The Gamers
American game publisher
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The Gamers was a designer and publisher of board wargames that, over the course of 20 years, won over a dozen Charles S. Roberts Awards.
History
The Gamers was founded in 1988 by game designer and artist Dean Essig in Homer, Illinois.[1] Instead of designing a new game system for each game, Essig decided that The Gamers would produce a number of games, but categorized into different series. The games in each series would use a common set of rules. Each game within the series would also have a subset of rules to deal with situations unique to that battle.
The company's games received good critical reception, and won a total of 14 Charles S. Roberts Awards.
The Gamers was bought by Multi-Man Publishing in 2001. Multi-Man continued to use the services of Essig as game designer until his death in 2024.[2] Multi-Man publishes new materials for the original Gamers series as well as new games and new game series.
Series
The Gamers produced games in seven different series:
- Civil War Brigade (CWB): American Civil War battles at the brigade level.
- Regimental Sub-System Series / Line of Battle (RSS/LoB): American Civil War battles at the regimental level.
- Tactical Combat Series (TCS): 20th-century platoon level battles.
- Operational Combat Series (OCS): 20th-century battles at battalion and division levels.
- Standard Combat Series (SCS): General system that allows simulation of a wide range of battles.
- Napoleonic Brigade Series (NBS): Brigade-level battles during the Napoleonic Wars.
- Battalion Combat Series (BCS): 20th-century battles at the battalion level.
(One game, Circus Minimus, was not categorized. A new category, Modern Tactical Combat, was announced but no games were ever published for it.)
Homercon
Homercon, a convention for The Gamers games, was held each September in Homer from 1990 until 2012.
List of games
Civil War Brigade Series
| Game | Subject | Year | Designer | Series Number | Awards | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| In Their Quiet Fields | Antietam | 1988 | Dean Essig | CWB 1 | ||
| In Their Quiet Fields II | Antietam | 1995 | Dean Essig | CWB 1a | ||
| Thunder at the Crossroads | Gettysburg | 1988 | Dave Powell | CWB 2 | ||
| Thunder at the Crossroads II | Gettysburg | 1992 | Dave Powell | CWB 2a | ||
| August Fury | 2nd Battle of Bull Run | 1990 | Dave Powell | CWB 3 | ||
| Barren Victory | Chickamauga | 1991 | Dave Powell | CWB 4 | ||
| Bloody Roads South | The Wilderness | 1992 | James Epperson | CWB 5 | ||
| Perryville | Perryville | 1992 | Dave Powell | CWB 6 | ||
| Embrace an Angry Wind | Spring Hill & Franklin | 1992 | Dean Essig | CWB 7 | ||
| No Better Place to Die | Murfreesboro | 1994 | Dave Powell | CWB 8 | CSR award nominee | |
| April's Harvest | Shiloh | 1995 | Al Wambold | CWB 9 | CSR award nominee | |
| Champion Hill | Champion Hill | 1996 | Ken Jacobsen | CWB 10 | CSR award nominee | |
| Gaines Mill | Seven Days Battle I | 1997 | Dave Powell | CWB 11 | CSR award nominee | |
| Seven Pines | Seven Pines & Seven Days Battle II | 1998 | Dean Essig | CWB 12 | ||
| Malvern Hill | Seven Days Battle III | 1999 | Dean Essig | CWB 13 | CSR award nominee | |
| Three Battles of Manassas | 1st & 2nd Bull Run, hypothetical 3rd Bull Run | 2004 | Thomas Prowell | CWB 14 | CSR award nominee | |
| Strike Them a Blow | North Anna | 2006 | Bob Munns | CWB 15 |
Regimental Sub-System Series / Line of Battle
| Game | Subject | Year | Designer | Series Number | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This Hallowed Ground | Gettysburg | 1998 | Dave Powell | RSS 1 | CSR award nominee |
| This Terrible Sound | Chickamauga | 2000 | Dave Powell | RSS 2 | CSR award nominee |
| A Fearful Slaughter | Shiloh | 2004 | Dave Powell | RSS 3 | CSR award nominee |
| South Mountain | South Mountain | 2008 | Dave Powell | RSS 4 | |
| None But Heroes | Antietam | 2011 | Dean Essig | LoB 1 | CSR award WINNER |
| Last Chance for Victory | Gettysburg | 2014 | Dean Essig | LoB 2 | |
| To Take Washington | Monocacy, Fort Stevens | 2019 | Dean Essig | LoB 3 | |
| No Turning Back | Battle of the Wilderness | 2025 | Dean Essig | LoB 4 |
Tactical Combat Series
| Game | Subject | Year | Designer | Series Number | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bloody 110th | Battle of the Bulge | 1989 | Dean Essig | TCS 1 | CSR award nominee |
| Objective: Schmidt | Hürtgen Forest, Ardennes Campaign | 1990 | Dave Powell | TCS 2 | CSR award nominee |
| Omaha | Omaha | 1991 | Dave Powell | TCS 3 | |
| Matanikau | Matanikau River | 1993 | Sam Simons | TCS 4 | |
| GD '40 | Stonne, Battle of France | 1993 | Wig Graves | TCS 5 | CSR award nominee |
| Hunters from the Sky[3] | Maleme Airfield, Battle of Crete | 1994 | Wig Graves | TCS 6 | CSR award nominee |
| Black Wednesday | Krasny Bor | 1995 | Dave Friedrichs | TCS 7 | CSR award nominee |
| Leros: The Island Prize | Leros | 1996 | Dave Friedrichs | TCS 8 | |
| GD '41 | Tula Road, Battle of Moscow | 1996 | Wig Graves | TCS 9 | CSR award WINNER |
| Semper Fi! | Korean War | 1997 | Lee Forester | TCS 10 | CSR award WINNER |
| Raging Storm | Anzio, Allied invasion of Italy | 1997 | Nigel Roberts & Bob Runnicles | TCS 11 | |
| A Frozen Hell | Tolvajärvi, Winter War | 2000 | Al Wambold | TCS 12 | CSR award nominee |
| Screaming Eagles in Holland | Veghel, Operation Market Garden | 2002 | Nigel Roberts & Bob Runnicles | TCS 13 | |
| Bloody Ridge | Guadalcanal, Bloody Ridge | 2005 | Michael Smith | TCS 14 | |
| GD'42 | Operation Mars | 2009 | Wig Graves | TCS 15 | |
| Canadian Crucible | Norrey-en-Bessin, Battle of Normandy | 2013 | Larry Brien | TCS 16 | |
| Ariete | First Battle of Bir el Gubi | 2020 | Mauro De Vita | TCS 17 | |
| Goose Green | Battle of Goose Green | 2023 | Carl Fung | TCS 18 | |
| Force Eagle's War | (Hypothetical NATO-Warsaw Pact conflict) | 1990 | Dean Essig | Modern TCS |
Operational Combat Series
| Game | Subject | Year | Designer | Series Number | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guderian's Blitzkrieg | Operation Barbarossa | 1992 | Dean Essig | OCS 1 | CSR award nominee |
| Enemy at the Gates | Stalingrad | 1994 | Dean Essig | OCS 2 | CSR award WINNER |
| Tunisia | Tunisia | 1995 | Dean Essig | OCS 3 | CSR award WINNER |
| Hube's Pocket | Western Ukraine | 1996 | Dave Friedrichs | OCS 4 | CSR award nominee |
| DAK | Western Desert Campaign | 1997 | Dean Essig | OCS 5 | CSR award WINNER |
| Burma | Burma Campaign | 1999 | Dave Friedrichs | OCS 6 | CSR award WINNER |
| Sicily | Sicily | 2000 | Dean Essig | OCS 7 | CSR award WINNER (tie) |
| Guderian's Blitzkrieg II | Operation Barbarossa | 2001 | Dean Essig | OCS 8 | CSR award nominee |
| Korea: The Forgotten War | Korean War | 2003 | Rod Miller | OCS 9 | CSR award nominee |
| Case Blue | Case Blue & Stalingrad | 2007 | Dean Essig | OCS 10 | CSR award WINNER |
| Baltic Gap | Baltic Offensive | 2009 | John Kisner & Hans Mielants | OCS 11 | |
| The Blitzkrieg Legend | Battle of France | 2012 | Hans Kishel | OCS 12 | |
| Reluctant Enemies | Syria–Lebanon Campaign | 2014 | Curtis Baer | OCS 13 | |
| Beyond the Rhine | Northwestern Europe Campaign | 2015 | Roland LeBlanc | OCS 14 | |
| Tunisia II | Tunisia | 2016 | Dean Essig | OCS 15 | |
| Operational Matters: OCS Guide (Sicily II insert) | Sicily | 2016 | Dean Essig (game) | OCS 16 | |
| Smolensk:Barbarossa Derailed | Battle of Smolensk (1941) | 2018 | Hans Kishel | OCS 17 | |
| Hungarian Rhapsody | Siege of Budapest | 2020 | Stéphane Acquaviva | OCS 18 | CSR award nominee |
| The Third Winter | Battle of the Dnieper | 2022 | Antony Birkett | OCS 19 | CSR award nominee |
| Crimea: Conquest and Liberation | Crimean campaign & Crimean offensive | 2023 | Guy Wilde & Antony Birkett | OCS 20 | |
| Luzon: Race for Bataan | Philippines campaign (1941–1942) | 2024 | Matsuura Yutaka | OCS 21 | |
| The Forgotten Battles | Smolensk operation | 2025 | Antony Birkett | OCS 22 |
Standard Combat System
| Game | Subject | Year | Designer | Series Number | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stalingrad Pocket | Stalingrad | 1992 | Masahiro Yamazaki | SCS 1 | CSR award WINNER |
| Stalingrad Pocket II | Stalingrad | 1996 | Dean Essig | SCS 1 | |
| Afrika | Western Desert Campaign | 1993 | Dean Essig | SCS 2 | CSR award WINNER |
| Afrika II | Western Desert Campaign | 2006 | Dean Essig | SCS 12 | CSR award nominee |
| Ardennes | Battle of the Bulge | 1994 | Dean Essig | SCS 3 | CSR award nominee |
| Yom Kippur | Sinai Front, Yom Kippur War | 1995 | Al Sandrick | SCS 4 | CSR award WINNER |
| Crusader | Operation Crusader | 1997 | Dean Essig | SCS 5 | CSR award nominee |
| Gazala | Gazala | 1999 | Dean Essig | SCS 6 | CSR award nominee |
| Drive on Paris | Western Front 1914 | 2000 | Al Wambold | SCS 7 | CSR award WINNER |
| Fallschirmjäger | Airborne assault against Holland 1940 | 2001 | Al Wambold | SCS 8 | CSR award nominee |
| Operation Michael | Operation Michael | 2002 | John Best | SCS 9 | |
| The Mighty Endeavor | Operation Overlord to V-E Day | 2005 | Steve Newhouse & Tim Armstrong | SCS 10 | CSR award nominee |
| Guadalajara | The Battle of Guadalajara in 1936 | 2006 | Ernesto Sassot | SCS 11 | |
| Rock of the Marne | The last German offensive in WW1 | 2008 | John Best | SCS 12 | |
| Bastogne | Siege of Bastogne, Battle of the Bulge | 2009 | Dean Essig | SCS 13 | |
| Karelia '44 | Karelian Offensive, Continuation War | 2011 | Ken Jacobsen | SCS 14 | |
| It Never Snows | Operation Market-Garden | 2012 | Dean Essig | SCS 15 | CSR award nominee |
| Heights of Courage | Golan Heights, Yom Kippur War | 2012 | Steve Newhouse | SCS 16 | |
| The Mighty Endeavor: 2nd Edition | Operation Overlord to V-E Day | 2013 | Dean Essig (expansion) | SCS 17 | |
| Day of Days | Normandy Landings from D-Day to D+9 | 2015 | Lee Forester | SCS 18 | |
| Panzer Battles | The Battle for the Chir River, 1942 | 2016 | Dean Essig | SCS 19 | |
| Autumn for Barbarossa (Spec OPS #7) | Battle of Smolensk (1941) | 2017 | Dean Essig | SCS 20 | |
| Rostov '41 | Battle of Rostov | 2020 | Ray Weiss | SCS 21 | |
| North Africa | Western Desert Campaign | 2021 | Dean Essig | SCS 22 | |
| Iron Curtain | Hypothetical NATO-Warsaw Pact offensives, 1945-1989 | 2020 | Carl Fung | SCS 23 | CSR award nominee |
| Ardennes II | Battle of the Bulge | 2023 | Dean Essig | SCS 25 |
Napoleonic Brigade Series
| Austerlitz | Austerlitz | 1993 | Dave Powell | NBS 1 | CSR award nominee |
| Marengo | Marengo | 1995 | Dave Powell | NBS 2 | CSR award nominee |
| Aspern-Essling | Aspern-Essling | 1999 | Jerry Malone | NBS 3 | |
| Espinosa | Espinosa | 2002 | Anders Fager | NBS freebie | |
| Montebello | Montebello | 2006 | François Vander Meulen | NBS freebie | |
| Talavera | Talavera & Vimeiro | 2007 | Jerry Malone & Anders Fager | NBS 4 | CSR award nominee |
Battalion Combat Series
| Last Blitzkrieg | Battle of the Bulge | 2016 | Dean Essig | BCS 1 | |
| Baptism by Fire | Battle of Kasserine Pass | 2017 | Dean Essig | BCS 2 | |
| Brazen Chariots | Operation Crusader, Siege of Tobruk, Operation Brevity, Operation Battleaxe, Operation Skorpion | 2019 | Jim Daniels | BCS 3 | CSR award nominee |
| Panzers Last Stand | Operation Konrad, Siege of Budapest, Operation Southwind, Operation Spring Awakening | 2021 | Carl Fung | BCS 4 | CSR award nominee |
| Arracourt | Battle of Arracourt | 2022 | Carl Fung | BCS 5 | CSR award nominee |
| Valley of Tears | Yom Kippur War | 2023 | Carl Fung | BCS 6 | CSR award WINNER |
| Inflection Point | Battle of Kalach and Battle of Chir River | 2025 | Dean Essig and Carl Fung | BCS 7 |
Uncategorized
| Circus Minimus | Chariot racing | 2000 | Dean Essig | — |