Over the past few years I had seen several references to a game entitled WAR! AGE OF IMPERIALISM (which was sold by Eagle Games from 2001 onwards), and recently I decided that it sounded like the sort of board game I would enjoy using ... especially as it seemed to come with lots of 'bits' that might have other uses!
As a result I have been looking for a second-hand copy to buy, and after a couple of fruitless attempts, I finally managed to acquire a copy via eBay ... and very please I am too!
The box is much larger than many of the other board games that I own ... and once it is opened it is easy to see why; it is packed full of stuff. Besides three large game boards that cover a map of Europe and the East (North and South American are covered in one of the game's supplements) and a book of rules (there are three sets, ranging from simple to complex), there are a large number of playing pieces in a variety of different colours.
Each colour's playing pieces include:
As a result I have been looking for a second-hand copy to buy, and after a couple of fruitless attempts, I finally managed to acquire a copy via eBay ... and very please I am too!
The box is much larger than many of the other board games that I own ... and once it is opened it is easy to see why; it is packed full of stuff. Besides three large game boards that cover a map of Europe and the East (North and South American are covered in one of the game's supplements) and a book of rules (there are three sets, ranging from simple to complex), there are a large number of playing pieces in a variety of different colours.
Each colour's playing pieces include:
- 40 Infantry
- 12 Cavalry
- 8 Explorer
- 8 Engineers
- 10 Mounted Officers
- 10 Cannons
- 12 Ships
- Forts
- Cities
- Factories
- Ports
- Schools
- Locomotives
- Zulus (to represent Natives)
- 'Arab' Riders (who look more like Boer Commandos than Arabs, and who also represent Natives)
Nifty game pieces. I'll be interested to see what you think of the game itself.
ReplyDeleteSean,
ReplyDeleteThe playing pieces hold more of an appeal to me than the game itself. I have read the rules, but until I have actually played a game - for which I will need at least a couple of other players - I will not make any comments as to how good they are.
All the best,
Bob
I have that game. It does include a stupendous amount of stuff, and the board is simply massive.
ReplyDeleteAs far as I know, the proposed extension with the mapboards of the Americas was never physically produced, although those maps are available as an option in the PC version of the game.
I've read on Boardgame Geek that there are some serious flaws with the rules, albeit ones that can be fixed with a couple of houserules.
I've never gotten around to playing it, but since one of our gaming circle picked up a copy of their own, it's now on the roadmap for an all-day session soon.
Dr V
Looks an interesting game- I've played the same company's game 'Attack', our group likes that one a lot.
ReplyDeleteCheers,
Pete.
Nice game pieces. I've seen at least one blog where the ships were used for naval warfare gaming.
ReplyDeleteDid have a go at a demo of the PC version years ago. Aside from the amusingly girlish screams of my explorers killed by indigenous peoples unreceptive to the benefits of European civilization, it was disappointingly bland. It's probably one of those things best experienced with friends, beer & pretzels.
Regards,
Steve
Dr Vesuvius,
ReplyDeleteHaving spent a bit more time reading the rules, I can see that they are more than a little 'clunky' in places. That said, I can see me getting lots of use out of the 'bits', so I regard it as a very good buy!
I had read that the extension game boards had been produced, but were not widely available (I have yet to see any photographs that feature the extension boards) ... so the truth might be that they were designed but never produced.
If you ever get around to playing the game 'as is', I will be interested to hear how it went.
All the best,
Bob
Pete,
ReplyDeleteIt certainly has lots of 'bits' that I will be using, probably for other games ... such as the PORTABLE WARGAME!
All the best,
Bob
Corporal_Trim (Steve),
ReplyDeleteIt was reading some of Archduke Piccolo's recent blog entries about the naval battles he had fought using the model ships from this game that convinced me to buy a copy.
I am not a great lover of PC games, so I have not bothered to look at the computerised version of the game ... and your feedback has not convinced me that I made a mistake in choosing not to!
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob,
ReplyDeleteMy buddy and I went in together a few years ago to buy the company's Civil War, Napoleonic, and Imperialism games. We loved the pieces, but the rules did not thrill us, and the boards, as big as they were, were still not big enough to accommodate the pieces. We wound up selling all three, although I later bought sets of their horses (to replace the hopeless steeds from Airfix), and the Imperialism figures for a variety of uses.
Best regards,
Chris
Chris,
ReplyDeleteInteresting!
I have just placed a successful bid on eBay for a copy of Eagle Games AMERICAN CIVIL WAR board game ... mainly for the parts.
I think that they could be very useful and did look at buying just the figures from Eagles Games. Had I lived in the US this would have been a much cheaper option, but the cost of postage and packing made it a non-starter.
The more I see of the WAR! AGE OF IMPERIALISM board game, the more I am convinced that the playing pieces are of more use to me than the game as a whole. With luck I might even be able to use them in the very near future to set up a battle using the latest version of my PORTABLE WARGAME rules.
All the best,
Bob