Europe Divided

Europe Divided, Phallanx’s recent release, was my next pleasant surprise. When I backed it on Kickstarter, I had serious reservations: it looked like TS-Light, and I could not clearly see what new thing it could offer. In the end, though, its system proved very strong.

In practice, the two asymmetric sides are the EU/NATO versus the Eastern Bloc. The Western world has noticeably more options, but finds it difficult to focus easily on one particular strategy. The Eastern side, by contrast, is under greater pressure with resources, yet can more easily play what it actually wants to play.

The major difference from Twilight Struggle is that each player sets the objectives they will score in the coming rounds, and their opponent can see them. That makes the interaction far more interesting: you are not simply trying to execute your own plan, but also to read whether the other player is bluffing, where they will invest, and how you can force them to change course. Strategy therefore operates on multiple levels.

Best of all, this entire tension fits into barely 90 minutes. For me, that short duration ties the package together perfectly: a brief but substantial two-sided game that is not merely a “lighter TS,” but has a very strong system of its own.