British Historical Games Society
I don’t want to rehash old articles of mine or those of my fellow contributors, but I was wondering something recently; is it because the study of history has become passe, that Historical Wargaming is having issues getting younger blood invested or interested in the hobby? Now more than ever, history, and the interpretation of history, is a loaded topic. Can we, then, blame young folks, who exist in the hothouse of peer pressure, for shying away from historical games when they have Nazis and Southern Confederates marching across the tables?
I am not suggesting we censor the hobby. History, at its core, is never a clean or easy thing. Uncomfortable truths exist and should be honestly and competently dealt with by all; not just those who have “Ph.D.” after their names. This applies to game designers and wargamers as well. I’ve never met a WWII gamer who shied away from the truth of the Holocaust, nor an American Civil War gamer who shied away from the Fort Pillow massacre. It’s part and parcel of knowing your period.
The other issue? It’s an old one. History is, in in my opinion, poorly taught at the primary and secondary school levels. Most kids find it to be a boring litany of names and dates; they don’t see the story behind it.
Look; I am a Jewish wargamer who games World War II. Do I have SS? Yep, I do, in 20mm. And do I know about the things the SS did? Of course I do, and in horrible detail. I have a responsibility to know the history when I game. Not because I want to be the fun police, but because I want to be careful, to be respectful, and to never those guys or make them into anything more than they were.
Unfortunately, recent events have made it difficult for any study or any honest look into an actual history context to take place , and I expect HMGS will be in the sights of those wishing to whitewash uncomfortable truths. It’s no wonder younger folks are flocking towards-fi and fantasy instead; “Orc” ins’t quite the loaded term “Nazis” is. And I can understand that.
But this problem (and yes, to me, this is a problem) will not be fixed by the wargamers themselves. We must acknowledge that, one: history degrees are not the types of degrees that will get you a job right out of the gate. STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) degrees are being sold hard right now, and with some good reasons. Not every kid, however, is cut out to be a person in a STEM field. I know I wasn’t.
We need to figure out ways to help this learning process. To help the kids who are not normally STEM capable find a way to make history relevant to them! We need, in my mind, to figure out how to beat back unhelpful revisionism happening in the field right now. Now let me qualify that there absolutely is some damn good research and reporting going on. One is reevaluating the quality of the French Army in 1940? I’ve spilled some of my own electrons on that and others have done a lot more.
I am also seeing some politically motivated stuff that concerns me. And I know it is scaring away some folks who would otherwise join the wargaming hobby. This needs to be attacked and stopped. I don’t want this editorial to take one political side or the other, but I am not naive enough to think politics does not play a role in historical interpretation. There comes a point when we become too afraid to pursue hobbies based on what the neighbors might think. And I am concerned about that. Gravely so.
I do see good work in the field. Bolt Action and Flames of War are two that come to mind. While many older gamers decry them for, shall we say, questionable historical fidelity, they are to me, great gateway drugs into the wargaming hobby I think both games could do more to push that role even more; perhaps by adding entry-level kits to appeal to gamers in the 13 to15-year-old range. Some miniatures, terrain, simple rules, and paints to get one started. I know I would have loved that sort of thing at that age. Flames of War has done such a thing with Hit the Beach, but I do wish they would expand it even further.
I think what we really need in the hobby is not just a fun component, but an educational component. And we are trying; HMGS awards scholarships and manages kid’s clinics. But perhaps we could do more? What if we pick a Civil War battlefield, do a scaled-down staff ride and then run a fast-play simplified game of the battle after lunch? I could see that working very well for middle schoolers.
In short; we need to get out of the box, and make kids see there can be more to history and historical wargaming than just names, dates and stuffy old guys gathered around a table with painted toy soldiers. If we can get the story out there, then we can bring new blood into the hobby.
As always, Good Gaming, Everyone.
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(This article is credited to Jason Weiser. Jason is a long-time wargamer with published works in the Journal of the Society of Twentieth Century Wargamers; Miniature Wargames Magazine; and Wargames, Strategy, and Soldier.)