I'm one of those people who really like miniatures. I loved how the old axis and allies aircraft carriers carried two fighter planes, because it physically could only hold two.
@@billsimms2511 I took it to table the other day and it was a big hit (hesitant at first). In fact the most hesitant guy ended up buying the game lol. Twilight Imperium is one that is a headache to get people to play. Also Axis and Allies 1914 is brutal although it simulates WW1 very well.
Grew up on Avalon Hill war games...strategy and tactics, Gettysburg, Afrika Corp, Midway, DDay, Stalingrad, Battle of the Bulge, Waterloo and many others...hex war games were awesome and gave me my love for military history... Sink the Bismarck was a favorite
Old timer AH wargamer here. Tactics II was the very first wargame I played, and it hooked me for my entire teenage life in the 70s. Big Squad Leader fan, but played Sink the Bismarck a ton (loved sinking shadowing cruisers)! Jutland was another favorite for my brothers and me.
I'll second Sink the Bismark. Fun, fun game. I am from the same era, Stalingrad, D-Day and Waterloo, plus PanzerBush (sorry Panzer Blitz) were my favorites. But SPI had a number of great games too. War In Europe was a monster, but great for a college kid with lots of time and a big wall to stick the map to with poster putty. (remember Hold-it?)
@@paulpeterson4216 I followed much the same path. Tactics 2 was the first game I played, then Bismarck, then War at Sea, Victory in the Pacific, and many others including my favorite, Flattop. However in college, I did tackle War in Europe. I still have it, though I have to assume it's missing pieces.
I'm an old war gamer since 1970. I am so glad that computer games came around when they did. Haven't played a board game since. The best games are by John Tiller.
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer @The Discriminating Gamer hey bro, have you ever tried iron curtain SCS game? The standard combat series? It seems very similar to war room.
Thanks for the great video! It brought back memories of the junior high and high school days of the 1970s. I most liked the Avalon Hill naval games like Jutland, Midway, and Sink the Bismarck. During that era, I also got involved with sandbox gaming, including Napolionics, WWII armor, and sailing ship battles. Those were the days!
Dear Dr. Cody, respect and congratulations to your Ph.D.! And thanks for all the lovely, funny, witty and enthusiastic reviews. Best regards and a corona-free hug from. Germany
HOI4 is great I love it but I will always prefer board games because you get the personal factor with seeing someone’s face as you destroy their forces in person lol or have your friend wipe out yours and they can see your face lol but all in all board games more fun
I can't believe I didn't find this video until a day or two, and just now getting to watch it. Anyways, congrats on the Ph.D, and as for my list, based on what I've played, it would have to include (still trying to figure out the order I would rank them) Axis & Allies, Rise and Decline of the Third Reich, Advanced Squad Leader, Blitzkrieg, The Hunters: German U-boats at War 1939-1943, and Airborne in Your Pocket.
Great game, played it a lot when it came out, and every once in a while now. Still popular if you can find it. The cards are multi-use: terrain, movement, firing, plus for getting random numbers. No board, but great fog of war.
War Room is indeed outstanding. A&A was also my introduction to WW2 as a kid, and my intro to the world of board gaming. Great list and enjoy your content!
he stuck with these games at or after Axis and Allies, that is after the Collapse of WarGaming. He has no clue. He like games not simulations. Probably doesnt know who James Dunnigan is.
@@orbitalair2103 He likes games? He should've named this "Cody's top ten WWII games" or something then instead of "the ten best war sims". wait a second
It's been decades since I've played any WWII table top games. When you mentioned ASL I smiled a little as I have almost all of the original Squad Leader. Lost some of it in a move. Also used to play SPI's War In Europe as well as another game by a publisher whose name I forget called 'Unentschieden'. I may have spelled that wrong. These games took a summer to play. I set up the map to 'Unentschieden' on a ping pong table. Plus a dinner table on the side for counters and production charts. Only played both once for some strange reason. Thanks for this. Nice to know the industry is still going strong.
on steam you can get "tabletop simulator" which is more or less what it sounds like. once you get it in the workshop are all of the games you mentioned ... for free .. that can be played on the simulator with anyone or even yourself.
When I was 8/9/10 (somewhere in there), I started going to a church once per quarter when the pastor would host a "lock in" where for 12 hours (maybe 7P-7A or so), a few chaperones would host different events and one of those was tabletop gaming. That was where I first played Risk. I leapt from there Axis and Allies. Getting people to sit down for a game of Risk was always a hard sell, so I knew Axis and Allies would be even rougher and not long after, created a crude, but effective AI to play the game against. I jumped onto the kickstarter for War Room because of the legendary designer and somewhat familiar gameplay. Sadly, it, like a few dozen other titles I have, are still in their original wrapping on my shelves.
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer I wish I could. Maybe if the small tabletop community I'm part of locally will have interest, but it's (as you know) asking a lot of people to have several continuous hours to play a single game. The games people typically have time for in the rotation generally don't last much over 2 hours.
Congratulations, Dr Carlson. TH-cam algorithm recommended me this channel and I loved it. I love board games, esp. Settlers of Catan, but never played any war games. I now got quite interested in them and want to play some of these with my friends. Also, I'll be a War Studies student at King's College London. Someday I might do a PhD, too, if I'm courageous enough tho.
That's awesome. Good to know there are still War Studies programs out there. There are very few dedicated programs like that in the U.S., only about three or four around the country. Best of luck to you.
Have a closet shelf full of old Avalon Hill Bookcase Games, Panzer Leader, Panzer Blitz, etc. Squad Leader then ASL and it's many modules and annuals. Wore out one ASL rule book, got another. Still have complete collection "The General". I was mostly a rainy day solo player many years ago. Had to clean up each and every card board piece with a sharp edge and put them in plastic trays or ziplocks. Became an obsession...but we appreciate the artistic quality. Now that I'm retired will try some of the games on your list, most of which are new to me. Even if they have cards...I have three dice towers for crying out loud. Enjoyed your channel and all the comments...good to know that there are other board gamers out there. PS. Recently purchased "Operation Mercury" GMT Games at an antique store for $20. 400 die-cut pieces remain to be trimmed!
War room is a great looking map, but I think the South Pole belongs in the center, I made a 4'x4' square flat earth with the players all sitting in the north pole. All four corners point north. Civilization the boardgame is a lot of fun, Supremacy is more fun with the stock markets buy low sell high, research, building companies and paying the bills. I loved the A.H. The Third Reich, not sure I was very good at it but we had fun playing it a lot. We found even Risk can have house rules that intrigue, room for development there
Interesting selections. I believe the academic in you (Congrats on the PHD) reflect most of your choices as to be expected. Perhaps you could do a top ten list on your favorite traditional tactical and or operational WW2 games as well vs toys, political , abstract , etc WW2 themed games you've selected.
I only have A.H. Origins of WW2. Love it. Need to get it to the table again soon. I am a solo gamer. Before covid "health" made it hard to go out to a game store to play. Now? I do what I can. Holland '44 my #1 WW2 for my reentry to gaming 3 yrs ago. Last century till the late 80's die hard A.H. fan. P.B. P.L. my tie for young me #1. Good video as always Doc. Be safe. And always...watch your flanks...🙂
Hey Doc (congrats!)...with you on War Room...awesome game. I love my little plastic army men but yeah, I do not miss them in WR. As mentioned before, give Axis & Allies Global 1940 with Sireblood's Bloodbath rules a spin. There are some new rules, victory point system, updated map, etc. It may never have the depth of War Room but it a very good refresh of Axis & Allies. A lot of work and play-testing has gone into BBR and it continues to evolve.
I really appreciate you sharing this list of the games you enjoy. I am really unsure why people seem to want to argue and disagree with a list of the games you like. I always enjoy your content please keep doing what you do!
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer It was very detailed, with air and ground forces under your control, with supply lines coming into play as well. I remember everyone wanting to command the German Panzer units!
I agree with you on Axis and Allies. While not my favorite war game anymore due to some issue I have with it, it’s what got me into war games imo. Do you know about the Triple A emulator? If not then check it out. It basically allows you to play Axis and Allies styles scenario (at least a hundred). Some of the scenarios go the extra mile and add stuff that make it more different from the Axis and Allies template. You can even play online with other people via lobby, email, or forum. It’s actually how I got into war games and I still play it. The stuff there ranges a lot from Roman era to Cold War. Even some sci-fi and fantasy scenarios. I found a great Axis and Allies inspired game that imo expands on the foundation of Axis and Allies. It’s called Global War 1936 and it’s a heavy WWII game (it takes around a weekend from what I can tell to play). But I enjoy the rules and just how interesting some of the mechanics are like the 3 way nature of the game and how it starts before the war. It is expensive though since you need to get the pieces yourself and the map is expensive but there is a tabletop simulator version of it. Sorry if I rambled on for too long
World War II: European Theater of Operations by SPI was to me the best ever. There was a Pacific Theatre as well and the games could be combined. There was a smaller scale game out in the ‘90s at the same time and it was great too.
That was a crazy long game to play :-D the campaing WW2 game was estimated playtime to several months. It has a PITA to keep up on a table for the duration of the game. But a hell of a fun game. Absolutely recommend trying it.
That *was* a fun game. I bought an extra copy. The extra cost of building armor vs leg infantry, airborne, and naval units put those units into perspective. Add to that the R&D aspect, the ability to pull in Spain or Turkey, gave the game a kind of sand-box feel. I think the scale of the map was a bit limiting but probably perfect for the unit scale.
Congrats and thanks for the list. Stuck between Axis & Allies and the unfortunately discontinued Tide of Iron, I've been looking for some good WW2 games.
Very unusual for a gal to be into A&A, but Iiiiiii like it - do you realize that A&A is being played over the TH-cam(Me included)by a sizable Axis&Allies Community?!
The longest and biggest ww2 board game I have played is AETO (Advanced European Theatre of Opertions)& APTO (Advanced Pacific Theatre of Operations) combined! Honestly games take MONTHS to play if played strategically and is so good and deep. Unfortunately the game is VERY old and to find a board and pieces in good or at the least playable pieces is VERY expensive and even then, if you find one you probably won’t find one ever again! Uncle has it and it’s been set up in his front room for literally 2/3 decades! But if you want to play a WW2 sim, you should check them out
Chits!!!!? Counters, Cody. Counters! 😃 Seriously, younger players, such as yourself, I turned 61 today, call cardboard pieces chits. Congratulations on getting your PhD!
We played War Room 3 weeks ago. And yes: it was epic! After 9 hours Germany (I played Germany and Italy) capitulated. Italy saved Greater Germany and nearly conquered Great Britain, which waited for USA to help them, but USA had to struggle with Japan... It was always fun, no downtime (we used 40 dice and the sandtimer) and the kind of Wargame I waited for as Axxis&Allies wasn't for me (and Tide of Iron is only for 2 Players).
Great list mate, gives me some ideas to get into in the future. My experience with axis and allies is the same as yours, when I took my next step I got Europe Engulfed from GMT games. While it was a bit of a jump I loved the block style FOW, supply, weather, terrain and staggered production while still keeping it a manageable complexity. I never see much about Europe Engulfed and wondered if you had any experience with it and how you think it honestly compares to other more modern and similar games? Has it been left behind? Was it always average? Etc. Having a broad interest in WW2 games, reading many of the rules but not playing a lot puts me at a disadvantage when comparing.
I haven't played Europe Engulfed. I remember there was a copy of it at a local game store years ago, but it was well north of $100, and at the time I couldn't afford it.
I played a lot of SPI and Avalon Hill games during the golden age of gaming. The most satisfying WWII game I ever played is AH's "Victory in the Pacific," which is a brilliantly streamlined simulation of the war against the Japanese Empire. Since the Allied player will inevitably win through attrition, balance is achieved by putting the Allied player on a timer. He loses if he doesn't win by a certain turn. So the game doesn't take long to play, but it's intensely exciting and dramatic.
Awesome list, Dr. Cody!!! I was expecting War Room to be your number 1, and I had already seen your reviews for some of these games (the Undaunted games, Memoir 44, Triumph and Tragedy, Castle Itter), but I was curious to see which of the many, MANY, World War II games would make it to this list; what with your being an avid History buff and all!!! Fantastic choices all around, and I really like the way many of these games look on the table: the impressive maps littered with tokens (counters? chits?) and (sometimes) real-life personalities depicted in the cards really make the war theme stand out: they just ooze with the theme!!! Really want to check some of these games out when things get closer to the "old" normal that we used to know!!!
Which one would you rather have now, "Rise and Decline of the Third Reich" or "Advanced Third Reich"? I played "rise and decline" middle school and high school with friends, and "advanced" in college. I have a new group now that is interested... but I am unsure which one might be best to pick up on the used game market....
I should seek out War Room, but it’s not cheap or easy to get a hold of. What would you say the ideal player counts are? My favorite WW2 games are probably MM44 when played with the Overlord 4v4 scenarios, Combat Commander amd Quartermaster General
I've played the full War Room game with six a couple of times and I've played the Pacific scenario with three. I think the player counts were right for both. Still haven't played Combat Commander or Quartermaster General.
Do you have a review for Flames of war & Bolt Action? I'm really looking to get I to something like those or Company of heroes. I currently have Memoir 44 but want to try something different.
I just submitted my PhD thesis last week! Though in ecology, not history. Anyway congratulations and keep up the good work in your academic profession, and the witty and interesting videos.
Congrats on the wah-wah-2 doctorate. Quite the accomplishment. Fairly new game to try out with a ton of meat. Stellar horizons by compass games. Looked amazing to me.
Great reviews and summary. I hear some other posters' nostalgia for heavy historical wargames but designers have moved on a long way PLUS the volume market interest has moved towards lighter games. You have helped me to keep up with what that has meant for what's getting published. Thank you. (Edit: Are you the inspiration for the BGG Paladins' 'Suzerain' promo?)
In this day and age you are not allowed to say the name of 'he who cannot be named' for these games but I use 'a certain Austrian painter' and that's acceptable. Axis and Allies is a great game when you throw in the Pacific and European scenarios together but playing France sucks I remember.
Hi Cody. I enjoyed your list. I started with Axis and Allies like you. I played a ton of games. I got my kids into them now. My son agrees with you War Room is Awesome. Right now I like the updates Global 36-45. Thank you for list and I enjoy your channel
Dr. Cody (has a nice ring to it), first of all, congratulations on finishing the doctorate! (I’m catching up on your recent videos, so I realize I am a couple of months behind on this.) Having not finished mine (on 11th century papal politics), I know how hard it is. Well done yourself. Looking forward to the book, and seeing where you land next - I hope whatever it is doesn’t keep you from the reviews. I was amazed at how prolific you were during your doctoral studies. Second, what a great list - the list we fans of yours have all been waiting for! Solo, cooperative, and mega-games all made the list (I envy you that you can get 6 people around a table for War Room regularly). Some were not surprising, given your past videos, but a couple of games were new to me. More to purchase, more to explore. Finally, sorry to see so much hate and negativity from my generation of grognards in the comments - usually, your comments section is relatively acid-free, a rarity for the internet. I grew up playing many of those old games about which the grumps keep rhapsodizing, and still have a number of them on my shelves 40 years later, but they are well past their time. (I will confess, however, to a soft spot for both Luftwaffe and, away from the WW II theme, Wooden Ships & Iron Men, both of which have a dynamic that I’ve not seen replicated in a modern game.) Those games do not represent the Golden Age of boardgames - that time is now. Those games, and the attitudes of their champions, serve as barriers to gaming, which is a shame. The folks moaning about lack of complexity of modern games have evidently never tried any of the GMT line of games. Good on you not to take the troll’s bait.
Thank you, sir. I appreciate your support of the channel very much. As far as the haters go, I'm reminded of one of my favorite quotes attributed to Friedrich the Great, "They will say what they will say and I will do what I will do."
I have played and enjoyed wargames my entire life and one thing it taught me is NEVER AGAIN. I would rather fight battles with dice and counters than real people.
Hi Cody. Do you play any of these games on tabletop simulator since Covid social distancing preventing game nights? I love Tide of Iron both live and TTS.
Lucky you, I have no choice since I moved right before the pandemic and haven’t met a new gaming group. Using TTS to play with old friends. If you ever get a chance look up Tide of Iron by eemikers, which is me, as I added it to the workshop to include all the expansions and has every scenario. Took me months but just love that game so much.
I can't stand axis and allies, the Japanese are way too strong in the beginning and I've played games where they totally successfully took all of the Americas which historical was impossible.
I've played most versions of AA, and love to play the Japanese. In well over 200 games, I have never felt overpowered or successfully taken the US. It would be fun if it was possible though.
Congratulations on your doctorate! A truly impressive accomplishment for anyone with a passion in their given field. Congratulations! I also am interested in reading more about the hiring, firing as well. Subbed and hope you’ll put out a video/overview when the book comes out!
The rulebook killed my initial attempts to play churchill, and then only having family to play it with after wasn't viable. But I still hold on to it because I think it could be a lot of fun to play one day.
Churchill is a really good game but does take a while to wrap your head around it as it is not your typical game. Member of our gaming group has hundreds of these games. Unfortunately another person has a severe hattred of chits.
I've been wanting to play board games my entire life, but I've never found anyone to play with. Can you PLEASE do a vid of solitaire games? Maybe a video of war games and a video of other solitaire board games. Wow, I'm totally missing out here! So many awesome games!
Not really into war games, but can confirm that Undaunted Normandy is absolutely amazing. It does make me interested in more in war games in general too, which is why I'm here. = Edit: That #1 pick gives me some serious anxiety just looking at it though.
War Room is really quite intuitive, generally speaking. If you've played Axis & Allies - a "gateway" wargame - this game will not be much more difficult. You may also want to try for more basic but fun war games "Memoir '44," "Coral Sea: Solitaire," "Tarawa 1943," and of course, more of the Undaunted series. Best of luck to you!
Good list Cody. The greatest WW 2 game of all time is Global War 1936/45 by Historical Board Gaming. If you've never seen it there are lots of videos on my channel.
Dear Cody, congrats on your success, please play and review Barbarossa to Berlin, obscure but hidden gem. Have played 20+ games and every one was exciting.
The Discriminating Gamer it is by GMT games, plenty of used copies floating around but as someone who dislikes most games I play (I’m harsh) it is a GREAT game. I’ve never played a game where so often both players feel like their hanging off a cliff edge by their finger nails!
Have you ever played The Longest Day? (The old Avalon Hill monster game). It’s quite a commitment, but I really enjoyed it way back then when it was new….
I'm one of those people who really like miniatures. I loved how the old axis and allies aircraft carriers carried two fighter planes, because it physically could only hold two.
Very good.
Axis & allies is great but good luck trying to find friends that want to play it with you lol
@@billsimms2511 I took it to table the other day and it was a big hit (hesitant at first). In fact the most hesitant guy ended up buying the game lol. Twilight Imperium is one that is a headache to get people to play. Also Axis and Allies 1914 is brutal although it simulates WW1 very well.
Grew up on Avalon Hill war games...strategy and tactics, Gettysburg, Afrika Corp, Midway, DDay, Stalingrad, Battle of the Bulge, Waterloo and many others...hex war games were awesome and gave me my love for military history... Sink the Bismarck was a favorite
Fantastic!
Old timer AH wargamer here. Tactics II was the very first wargame I played, and it hooked me for my entire teenage life in the 70s. Big Squad Leader fan, but played Sink the Bismarck a ton (loved sinking shadowing cruisers)! Jutland was another favorite for my brothers and me.
I'll second Sink the Bismark. Fun, fun game. I am from the same era, Stalingrad, D-Day and Waterloo, plus PanzerBush (sorry Panzer Blitz) were my favorites. But SPI had a number of great games too. War In Europe was a monster, but great for a college kid with lots of time and a big wall to stick the map to with poster putty. (remember Hold-it?)
I think Ambush! was Avalon Hill . Found that one in a yard sale 25 years ago and it’s a great solitaire WWII game.
@@paulpeterson4216 I followed much the same path. Tactics 2 was the first game I played, then Bismarck, then War at Sea, Victory in the Pacific, and many others including my favorite, Flattop. However in college, I did tackle War in Europe. I still have it, though I have to assume it's missing pieces.
I'm an old war gamer since 1970. I am so glad that computer games came around when they did. Haven't played a board game since. The best games are by John Tiller.
Hope you get to play more board games soon.
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer @The Discriminating Gamer hey bro, have you ever tried iron curtain SCS game? The standard combat series? It seems very similar to war room.
Thanks for the great video! It brought back memories of the junior high and high school days of the 1970s. I most liked the Avalon Hill naval games like Jutland, Midway, and Sink the Bismarck. During that era, I also got involved with sandbox gaming, including Napolionics, WWII armor, and sailing ship battles. Those were the days!
Thanks a ton!
Dear Dr. Cody,
respect and congratulations to your Ph.D.! And thanks for all the lovely, funny, witty and enthusiastic reviews.
Best regards and a corona-free hug from. Germany
Danke my friend. Years ago I studied in Berlin. Absolutely love your country!
Totally off topic but Hearts of Iron 4 is my all time favorite since I dont own any board games .....yet.
Fantastic!
Hearts of Iron 2 the best of the series by far! Way better!
HOI4 is great I love it but I will always prefer board games because you get the personal factor with seeing someone’s face as you destroy their forces in person lol or have your friend wipe out yours and they can see your face lol but all in all board games more fun
@@MatZuvO *encircles a soviet army group, only to let my friends see me pog*
@@jeffhenson183 For me, trying to run a grand campaign now from CK - EU2 - Victoria - HOI2.
My favorite part of us this was hearing about your PhD dissertation! Bravo to you for taking that on. Will be on the lookout for the book.
Thank you. I'm sure they'll be an announcement when I get it under contract.
I can't believe I didn't find this video until a day or two, and just now getting to watch it. Anyways, congrats on the Ph.D, and as for my list, based on what I've played, it would have to include (still trying to figure out the order I would rank them) Axis & Allies, Rise and Decline of the Third Reich, Advanced Squad Leader, Blitzkrieg, The Hunters: German U-boats at War 1939-1943, and Airborne in Your Pocket.
Thanks a ton!
Upfront, a WW2 card game that rocks, still playable today as from years ago, no dice, all cards and chits, but very fun
Interesting.
Love Up Front! I highly recommend Combat Commander to scratch the same itch.
Great game, played it a lot when it came out, and every once in a while now. Still popular if you can find it. The cards are multi-use: terrain, movement, firing, plus for getting random numbers.
No board, but great fog of war.
definitely putting a lot of those on my list! thank you!
Happy to Help!
War Room is indeed outstanding. A&A was also my introduction to WW2 as a kid, and my intro to the world of board gaming. Great list and enjoy your content!
Thank you very much.
Really bizarre as I was going to make a very similar comment and my name is also Matt M..? How crazy is that?
Wait, no "Squad Leader"? No "The Russian Campaign"? No "Third Reich"? Huh, maybe Im too old LOL
To each their own.
he stuck with these games at or after Axis and Allies, that is after the Collapse of WarGaming. He has no clue. He like games not simulations. Probably doesnt know who James Dunnigan is.
@@orbitalair2103 He likes games? He should've named this "Cody's top ten WWII games" or something then instead of "the ten best war sims". wait a second
I loved all those games as well.
Yea! Russian campaign is one of my favorites👍
It's been decades since I've played any WWII table top games.
When you mentioned ASL I smiled a little as I have almost all of the original Squad Leader. Lost some of it in a move.
Also used to play SPI's War In Europe as well as another game by a publisher whose name I forget called 'Unentschieden'. I may have spelled that wrong. These games took a summer to play. I set up the map to 'Unentschieden' on a ping pong table. Plus a dinner table on the side for counters and production charts.
Only played both once for some strange reason.
Thanks for this. Nice to know the industry is still going strong.
Thank you. Glad you enjoyed it.
I still have "Tobruk", Panzer Leader and others somewhere. Those are great games
I heard great things about Panzer Leader.
Tobruk was my Favorite. The Evil one took it.
on steam you can get "tabletop simulator" which is more or less what it sounds like. once you get it in the workshop are all of the games you mentioned ... for free .. that can be played on the simulator with anyone or even yourself.
@@endrsgm i remember the acquired rof on the Bofors being what, 40?
I bought Tobruk for $3.99 still in the shrink wrap from a Kay-Bee-Toys. This in 1988(?)
When I was 8/9/10 (somewhere in there), I started going to a church once per quarter when the pastor would host a "lock in" where for 12 hours (maybe 7P-7A or so), a few chaperones would host different events and one of those was tabletop gaming. That was where I first played Risk. I leapt from there Axis and Allies. Getting people to sit down for a game of Risk was always a hard sell, so I knew Axis and Allies would be even rougher and not long after, created a crude, but effective AI to play the game against. I jumped onto the kickstarter for War Room because of the legendary designer and somewhat familiar gameplay. Sadly, it, like a few dozen other titles I have, are still in their original wrapping on my shelves.
You need to get it to the table ASAP!!!
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer I wish I could. Maybe if the small tabletop community I'm part of locally will have interest, but it's (as you know) asking a lot of people to have several continuous hours to play a single game. The games people typically have time for in the rotation generally don't last much over 2 hours.
Congratulations, Dr Carlson. TH-cam algorithm recommended me this channel and I loved it. I love board games, esp. Settlers of Catan, but never played any war games.
I now got quite interested in them and want to play some of these with my friends. Also, I'll be a War Studies student at King's College London. Someday I might do a PhD, too, if I'm courageous enough tho.
That's awesome. Good to know there are still War Studies programs out there. There are very few dedicated programs like that in the U.S., only about three or four around the country. Best of luck to you.
Have a closet shelf full of old Avalon Hill Bookcase Games, Panzer Leader, Panzer Blitz, etc. Squad Leader then ASL and it's many modules and annuals. Wore out one ASL rule book, got another. Still have complete collection "The General". I was mostly a rainy day solo player many years ago. Had to clean up each and every card board piece with a sharp edge and put them in plastic trays or ziplocks. Became an obsession...but we appreciate the artistic quality.
Now that I'm retired will try some of the games on your list, most of which are new to me. Even if they have cards...I have three dice towers for crying out loud. Enjoyed your channel and all the comments...good to know that there are other board gamers out there.
PS. Recently purchased "Operation Mercury" GMT Games at an antique store for $20. 400 die-cut pieces remain to be trimmed!
Fantastic! Thanks!
Advanced Squad Leader, Empire of the Sun are my 1 & 2. Up Front is a great game as well.
Fantastic!
ASL and EotS are my two favorites as well. Fields of Fire is also fantastic. Up Front I can give or take. I like it enough to not sell my copy.
Cosigning Up Front. Avalon Hill had really hit their stride on rule writing by then, almost every conceivable case is covered in the rules.
Congratulations Cody! What an awesome life achievement you've accomplished. :)
Love your reviews, your knowledge and enthusiasm.
Thank you, sir. Much appreciated.
Congratulations, doctor! Glad the hard work payed off. Also, nice subject for dissertation, sounds interest.
Thank you.
War room is a great looking map, but I think the South Pole belongs in the center, I made a 4'x4' square flat earth with the players all sitting in the north pole. All four corners point north.
Civilization the boardgame is a lot of fun, Supremacy is more fun with the stock markets buy low sell high, research, building companies and paying the bills. I loved the A.H. The Third Reich, not sure I was very good at it but we had fun playing it a lot.
We found even Risk can have house rules that intrigue, room for development there
Thanks.
Interesting selections. I believe the academic in you (Congrats on the PHD) reflect most of your choices as to be expected. Perhaps you could do a top ten list on your favorite traditional tactical and or operational WW2 games as well vs toys, political , abstract , etc WW2 themed games you've selected.
Perhaps somewhere down the road. We'll see.
Good list. I like how you net your lists out. Your vids are always very tight and “to the point”. Thnx!!
David Gates Thank you.
"No retreat!" is a great ww2 wargame series, had a ton of fun with "The russian front"
No Retreat is indeed a lot of fun.
I only have A.H. Origins of WW2. Love it. Need to get it to the table again soon. I am a solo gamer. Before covid "health" made it hard to go out to a game store to play. Now? I do what I can. Holland '44 my #1 WW2 for my reentry to gaming 3 yrs ago.
Last century till the late 80's die hard A.H. fan. P.B. P.L. my tie for young me #1. Good video as always Doc. Be safe. And always...watch your flanks...🙂
Ha! Yes, sir!
I used to play Origins with my dad. Loved it
Congrats, Doc! Solid list, and I’m glad you included Black Orchestra, a great co-op.
Thank you, sir.
Hey Doc (congrats!)...with you on War Room...awesome game. I love my little plastic army men but yeah, I do not miss them in WR. As mentioned before, give Axis & Allies Global 1940 with Sireblood's Bloodbath rules a spin. There are some new rules, victory point system, updated map, etc. It may never have the depth of War Room but it a very good refresh of Axis & Allies. A lot of work and play-testing has gone into BBR and it continues to evolve.
Thank you. I actually recently sold my AA games in anticipation of a move. Gotta start the purge!
I really appreciate you sharing this list of the games you enjoy. I am really unsure why people seem to want to argue and disagree with a list of the games you like.
I always enjoy your content please keep doing what you do!
Thanks!
Well I'm into Avalon hill, spi, etc.. Old school strategy👍
I've not played too many of those old ones. Perhaps I shall at some point.
I just received War Room 2nd Edition. I'm curious how you feel about it now.
Still love it.
I remember playing Avalon Hill's "France 1940", "Blitzkrieg", and "Luftwaffe", back in the early 70s.
I keep hearing great things about France 1940.
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer It was very detailed, with air and ground forces under your control, with supply lines coming into play as well. I remember everyone wanting to command the German Panzer units!
My favorite is Avalon Hill's "Up Front".
Heard good things about it.
Not just yes but hell yes. And the expansion kits. And the unofficial expansion kits-which I have not played.
My two favorites, Panzer Leader and Panzer Blitz.
Fantastic!
I agree with you on Axis and Allies. While not my favorite war game anymore due to some issue I have with it, it’s what got me into war games imo. Do you know about the Triple A emulator? If not then check it out. It basically allows you to play Axis and Allies styles scenario (at least a hundred). Some of the scenarios go the extra mile and add stuff that make it more different from the Axis and Allies template. You can even play online with other people via lobby, email, or forum. It’s actually how I got into war games and I still play it. The stuff there ranges a lot from Roman era to Cold War. Even some sci-fi and fantasy scenarios.
I found a great Axis and Allies inspired game that imo expands on the foundation of Axis and Allies. It’s called Global War 1936 and it’s a heavy WWII game (it takes around a weekend from what I can tell to play). But I enjoy the rules and just how interesting some of the mechanics are like the 3 way nature of the game and how it starts before the war. It is expensive though since you need to get the pieces yourself and the map is expensive but there is a tabletop simulator version of it. Sorry if I rambled on for too long
Yeah - I used to play Triple A a while back. Fun stuff. War Room beats them all, IMHO.
@@TheDiscriminatingGameris there any triple A senario that is better than the OG Axis and allies
I loved Avalon Hill's " squad leader"
Was that the precursor to Advanced Squad Leader?
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer yes, how can you not know that?
@@orbitalair2103 Because I'm not a hard core wargamer.
Agree…cross of iron, etc
World War II: European Theater of Operations by SPI was to me the best ever. There was a Pacific Theatre as well and the games could be combined. There was a smaller scale game out in the ‘90s at the same time and it was great too.
Interesting.
That was a crazy long game to play :-D the campaing WW2 game was estimated playtime to several months. It has a PITA to keep up on a table for the duration of the game. But a hell of a fun game. Absolutely recommend trying it.
That *was* a fun game. I bought an extra copy. The extra cost of building armor vs leg infantry, airborne, and naval units put those units into perspective. Add to that the R&D aspect, the ability to pull in Spain or Turkey, gave the game a kind of sand-box feel. I think the scale of the map was a bit limiting but probably perfect for the unit scale.
All my WW2 games were the Avalon Hill games...Stalingrad was my FAV
Very good.
2-3-6 Russian Armor for the win! Also those massive 7-10-4s :)
Subscribed just to keep track of your publication schedule. Great subject for a dissertation.
Thank you. I will keep you all updated.
Congrats and thanks for the list. Stuck between Axis & Allies and the unfortunately discontinued Tide of Iron, I've been looking for some good WW2 games.
Hopefully this will help.
If you liked tide of iron, try combat commander!
Very unusual for a gal to be into A&A, but Iiiiiii like it - do you realize that A&A is being played over the TH-cam(Me included)by a sizable Axis&Allies Community?!
@@nolimit7959 I was aware of that. It's awesome!
@@ALimbOfGreatTree Perhaps one day.
The longest and biggest ww2 board game I have played is AETO (Advanced European Theatre of Opertions)& APTO (Advanced Pacific Theatre of Operations) combined! Honestly games take MONTHS to play if played strategically and is so good and deep. Unfortunately the game is VERY old and to find a board and pieces in good or at the least playable pieces is VERY expensive and even then, if you find one you probably won’t find one ever again! Uncle has it and it’s been set up in his front room for literally 2/3 decades! But if you want to play a WW2 sim, you should check them out
I don't know. Sounds a little too intense for me. Thanks.
Chits!!!!? Counters, Cody. Counters! 😃 Seriously, younger players, such as yourself, I turned 61 today, call cardboard pieces chits. Congratulations on getting your PhD!
Ha! Thank you, sir!
Cody. Have you ever played Yaquinto C.V. (1979)? I played as a kid and always wanted to get back to it.
Nope. Never heard of it. Fun?
While it may be on the lighter side...I'm curious what Cody's opinion is of Quartermaster General.
Haven't played it.
We played War Room 3 weeks ago. And yes: it was epic! After 9 hours Germany (I played Germany and Italy) capitulated. Italy saved Greater Germany and nearly conquered Great Britain, which waited for USA to help them, but USA had to struggle with Japan...
It was always fun, no downtime (we used 40 dice and the sandtimer) and the kind of Wargame I waited for as Axxis&Allies wasn't for me (and Tide of Iron is only for 2 Players).
I've had some pretty epic four player games of Tide of Iron. But War Room is the best. Fantastic game.
Great list mate, gives me some ideas to get into in the future.
My experience with axis and allies is the same as yours, when I took my next step I got Europe Engulfed from GMT games. While it was a bit of a jump I loved the block style FOW, supply, weather, terrain and staggered production while still keeping it a manageable complexity. I never see much about Europe Engulfed and wondered if you had any experience with it and how you think it honestly compares to other more modern and similar games? Has it been left behind? Was it always average? Etc.
Having a broad interest in WW2 games, reading many of the rules but not playing a lot puts me at a disadvantage when comparing.
I haven't played Europe Engulfed. I remember there was a copy of it at a local game store years ago, but it was well north of $100, and at the time I couldn't afford it.
Dr Cody, have you played the block game East Front?
I have not. Good?
No mention of World in Flames from ADG?
See previous comments.
@@Old-Knight Liked both very much
One of the best.
Old Avalon Hill fan here. Short game War At Sea or Submarine. Long Game Victory in the Pacific or 3rd Reich. Big Squad Leader fan here.
Fantastic!
War room map looks amazing!
Dave Shafer It’s an amazing game!
I played a lot of SPI and Avalon Hill games during the golden age of gaming.
The most satisfying WWII game I ever played is AH's "Victory in the Pacific,"
which is a brilliantly streamlined simulation of the war against the Japanese
Empire. Since the Allied player will inevitably win through attrition, balance
is achieved by putting the Allied player on a timer. He loses if he doesn't win
by a certain turn. So the game doesn't take long to play, but it's intensely
exciting and dramatic.
Sounds like fun.
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer
VITP is both tactical and strategic, which is remarkable
in such a short, easy-to-play game.
Glad he covered field although he missed some of my favorites.
Thanks. Field?
Awesome list, Dr. Cody!!! I was expecting War Room to be your number 1, and I had already seen your reviews for some of these games (the Undaunted games, Memoir 44, Triumph and Tragedy, Castle Itter), but I was curious to see which of the many, MANY, World War II games would make it to this list; what with your being an avid History buff and all!!! Fantastic choices all around, and I really like the way many of these games look on the table: the impressive maps littered with tokens (counters? chits?) and (sometimes) real-life personalities depicted in the cards really make the war theme stand out: they just ooze with the theme!!! Really want to check some of these games out when things get closer to the "old" normal that we used to know!!!
Thank you, sir. Glad you enjoyed it.
One that I always enjoyed: Avalon Hill's "Rise and Decline of the Third Reich".
Harold Hale Fantastic!
Which one would you rather have now, "Rise and Decline of the Third Reich" or "Advanced Third Reich"? I played "rise and decline" middle school and high school with friends, and "advanced" in college. I have a new group now that is interested... but I am unsure which one might be best to pick up on the used game market....
@@gregzuvich1195 I played both versions, there's a new version called World at War which is advance Reich and rising sun together
Yeah, I'm surprised this one wasn't on the list.
Howard Kramer we were lucky to grab a copy of RAD here in Germany in the early 90s. Trully improved our school english:) ah, nice memories...
Do you play around the Rochester - Buffalo - Syracuse - Elmira NY area?
Nope. I’m in Idaho.
I just play for chits and giggles.
Indeed!
I should seek out War Room, but it’s not cheap or easy to get a hold of. What would you say the ideal player counts are?
My favorite WW2 games are probably MM44 when played with the Overlord 4v4 scenarios, Combat Commander amd Quartermaster General
I've played the full War Room game with six a couple of times and I've played the Pacific scenario with three. I think the player counts were right for both. Still haven't played Combat Commander or Quartermaster General.
The Discriminating Gamer My guess is that you would really enjoy QMG :)
Wait !!! I can’t believe you didn’t put AH games “Squad Leader” or “Panzer Leader” on the list. These games are the OG war games.
Believe it.
Avalon Hill's "Third Reich" and also Fire in the East (forgot the company that released it)
Avalon Hill's "Rise and Decline of the Third Reich" '74, is better than Axis & Allies, also there was an advanced version in '92.
Do you have a review for Flames of war & Bolt Action?
I'm really looking to get I to something like those or Company of heroes. I currently have Memoir 44 but want to try something different.
I haven’t played either yet.
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer Well, thanks for a prompt reply and for all your other videos.
@@TheJDough1 Thank you.
Congrats on the PhD. It's a difficult process, for sure, and took me 8 years!
Ouch! I'm glad you finished. Thanks!
Black Orchestra is such an awesome game. It’s like tense Co-op instead of firefighting co-op.
It’s spending to buy but it’s brilliant
Indeed. Great game!
I just submitted my PhD thesis last week! Though in ecology, not history. Anyway congratulations and keep up the good work in your academic profession, and the witty and interesting videos.
Thank you. When do you defend?
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer Already did, now it's mostly a formality of waiting for the referees to evaluate and make the requested corrections.
Congrats on the wah-wah-2 doctorate. Quite the accomplishment.
Fairly new game to try out with a ton of meat.
Stellar horizons by compass games.
Looked amazing to me.
Looks interesting. Thanks.
Grats on the Doctorate! Now that War Room is on TTS, I'm hopeful I can give it a spin before shelling out that price point.
Thank you, sir.
I'm going to do the same. I do wish they would make an official mod for it, it's fun to try in VR.
They wil be doing a new Kickstarter, not cheap but might mena the first version gets cheaper?
Wow. Thanks, Dr. C! I really appreciate the kind words!
Thank you, sir.
Great reviews and summary. I hear some other posters' nostalgia for heavy historical wargames but designers have moved on a long way PLUS the volume market interest has moved towards lighter games. You have helped me to keep up with what that has meant for what's getting published. Thank you. (Edit: Are you the inspiration for the BGG Paladins' 'Suzerain' promo?)
Thank you, sir.
That War Room game looks interesting. As an old fart, here's my list: Squad Leader, Anzio, World in Flames, Up Front!, Panzer Leader and Panzer Blitz.
It is interesting. Haven't played any from your list.
Looks like my list, pass the Hummel
You missed 3rd Reich by Avalonhill
Congrats!!! I’m ABD. Trynna finish.
Thanks! What discipline?
The Discriminating Gamer PhD in American Studies but I focus on public humanities and stuff like that.
@@williamgarcia-medina9989 Very cool. Best of luck.
Memoir '44 is my favorite game. The expansions really add a lot to the core set. I bought Black Orchestra after watching this.
Fantastic! Glad I could help!
Cody, I can't believe you haven't played Combat Commander!
Yeah... No one can...
Dr. Cody. I like the sound of that. Congratulations!
Thank you, sir.
In this day and age you are not allowed to say the name of 'he who cannot be named' for these games but I use 'a certain Austrian painter' and that's acceptable. Axis and Allies is a great game when you throw in the Pacific and European scenarios together but playing France sucks I remember.
Ha! Indeed.
Hi Cody. I enjoyed your list. I started with Axis and Allies like you. I played a ton of games. I got my kids into them now. My son agrees with you War Room is Awesome. Right now I like the updates Global 36-45. Thank you for list and I enjoy your channel
Thank you. Glad you like the channel.
World at War?? 3rd Reich?? Squad Leader?? You're so deprived
I've been deprived my whole life. (Kicks the dirt).
My congratulations as well. If you have never played Up Front, I think you might find it enjoyable.
I will look into it. Thank you.
Decent upload with one request: LOUDER! I can barely hear you even with a decent speaker.
I don't want to scare the children.
U must be deff lol
@@anneoneill6427 It's spelled "Deaf", and no it's just a crap microphone...
Dr. Cody (has a nice ring to it), first of all, congratulations on finishing the doctorate! (I’m catching up on your recent videos, so I realize I am a couple of months behind on this.) Having not finished mine (on 11th century papal politics), I know how hard it is. Well done yourself. Looking forward to the book, and seeing where you land next - I hope whatever it is doesn’t keep you from the reviews. I was amazed at how prolific you were during your doctoral studies.
Second, what a great list - the list we fans of yours have all been waiting for! Solo, cooperative, and mega-games all made the list (I envy you that you can get 6 people around a table for War Room regularly). Some were not surprising, given your past videos, but a couple of games were new to me. More to purchase, more to explore.
Finally, sorry to see so much hate and negativity from my generation of grognards in the comments - usually, your comments section is relatively acid-free, a rarity for the internet. I grew up playing many of those old games about which the grumps keep rhapsodizing, and still have a number of them on my shelves 40 years later, but they are well past their time. (I will confess, however, to a soft spot for both Luftwaffe and, away from the WW II theme, Wooden Ships & Iron Men, both of which have a dynamic that I’ve not seen replicated in a modern game.) Those games do not represent the Golden Age of boardgames - that time is now. Those games, and the attitudes of their champions, serve as barriers to gaming, which is a shame. The folks moaning about lack of complexity of modern games have evidently never tried any of the GMT line of games. Good on you not to take the troll’s bait.
Thank you, sir. I appreciate your support of the channel very much. As far as the haters go, I'm reminded of one of my favorite quotes attributed to Friedrich the Great, "They will say what they will say and I will do what I will do."
8 hours, a "long" game?
hmm....
Long for me.
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer I usually reserve "long" for the games which can't be played in one sitting.
@@pm71241 even my 8 hour shift of work is split by a lunch!
@@pm71241 ypu must have strong friends and stronger butts
@@KXC42069 Actually ... if the game is exiting enough, you play a lot of it standing.
So, I'm happy my game table is an elevation table.
Europa series, without doubt. Had them all and wore them all out before I started to do it for real with 3rd shock army sat 45 miles away!
Cool.
People who love war haven't fought it.
Indeed.
True, but perhaps it is better to fight wars that have no casualties.
I have played and enjoyed wargames my entire life and one thing it taught me is NEVER AGAIN. I would rather fight battles with dice and counters than real people.
Duane Ehmen best part of your comment is watching people play historical / hypothetical campaigners units served with reduced to chits on a board ..
Hi Cody. Do you play any of these games on tabletop simulator since Covid social distancing preventing game nights? I love Tide of Iron both live and TTS.
I haven't been playing on TTS. I suppose I should get on there but I'm too busy with physical games.
Lucky you, I have no choice since I moved right before the pandemic and haven’t met a new gaming group. Using TTS to play with old friends. If you ever get a chance look up Tide of Iron by eemikers, which is me, as I added it to the workshop to include all the expansions and has every scenario. Took me months but just love that game so much.
I can't stand axis and allies, the Japanese are way too strong in the beginning and I've played games where they totally successfully took all of the Americas which historical was impossible.
I've never seen that happen in any game I've played.
I've played most versions of AA, and love to play the Japanese. In well over 200 games, I have never felt overpowered or successfully taken the US. It would be fun if it was possible though.
Congratulations on your doctorate! A truly impressive accomplishment for anyone with a passion in their given field. Congratulations! I also am interested in reading more about the hiring, firing as well. Subbed and hope you’ll put out a video/overview when the book comes out!
Thank you. I'm sure I'll let you all know when my book is out, for sure.
War room looks great ! Can i find that Game in spanish ? And where? Beacuse Even in English i don't finded
Check out Nightingale Games’ website. Best of luck.
I knew I’m asking a lot, but do you have a list of favorite WWI games?
I hope to have one up before too long. There are a few WWI games I want to play first to see if they make the list.
Congratulations on you PhD. I’ll keep an eye out for the book
Thanks. Two years later still trying to get it sold.
The rulebook killed my initial attempts to play churchill, and then only having family to play it with after wasn't viable. But I still hold on to it because I think it could be a lot of fun to play one day.
I hope you get a chance to some day.
Churchill is a really good game but does take a while to wrap your head around it as it is not your typical game. Member of our gaming group has hundreds of these games. Unfortunately another person has a severe hattred of chits.
Can it be played via email?
As long as you're on the honesty rule....
Well it’s simple. I don’t have enough WW2 games. I only have Memoir 44 in the WW2 theme. I really like the look of the War Room.
War Room is fantastic!!!
Hello
I’m looking to get one “war room” but it seems hard to get. Any advise?
Have you contacted Nightingale Games and asked about availability?
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer oh, that’s within the US I guess. I’m looking in EU :-/ … do you think they ship outside US?
@@arbihirchi I honestly don’t know. You’d have to contact them. Best of luck.
Thanks a lot, btw thanks you for the amazing content, I’m learning a lot through your videos and tutorials. Much appreciated
@@arbihirchi Thank you!
I've been wanting to play board games my entire life, but I've never found anyone to play with. Can you PLEASE do a vid of solitaire games? Maybe a video of war games and a video of other solitaire board games. Wow, I'm totally missing out here! So many awesome games!
What? You mean like this: th-cam.com/video/h9xUmyUWW00/w-d-xo.html
Not really into war games, but can confirm that Undaunted Normandy is absolutely amazing. It does make me interested in more in war games in general too, which is why I'm here. =
Edit: That #1 pick gives me some serious anxiety just looking at it though.
War Room is really quite intuitive, generally speaking. If you've played Axis & Allies - a "gateway" wargame - this game will not be much more difficult. You may also want to try for more basic but fun war games "Memoir '44," "Coral Sea: Solitaire," "Tarawa 1943," and of course, more of the Undaunted series. Best of luck to you!
Have you tried Heroes of Normandie? Amazing WW2 game with a "Hollywood" twist to it! My favorite game.
Just played it recently: th-cam.com/video/Oo4GKKqePYE/w-d-xo.html
Good list Cody. The greatest WW 2 game of all time is Global War 1936/45 by Historical Board Gaming. If you've never seen it there are lots of videos on my channel.
Never played it, but know of it. Might be a little too long for my taste.
Wow I’d love to read that book!
Hopefully I’ll find a publisher.
How you snub Axis and Allies over alot pf those games???
As I mention, War Room kind of killed AA for me. It's by the same designer, and it's the game AA always wanted to be.
Definatly gonna have to get me a copy of war room! it looks amazing!
It is amazing! I think you'll enjoy it!
Dear Cody, congrats on your success, please play and review Barbarossa to Berlin, obscure but hidden gem. Have played 20+ games and every one was exciting.
Perhaps I will look into it. Who publishes it?
The Discriminating Gamer it is by GMT games, plenty of used copies floating around but as someone who dislikes most games I play (I’m harsh) it is a GREAT game. I’ve never played a game where so often both players feel like their hanging off a cliff edge by their finger nails!
I just backed the 2nd edition of War Room. Are there any plans to do a re-review! Or let's play? 😃
Currently no plans to revisit it on the channel. Maybe somewhere down the line. I think you'll get a kick out of the game.
Have you ever played The Longest Day? (The old Avalon Hill monster game). It’s quite a commitment, but I really enjoyed it way back then when it was new….
Never played it. Sounds intimidating.
Other GREAT games.....A.H.'s France 1940, A.H.'s Blitzkrieg, SPI's Barbarossa, A.H.'s Midway. Classic games I played in the late 60's and early 70's.
Very cool.
I agree Cody, War Room is the best!
Indeed. Great minds...