The Campaign for North Africa

The Campaign for North Africa (generally referred to as CNA by wargamers), was an unprecedentedly detailed military simulation game of the North African Campaign of World War II. It was designed by Richard Berg and published by Simulations Publications, Inc. in 1978.

Depth

Though some fans of war simulation games appreciate detail, The Campaign for North Africa offered more detail than any board wargame before or since, leading to the ambivalent reaction with which the game is regarded. Even gamers who were initially fascinated with the idea of an extremely detailed war game might have been chagrined when they opened the box to discover 1,800 counters, maps large enough to cover several tables, and a three-volume rulebook of considerable weight and density. The rules cover logistics in extreme detail, far more so than the combat simulation. It is recommended that each side be played by a five-person team, including a Commander-In-Chief and four subordinate commanders, making a total of ten players needed for a game, although it can be played with the usual two. According to SPI, a complete game can run over 1,500 hours. However, the logistics of keeping a ten-person group together for fifteen hundred hours of gaming was a feat beyond even most hardcore wargamers, and completed full games of The Campaign for North Africa are rare.

Legacy

Although The Campaign for North Africa is playable only with great difficulty in terms of time, the game is prized by collectors...
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