I had this game on the table for over three weeks, constantly looking through the rule book, before I figured it out. Fun game after you figure things out.
A) This game was published so there could be a better North Africa 2nd Edition. B) You can't really publish the 2nd Edition first. C) Definitely created over Zoom or FaceTime. When a problem comes along / You must whip it / Before the cream sits out too long / You must whip it / When something's going wrong / You must whip it
This game's manual needs a bit of work organizationally and I found 1 typo in the map for one of the zones (Mersa Matruh is also spelled Matreh on the setup card). The game mechanics however once figured out are phenomenal game design. I've had allied stomps, axis stomps, and even games in 1v1 (pseudo 2v2). The Blitz mechanic is insane for surrounds by blocking off retreats, and the supply mechanic in tandem allows for over-extensions by the aggressor. If the game's manual is the block for someone, just watch Board Game Nation's video on how to play. I watched it after having played 2 games, corrected the rules and the game became even better. The rulebook is just all over the place with some odd sentences to read, making it difficult to understand certain concepts, therefor I believe in this first edition this video is a must.
Pretty good review on this game's product quality. Bringing up many of the clearly fixable, smaller issues can definitely help make things just that easier and appealing for future products if this video gets enough attention. One issue I have is that the video feels a little… overstimulating. There are far too many switches in music and sudden sounds in just a few seconds to really focus on the points of the video. Other than that, good review!
Thank you for the feedback. I've been trying to nail down the pace and tone. can you give me a timestamps of the most overstimulating parts so I can see what you're seeing and make changes for the next vid? cheers!
Yeah, this video really feels like it's hammering your eyeballs. Every time there's a snap zoom in to the guy's face is bad. Also, that blurry effect where text is kinda wavy is just atrocious. Any time you're choosing to blur text or blur the screen, it's probably a bad idea. Just let us look at stuff. So many effects. I would've liked to see more of his notes on the rulebook and the map, since those were the parts where he identified problems and offered solutions too.
2:40 Got nervous about the vid when "Corps/Korps" got pronounced "Corpse" instead of "Core" followed instantly by "Tobruk" bring pronounced "Too Bruk" instead of "Toe Bruk". Hacker's trolling us, I think.
First vid of yours I've seen. As a boardgamer I really appreciate your review covering the gameplay as well as picking apart and discussing game design theory. Especially being super into A&A and seeing the hype over this at GenCon and not having played this yet. Eagerly about to look through your catalog for a game I have played and hear your analysis of it. The one "Video Blunder" IMHO is the tone in the delivery of your analysis. A feel of "I'm an authority" No doubt most of your points are fair and valid, they were just said in such an over confidently self assured way it sounded self righteous. Still loved the vid though!
I appreciate the feedback. can you say more about 'self righteous'? can you give me a few timestamps from the video of when I do it the most so I can see what you are seeing. Cheers!
Good review! Pre ordered the game and haven't received it yet, now I know what to expect. Props too for fixing your mistakes, and not just leaving it up to people in the comments.
For me it was over the moment you opened the box and pointed out the scout car scaling problem. I possess and play some heavy wargames and sorting the components is crucial for saving time when setting up. They literally just took an empty box and threw in some plastic bags. I call this lazy. The box space could have been used for some sorting compartments. Which in the best of all worlds would have been able to be taken out. One for each player nicely sorting and providing the pieces for gameplay. The game looks and feels like an rushed and unfinished product. Thanks for the review saving me my money. In case you have a knack for WW2 wargames, I would recommend having a look at Iwo Jima 1945 by Worthington Games.
You're correct that nobody would keep anything but airplanes on Italy. Italy is the territory where units go when you can't yet deploy them to a convoy. cheers!
The transport rules are pretty interesting and I like how the transports can escape, but I do agree with you that there was no reason to do all the weird transport rules
I really don't understand the change to 8 sided dice. And it turns out the change was by Larry Harris himself. I crunched the numbers and the change from 6 sided dice to 8 sided dice barely changes the outcome. In most cases the change is only a 5% difference from the result that would have occured if the units retained their 6 sided dice alternatives. The ONLY difference the 8 sided dice made was in the classic two infantry attack one infantry scenario. Under 6 sided rules, the attacker only wins 55% of the time. However under the 8 sided stats the attacker wins 70% of the time. Other than that, due to the law of large numbers the differences in attack values is very minimal. It only served to overcomplicate the game and had our players frantically analyzing charts to remind themselves which AT guns had different stats from other AT guns.
I like Italy, so I will support failing endeavors. But in all seriousness, wen I saw the map I ask why Balcans, Palestina and Irak were let out as playable spaces. Them I saw the unit asymmetry, and detected some questionable numbers. But this topic can be fix, changing some properties of the units. I will Buy 2 copies if I can, A. I vote for the theater and B I like Italy 😅.
Yes. I was on the team and everyone who got in had to be vetted in terms of experience level and stick to a schedule of 1 or more logged games a week or get kicked. To elaborate some more based on what I'm (probably) allowed to discuss: -There was an extreme level of debate in the playgroup regarding the level of complexity of the rules. I was personally in favor of easing up a little bit on the level of one-off/special rules/exceptions, but the general consensus was to pursue a more historically flavorful scenario (several of the testers, myself included, were history buffs). Despite this, some liberties were taken due to balance concerns, as there was a strong desire to make the mines something people would actually buy. To give one example, a variant on the stated "fixes" regarding the "Bluetooth Mines" in this video were something that were initially tested but no one ended up buying them because people would just use weak units to soak hits. -The final product is balanced as far as several in-person/online league/tournament-level G40, Revised and Classic players can attest to. So far I have not seen a single playthrough of this game, even the recent Gen Con finals, that are what we considered to be a high level of play. That sounded super conceited on my end, but we did have ~8 months of playing constantly (the people who were serious about the test were logging stretches where they played 1 game a day instead of 1 a week) and had a direct line to the lead developer for questions/comments/concerns basically 24/7. On top of that, the borderline incomprehensible rulebook + the several unique mechanics of this game make it very difficult for new players to play a game while following all the rules correctly, let alone put out a truly competitive game. -We had little control over the graphic design of the map or the printed text of the rulebook. Testing ran late because of needing to resolve balance issues ~2 weeks after our original due date which gave us ~2-3 days to review the rules before everything got shipped. -Piece Quality was also outside of our control. Chinese Factory gonna Chinese Factory. -Your map editing skills are pretty impressive and you clearly have an eye for aesthetics that we stats nerds do not. Have you tried reaching out to Matt regarding graphic design? We testers were just ordinary players who applied to get into the test group. It's possible you can get in if for no other reason than to have someone capable of properly critiquing the graphic designs of whatever Renegade is making next. Of course, I'm just some random guy on the internet, so you can freely choose to not believe a word of what I'm saying lol.
I wish Renegade Games would hire you to help with everything A&A. People that love it like us would do it for free. You got a BBR map in your living room? Come to BBR in Atlanta and play with us. I can get you an invite if you’d like.
@@BoardGameHackers Lt. Dan personally gave me a BBR 5 map in Atlanta. It’s incredible. He actually lives close to Atlanta and he might be able to come play. BBR originated in Atlanta and the tourneys are held in late September. However, I’m friends with Sired Blood and we’re doing a play test in January or February 2025. I don’t expect to win since I’m playing against the designer but it’s really fun!
How can anyone take your criticism seriously when you admit to making so many errors that the creator of the game reached out and slapped you with a typewritten page full of stuff you got wrong! Go find something to do you are good at. I am pretty sure you had to redo the last video I watched for similar reasons. How about you try getting it right the first time next time so we can have some trust in the things you say.
,No 🧞 at least you cared ,,, 👍. I say let's have a short quick game of avlon hills the longest day, or a longer game of Up Front !!! ? My thoughts precisely , let's not hope for a second edition,,,, btw where kan i find the 1914 cards / Zeppelin !????? ,🐎🎶🤺
I had this game on the table for over three weeks, constantly looking through the rule book, before I figured it out. Fun game after you figure things out.
yes, I feel you there!
A) This game was published so there could be a better North Africa 2nd Edition.
B) You can't really publish the 2nd Edition first.
C) Definitely created over Zoom or FaceTime.
When a problem comes along / You must whip it / Before the cream sits out too long / You must whip it / When something's going wrong / You must whip it
You have great storytelling and video productio in your videos, great work! thank you for your content. Cheers
Thank you very much! happy rolling!
This game's manual needs a bit of work organizationally and I found 1 typo in the map for one of the zones (Mersa Matruh is also spelled Matreh on the setup card). The game mechanics however once figured out are phenomenal game design. I've had allied stomps, axis stomps, and even games in 1v1 (pseudo 2v2). The Blitz mechanic is insane for surrounds by blocking off retreats, and the supply mechanic in tandem allows for over-extensions by the aggressor.
If the game's manual is the block for someone, just watch Board Game Nation's video on how to play. I watched it after having played 2 games, corrected the rules and the game became even better. The rulebook is just all over the place with some odd sentences to read, making it difficult to understand certain concepts, therefor I believe in this first edition this video is a must.
Pretty good review on this game's product quality. Bringing up many of the clearly fixable, smaller issues can definitely help make things just that easier and appealing for future products if this video gets enough attention.
One issue I have is that the video feels a little… overstimulating. There are far too many switches in music and sudden sounds in just a few seconds to really focus on the points of the video. Other than that, good review!
Thank you for the feedback. I've been trying to nail down the pace and tone. can you give me a timestamps of the most overstimulating parts so I can see what you're seeing and make changes for the next vid? cheers!
Yeah, this video really feels like it's hammering your eyeballs. Every time there's a snap zoom in to the guy's face is bad. Also, that blurry effect where text is kinda wavy is just atrocious. Any time you're choosing to blur text or blur the screen, it's probably a bad idea. Just let us look at stuff. So many effects. I would've liked to see more of his notes on the rulebook and the map, since those were the parts where he identified problems and offered solutions too.
Would you consider producing the alternative map? Totally agree about Malta being too small and so much unplayable area
Thanks for the updated video!
I appreciate you taking the time to help make these videos better. I must say I very much enjoy your work. Hats off Matt.
Good video, and I totally agree with all of the points - especially the bit about the rulebook.
Glad you enjoyed it!
2:40 Got nervous about the vid when "Corps/Korps" got pronounced "Corpse" instead of "Core" followed instantly by "Tobruk" bring pronounced "Too Bruk" instead of "Toe Bruk". Hacker's trolling us, I think.
HAHA, I google translated Tobruk and it told me to say it that way. hahaha.
Still Buying it
First vid of yours I've seen. As a boardgamer I really appreciate your review covering the gameplay as well as picking apart and discussing game design theory. Especially being super into A&A and seeing the hype over this at GenCon and not having played this yet. Eagerly about to look through your catalog for a game I have played and hear your analysis of it. The one "Video Blunder" IMHO is the tone in the delivery of your analysis. A feel of "I'm an authority" No doubt most of your points are fair and valid, they were just said in such an over confidently self assured way it sounded self righteous. Still loved the vid though!
I appreciate the feedback. can you say more about 'self righteous'? can you give me a few timestamps from the video of when I do it the most so I can see what you are seeing. Cheers!
Good review! Pre ordered the game and haven't received it yet, now I know what to expect. Props too for fixing your mistakes, and not just leaving it up to people in the comments.
sorry for the late reply. I appreciate your comments. Hope your game arrives soon!
Many house rules would no doubt be needed to correct some of the not fun bits.
For me it was over the moment you opened the box and pointed out the scout car scaling problem. I possess and play some heavy wargames and sorting the components is crucial for saving time when setting up. They literally just took an empty box and threw in some plastic bags. I call this lazy. The box space could have been used for some sorting compartments. Which in the best of all worlds would have been able to be taken out. One for each player nicely sorting and providing the pieces for gameplay. The game looks and feels like an rushed and unfinished product. Thanks for the review saving me my money. In case you have a knack for WW2 wargames, I would recommend having a look at Iwo Jima 1945 by Worthington Games.
15:40 wtf do you expect people to say "ok ill move this scout car in 69w 107n"?
also in italy you wont put anything but airplanes so you dont need a different stacking limits
haha, great point!
You're correct that nobody would keep anything but airplanes on Italy. Italy is the territory where units go when you can't yet deploy them to a convoy. cheers!
The transport rules are pretty interesting and I like how the transports can escape, but I do agree with you that there was no reason to do all the weird transport rules
Can you please put more special effcts into you video? My 10sec attention span is ruined by tiktok.
hahah, message received.
lol
Lol! 😄
Issue is. Testers can provide as much feedback as they want. Devs don’t have to listen.
I really don't understand the change to 8 sided dice. And it turns out the change was by Larry Harris himself. I crunched the numbers and the change from 6 sided dice to 8 sided dice barely changes the outcome. In most cases the change is only a 5% difference from the result that would have occured if the units retained their 6 sided dice alternatives. The ONLY difference the 8 sided dice made was in the classic two infantry attack one infantry scenario. Under 6 sided rules, the attacker only wins 55% of the time. However under the 8 sided stats the attacker wins 70% of the time. Other than that, due to the law of large numbers the differences in attack values is very minimal. It only served to overcomplicate the game and had our players frantically analyzing charts to remind themselves which AT guns had different stats from other AT guns.
Dear Pwns,
Will you please review War Room? I'm considering getting it, but I would like to get your opinion first.
Thanks!
War Room, nice. That is a BIG game and it's pretty low on my video list. Sorry I couldn't be more help.
I like Italy, so I will support failing endeavors. But in all seriousness, wen I saw the map I ask why Balcans, Palestina and Irak were let out as playable spaces.
Them I saw the unit asymmetry, and detected some questionable numbers. But this topic can be fix, changing some properties of the units.
I will Buy 2 copies if I can, A. I vote for the theater and B I like Italy 😅.
gotta love Italy! Yes, creating your own unit sheets could be fun!
this kinda reminds me of campaign of north africa
Guys I am going to move my scout car to 23.4162° N
Ouch, was there even any playtesting!?
For the gameplay, I would say it's been play tested very well. But sometimes it's hard to see the forest through the trees!
Yes. I was on the team and everyone who got in had to be vetted in terms of experience level and stick to a schedule of 1 or more logged games a week or get kicked. To elaborate some more based on what I'm (probably) allowed to discuss:
-There was an extreme level of debate in the playgroup regarding the level of complexity of the rules. I was personally in favor of easing up a little bit on the level of one-off/special rules/exceptions, but the general consensus was to pursue a more historically flavorful scenario (several of the testers, myself included, were history buffs). Despite this, some liberties were taken due to balance concerns, as there was a strong desire to make the mines something people would actually buy. To give one example, a variant on the stated "fixes" regarding the "Bluetooth Mines" in this video were something that were initially tested but no one ended up buying them because people would just use weak units to soak hits.
-The final product is balanced as far as several in-person/online league/tournament-level G40, Revised and Classic players can attest to. So far I have not seen a single playthrough of this game, even the recent Gen Con finals, that are what we considered to be a high level of play. That sounded super conceited on my end, but we did have ~8 months of playing constantly (the people who were serious about the test were logging stretches where they played 1 game a day instead of 1 a week) and had a direct line to the lead developer for questions/comments/concerns basically 24/7. On top of that, the borderline incomprehensible rulebook + the several unique mechanics of this game make it very difficult for new players to play a game while following all the rules correctly, let alone put out a truly competitive game.
-We had little control over the graphic design of the map or the printed text of the rulebook. Testing ran late because of needing to resolve balance issues ~2 weeks after our original due date which gave us ~2-3 days to review the rules before everything got shipped.
-Piece Quality was also outside of our control. Chinese Factory gonna Chinese Factory.
-Your map editing skills are pretty impressive and you clearly have an eye for aesthetics that we stats nerds do not. Have you tried reaching out to Matt regarding graphic design? We testers were just ordinary players who applied to get into the test group. It's possible you can get in if for no other reason than to have someone capable of properly critiquing the graphic designs of whatever Renegade is making next.
Of course, I'm just some random guy on the internet, so you can freely choose to not believe a word of what I'm saying lol.
I wish Renegade Games would hire you to help with everything A&A. People that love it like us would do it for free.
You got a BBR map in your living room? Come to BBR in Atlanta and play with us. I can get you an invite if you’d like.
Good eye, Lt. Dan BBR map with some color tweaks. Getting to test the new A&A games would be pretty epic.
When does everyone meet in Atlanta?
@@BoardGameHackers Lt. Dan personally gave me a BBR 5 map in Atlanta. It’s incredible. He actually lives close to Atlanta and he might be able to come play.
BBR originated in Atlanta and the tourneys are held in late September. However, I’m friends with Sired Blood and we’re doing a play test in January or February 2025.
I don’t expect to win since I’m playing against the designer but it’s really fun!
I bought it and I like it, though it took time to figure out.
How can anyone take your criticism seriously when you admit to making so many errors that the creator of the game reached out and slapped you with a typewritten page full of stuff you got wrong! Go find something to do you are good at. I am pretty sure you had to redo the last video I watched for similar reasons. How about you try getting it right the first time next time so we can have some trust in the things you say.
I hear you. I was frustrated with myself on some of these mistakes. I love the feedback and try to do better each video. Cheers!
A version too much…
It’s an alright axis and allies game and a good board game.
This is still a fun game. Don't be a hater.
WTH is up with the Palestinian-Transjordanian border?
,No 🧞 at least you cared ,,, 👍. I say let's have a short quick game of avlon hills the longest day, or a longer game of Up Front !!! ? My thoughts precisely , let's not hope for a second edition,,,, btw where kan i find the 1914 cards / Zeppelin !????? ,🐎🎶🤺
Axis & Allies WW1 1914 Historical 3-in-1 Game Deck:
th-cam.com/video/-_ASXWFPRms/w-d-xo.html
Thanks for the review. Definitely won’t be buying this one.
fair enough. but I feel you might be missing out!
cheers
36th viewer!!
ayo first