Board Game Review 'Hold Fast: North Africa '41-'42' with Judd Bonding With Board Games -YouTube

[@HistoricalGaming]

Nice to hear a good honest review. Thanks Judd

[@varovaro1967]

Wow, nice to hear honesty.... I dont know what you think about Pacific and Atlantic. Thank you, great video!

[@flycasual2976]

Just like GW, Judd cannot tell a lie :)

[@boardgamesociety]

Doesn't seem like a game for us but great that you took the time to review it. 🍺 Cheers!

[@juddvance8104]

I wondered if I would even own this game by the time the video came out. The answer was no. I traded it about a week ago.

[@jimsmith7445]

I felt the same way, Judd. Even "Tobruk" seems like a better game. Thanks for the review. Keep them honest.

[@juddvance8104]

I own Tobruk, but I missed out on experiencing it back in the 1970s. :(

[@douglaspearson1647]

Judd have you played it with the newer rules? If you have did it make a difference?

[@garrettpotvin1522]

I agree 100% with the rules as written. However, With the Prezcon rule tweaks , the game is very good. Glad I gave it another shot with the tournament rules.

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

👍

[@steveisaak4320]

Is there a review of shifting sands? I just found my game. Should I get this one?

[@BondingWithBoardGamesRPGs]

I have not reviewed it. I don’t know if Judd has.

[@douglaspearson1647]

Judd I have always been fascinated by the African Campaign. I really enjoy Rommel In The Desert and still enjoy and play Afrika Korps AH) maybe because I have a better than average win ratio. I was wondering how you rank you favorite African Campaign games?

[@juddvance8104]

My all-time favorite is Shifting Sands. That is a strategic-level game. My favorite operational game is Rommel in the Desert. Those two completely satisfy my needs. I have Afrika Korps and it is fun in a retro-way, but those two are the bees knees. After that, I like games like Patton's First Victory: Tunisia and Totensonntang and Malta Besigeged more for the game play than the simulation value.

[@madddog6790]

Shifting Sands is a great game...if only some wonderful, kind soul would do an awesome vassal tutorial for it, that would be great. Oh wait :).

[@juddvance7721]

Check out Gazala: The Cauldren and Operation Battleaxe: Rommel vs. Wavell by Revolution Games.

[@JPFalcononor]

Agree with your assessment 100% which is why I will not be backing their current Holdfast Atlantic and Pacific games. There too I think they are jamming the system into a complex theme, and so I will not be burned again. I will enjoy Holdfast Russia and to a lesser extent Korea, and will reconsider this game engine when they decide to do Holdfast Bulge.....

[@juddvance8104]

Same here. I didn't see a need to back them. First of all, like you said, round peg/square hole. Second, they were calling HF: Pacific an homage to Victory in the Pacific. However, I have VitP, so why do I need a knockoff? Third, I have a block game on the topic: Asia Engulfed and it is epic. It is so epic that I traded off Pacific Victory, which was a fine game in its own right, but got pushed to the side because of Asia Engulfed. Forth, between Empire of the Sun, We Must Tell the Emperor, Asia Engulfed, VitP, and Axis & Allies: Pacific, I didn't feel I had a hole in my strategic level experience that this game could fill. But yeah, beyond that, I'm done with the HF Kickstarters. Fool me once... Russia was a masterpiece. Korea deserves kuddos for making it work (even if it needs house rules to balance it out) and this was a dud. They are going in the wrong direction.

[@philhatfield2282]

Yeah, some games just don't have what it takes to do North Africa correctly. I found "Blood and Sand" to be servicable and entertaining, but I am still looking for something better. I will know not to put this on the list of prospective games.

[@juddvance8104]

Yeah, Blood and Sand is a good example of me getting annoyed with systems. Richard Berg introduced this system in "Medwar: Sicily" covering Operation Husky and it worked pretty well. Then he took the same system to 1940 North Africa with "Desert War" and it is just so-so. Then he took it to Blood and Sand and I took a pass. Berg and Borg are the worst about trying to milk a system into every campaign imaginable.