Wargames can be incredible teaching and learning tools when they are built and utilized properly. They come in all shapes, sizes and colors and require a skilled hand in their creation. A BETTER PEACE welcomes two such skilled developers, Chris Steinitz and Erin Sullivan to the studio to share their experiences as game developers and discuss how they started in the wargaming world. Chris and Erin join podcast editor Ron Granieri to talk about what makes a great wargame, what crucial information is necessary before even starting construction of a game and when you truly need a wargame versus tailored analysis.
I like to design games that can be played iteratively so that you can play it relatively quickly but play it several times and get different results each time. So then you can you’ve got several different data sets that you can compare and contrast and see what decisions were made at what points in response to which stimuli and and get a different perspective on the problem.
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Chris Steinitz is a Senior Research Scientist on CNA’s Gaming and Integration team and has been involved in wargaming for most of his nearly 14 years at CNA. In his varied career at CNA, Chris has also conducted studies on topics such as climate change, maritime security cooperation, coalition-building, and North Korea’s strategic calculus.
Erin Sullivan is a Research Scientist & wargamer in the Operational Warfighting Division at CNA. She holds a Bachelors in Mechanical Engineering from University of Delaware and a Ph.D. in Materials Science & Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology.
Ron Granieri is an Associate Professor of History at the U.S. Army War College and the Editor of A BETTER PEACE.
The views expressed in this presentation are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Army War College, U.S. Army, or Department of Defense.
Photo Description: CNA Wargame
Photo Credit: Courtesy of CNA Headquarters, Arlington, Virginia, photo by Don Boroughs, September 2020