Skies Above The Reich

[ComradeP]

My copy has arrived.

I've played one mission so far using Advanced Rules. No KIA's, but the only bomber that was destroyed fell out of formation pre-battle through damage sustained earlier with one of my pilots destroying it with his last burst before running out of ammunition.

[Geezer]

I've played three missions so far, all in '42, and had one with 1 KIA and the other two had 3 KIA's each!   

[stolypin]

It's now available from Noble Knight.

And Noble Knight now has my money.

[bayonetbrant]

How am I supposed to bomb Berlin at night?  You know, like God and Harris intended.

https://www.gmtgames.com/p-233-nightfighter.aspx

[Staggerwing]

^ SDR already kicked my ass in a forum-based round of that game, a year or two/three back.

[Silent Disapproval Robot]

Nah.  I  recall that you managed to knock down a bomber on the final turn of the game for the win in the first session and we quit the second one due to brain ouch.

[Silent Disapproval Robot]

I am interested in this one.

https://www.compassgames.com/preorders/nightfighter-ace.html




And I'll probably get this one as well even though I didn't care for Target for Today and sold it after a few play sessions.

[Staggerwing]

Nightfighter Ace looks sweet. That 'Hunters' game system is cropping up in a few different solitaire games, even a WW1 Zeppelin based one (no idea why that one caught my eye, really...  )

[Nefaro]

It's now available from Noble Knight.

And Noble Knight now has my money.

I grabbed one from them a day or two ago.

Was beginning to worry that if I put it off too long, the whole print run would sell out before I did so.  Then I began thinking to myself, "but how frustrated will I be when GMT inevitably releases a Revised or 2nd Edition in another year and I probably haven't even scratched the surface by then?"   

[BanzaiCat]

I plunked about $90 on Target For Today last year, totally excited for the game. After all, I 'grew up' playing B-17: Queen of the Skies and absolutely loved that game.

But I was very disappointed in TfT.

While it is indeed B-17 QotS on steroids, it is like being on a roller coaster where you generate RNGs at certain points along the ride, which may or may not impact your bomber. You make very few impactful decisions throughout the process, actually. While there's a lot of meat to it, it's basically on rails, and therefore not nearly what I was hoping for.

Then again...I used to love that kind of thing. My tastes obviously shifted at some point.

I would LOVE to try Skies Above The Reich, though. That'll have to wait a while. I don't envision me buying any new games for a long time.

[Geezer]

I plunked about $90 on Target For Today last year, totally excited for the game. ...

...You make very few impactful decisions throughout the process, actually. While there's a lot of meat to it, it's basically on rails, and therefore not nearly what I was hoping for....

I looked at Target for Today, A Wing and a Prayer, and Skies Above the Reich when deciding on my next game purchase.  A Wing and a Prayer looked good but I already had B-17 Flying Fortress Leader and they looked similar enough that I passed on that one.  My thoughts on TfT mirror yours posted above.  It's more of a story simulator than a game.  There did not look to be very many meaningful decisions at all.  Once you climbed into the bomber you were pretty much along for the ride.  Nothing wrong with that but it wasn't what I was looking for either.  SAtR allows for many decisions throughout the game and has some depth to it even though you can pretty much start playing right out of the box and referring to the rules as you go.  It's definitely a keeper for me.

[BanzaiCat]

Once you climbed into the bomber you were pretty much along for the ride.  Nothing wrong with that but it wasn't what I was looking for either.

I'm glad I'm not the only one. You mentioning it being a 'story generator' is a good perspective on the game, though it's like a Choose Your Own Adventure book where, instead of making decisions as to what direction the story goes in, you roll a die and turn to the indicated page. Sure, you can decide to take your bomber out of formation if you want, or move crew around to replace those injured or killed, but otherwise you are indeed just along for the ride.

SAtR allows for many decisions throughout the game and has some depth to it even though you can pretty much start playing right out of the box and referring to the rules as you go.  It's definitely a keeper for me.

More and more, this is the kind of game I seek. Too often I've bought games that are meh. Or I buy 'em because they're highly rated and look awesome, and then they sit there, and then I end up trying to sell them. The next game purchase I make will be in many months and will be something along these lines.

[ComradeP]

The expansion/sequel to Skies Above the Reich, working title Storm Above the Reich featuring Fw190's, new maps and expanded mechanics is now on P500.

[Geezer]

Thanks for the heads up comrade.

[JasonPratt]

For those who don't know, ComradeP has an AAR of SAtR going here on the forum: http://grogheads.com/forums/index.php?topic=22749.0