Beta release of Bolt out of the Blue V10.0.

[2-81 Armor]

Back in the day, I had the chance to set up and play a few turns (solo) of the old SPI monster game Next War.  This game covered more or less the same area as Bolt and posited a WW3 that started during the late 1970's.  At that time, the public messaging from NATO and everyone else was that the Red Beast was a huge unstoppable force that would likely only be halted by strategic nuclear war.  The USSR was assumed to be able to easily overrun West Germany in one week and perhaps send columns as far as the low countries and France. 

Playing Next War, which has a "surprise attack" mechanic somewhat like Bolt, I was surprised to see that, after the first day or so shock (when the "surprise" rules were most applicable), the Soviets and their Warsaw Pact allies immediately began to slow down and soon ground to a halt.  Warfare took on a positional nature by Day 3, partly due to mutual exhaustion but also as NATO's ample reserve forces began to enter the fray.  I was left very skeptical of the notion the USSR and Pact were going to get very deep into West Germany, much less beyond, and cognizant of mid/long term factors working for NATO (growing NATO air superiority, decreasing Soviet supply).  This was even though, as Bolt does, the game took a rather optimistic view of the willingness of the Soviet Unions' Warsaw Pact allies to contribute to such a war, especially an offensive war.

Playing Bolt leaves a similar feeling, but even more, since by 1989 NATO was measurably stronger than 1979.  Even with the "attack from barracks" approach, by the end of the first day the Warsaw Pact forces are running into real trouble - especially when coming up against first line NATO MBTs. 

If you wanted to make a "realistic" Bolt from the Blue, with the likelihood of most/all forces mobilized/mobilizing, the war would, in my opinion, rapidly turn into a mutual car wreck.  The Pact may get some minor distance into NATO territory, at huge cost, but it would be downhill from there.  It can be done, but I think to keep it as a "game" you'd need to plus up the objective hex values in NATO territory, have them set as timed, and give the Pact an "early termination" option if they manage to take enough of them.  VP levels should be set to have Pact start with more points, on the assumption that if they don't win in the first 3 days, they will need to begin shifting to defense.  It could still be an enjoyable game, since NATO now has to solve the challenge of eating through massed Pact defense lines. 

But I don't think Bolt, even with the Pact advantages it has, leads to a reasonable chance of Pact victory.  NATO just has too great a qualitative edge, and Pact numerical superiority rests on dubiously equipped allies with uncertain morale.

I also played Next War when it first came out. This was in Kirchgoens, FRG while I was in the 1st Brigade 3rd Armored Division. We tried the Tension, and then the Spring Maneuvers scenarios with much the same results that you describe. We also found the naval war to be too detailed and complicated, and the air game to be a real drag on play.

Sometimes designs attempt too much, include too much detail, and get pretty unwieldy and bloated. Next War was like that, and (I don't think this will be too popular here) Bolt Out of The Blue is also.

Don't get me wrong, the designer's attention to detail, his attempt to include almost everything imaginable in both sides projected OOB, and use of some innovative techniques are really something to be admired. I know I couldn't do even half of all that. 

The problem is that I've always felt Bolt in it's many versions was just way over the top, and to the point of being unplayable unless really dedicated teams were doing so. Maybe if it were pared down for unit count, and limited to the first week of projected combat it might be serviceable. 

I've tried the earlier versions of Bolt both in PBEM one on one, and in teamplay. The team game didn't last very long at all (many good intentions, but like a lot of team games, poor turn returns) and the PBEM attempt was pretty cumbersome after a while.

I playtested Version 10 (playing solo) for 3-4 turns, made an initial report and was prepared to continue, but never heard from the designer again. This was close to a year ago I think, and I don't believe development has ever been resumed.

I don't think a playable, and realistic NATO-Pact game covering the entire Central Front with Bn sized units and 1-3km hexes has been published yet in digital or paper format. Some of the TOAW scenarios do come close though.