What if Russia had won the Cold War? What if China had been seduced by the allies? What if Europe had chosen differently who to align with? ‘What ifs’ are a game in itself that have inspired stories for books, comics, illustrations… and also games!
‘Twilight Struggle’ is a Risk-style 2 players board game based on the events occurred during Cold War between 1945 and 1989. Players choose if they want to support the US or the URSS and then the battle starts!
The game takes its name from John F. Kennedy inaugural address in 1961:
“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…”
Game is on! To win playing ‘Twilight Struggle’ players need to attract countries to their orbit. The more unlikely is for a country to become an ally (UK supporting URSS), the more points the player wins. The Space Race will also play a huge role in winning the game. No matter what happened on July 20th, 1969, now players can change all the rules.
Besides strategy, luck will play a really important part in this cold war rebooting. Players will need to play cards that show historical events that affected the real war and see how they can twist things for their own interests. Anti-war protests, Olympic Games celebration, the Cuban Missile crisis, Berlin blockade or Chinese support could change entirely the game’s strategy and the course of History.
Why we love this game? No matter how little you like History, playing ‘Twilight Struggle’ will make Cold War events the key of your conquering schemes. With each turn, you will face real events and will need to think about how their consequences could change your strategy or be used to crush your enemy. In just one or two games, you won’t hesitate about what was the role of China during the Cold War, what was Ronald Reagan’s ‘Evil Empire’ speech or why the Space Race could have changed everything.
‘Twilight Struggle’ is considered one of the best board games of all times. You can read more about its gameplay here or purchase the game through BoardGameGeek.com or Amazon.
Do you want to know more about Serious Games, Gamification and Playful Learning? Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.