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?
On December 7th, 1941, the Imperial Japanese Navy bombed the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor, an unprovoked attack that, brought the United States into World War 2.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Read the full game description
On December 7th, 1941, the Imperial Japanese Navy bombed the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor, an unprovoked attack that, brought the United States into World War 2. Instead of delivering a fatal death blow that would give the Empire of Japan dominance of the Pacific region, the attack's ultimate consequence was to, in words attributed to Admiral Yamamoto, "awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve." In The Pacific War - From Pearl Harbor to the Philippines, two players face off in an epic struggle for control of the Pacific area of operations. In action from December 1941 to June 1944, the Japanese player uses his forces against the Allied forces from the United States, Great Britain, Australia and the Netherlands. Aircraft carriers, battleships, cruisers, and land-based aircraft are all involved. With them, each player plans and conducts strategies out of a limited hand of resourcey cards to gain the initiative and defeat his enemy's forces and control crucial ports and bases across the Pacific. The Japanese are at their strongest at the beginning, and the Allies gain power and resources each turn. Few would debate Japan's chances of victory, but the goal of The Pacific War is to see whether the Japanese forces can achieve better military gains and delay its defeat. Or can the Allies win a quicker victory? It's up to the players to utilize their assets to turn the tide of the war! Man, your battle station . . . It's time to fight The Pacific War!