World in Flames, it's not a game, it's a hobby in a box!

Update - 18 November 2024! The 2024 print of the World in Flames the Collector's edition game and all its expansions (Divisions in Flames, Planes in Flames, Ships in Flames and Territories in Flames) is now available.

Due to a large increase in the printing charges and the reduction in the value of the Australian$ we will unfortunately have to increase the Australian$ price on release. However as a special intro offer we will keep the cost at the current Australian$ price until the new year.

Thank you for your support for our games.

*************************

It is the dawn of September 1939, and the dark clouds of war hover over the globe. China and Japan have already been fighting for more than 2 years and now a Continental war is about to spread worldwide, a World in Flames

You, as leader of your nation, must guide your country through its darkest days, enhancing your economy, working with allies, building the units you need and then employing them effectively to defeat your manifold foes.

World in Flames shows the entire world. and is itself the world's biggest boardgame.

In 1985 Australian Design Group launched what would become the definitive international award winning game of World War II, World in Flames. Now after 32 years we are giving you the greatest strategy game ever.

From the snowy wastes of the arctic to the deserts of Africa and the Jungles of the Pacific; armies,

navies

and air flotillas

contest the air sea and sky to liberate subject peoples from their wicked overlords.

On any one day you might be fighting on the shores of Normandy, defending your capital, struggling amongst the snows of Russia, or launching carrier strikes in a life-or-death struggle for control of your sea lanes.

World in Flames also includes the fog of war particularly in relation to navies

where you can hide your units on the Task Force display and send out a task force that could be a carrier fleet or just a scouting cruiser. There is one way to find out, but that can be very painful.

But battle is just one demand on your skills. You must also plan for your future. World in Flames allows you to produce everything you did historically or to change your mix depending on your cunning long-term plans to defeat your foes.

Do you need fleets or armies and if so what kind of fleets and what sort of armies? Carriers to dominate the seas, cruisers for scouting or submarines to become your silent killers, As for armies, do you need a small elite army or a large militia to hold what you can until your allies intervene, and the fortunes of war swing crushingly in your favour.

Speaking of allies, you need to flatter your potential partners, plan with your allies

and negotiate with your potential enemies

to ensure that when the blow comes it will be you dictating the terms and not your foes.

But Allies is a purely relative term, and only one country can emerge from this epic struggle truly strong and free. Is this to be your century?

Based on thousands of hours of research, plans and top secret technical data and input from over 10 million hours of playtest data, World in Flames is the definitive strategic game of World War II.

With 5 hard-mounted maps and 4800 counters, World in Flames Collector's Edition Deluxe game is one of the largest published boardgames in history, with unlimited fun, strategy and replayability. The incredible depth of detail in terrain and units, from the most common,

to the most exotic,

has never been paralleled.

World in Flames is the ultimate gaming challenge. Are you game to play?

*************************

Please note that everything in the World in Flames Deluxe Collector's edition game is new.

The World in Flames Collector’s Edition Deluxe game consists of:

• the World in Flames Collector’s Edition Classic game; and
  
• the World in flames Collector's edition Deluxe expansion set;

for a total of 5 hard-mounted maps. a hard-mounted turn record chart (including Production circle), hard-mounted task-force display, 4800 counters, 2 full-colour rule books and 5 colour charts. The full contents description can be downloaded here.

*************************

But wait there's more, all owners of the World in Flames Collector's edition Classic or Deluxe game receive a 40% discount off the recommended retail price (Australian$79) of the World in Flames Collector's edition (Virtual) companion (includes high quality images of all the counters, maps and rules graphics and text as well as all the technical data and production specs on all the combat aircraft and naval units of world war II), available now.

To gain the discount please type in the notes section of your cart containing the order for the Virtual companion "WiFCE game owner, 40% discount please" to receive the companion for only Australian$47.40 (ignore what shoppify charges, it is just a hold on your card, the amount is only debited after your order is processed by ADG).

 *************************

What is included in the 2024 World in Flames collector's edition game?

Maps

1) fixed up the PatiF middle east borders so they run along the hexsides (the originals were slightly misaligned) and gave Aqaba direct access to the Asian map

2) added the Shetland Islands and the port of Lerwick (considering the microscopic atolls we include in the Pacific, a shocking omission from the original maps, no wonder we have so few sales to the Shetland Islands)

3) added the Greek coastal rail line and the port of Alexandroupoli

4) added the Philippine rail line

5) changed the alpine hexes marginally in the North Italian alps to better represent the Tyrol (at least according to a tyrolean skier, don't blame me if they are wrong), 

6) moved the arctic zone weather name on the American mini-map to show it more clearly and

(7) made small adjustments to make distances more accurate, e.g. moving the Faroes Is so they lie between the on-map and off-map areas (they are still an off-map hex but are now 6 movement points closer to Britain than they were to make them their actual distance apart), and

8) generally tidied up the map to make it more aesthetically pleasing (e.g. see Stavanger above) and clearer (like make the inlets wider and deeper so that all-sea hexsides are more obvious, e.g. see the inlet next to Hull above) and added a few more island names (some of which you can see off Norway above).

Counters

1) added in all the errata and new units included in WiFCE countersheet 55 (which is why CS 55 is now redundant and WiFCE Deluxe only includes 4800 counters)

2) added a RES Soviet 6-1 Garr to CS 3.

3) made the two NKVD divisions airdroppable (like the CW 51st airlanding) and the Soviet 2-5 Mech division marine capable on CS 50.

Rules and charts

Printed the September 2024 living rules and charts, the latest version of these which can be downloaded from the downloads section of this site.

*************************

Note to all immortals, I have increased the font of your names and initial on the aircraft and ships. For surface ships they went from approximately (in all cases there is some variance depending on the shape and size of the ship or plane I had to work with, basically the bigger the shape, the bigger the names or initials) 0.6 pt to 0.9 pt (and some like the Queens up to 2 pt), the CVs, from 0.8 to 1.2 pt, the names on aircraft wings from 1.6 pt to 2.2 pt and the initials on the fuselage from 2.3 pt to 3.2 pt. They will still be tiny but should now be more easily viewable with the naked eye on the aircraft at least.

If you are an immortal and purchase any World in Flames Collector's edition re-printed game or expansion you will receive an additional 10% off any discounted price (including the pre-release price) or 25% off the recommended retail price, whichever is greater. To receive your immortal discount, simply add a note in your cart on checkout saying "WiFCE immortal, discount please" and I will apply the discount when I process your order (ignore what shoppify charges, it is just a hold on your card, the amount is only debited after your order is processed by ADG).

 *************************

During our hour of peril, and if you ignore the other 57 Headquarters included in World in Flames, few were finer than Australia's finest:

(just one of 4800 counters, note to self, never design another 4800 counter game again, if that's ok by you Harry).