Well after playing Back to Iraq 3 last month and now Indochina War, I've begun to realize that Joseph Miranda is one of the best game designers of his time. For years I've discarded my boardgames as just being antiques...things of the past that I might someday look at, but never actually play. But thanks to Miranda, and his latest two installments, all this has changed. Now I once again see my "antiques" as things I can actually play and enjoy once again. But now lets get on to Indochina War... The game is pretty standard wargaming faire. It includes all the classic components such as a CRT, Sequence of Play, and lots of charts/referencing. Bring a member of the "low-attention span" computer wargaming scene, I would usually say that such components were a turnoff, but Miranda puts them together in such an effective format that I would have to say anything but. All in all, this game will give you a great feeling of a "classic" wargame. I think the single hardest challenge the author faced was in putting together a system to effectively simulate Guerilla Warfare. I have seen this attempted before in games such as Vietnam, but I always felt it's rules were to complex and awkward for its own good. What I think Miranda did was take the basic concepts from such existing games, simplify and streamline them, and spew them out in a much improved format. For this game truly does give you a feel of Guerilla-type actions and warfare. The Vietminh guerillas will pick and choose their targets, taking out key bases and enemy strong points. The French will inevitably send their mechanized columns after them, be ambushed, launch a few ill-coordinated attacks, and usually disengage after high casualties. Sometimes with the assistance of heavy airpower they will manage to wipe out a unit or two. But more often then not the Vietminh will silently fade back into the jungles, and prepare to fight yet another day. The Political Point/Supply Point system is effective. It takes awhile to memorize all the costs/point modifications of various units and actions, but once done the system begins to reflect the Popular Support that both sides were so much striving for in this war. The one complaint here is that it seems the French receive way too many Political Points each turn for their occupation of cities. I have yet to complete a full campaign game, however, so I could be wrong. So the final verdict? Anyone who has an interest in guerilla warfare should BUY this game. Even those who find the subject less appealing should still give it a look, as most of the scenarios involve the more conventional stages of fighting during the war. And for those who have absolutely no interest in guerilla warfare...I'd recommend Back to Iraq 3. It is a great rendering of conventional warfare, by the same noted author. J. Pardeck