Of all the campaigns the British tried to shut down the American Revolution, the New York campaign of 1776 probably had the most chance of ending things early and returning the colonies to the empire.
The Patriot cause was riding high after Washington’s army forced the British to evacuate Boston. Howe’s New York invasion—the biggest seaborne invasion ever, at that time– might have been the Crown’s best chance to smother the revolution early and restore control. The campaign was a series of disasters and missed opportunities that have seldom been studied with a playable game.
Until now. New York 1776 puts you in command. Will you crush the Revolution or save it?
“New York 1776” is a game that lets you take a closer look at one of the key campaigns of the American Revolutionary War. All with an easy rules set, playtime of 2 hours or less, and the pleasure of using wooden blocks for units.
The Patriots have Washington—“the Fox”—and a larger army, plus some key forts. But the British have better quality troops (including Hessian mercenaries that terrify the militia) and powerful leaders, plus the British Navy gives them great flexibility in the watery bounds of the New York area. Both sides face challenges to succeed.
Wooden blocks provide a “fog of war,” and can be rotated during battles to keep track of losses easily, and a “battle board” that gives more tactical context to the fighting.
The game is designed by Mike Wylie and Grant Wylie, who have many games to their credit (including the RevWar classic “Hold the Line”).
Everything you need to play is included!
Game time: 2 hours or less.
Players: Best with 2. Still interesting solo.
Ages: 10 and higher
New York 1776 is being offered by a Kick Starter campaign, which can be found at www.kickstarter.com
Worthington produced a “pre-production” version of the game and sold 25 copies at Prezcon. These copies have garnered a few evaluations on BGG and one game review, which you can find here: boardgamegeek.com
