From: Roberto Chiavini Subject: Three reviews Atlantic Storm (Avalon Hill) One of the latest design from the recently demised Avalon Hill was this peculiar card game on an historical subject (the Battle of the Atlantic of WWII), taken in a very light-hearted way, making it more a family game than a wargame with cards. The players (up to six, at least 2, but the game is more fun with at least 4 players) during the game are both the Axis and the Allies, trying to take away most of the playing hands, to have the more points at the end of the game. Every player starts the game with an hand of six cards, mostly representing German U-Boats or anti-naval aircraft, or Allied anti-submarine units (naval and air ones). Each combat card may have up to three values (air-surface-submarine), the years in which you may play it, the sea zone where you may use it (Atlantic, Arctic or both), plus various add-on (mostly being the target or the “doomsday” of another card). There are a few other special cards, the most important of which are the admirals (one for each side) who have special effects over the course of the play. Each turn, the starting player (which changes each turn, going clockwise) draws one (or two if you play with the optional rule, which is certainly more interesting) target convoy card (each convoy card has a point value, a year of play and a sea zone where the battle took place, Arctic or Atlantic) and have to decide which combat card to play (he may play only a combat card plus additional aiding cards of the same type of the combat card; if he deploys the admiral he may play two combat card adding them together), the side for which he plays and the type of combat he prefers (air, surface or submarine; he may also choose combinate attack, using all three of his card combat values). The other players, moving clockwise, may play their combat card or pass (discarding a card). After all the players have taken their hands, the side with most combat values in play is the winner of the hand (in case of a tie, the convoy car d is discarded, while the combat cards are put aside and may be tak en in the next hand of play as surplus prey by the winning side). Among the players who have played for the winning side, the one who have played the highest combat value (or the first to play that value in case of a tie) takes the better part of the spoils of war (normally the convoy card); the other players, if there are more than one card as spoils, take the remaining cards, one at a time, starting with the secon d highest value. The game proceeds for 20 turns (or less, if the players so decide before the start) and the winner is the player who accumulate more points at the end (even the combat cards have a victory point value). All in all, this is a wonderful family game or a good historical rest for the grognard who is tired to push counters or roll a die. Its historicity apart, Atlantic Storm is fun to play, is fast enough to consent more than a play during an afternoon or an evening, and it’s strategical enough (in term of gaming decisions to take) to be an interesting addition to everyone gaming collection. I rate this game 7 ½ out of 10.