GMT: Skies Above Britain Boardgame

Product Information

Let’s contrast that with Skies Above Britain. Yes, the player controls a squadron of fighters and yes, they are tasked with the mission of intercepting and shooting down enemy bombers. But within those broad mission parameters, the player is making a lot of decisions. Prior to interception, you’ll be debating what is more important – where you are, or do you have enough altitude. These decisions are important as they impact exactly how you intercept the German bomber formation.

A common critique of solitaire narrative games is that the player is just ‘along for the ride’ and is subject to events without a real say in how they player got in that situation. This makes sense in classic games like B-17 Queen of the Skies as the player controls one plane, but that plane is on a mission and part of a larger formation. While you may end up leaving the squadron, a lot of the decision making is out of your hands. Skies Above Britain is a solitaire game covering the air war that was the Battle of Britain in the summer and fall of 1940. Building on the foundation of the prior games Skies Above the Reich and Storm Above the Reich, Gina and Jeremy have ‘flipped the script’ crafting a game that captures the unique experience of the Battle of Britain through a tailored game design that is both familiar to players of the earlier games, while at the same time is a fresh take on the nature of air combat during the 1940 campaign.

The quality of the components is first rate, as we expect from GMT Games. An inventory of the box yields the following components: Passed inspection: An immersive solitaire experience that captures the feel of the air war over Britain in 1940. The well-crafted rulebook and charts make finding rules references a snap. Minute Intro and Playthrough Video from Poindexter Games Showing a Single Patrol in Skies Above Britain (Please note that this video uses playtest versions of game components. They are not final art.)

Skies Above Britain is an excellent gaming experience. It’s a great game that focuses on the challenges of command at the squadron level. The game slots in nicely between playing John Butterfield’s “RAF” and a more tactical game that is focused on individual engagements. Gina and Jeremy have found the ‘sweet spot’ that pairs a balance of strategic decision making and squadron management with the tactical narrative of intercepting bombers and dogfighting. There are many hours of enjoyment to be had with the game and the replay value is high. Fire up that Ron Goodwin movie score and get those fighters in the air! In the earlier games, the interception board was a tool for displaying the volume of space occupied by an American bomber box. As time passed, you shifted to other maps that reflects changes in doctrine and equipment. The Battle of Britain was ‘only’ three months and didn’t have those kinds of changes in tactics and equipment. Instead the emphasis here is on tangling with the escorts and getting into the bomber formation (which is where you need to be if you want to win the game.) The enemy raid either appearing for interception, or if it’s already put in an appearance, bombing it’s target and heading for home Solitaire suitability (1–5 scale, with 1 being virtually unplayable as a solitaire game and 5 being completely suitable for solitaire play): 5 Kevin on First Draft of History: Designing a Military Simulation of the Russo-Ukraine War 2022-2023The position of the sun shifts on the interception board. The sun is nose high. More importantl, the raid is detected! The weather is clear, so we determine which escorting fighters are on station and the type of bombers in the formation. Consulting the bomber type table in for Chapter 1, we get a result of Ju-87 Stuka. An excellent result, as they are not as well defended or robust as the bogger medium bombers.