Overview
At a glance
Is this game right for my group?
ABG editorial scores on a 1–5 scale.
Harder to teach
High replayability
Highly interactive
Scales well
Deep strategy
How it plays
How does it play?
The Lamps Are Going Out is a fast-paced game of strategic decision making in the First World War for two to four players. There are two Alliances – Central Powers and Triple Entente – each divided into two Factions.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Action Points
Spend a limited allowance of points across several possible actions each turn.
Area Movement
Move pieces between connected regions rather than along individual spaces.
Dice Rolling
Roll dice to introduce uncertainty into actions, production, movement, or resolution.
Campaign Card Play
Play cards to command conflicts and carry consequences through a campaign.
Simulation
Model a real or imagined system through detailed cause-and-effect rules.
Read the full game description
The Lamps Are Going Out is a fast-paced game of strategic decision making in the First World War for two to four players. There are two Alliances – Central Powers and Triple Entente – each divided into two Factions. The Central Powers player controls the Germany and Central Allies (Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Bulgaria) Factions while the Triple Entente player has the Western Allies (Great Britain, Belgium, France and Italy) and Eastern Allies/US (Russia, Serbia, Romania and United States) Factions. A game turn consists of: Event Card Phase Movement Phase (up to two units may be moved) Combat Phase (cards are played to support combat) Production Phase (players spend production points to rally armies, invest in new technology, or lend points to other players) Players must make critical decisions each turn as to how to spend their scarce resources. Production Points are required to Refit spent units, build new units, construct trenches, conduct research, etc. The combat system is very simple, but yields tremendous excitement and that “just one more attack should do it” feeling. Event cards allow for all sorts of historical situations, conditions, leaders, political events and so on. Everything that would be important in a WWI simulation is considered in this game.