World War II-era games have long been a staple of hobby gaming. From classic board games like AXIS AND ALLIES and more complex conflict simulation titles like SQUAD LEADER through more recent hit PC and videogames like the MEDAL OF HONOR and CALL OF DUTY series, there’s never been a shortage of games that have examined pretty much every angle, aspect, and theater of war represented in the largest conflict in human history. However, squad-level, man-to-man board games like SQUAD LEADER and its almost insurmountably complex bigger brother ADVANCED SQUAD LEADER have always been somewhat inaccessible to all but the most dedicated grognard more concerned with the slight variations between Porsche and Henckel Panzer turrets than with playability and easy mechanics.

Fortunately, trends in wargames over the past several years have seen a turn toward playability and a more “pop” approach to the incorporation of historical narrative and detail and the results have been largely well-received; Chad Jensen’s excellent COMBAT COMMANDER: EUROPE is a great example of this new paradigm in wargame design although even this new breed of wargame tends toward pedestrian production values and a lingering sense of overall seriousness and rigidity while there still is a strange segregation between the larger world of board gaming and the war game.

Enter Fantasy Flight Games’ TIDE OF IRON , designed by John Goodenough, Corey Koniceszka, and Christian Petersen. I have to admit up front that when TIDE OF IRON was announced I wasn’t very excited because for one thing I was already closely following the development of COMBAT COMMANDER: EUROPE and for another I was somewhat disappointed that FFG was just going the routine World War II route instead of doing something like a squad-level tactical game set in their TWILIGHT IMPERIUM universe. I was worried that the game was going to at best wind up being yet another routine war game with the usual mechanics for line of sight, opportunity fire, pinning and disruption, and so forth. At worst, I feared that the game would be another on-rails, overly simplified and abstract game with little or no actual World War II flavor or tactics like Days of Wonder’s MEMOIR ’44. Did we really need another game like this, and could TIDE OF IRON deliver something that games ranging from MEMOIR ’44 up through ADVANCED SQUAD LEADER couldn’t, wouldn’t, or just plain don’t?

The surprising answer after several plays is a resounding yes. TIDE OF IRON is an absolute revelation, a culmination of decades of board gaming and wargaming mechanical “technology” and I would go so far as to say that TIDE OF IRON is the best, if not the most detailed or historically accurate, squad-level World War II game published to date by virtue of its extremely accessible, fun game play and its attention to the elements of detail that really matter.

Stunningly, the game manages to capture the “classical” elements of squad-based games such as opportunity fire, cover, suppression, troop transport, vehicles, command, and unit specializations in a really tight package without bogging the system down in excessive minutiae or exception-laden rules that wouldn’t mean a damn thing to gamers who could care less about the different muzzle velocities of an M1 Garand and a Mauser. On the other end of the spectrum, the game deftly avoids the hand-holding and bizarre, gamey tactics generated by simpler games such as MEMOIR ’44 and allows for a huge range of decision making possibilities and strategic flexibility. You’re in command, and a perfectly implemented activation system that allows players to activate a designated number of squads each turn provides for a fluid, always in flux battlefield that makes for plenty of interesting tactical situations. I believe that TIDE OF IRON represents a nexus where the differences between board games and war games are split to tease out the best that both camps have to offer in a way that is fairly novel and refreshing even to the most seasoned gamers and grognards.

You’ll realize that TIDE OF IRON is something new altogether when you open the box. Exploring the contents of new a Fantasy Flight game is kind of like visiting the Willy Wonka factory—it’s overwhelming, colorful, impressive, and a little bit insane. TIDE OF IRON is no exception and the hordes of plastic soldiers, miniature Shermans, and ridiculously thick cardstock boards immediately put this game in physical class far above the usual chits and paper map affairs of most wargame publishers. No doubt, FFG’s production capabilities and resources are much higher than many esteemed and very respectable wargame companies and it really pays off in terms of curb appeal; this is a game that will appeal to board gamers accustomed to big production values. The game retails for $79.95, but I think you’d have to be pretty jaded to feel like TIDE OF IRON somehow doesn’t deliver the goods.

Of course, all of this physical pulchritude doesn’t amount to Pork Chop Hill without a game to back it up and I’m happy to report that TIDE OF IRON is an absolute blast to play. Fundamentally, it’s a two player game although there are options for three and four player team-based contests that are satisfying enough but tend to increase the game’s length dramatically. Like pretty much any game of its type, TIDE is a scenario-based game therefore most of the terrain, mapboards, obstructions, and whatnot are modular so there’s virtually limitless replay provided. Additionally, the game allows player to customize each and every squad with an innovative squad base system. Each squad has a base with four holes. You get to choose the composition of each squad so you can stick a mortar team and two elites on a base or four regulars; however you want to go about it. This leads to some interesting long-term strategic considerations during setup. Cards also add variability and surprise to the game and there’s a very unique mechanic that brings cards into an HQ area before they are purchased with command points for play—they’re open knowledge, so both players again have a sense of long-term planning for eventualities.