by RockyMountainNavy, 21 December 2023
Catastrophe Games recently delivered on a Kickstarter campaign for Rule the Waves, Britannia! designed by Matt Haywood. The campaign funded in September 2023 and delivered to me before Thanksgiving! Rule the Waves, Britannia! is a small solo, card-based wargame printed in a short amount of time but delivering big adventure!
The box for Rule the Waves, Britannia! is smaller than an “average” wargame box like those used by GMT Games or Multi-Man Publishing coming in at 6.5″ x 9.25″ x 1.8.” Don’t let that smaller form factor fool you…
Given the content of Rule the Waves, Britannia! the box could be smaller but that would also likely mean it would not have enough shelf presence. I sense some Splendor-style packaging here…
As befits a card-based wargame, the actual contents of Rule the Waves, Britannia! are rather small with a four-page folded rule book on heavier cardstock, 63 cards, seven cubes and two twenty-sided dice. A second two-page cardstock sheet has extra rules for playing the game in a 2-player cooperative mode or 2-player head-to-head (versus mode). Most importantly, there is also a rule here for “Historical Mode” which changes the draw deck to make the game more historical feeling.
The table footprint needed to play Rule the Waves, Britannia! is small. The game also plays quickly (the 30 minute rating seems realistic). Most importantly, game play creates a pleasant narrative with just enough decisions to keep the game interesting. The game is also easy to learn; I played my first game literally as I read the rules.
Kudos to Catastrophe Games for getting Rule the Waves, Britannia! funded and delivered quickly so I can enjoy this quick game in those quick minutes before other events as we quickly move through this all-too-quick holiday season.
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