Riskgaming The present and future of wargaming
Oct 22, 2025
Rwizi Rweizooba Ainomugisha, the editor of Wargaming Weekly and a dynamic wargaming designer from Uganda, shares his fascinating journey from building an underground casino in high school to shaping modern wargaming. He discusses the significance of gamification across various fields, the potential of solitaire and microgames to attract newcomers, and the challenges of making wargaming mainstream. Rwizi also emphasizes the balance between serious play and strategic decision-making, advocating for a cultural shift to embrace wargaming as a vital tool for leadership.
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Progress From Reading To Designing
- To become a wargamer, move beyond reading: play, then design, then build experience by publishing or consulting.
- Use small steps (play solitaire, design microgames) to overcome imposter syndrome and learn by doing.
Wargaming Is Vast And Specialized
- Wargaming spans commercial hobbyists and professional military/business applications with many sub-branches.
- Rwizi chose to focus on professional wargaming while accepting he can't master the whole field.
Play As A Way To Test Assumptions
- Games are tools to explore uncertainty and test assumptions about logistics, range, and tempo in complex systems.
- Wargames help imprint realistic constraints so decision-makers avoid infeasible plans.
