I really love Axis and Allies in general, but I really love Pacific 1940 in specific. I played a game of Anniversary Monday night, and while the European theater seemed fine, I couldn’t help but pine for the Pacific theater of AAP40. The Pacific in Classic, Revised, Anniversary, and Spring 1942 seems so flat. On the allied side it all falls on the United States, usually. Sure, the British often get a factory on India, but even then, Australia is still lifeless. The Pacific of AAP40 is alive, dynamic. Islands like the Carolines are vital, even without giving any IPCs. AA50-41’s Pacific just feels like Japan takes over everything, then hopes the US doesn’t care enough to build up and destroy their navy. AAP40 is the exact opposite of that, its a tense struggle to the end. I think AAG40 will only make it more interesting with the Soviets as a factor. I think the US won’t have the luxury of ignoring Japan, I can see already that if they dump that 80+ IPCs all to the east that Japan will grow to be an unstoppable monster.
Even compared with classic AAP I think AAP40 shines. Sure, the VP mechanical was cool and makes AAP a worthy game to play since it does have a very different feel and objective than other AA games. I like AAP a lot, and I think treating the British as split income rather than having ANZAC as a separate power made and makes a lot of sense. It was a more historically minded game in some ways too; Japan’s economy could never hope to compete with the US’s 75. Still, AAP40 feels a lot more epic to me. Japan and the US are locked in an epic struggle, rather than Japan being locked into the role of having to loose as slowly as possible to win.
Sure, the production problems were annoying, but we got our Tac Bombers in the end, and its easy enough to make minor adjustments to the setup to make J1 less overwhelming. I think the good of AAP40 greatly outshines the bad. Still, I do think WOTC are chimps.
So, who here agrees with me that AAP40 is their favorite AA, at least until AAE40 comes out?
