Now, I do believe different editions emphasise different approaches. 4e certainly has a tactical focus. Strategy is a lot less focused on since there is so much at the tactical level. You simply don't have the strategic options that you have in 3e. Conversely, 3e is a lot less tactically inclined than 4e. Again, you just have less options once initiative is rolled, but, outside of initiative, you have all sorts of things you can do in 3e that you cannot easily do in 4e. 1e, IMO, is the weakest of the three for both focuses. There is a lack of tactical or strategic options in 1e and 2e. But, OTOH, there is a much much stronger focus on logistical elements, which fits with AD&D's war-game roots where logistical considerations can be easily as important as anything else in combat.
Thinking about my games, this seems largely true, but one might note that Wizards (specifically) and their close relatives, and to a much lesser extent other spellcasters (such as Clerics, Druids, SPs, etc.), in 2E (won't speak for 1E) have some fairly serious logistical, strategic and tactical options hard-coded into the rules via spells.
Whenever I think about this kind of thing, a particular incident from 2E comes up for me, the still-infamous in my games "Giant Funeral Ambush", wherein 3 PCs killed the vast majority of male giants of fighting age in The Steading of the Hill Giant Chief (as well as their orcs etc.), in a horrifying couple of dozen rounds, if that (most of which were "mop-up", morale rapidly having been broken).
It was a serious victory of logistics over strategy or tactics. The PCs had elaborately but partially accidentally created a situation where the Hill Giants were holding a funeral for one high-up giant (looooooong story) and the PCs knew about it (part of long story!).
I assumed, as a foolish, naive, decent, non-hair-raising human being, thought they'd just use this to count giant numbers and/or get in, steal treasure and/or set fire to the steading. I reckoned without the Elf Wizard's ambition, or the Dwarf Ftr/SP of Clangeddin's divinely-mandated hatred of giants.
Instead, they planned an ambush.
Virtually a full-frontal assault. The Wizard memorized every buff that could meaningfully buff the Ftr/SP and Rogue, and the rest was all AE damage/CC spells. The Cleric found every self/group buff he could (he had a lot, he was practically CoDzilla before there was CoDzilla). They dug up every long-hoarded buff potion, magic weapon oil, and applicable scroll. The entire portable hole was virtually turned inside-out. They carefully worked out how they were going to buff themselves into the sky.
They did not, at this point, even know how many giants or others there were in their, precisely (the Rogue did a recce whilst Invisible but his PLAYER got freaked out by how scary it was to be alone in a giant-house half-way through and had his PC leave the building!). So they had no real "strategy" - just "We will hit them with everything we have!".
The day came, the buff-ladder was climbed (I tried to find problems, but they were thorough, and the potion miscibility table loved them - also they didn't push it too far, potion-wise). I was in a kind of shock. I couldn't believe an LG, LN, and CG PC were going to attack a funeral. They waited for everyone to get into their funeral positions, watching the giants set up the pyre, file out to pay their respects and conduct the ceremony and so on, then unleashed hell. The Wizard dropped AEs, Walls etc. from max range (possibly whilst Improved Invisible, I forget), causing chaos (he did avoid the women, children and infirm, at least, I guess there's that
), whilst the others charged across the field, invisible, before emerging, 20+ft tall (Enlarge and other spells/potions stacked up), buffed to the nines, among the giant leadership (because they were closest, not for, like, a good reason!), and really putting them in a blender. I seem to recall that the orcs etc. weren't deployed initially, but when they came out, a couple of good AEs from the Wizard killed about 90% of them.
It was practically a warcrime, I guess just barely on the right side of that, but oh god was it a victory for logistics and planning of resource-usage. They sent ME (ME!) out of the room at one point so they could discuss it!
But generally I've seen every kind of play in every edition... that just sticks with me from 2E.
