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From the beginnings at the level of Ludo and Halma, board games have developed to a point where complex calculations on paper are needed to keep track of all the "variables". Monopoly avoided this by using play-money and little wooden blocks representing houses and hotels, but a game like 1829, dealing with railway construction, needed something more flexible. It is not surprising that a small computer was used to provide a solution. The program was home-based for an obsolecent machine, so it could not be made generally available, but it was inevitable that computer/board games would eventually emerge as a variant of the existing range of formats.

The first example to appear is not ideal. That is is a battle simulation is not, perhaps, in sympathy with current thinking, but there are more important problems than this. Each player has twenty aircraft, two aircraft carriers, six missile batteries, a refuelling tanker and three airfields. Working out which piece is which is to some extent a matter of deduction, some being obvious, others not. The pieces are held in place magnetically, which is a nice feature.

The game is for two players, though two others can participate as computer operators. Each player takes half of the playing board and sets up his forces, unable to see what the other player is doing, the two boards are then joined (magnetically) and a coin is tossed to determine which player starts! (Couldn't the computer do this?!)

The player in "action" makes his moves, which are reported to the computer, and the consequences appear on the screen. The other player works the computer, and like a snooker player, waits his turn. This may go on for perhaps half an hour! Then the roles change, and the attack swings in the opposite direction. It might have been better to alternate play more frequently.

In terms of manufacture and general presentation, the game almost wins full marks, but slight changes to the rules and a clearer definition of the pieces would make it much better.