Tom makes the bold claim that the traditional RTS is dead by the hands of MOBAs. Troy still likes Civ and Rob discusses his space minivan as well as pushing through the less savory parts of SimCity.
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Three Moves Ahead 244: Best of eSports 2013 from 2013-12-28T00:03:22
Andrew Groen and Taylor Cocke join Rob to talk about the eSports scene in 2013. The crew discusses how the different games have evolved and where they'd like to see eSports go in the future.
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Three Moves Ahead 243: Personal Highlight Reels from 2013-12-17T03:35:54
Julian, Bruce, and Rob sit down to discuss their favorite things from 2013. Rob and Bruce look forward to a Winter of Wargaming. Bruce and Julian argue about Waterdeep.
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Three Moves Ahead 242: A Black Turn of Events from 2013-12-10T16:59:19
Pieter de Jong and Tomislav Uzelac join Rob and Bruce to talk about the Black Turn expansion for Unity of Command. They go in-depth on the Eastern Front and principles of scenario design.
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Three Moves Ahead 241: Sons of Abraham from 2013-12-03T20:07:11
Campo Santo's Nels Anderson joins Rob, Rowan, and T.J Hafer to talk about the Crusader Kings 2 Sons of Abraham expansion and why it speaks to so many people outside the traditional grand-strategy s...
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Three Moves Ahead 240: Enemy Within from 2013-11-26T04:11:10
David Heron and Rowan Kaiser join Rob to talk about the Enemy Within add-on for XCOM.
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Three Moves Ahead 239: A Blizzard of Enthusiasm from 2013-11-15T22:15:36
Rob, Fraser Brown, and TJ Hafer have come away from Blizzcon feeling like Blizzard is more of a strategy studio than it's been in years.
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Three Moves Ahead 238: State of the RTS from 2013-11-08T16:48:52
Soren Johnson joins Rob and Troy to discuss the meaning of the RTS format, why the traditional genre definition is too narrow, and his new studio.
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Three Moves Ahead 237: Night of the Card Hunter from 2013-11-02T15:26:34
Jon Chey, formerly of Irrational and now of Blue Manchu, joins Julian and Rob to discuss Card Hunter.
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Three Moves Ahead 236: Q&A from 2013-10-23T21:53:14
Rob and Troy field some listener questions, revisiting space games, and whether they prefer more abstraction or more theme.
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Three Moves Ahead 235: A Tough Row Tahoe from 2013-10-16T01:54:45
Julian Murdoch and designer Rob Daviau join Rob on vacation to talk about playtesting, feedback, and making games work.
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Three Moves Ahead 234: Seeking New God from 2013-10-03T04:28:03
Bruce Geryk brings Tom Chick back to the show so they can grill Ilwinter's Johan Karlsson and Kristoffer Osterman about Dominions 4 - the latest version of their "So You Wanna Be A God?" Fantasy Co...
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Three Moves Ahead 233: Enemies Within and Twilight Struggles from 2013-09-25T20:39:03
Firaxis designer Ananda Gupta joins Rob, Troy, and Bruce to discuss his upcoming expansion to XCOM and his storied design career in PC and board gaming.
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Three Moves Ahead 232: Sid Meier's Gettysburg! from 2013-09-18T02:05:46
Nick Breckon joins Rob and Troy to talk about one of the greatest wargames ever made.
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Three Moves Ahead 231: Odi et... odi. from 2013-09-12T21:45:28
Everything changes in this Very Special 2-hour Three Moves Ahead event. Rob, Rowan Kaiser, and Fraser Brown gather to talk about Rome and destroy a grave threat to the Total War series. But then th...
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Three Moves Ahead 230: Hot, Hot NS Hex from 2013-09-05T21:21:17
Soren Johnson, Ryan Kuo, and Michael Hermes join Julian today to talk about iOS asynchronous board gaming. Neuroshima Hex is the star of the show and leads the panel to other recent additions such ...
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Three Moves Ahead 229: Rebels, Dissent, and Treason from 2013-08-26T17:36:41
Rob and Troy discuss how rebellion and discontent have been represented in strategy games, and why they can be so crucial.
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Three Moves Ahead 228: A New Universe from 2013-08-19T22:35:21
PC Gamer's TJ Hafer and Gamesbeat's Jason Wilson join Rob to discuss Europa Universalis IV. Spoiler: they loved it.
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Three Moves Ahead 227: What's the Deal with Lord Management? from 2013-08-08T19:52:20
Idle Thumbs' Sean Vanaman and former Escapist editor Tom Endo join Rob to explain the appeal and hurdles of Dota 2 and lord management.
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Three Moves Ahead 226: Firaxis' Revisionists from 2013-07-28T02:05:11
Ed Beach and producer Dennis Shirk sit down with Rob to discuss their thinking behind Brave New World, and making a better Civilization V.
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Three Moves Ahead 225: Brave New World from 2013-07-20T15:23:54
Rob, Troy, Fraser Brown, and Rowan Kaiser talk about the latest Civilization expansion.
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Three Moves Ahead 224: Stopped at the Gates of Moscow from 2013-07-12T15:15:28
Tom Chick joins Rob to talk about their feelings toward Company of Heroes, and why they both feel a bit disappointed. Tom thinks the game's economy is broken and it's become too armor driven, while...
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Three Moves Ahead 223: God Help the Marines on Iwo Jima from 2013-07-04T12:16:57
Evan Lahti joins Rob to talk about Red Orchestra 2: Rising Storm (a totally LEGIT strategy topic). They discuss why it outstrips Heroes of Stalingrad, how it does faction design right, and the role...
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Three Moves Ahead 222: Wargame: See Deep, Think Deeper from 2013-06-28T20:04:26
Bruce and Tom join Rob for a late-night chat about Wargame: AirLand Battle, Cold War tactics and politics, and Rob's overwhelming awfulness at this game.
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Three Moves Ahead 221: Binding With Iron from 2013-06-20T01:07:33
Troy and Bruce team up to discuss the track record of railroad games through strategy history, from 1830 through Railroad Tycoon and Rails Across America and beyond. How do these games distinguish ...
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Three Moves Ahead 220: Expanding the Company of Heroes from 2013-06-11T14:04:12
Relic's Quinn Duffy and former Relic producer and friend of the show Shane Neville join Rob to talk about Company of Heroes past and future.
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Three Moves Ahead 219: Meeting of the Minds from 2013-06-05T19:34:51
Rob talks to the Paradox brain trust of CEO Fred Wester and VP Shams Jorjani to discuss publishing, Paradox's approach to the business, and whether reviewers are the enemy.
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Three Moves Ahead 218: The War in Europa from 2013-05-30T19:39:19
EU IV lead Thomas Johansson and freelance writer Joe Robinson join Rob to talk about their recent adventures with a massive EU IV multiplayer session.EU IV lead Thomas Johansson and freelance write...
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Three Moves Ahead 217: Victoria Day from 2013-05-20T17:34:25
3MA Producer Michael Hermes and GWJ editor Erik Hanson joins Rob and Tom to talk about Victoria II: Heart of Darkness. Rob is reconsidering some of his earlier, harsher views on Victoria while Tom ...
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Three Moves Ahead 216: Lost in Space from 2013-05-14T13:26:18
Paul Dean joins Rob to talk about their shared frustration with the state of strategy games among the stars.
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Three Moves Ahead 215: Early Access from 2013-05-01T04:21:39
Tom Chick and Rob talk about the rise of early access programs, whether it's a good thing, and what it means for their work.
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Three Moves Ahead 214: We<3 the Swarm from 2013-04-24T19:54:28
Andrew Groen and Sean Sands join Rob to discuss how Heart of the Swarm has changed StarCraft 2, and the evolving competitive landscape. (Cover image: Enrique Espinoza courtesy MLG)
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Three Moves Ahead 213: On Campaign from 2013-04-17T03:06:37
Tom Chick joins Rob and Troy to talk about campaigns in RTS games, particularly StarCraft 2: Heart of the Swarm.
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Three Moves Ahead 212: Set Disruptors to Acts of God from 2013-04-09T03:50:02
Troy, Julian, Dave Heron, and Rob talk about the role of extraordinary disruptions in strategy games. From acts of God to the acts of Khan, why don't more strategy games include disruptions? And sh...
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Three Moves Ahead 211: Worth a Thousand Words from 2013-03-27T23:10:54
PAX East 2013 was host to the second ever Three Moves Ahead panel, and this time we took on interface design. Troy and Rob were joined by Rob Daviau (IronWall), Eric Lee Smith (Shenandoah) and Nels...
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Three Moves Ahead 210: A Silly Place from 2013-03-21T03:12:51
Chris and Rowan Kaiser join Rob to dissect SimCity and its many quirks.
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Three Moves Ahead 209: Desktop to Tabletop from 2013-03-12T23:58:26
Bruce and Troy welcome Paul Rohrbaugh fromHigh Flying Dice Gamesto the show to talk about what it means to be a desktop wargame publish...
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Three Moves Ahead 208: Social Gaming from 2013-03-07T04:17:46
Rob Daviau joins Julian, Rob, and Troy to talk about games that are more about social interaction than mechanics. Traitor games, party games, and negotiation games.
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Three Moves Ahead 207: Eagles Marching from 2013-02-27T16:57:55
Awesome Out of Ten's Fraser Brown and PC Gamer's T.J. Hafer join Rob to talk about Paradox's March of the Eagles.
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Three Moves Ahead 206: Cold Warriors from 2013-02-19T14:08:59
It's just Troy and Rob this week as they reflect on Cold War strategy games and the unique challenges and temptations of that setting.
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Three Moves Ahead 205: A Final Unity from 2013-02-12T02:27:02
2x2's Tomislav Uzelac joins Bruce and Rob to talk about designing Unity of Command, scenario design versus systems design, and where the series goes from here.
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Three Moves Ahead 204: Gate-Crashing the Roman Empire from 2013-02-06T15:10:05
Jon Shafer joins Rob and Troy to talk about his new project,At the Gates, and the role of map evolution.
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Three Moves Ahead 203: Classic Career Analysis with Chris Taylor from 2013-01-29T05:26:13
Gas Powered Games' Chris Taylor joins Rob, Troy, and Julian to talk about Total Annihilation and the Supreme Commander series, as well the problems currently facing Gas Powered and their Listen
Three Moves Ahead 202: Best of the Best 2012 from 2013-01-22T04:38:44
It's old home week on Three Moves Ahead as the full panel assembles to talk about their favorite games and trends of 2012, and Tom Chick crashes the party to bury the hexagon, not to praise it.
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Three Moves Ahead 201: Best of the Guests 2012 from 2013-01-15T03:30:57
Our most frequent guests in 2012, designers Soren Johnson, Jon Shafer, and Dave Heron return to 3MA to talk to Rob about their favorite experiences of the year.
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Three Moves Ahead 200: Tapping Past Bastogne from 2013-01-07T22:04:50
2013 opens with a look at Shenandoah Studios'Battle of the Bulgefor iPad. Everyone agrees that it is shiny and beautiful, but does it work as it should? Is it even a Bulge game at all? Liste...
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Three Moves Ahead 199: Some Assembly Required from 2012-12-18T03:39:44
Troy and Julian welcome freelance writer and co-proprietor of theShut Up, Sit Down Show, Paul Dean, to talk about house rules and mod...
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Three Moves Ahead 198: The Kessel Run from 2012-12-11T06:16:58
Rowan Kaiserrejoins Rob and Bruce to talk about War in the East, while Bruce has been busy with the Don to the Danube expa...
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Three Moves Ahead 197: All By Myself from 2012-12-04T03:33:53
Troy and Bruce welcome original panelist Tom Chick back to the show to talk about solitaire boardgames, starting with the new Phantom Leader for iPad and then roaming through 20000 Leagues Under th...
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Three Moves Ahead 196: Grunt's Eye View from 2012-11-29T08:32:27
Rob is joined by Shawn Andrich, Evan Lahti, and Phill Cameron to talk about Planetside 2 and the past and future of the large-scale shooter. At what point does the scale start to turn a shooter int...
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Three Moves Ahead 195: Classic Game Analysis: Age of Mythology from 2012-11-20T00:39:57
Rob and Troy welcome freelancer John Peter Grant to the show to talk about one of the greatest real-time strategy games ever made - Ensemble's Age of Mythology. The art, the story, the balance, the...
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Three Moves Ahead 194: Checking In with Arcen from 2012-11-12T22:32:08
Last seen way back inEpisode 37, Chris Park from Arcen Games returns to the show to talk to Troy, Michael Hermes and Shannon Q...
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Three Moves Ahead 193: A Million Little Plastic Pieces from 2012-11-06T04:22:25
Rob Daviaujoins Rob and Julian to talk about components, game enhancements, and theme. How does component quality factor in design decisions,...
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Three Moves Ahead 192: Fallen Enchantress with Derek Paxton from 2012-10-30T00:31:34
Derek Paxton comes back to the show to talk withTom, Rob, Bruce, and Troy aboutFa...
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Three Moves Ahead 191: Return to Summoner's Rift from 2012-10-23T03:11:27
In a perhaps dangerously detailed discussion of League of Legends, Rob and Julian talk to Rhea "Ashelia" Monique and...
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Three Moves Ahead 190: Fatality!: The XCom Review Show from 2012-10-15T14:41:04
Dave Heron and Jon Shafer return to the show to talk about XCom: Enemy Unknown with Julian and Troy. They talk about the streamlining Firaxis has done to the franchise and how it has paid off. How ...
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Three Moves Ahead 189: Through a Glass, Darkly from 2012-10-09T12:25:43
Klei'sNels Andersonand Firaxis'Scott Lewisjoin Rob and Troy to talk about fog of war and hidden information in game ...
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Three Moves Ahead 188: We Will Be Watching, Commander from 2012-10-02T01:58:08
Bruce and Rob welcome Jake Solomon, lead designer of Firaxis' new XCOM, and interrogate him mercilessly. Jake explains his design choices and the trade-offs he faced in adapting and updating X-Com.
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Three Moves Ahead 187: Faster Than Light, Slower Than Death from 2012-09-25T04:09:43
Michael Hermes joins Rob, Troy, and Julian to talk about FTL. Why FTL understands why we like space, its lovely simplicity, and why unfairness is cool.
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Three Moves Ahead 186: Playing at the World from 2012-09-19T00:41:28
This week, Troy and Bruce talk to Jon Peterson, author of the epic gaming history tome, Playing at the World: A History of Simulating Wars, People and Fantastic Adventures from Chess to Role-Playin...
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Three Moves Ahead 185: Class is in Session from 2012-09-10T21:36:59
This week, Troy, Julian and Bruce welcome back frequent guests Rob Daviau and Bill Abner to talk about the touchy subject of trying to teach games. Though the focus is on board gaming, there are us...
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Three Moves Ahead 184: Best-Case Scenario from 2012-09-04T03:55:14
Julian and Rob are wrapping up their vacation when they realize they should probably record a show. An underwhelming board game and their simmering frustration with long campaigns leads to a discus...
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Three Moves Ahead 183: Taking Command for Bull Run 2: Run Harder from 2012-08-28T15:46:33
Bruce, Troy, and Rob discuss Take Command: 2nd Manassas and why it is one of the best tactical Civil War games ever made. Along the way they discuss what they want from wargames, mission structure,...
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Three Moves Ahead 182: Three's a Crowdsourcing from 2012-08-21T02:34:07
Bruce, Troy, and Rob discuss the changing landscape of game financing, or at least they try to. The end up discussing Kickstarter almost exclusively, the return ofT...
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Three Moves Ahead 181: Blendo Games from 2012-08-14T01:56:19
Blendo Games'Brendon Chungjoins Rob and Julian to talk about Flotilla, Atom Zombi...
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Three Moves Ahead 180: Thinking Machines from 2012-08-06T21:32:54
Soren JohnsonandCryptic Comet's Vic Davisreturn to talk about artificial inte...
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Three Moves Ahead 179: Spy Games from 2012-07-30T16:25:26
Soren Johnsonreturns to talk spies, espionage, and covert action with Rob and Julian. They then subject espionage mechanics to forty min...
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Three Moves Ahead 178: Unit Customization and Game Design from 2012-07-23T16:16:40
Sixth Beatle Soren Johnson returns along with new guest, Cliff Harris from Positech - designer of Gratuitous Space Battles and the new Gratuitous Tank Battles. This week, how does the idea of unit ...
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Three Moves Ahead 177: Pokemon Conquest from 2012-07-16T14:00:41
With everyone very busy and very tired, a shorter and smaller show than usual this week. Troy welcomes Pokemon trainer and DS guruNadia Oxfordto the s...
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Three Moves Ahead 176: We're Making a Better World from 2012-07-09T15:44:22
Cory Banksjoins Julian, Troy, and Rob to talk about fiction and world-building in strategy games. They talk a lot about Endless Space and ...
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Three Moves Ahead 175: Gods and Kings from 2012-07-01T17:57:25
Popcap'sJeff Greenjoins returning guestDavid Heron, Troy, and Rob fo...
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Three Moves Ahead 174: For I Have Sinned from 2012-06-23T23:08
Ironclad's Blair Fraser and Stardock's Chris Bray join Rob, Julian, and freelance writerKat Baileyto discuss the newRebellion Listen
Three Moves Ahead 173: Going Pro from 2012-06-17T16:11:29
Rod "Slasher" Breslau, eSports correspondent for GameSpot and a panelist on Listen
Three Moves Ahead 172: I AM WARLOCKED from 2012-06-10T21:02:08
Better late than never, freelance friendsJason WilsonandRowan Kaise...
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Three Moves Ahead 171: Fun with 3MA from 2012-06-02T16:44:18
Tom Chick, SMG studios designerDavid Heron, and Listen
Three Moves Ahead 170: Classic Game Analysis - Kohan from 2012-05-26T15:18:56
Tom Chickcomes back to the show to join Rob and Troy for a look back at one of the great real time strategy series – Time...
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Three Moves Ahead 169: Out of the Park Baseball and Managing Things from 2012-05-19T00:09:37
This week, Bill Abner fromNo High Scoresreturns to the show along with new guest Dirk Knemeyer fromListen
Three Moves Ahead 168: Bomber Command from 2012-05-11T18:30:44
Lee Brimmicombe-Woodreturns to the podcast so Bruce Geryk can talk more about bombers and commanding in them, in t...
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Three Moves Ahead 167: Naval War: Arctic Circle from 2012-05-04T15:53:31
Jan Haugland from Turbotape Games drops by to talk to Rob about the art and science of designing a modern naval sim. Radars, ships, scenarios...is Naval War: Arctic Circle the spiritual successor t...
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Three Moves Ahead 166: Strategic Tee Ball from 2012-04-28T15:52:31
Jon Shaferjoins Rob, Troy, and Julian to talk about challenge in strategy games. What kind of challenges do we want from strategy games, ...
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Three Moves Ahead 165: Beware of Falling Samurai from 2012-04-21T14:21:29
PC Gamer staff writerTom Seniorand freelance writerPhill...
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Three Moves Ahead 164: PAX East 2012 Panel: Strategy - What's Changing, What Needs To from 2012-04-12T14:40:56
We heard the people, and we brought Three Moves Ahead directly to the masses who gathered at PAX East. But what if you missed it? Will we punish you for your lack of dedication? Yes, but you can st...
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Three Moves Ahead 163: Fifty, Alive, and King from 2012-04-06T14:51:11
Rob welcomes freelancerRowan Kaiserand designerJon Shaferto talk abou...
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Three Moves Ahead 162: Guess Who's Coming to Podcast? from 2012-03-31T16:24:25
Idle Thumbsvisits Three Moves Ahead to start discussing plans. As Sean Vanaman mandates a Far Cry 2 episode quota, Troy and Rob begin to rea...
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Three Moves Ahead 161: Safety in Numbers from 2012-03-23T17:44:54
As is appropriate for a week where you join a group of podcasting super-friends, the regular panel of Bruce, Troy, Rob, and Julian gets together to discuss co-op gaming. They share old war stories,...
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Three Moves Ahead!!: Special Announcement: Three Moves Ahead Is All Thumbs from 2012-03-21T01:10
Rob and Troy look at theIdle Thumbs Kickstarterand conclude that maybe these crazy kids k...
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Three Moves Ahead 160: No Standing on the European Escalator to War from 2012-03-17T18:34:01
The Russians are coming, and they're bringing Tom Chick with them to talk about Wargame: European Escalation. Bruce, Troy, and Rob take the field to share their enthusiasm for Wargame and how it ma...
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Three Moves Ahead 159: Bruce and Julian's iPad Adventure from 2012-03-09T14:32:04
Hold onto your black t-shirts and skim lattes! It's all iPad, all the time on 3MA, as Bruce declares the iPad the greatest platform for strategy games, and Julian explains why the real story of the...
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Three Moves Ahead 158: Conquest of Elysium 3 from 2012-03-01T17:56:13
Rob Zacny gets a well earned week off and lets the old people run the show as Troy welcomes Bruce Geryk and Tom Chick to talk about Illwinter's new game Conquest of Elysium 3. It's a strategy game,...
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Three Moves Ahead 157: Not Quite Back in Action from 2012-02-24T15:10:23
Darius KazemiandGameSpyEditor-in-Chief Dan Stapleton return to 3MA to discuss Jagged ...
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Three Moves Ahead 156: Homage to Arulco from 2012-02-16T16:50:53
PC Gamer'sEvan Lahtiand game designerDarius Kazemiparachute into 3MA to liberat...
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Three Moves Ahead 155: The (Very) Simple Joys of King Arthur 2 from 2012-02-11T15:49:33
Freelance writersAndrew GroenandCharlie Halljoin Rob for a conversation...
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Three Moves Ahead 154: Unfrozen Caveman Gamers from 2012-02-04T20:29:11
RecentGood Old Gamesreleases have gotten Rob thinking about what he wants to rescue from the past (besides Troy, that is). Julian doesn't think the...
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Three Moves Ahead 153: Paradox Con Reloaded from 2012-01-28T19:40:30
Jenn CutterandDan Stapletonreturn to 3MA to talk aboutListen
Three Moves Ahead 152: A Few Minutes of Show with Martin Wallace from 2012-01-20T22:56:52
Bruce, Julian, and Rob host board game designerMartin Wallaceto ask him that timeless question, "How awesome is your game?" The crew discu...
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Three Moves Ahead 151: If on a winter's night a gamer from 2012-01-12T17:01:44
Rob, Julian, and Hasbro'sRob Daviauare marooned in rural Massachusetts. To avert cabin fever, they gather 'round ...
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Three Moves Ahead 150: The Year in Review from 2012-01-05T16:21:01
The original cast, gets together to look at the strategy games they liked in 2011. We focus on the positive and talk about Atom Zombie Smasher, Shogun 2, Unity of Command, Men of War and lots of ot...
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Three Moves Ahead 149: On the Care and Feeding of BattleMechs from 2011-12-29T16:54:24
Rob hosts a conversation withCatalyst Game Labs'Randall Bills andPiranha Games'Russ Bull...
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Three Moves Ahead 148: Unity of Command from 2011-12-22T18:44:25
Rob and Troy talk about 2x2's new entry-level wargame,Unity of Command, and why it is such a huge success....
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Three Moves Ahead 147: Fire No Guns, Shed No Tears from 2011-12-17T03:48:36
A heavily medicated Rob hosts Julian, Troy, and Bruce to explain what's so boring about peace, love, and understanding. Why does strategy gaming usually come back to armed conflict, with the except...
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Three Moves Ahead 146: On the Air from 2011-12-08T22:14:09
It’s more a fancy lecture and masterwork design class than a bunch of guys guessing about what works when board game desiger...
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Three Moves Ahead 145: Q&A with R&T from 2011-12-03T14:41:25
When you're too busy for a real topic, it's good to have listeners that are ready with questions. Rob and Troy take some time to answer your queries. Games we hate, the definition of RTS, whether P...
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Three Moves Ahead 144: Risky Business with Rob Daviau from 2011-11-24T17:53:59
Friend of the show and returning guest Rob Daviau joins Rob and Julian to talk about his new game,Risk: Legacy. They talk about h...
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Three Moves Ahead 143: The Personal Touch from 2011-11-18T13:21:44
Phill Cameroncomes back for a conversation with Rob, Troy, and Julian about how personality and persist...
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Three Moves Ahead 142: For the LoLs from 2011-11-11T18:00:15
Julian hosts Bruce and editor-podcaster extraordinaire, Ryan Scott, ofGeekboxandListen
Three Moves Ahead 141: Failing Basic from 2011-11-05T03:06:27
Rob summon Troy and Julian for an emergency therapy session about how many strategy games simply cannot get their acts together when it comes to basic standards. The panel discusses busted cameras ...
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Three Moves Ahead 140: Three Turns Ahead from 2011-10-28T01:55:15
Jenn Cutter comes back for a discussion ofF1 2011with Rob and Troy. Learn about exciting rules changes, the difference between a racing game and a motorsports game, and some of Codemasters...
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Three Moves Ahead 139: One for the Memoirs from 2011-10-21T01:23:06
A well-rested Bruce rounds out a full panel of Rob, Troy, and Julian as they discussMemoir '44 Online, convenience, and the simple pleasures of light board gaming. It's a straightforward e...
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Three Moves Ahead 138: Your Lying Eyes from 2011-10-15T05:15:26
The Escapist's Greg Tito joins Rob and Troy to talk aboutA Game of Thrones: Genesisand to tell us about the Escapist's epicNapoleon in Europematch. In the first half of they show ...
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Three Moves Ahead 137: Episode 137 from 2011-10-06T14:16:46
Richard Cobbettbravely joins Rob for a conversation withAchroncreator...
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Three Moves Ahead 136: Franchises and Fumbles from 2011-09-29T14:50:50
Soren Johnson quits in a huff and leaves podcasting so he can try his hand at making games. But first, Soren, Rob, Julian, and Troy talk about franchises and how they develop, or don't. Rob tries t...
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Three Moves Ahead 135: Board Game Lessons from 2011-09-22T13:27:22
Computer and boardgame designer Paul Sottosanti joins up Soren, Julian, and Rob to discuss how board games are evolving, and how their design philosophies differ from computer games. Is the popular...
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Three Moves Ahead 134: The Alpha Centauri Show from 2011-09-16T03:40
Zynga's Brian Reynolds makes Planetfall on Three Moves Ahead and, along with Soren, Troy, and Rob, founds a discussion ofAlpha Centauri. He explains what went wrong with the "Civi...
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Three Moves Ahead 133: We Built This City from 2011-09-09T03:33:18
Tropico 4gets Rob, Troy, and Julian talking about city-builders and their quirks. Why are their politics so artificial? Troy notices that videogames say the business of cities is business,...
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Three Moves Ahead 132: Age of Level-Grinding Empires from 2011-09-01T05:07:56
Soren JohnsonandTom Chickjoin Rob for a discussion of Age of Empires Online. Tom opens by short-listing ...
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Three Moves Ahead 131: Splendid Little Wars from 2011-08-25T05:40:20
Soren Johnsonkicks off an extended visit to 3MA by joining Rob, Julian, and Bruce to talk about smaller-scale strategy games, and how they compare to th...
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Three Moves Ahead 130: Character Issues from 2011-08-19T00:47:24
Troy takes a victory lap after finishing hisNational Character series, and together with Rob delves deeper into some ...
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Three Moves Ahead 129: The Combat Missions from 2011-08-11T16:30:49
Irrational Games'Ken Levine join Rob and Troy for a discussion of theCombat Missionseries, realism, WEGO turns versus continuous time, and what we...
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Three Moves Ahead 128: Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Topics from 2011-08-05T03:49:01
Freelance writerPhill Cameronjoins Rob and Troy for a discussion of the games they've been playing that haven't quite fit into recent writings or ...
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Three Moves Ahead 127: Baby's First Panzer from 2011-07-28T13:04:31
GWJ's Cory Banks finally dips his toes in the waters of turn-based wargaming with Matrix / Slitherine's newPanzer Generalremake,Panzer Corps.He joins Julian and Rob to talk about ...
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Three Moves Ahead 126: Contemporary Antiques from 2011-07-21T14:05:13
PC GamerEIC Logan Decker joins Rob and Julian for a discussion of Christoph Hartmann'sListen
Three Moves Ahead 125: The Friendliest Philippic from 2011-07-14T16:22:25
Troy and Rob are over the moon about Longbow'sHegemony: Philip of Macedon, and invite programmer and writer Rick Yorgason to the show so they can ask that timeless question: "How awesome i...
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Three Moves Ahead 124: The Show Must Go On from 2011-07-07T15:48:15
Taking a moment from their respective vacations, Rob and Julian pick up the pieces after a couple show ideas fall apart at the last minute. Julian wants to talk about card mechanics and why he like...
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Three Moves Ahead 123: Reviewers on Revue from 2011-06-30T17:07:43
Ars Technica'sBen Kuchera visits Three Moves Ahead to continue a discussion he started about reviewing standards and practices. Troy and...
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Three Moves Ahead 122: Refreezing Synapses from 2011-06-23T12:51:59
Mode 7's Paul Taylor visits with Julian, Rob, and PC Gamer's Dan Stapleton to talk aboutFrozen Synapse. They discuss the game's development, its lengthy beta process and how that has contr...
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Three Moves Ahead 121: Pride of Nations and Philippe Thibaut from 2011-06-16T04:35:46
Paradox France's Philippe Thibaut and GWJ's Erik Hanson colonize 3MA this week to talk aboutPride of Nations, Paradox France's new grand-strategy game of imperialism. Erik and Rob are intr...
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Three Moves Ahead 120: Drawing Down on Vic "Six Gun" Davis from 2011-06-09T19:40:13
Vic Davis rides back into town to talk aboutSix Gun Saga, his new solitaire card-based strategy game. Julian is mighty fond of it, but wants to play with the rest of his posse. Rob is curi...
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Three Moves Ahead 119: What I Did for My Rabbitcon Vacation from 2011-06-03T03:13:50
An exhausted Julian and Rob welcome Cory Banks back to the show to go over what they played at Julian's board gaming retreat. CouldAgricola'sposition be threatened by young up-and-comer
Three Moves Ahead 118: This Fully Operational Art of War from 2011-05-26T04:26:40
Ralph Trickey takes a break from updating and improvingThe Operational Art of War IIIto talk about the series with Rob, Troy, and Bruce. They discuss how the game is changing through patch...
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Three Moves Ahead 117: Patchwork from 2011-05-19T11:57:43
ElementalandCivilization Vcome in for a follow-up appointment with Julian, Troy, and Rob. Have the major changes that have been patched into these games translated into major impr...
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Three Moves Ahead 116: Creeps and Towers from 2011-05-13T02:27:18
Here come the creeps, led by Rob andRock, Paper, Shotgun'sQuintin Smith! Fortunately, they encounter a maze of discussion and towers o...
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Three Moves Ahead 115: Bolshy Balderdash from 2011-05-06T00:33:55
Rob is pleasantly surprised byRevolution Under Siegeand rounds up Troy Goodfellow and Listen
Three Moves Ahead 114: Patents, Progress, and Rogue Puffins from 2011-04-28T14:48:14
Gamers With Jobs continues colonizing 3MA, but the natives still welcome Cory Banks because he brings whiskey and podcast topics. Fantasy Flight games is upset about an iOS game that bears a signif...
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Three Moves Ahead 113: CGA: The Panzer General Series from 2011-04-21T15:17:24
Ah, good day, Herr General. The General Staff have prepared this podcast analyzing the strength and dispositions of thePanzer Generalseries. You will have access to some new units for this...
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Three Moves Ahead 112: A Special Secession Session from 2011-04-14T23:58:39
On the 150th anniversary of the attack on Fort Sumter, Troy and Rob rally around the bonnie blue flag and find Gamers With Jobs' Erik Hanson waiting for them there. Then they march off to discuss t...
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Three Moves Ahead 111: Golden Voices for a Golden Throne from 2011-04-08T01:08
Bill Abner and Dan Stapleton arrive to help Rob sort out the long-delayedDawn of War II: Retributionepisode. Rob isn't wild about the campaign for a few reasons, and eventually he starts t...
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Three Moves Ahead 110: Three Daimyo and a Baby Mori Clan from 2011-03-31T22:45
GameShark's Bill Abner joins Troy and Rob to discussShogun 2, mortality rates among Japanese generals, and Bill's enchanted copy ofShogun 2, in which everything awesome that can h...
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Three Moves Ahead 109: The Contractual Obligation Album from 2011-03-25T02:12:16
After the panel completely falls apart on the eve of recording aDawn of War 2: Retributionepisode, Troy and Rob soldier on by themselves. Troy hasn't playedRetribution, but he is ...
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Three Moves Ahead 108: Three Men of War from 2011-03-17T05:30:05
Julian and Rob are at death's door following PAX East and a week of cruel beatings at the hands ofMen of War: Assault Squad. Rock, Paper, Shotgun's Jim Rossignol, author ofListen
Three Moves Ahead 107: Hail, Hail, the (GDC) Gang's All Here from 2011-03-11T00:28:03
Three Moves Ahead 106: An Expansive Discussion with Johan Andersson from 2011-03-03T15:44:48
Paradox's Johan Andersson talks to Rob aboutEU3: Divine Wind, expansions, the design process at Paradox, and the newly-announcedSengoku.Listen
Three Moves Ahead 105: Sometimes You Gotta Roll the Hard Six from 2011-02-24T18:00:37
In the wake of another successful Rabbitcon, Lara Crigger and Rob Daviau join Julian and Rob to talk about good luck, bad luck, and fun luck. Rob and Lara discuss her first wargaming experience,
Three Moves Ahead 104: What Would Manstein Do? from 2011-02-17T21:29:42
Bruce and Rob welcome Troy back to the show by monopolizing conversation as they describe their reactions toWar in the East. Bruce consults von Manstein'sLost Victoriesin the hope...
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Three Moves Ahead 103: Community from 2011-02-10T06:19
Rob turtles up for a free-for-all discussion of RTS multiplayer gaming withTom ChickandListen
Three Moves Ahead 102: Online Board Gaming from 2011-02-03T04:41:11
Game Table Online's Robert Eng joins Bruce, Julian, and Rob for a discussion about online board gaming. Topics include business models, what goes into a successful conversion, and what these servic...
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Three Moves Ahead 101: A Most Ingenious Paradox from 2011-01-27T17:56:47
Rob and returning guestJenn Cutterdiscuss what they saw at the Paradox convention in New York. Listen
Three Moves Ahead 100: The Reboot from 2011-01-19T02:32:08
Troy makes a shocking announcement that leaves the podcast in shambles.
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Three Moves Ahead 99: War in the East from 2011-01-13T17:05:50
Scott Jennings(Lum the Mad) fills in for an ailing Rob as he and Bruce and Troy welcome Joel Billings (2by3 Games) and Erik Rutins (Matrix Games) to talk about w...
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Three Moves Ahead 98: 2010 in Review and Looking Ahead from 2011-01-07T20:45:47
PCGamer's Dan Stapleton returns to help Troy and Rob make sense of 2010. Why Starcraft 2 matters, why Troy resents DLC, the magic of Achtung Panzer and why Rob has no idea what is coming out this y...
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Three Moves Ahead 97: Bronze with Alex Kutsenok from 2010-12-30T15:08:14
If you chat with me about strategy or board games, I have mentionedBronzeto you. Alex Kutsenok is the lead designer of Bronze and he sits down with me and Julian to talk about the developm...
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Three Moves Ahead 96: Shafer, Patches, Holiday Wishes from 2010-12-24T14:56:41
On the night before the day before Christmas, Troy and Rob and Julian sit down to talk about Jon Shafer leaving Firaxis, mega patches for turn based games Civ 5 and Elemental and then we wrap up wi...
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Three Moves Ahead 95: End Game Moves from 2010-12-16T23:50:54
In response to a listener/reader question, Troy and Rob talk about end games that work and end games that don't. What do we mean by the "end game"? What role do strictly defined victory conditions ...
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Three Moves Ahead 94: Home for the Holidays from 2010-12-09T20:47:09
We were on a good run and it couldn't last forever. A pleasant light little seasonal chat about how to cope with the gaming constraints of visiting our families went off the rails when we realized ...
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Three Moves Ahead 93: Theme, Mechanics and Meaning from 2010-12-03T16:43:43
GWJ's Lara Crigger and JTS's Todd Brakke join Troy and special guest Soren Johnson in a wide ranging talk about how how theme and mechanics work together or fight each other. What isLeft for De...
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Three Moves Ahead 92: Classic Game Analysis - X-Com from 2010-11-23T17:20:13
PCGamer's Dan Stapleton joins Troy, Rob and Bruce to talk about what made 1994'sX-Comone of the best strategy/tactics games ever made. Tension, atmosphere, UI, level blending, real time v ...
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Three Moves Ahead 91: Licensed Behavior from 2010-11-16T16:47:18
Troy almost fires Rob and Julian on this episode as a conversation about licensed strategy games. Bruce Geryk holds forth on why War of the Rings is like Stratomatic Baseball, Julian sings of Starf...
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Three Moves Ahead 90: Order, Order from 2010-11-10T03:56:12
News thata genetic algorithm has cracked the Starcraft codeprompts Troy to ask the panel abou...
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Three Moves Ahead 89: Elections and Campaigning from 2010-11-04T19:15:46
No one was in much of a mood to talk about anything this week, but we did it anyway and it was almost topical. Gameshark's Bill Abner joins Troy and Rob for a rambling chat about election games the...
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Three Moves Ahead 88: Ethics, Morality and Motivation from 2010-10-27T18:27:21
Bruce Geryk returns to the show to give special guestMichael Abbota hard time in a discussion that is intended to focus on the ethical and moral dimension of wa...
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Three Moves Ahead 87: Borrowing and Personalization from 2010-10-21T16:57:39
Hellmode's Ashelia (aka Rhea Monique) joins Rob and Julian for a discussion of how strategy games can learn from other genres.Rob also coins the Old Country Buffet...
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Three Moves Ahead 86: Logistics, Supply and News from 2010-10-14T17:42:50
Troy and Rob start the show with a talk about what Derek Paxton's move to Stardock means forElementaland the future of Stardock.They then segue into a discussion about logistics and supply...
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Three Moves Ahead 85: Betrayal and Manipulation from 2010-10-07T18:43:56
Julian and Rob are joined by Rob Daviau (Hasbro) and Chris Remo (Irrational) to talk about how games let us give in to our worst impulses and betray our friends. Neptune's Pride, Risk, Weinhandler,...
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Three Moves Ahead 84: Civilization V with Todd Brakke from 2010-09-30T20:14:47
One guest cancels, but his shoes are ably filled by Gameshark's Todd Brakke as Troy, Julian and Rob hold forth on the game that has already eaten Troy's life - and he has to keep writing about it f...
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Three Moves Ahead 83: RUSE from 2010-09-23T17:21:44
This week, Rob takes the lead and sings the praises of RUSE, the new WW2 RTS from Ubisoft and Eugen Systems. Troy and Julian push him on the differences between the single and multiplayer component...
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Three Moves Ahead 82: Chris King and more Victoria 2 from 2010-09-17T00:23:34
Unavailable when we needed him, but still game for a show, Victoria 2's lead designer Chris King joins Troy and Rob for a discussion of Marxist economic models, why they are so many rebels and why ...
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Three Moves Ahead 81: Elemental Post Mortem with Brad Wardell from 2010-09-08T18:25:16
A terrible launch of a game I wanted to love turns what should have been a "WOW" show into another opportunity for Brad Wardell to explain how Stardock screwed up. Listen how imperfect QA practices...
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Three Moves Ahead 80: Question Time from 2010-09-01T19:39:56
This week, the sound is terrible again mostly because my wireless refuses to cooperate. Big promise to fix this next week - I thought I had the problem solved.But if you bear with us, you will hear...
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Three Moves Ahead 79: Victoria 2 from 2010-08-25T16:10:37
Rob Zacny's sound goes in and out, but when it works you can hear him, Troy and Julian talk about the latest grand strategy game from Paradox. Why does it make Julian angry? Do you have to force th...
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Three Moves Ahead 78: Forgettable Games, Memorable Ideas from 2010-08-19T14:49:23
Troy and Rob dig through their histories to recall bad games that had tiny moments of genius. What happens when a game gets one thing right? Can forgotten games still have a legacy beyond their fai...
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Three Moves Ahead 77: Starcraft 2 and Chris Remo from 2010-08-10T17:35:43
Troy - suffering from a splitting headache - is joined by Rob Zacny, Tom Chick (hooray) and Idle Thumbs/Gamasutra star Chris Remo before he heads off to join Irrational Games. The topic: Starcraft ...
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Three Moves Ahead 76: Modding from 2010-08-03T18:34
Troy, Julian and Rob are joined by Maxis Games' Soren Johnson and Fall From Heaven 2 lead Derek Paxton in a chat about modding. How do you assemble a mod team? What are the trade offs for developer...
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Three Moves Ahead 75: The Strategy Syllabus from 2010-07-29T03:26:12
This week, with the rest of the TMA crew (i.e., me) off gallivanting around California or saving lives or something, Rob and Julian decided to have a real show. They dig deep into the perfect strat...
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Three Moves Ahead 74: Classic Game Analysis - Freedom Force w/ Ken Levine from 2010-07-20T16:32:55
Ken Levine from Irrational Games drops by the show to talk about what made Freedom Force so special. Is it an RPG or a strategy game? We discuss the virtues of pausable real time play, the fine lin...
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Three Moves Ahead 73: What Made You? from 2010-07-14T19:33
This week, Troy and Rob are joined byJenn Cutterin a trip down memory lane. The topic: How did you end up the gamer you've become? When did Rob and Troy lear...
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Three Moves Ahead 72: Technological Innovation from 2010-07-07T22:04
This week, hardware expert and long time strategy gamerLoyd Casejoins Troy, Julian and Rob in a chat about how various advances and changes in the te...
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Three Moves Ahead 71: Disciples 3, HoMM and Games Like This from 2010-06-28T14:39
Gameshark's Editor in Chief Bill Abner joins Troy, Rob and Bruce to talk about Disciples 3, Heroes of Might and Magic, Jagged Alliance, King's Bounty - strategy games with tactical components. To w...
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Three Moves Ahead 70: E3 Recap, Risk and 1C from 2010-06-23T16:47:51
With E3 2010 in the books, Troy talks about what he saw and is generally concerned about "everything fits together". Julian gives us a preview of Risk: Factions and Rob runs down what 1C has coming...
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Three Moves Ahead 69: E3 Special Short with Jon Shafer from 2010-06-16T21:47:02
Promises to listeners are not kept, so Troy flies solo for an interview with Jon Shafer, the lead designer of Civilization 5. 15 minutes of Hex Based Strategy Gaming.
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Three Moves Ahead 68: Selling Strategy from 2010-06-08T20:41:36
This week, Troy, Julian and Rob are joined by PR pros Joe Ziemer (Triple Point PR, Paradox shill) and Stephanie Schopp (Tinsley PR,Stardock water carrier) to talk about marketing strategy games in ...
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Three Moves Ahead 67: Experimenting With RPGs at Rabbitcon from 2010-06-02T19:02:56
Oy. Troy breaks his computer and therefore sounds like he’s calling in from a submarine. But the rest of show is a long discussion aboutGames Masters experimenting with RPG and miniature mechanics....
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Three Moves Ahead 66: The SimTex Legacy from 2010-05-24T22:04:23
Good Old Games has made the classic SimTex games Master of Orion, Master of Orion 2 and Master of Magic available for low, low prices. SoTroy, Tom, Bruce and Rob spend an hour talking about what m...
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Three Moves Ahead 65: Tutorials and Training from 2010-05-18T16:00
Tom Chick returns after a month away from the podcast to join Troy and Rob in a discussion about designing tutorials for strategy games. Is the failure of tutorial design a root of the decline in...
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Three Moves Ahead 64: Forgotten Fronts from 2010-05-12T18:14
Just Troy, Julian and Rob again as they ad hoc a podcast about types of games and settings that they would like to see in the strategy arena. Is there a really good Tolkien strategy game? Where i...
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Three Moves Ahead 63: Frozen Synapse from 2010-05-05T16:09
Tom and Bruce are absent again while Troy, Julian and Rob dissect the still in betaFrozen Synapse, a small team tactics g...
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Three Moves Ahead 62: Gettysburg Scourge of War from 2010-04-27T17:34
Another wargame show! Troy, Julian and Rob are joined by NorbSoft’s Norb Timpko and Jim Weaver to talk about Gettysburg: Scourge of War. Learn more than you ever wanted to know about how to make ...
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Three Moves Ahead 61: Imperialism from 2010-04-20T15:44
Troy, Tom and Bruce look at the classic Frog City/SSI gamesImperialismandImperialism 2. What makes this series one of the greatest grand strategy experiences of all time? Can a g...
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Three Moves Ahead 60: Achtung Panzer and WW2 Tactics from 2010-04-14T14:47
Troy, Rob and Bruce participate in the wonkiest Three Moves Ahead ever, as Dr. Geryk makes up for weeks of absences with another tour de force rant. How does Achtung Panzer compare to Combat Miss...
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Three Moves Ahead 59: Distant Worlds – Space is Big from 2010-04-07T16:56
Troy, Tom and Rob talk about Code Force’sDistant Worlds, a 4x Space RTS that tries to tackle the challenge of ceding control. How can a game get past player paranoia about letting the AI...
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Three Moves Ahead 58: Phoning it In About Pax from 2010-04-01T18:37
With the post con exhaustion, panelists running around like crazy and Julian Murdoch fighting some sort of bug, it’s sort of a wonder we got a show together at all this week. Rob, Julian and I ta...
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Three Moves Ahead 57: Supreme Commander 2 and Command&Conquer 4 from 2010-03-23T15:08
Troy, Tom and Julian devote the hour to dissecting the surprisingly goodListen
Three Moves Ahead 56: Civ 5, Sid Meier and Farmville from 2010-03-16T16:39
We throw together a show on some of the strategy gaming news and ideas coming out of this year’s GDC. What do we know and not know aboutCivilization 5? Is Sid Meier coddling players in h...
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Three Moves Ahead 55: Starcraft 2 Beta and Napoleon Total War from 2010-03-09T18:18
Two games this week. First, Tom Chick and Troy Goodfellow report on their experiences in theListen
Three Moves Ahead 54: Introversion from 2010-03-04T16:02
Troy, Julian and Rob wax rhapsodical about the glories of indie strategy game developerIntroversion. What makesDarwin...
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Three Moves Ahead 53: The One Year Anniversary Show from 2010-02-23T19:01
No agenda this week beyond a few of my favorite clips, some chat about the podcast’s high and low points and what we’d like to see in the coming year of podcasts. Learn about Tom’s other podcasts, ...
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Three Moves Ahead 52: Sins of a Solar Empire Diplomacy from 2010-02-16T23:07
Troy is joined by Tom, Julian and Rob to talk about the new expansion forSins of a Solar Empire. How does Diplomacy work in a multiplayer game? Does it add more personality to a game with ...
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Three Moves Ahead 51: Science and Technology from 2010-02-10T17:18
Troy is joined by Tom, Bruce and Rob as they counter December’s religion show with a talk about how strategy games treat science. How do you link technology to other game mechanics? Is there a risk...
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Three Moves Ahead 50: Designing Government and Debating Detail from 2010-02-01T03:12
Having not seen each other in weeks, Tom and Bruce giggle like schoolgirls reunited after summer break before getting into their usual sparring. Troy just tries to keep people on topic – futilely. ...
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Three Moves Ahead 49: Strategy Games and Story Telling from 2010-01-26T20:07
This week, Troy, Julian and Rob talk about the limitations and possibilities of story telling in strategy games. Can you have an authorial perspective in a system driven genre? Is the RTS campaign ...
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Three Moves Ahead 48: The Gaming Gender Gap from 2010-01-19T18:16
This week, Troy and Tom welcome Lara Crigger, Jenn Cutter and Tiffany Martin to the show to talk about the gender gap in strategygaming. Well, that’s where it starts. It turns into an almost 90 min...
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Three Moves Ahead 47: Looking forward to 2010 from 2010-01-12T18:47
Troy, Tom and Rob look at the big 4 RTSes coming out this year (Command&Conquer 4, Starcraft 2, Supreme Commander 2andRUSE) as well as the return of Norb Timpko, the future of Fac...
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Three Moves Ahead 46: EU3 and Heir to the Throne from 2010-01-05T19:02
Troy, Tom and Rob Zacny talk about Europa Universalis 3, the new Heir to the Throne expansion and how the series rewards different play styles. Has the new expansion compromised the importance of s...
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Three Moves Ahead 45: 2009 in Review from 2009-12-30T15:34
Tom and Troy spend the hour looking back at 2009, including insight into how to make a Best of the Year list, why Tom finally joinedFacebook and the state of the genre in the last year. Dawn of Dis...
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Three Moves Ahead 44: Religion from 2009-12-22T02:42
A subtle shifting of the guard as Julian Murdoch is back after hiatus, but Troy Goodfellow is off for a week, leaving Julian at the mercy of the far more stable Tom Chick and Bruce Geryk. The topi...
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Three Moves Ahead 43: Episode 43 from 2009-12-15T19:24
This week, Tom Chick makes the case that strategy gamers need to have a console to truly appreciate the range of games out there. He callsBruce and Troy “dinosaurs” for clinging bitterly to a fadin...
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Three Moves Ahead 42: Epic Fails from 2009-12-08T19:31
Rob Zacnycomes to the plate as a pinch hitter, but we still manage to get three originalpanelists together for a long discussion about strategy...
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Three Moves Ahead 41: Solium Infernum from 2009-12-01T14:50
Our first ever guest, Vic Davis, returns for an episode that will not be lost to the ether.Solium Infernumgets invited to a love in as Tom, Troy and Bruce try to explain why it is one of t...
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Three Moves Ahead 40: Episode 40 from 2009-11-25T17:27
Troy, Bruce and Julian deal with a few questioners listeners brought to the panel. Can noobs and experts play together? What is the place ofAI in current game design? Why do we keep doing this? And...
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Three Moves Ahead 39: Episode 39 from 2009-11-17T19:43
Another guest this week as Ntronium Studios lead Bob Smith talks to Troy and Tom about the imminent release ofArmada 2526. Bob is a veteran of Creative Assembly and has been making games f...
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Three Moves Ahead 38: Episode 38 from 2009-11-10T21:49
This week’s show begins with a business chat as we talk about the changing revenue models in all gaming as downloadable content begins tosupplant or supplement the traditional retail expansion pack...
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Three Moves Ahead 37: Episode 37 from 2009-11-03T16:17
Chris Park from Arcen Games joins us this week to talk about independent game development and how his sci-fi RTSAI War: Fleet Commandsaw the light of day. Park talks about the design proce...
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Three Moves Ahead 36: Episode 36 from 2009-10-28T00:22
We try to make up some ground this week with a little chat aboutPanzer General: Allied Assault(via Julian),Eufloria(via Tom) and, our main topic,Tropico 3(via me). When i...
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Three Moves Ahead 35: Episode 35 from 2009-10-20T21:17
Skip a night and the inmates take over the asylum. Tom and Julian decide to talk aboutBrutal Legend, especially its strategy components. Why is BL Tom’s favorite game ofthe year? Are there...
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Three Moves Ahead 34: Episode 34 from 2009-10-13T22:36
Ubisoft’s Michael de Plater joins us for a fanboy grilling from Tom Chick. Why EndWar worked, its relative success and why Bruce never gotto actually play EndWar for very long. Apologies in advanc...
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Three Moves Ahead 33: Episode 33 from 2009-10-06T22:32
Sometimes Bruce misses a show he really needs to be on – like the one where we pronounced the death of the Dominions 3 game. This week,Dr. Geryk won’t give up and he makes a compelling argument alo...
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Three Moves Ahead 32: Episode 32 from 2009-09-29T22:42
So what do you do when your guest doesn't show and your schedule for the rest of the week is shot to hell? You go ahead, press record and make it up as you go along.A beloved friend of the show is ...
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Three Moves Ahead 31: Episode 31 from 2009-09-22T18:22
Majesty 2 becomes the starting point about the pluses and minuses of surrendering control. Troy, Tom and Bruce talk about the origins ofMajesty, other games with the detached czar motif and whether...
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Three Moves Ahead 30: Episode 30 from 2009-09-16T17:32
Ever wonder what would happen to a show where Tom Chick didn’t show up to ask annoying questions? This is the answer. PCGamer’s role playing game authority Desslock sits in with theremaining panel...
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Three Moves Ahead 29: Episode 29 from 2009-09-08T20:46
This week, a full panel deals with the question of getting started in strategy gaming. Should people approach the genre from firstprinciples (The Murdoch Method) or through a topic they are interes...
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Three Moves Ahead 28: Episode 28 from 2009-09-01T19:56
The smallest podcast ever! Scheduling confusion means that just Tom and Troy are on hand to talk about naval tactics in strategy games.High on nostalgia, low on insight and yet another plug for...
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Three Moves Ahead 27: Episode 27 from 2009-08-25T19:56
The panel welcomes Mark H. Walker to the round table for a bruising discussion of his upcoming squad based wargameLock N Load: Heroes of Stalingrad. Bruce and Julian dominate an unusually ...
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Three Moves Ahead 26: Episode 26 from 2009-08-18T16:57
Troy, Tom and Bruce spend an hour talking about city builders as ant farm games. Why didn’t they talk aboutDawn of Discoverytwo weeks ago? What’s up withCities XL? Is SimCity Soci...
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Three Moves Ahead 25: Episode 25 from 2009-08-11T18:29
Troy, Tom and Julian start withHearts of Iron 3, detour through a bunch of other WW2 games and somehow end up making less sense than usual. Learn whyThin Red Lineis Tom’s favorite...
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Three Moves Ahead 24: Episode 24 from 2009-08-05T16:02
East India Companyand other trading themed games take center stage this week. Listen as a full panel talks about where Nitro’ssailing business sim stands and falls. Is it possible to make ...
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Three Moves Ahead 23: Episode 23 from 2009-07-28T21:37
Sometimes a last minute topic change actually goes somewhere. Troy, Tom and Bruce have a long and detailed conversation about thechallenges wargame and strategy game designers face when they try to...
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Three Moves Ahead 22: Episode 22 from 2009-07-21T17:28
After a month of absences, Bruce Geryk more than makes up for it in a tour de force conversation with special guest Bill Abner as they relive the fun of 1970s baseball simulation games. We open wit...
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Three Moves Ahead 21: Episode 21 from 2009-07-14T19:04
Soren Johnson drops by to talk to Troy, Tom and Julian about how the future of strategy games is online - whether you like it or not. He drops some hints about what he is working on at EA, talks a ...
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Three Moves Ahead 20: Episode 20 from 2009-07-07T17:11
The panel returns to game design territory with a discussion of the problem of runaway winners in strategy games. Can you design around it? Should you? How do you keep a game interesting for everyo...
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Three Moves Ahead 19: Episode 19 from 2009-06-30T20:18
Troy, Tom and Julian look at the year so far and look ahead to see what games they liked and what they are anticipating. Detours into diving, naval warfare and whether Starcraft 2 will appeal to th...
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Three Moves Ahead 18: Episode 18 from 2009-06-24T21:57
This week, the panel takes the pulse of strategy franchises. What makes you strong? What makes you weak? And is any particular franchise in trouble?We also give you a preview of our next epic multi...
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Three Moves Ahead 17: Episode 17 from 2009-06-16T17:50
This week is all about Bruce as he goes on and on about how hard it was to write the manual for Dominions 3. The panel talks about how a manual is not the same as documentation, how even good games...
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Three Moves Ahead 16: Episode 16 from 2009-06-09T22:38
Bruce shows up late, but we do get a full panel to talk about The Sims 3 and the franchise in general. Tom gets all artsy, Julian makes an odd comparison and Troy is a cheater. One of the four pane...
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Three Moves Ahead 15: Episode 15 from 2009-06-04T18:28
Tom and I sit down with Johan Andersson of Paradox Interactive and Kim Soares of Nitro Studios to talk about Hearts of Iron 3, East India Company and what it's like for a hardcore strategy publishe...
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Three Moves Ahead 14: Episode 14 from 2009-05-26T22:58
The panel jumps the gun a little bit and talks about maps before Troy can finish quite his series, but they have good reason. The team goes over an hour this time so Bruce can call Civilization IV'...
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Three Moves Ahead 13: Episode 13 from 2009-05-19T17:57
Four men enter, two men leave as Tom and Bruce welcome their podcast partners into the oldest continuous rivalry in strategy gaming. In the first official multiplayer recap session in TMA history, ...
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Three Moves Ahead 12: Episode 12 from 2009-05-12T20:15
So what happens when an emergency derails a scheduled topic for a podcast? People scramble, that's what. Listen as Troy, Tom and Julian spend half the podcast debating and discussing how diplomacy ...
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Three Moves Ahead 11: Episode 11 from 2009-05-05T16:10
This week, the panel uses Popcap's Plants vs Zombies as a jumping off point to talk about defensive games in general - tower defense, grid defense and wargames. Bruce hates playing the Reds, Julian...
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Three Moves Ahead 10: Episode 10 from 2009-04-28T13:32
A disorganized and rambling panel deals with multiplayer gaming in general and some war stories is specific. Bruce and Tom give the not-so-secret history of Tom vs Bruce. Julian sings the praises o...
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Three Moves Ahead 9: Brad Wardell, Demigod, Elemental and a Prize from 2009-04-21T22:01
This week, the panel has a special guest. Stardock's Brad Wardell joins Troy, Tom, Bruce and Julian to explain just what was up with Demigod's botched multiplayer launch. We also get a little bit o...
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Three Moves Ahead 8: Episode 8 from 2009-04-14T17:31
A full panel today as the experts ramble about symmetry and asymmetry in strategy game design. What do we even mean by an asymmetrical game? When is asymmetry just a cheat to hide poor game design?...
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Three Moves Ahead 7: Episode 7 from 2009-04-07T16:24
The full panel is on hand this week and Troy is way out of his element as they talk about Collectible Card Games as strategy games, starting with Battleforge and moving through Star Chamber, Culdce...
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Three Moves Ahead 6: The Demigod Episode from 2009-03-31T20:58
This week, Troy, Tom and Bruce devote the entire show to Demigod, the upcoming RTS from Gas Powered Games and Stardock. Bruce reaches into the past for a boardgame comparison, Tom is annoyed by eve...
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Three Moves Ahead 5: Three Moves Ahead Episode 5 from 2009-03-24T15:12
This week, Troy Goodfellow, Tom Chick and Julian Murdoch discuss what a strategy game is. In a world of genre blending titles, what is core nature of strategy gaming? Listen as Tom sells the panel ...
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Three Moves Ahead 4: Three Moves Ahead Episode 4 from 2009-03-17T17:02
This week it's all about wargaming as John Hawkins from KE Studios comes in to talk about War Plan Pacific. Julian Murdoch returns to explain why he doesn't understand anything, Bruce Geryk would ...
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Three Moves Ahead 3: Three Moves Ahead Episode 3 from 2009-03-11T14:51
This week, host Troy Goodfellow and panelists Tom Chick and Bruce Geryk spend most of their time talking aboutEmpire: Total War, with a lot of armchair game design. Tom challenges the very...
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Three Moves Ahead 2: Three Moves Ahead Episode 2 from 2009-03-03T15:20
Three Moves Ahead: Episode TwoHost: Troy GoodfellowPanel: Tom Chick, Bruce Geryk, Julian MurdochThe second episode of TMA talks about Halo Wars, Demigod, Sins of a Solar Empire and Empire: Total Wa...
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