Matrix Games Forums

An easy question for the weekend. Do we have any board gamers in the house? Comments welcome.

I have plenty board games, but nobody around to play them with... [8D]

Board games are dead.

The last one I tried was the Lock n Load games. Beautiful production values compared to the older SPI/AH games and interesting mechanics, but the same old hassles....set up, pack up and lack of opponents.

I voted "Sure"

I'd probably but it, unbox it and look at it, read the rules, set it up, look at it, read the rules again, read a book on the subject, play a scenario (possibly two) solitaire, pack it away, put it on the shelf, come back to it a month/year or two later and repeat the process.

If only it had a solitaire system or maybe some sort of dice/flowchart driven "AI" I might actually play a little bit more of it.

Don't get me wrong I love board wargames, but I tend to find that I no longer play them so much as collect them.

Not for me. The game is fine, wish you luck!

I voted "sure" too. It would be interesting to see how the asynchronous turns would be ported into boardgame mechanics.

Just a theoretical question folks. We do have a couple of us on the OTS team with board game design experience.

I voted sure. I still play board games.

Don't we already sort of have it in the LnL's World at War series?

I'm an old timer board gamer from the Squad Leader, Panzerblitz era. One of the problems I had then, and still have now, is opponents.

This is one of the reasons I've transitioned almost exclusively to computer wargames.

However, I'd be tempted to see this one put into a physical board format.

Grant1

ORIGINAL: The Plodder

I voted "sure" too. It would be interesting to see how the asynchronous turns would be ported into boardgame mechanics.

World At War's chit pull activation adds that element to an existing board game system.

For all those of you missing opponents, why don't you use Vassal?

Good Hunting.

MR

I haven't answered yet. I honestly would have to think hard on this. Personally I am not sure how the turn structure would be able to be converted successfully.

Vassal is a cool system, but for me if I'm going to use a PC to facilitate a board game, I'd really just rather play a PC game. Half the fun of board games--and I used to have a collection of hundreds of wargames, which I sold off years ago to help pay for grad school!--is the physicality of it all. Counters, maps, charts, all that sort of stuff. But that's personal preference.

Board games are hardly dead, but for many of us it's very hard to justify buying fairly expensive physical games which in all likelihood we'll only fiddle around with or browse once or twice. So if it's a matter of resources, while a boardgame version would be conceptually interesting, I for one would think your resources would be better deployed elsewhere.

Not one, but two cats currently[;)].

Previous cats just loved the Central Front series. And they always won.[8|]

ORIGINAL: WABAC

Not one, but two cats currently[;)].

Previous cats just loved the Central Front series. And they always won.[8|]

Yeah, I always had cats too, before I got married and my wife was allergic to 'em. Back then, they too liked the Central Front series, as well as Wacht am Rhine and Atlantic Wall.

ORIGINAL: Cafe

Board games are dead.

The last one I tried was the Lock n Load games. Beautiful production values compared to the older SPI/AH games and interesting mechanics, but the same old hassles....set up, pack up and lack of opponents.

Everything he just said....I've got tons of old Avalon Hill & Victory Games classics collecting dust.

Tangentially related: I really like the aesthetics of FPCRS as it reminds me of the old hex & counter games w/o the hassle.

We are big fans of tangents. [:D]

I love historical boardgames, and have a pretty huge collection. I also am fortunate enough to have a very active wargamers group close to me in Oakland, CA (USA). We meet twice a month, and play historical boardgames.

It is a blast. We play everything From the oldies like Squad Leader, Up Front, Victory in the Pacific to the latest and greatest GMT wargames. Combat Commander:Europe is a huge group favorite, as is Napoleon's Triumph by Bowen Simmons.

So, if anyone lives in the Bay Area of Northern California, please check out Endgame in Oakland, and join us the 1st and 3rd Mondays for wargaming boardgame style.

Anyway, I might purchase a boardgame version of this game. I would have to see how it plays out, and the length of play. It does sound interesting, though. I would much rather see a WW2 version of it, though, both PC and boardgame. )

There still is a shortfall of cold war gone hot boardgames, so I would most likely buy it. LnL's WaW series is a good one but the command/HQ mechanics are a bit incomplete in my opinion. Fix that and you got a winner.

Fond memories of board wargames. Fond.

Started playing them in 1961 and played 'em regular right up until 1979 when I bought my 1st PC (a TRS-80 with a mere 16K of RAM). Got an Avalon Hill game for the TRS-80 called Tanktics I believe. Came with a board, card board units etc. Russian front game IIRC. You set it all up and the computer was your opponent (it told you where to move its pieces and you told it where you moved yours). Primitive to be sure but it took me about 30 seconds in to it to know that I'd never ever go back to board games.

Besides - little kids - I had three baby girls at the time - and board wargames don't really mix well. They're all grown up now and I've got 8 grand kids and a 6 year old son and board games don't mix well with them either. Nope - never going back - ever.