Recommended A&A Game?

Hi Crinklybog

U might want to try 1942.2. 1914 uses quite a bit different system than most the other games. Sure some others will chime in

I agree  with Barney. It is a 5 player game. A good place to start.

If there is young teens, I bet for a shorter game version with less rules: 1941.
About a three hours play.
And one adult should play Russia, so even if it is wholly conquered, s-he can still have fun managing the game flow and enjoying younger having fun.

It is made as an introductory board and Tiger Tanks look great.

It costs a bit more than 1941 (not 1914) but you get the full A&A experience (4 to 6 hours of play).
I guess from your question that you have young adults, so a more complex game is not an issue.

@Crinklybog:

I’m looking for a game that would be best suited to a family of five, hoping to ‘step up’ from Risk and Risk:Europe. We’re not too bothered about the complexity, we can learn!

I’m thinking A&A 1914 simply because of my interest in that period- however; are there other versions that’re considered ‘more fun’? 1942 seems like another good bet. What is considered the best version on the forums?

An important thing to keep in mind is that the 1914 game is a non-standard A&A game.  It’s set in WWI, not WWII; some of its mechanisms are very different from those in more conventional A&A games; its sculpts are completely different; its map is not global in scale (it depicts for the most part Europe and Africa); and unlike the conventional A&A games it does not include a major naval war in the Pacific.  It’s an oddity, in much the same way as the three WWII local-campaign A&A games (D-Day, Battle of the Bulge and Guadalcanal) are oddities.

The more conventional A&A games are the WWII global-level games (and their close cousins, the theatre-level Europe and Pacific games).  If it’s important to you get get a feel for what the “main evolutionary line” of A&A board games is, those would be the ones to play.  In terms of simplicity and scale and duration of play – going from simplest and smallest and shortest to most complex, biggest and longest – the scale starts with 1941, followed by 1942 2nd edition, then Pacific 1940 2nd edition, then Europe 1940 2nd edition, and finally Global 1940 2nd edition, which is the game you get by combining Pacific 1940 2nd edition and Europe 1940 2nd edition.

I agree with Baron. 1941 is the place to start unless your family are really hardened gamers.

It is much quicker to play (at 3 hours) and simpler to understand.

If you all enjoy 1941 then you can expand your A&A universe by moving on to the more complex versions. As I did.

Good luck!

Don’t forget that Anniversary Ediition is now available.
It is a 6 players game, with a large map.
It is a Deluxe edition with many additional player’s aid like paper money.
Check on youtube, you can compare the unboxing of both 1942.2 and AA50 (Anniversary reprint.)