The Hardest Board Game Ever Made!

[@SenkaBandit]

I’m sure being a commander in the real North African campaign is easier than playing this game

[@mann985A]

Yeah fr the commander didn't command every single solider

[@SenkaBandit]

@@mann985A exactly

[@rhysofsneezingdragon1758]

Rommel had it easier.

[@wendyHew]

​@@rhysofsneezingdragon1758Montgomery made sure he didn't have it easy. Although he layer named his dog Rommel

[@theshadowman1398]

I really want to know which mind came up with this and how he convinced the executives to put it in to production.

[@GrantFredereckZen]

FWIW- the company (SPI) surveyed their customers 6 times a year (in their magazine) with proposed game titles/descriptions, and enough people expressed an interest for them to greenlight development of the game. I remember reading the description of the proposed game, and, although I never bought the game, from what I can tell, they delivered what was first suggested. It was supposed to be teh first in a series-- but I think they realized that it was too much work for what they got back to make any more. SPI was a very innovative company, very responsive to its customer base, but they weren't at strong on the business side.

[@cardboardconflicts]

Wargamers love simulation. Many games would take multiple weekends to play though this one does take the cake.

[@allpaws215]

I take your points but I've played this (not to completion) several times. It is an amazing look at minutia in wargaming. An immersive experience indeed!

[@arbitrariumgames5791]

Yeah, the Campaign for North Africa, while it is a really complicated game, has interesting rules designed for immersion and realism, and it would be interesting to see how everything comes together when playing the game.

[@carrickrichards2457]

Decision Games nearly reprinted it after hobby 'chat' and second hand prices spiked when it featured on CBS's Big Bang Theory.

[@toddwebb7521]

"it's like the Italian army can't survive without pasta" Si

[@martincharlesworth1418]

I really wanted to start throwing things at the wall while listening to this 'review'. Let's start with the game box; it clearly states on the box lid that this is "a super-detailed, intensive simulation designed for maximum realism", i.e., it is NOT your standard boardgame. In most wargames, the action is continuous; every turn has movement and combat. In reality, this seldom happened. Most campaigns were stop-go affairs, as armies waited for supplies to catch up - and CNA excels in this area. I have played this game a lot over the years; it is a superb simulation of just how vital logistics are to running an army and a campaign. Yes, it's hard work - but if you don't want the work go play something easier. This is NOT a game for the casual player, but it is a really good lesson on how campaigns actually worked.

[@llewev]

I bought a copy on publication which remains unpunched. It suggests that it should be a "club project" for numerous players on each side with different people in charge of logistics. air force, ground combat command and so on. Never having found a dozen people prepared to take it on, it has never come off the shelf. It covers historical battles that were some of the most complex in WWII mainly because they were played out on a large area of flat terrain.

[@sanguiniusonvacation1803]

I .....kinda wanna play it

[@alexanderchippel]

It just goes to show you that the overwhelming majority of difficulty with most games comes down to an inability to organize rules. If each rule was separated into blocks with a numericals reference to related rules, it'd be a lot easier. And typos that change math are totally inexcusable in these kinds of games.

[@ladygrinningstardust]

Thanks for making a concise video of why campaign for North Africa is insane so I can send an explanation to my friends AND have them watch it

[@FezFindie]

Given that just waving the rules would make'em run for the hills?

[@john-lenin]

We played a turn of this - and I learned more from that one turn than from any other war-game I've played in 40 years.

[@alaeriia01]

Waiting on the Valefisk video for this bad boy.

[@davidwormell6609]

When creating a combat system/rules for a wargame such as this, all the complexity should be in the design and structure, so that what is created is playable and simple to execute. This is no easy task. coupled with walking the tightrope of realism/playability.

[@markherman50]

Berg would be happy to see you cover his game. I was one of the play testers and commanded the 7th Armor Division which took around 80 pieces of paper to operate. Its an experience... thanks for taking a look at my old friends game.

[@Dorsalguide320]

I know that this is a old vídeo, but i started to watch other videos of yours and Im happy to came across this channel ,hope to see this channel grow

[@Heathcoatman]

It's always funny to hear young people who never knew a world before computers talk about wargaming from the 70s and 80s. You actually had to stop play to consult the rules book? Too funny.

[@onyxrin1946]

Cant wait for Triple S Games to cover this

[@RommelsAsparagus]

You've never really played board wargames before, which is understandable, as it's mostly a hobby for guys over 50. You can't compare it to RPGs like D&D, better to compare it to ASL or WiF. The pasta rule was a Jim Dunnigan joke of sorts, the Rommel attack rule is too. This game holds a special place as the "ultimate monster board wargame" and has some interesting mechanics, but it is a product of its era (1978), the golden age of hex and counter board wargaming. Apparently the game is much easier to play today with Excel and VASSAL. Thanks for the review.

[@Firebolt68]

need a galaxy brain to play this game

[@tristianzero3106]

I honestly this game should be only played as a videogame. Its pointless to make it without a computer to play.

[@akizeta]

It was made in the late 70s, maybe as the first Apple II microcomputers were being marketed. It took a couple of decades for the hardware and software to get good enough to even deal with one of the smaller and less complicated wargames.

[@cloroxbleach6673]

the fact you actually did this got you a like and subscribe

[@gunnarb.412]

It is a pity, that the Game „Afrika Korps“ of the Avalon Hill Game Company is no longer available. It was an interesting game, but not so difficult.

[@brucefelger4015]

Airwar SPI had the highest difficulty that SPI ever listed.

[@pm71241]

So ... while I might agree that CFNA is (one of) the most complex board games ever made ... I'm not really sure your angle of approaching this is an objective metric. Specifically ... you show World in Flames and talk about spreadsheets. While there is a small bit of book-keeping in WiF related to production it's far from a "spreadsheet" dominating the game ... AND ... the fact that WiF has a relatively large following should hint to you that it's not a game suffering from being fiddly. Much more fiddly games (like ASL) has even larger followings. I haven't played Magic Realm ... but ... I think you should realize that a lot of people actually play games this size regularly and find them fun. (though, probably not CFNA). BTW: 1:29 ... *not* CFNA.

[@Vulcansrule6969lol]

Is this a damn joke? Why the hell is this even a thing? That's straight up demonic.

[@FezFindie]

Probably was more of a case of seeing how far you can push the rules rather than accessibility?

[@Redwhiteblue-gr5em]

It’s for super smart people, not people like you lol

[@Heathcoatman]

Things are a little different 45 years later. There were no PCs when this game was made.

[@Blaklyon0]

Would this translate to a video game? Maybe it would be more assessable to more people.

[@ryan.1990]

It's called HOI4

[@JohnSmith-kn5xx]

Panzer General 2

[@joe31226]

​@@ryan.1990hoi4 is ez compared to this shit

[@captpicard6894]

Sounds ideal for someone like Dr Sheldon Cooper.

[@matttaylor4003]

that game is small compared to death ride kursk

[@douglaspearson4853]

Just saw this and wanted to say I admire for taking it on. You said it was the most complicated game. More so than Advanced Squad Leader? I am just curious. From you video it does look like the hardest game to play. ASL you can just read the infantry rules then read what need for scenario so its not as hard and the rules are pretty good. I almost bought this game several times when it came out and glad I didn't.

[@albusvoltavern4500]

I mean in ASL you play in small bits and you never play with all the rules in one scenarios.

[@punkrockfiend2690]

If you ever want to sell your copy let me know. I REALLY want to play this game. I'm a huge ww2 historian and I love reading about the north Africa campaign. Rommel is my favorite general and I want to give this game an honest shot

[@nicrule4424]

So this is what people played before Dwarf Fortress.

[@zaplot7304]

your videos are really nice and well research, I hope a lot of people see it. I think you would benefit from cool thumbnail picture.

[@arbitrariumgames5791]

Thank you so much! And thanks for the tip on the thumbnail.

[@NoNameAtAll2]

5:20 tbf, the old symbol for division is awfully close to a plus - it's line with a dot above and below

[@rogue7744]

What is a boy like you doing in this war game abyss? Very interesting take though for sure. No way I’d ever even attempt to learn this game. $1000….yeah, they can have it

[@csc_rave8838]

Me thinking risk is the longest and most complicated game, but now looking at this i take it back

[@connormonday]

Is risk even complicated? I haven’t played but it looked pretty simple at least from a rules perspective.

[@silmeerman9471]

Risk is incredibly simply

[@coocoo3336]

Im pretty sure chess is more complicated than risk.

[@colanza]

perchè il titolo del video è in italiano?

[@basteqss8859]

Such coplex games have to be played only on PC. It's impossible to take proper care about everything taking place at the map and scenario.

[@destinydynamites]

cool video

[@apollonia6656]

Have you ever played S.P.Q.R. or Alexander the Great. These games can give you a headache. Worse than that , if you haven't played these games for a while try and remember the rules 😕😕😕

[@michaelmuller8072]

Ever heard of la grande guerre? Bad french rules translated into bad english.

[@WargameMemories]

Wow. About the only thing correct in this video is the name of the game.

[@alexg9693]

was that Wu Tang??? lmao y???

[@fynngilburn7258]

Where can I get this game?

[@akizeta]

Ebay. Old copies emerge from the dark stygian depths occasionally.

[@coocoo3336]

The designer never played the game, Im pretty sure he said he made it as a joke

[@akizeta]

Expensive joke.

[@1337fraggzb00N]

Did it induce labour? Asking for Sheldon.

[@manuelkong10]

Hello Kaddar!

[@LuisSanchez-xc9ih]

So why do people even play this

[@FezFindie]

Complexity addiction?

[@Redwhiteblue-gr5em]

Strong interest in WWII and want to see if they are smarter than Rommel.

[@duckmeat4674]

You'd play it in a club room setting. Especially for university students.

[@ruskiwaffle1991]

Masochism.

[@ComfortsSpecter]

Who died designing this?