The Gaming Gang
Game Name: Panzer
Publisher: GMT
Designer: James M. Day
Year: 2012
Players: Two
Ages: 14+ (Just my estimation)
Playing Time: 60 minutes and up
Retail Price: $72.00
Category: Classic hex and counter tank focused wargame originally published in 1979
Components
Counters
- 88 – double-sided 7/8” (1 sheet)
- Vehicles
- Towed-guns
- Aircraft
- 352 – double-sided 5/8” (2 sheets)
- Infantry
- Order Chits
- Reference
- Status/Damage
- Terrain Effects, e.g., mines, rubble
- Turrets, open and buttoned-up
Map
- 1 – 22” x 34” single-sided full color map
Reference charts
- 2 – double-sided 11” x 17” Game Charts
- 2 – single-sided 8 ½” x 11” Transport/Summary/Hidden Unit Charts
- 2 – double-sided 8 ½” x 11” Data Card Keys
- 1 – double-sided 8 ½” x 11” Terrain Chart/Sequence of Play Chart
Four ten sided dice
Pros: Strong miniatures flavor to armor-centric battles; Mainly top notch components; Loads of advanced and option rules cover just about everything
Cons: Basic game is not much of a game but simply a foundation; Too complex for light wargamers or folks who hate a plethora of charts; Only one single sided paper map included
Score: 8.7 (out of ten)
Just a quick aside… The opening gag isn’t a knock on on Tom Vasel or The Dice Tower (as some folks have asked through emails) because Tom doesn’t simply have a wall of games but, if I remember correctly from a Dice Tower vid a couple years back, Tom has nearly an entire house full of games he’s tackled. I personally like Tom and have a ton of respect for all the hard work he invests into covering the hobby. Of course, I’m sure Tom and I enjoy some completely different genres but that doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate Dice Tower coverage of titles that may not be my cup of tea.
Yet it seems since Tom starts most of his videos in front of a portion of his collection nearly everyone posting video reviews feels the need to shoot in front of a bunch of games. Elliott and I have joked on the show we wouldn’t open videos in that manner simply because owning a slew of games doesn’t essentially mean you automatically quality as a gaming expert; it just means you own a lot of games…
Visitors and listeners already know Elliott and I make no claims of being “experts” on anything – we’re just a couple of regular guys with decades of gaming under our belts – and we simply provide our opinions of what we like (or don’t) while doing our best to honestly present each game and point out what audience may enjoy the title and who might wish to take a pass.
Thanks for the video. A nice overview/review of the game. I think giving a historical overview prior to the review was an excellent idea. I preordered this game based on the Panzerblitzesque artwork, plus I like tactical games. I thought the game would be too complex for me, but I was pleasantly surprised. A lot of the complexity is baked into the data cards and charts, once you learn those the game plays quickly. Also, the advanced and optional rules are modular, so the game is customizable to one’s own taste. I agree with you about the paper map; it should have been mounted like No Retreat or Labyrinth, especially since I will probably play the game a lot.