As part of our ongoing cooperation with Sound of Drums, we once again had the opportunity to present our Assault system at Spiel Essen ’25. Our team was a bit smaller this year, since Michael unfortunately had to stay home for personal reasons.
Spoiler: He’s already planning to return in 2026!
Full of excitement, my friend Erich and I hit the road early Thursday morning for the drive to Essen. Uwe and the team had already been busy in the days before, setting up the exhibition area. After about eight hours on the highway, we arrived in Mülheim an der Ruhr, checked into our hotel, and got ready for the days ahead.
Friday morning – the big moment! Time to dive into the world of board games.
We headed out early to secure a parking spot in a nearby garage, which went smoothly. With our exhibitor badges, we could skip the long visitor lines and enter the halls directly. At our booth, we unpacked our newest module, “Primosole Bridge Expansion” – part of the Assault: Sicily ’43 line. It’s always thrilling to see a new module for the first time in physical form and check if all the print details turned out just right. This time, we were more than happy – Primosole looked fantastic from the first glance. We set up a smaller scenario to be ready for the first visitors. The “Battle of Essen” could begin!
By the time the doors opened at 10 a.m., the first guests were already lining up – and who were the very first to appear at our Sound of Drums booth? None other than the well-known faces from The Players Aid, Grant Kleinhentz and Alexander Klein. We finally met in person – live and in color! Handshakes, smiles, and a good chat. I have to say, these guys are exactly as you know them from their videos: authentic, down-to-earth, and passionate board- and wargame fans. Exactly what connects all of us in this hobby.
Since this was their very first visit to Germany and Spiel Essen, I had prepared a little gift: printed plaques featuring both covers of Red Horizon ’41 – the original first-edition design and the brand-new one. We signed them for each other so both Assault Games and The Players Aid could take home a keepsake from “good old Germany.” What a start to the convention!
The rest of the day was packed with demo sessions of our Assault system – dice were flying, tanks and infantry units moved across the map nonstop. We also spent a lot of time chatting with players and answering questions about the game. The Players Aid even recorded a long interview with us, which will soon be available online – you’ll definitely want to check that out for some exciting news!
Saturday Highlights
One of my personal highlights came when Grant and Alex asked if we could prepare a Primosole Bridge battle for Saturday morning – they wanted to play it in more depth. Of course, we didn’t hesitate for a second. We were up bright and early, setting up a small but intense scenario around 8 a.m. A little later, the game began, moderated by Erich and me. Alex took command of the British attackers, while Grant defended with his Fallschirmjäger.
Already in the first round, Alex learned that smoke grenades can save lives – because Grant played true to Patton’s motto: “…there is only attack, and attack, and attack some more.” His Service Troops (makeshift units like kitchen, workshop, or radio personnel) were thrown in front of the British tanks. In a desperate melee, German paratroopers tried to take out Alexander’s Valentine tank – unsuccessfully. Dice rolled, casualties mounted. After nearly two hours, the game ended with a hard-fought British victory. A thrilling and intense match – both players agreed! Honestly, after such praise, Erich and I could’ve gone home right then – just kidding! We’re incredibly grateful that the two of them took so much time to play with us.
The rest of Saturday was just as lively. We met many curious visitors – veteran wargamers and complete newcomers alike. The striking box art often caught people’s attention: “That looks like an old Hollywood war movie poster – I had to check this out!” Our Art Director, Marc von Martial, truly nailed the look.
We also welcomed our long-time friend Michal from The Boardgame Chronicles at the booth again. As always, it was great to catch up. Michal wanted to learn more about Primosole Bridge and our upcoming projects before exploring the rest of the halls. He’s an incredible supporter of the Assault system – and we were especially proud to hear that in his home country, Poland, our games are now played regularly at the country’s biggest wargame convention. That kind of news really motivates us!
The day ended on a high note – the few remaining copies of Primosole Bridge Expansion sold out completely. We wrapped up the evening with a dinner shared among friends: colleagues from Norway (Aegis Games – Europa Universalis), the U.S. (Grant & Alex), and Poland (Michal). The perfect ending to a long but rewarding day.
Sunday – Closing Day
Thanks to the daylight-saving-time shift, Sunday started an hour later – and we were grateful for it! Still motivated, we returned to our Sound of Drums booth. Early in the morning, Erich and I took the chance to wander around and visit other halls. This year, Spiel Essen featured seven full halls of gaming goodness – enough to lose yourself for an entire lifetime. Back at our booth, we had to “reset” our brains from the visual overload and focus again on the steady stream of visitors.
Soon, we were joined by two familiar faces – wargamers from the UK who had picked up Sicily ’43 last year. They wanted to share their experiences and take a closer look at Primosole. For British players, a must-have module, of course. I explained the new campaign covering the four-day battle around the bridge, and soon we were rolling dice again. Their feedback on Sicily ’43 was fantastic: they called the Assault system “brilliant” – a great balance of realism and playability, better than many other tactical games they’ve played for years. We discussed future ideas, system refinements, and different design approaches – a great and inspiring conversation! And, as tradition demands, we took our annual photo after they picked up their new module to take home to the UK.
Later that afternoon, two passionate Assault fans from Germany dropped by. They told us about the Wargame Convention in Braunfels this year, where Sicily ’43 was played in campaign mode over four days – with great enthusiasm and emotion! They already plan to feature it again next year. Together we discussed feedback and new ideas to make the Assault system even better. During our chat, we even developed a cool new concept for a future module – something truly unique for a tactical game. But for now, I’ll keep that under wraps… many thanks to both for the great discussion and inspiration! Of course, they didn’t leave without their Primosole Bridge Expansion – and another traditional photo.
Time flew by way too fast. With an “all-hands-on-deck” maneuver, we packed down the booth in record time. One last photo, a few firm handshakes – and just like that, the Sound of Drums booth was history.
See you again at Spiel Essen 2026 – October 22 to 26!
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