| normsmith | 11 Feb 2014 4:18 p.m. PST |
This is specifically designed as an intro game to bring new gamers into the hobby but is also a good game for regulars to play. Game replay and systems notes on my blog at link |
| vtsaogames | 11 Feb 2014 4:33 p.m. PST |
How long did a game take to play? |
| normsmith | 11 Feb 2014 4:41 p.m. PST |
I would say that you would typically see a relaxing game run for an hour to an hour and a half. Setup takes just a few minutes. |
79thPA  | 11 Feb 2014 4:52 p.m. PST |
Is Memoir '44 or Battle Cry acceptable or are they not what you are looking for? |
| vtsaogames | 11 Feb 2014 4:54 p.m. PST |
I've got Memoir '44. I like it OK but some guys in my group aren't fond of it. Ditto C&C Napoleonics. You can lead a Fencible to the game table but you can't make him play… without grousing. |
| John the OFM | 11 Feb 2014 5:49 p.m. PST |
Avalon Hill's 1964(?) Battle of the Bulge.
Of all the early AH games, I think it captures the flavor best, and without getting into "perfect plans" for beginners. It's still available on eBay too, and dirt cheap.
auction The American setup is fixed, as it should be. The Germans have to win big and early, or the American reinforcements will make it impossible to win at all.
It still rewards good and careful play, and the Yanks can make surprise counterattacks that can catch the Hun napping.
Ever make a bunch of 1-2 surrounded counter-attacks? Much fun! Sure, it's not the most "realistic" Bulge "simulation", but it gives a good feel, and for introduction it's perfect. |
| TNE2300 | 11 Feb 2014 7:18 p.m. PST |
OGRE/GEV quick, easy and loads of fun |
| normsmith | 11 Feb 2014 11:26 p.m. PST |
When I first came across board games and bought my first one, I didn't have any link to the wargame world (and the good old internet wasn't around). i was lucky enough to But the S&T Cobra, issue 68, which was a clean and fun game and an ideal new players game, I was enthused from that day on. I wonder what would have happened if I had picked up the 'wrong game' on that day in the store. I had GEV and loved it. I hawked the game around a few local printers to see how much it would cost for me to do something similar – of course the costs were prohibative as all things were in those days for the man in street. Computers and DTP have certainly given the individual a voice and a platform in driving this great hobby forwards. |
| Princeps | 11 Feb 2014 11:44 p.m. PST |
I have the original GDW version and the VPG version. It is a very good game and the new Frank Chadwick designs added by VPG for other Eastern Front battles are also a lot of fun. |
| vtsaogames | 12 Feb 2014 11:52 a.m. PST |
My only beef with AH Bulge: the usual 52 turns or whatever that those old AH games always lasted. When I was young and could play until 2 AM… |
| John D Salt | 12 Feb 2014 12:10 p.m. PST |
All these are pretty old, but I would recommend: AH's "Platoon!"
GDW's "Team Yankee" As they were book or film tie-in games, I think they were developed with the intention of being played by first-timers who bought them on impulse. SPI's "Firefight" would also do nicely, having had some extra budget thrown at it by the US Army as a training game. Stretching the definition of "board game" a touch, and ignoring the fact that second-hand copies are rarer than rocking-horse manure, either edition of the WRG's unutterably brilliant "Seastrike" would be a great intro game. All the best, John. |
| Kimber VanRy | 12 Feb 2014 3:47 p.m. PST |
I started playing some of the smaller Axis and Allies games with my son when he was about 9 years old, and he picked it up pretty fast (although he was pretty experienced in gaming even at that age and already a FOW veteran). I played AA Guadacanal for the first time this week and that's pretty quick and easy. |
| SteelVictory | 12 Feb 2014 6:51 p.m. PST |
Victory Point Games has a number of inexpensive introductory level wargames. Most have a small footprint map and a handful of counters. They are under the BattLesson series: Drive on Metz, Strike Force One, Battle for Moscow, Assault on Sevastopol to name a few. link |
| Ethanjt21 | 13 Feb 2014 2:47 p.m. PST |
Try combining the new AA Europe Board with the AA Pacific Board, they have rules for that. Talk about a LOOOOOOONG game, took my father and I four sessions at 2-3 hours each. We've both also been playing against each other since I was 10 (I'm 22 now) it's our father-son thing. With new people it'd probably be faster… |
| Milites | 14 Feb 2014 3:42 p.m. PST |
A good game was SPI's Arnhem game from the Westwall: Four battles to Germany quad. Talking of long games, try the Streets of Stalingrad, 'Verdun on the Volga' campaign. At a counter a company and 300m hexes it truly is a monster game. |
 Parzival | 14 Feb 2014 7:36 p.m. PST |
Battle for Moscow— wow, is that a blast from the past. I had that game, though I don't think I ever played it (more than once, anyway.) I probably still have it somewhere, unless I gave it to a friend (a distinct possibility). |
| Panfilov | 15 Feb 2014 5:19 a.m. PST |
Thanks for the link to VPG; Now to scrape up some cash… Will it make any difference? It seems by the time they are old enough to be wandering around on their own, other than the ones still playing YuGiOh last night, they are mostly interested in (Know about?) is Vampires, Zombies and Super Heroes. History is something that happened to old folks, |
paints piebald and skewbald horses.