AT-43: Rise and Rise Again...

My current game of choice is Rackham Entertainment's AT-43.

I was first attracted to AT-43 by it's look and the fact that all the miniatures came pre-painted. Not being much of a painter myself, the minis were painted at least as well as I could have painted them, and, in some cases, better. I really dig the fluff for AT-43, as well.

I have found the rules to be solid, for the most part. Sure, there's some fiddly stuff in there and some poorly translated bits that present some challenges. But, I've found those to be in the minority.

Back when I was running Alley Cat Games, AT-43 did really well for us. We ran games each Thursday evening and had 10-15 players at it's height. Those were fun times! A few of us still play, but most of those players have scattered and gone to other games now.

Sadly, the game has struggled to catch on with the general miniatures gaming community at large for a variety of reasons. Some hardcore gamers, due to its pre-painted nature, thought of the game more as toys than a real wargame. Others couldn't get past the translation issues or didn't care for the rules. It's an army-based sci fi miniatures game which put it in direct competition with Games Workshop's Warhammer 40K behemoth. Then there were the product delays, the near bankruptcy of the company and subsequent purchase and restructuring into what is now Rackham Entertainment. To say this game has had a bumpy history is something of an understatement.

But, here we are in 2010. AT-43 is 4 years old, and is considered "dead" by many in the gaming community - gamers and retailers alike (the a passionate and faitful remnant remains). But, it is about to rise again with AT-43 v2.0!

That's right. AT-43 2.0 rules are coming out late this year from Rackham Entertainment. Towards the end of the last cycle of product releases from Rackham was a series of Army Boxes, which contained a 2000 point, ready-to-go army. It was a great concept. From what I've read thus far, the 2.0 rules (which is more of a streamlining and clarification than a wholesale overhaul) will be based around the Army Box concept, allowing for expansions.

As an AT-43 fan, I'm very excited about the 2.0 rules. I hope this time Rackham is able to catch lightning in a bottle and the game can find the audience that it deserves.