Wargame SITREP 230607 N4 Supply – 2023 Wargames

According to BoardGameGeek¹, there have been just under 200 “wargames” published in 2023. Here are some factoids of dubious value:

• Twenty-four (24) “wargames” have a BGG Board Game Rank.
  • Europa Universalis: The Price of Power  is top ranked at Overall 2161 / War 116.
  • Dogfight!: Rule The Skies in 20 Minutes!  is lowest ranked at Overall 15679 / War 3452.
• Of the 24 ranked games, powerhouse “wargame” publisher GMT Games released eight (8).
  • VUCA Simulations appears twice; only other publisher to appear on the ranked list more than once.
• I own six titles on the list:
  • Archie’s War: The Battle for Guadalcanal 
  • The Boer War 
  • Desert Victory: North Africa, 1940-1942 
  • Land and Freedom: The Spanish Revolution and Civil War (BGG ranked Overall 10110 / War 1905)
  • Littoral Commander: Indo-Pacific 
  • Task Force: Carrier Battles in the Pacific (BGG ranked Overall 10289 / War 1492)
• I have preordered/will likely back several other titles:
  • 2040: An American Insurgency 
  • Air & Armor: Operational Armored Warfare in Europe – Designer Signature Edition
  • Brief Border Wars 2 
  • The Halls of Montezuma 
  • Red Dust Rebellion 
  • Undaunted: Battle of Britain
• Other wargames I ordered/backed to be delivered in 2023 not in the BGG database:
  • Linebacker II (Cadet Games) via Gamefound
  • The Soft Underbelly, 1943-1945 (Sergio Schiavi) via Kickstarter

All that said, what else might I look at picking up?

Clash of Carriers: The Battle of the Philippine Sea. This game is designed by Mark Stille, a former colleague of mine. Given that I recently took in Carrier Battle: Philippine Sea, however, I don’t know if I really need another Philippine Sea wargame…

General Orders: World War II. From the lauded design team of Trevor Benjamin and David Thompson. Worker placement meets wargame? Or is it a thematic strategy boardgame?

Zeppelins: Monsters of the Purple Twilight. Interesting if for no other reason than I have a book from my late father’s library with the same title, Monster’s of the Purple Twilight: The True Story of the Life and Death of the Zeppelins – First Menace From the Skies by Ernest Dudley, London: George G. Harrap & Co., Ltd., 1960.

---

1. For this survey I used the Advanced Search function on BGG and entered “Year Released Range” of 2023 to 2023, selected “Click to NOT search expansions, and set “Filter on Board Game Subdomain to “Wargames” then resorted results by “Board Game Rank.” Data accessed 29 May 2023.

Feature image courtesy RMN

The opinions and views expressed in this blog are those of the author alone and are presented in a personal capacity. They do not necessarily represent the views of U.S. Navy or any other U.S government Department, Agency, Office, or employer.

RockyMountainNavy.com © 2007-2023 by Ian B is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0