The Campaign for North Africa

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Note: this article is about a game. For information on the historical campaign, see North African Campaign.

The Campaign for North Africa (generally referred to as CNA by wargamers), was a detailed military simulation game of the North African Campaign of World War II. It was designed by Richard Berg and published by Simulations Publications, Inc. in 1978.

1 Depth
2 Legacy
3 Re-release
4 External links

[edit] Depth

Though fans of war simulation games appreciate depth, The Campaign for North Africa offered more depth than any game before or since, leading to the ambivalent reaction with which the game is regarded. Even gamers who were initially fascinated with the idea of an extremely detailed war game were chagrined when they opened the box to discover 1,800 counters, maps large enough to cover several tables, and a three-volume rulebook of considerable weight and density.. The rules recommend each side be played by a five-person team, including a Commander-In-Chief and four subordinate commanders, making a total of ten players needed for a game. According to SPI, a complete game can run over 1,500 hours. Needless to say, the logistics of keeping a ten-person group together for fifteen hundred hours of gaming was a feat beyond even most hardcore wargamers, and completed full games of The Campaign for North Africa are rare.

[edit] Legacy

Although the difficulty in actually playing The Campaign for North Africa is impossible to ignore, the game is prized by collectors and often praised by the most serious gamers, who consider it something of the ultimate paper war game. A commonly-cited example of its level of detail (and one noted in SPI's advertising) is the fact that the game's Italian troops required additional water supplies so that they could prepare pasta. [Designer's Note: This was included as a humor item which seemed to be taken somewhat seriously by the hobbyiests.] The game represents a brief evolutionary step between the relative simplicity of most paper wargames of its time, and the dawn of the era of computer wargames, where complexity and depth need not come at the expense of playability.

[edit] Re-release

Due to the game's collectability and legendary status, it has long been considered a candidate for possible reissue. Currently, Decision Games has expressed a desire to do so, promising "the unplayable monster made playable", which suggests that the game will be considerably revamped instead of simply reprinted. As of 2006, it remains to be seen whether the re-release will become a reality.