G.I. JOE: Battle for the Arctic Circle Review

boardgamequest.com:

We review GI Joe Battle of the Arctic Circle published by Renegade Games. Based on the Axis and Allies system, this game seeks to bring that classic war game to the GI Joe universe.

As a child of the 80s, GI Joe was right up there to dominate my Saturday morning cartoons along with the likes of He-Man and Transformers. While I leaned more into He-Man, GI Joe was easily a close second. I had tons of the action figures, vehicles, and playsets (Except the Space Shuttle Command Center—my sadness over this will never end). Fast forward to my college years and I was introduced to Axis and Allies. This war game hoovered up my free time as I spent countless hours pouring over the WW2 map moving around little plastic miniatures.

So where is all this going? Today, we are going to look at the newest game from publisher Renegade Games: G.I. JOE: Battle for the Arctic Circle. It’s “power by Axis and Allies” and seeks to take that familiar gameplay where knowing is half the battle.

If you’ve played Axis and Allies before, then a lot will be familiar to you. In fact, the rulebook even starts off with what’s changed for players who are familiar with the system. For the rest of you, here is the general overview of how the game is played.

G.I. JOE: Battle for the Arctic Circle comes with 3 different scenarios that will task you with either getting the most VPs before round seven, or capturing your opponent’s base. There are 4 factions in the game, split into two teams of allies: Admiral Keel-Haul and Snow Job take the lead for the Joes, while Cobra Commander and Destro are in charge of the forces of Cobra. While the two leaders are allied, they very much play as separate players, and can’t share units or resources.

On a player’s turn, the first purchase reinforcements using their earned points. Points are earned from their starting bases, as well as captured VP hexes they control. Up to 4 points may also be banked for a future turn. These points are used to purchase troops,