I was talking to someone last night and trying to explain why I do very little wargaming anymore.

I was first introduced to wargames in 1970 by a guy in college who got me playing AH's D-Day. Then he taught me Midway, then Afrika Corps. By then I was an avid wargamer.

I spent the next twenty years collecting and playing AH wargames and SPI games.
I spent tons of time playing Panzer Blitz because I love me some tanks.

But in the late 80's I began role playing and got away from wargaming. Then came MTG and I got swept away with CCG's.
But in the midst of Magic, I also discovered Cosmic Encounter, Illuminati and RoboRally. And I finally realized something.
There's more to playing a game than shooting the other guy's troops. Even Magic is just shooting the other guy's troops. There's more variety to it, but the purpose is the same.

And finally I discovered Settlers. And then the absolute wealth of board games just a couple years ago.

So here are the top 10 reasons I don't wargame anymore.

1. I've killed enough Nazis, Japs, Chinese, Americans, English, Hoplites, Roman legions, Johnny Rebs, Bluecoats, tanks, ships and airplanes to last a lifetime. Oh and elves, dwarves, giants, dragons and fairies too.

2. Wargames, no matter how unique their system, ALWAYS boil down to the same few results: hold out, eliminate or devastate.
"What do you mean these gems I amassed don't count as victory points??"

3. Non-wargames allow for more interesting themes than just war. They also allow mechanics that would never work in wargames.
"I'm playing Hans Guderian and I've decided to improve my spice track. Huh??"
"I'll trade you 2 wood for a B-17. What??"

4. I've found I much prefer the social aspects of multiplayer games.
I can now blame my losses on 5 people and spread the hatred around better. And it's easier to excuse your losses if you can accuse all your opponents of ganging up on you.
It's also good because invariably out of 5 or 6 people, one of them will suck worse at whichever game you're playing than you do.

5. If I don't play wargames, for the most part I never have to worry about line of sight again. Or terrain, with some exceptions. Or lines of supply, or snipers or, well you get the idea.

6. I don't have to leave games set up for a week so we can finish it next weekend.
"Are you sure your kids can't get to this before we meet next week?"

7. No more chits, blocks, or other pieces with inscrutable numerals on them.
"This is a 7-5-3-8-2 with a big X in the middle? What can I kill with it?"

8. If I don't play wargames people will think I'm younger and hipper.
Most of the people I see playing wargames are older than Burt Reynold's toupees.

9. I'm a pacifist by nature. In my younger days my rage was strong and pure and killing things gave me great satisfaction. This is much less true now.
"What do you mean I can't send up air support over my influence in Notre Dame?"

10. I did my time in the military and while I have no regrets of 4 years in the Navy, that's behind me now and I have no urge to rule the world, just a harem of good looking females.

Which reminds me, I need to buy Emira and get good at it.

So what games do you play nowadays?

Yo! and to top if off you have The Cramps avatar. Yeah there seems to be a LOT of us who went through a very similar evolution as you laid out there.

I tend to prefer Eurogames. However I don't have problems with playing AT games either.
But given my druthers, I'll play Goa or RRT or Notre Dame etc.

You'll be back.

Since you are kidding I won't bother showing how smart I am by pointing out the only one statement out of ten that is true.

Yep

I play whatever game I think will be fun. If that's a wargame, that's what I play.

Actually, I think that the multi-player aspect is why you see so few wargames at conventions outside of the big shows like Origins and WBC. I am the boardgame director of a gaming group that has run shows in the Detroit area for over 30 years, and at least 1/2 my game collection is wargames. Since I have become director, I have found that the vast majority of boardgamers prefer multi-player games, which is why you see far more non-wargames at conventions. Games like Friedrich, History of the World, Napoleonic Wars, etc. have made a "go" at our conventions mainly because they are multi-player wargames. Also, the time and space needed for 2-player wargames at conventions are not really cost effective for the conventions. If I have 8 players play Axis & Allies, I am using up 4 tables for at least 1/3 to 1/2 a convention day. A multi-player non-wargame can use 1 table for 4-8 players and take only 2 hours or so, which makes the turnover more cost and space efficient.

Maybe I should start a thread....

Top 10 reasons I just don't give a ##(*! about what 99.9999999999999% of the people posting on BGG have to say....

....about almost ANYTHING.

I, of course, am the exception. I read my stuff every night before I go to bed. I'm AWESOME!!!!!!!

That's why everyone should pay attention to what I think- which is that everyone is full of it here.... hey.????!!!!!

Darilian

Exactly what i was thinking when i read this thread. If it's good time, whether it be wargame, ameritrash or euro, i'll play it. Lifting one's nose at a whole category of games is just snooty and pretentious.

You might want to think about typing out Japanese.

Do you play any wargames anymore?

I just try to vary what I play so it doesnt feel like every gaming session i'm doing the same thing.

I don't think he was being snooty or pretentious. He's just saying what he feels are the weaknesses for this genre. And I understand it. I have really stopped playing most videogames because almost all of them are about killing. And the other annoyances with arcane rules and multi-factor counters are legitimate gripes about wargames, especially when other game types have developed game systems that deliver strategic gameplay with more streamlined rules.

I do think, though, that there are a lot of great new wargames that have broken out of the old-style mold. Games like Friedrich, Bonaparte at Marengo, Duel in the Dark, Tide of Iron, M'44, reduce or eliminate one or more of these 10 reasons. They've allowed me to continue wargaming without going crazy. They also provide the one thing that I love about wargames, that other games rarely have in such concentrated doses--immersion in history.