A Game Of Thrones

by Fantasy Flight Games

Product Features

• Tons of replay value
• For 3-5 players
• Strategy game
• Plays in 2-3 hours
• Top quality components

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 11.8 x 3 x 11.8 inches ; 3 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 4.1 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: 1589941039
• Item model number: 5511217
• Manufacturer recommended age: 12 years and up
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #86,273 in Toys & Games (See Top 100 in Toys & Games)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

King Robert Baratheon is dead, and the seven kingdoms brace for war. House Lannister, whose daughter Cersei was Robert's queen, claims the throne for her young son Joffery. From the Dragonstone Isle, Stannis Baratheon knows that Robert was not the true father of Joffrey, and rightfully demands the throne for himself. One the Oron Isles, House Greyjoy is about to embark on a second rebellion, but this time with a much grander goal. In the north, House Stark gathers its strength to defend what is right, and in the south the wealthy House Tyrell harbors an old ambition to sit on the Iron Throne. As armies gather and ravens fly, a clash of kings is inevitable. Based on the best-selling novel series A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin, the A Game of Thrones board games by Fantasy Flight Games lets players take control of one of the great Houses of Westeros and embark on a epic struggle to claim the Iron Throne. Immerse yourself in a game of clever planning, careful allocation of power, diplomacy, and the exciting flavor of a Song of Ice and Fire. Along with the games board and rulebook, there are over 370 game pieces included.

Product Description

With this fantastic board game, players can enter the world of George R. R. Martin's best-selling A Song of Ice and Fire fantasy series and take control of one of the great houses of Westeros. Using warfare, diplomacy, and treachery, players vie for control of the Seven Kingdoms.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Novel War Game, August 6, 2007

By 

Dennis G. Voss Jr. (Lexington, KY USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:4.0 out of 5 stars 

Amazon Verified Purchase

As an experienced gamer who has tried out a wide range of strategy-oriented products, I have found the Game of Thrones to be an especially strong one (which is fairly surprising given that it was not designed as a stand-alone product but instead grows out of a series of genre novels). It is a nice game in all of the superficial ways: gorgeous board, sturdy and attractive pieces, strong box in a convenient size to add to shelf and with attractive artwork that would make you proud to have it there. But what especially impressed me is the overall unity of the design.

Most niche board games come with extremely thick manuals filled with idiosyncratic rules to govern every situation. They may be enjoyable, but they take forever to learn and you generally cannot get non-gamers to invest the time. We feared this game would be the same, but I sat down with my wife, kids, and a family friend so that we could walk through the manual and we quickly realized that the rules were especially consistent and logical. Even my 12-year-old daughter picked them up quickly.

If you're looking for a comparison, I'd say that among the traditional war games this one most closely resembles Diplomacy, and anyone who has played Diplomacy will find the rules particularly comfortable to learn. The action choices are similar, and determined in advance in a similar fashion. Randomness plays little role in battle outcomes. And, like Diplomacy, the game even permits the addition of a negotiation session as players make non-binding deals with one other.

But don't take these comparisons too far. This isn't Diplomacy with a new thematic overlay. It would take too long to go into all the unique features of this game, but I'll highlight three big ones:
(1) Different territories offer different resources: Troops, Supplies, Power. If you also factor in whatever direct military advantage taking a territory might bring, the result is that players must make uncertain choices about which advantages to pursue and when to pursue them.
(2) Players periodically bid for positions of political influence that can help them out later, producing a nice tension between saving your resources vs. investing them in gaining potentially useful advantages.
(3) A group of savages called "wildlings" will attack occasionally, threatening all the players at once. The rules set up an intriguing collective-action problem: Contribute too much to repelling the invasion, and your rivals will have gained a relative advantage. Contribute too little and the marauders roam the countryside, killing your people before they return home.

Does the game have problems? We've noticed one: The arrival of troops and supplies is governed by event cards, so sometimes a strategy will be stymied not because of any strategic error but because the needed card stubbornly refuses to pop up. But, by the odds, that kind of difficulty would only appear in a small percentage of games.

Finally, please note that I have not read the George R.R. Martin novels that served as a point of departure for this game. I cannot testify to its level of success capturing the world depicted in the books, only its success at creating a fun and exciting gaming environment. At that task the game designers have succeeded brilliantly.

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Story, Great Game, December 23, 2004

By 

Colleen Messer (Jacksonville, FL) - See all my reviews

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:4.0 out of 5 stars 

This is a great game. If you like games of strategy with a great story behind it, this is the game for you. The game doesn't require that you have read the books though. If you've read the books then you'd probably agree with me that this board game really brings out the best of the books. It's a very well designed game. Honestly this game is very balanced and it's hard for one player to run away with it. It's fun. A lot of fun. And yes... Winter is coming...

32 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not to be taken lightly, November 16, 2005

By 

E. Davis (Sierra Foothills, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Durability:4.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:4.0 out of 5 stars 

The wonder of this game is matched only by it's complexity. To compare it's similarites with Risk, the only other strategy board game I have played, is to say they both have armies. The differences then take flight with an innovative battle system which involves no luck only strategy, ships to give a whole new element to consider with the transport and aid they offer, a system of bidding for three seperate offices which greatly affect the players ablities to operate on the field of battle. Consider before purchusing the depth of the game, as not only dose it take time to memorize the rules but the game itself takes time to set up with its many pieces. Yet there is no board game I have ever played that rewards skill rather than chance the way this one dose. Simple games are fun to pass the time, but to play A Game Of Thrones is a rich and rewarding exsperiance. All in all it takes one game to fully comprehend the game and it's workings and after that things go much smoother as exsperiance grows. To me worth every cent.