Milton Bradley Gamemaster Series boardgames

Discussion in 'Video and Computer Games' started by Goodsport, Oct 4, 2004.

  1. Goodsport

    Goodsport Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 18, 1999
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Anyone here remember this line of strategy boardgames released by Milton Bradley during the mid-late 1980's (long before MB was bought by Hasbro in the late-1990's)? I certainly do, which proves that I'm old. :(


    In 1984, the first three games of the series were released:


    • Axis & Allies (World War II themed) - a Second Edition of the game's rules was implemented in 1991

    • Broadsides and Boarding Parties (Spanish galleon vs. pirate ship themed) - for some reason, there were less of this game produced than any of the other Gamemaster Series games :confused:

    • Conquest of the Empire (Roman Empire civil war themed)


    In 1986, two more games were introduced into the line:


    • Fortress America (Near-future invasion of the U.S. themed)

    • Shogun (Imperial Japan civil war themed) - later re-released in 1995 as Samurai Swords


    Man, did these games have great-looking boards and components... and were fun, to boot (and still are, if you can find them). :D


    -G
     
  2. Jay Goppingen

    Jay Goppingen Member

    Aug 8, 2003
    Teh internets
    Club:
    New York Red Bulls
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Axis & Allies was probably the best and most popular of this series. I spent many late nights playing A&A during summer vacations. In fact, there are several expansion games based on the original and even a new revised edition... http://www.funagain.com is the source for anything boardgame related. Settlers of Catan is my personal fave.
     
  3. Goodsport

    Goodsport Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 18, 1999
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    It turns out that two current game companies can rightfully be considered the successors to the Gamemaster Series throne.

    The first is Avalon Hill (the long-time esteemed game company became a division of Hasbro Games in 1998). In 1999, they started releasing brand-new differently themed Gamemaster Series-like games, including a revised Axis & Allies and several new variants of the game (all designed with original A&A designer Larry Harris):

    The second is Eagle Games, makers of Gamemaster Series-like games such as The American Civil War and Napoleon in Europe. Around this time last year, Eagle Games announced that they will release a revised version of Conquest of the Empire later this year with the help of the aforementioned Larry Harris (who also designed the original game).


    -G
     
  4. Goodsport

    Goodsport Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 18, 1999
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Thanks for the link, Jay. :)

    It turns out that I was writing my previous post while you posted, so I missed that you already mentioned the Axis & Allies revised edition and expansion games. :eek:

    Though I like all the games in the series, you're right that Axis & Allies was the most popular, which explains why they only stopped production on the first edition of the game early this year... twenty years since it was first introduced! :eek:

    And yes, Settlers of Catan is indeed a cool game as well. :cool:


    -G
     
  5. fiddlestick

    fiddlestick New Member

    Jul 17, 2001
    The 4 8 0
  6. Goodsport

    Goodsport Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 18, 1999
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Is that the Milton Bradley, or just a Milton Bradley? ;)


    -G
     
  7. Goodsport

    Goodsport Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 18, 1999
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    It seems that Atari and TimeGate Studios will be releasing an RTS version of Axis & Allies for the PC early next month. A demo is currently available to download and try out. :)

    Though it's planned to have aspects of the original boardgame incorporated into it (Larry Harris has been working with the PC game's developers), it'll apparently be a different type of game from the previous two A&A PC games, each of which were more literally "boardgame in a PC game".

    You can read some previews about the game...





    I wonder if there'll be PC game adaptations of the other Gamemaster Series games somewhere down the line? :confused:


    -G
     
  8. Goodsport

    Goodsport Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 18, 1999
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Hmm... it seems that judging by their reviews of the recently-released PC game, IGN.com pretty much liked it, while both Gamespot.com and Gamespy.com did not.


    -G
     
  9. Benedict XVI

    Benedict XVI Member

    Nov 22, 1999
    Ciudad del Encanto
    Club:
    Lisburn Distillery FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I liked Conquest of the Empire a lot.

    I think it's funny that Eagle Games has a "Civilization: The Boardgame" which is based on the computer game which is based on the boardgame.
     
  10. Sachsen

    Sachsen Member+

    Aug 8, 2003
    Broken Arrow, Okla.
    Club:
    Sporting Kansas City
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    My friends and I used to play both Axis & Allies and Shogun in high school quite a bit. I actually preferred Shogun, which, as you mentioned, had a fantastic board layout and game components. I have a lot of great memories of those games.

    If you can find Shogun and you have several friends that don't mind staying up all night with you, don't hesitate to grab it.
     
  11. Goodsport

    Goodsport Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 18, 1999
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    From what I've read, the new version of Conquest of the Empire should be in stores by mid-late July. :cool:

    You can see a picture of designer Larry Harris with the new Conquest of the Empire here.


    -G
     
  12. Goodsport

    Goodsport Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 18, 1999
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Now I'm hearing that the release date has been pushed back to mid-late August. :(


    -G
     
  13. Goodsport

    Goodsport Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 18, 1999
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    There's a review from someone who's already previewed the upcoming revised version of Conquest of the Empire here. :)


    -G
     
  14. Goodsport

    Goodsport Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 18, 1999
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Better late than never...

    The revised version of Conquest of the Empire is now available! :D


    -G
     
  15. Goodsport

    Goodsport Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 18, 1999
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    And almost a year after the game's release, I finally got it. :D


    -G
     
  16. Uppa 90

    Uppa 90 Member

    Jan 16, 2004
    K.C. MO
    Club:
    Kansas City Wizards
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    man, i loved Axis and Allies... i might have to play that one again...

    i happen to know a member of BS who has it... :)
     
  17. JeremyEritrea

    JeremyEritrea Member+

    Jun 29, 2006
    Takoma Park, MD
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I have about 20 or so Avalon Hill war games. The old school pieces of cardboard on a map superimposed with a hex grid.
     
  18. Goodsport

    Goodsport Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 18, 1999
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Don't forget to check out the official revised version of Axis and Allies. :cool:


    -G
     
  19. Goodsport

    Goodsport Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 18, 1999
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Me too, among them the more old school ones like We The People and The Republic of Rome, as well as some of the newer school ones like Star Marines and revised versions of classics such as History of the World, Battle Cry and Acquire. :D


    -G
     
  20. JeremyEritrea

    JeremyEritrea Member+

    Jun 29, 2006
    Takoma Park, MD
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Just found this Avalon Hill Wiki

    From that list, I have these games:

    1776 - American Revolution
    Afrika Korps
    Air Assault on Crete
    B-17, Queen of the Skies
    Battle of the Bulge
    Blitzkrieg
    Breakout: Normandy
    Chancellorsville
    Civil War
    France 1940
    Gettysburg
    Guns of August
    Hitler's War
    The Longest Day
    Midway
    Napoleon
    Panzer Armee Afrika
    Rise and Decline of the Third Reich
    Storm Over Arnhem
    Struggle of Nations
    Tobruk

    I wonder how much I could sell them for on EBay.

    :)
     
  21. Goodsport

    Goodsport Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 18, 1999
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    You don't want to continue playing them? :confused:


    -G
     
  22. JeremyEritrea

    JeremyEritrea Member+

    Jun 29, 2006
    Takoma Park, MD
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    One of these days I guess I will. I haven't played them in years.
     
  23. JohnR

    JohnR Member+

    Jun 23, 2000
    Chicago, IL
    In 1980, I owned every Avalon Hill wargame that had ever been printed, including rare old birds like Guadacanal. Ah, those were the days.
     
  24. JeremyEritrea

    JeremyEritrea Member+

    Jun 29, 2006
    Takoma Park, MD
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Wow! That's a boatload of games.
     
  25. kcscsupporter

    kcscsupporter Member+

    Apr 17, 2002
    D17
    Club:
    Sporting Kansas City
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    who could that be???;)
    yes, it's a good game. i almost always use germany and i hardly ever lose. i don't make the same mistakes hitler did... he was an idiot. the only bad thing about the game, though, is that you have to be playing someone who'll keep playing 'til the end. it takes so long and i hate playing people who quit once they know their fate. just because moscow is burning, london is back in the stone age, and the western half of the united states has just been sacked doesn't mean you can cut and run now. you must continue it to the end so i can drive my panzers down pennsylvania ave and make you rue the day you stood against me on the battlefield.:cool:
     

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