What’s happening: EuroGames tonight @ 7:00pm
Beer Tasting (California Beers) Tuesday @ 6:00pm
Netrunner League Wednesday @ 7:00pm
Here it is, Mammoth Monday again. Since this week we decided to talk about war games, today we’ll take a look at some of the classics that we have here at Round the Table.
Tactics (we have the revision, Tactics II) is often considered the first wargame. It was designed by Charles S. Roberts and was the first game published by The Avalon Hill Game Company, way back in 1954.
Avalon Hill went on to make dozens (if not hundreds!) of other games, mostly concentrating on World War II, but still get in some ancients, some American Civil War, WWI, fantasy and science fiction. They are probably best known for their monster WWII tactical game, Advanced Squad Leader, which has been licensed out to Multi-Man Publishing. Other AH games that are still in print include Merchants of Venus, Acquire (remember last week?), and Diplomacy.
Other early wargame publishers include Yaquinto, who were known for packaging their games in album sleeves (you know, the protective cardboard envelope that a vinyl record went in). Games like Swashbuckler and its sci-fi cousin Adventurer still get great reviews. Simulations Publications, Inc. (or SPI) was the other giant in early wargaming, known for their large counter trays and box-less packaging. They did many fantasy titles, including Sorcerer and War of the Ring.
Back in the early days of game publishing, many companies that we think of now as specializing in RPGs, did wargames too. Steve Jackson (and Steve Jackson Games) designed Ogre, GEV and Battlesuit. Chaosium (who now does exclusively Call of Cthulhu and BRP) produced Panzer Pranks. Game Designers Workshop did a bunch of wargames including the still highly-acclaimed Triplanetary. And TSR started out with wargames like Chainmail and Star Probe before Dungeons and Dragons.
