In May 1942, the Japanese spread across the Pacific and cut off American supply lines to Australia by building an airfield on the island of Guadalcanal. The United States sent in the 1st Marine Division, in a hasty attempt to drive out the Japanese. The Japanese countered the American offensive with a vengeance by cutting off the American military by sea, forcing a desperate struggle for the Americans to keep a foothold on their newly acquired position against the might of the Japanese Empire. Conflict of Heroes: Guadalcanal is the fourth release from Academy Games in the multi-award winning Conflict of Heroes historical wargame series. Guadalcanal is a tactical wargame of platoon and company level engagements. Being a combined arms squad level game, it is suited for 2 – 4 players and plays in 1 to 3 hours. In this game, players command platoons and companies of individual squads and tanks to resolve the same tactical dilemmas that commanders faced during some of the most ferocious engagements of WWII. Being someone who isn’t a wargamer in general (even though I own several and having previously worked for another wargame company), I found Guadalcanal to be surprisingly easy to learn and play. Wargames can be very daunting, containing thick rulebooks that are so text heavy that the average gamer (even ones that enjoy heavy strategy games) are turned off by the sheer amount of time it takes to both learn and play, let alone to actually master the game to any extent. Guadalcanal or any of the Conflict of Heroes series removes that issue for me completely. While learning the game, I was able to follow the rulebook, step-by-step, to quickly and efficiently learn the basics. This saved me so much time. This is accomplished by what Academy Games calls ‘Programmed Instruction’. The rulebook is organized in a way that facilitates an approach to learning the rules one section at a time, then playing some firefights to reinforce what has been learned before moving on. As the player moves through each section of the rules, they are learning only the rules that are necessary to play the firefights for that section. This allows the player to actually play and learn the game as quickly as possible. Programmed Instruction was really an eye opener for me in how to efficiently put a rulebook together. What was also very helpful was how examples, designer notes, and optional rules were all color-coded for efficiency and to expedite the rules learning experience. Playing Guadalcanal, I was able to become immersed in the experience, allowing myself to not only feel the moment, but also to learn some of the actual history adding to that immersive experience. This is partly due to the incredibly realistic map boards and large counters, which actually make it much easier to discern the print and also quickens the pace of the game. I, for the first time, was able to enjoy a wargame fully and feel like I “got it”. To me, being immersed in the experience is what gaming is all about. Guadalcanal provides a great opportunity for many gamers to add a more diverse option to their game library. It also gives you a game that can easily transition your strategy gamer friends into possible wargamers. Likewise, if you are an advanced wargamer, you can now own an immersive wargame that is more likely to be played by your non-wargamer friends. Guadalcanal brings several different gaming experiences and opportunities that will help you get it to the table more often. Very few games offer such a unique look at history while providing a rich gaming experience lasting under three hours. If you are looking for a way to get into wargaming or a completely different gaming experience, Conflict of Heroes: Guadalcanal certainly gives you that opportunity. It’s a wargame that you can bring to a game night at your FLGS or friend’s house, and be completed by the end of the evening.
|