HoNoToGroABeMo Day Thirty-One: It Is Done
5 years ago
9:28 AM
SGMT
Already??
A long while back I got invited to work the historical wargaming selections committee for "The Gamer's Choice Awards" which morphed into "The International Gaming Awards". We actually take this duty fairly seriously. Well, it's decision time again, and we had to submit our top ten list of the games that were published in 2005. This will be winnowed down to a top 3.
My preliminaries (note that this is not in any order):
Conquest of the Empire (Eagle)
It's a reprint, yes. However, the addition of the Martin Wallace rules makes a simple plastic piece pusher into a very interesting strategic game with loads of eye candy.
Wellington (GMT)
Hands down my favorite wargame of 2005 (personally). Mark McGlaughlin's succesor to the Nappy Wars system surpasses the parent in a CDG system game that is just a pleasure to play.
Empire of the Sun (GMT)
Mark Herman (my old Booz Allen colleague!) is a wargame designer of note, who is constantly breaking new ground. Empire of the Sun is deserving of praise..
Men of Iron (GMT)
I usually like Berg's designs, and I really enjoyed playing this particular one. A bunch of smallish battles with a funky initiative system..
Bonaparte at Marengo (Simmons)
This game is in contention for top spot in my mind. On the face of it, it seems very simple block pushing game with the regular fog of war. The addition of the unique terrain rules really makes it a contest.
Down in Flames WWI (Verssen)
I am a big fan of the Down in Flames WW2 series from GMT and was very disappointed it never got published as a commercial product. However, Dan Verssen's new DTP company is cranking out professional looking products that require a little assembly.
Fire in the Sky (MMP)
MMP's translation of Tetsuya Nakamura's Pacific War game received a lot of raves in 2005, and with some justification.
Battleships at War (Minden)
Seems like this is pretty old for 2005, because I remember buying it a while ago. In any event, I'm a big fan of both Minden and their miniatures style ship system. Battleships at War basically is minis with paper, combining just about everything that's been published in the series so far.
Silent War (Compass)
Even though the game is hideously high priced (in my own opinion) I can't deny that Compass Games has finally put out a game that I have been jonesing for since the late 90s.
Gazala 1945 (avalanche)
This is my personal favorite of the "modern micros" that Avalanche has been publishing lately, most of all because it's not about the Eastern Front, but also because I love the graphics work done on this design. The map is wonderful.
2005 was a great year for wargame designs, which made my choices a lot harder than in years past.
It's IGA time again
Already??
A long while back I got invited to work the historical wargaming selections committee for "The Gamer's Choice Awards" which morphed into "The International Gaming Awards". We actually take this duty fairly seriously. Well, it's decision time again, and we had to submit our top ten list of the games that were published in 2005. This will be winnowed down to a top 3.
My preliminaries (note that this is not in any order):
Conquest of the Empire (Eagle)
It's a reprint, yes. However, the addition of the Martin Wallace rules makes a simple plastic piece pusher into a very interesting strategic game with loads of eye candy.
Wellington (GMT)
Hands down my favorite wargame of 2005 (personally). Mark McGlaughlin's succesor to the Nappy Wars system surpasses the parent in a CDG system game that is just a pleasure to play.
Empire of the Sun (GMT)
Mark Herman (my old Booz Allen colleague!) is a wargame designer of note, who is constantly breaking new ground. Empire of the Sun is deserving of praise..
Men of Iron (GMT)
I usually like Berg's designs, and I really enjoyed playing this particular one. A bunch of smallish battles with a funky initiative system..
Bonaparte at Marengo (Simmons)
This game is in contention for top spot in my mind. On the face of it, it seems very simple block pushing game with the regular fog of war. The addition of the unique terrain rules really makes it a contest.
Down in Flames WWI (Verssen)
I am a big fan of the Down in Flames WW2 series from GMT and was very disappointed it never got published as a commercial product. However, Dan Verssen's new DTP company is cranking out professional looking products that require a little assembly.
Fire in the Sky (MMP)
MMP's translation of Tetsuya Nakamura's Pacific War game received a lot of raves in 2005, and with some justification.
Battleships at War (Minden)
Seems like this is pretty old for 2005, because I remember buying it a while ago. In any event, I'm a big fan of both Minden and their miniatures style ship system. Battleships at War basically is minis with paper, combining just about everything that's been published in the series so far.
Silent War (Compass)
Even though the game is hideously high priced (in my own opinion) I can't deny that Compass Games has finally put out a game that I have been jonesing for since the late 90s.
Gazala 1945 (avalanche)
This is my personal favorite of the "modern micros" that Avalanche has been publishing lately, most of all because it's not about the Eastern Front, but also because I love the graphics work done on this design. The map is wonderful.
2005 was a great year for wargame designs, which made my choices a lot harder than in years past.
