GMT Games Labyrinth: The War on Terror

The theme is definitely a bit controversial. The game is a solid card driven war game. The components are nice the cards are very durable. The game is super complex for an average board gamer. For an avid war gamer, it has all the meta play and chit counting that one would want ala Twilight Struggle. It is a super complex game with multiple layers of depth. The AI in solo player plays very predictably in the first few plays, but does get more advanced the more you learn the game. There are a lot of pieces to keep track of and if you don't like holding 10-15 things in your head at once about what needs to happen before x,y, or z can happen.I'm not an avid war gamer but I love playing war games and area control games. I would only recommend you get this if you are an avid board gamer, an avid strategic planner in your daily life, or an avid board game war gamer. For those that still haven't familiarized themselves with the complex world of boardgames, this may not be the best intro to that world. I would suggest Memoir '44 or D Day dice as lighter war games, with different mechanics.

Always interested in this product. Have another in the line and looking to complete the collection. Just starting to learn game and looking foward to many hours of interesting enjoyment.UPDATE: After having spent a few weeks with the game I have been mainly playing solo to learn the game concepts I find this an outstanding game and a good introduction to the COIN series of games. The decision making aspects will have you adjusting your strategies to meet unexpected outcomes. I read one review that stated that replay value was not there. I find that simply not true. The AI flowchart and the cards can see that each play will be completely different. Looking forward to playing this with my son-in-law very soon as he is quite interested in learning how to play. Two thumbs up!

The game captures the essence of the war on terror. It leaves me with the profound thought that while one side has to win, the other side merely just doesn't have to lose. This game is brilliant for those who like strategy. My first play-through saw me playing the western forces. I committed too many troops and found myself in an endless quagmire, picking away slowly at the enemy in what was taking too many turns, while he was able to focus attention elsewhere. I lost.

Like all GMT games the learning curve is pretty steep, and the tactical and strategic mastery curve is even steeper. This game handles a unique and therefore fascinating theme, albeit heavy handily at times, but the mechanics of the game give a very different and true-to-life feeling to each of the factions. the cards seem at first to favour the Jihadists, but other aspects balance out the deck with the rest of the game.I've only played a few times but similarly to Twilight Struggle [a masterpiece] this game is drenched with tension and excruciating decision making. I invariably end up finding myself standing up in this game because I'm too jittery trying to get my intricate strategies to go off.Some people have complained about the treatment of the theme and the pretty obvious western bias evident in the event cards. For me that was not an issue because I play the game for the game, and not for the politics.

Labyrinth can be summed up as a game of tug of war albeit on an international scale. You play as either the US or Jihadist trying to "influence" a countries governance to favors your side. This is done through card play. While the subject matter is serious the game captures the current history in a way that gives the player a sence of behind the scene geopolitical brinkmanship.Components: The components of the game are top notch. The game board is hard mounted, the cards are of good quality similar to that of bycicle playing cards and the counters and marker are thick and come in a variety of sizes. Also included are a rule book a play book two player aids and four 6-sided dice.Game play: In a nut shell players take turns playing cards from their hand to influence countries in their favor. This goes back and forth until victory conditions are met. Sounds simple and in a scence it is but there is some deep strategy in the card play and many tough decisions to make.Learning the game: the rule book is well done very readable and easy to reference however, you can not learn to play through the rule book alone. Smartly, the designers added a "play book" that walks you through a full hand of cards so you can grasp the concepts of the game. This is highly recommended.The solo game: The game comes with an "AI" opponent in the form of a flow chart so the game can be played solo. The AI works well and is a tough opponent when a human opponent is not available. This is also a good way to learn the game and become familiar with various strategies.Conclusion: The theme of the game is serious and is not be suitable for all ages however, the game is very well done and gives the players a scenes of tension. This game offers deep strategy tough decisions and runs deep with current history.

One of the best GMT games ever. It is not so difficult to learn to play. Maybe one of the easiest of GMT. Definitely very good solitaire experience and learning complexity scale. If you are looking for a good board wargame this one should be one your options

While I see what they were trying to do with this game, and I agree with it in concept, in practice it is very cumbersome. I am a big fan of the card driven games, and greatly enjoy Twilight Struggle, Washington's War, 1960 and 1989. However, having each side basically play by its' own set of rules is too cumbersome. While it is certainly realistic, in that in the actual War on terror, Al Qaeda and the US fight with a different set of rules, it is not fun enough to continue to play enough to get the rules. Most other games take one playthrough to get. We played this twice, yet still have no clue what we're doing.