What’s a Dien Bien Phu and why should a gamer care? Let Bruce Geryk deftly explain. His new series examines boardgames set in the pivotal engagement of the First Indochina War. Bruce humbly calls it a “wargaming documentary” and beyond just a neat lesson about what makes Citadel, Frank Chadwick’s 1977 game of the battle work, (or not) Bruce supplies historical context for the game’s systems. As he explains, the actions of the real-life forces should inform the game’s mechanics. It’s a history lesson disguised as a boardgame review!
Wargame_[space] is a great site in general and Bruce's presentation in the video is outstanding. It's a great mixture of historical context, critique of a game and commentary on the Wargame culture of the time.
That is seriously cool. I love that something like this exists, since I don't really own or play wargames much, and don't really have anyone to play against if I wanted to, but I've always been interested in the intersection of history and games. Man, I'd pay real money to see Bruce play and narrate a war game on video like the old Tom vs Bruce articles, since I just really don't get exposed to lots of these cool games on my own.
I haven't played Storm Over Dien Bien Phu yet, but The Final Gamble is terrific. It just reinforces my belief that Kim Kanger is one of the best designers working presently. It delivers an amazing feel for the battle.
Bruce -- I have. It's almost unique, isn't it? I don't know of any other game on the subject, anyway. It is similar to 'Gamble', where the game plays like a book. (In Tonkin's case, Street Without Joy) Also, his Algeria game is really, really good.
You need to get Kanger on TMA....he is a great interview. And it is, after all, the Winter of Wargaming.
Kim Kanger is a master of telling you a story through little chits and hexes. I want him to tell me a story with words on the 3MA podcast. I have corresponded with him - there are some scheduling issues, but I hope they can be worked out.
I would love to do a video on Ici, c'est la France and the war in Algeria.
When I read the OP just now, I was wondering “how did I miss this post back in January 2015?”
But then I clicked on the link and went to the actual post on the front page. And then I saw why. There’s a big giant picture that accompanies the post. That picture of a wargame short circuits my brain and keeps me from reading the post! Interesting insight into myself.
