I used to love epic monster board wargames in my teens. Advanced 3rd Reich was my favorite, and when played along with it's companion Empire of the Rising Sun

I used to love epic monster board wargames in my teens. Advanced 3rd Reich was my favorite, and when played along with it's companion Empire of the Rising Sun could simulate all of WWII in about 80 hours or so - assuming you were completely familiar with about 2000 pages of rules and moving as fast as possible with little time for strategic thought. Realistically, it could run significantly longer. But still short enough that you could (and might want to) play it multiple times in a lifetime. (The current version, updated over the years, is called A World At War and lists a playtime of 48 hours.) Some of the very detailed air and naval tactical wargames back then could take an hour or so to simulate a few seconds or minutes of combat. I tried some of those and did not particularly enjoy them, but if a computer could help... My learning to program was significantly driven by making computer-aided-wargaming assistant software. But before long, PC wargames became more playable and I started turning to them instead. As an adult with work and family, I can't play the monsters or rivet-counters anymore. I have great memories of obsessing over them and all their details and possibilities. But even now that they're computerized, trying to fit all that information in my head, handle all the detail and micromanagement feels too much like work. Such games are works of art that provide a special place and time and some lasting memories for those who can get into them.