Today’s 1960: The Making of the President Strategy Tips article is from Robert Crowter-Jones, the writer behind ElusiveMeeple, a wonderful and very useful site that provides both reviews and strategy tips for a wide variety of boardgames. Robert has reviewed 1960: The Making of the President in some depth and written Strategy Tips for the game on his blog (see the ElusiveMeeple site). For Strategy Tips on Triumph and Tragedy, see his InsideGMT article from last week.
Please note that this Strategy Tips article assumes some knowledge of 1960: The Making of the President. If you want more information on how the game plays, see Robert’s Review of 1960: The Making of the President in ElusiveMeeple, or check out our online 1960 Campaign Manual (Rulebook).
I hope you enjoy the article! – Gene
In the making of a President, one needs to know what can go right and what can go wrong – knowing the events and cards that may help or cripple you is key. If you know the other player is making a move for the South but is building to a key card, then perhaps you know how to block him. However, it will take you many games to get to that stage – for those newer to the game I would focus on:
During The Game:
Using the media; An early media lead allows you to shift the issues track each round, and that can help you build additional momentum / endorsements. It’s a very powerful tool which you can use whether or not you have the initiative. However, these cubes are hard to gain (support checks needed each time). There is one additional bonus to this strategy – these cubes are doubled when they go into the bag at the end of the game!
Seizing the initiative; Most of the time there is a clear benefit to forcing your opponent to go first – i.e. you go last and gain the advantage on the issues track. However, there are a couple of cards in your hand that you should look out for – such as gathering momentum – which would give you a reason to seize the initiative and take the first turn. Of course, it’s only your choice if two cubes of your colour come out of the bag first!
That last turn issue; In your final turn of a round (particularly going last), there is an opportunity to add to the issues track without being removed by your opponent. The issues dictate bonuses of momentum and endorsements – bonuses that can help you seize events in the next round.
Winning the debates; Winning two out of the three issues in the debates is powerful; but just as you build your own support on issues there is value in forcing your opponent to win the first issue even if that means using a card to support them – winning the latter issues is much more important. The first winner reveals their placement first and may well run out of cards to play on other issues. Taking a 7-2 lead on cubes by winning the second and third issues is a big swing; enough to remove their initial two and carry a state!
Watch out for the Midwest; New York is important, and so is Pennsylvania but picking up a handful of Midwest states can offer you a path to victory. Add California and Texas to these key areas and you can build a path to the White House. This route is probably the easiest to manage, and keeps your opponent on the move. Late game rushes for the larger states are to be expected, but build (and spread) your early votes!
Author: Robert Crowter-Jones
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