Via Avclub.com:

When I first decided to write about Star Wars board games, I tracked down a copy of 1977’s Star Wars: Escape From Death Star at a Chicago store. The staff had to get their ladder and tallest employee to pull the dust-covered box from a pile on top of a bookcase. They didn’t know the last time it had been played. Made by the now-defunct Kenner Products, which also held the licenses for the original Star Wars action figures, Escape From Death Star is a hideous mix of Candy Land and Sorry. The winner is the first person to maneuver your characters from the trash compactor into space via a spinner and random cards that constantly push you backward.

That was a dark time for America’s board gaming industry. Fortunately, we’ve come a long way. Numerous other companies have gotten hold of the Star Wars license over the years, including West End Games, Wizards Of The Coast, and Decipher. That power currently belongs to Fantasy Flight, which has used it to develop a variety of releases that capitalize on the many different sides of Star Wars, and board games in general, that people love.

Its newest is Star Wars: Armada, which emulates the series’ large-scale space battles. The starter kit pits an Imperial Star Destroyer and supporting TIE fighters against Rebellion crafts and their X-Wing escorts. Players choose the size of their play space, litter it with obstacles like asteroids and beneficial space stations, and then try to blow each other out of the sky over the course of six rounds.

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