This Saturday I attended Circle DC 2023, a small local boardgame convention in Washington, D.C. hosted by Kevin Bertram of Fort Circle Games. I will be posting more in the coming days but here are a few of the “First Impressions” from Saturday.
Saturday was actually Day 2 of Circle DC which kicked off Friday. I was unfortunately unable to attend Friday because of work. I attended most of Saturday and played two major games. Truth be told, there was LOTS of gaming going on…the photo below was during the “lunch break” with more than a few people partaking of their meals out of shot.
The first game of Saturday for me was Maneuver Warfare, a card game designed by Ian Brown who hails from that group known as Uncle Sam’s Misguided Children (USMC). Ian is passionate about the game and that attitude is infectious. It is still a prototype and Ian admits it needs more playtesting but the core concepts are solid. We had an excellent session and I look forward to seeing this game develop further. Speaking of develop…that really is what Ian needs right now; a developer to help him smooth the edges of the game. Volunteers?
The second game of the day for me was Littoral Commander: Indo-Pacific by Sebastian Bae and soon to be delivered by publisher The Dietz Foundation. The more I play this game the more I enjoy it as the game really gets at what you want to do and takes much of the complicated high-tech wizardry out through fairly streamlined game mechanisms.
The team from Invicta Rex was present with Song for War: Mediterranean Theater. I didn’t get to play but looked it over and talked with the staff. Yes, the Kickstarter didn’t fund, but they are confident it will be back in some fashion. Although I didn’t play, I can confidently say after some strategic shoulder-surfing that Song for War is much more than “just A&A on steroids.” For those who balked at the price I strongly recommend you reconsider your position as the game is a beast on the table (but not unwieldy).
I am almost afraid to mention other designers of note that were present because so many were in the room I don’t want to offend those I might miss. I will say that Catastrophe Games in their tweet below captured the true essence of the convention – just having fun.
Feature image courtesy Circle DC (Fort Circle Games)
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Rocky Mountain Navy Gamer 
Sounds like a good time. We couldn’t make it this year but maybe in 2024.