# Ogre, G.E.V., Wizards. Anyone play these? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 13, 2001, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ogre-g-e-v-wizards-anyone-play-these/87162 "2001-10-13T00:30:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ogre-g-e-v-wizards-anyone-play-these/87162/1 "2001-10-13T00:30:03Z")
These games were sold in a Baggie®. Well, actually, they were sold in a plastic pouch in the late 1970s. There were 8.5" x 11" maps folded into quarters, and little cardboard playing pieces. Ogre and G.E.V. were futuristic tank battle games, with the “Ogre” being a large, 45-tracked dreadnaught. G.E.V. was an expansion to Ogre. Wizards was a similar sword-and-sorcery game. Did anyone play these? Does anyone still play them? I still have my original pieces (but not the map or instructions) for Ogre. I also recently bought a re-issue of Ogre/G.E.V. in a VHS-sized box. But there is no one to play with. (Ah, I don’t have the time anyway.) ---
**Author:** ![Narile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@Narile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Narile)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ogre-g-e-v-wizards-anyone-play-these/87162/2 "2001-10-13T00:32:09Z")
I was more a CarWars type person than Ogre, but I do remember Ogre. Have you seen the new stuff at SJGames? Get a bit of a kick from the Ogrethulu suppliment…as if an Ogre wasn’t allready bad enough. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ogre-g-e-v-wizards-anyone-play-these/87162/3 "2001-10-13T05:26:48Z")
Ogre/GEV was/is a great little wargame. Simple rules, simple idea, fast paced, yet with enough complexity for some good flavor. Melee and Wizard were one on one battle games that formed the basis for Steve Jackson’s first RPG, The Fantasy Trip. I had all the solitaire adventures for that. And of course, The Fantasy Trip suitably modified became the basis for GURPS. It was kind of weird reading the GURPS rulebook when it first came out and seeing all these concepts from this little tiny game that came in a baggie! ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ogre-g-e-v-wizards-anyone-play-these/87162/4 "2001-10-13T05:37:05Z")
Ogre, G.E.V., Melee, Wizard, Car Wars - these bring back fond memories. I also had Hymenoptera (sp?) and Battlesuit. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ogre-g-e-v-wizards-anyone-play-these/87162/5 "2001-10-13T06:03:29Z")
I thought someone had finally posted an appreciation thread for little ol’ me for a sec. Oh well. ---
**Author:** ![Santos\_L\_Halper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/santos_l_halper/32/1_2.png) [@Santos\_L\_Halper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santos_L_Halper)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ogre-g-e-v-wizards-anyone-play-these/87162/6 "2001-10-13T12:59:12Z")
Yep, used to play the Ogre and GEV board games. There was a version for the Commodore 64 too, that was kind of cool. There was a similar game called **the Perfect General** that I played all the time on my 286 computer. I don’t know if it was actually based on a board game, but it used hex maps and was turn based. There were a bunch of different types of ground vehicles (mostly tanks) and artillery. It came with all kinds of cool scenarios to play. Eric ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2001, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ogre-g-e-v-wizards-anyone-play-these/87162/7 "2001-10-13T16:12:03Z")
**Melee**! _That’s_ the one I couldn’t remember! Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2001, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ogre-g-e-v-wizards-anyone-play-these/87162/8 "2001-10-14T03:18:07Z")
Chitin was the first thing I ever got from Metagaming. Now THAT was a cool game. Armies of giant bugs scrambling to bring in the harvest for the hive…and the dead bodies of the slain just add to the food stores! Although with the facing and ZOC rules made it much less fast-paced than OGRE/GEV. The “Fantasy Trip” RPG had all the stats for the various castes of hymenoptera, which was supercool. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2001, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ogre-g-e-v-wizards-anyone-play-these/87162/9 "2001-10-14T12:44:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Little Nemo \* > \*\*Ogre, G.E.V., Melee, Wizard, Car Wars - these bring back fond memories. I also had Hymenoptera (sp?) and Battlesuit. \*\* I had all of the above, & taught my brothers to play. We all got started on wargaming with these. Sweet memories & many a happy , rainy, Sunday afternoon. Thanks for the massive hit of nostalgia. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![AndrewL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@AndrewL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndrewL)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2001, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ogre-g-e-v-wizards-anyone-play-these/87162/10 "2001-10-14T16:29:58Z")
Anyone else ever play “Awful Green Things from Outer Space”? ---
**Author:** ![Jeu\_D\_esprit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/67e7ee/32.png) [@Jeu\_D\_esprit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeu_D_esprit)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2001, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ogre-g-e-v-wizards-anyone-play-these/87162/11 "2001-10-15T04:18:55Z")
Ahhh, Ogre and GEV…such memories (and heavy artillery) that brings back. Another one I liked was “Invasion of the Air Eaters.” Anyone play their descendants? The whole line of Cheap Ass Games come from them. Not quite as much fun though, but perhaps because I’m older. Oh well. ---
**Author:** ![Jeu\_D\_esprit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/67e7ee/32.png) [@Jeu\_D\_esprit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeu_D_esprit)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2001, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ogre-g-e-v-wizards-anyone-play-these/87162/12 "2001-10-15T04:29:37Z")
Ahhh, Ogre and GEV…such memories (and heavy artillery) that brings back. Another one I liked was “Invasion of the Air Eaters.” Anyone play their descendants? The whole line of “Cheap Ass Games” come from them. Not quite as much fun though, but perhaps because I’m older. Oh well. ---
**Author:** ![Ferrous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Ferrous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferrous)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2001, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ogre-g-e-v-wizards-anyone-play-these/87162/13 "2001-10-15T19:55:53Z")
Ah yes. I used to love Ogre and GEV. Car Wars is okay, but a bit too involved for me. (It takes like three hours to play a 2 minute battle.) Another great SJ game: Illuminati! > [@](#): > > Anyone else ever play “Awful Green Things from Outer Space”? I did! That was a great one too. How about “Snit’s Revenge”?