Now...I have only played this game once, at the Australian Games Expo, with Zev teaching the rules and Fraser McHarg and myself playing. I really enjoyed the game. And humbly offer up my initial opinions on a game I really enjoyed:



Game name: Duel in the Dark



Author/s: Friedemann De Pedro

Players: 1-2

Playing time: 45min per night

Key elements:

Bluffing, spatial skills, double guessing, forward planning.

Key Ratings:
= Low
= High

Depth
Strategy
Luck
Player Interaction

This is a fascinating game of bluff, forward planning and tension.

Short Description:

In Duel in the Dark one player represents the German forces fighting to protect their cities, the other player represents the British bombers who have a target to bomb. During set-up the board is set up, the ‘moon’ is decided upon and the weather added (clouds, fog, storms, wind etc). After this the British player picks which one of the German cities will be his target for the night, and pre-plans his bombers flight path. After this the German player places his ground defences, his fighters, and prepares for the battle ahead.



The game begins with the British player moving his Mosquito, the Mosquito is a brilliant part of the game as it adds a whole new element and set of tactics and ‘double-thought’ into the game. The Mosquito can be used to bluff the opponent; it can also be used to protect the bomber (somewhat). The Mosquito also has six tokens, which it can use as either bombs (which can destroy ground defence tokens), or as flares (which provide a bonus to the bomber when it is bombing the chosen target).

After the British player has moved the Mosquito the German player moves his fighters, the fighters will add points to the German side if the British bomber moves into a hex containing them. If the fighters move into a hex containing the Mosquito, they give points to the British player. Weather, moon, wind, ground defences and altitude can all have some effect on the exact amount of points awarded. The German fighters also have to worry about how much fuel they have left, this aspect can have a significant impact on how the German player uses them, mistiming the fuel can deal a serious blow to the German side.



The path of the bomber must take it to the target city (where it will score an amount of points depending on the city, though this amount will be influenced by the weather, ground defence and enemy fighters). The path of the bomber must then take it home again. A limit on the amount of navigation (Compass) cards that can be played also means that cities worth high points (which are far away), are harder to reach. And it is this element that balances out the fuel limitation placed on the German fighters (the British never need to worry about fuel).

I heartily enjoyed the game I played of this, it is a game I will definitely be getting when it comes out, not only is the production quality stunning (a gorgeous dark board, awesome cloud, storm, fighter and bomber pieces, and nice thick ground defence pieces), but the feel of the game is perfect. The game is not too heavy, yet neither is it too light – it strikes me as a really good balance of weight (complexity) and play time.



Some of the aspects I really enjoyed:

I loved the bluffing aspect of the Mosquito – this is THE piece that makes the game for the British player, with it they can impact the German score (when the Germans swamp a hex that the bomber is going to move into the British player will score plenty of points for the fighters moving into a hex containing the Mosquito – that will help iron out the bad effect of the bomber moving into the hex with the fighters). The British player can also use the Mosquito to bluff the German player – if I move my Mosquito into a hex is it because that is where the bomber is heading or am I bluffing – that is the question thrown at the feet of the German player – and it is a delicious (though tense) question, that really makes the game shine.

I like the tokens the British player can bring into play with the Mosquito – the bombs or flares. These add an aspect to the bluff in the game – is he dropping flares on that city because it is about to be bombed, or is the bomber going to slip by the distracted fighters and go on to another city, worth more points?

I like the fuel that limits the German player. Fraser (who I played against at the expo) did an excellent job of keeping his fuel up – even though it meant some tough decisions about which fighters he would have in the air and which he would land. If the German player runs his fighters out of fuel they ditch – and that can be disastrous for them.

All in all this was a game that really impressed me. The fact that we had 8+ geeks surrounding our table oooooooo-ing and aaaaahhhhhhhing every time a compass card was flipped means that it is also an interesting and engaging game to watch. The components help here; Friedemann De Pedro has done an amazing job of designing not only an excellent game, but also a work of art.

By Giles Pritchard

Thanks for the feedback on what is my most anticipated game of the year. There is very little news on this one but it has one of the most original themes and clever mechanics I have seen in a while.

Your review reinforces the fact that I think this is going to be a hell of a game!

Cheers!

I concur Giles, a lovely game. You can read about the havoc that Group Captain Giles caused with his Mosquito in the session report of this game between Group Captain Giles and Oberst Fraser.

I agree this a fantastic game. Just got to play it. Good review, I don't think it has much luck, by the way, other than initial weather. Chaos perhaps, but the actual luck once the game has started is pretty much nil. No dice, no card, or really any other elements of change. Anyway thanks for the great review

I got to play this once last February, as the Brits. I won or lost by 1 point, IIRC, and it was a blast to play. One of the games I'm most looking forward to this year!

I don't think there is a chaotic 'luck' element (I'm thinking dice when I write that) in the game at all - but I do think you can get 'lucky' when your opponent falls for your bluff or doesn't - some of the calls you make as a player are a gamble, and this is where a lot of the excitement and tension comes from. I agree with you there!

It is an awesome game. I can't wait to get hold of a copy!

Kudos to Gregor too - for figuring out the insert without the instructions - watching him was like watching him play a game all by himself!

Thanks Zev!!

Giles.

I played the game twice at Origins and it was the best new game I tried. There is a bit of a learning curve to be successful as the Luftwaffe but you get into the game right from the start. One of those that you can't wait to try a new tactic the next time at the table.
And how cool was Z-Man Games? They sponsored a $100 "Duel in the Dark" tournament and even though I was the only who showed up in the game room they gave me the money!
(Of course I bought the Game.)

I played the game twice at Origins and it was the best new game I tried. There is a bit of a learning curve to be successful as the Luftwaffe but you get into the game right from the start. One of those that you can't wait to try a new tactic the next time at the table.
And how cool was Z-Man Games? They sponsored a $100 "Duel in the Dark" tournament and even though I was the only one who showed up in the game room they gave me the money!
(Of course I bought the Game.)