Brilliant. Professor Sabin has produced a masterwork, one worthy to grace bookshelves that are home to Von Reisswitz's Kriegsspiel, Wells's Little Wars, Morse and Kimball's Methods of Operations Research and Schelling's The Strategy of Conflict. If you want to learn more about the unquestionably horrible but quintessentially human activity that is war, you need to read this book. -- Dr Peter Perla, Senior Research Analyst at the Center for Naval Analyses, Alexandria VA, USA and author of 'The Art of Wargaming'
In Simulating War Professor Sabin provides us with a scholarly and very useable toolkit that allows us to supplement the dry data of statistical analysis or computer simulation with the realities of human interaction and the play of Clausewitz's "chance". Wargaming is a neglected and misunderstood art in the modern military: this book does much to put that right, and should be on the shelf of any thinking military professional. -- Major General Andrew Sharpe, Director General of the Development, Concepts and Doctrine Centre, UK Defence Academy
Anyone with an interest in wargaming, be it professional or recreational, must buy this book... Simulating War is a clear, logical and balanced guide that provides all the building blocks and insights necessary to design manual games and then use them to best effect. This expert knowledge will be just as useful to military planners, trainers and educators alike, to gaming software developers, operational analysts, those in experimentation and to recreational wargamers. -- LBS Blog
Quite simply, in terms of describing manual map hex grid war gaming, Sabin has written the most readable book on this topic to appear in a long time. It is well-written, entertaining and presents a lot of original material and new ideas on war-game design. -- Times Higher Education Supplement
I recommend this book to all who are interested in the art, craft, theory and practice of board wargame design and play... Even old hands at the hobby will find Sabin's discursive mini-essays valuable. -- S&T Press
Simulating War deserves to be widely read, not only by hobbyists, but also by game designers, other wargame professionals, military historians, and others called upon to teach about warfare and conflict (whether in university, military, or other professional settings)... I, for one, would heartedly recommend [the book] to both grognards and academic colleagues alike. -- PAX Sims
