Ogre

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Ogre Section

Battle Reports

I'm a proud owner of ogres nowadays. I first read about Ogre in a short summary of Steve Jackson's contributions to humanity that served as an introduction to an interview in now deceased CCG magazine Centurion. Even though the mention was only a few sentences, the whole concept of the game immediately appealed to me (and I keep wondering if it could make an interesting mode in an RTS). That was a long time ago, but the idea of a huge monster tank chewing through lesser units stayed in my mind.

Then, well into the year 2001, I came across Steve Jackson Games' site, mainly looking for information on Illuminati. Then, when my primary objective was fulfilled, the name Ogre jumped out from the game list and begged for a click. Whoever wrote the short story used in the rulebook and available on the Ogre pages really knew what they did, now I was more curious than ever before. The only thing worrying me was that it might be a great game with too many rules and consuming too much time.

Finally purchased Ogre/G.E.V. slightly on a whim, after Henrik and I discussed on the phone what games we could play. I knew it was available and quite cheap, so this was just the right ocassion to get it. My worries about heavy rules were quickly proven wrong. The complexity, physical size, and time required is perfect; small enough to bring in the backpack and quick enough to play in a lunch break. It may just be little two-colour paper counters on a thin paper board (the whole thing looking like a sneeze might blow it away), but the tension and pace is perfect. The short story keeps rolling in my head as the tanks and GEVs get pounded to scrap by the ogre's cannons while the howitzers chew away at its treads.

Haven't had time to even read the rules for G.E.V. yet, but it should be a nice game too if the past is any indication. It feels like the one basic scenario of Ogre will last for quite a while, so coupled with variations and the whole of G.E.V I should be set for a while.

I'm getting more trust in Steve Jackson Games for every game I play ...

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