The Meeple Guild: PnP Summer #4 - Take a solo bombing run

YORKTON - Up front this week, I do not generally want a print and play game where I have to make small tokens.

The tokens ideally need to be glued to bristle board or something similar and just never look that good – at least for me. As a result I gravitate toward games which are card-based, or print 8.5X11.

That said Bomber Boys by designer Steven Aramini has some chits – but there are exceptions to every rule as they say.

This one is also a bigger paper consumer running off at 30 pages – so at a print shop you’re leaving $20-plus behind for colour – this needs it to differentiate cards etc, so it’s not the lowest cost PnP.

That all said Bomber Boys is a gem worth building.

Bomber Boys is a dice rolling – you either love them, or hate them -- dice allocation game with a WWII theme.

It is a solo effort where you are managing the crew of an Allied aircraft during a series of air operations. To win, you have to complete each of the given missions, and each mission ends with a target that you have to bomb for a major victory.

Herein lies a great thing about rolling dice they do a good job of mimicking the chaotic nature of war, and in particular bombing raids. A lot can happen and luck often seems the difference between success and failure.

The game comes with five missions of progressive difficulty, and game play is based on a combination of decision making and luck. You will need to make good decisions and then cross fingers to make it through – I suppose not so unlike real pilots at the time.

The black and white photographs from the era add to the flavour nicely too – in fact I would suggest they are rather a highlight of the game.

Overall, this is one WWII buffs should in particular love, and any solo gamer wanting a bit more ‘game’ in their game.