Simulation Publications
| Simulation Publications | |
|---|---|
| legal form | |
| founding | 1969 |
| resolution | 1982 |
| Seat |
 United States
|
| Branch | Game publisher |
Simulations Publications Inc. ( SPI ) was an American manufacturer of conflict simulation board games .
In 1969, ambitious "wargame" players founded Simulations Publications in New York. James F. Dunnigan took over the financially troubled magazine Strategy & Tactics. Up to 30 games per year were published, mostly in "Strategy & Tactics". "Moves Magazin" and 1980 "Ares" (SF games) were added as further magazines. The company had two game series: the "Simulation Series Games" and the "S&T Series Games". Among others, game designer Philip E. Orbanes worked for the publisher.
In addition to role-playing games, the program mainly featured KoSims: conflict simulation games on historical or fictional battles or wars. Units, square cardboard tiles, are moved on a card made up of hexagonal (hex) fields. When opposing units meet, a "battle" is fought, the result of which is read from a battle table.
In 1982 SPI went bankrupt, its rights were taken over in 1983 by TSR (Tactical Studies Rules). However, many employees went to Avalon Hill and formed the Victory Games brand there . The market for KoSims continued to collapse and TSR soon came to an end, the rights to many games were taken over by Decision Games .
For the German-speaking area, SPI games were sold by Fantastic Shop , a company founded in Düsseldorf in 1977 , including Panzerarmee Afrika , Normandy , Seelöwe and Borodino . The original English-language games were supplemented with machine-written and then copied translations.
Game selection
- Was in the East
- Was in the Pacific
- The next war
- Commando, an RPG
- Panzer Army Africa, a KoSim
- Normandy, a KoSim
- Sea lion, a KoSim
- Borodino , a KoSim, 1972
- Starforce: Alpha Centauri
- StarGate , 1979
- War of the ring