Ever since X-com on the PC and playing D&D with miniatures as a kid, I’ve been fascinated by tactical combat games, i.e. you have a squad of troops, and you move them around, fighting the bad guys. I’m not that interested in the big picture strategy (building towns, raising troops, managing empires), I just like to take my troops into battle against someone else. I prefer turn-based, but I’ve enjoyed some real time games.

Table top wargames are what I’m talking about off-line. I would be a total nut for those, except that my friends don’t play, and when I play down at the local game store, the hardcore dudes always kick my ass.

Now that I’m making games, I thought I’d try my hand at it. What are some tactical combat games you love, and what about them do you like? I ask because I’m gathering ideas for my design.

Also, would you be interested in helping me alpha test my game when it gets to that point?

Here are some of my favorites (I liked the combat, not so much the strategy between rounds of combat):
PC
X-com (and sequel) – I liked the fog of war and being able to leave points on squaddies so they can take opportunity shots.
Incubation: Time is Running Out - Limited ammo and guns that overheat easily forced you to think through your strategy. Run and gun fails.
Medieval Total War – I love that era of history, and the combat was great for me, until you have too many troops to command. I prefer single troopers to commanding units.
Gettysburg – Again, I love the era. Action was slow enough that I could handle more formations without it getting too busy. Nice that it was all combat, no empire building.
[insert long, dry spell while RTS's ruled the day]
Frozen Synapse – Steep learning curve, but looks like awesome potential for small scale combat. On the down side, no squad building. You get a random set of dudes. So you can’t tailor to your play style.
Fallout Tactics – I just got it, but I like that the designer was trying to recreate the table top wargame feel.
HOMM3 – Rer made me buy it. The combat is more abstracted than I like, but seems pretty good.

Table Top
Warmachines/Hordes – Love the world, love the models, hate getting pwnd by teens who know that if you have this troop with that hero and are on this board, you can do that and wipe the old guy out in 2 moves. But against other non-skilled players, it is great fun. I hate that you can sit around bored for 30 min while your opponent takes their turn.
Star Wars Miniatures – Love the world, love that it takes place on a grid map (i.e. no need for rulers or measuring tape). I like that you only move 2 figures at a time, then the other player goes. Less downtime.
Two Hour Wargames – This designer has made a bunch of games with the same core mechanics. Basically, you are more like a commander. You give orders, but the stats of each figure and random luck dictate if they follow your orders exactly or if they flee, take a pot shot, etc. More like real combat.
Heroscape – My top pick. Looks cool, you take turns moving (so very low downtime), easy to learn/understand mechanics that are fun (so you don’t need to consult the rulebook every 2 min.) More casual than every other wargame. My kid loves to play with the terrain and figures, so I can buy at will and not feel bad about spending $$ on a game that I’ll quit because I can’t find opponents.

Whew. OK, your turn.

(PS, I cross posted this on the forums in case you are more of a forumy person)

Early version of my terrain builder