Phalanx Games has announced plans for three new games, including the Crusades-era Lords of Heaven and two games that explore the Pacific Theater during World War II, 1943: Race to Rabaul and Tora! Tora! Tora!
Releasing in June, Lords of Heaven focuses on the conflicts surrounding Jerusalem during the First and Second Crusades. The game pits two Christian and two Muslim powers against each other in a way that forces both rivalry and cooperation between the two competing blocs. Using a combination of area control and card placement mechanics, players raise armies to move and fight battles on the map while also investing in fortresses and temples to grow their influence.
The game was created by Aleksander Jagodzinski (Pangea) and is intended for two to four players, ages 14 and up. Games take 90 minutes or longer to play. Production of Lords of Heaven was financed through a Gamefound campaign in 2024 that raised €254,241.76 (about $284,000) from 2,687 backers (an average of €94.62 or $105.70 per backer).
1943: Race to Rabaul is a follow-up to 2023’s Keep’em Rolling: 1944 – Race to the Rhine, with the action moving to the Pacific Theater during the fraught 1943 phase of the Allied advance. In this head-to-head game for up to four players, each side must contend with lengthy supply lines and limited resources as they try to keep the momentum on their side across a vast strategic map. The game is designed for both competitive and cooperative play, with up to two players taking control of the Japanese or Allied forces.
1943: Race to Rabaul was designed by Volko Ruhnke (Fire in the Lake, Labyrinth: The War on Terror, 2001-?) and features artwork by Donal Hegarty (Unhappy King Charles).
Continuing the Pacific Theater theme is Tora! Tora! Tora!, a grand-strategy scale exploration of the Pacific War conflict for two players. Each side must balance their resources and strategy over ten rounds of play, with the Allies scoring points by securing objectives while the Japanese player tries to delay and thwart them. Players use Resource Points to power their actions, with each side earning and spending their points in different ways to create an asymmetrical conflict.
Click Gallery below to see sample components from the games.
Last year, Phalanx launched Purple Haze, its Vietnam War game (see “‘Purple Haze’ Coming to Trade”).
Source: ICv2
