Power Struggle

Power Struggle could very easily have been called Public Corporation: The Board Game. It has the familiar, mildly absurd atmosphere of a large company where everyone is chasing influence, nobody is facing quite the same way, and peace never lasts for long.

At heart it is area control mixed with negotiation: you are trying to take charge of different parts of a large company by securing the smaller departments within each division. It moves cleanly and does not outstay its welcome, but the point is always to find the moment when somebody can spoil your plans.

Players bargain, apply pressure, and make the right amount of noise while competing for the same positions of power. There are temporary alliances and looks across the table that say, quite plainly, “don’t you dare”; that is where it earns its keep, because you are not merely tending your own corner of the board but stepping into everyone else’s. It wants five players, though. That is where it properly opens up.

The mechanisms fit together well and the game is pleasant to play, but the scoring is its weak link, carrying a little of the familiar Greed Incorporated irritation. Even so, with five players it is a fine excuse for a corporate war without having to go into the office.