Sid Meier's Antietam!

Sid Meier's Antietam!
Sid Meier's Antietam!
Developer(s)	Firaxis Games; BreakAway Games
Publisher(s)	Firaxis Games
Designer(s)	Sid Meier
Programmer(s)	Andy House
Artist(s)	Dwight Eppinger; Bob Rickert
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows
Release	NA: December 13, 1999;
Genre(s)	Computer wargame
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

Sid Meier's Antietam! is a real-time computer wargame designed by Sid Meier, the co-founder of Firaxis Games, then released in December 1999. It is the prequel to the 1997 Sid Meier's Gettysburg!.

Gameplay

The game allows the player to control either the Confederate or Union troops during the Battle of Antietam of the American Civil War. It can be played as a single scenario, or as a campaign of linked scenarios, either recounting the original history or exploring alternate possibilities.

Development

The game was not released through retail stores. The staff of Computer Gaming World summarized it as "a grand experiment by Firaxis to test the popularity of online-only distribution for commercial releases."^[2]

Reception

Aggregate score
Aggregator	Score
Metacritic	82/100^[3]

Review scores
Publication	Score
Computer Games Strategy Plus	^[4]
Computer Gaming World	^[5]
EP Daily	7/10^[6]
Eurogamer	7/10^[7]
GamePro	^[8]
GameSpot	8.5/10^[9]
IGN	8.8/10^[10]
PC Accelerator	8/10^[11]
PC Gamer (UK)	49%^[12]
PC Gamer (US)	75%^[13]

Antietam! received "favorable" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.^[3]

The game was a runner-up for Computer Games Strategy Plus' 1999 "Wargame of the Year" award. The staff wrote, "Another battle, another victory for this thoroughly entertaining wargame 'for the masses.'"^[14] Conversely, the staff of Computer Gaming World named it the best wargame game of 1999. They wrote, "Antietam is the epitome of a Sid Meier design: intensely absorbing and wickedly punishing."^[2]

References

^ Fudge, James (December 13, 1999). "Sid Meier's Antietam! Released". Computer Games Strategy Plus. Strategy Plus, Inc. Archived from the original on July 4, 2003. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
^ ^a ^b CGW staff (March 2000). "The 2000 Premier Awards (Wargame of the Year)" (PDF). Computer Gaming World. No. 188. Ziff Davis. p. 75. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Sid Meier's Antietam! for PC Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved June 4, 2017.
^ Udell, Scott (November 30, 1999). "Sid Meier's Antietam!". Computer Games Strategy Plus. Strategy Plus, Inc. Archived from the original on July 3, 2003. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
^ Dultz, Marc (February 2000). "Fix Bayonets! (Sid Meier's Antietam! Review)" (PDF). Computer Gaming World. No. 187. Ziff Davis. p. 98. Retrieved June 4, 2017.
^ Harris, Neil (February 21, 2000). "Sid Meier's Antietam!". The Electric Playground. Greedy Productions, Inc. Archived from the original on February 11, 2002. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
^ Bye, John "Gestalt" (March 7, 2000). "Sid Meier's Antietam!". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on August 16, 2000. Retrieved June 4, 2017.
^ Olafson, Peter (December 21, 1999). "Sid Meier's Antietam! Review for PC on GamePro.com". GamePro. IDG Entertainment. Archived from the original on February 12, 2005. Retrieved June 4, 2017.
^ Ryan, Michael E. (December 6, 1999). "Sid Meier's Antietam! Review". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on March 14, 2007. Retrieved June 4, 2017.
^ Butts, Steve (January 7, 2000). "[Sid Meier's] Antietam". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved June 4, 2017.
^ Brenesal, Barry (March 2000). "Sid Meier's Antietam[!]". PC Accelerator. No. 19. Imagine Media. p. 97. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
^ "Sid Meier's Antietam!". PC Gamer UK. Future Publishing. 2000.
^ Bub, Andrew S. (February 2000). "Sid Meier's Antietam!". PC Gamer. Vol. 7, no. 2. Imagine Media. p. 122. Archived from the original on March 15, 2006. Retrieved June 4, 2017.
^ CGSP staff (March 6, 2000). "The Computer Games Awards (Wargame of the Year)". Computer Games Strategy Plus. Strategy Plus, Inc. Archived from the original on April 1, 2005. Retrieved June 17, 2021.