Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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103 of 109 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best of Show, September 3, 2001
Durability:4.0 out of 5 stars Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars Educational:4.0 out of 5 stars
Easy enough for a young person to learn but complex enough to keep adults intrigued and challenged for years, Diplomacy is quite probably the very best strategy board game on the market. Unlike most other games of this type that, at best, provide limited encouragement for dealmaking and balancing of when to make and break truces, that process is at the very heart of Diplomacy. Also, where other games involve heavy doses of chance (a legitimate choice, since combat always includes some degree of luck - good or bad, but ultimately unsatisfying at times), Diplomacy has no random elements except the players themselves. No dice, dials, or spinners, just the meta-game of players jockeying for advantage and balancing their immediate interests against the utility of breaking agreements for short or long-term gain. This game is the cream of the crop in strategy gaming. Anyone who enjoys Risk (or games of that type), but finds it no longer challenges, will truly love this game.
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109 of 116 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best board game ever made., January 1, 2002
Durability:3.0 out of 5 stars Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars Educational:4.0 out of 5 stars
Diplomacy, without doubt, is simply the best board game ever made. ... any other game has nothing on diplomacy, it's incredible.
I first played it with some friends in school after a teacher introduced us to it, and within a couple of turns was completely hooked.
The game deal with world war I Europe, encompassing land and naval warfare, and the integration of both. The game is turn based and the map is divided up into territories, as well as major cities. More cities=more armies/navies, pretty simple concept.
Each player controls a particular country, and starts off with their armies/navies deployed as the rulebook says.
Unlike other board games, the game does not rely on dice rolling(some people have thought a better name for risk would be luck), so armies are evenly matched. In order for an army to invade another territory already occupied by an army, the invading arm must be supported by another army or navy in a territory adjacent to both.
So, players have to think strategically and diplomatically. This is a great group game(up to seven can play). Each turn, players submit a movement sheet, instructing each army what to do, everyone moves at the same time. So there is like a ten minute diplomacy session, where people talk to each other about what they're going to do, and how to help each other, trouble is, they can often lie.
The game is exceptionally good, it is also a good educational toy I'm not quite sure what durable means, the game is as physically durable as any other board game(so take care of it), as for play durability, I've been going for four years, and it just gets better.
This game is the monopoly of strategy games, every home should have a copy, buy it now.
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26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The strategy gaming gateway drug, December 7, 2001
Durability:4.0 out of 5 stars Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars Educational:3.0 out of 5 stars
I got hooked on this game at my high school's strategy gaming club (yes, my school was big enough to have one) when I was 16, and I've been a devoted fan ever since. With a full complement of seven players, Diplomacy is simply unbeatable. There's no die-rolling; all units move at the same time, according to secretly written orders. If evenly matched forces collide-and they often do-they simply bounce off each other. Thus, to advance yourself, you have to get help from your neighbors . . . who, never forget, are also playing to win. Thick skin and good sportsmanship are necessary to deal with the inevitable treachery, but having to stay on your toes at all times is what makes Diplomacy so exciting. As for the educational aspect, it got me interested in the history leading up to World War I. :-)
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