Editing Axis & Allies (section)

==Revisions==
Revisions would follow shortly after the game release as the rules didn't always produce results which made sense in the context of the historical setting. For example, the abstraction of submarines fighting airplanes, initially had a restriction that the bomber was the only kind that could attack a sub. This was later revised so that all aircraft could attack submarines.

Although not the very first edition, the Milton Bradley release was the first to establish the well known game mechanics. There were three versions of the rules for the Milton Bradley games, though only the first two were included with the game itself. The third edition rules were exclusive to a computer video game [[Axis & Allies (1998 video game)|''Axis & Allies'']] by Hasbro released in 1998 and [[Axis & Allies (1998 video game)|''Axis & Allies: Iron Blitz'']] with minor additional rules released in 1999. The three editions differed by minor details. There is also a newer [[Axis & Allies (2004 video game)|RTS video game]] released in 2004, a departure from the original ''A&A: Classic'' world map and introducing several tactical battle scenarios.

The first major revision to the rules was designed by Larry Harris and [[Mike Selinker]] (who would later develop the board game ''[[Attack! (board game)|Attack!]]'' based on the experiences learned working with Harris), who tried to address many of the Milton Bradley version's shortcomings, including removing the Axis economic victory condition and the requirement of capturing enemy capitals in favor of ''victory cities'', which has been used in every revision since. With victory cities, the Axis and Allies start with an equal number of victory cities (specially labeled territories), and strive to capture enough victory cities to gain a majority of them (the size of the majority being agreed upon by the players prior to the game). This allows players to play shorter or longer games, depending upon the number of victory cities a power must control in order to claim victory.<ref>A&A Preview #4: [https://web.archive.org/web/20040623030117/http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=ah/article/ah20031223a The Price of Victory] from [[Wizards of the Coast]]</ref>

With each revision, there were also balance changes in order to make gameplay more dynamic: in the Milton Bradley edition, infantry were cheap units that tended to be most useful as defensive [[cannon fodder]], due to their token attack and slightly better defense. This had led to many areas of the game board being heavily fortified, bogging game play down to a matter of who could build more infantry faster. To counteract this, the tank, whose defense ability was equal to infantry in the Milton Bradley release, had its defensive capabilities improved in the revised edition, so as to encourage players to use [[combined arms]].<ref>A&A Preview #14 [https://web.archive.org/web/20040623025038/http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=ah/article/ah20040302a A New Tank Blitzes Into View] from Wizards of the Coast</ref> Other balance changes included altering the costs of the various units, and altering the transport capacity: in the Milton Bradley edition, transports could carry only two infantry or one of any other land unit; later revisions had transports able to carry one infantry in addition to one of any other land unit.

The variety of land and sea units was increased by introducing artillery and destroyers from ''A&A: Europe'' and ''A&A: Pacific'' to ''A&A: Revised'' edition. Artillery increased the effectiveness of infantry in attacks, while destroyers limited the usefulness of submarines and acted as a lower-cost substitute for the expensive battleship. Cruisers were introduced in ''A&A: 50th Anniversary Edition'' to effectively split the destroyer's many abilities. While destroyers continue to limit the usefulness of submarines, the stronger cruisers now act as lower cost battleships.

The game board itself was also reworked in each revision. The Milton Bradley classic release featured largely vibrant colors, while the revised version featured mainly darker tones. The 50th anniversary edition and 1942 edition has a more realistic terrain with only subtle hints of color to denote which power has initial control over a particular territory. The composition of territories was also slightly altered, for example, the number of territories between [[Berlin]] and [[Moscow]] had been increased for the revised edition, including adding many Soviet territories of strategic importance.<ref>A&A Preview #13 [https://web.archive.org/web/20040623023702/http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=ah/article/ah20040227b Brave New World] from Wizards of the Coast</ref>

Strategic bombing was altered over the years. Until the revised edition, strategic bombing caused opposing players to lose the IPCs they had on hand. The 50th anniversary edition changed this so that industrial complexes were damaged instead. Damaged industrial complexes had less capacity to produce units and can be repaired at the cost of IPCs.

Later revisions have also included changes in research (which was generally not a worthwhile investment in the Milton Bradley edition due to its high cost and low probability of success) to have more of an effect, with mixed results, ''1942 edition'' eliminates research altogether. Another feature that was implemented but was later dropped was the revised edition's "National Advantages", which represented tactics and technologies used by a specific power during the war. For example, a British ability allowed the British player to delay their combat movement until the American player's turn once per game, in order to have a coordinated attack.

Later editions had minor cosmetic changes in the playing pieces. In the Milton Bradley version, only the infantry pieces were unique to each power in appearance. Unique units was later expanded to include nearly every unit in later editions. Compared to the generic fighters of the Milton Bradley release, the [[Supermarine Spitfire]] was used in later editions to represent British fighters, the [[Mitsubishi A6M Zero]] was used to represent Japanese fighters, while two different fighters (the [[Grumman F4F Wildcat]] and the [[Lockheed P-38 Lightning]]) represented American fighters. The color scheme to associate units with powers was also standardized across all ''Axis & Allies'' series games, based on the colors used in ''A&A: Europe'' and ''A&A: Pacific'', and is different from those used in the Milton Bradley release.

In 2009, an updated version of ''Axis & Allies: Pacific'' was released, titled ''Axis & Allies: Pacific 1940''. The 10th board game in the ''A&A'' series, ''A&AP 1940'' introduced the ANZAC forces as a playable power, along with two new unit types, mechanized infantry and tactical bombers.

In 2010, an updated version of ''Axis & Allies: Europe'' was released, titled ''Axis & Allies: Europe 1940''. ''A&AE 1940'' introduced France as a playable power. Mechanized infantry and tactical bomber units continue to appear after debuting in ''A&A Pac40''. Italy also appears as a playable power in ''A&AE 1940'' after debuting in ''A&A 50''. In ''A&AE 1940'' and ''A&AP 1940'' aircraft carriers and battleships are capital ships that are damaged with 1 hit and sunk with 2 hits. Damaged CVs & BBs can be repaired by moving the damaged CV or BB to a friendly naval base for repairs. Special rules apply for fighters and tactical bombers if a CV is damaged. ''A&AE 1940'' is the 11th ''A&A'' boardgame in the series. ''A&AE 1940'' and ''A&AP 1940'' are designed to be played as separate games or may be combined into one game to create a 2-6 player global 1940 scenario, complete with separate set up and national objectives. The combined ''A&AE 1940'' and ''A&AP 1940'' maps measure 175x80 cm (70" x 32"). All 9 major powers of World War II are represented with unique unit pieces and their own unique color.