Game Review: Twilight Struggle

John F. Kennedy said in his inaugural address,

"Now the trumpet summons us again - not as a call to bear arms, though arms we need; not as a call to battle, though embattled we are; but a call to bear the burden of a long twilight struggle, year in and year out..."

And because of that one speech, today I am reviewing a game that sounds, to most people born after 1995, like a board game about sparkly vampires. Make no mistake, folks, Twilight Struggle--the number one game on Board Game Geek--is about something far different from vampires. I mean, I assume anyway. There were those rumors about Gorbachev, but I never saw any fangs or anything, so we'll file that away as unconfirmed. I digress. Twilight Struggle is a war game about the struggle for power between the U.S. and the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

Yes, that's right, a war game. Wait, what? How did a war game get to be number one on BGG.com? And more importantly, how did I end up playing it...and actually liking it? A lot? Read on for my full review and answers to your burning Cold War-themed gaming questions.

Twilight Struggle, WE WILL BURY YOU!

Play Scenario:

This review is based on two initial plays of the game on two separate occasions. Being that this is strictly a two player game, you can guess how many players we had for each game. If not, I'll get the frying pan.

Game Objective:

To BURY! your opponent. Sorry, if you could hear that, it would sound like my Kruschev voice, which is also kind of like my Soup Nazi voice. Be prepared for lots of corny Soviet references. I'm feeling like 20 years on since the end, I think it's finally kosher to make Soviet jokes, right? I mean, no one here wants to be blacklisted or anything. Ha. Right? Ha. Anyway....in this game, one player takes the U.S. side, and the other becomes Muzza Russia (okay, technically, USSR, whatever). You both battle it out for control of countries around the world, compete in a space race, and try to avoid nuclear war.

 Turn Mechanics & Game Play: 
Laid out in front of you is a daunting map of the world. Study it, see where your opponent has carefully placed their control chips (as originally dictated by the rules booklet set-up instructions). Now you will use your turns to mess up their control around the world. Mwa-ha-ha!

To do this, you will play cards in your hand. There are three different decks opponents draw from: Early War, Mid-War, and Late War. Each card has the name of an event/person and text about what the card effects are. I have to tell you, it's pretty straightforward, and not nearly as heavy and dry as I feared a war game could be. Some of the cards are even a bit humorous. Surprise!

 That's right, this card declares that if the U.S. controls more battleground countries, then the U.S. player gets to poke the other person in the chest and gain 2 VP.

Okay, here's how the turn flow works: Each round starts with a "Headline Phase", in which you select one card from your newly dealt hand and both opponents execute the actions on these headline cards. This is usually a biggie, and--if you're lucky--will impair your opponent's abilities to play effectively for the rest of the round.

After that, you and your opponent take turns playing cards, either for their text effect, or for the points on the corner of the card, which can help you manipulate your control of the map--by adding "Influence" to a new territory, attempting a coup, or realigning power. A single D-6 die will help decide a lot of these power struggles.

OR, you can use your card points to move your chits along the Space Race track and attempt to gain a game advantage. Launch that chimp into space first and you will not only make Tom Hanks and Ron Howard cry, but you also get either VPs or a special advantage.

 The round ends when the cards are spent from each player's hand. The game continues like this for a set amount of rounds, with points being constantly won and lost until the end of the game. The whole time there is a constant threat of thermonuclear war, and a Defcon counter at the bottom of the board warns everyone just how close nuclear annihilation is. Duck and cover, kiddies!

Out of the Box:

The game is a bit underwhelming. Frankly, it looks like a pretty typical war game, with tiny little square cardboard counters, a few decks of cards, and a big-ass map.

 The map itself is a bit disappointing because it's made of flimsy cardboard that never really flattens out totally without weights to hold it down. This means that those little cardboard chits slide around easily or can be bounced in a heartbeat by a devious cat paw. Even the box art is mediocre--nothing to complain about, but nothing to get excited about either. Overall, diehard fans will drool for a deluxe edition with nicer pieces.

Praise:

+The game is straightforward enough to make it fully accessible for non-war gamers. I had reservations, but we were smoothly playing a full game within an hour of opening the box.

+Combat! This is a GREAT game to settle in with on a chilly Saturday afternoon or evening. Get some snacks. Put on some good tunes. Get in pajamas. And then get cozy for a long game of strategy, cunning, and all-out war.

+Humor! Normally a game about the perils of the communist threat, thermonuclear war, and struggles for global domination are generally humorless. Pity. While most of the cards in the game are serious and historical, just a few of them have a little bit of humor interjected to lighten up the game. Consider the card mentioned above that requires the US to poke the USSR in the chest. Some of the cards even reference movies, including one thermonuclear war card that asks us "Would-We-Like-To-Play-a-Ga-ame?" Or there's the above card with a cheeky nod to Dr. Strangelove.

+The scoring mechanism works perfectly for this style of combat game. As you can see below, the score counter starts at zero, and a tug of war ensues between the USSR pulling the score into the "red", (Ha. Get it? Somewhere Lenin's laughing) and the U.S. trying to pull the score into the positive.

+No player who's down should ever count themselves out. There's always a reason to fight in this game, as the decks are always changing, and there are always ways to cheese off your opponent.

+There is an end to the madness. Unlike some combat quagmires, like Risk, there is a finite set of rounds to this game--10 total. While the game still takes quite a few hours to play (usually), the game's conclusion does not hinge on one player being utterly and totally crushed or wiped off the map. This gives both players reason to fight through the whole game and never give up.

+The historical context of the game is really interesting and educational. For those of us who remember at least part of the Cold War, reading the headlines on the cards will bring back memories.

Complaints:

-The game quality is straight-up war game all the way. So I hate to rag on a classic style, but the component and board quality really is lacking. A special game like this deserves a little better. The good news for some of you, is that a Deluxe Edition is available. We just don't own it. Sad.

-Chance. Another excellent game with an element of that infuriating beast, CHANCE. In order to decide a lot of contests to invade and area, boot someone out, or advance in the space race, players roll two little dice. It's a strong enough influence that the game outcome can entirely hinge on the sum luck of all the dice rolls.

-Game play length is a slight problem. Because games can take as long as 4-5 hours, potentially, this might not be a game you can play on the average weeknight after dinner.

Overall:

This is an amazing intense, competitive game for two gamers who want a serious head-to-head brawl. Lighter gamers (you know who I'm talking about) will probably not enjoy this game, as it does require focus, stamina, and a cutthroat nature. However, despite all of these scary qualifiers I've attached to the enjoyability of the game, it's actually not too dry! And most importantly, it's not too fidgety. Da, darling! It's true!

By all rights, a war game like this should be complicated, and have all the lightness of running through a swimming pool of molasses. But somehow it flows really smoothly and keeps players on edge and excited for every turn. It's intelligent, but not pretentious and stuffy. And THAT, my friends, is how a war game found its way to the top of the BGG rankings.

I love that just when Europe seems lost to the USSR, those naughty Ruskies pull out some VPs in the Space Race, or over in Asia. And in spite of the fact that the game is intentionally slightly biased in favor of U.S. victory, us comrades can still pull out a victory over the American dogs on the other side of the table. If only the game weren't sooo reliant on chance and dice rolling, I think I'd really love this game even more. Fate is a fickle friend, and does not always smile down upon Soviet Russia, my friends. Oops, I mean, comrades.

The Greatest Husband in the World and I have been pulling out the game about once per weekend, especially if we really feel like locking horns. And aside from the fact that I've been banned from using my Russian accent (which mainly is derived from Boris Badinov and Natasha Fatale), we have been having a really great time. Throughout our plays, we've done some laughing, some shouting, a good amount of swearing, and I have banged my shoes on the table more than a few times. It's just good raucousy fun. But fair warning: This game is not for the tired or cranky. Go into this fresh and full of piss & vinegar to really enjoy the poetic simplicity of war.

We will be keeping this copy in our Board Game Closet of Glory and Doom for quite some time, perhaps only swapping it out if we can get our cheap hands on a nice copy of the deluxe edition. I just wish it wasn't going to collect so much dust, as I sense that its intensity and play length will limit how often we pull it out.

Similar Games:
You'll be hard-pressed to not draw a lot of comparisons to Risk while playing this game. Domination of the map, and dice rolling to determine geographical challenges will have you reminiscing about the last time you fortified Kamchatka in Risk. But fear not, where Risk utterly fails--in its monotony, and shallow gameplay--this game shines. This is a deeper, smoother game than Risk will ever be, with a real historical twist that makes it riveting and disquieting all at once. If you ever wanted to love Risk, but just couldn't get past its tedium, then this is the game for you.

Pimpability:

The board almost demands pimping, as it's so uneven and flimsy. An inventive person may attach the board to some foldable wooden panels, or may print the map on tin paper that can be rolled up. Or you could just shell out a couple more bucks for the deluxe version. Whatever.

I think I might also be inclined to get some little astronaut/cosmonaut player tokens to replace the cardboard chits on the Space Race track. A nice rocket figure would work well on the Defcon track. And wouldn't it be great to have a little mini of vodka for the score track? I'm just sayin'.Okay, barring someone actually making mini vodka tokens, it would make a lot of sense for players to print and assemble tuck boxes for the three main decks of cards (early war, mid-war, and late war). This game is totally pimpable, especially for someone with a sense of humor about communism and nuclear war. Shoes for hitting table optional.

Game: Twilight Struggle
Designer: Ananda Gupta, Jason Matthews
Published by: GMT Games, 2005
Players: 2
Playing Time: 2-5 hours
AIBG (that's us!) Age Recommendations: 14+
Average Retail Price: $40-50 (maybe a little more for the Deluxe version with nicer pieces)

Grade: B+