COMPARE
VS
★ BATTLESHIP WINS
BATTLESHIP VS RISK
2
PLAYERS
2–6
15–30 min
PLAY TIME
2–4 hours
7+
AGE
10+
1.2 / 5
COMPLEXITY
2.1 / 5
Clifford Von Wickler (original 1931 pencil-and-paper)
DESIGNER
Albert Lamorisse
1931
YEAR
1959
6.9 / 10
COMMUNITY SCORE
6.8 / 10
BATTLESHIP VERDICT
More strategy than its reputation suggests, but a one-trick experience. Good for a single 20-minute session, exhausted after five.
RISK VERDICT
Firmly nostalgic. Pull it out for relatives who haven't played anything else in twenty years — for anything else, a modern area-control game does the same thing better.
BATTLESHIP
✓ PROS
- Real probability strategy emerges at intermediate skill
- Parity hunting (only target same-color squares) doubles your hit rate
- Cheap, fast, no setup beyond hiding ships
- Universal recognition — anyone can play
✗ CONS
- Pure luck dominates the first 5–10 shots
- Replayability is thin — same game every time
- No catch-up mechanism if opponent gets early hits
RISK
✓ PROS
- Real strategic depth (continent control, reinforcement rate)
- Universal recognition — anyone can pick it up
- Risk: Legacy is a genuinely modern, excellent reinvention
- Cheap and easy to find used
✗ CONS
- 4-hour games with player elimination kill the night
- Dice variance can overturn smart play
- Once you're out, you sit and wait
★ WHICH ONE FOR YOU?
- BATTLESHIPShorter session (15–30 min vs 2–4 hours)
- BATTLESHIPEasier to teach — complexity 1.2 vs 2.1 (RISK is heavier)
- RISKMore strategic depth — complexity 2.1 vs 1.2
- RISKScales to more players (2–6 vs 2)
- BATTLESHIPFamily-friendly — kids can play
- RISKMore modern design (1959 vs 1931)
