Why ironclads are hard to turn into games

Would starting more games in the ironclad era help preserve the period's history?

It would help, but the era has fewer famous large battles, so game designers would probably need a dramatic Warrior or Black Prince scenario against U.S. monitors.

Public memory often follows the density of famous battles. The ironclad period lacks the many iconic fleet actions that make later eras easier to package, despite its historical importance. A hypothetical clash involving Warrior, Black Prince, and U.S. monitors would have made the era more gameable, while Lissa provides one real battle around which to build a narrative. Popular games often need concentrated battle stories that this transitional era rarely supplies.