Iain McNeil

Iain’s lifelong passion for wargaming began at just six years of age and led to him competing internationally and earning titles as UK, European, and World Champion. In 2000, he transformed his passion into a profession by founding Slitherine, a leading developer and publisher of digital wargames and strategy games. Under his leadership, Slitherine has released over 300 titles spanning every period of history, genre, and scale. In 2025 TIGA awarded him Game’s industries Outstanding Individual of the Year. Today, the Slitherine Group includes renowned names such as Matrix Games, Ageod, Shenandoah, Battlefront, and Matrix Pro Sims & Matrix Pro Services.

Although raising three children and two dogs leaves him with little personal time to wargame, Iain now gets to pursue his passion professionally. Since 2015, he has been instrumental in adapting Slitherine’s commercial wargames for defence purposes, delivering solutions to over 150 defence organisations across 25 countries. A strong advocate for the power of wargaming, Iain champions its role in accelerating training, enhancing command effectiveness, and supporting the development of advanced AI systems.

Iain also represents the UK at NATO as part of MSG-189 and MSG-198, consults for the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL), and mentors transitioning military personnel through Heropreneurs, a charity that helps veterans start new businesses.