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One of my favourite games is The Cousins' War. This two-player area control and bluffing game comes in a tiny box and packs a huge punch. Thunderworks' Dual Powers: Revolution 1917 is also a two-player area control game, and while I've no idea how big the box is the game is getting me excited.
Dual Powers: Revolution 1917
Players will take control of either the Provisional Government or the Petrograd Soviet and battle for the future of Russia. Play takes place over a number of rounds during which you and your opponent will draw cards and each select a secret objective.
Next, you will take turns to play command cards which let you interact with your units and the board, or play a leader power. A really neat feature of these cards is that they have a time cost. This moves the calendar on by a certain amount of days and sometimes this results in player bonuses.
Next up is the scoring phase where three areas are scored, as well as secret objectives. This score influences the the support track. This works in a tug of war fashion and if either player gets the marker to their end they win. If this doesn't happen the game ends when the calendar has gone into October or later and the player with the most support wins.
Austin Powers
Dual Powers: Revolution 1917 is dripping in theme and immersion. This is not a satirical or comedy game but one that takes itself seriously. It looks a little like Twilight Struggle in terms of presentation, but promises to come in at under an hour.
The illustration is by the same artist as Dinosaur Island and Coaster Park and really completes the package. At a pledge of around £22 Dual Powers is an easy recommend for fans of historic area control and people who want a strategic, deep game in less than an hour.
The Kickstarter for Dual Powers: Revolution 1917 is now live on Kickstarter. At the time of writing (April 19), 317 backers have helped to raise £7,515 - with the target goal for the campaign set at £21,133. There are 19 days left for this game to be funded.