| A Day at Columbia Games | |
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Have you wondered where your favorite games come from? Do you ask questions like, "Who designed this?" Or, "What's it like to be a professional game designer?"
I certainly have. And I had the opportunity to find some answers.
While researching links for the wargames section of this site, I discovered that there was a game company less than two hours north of me. Columbia Games is located in Blaine, Washington, about 100 miles down the old Interstate 5. I contacted them and they graciously invited me to visit. Here was my chance to find out how games really get made!
When I arrived, I have to admit I was a bit taken aback. Could this rural farmhouse out in the boonies really be the international headquarters for a successful game company?
Well, what did I expect? A penthouse office in a glass-walled high rise? Get real. These guys make war games, not Pokemon!
Upon entering the daylight-basement offices, I saw a sight that would make any historical gamer's heart leap (and our spouse's head explode): stacks upon stacks of books and videos. It seemed that every available surface was covered: bookshelves, desks, coffee tables, chairs, and even most of the floor were stacked with information about history and warfare. Now you know how Columbia Games is able to make their historical war games so accurate.
The operation center for Columbia Games is a few desks and file cabinets that, if it weren't for Macs and telephones, would be indistinguishable from the flotsam and jetsam. Rulebooks and catalogs cover the desks and the walls are plastered with uncut card sheets for Dixie and Eagles.
To me, chaos is the sign of a creative mind -- and I got a bit envious. Why can't my workspace look like this?
After walking in, I got a full shot of the realities of running a business. Tom Dalgliesh (General Manager, Lead Game Designer, and Patriarch) was in a heated discussion with son Grant (Marketing Contact, Web Guru, and Head Gopher) over acceptable shipping rates to Japan. Not only are these guys responsible for designing games, they handle most aspects of development, publication, distribution, and marketing. In Tom's words, "Any company that spends all its time designing games isn't making enough money to actually publish them."
Columbia Games is pretty much a family affair, with Tom and Grant handling most the daily grind. Even the wives get into the act -- while I was there, the two Mrs. Dalglieshes were packing games for shipment. Cal Stengel, the only non-Dalgliesh, helps out with daily operations, the warehouse, and the occasional cool scenario idea. And, let's not forget Canyon the Dog, who I guess is an honorary Dalgliesh.
Tom Dalgliesh published his first war game in 1972. Quebec 1759 was published by Tom's first game company, Gamma 2. It simulates British and French forces fighting for Quebec during the Seven Years War, 1756-1763. It was Tom's first design to use wooden blocks for the game pieces. Like all of his games, it is still available.
After Quebec 1759, Tom never looked back. Gamma 2 published other games like War of 1812 and Napoleon. These games also used hardwood blocks, and Tom continued to refine the block game structure with new games.
Napoleon was Tom's first big hit. In fact, it did so well that then-wargaming super power Avalon Hill licensed the rights to the game and released their own edition in 1975. For many war gamers, including myself, the Avalon Hill edition was our first introduction to Tom Dalgliesh and his wonderful blocks of war.
As we all know, war games cater to a very specialized (and relatively small) market, so in 1975 Gamma 2 started producing family board games. Tom didn't return to block games until after Gamma 2 folded in 1980 and Columbia Games was born.
Since it was the early 1980s, fantasy role-playing games were all the rage. To capitalize on this trend, Columbia published Harn, which became a moderate success. The money brought in by Harn allowed Tom to start creating more block war games.
From 1982 until the present, Columbia Games has not only continued with the world of Harn, but has released the old Gamma 2 games, two customizable card games, and created a virtual dynasty of historical and fantasy block games.
There are two series of historical block games: one focusing on The American Civil War (Bobby Lee and Sam Grant) and one focusing on World War II (Rommel in the Desert, EastFront, WestFront, MedFront, EuroFront, VolgaFront, Victory, and Pacific Victory), though not all of these are directly linked. The block games have been so successful that two more recent games, Wizard Kings and Pacific Victory, were nominated for Origins Awards.
So what, you may ask, is a block game?
The basis of a block game is the blocks themselves. Rather than miniatures, cardboard squares, or pieces of plastic, the game units are all represented by colored square blocks of hardwood. The blocks typically display a picture, unit designation, or icon to indicate what specific unit it is. In most games, all information relevant to how that unit performs is printed right on the block. As the unit is damaged or rebuilt, you turn the block to a different side -- whichever side is up shows the units current value.
This is a pretty slick way to solve the age-old problem of how to indicate the changes units go through during the course of a battle. This also allows the games to feature sophisticated rebuild and re-supply rules. For instance, in Pacific Victory units can be built or reinforced during the game, but it is much more economical and efficient to do so at base or port.
The blocks also allow for a simulation of the "fog of war." Your opponent can see where your units are but they cannot tell exactly what they are because all that is visible is the block's colored back. This works great and you can still see exactly which of your units are where without having to turn over a tile or some other nonsense.
The two newest, and most popular, block games are Pacific Victory and Wizard Kings. I had the opportunity to try these out with Grant Dalgliesh and get a glimpse of how they work.
We started with Pacific Victory. In order to get a real feel for a block game, we opened a brand new box and started from scratch. The game comes with a rulebook, beautiful full color map, two bags of wooden blocks (blue and yellow), and unit designation stickers. Before playing, the stickers must be affixed to blocks, usually yellow blocks for the Japanese and blue for the Allied forces. Once the stickers are in place, the blocks can be put on the board in the appropriate locations.
The game setup attempts to accurately reflect the historical locations of the fleets and armies immediately following the attack on Pearl Harbor. Looking at the board from the Allied point of view is both impressive and daunting. You have a wide variety of units and control the bulk of the board, but it is pretty clear that you're spread too thin. The Japanese units also hold strategic positions, poised to expand the Empire.
Over the course of playing a few turns, I got a sense of the complexity of the game. The basic mechanics of movement and combat are pretty simple, but the details and options are numerous.
Since units represent ground, air, and sea forces, each battle must contain the proper mix of units to ensure success. You need to keep clear lines of retreat open in order to initiate those all important "strategic reverse movements." There are rules for devastating carrier attacks that can reach half way across the board.
Even after just a few turns, it's obvious that the game has it all: historical accuracy, deep strategy, unique game play, and fun.
The next block game we tried was Wizard Kings. Based in a fantasy rather than historical setting, Wizard Kings has distinctly different feel. Instead of the armies of Japan and the Allies, each color represents a fantasy race: Amazons, Dwarves, Undead, etc. Rather than battleships, squadrons, or armies, the blocks each represent a single character or monster. Also, the game comes with several maps that can be placed in any order to create many new battlefields. New maps and armies are also available as supplements.
While Wizard Kings is definitely a block game, it uses simplified game mechanics -- making it ideal for beginners or more experienced players looking for a quicker game. The available supplements allow you to expand your starting Elf and Orc armies as well as adding entirely new army sets and maps. You can also find new scenarios on the Web.
Well, after intruding on the Columbia Games workday for almost five hours, it was time for me to go. As you can see, I had a great time. If you ever find yourself in the small but beautiful town of Blain, Washington, I highly recommend you give these guys a call and challenge them to a game!
I want give a big "thanks" to everyone at Columbia Games. If you're intrigued by their games but cannot find them locally, all of their products are available on their Web site.
This article was originally posted on February 5, 2001.
