Four Battles in North Africa is a collection of four board wargames published in 1976 by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) that simulate various battles during the North African Campaign of World War II.
Four Battles in North Africa is a collection of four board wargames published in 1976 by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) that simulate various battles during the North African Campaign of World War II.
Four Battles in North Africa presents a single set of rules, which are used for four different battles: [1] In addition, each battle has a few rules unique to the situation.
The game system is adapted from SPI's 1972 Napoleonic wargame The Battle of Borodino: Napoleon in Russia 1812 , which uses a simple alternating series of turns, where one player moves and fires, followed by the other player. To keep the game relatively simple, units cannot be stacked, and each unit's zone of control is "rigid" — enemy units moving into the zone of control must stop and engage in combat. [2] A new rule allows the defender to call upon long-range artillery and air support. [2]
The four battles included in the box are:
After SPI pioneered the idea of four games in one box that shared a single set of rules with Blue and Gray in 1975, the concept proved to be popular, and SPI quickly published several more "quadrigames". One of these was Four Battles in North Africa, which was released in 1976 with graphic design by Redmond A. Simonsen. The game debuted at #2 on SPI's Top Ten Bestseller List the month it was released, but fell off the list after only four months. [3] Each of the games was also released individually as a "folio game" (packaged in a cardstock folio).
In Issue 9 of the UK wargaming magazine Phoenix , Ralph Vickers noted the inclusion of four different games — two of which also involved three scenarios each — and commented "For the price it's a rich feast." He liked the improvements made to the basic Borodino rules, calling them "a good example of how far wargame design has progressed in the few years since the advent of Borodino." However, he had issues with several errors and ambiguities that he felt should have been caught by rigorous playtesting. He gave an in-depth review of one of the games, Crusader, and concluded "If all of the games and scenarios are typical of this one, then all are first rate." [2]
In Fire & Movement #6, Warren Williams noted, "As you look at the rules to SPI's North Africa quad, you will notice an amazing similarity to the same publisher's Modern Battles quad. There is a good reason for it — they are the same with some minor changes and a few additions. (Well, let’s face it, it cuts the cost.) [4] Several issues later, Williams added the comment, "Quadrigames are simple, easy to play and require a short period of time (1-2 hours) to complete. There's no need for a tremendous amount of concentration.... The beauty of the system is its simplicity — you can concentrate on the game and not the game mechanics and rules." [5]
In his 1977 book The Comprehensive Guide to Board Wargaming , Nick Palmer described all four games as "distinctly more complex than usual, though still very playable." [1] : 164 Palmer also reviewed each of the individual games:
In The Guide to Simulations/Games for Education and Training, Martin Campion thought "The games play well, but are not very convincing as representations of World War II desert warfare." [6]
Tobruk, subtitled "Tank Battles in North Africa 1942", is a board wargame published by Avalon Hill in 1975 that simulates tank combat in North Africa during World War II.
Napoleon's Last Battles is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications in 1976 that simulates the last four battles fought by Napoleon. It was one of SPI's most popular games, and also received many positive reviews.
Blue & Gray: Four American Civil War Battles is a board wargame originally published by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that simulates four battles from the American Civil War.
The Battle of Borodino: Napoleon in Russia 1812 is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1972 that is a simulation of the Battle of Borodino during the French invasion of Russia in 1812.
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Bloody Ridge, subtitled "Turning Point on Guadalcanal, September 1942", is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that simulates the Guadalcanal Campaign during World War II. The game was originally published as part of the Island War: Four Pacific Battles "quadrigame" — a gamebox containing four games simulating four separate battles that all use the same rules. Bloody Ridge was also published as an individual "folio game."
Thirty Years War, subtitled "Four Battles", is a "quadrigame" — four separate board wargames packaged in one box that use a common set of rules — published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1976. The four games simulate different battles during the Thirty Years' War, and were sold individually as well as in the quadrigame format. Some of the games were well received by critics, but overall, the quadrigame did not sell well.
Rocroi, subtitled "19 May 1643 – The End of Spanish Ascendancy", is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1976 that simulates the 1643 Battle of Rocroi during the Thirty Years' War. Rocroi was originally sold as one of four separate games packaged together in Thirty Years War, a "quadrigame", but it was also published as an individual game. It received mixed reviews from critics, some of whom called it a "bland tactical problem", while others declared it was the best game of the four in the Thirty Years War box.
Freiburg, subtitled "3–9 August 1644 – Conquest of the Rhine Valley", is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1976 that simulates the 1644 Battle of Freiburg during the Thirty Years' War. Freiburg was originally sold as one of four separate games packaged together in Thirty Years War, a "quadrigame", but it was also published as an individual game. It received poor reviews from critics, who called it the weakest of the four games in the Thirty Years War box, "a series of slogging matches", "not much fun", and "relatively boring."
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Blue & Gray II, subtitled "Four American Civil War Battles", is a collection of four board wargames originally published by Simulations Publications, Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that each simulate a battle from the American Civil War. It is the sequel to Blue & Gray published earlier in the year. Each of the four games was also published as individual "folio games."
Hurtgen Forest, subtitled "Approach to the Roer, November 1944 ", is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1976 that simulates the Battle of Hürtgen Forest during the final year of World War II. The game was originally published by SPI as part of a four-game collection titled Westwall: Four Battles to Germany, but it was also released as an individual "folio game." While the quadrigame Westwall received good reviews from critics, the static nature of Hurtgen Forest was less well received.
Four Battles from the Crimean War is a "quadrigame" — a set of four thematically linked games that use the same set of rules — published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1978 that simulates four battles during the Crimean War.
Mukden: Sino-Soviet Combat in the '70s is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1975 that simulates a contemporary hypothetical battle between Soviet and Chinese forces near the city of Mukden. It was one of four games that were part of the "quadrigame" titled Modern Battles: Four Contemporary Conflicts, but it was also released as an individual game. In a 1976 poll, Mukden was the least popular of the four games in Modern Battles.
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Crusader: Battle for Tobruk, November 1941 is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1976 that simulates Operation Crusader during World War II. The game was originally published as part of the Four Battles in North Africa "quadrigame" — a gamebox containing four games simulating four separate battles that all use the same rules. Crusader was also published as an individual "folio game."
Kasserine: Baptism of Fire, February 1943 is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1976 that simulates the Battle of Kasserine Pass during World War II. The game was originally published as part of the Four Battles in North Africa "quadrigame" — a gamebox containing four games simulating four separate battles that all use the same rules. Kasserine was also published as an individual "folio game."
Supercharge: Battle of El Alamein, October 1942 is a board wargame published by Simulations Publications Inc. (SPI) in 1976 that simulates Operation Supercharge during the Second Battle of El Alamein of World War II. The game was originally published as part of the Four Battles in North Africa "quadrigame" — a collection of four games simulating four separate battles that all use the same rules. Supercharge was also published as an individual "folio game."