Yaquinto Publications

Yaquinto Publications was an American game publisher and the wargame-focused publishing arm of the Robert Yaquinto Printing Company of Dallas, Texas. It emerged in 1979, during a period when hobby gaming was expanding rapidly and professionally produced historical simulations were becoming a major part of the specialty game market. The imprint was closely associated with game designers Steve Peek and Craig Taylor, whom Robert Yaquinto hired in March 1979 after their earlier work with Battleline Publications and the subsequent difficulties surrounding Battleline's integration into Heritage USA. The company benefited from its connection to an established commercial printer. That relationship allowed Yaquinto to experiment with production quality and packaging in ways that distinguished it from many small hobby publishers. Its games were known for unusually thick cardboard counters, which were more durable and easier to manipulate than the thinner components common in contemporary wargames. Yaquinto's most recognizable production innovation was its Album Games format. These games used double-record-album jackets as packaging: the board was often printed inside the opened jacket, while the two pockets held the game components and zippered bags. The concept was designed for Yaquinto by Larry Brom, known for The Sword and The Flame. Yaquinto's principal business was historical and contemporary wargaming. Its catalog covered armored warfare, naval combat, air combat, infantry operations, American Civil War battles, and other military subjects. The Ironclads, a simulation of combat between ironclad warships during the American Civil War, was one of the company's best-regarded releases and received the Charles S. Roberts Award for Best Initial Release of 1979. The company also published The Sword and The Flame, an influential set of colonial-era skirmish rules, and early James M. Day designs including Panzer, 88, and Armor. Those titles used related systems and were viewed as technically ambitious for their period, helping establish a design lineage that anticipated the increasingly detailed military simulations later associated with computer gaming. Although wargames remained central to the imprint, Yaquinto also sought audiences beyond the specialist simulation market. Its broader board-game catalog included Neck and Neck, a horse-racing game; Market Madness, a stock-market game; and Dallas: A Game of the Ewing Family, based on the popular television series. Swashbuckler offered a more theatrical style of play, depicting individual fights in settings such as a tavern brawl or a boarding action and allowing comic actions including throwing mugs, swinging from chandeliers, or using a hat as a distraction. Other releases explored science fiction, fantasy, aviation, mythology, and general strategy. In the early 1980s, Yaquinto entered the role-playing-game market with Man, Myth & Magic and Pirates & Plunder in 1982, followed by Timeship in 1983. The expansion came as the hobby market was changing and personal computers were beginning to affect the future of simulation gaming. Yaquinto Publications closed by 1983 after only several years of operation, while the Robert Yaquinto Printing Company continued as a printing business. That printing company was acquired by Cartamundi in 2006. In 2018, Precis Intermedia acquired the rights to Man, Myth & Magic and Timeship, extending the commercial life of two of Yaquinto's role-playing properties beyond the original imprint.

Yaquinto Publications began in early 1979 as the wargame publishing division of the Robert Yaquinto Printing Company in Dallas, Texas. Its creation followed a period of disruption in the American hobby-game industry. In March of that year, Robert Yaquinto recruited Steve Peek and Craig Taylor, both experienced designers who had previously worked for Battleline Publications. Battleline had been absorbed into Heritage USA, but the hoped-for expansion did not develop as planned. Peek and Taylor consequently became part of the team that helped establish Yaquinto as a new specialist publisher. The imprint's relationship with a commercial printing company shaped both its products and its identity. Rather than relying solely on standard hobby-game manufacturing conventions, Yaquinto used its printing expertise to produce thick cardboard counters and other sturdy components. The heavier counters were particularly useful in complex wargames, where players repeatedly moved and stacked small pieces across a map. Yaquinto also developed an unusual packaging format known as Album Games. Designed by Larry Brom, the format repurposed double-record-album jackets. The inside of the jacket could contain the printed mapboard, while the two record pockets held the other components in bags. This gave the games a distinctive retail appearance and made the package itself part of the playing experience. During its first years, Yaquinto concentrated on military simulations. The 1979 catalog included games such as Battle, C.V., The Great Redoubt, Marine: 2002, Murfreesboro, Panzer, Starfall, The Sword and The Flame, The Beastlord, The Ironclads, The Thin Red Line, Time War, and Ultimatum. The Ironclads became the imprint's most celebrated early success. It modeled naval combat between ironclad warships in the American Civil War and won the Charles S. Roberts Award for Best Initial Release of 1979. The award helped establish Yaquinto as a serious participant in the historical-wargame field. Yaquinto's design range was broader than conventional battlefield simulation. Swashbuckler translated individual sword fighting into a deliberately cinematic game in which players could stage a tavern brawl or an assault aboard a sailing ship. Its action system included comic, theatrical maneuvers such as throwing drinking vessels, swinging from chandeliers, and waving a feathered hat to distract an opponent. The company was also the original publisher of The Sword and The Flame, a set of rules for colonial-era skirmishes that became an important title in the miniatures and wargaming community. The company published several early designs by James M. Day, including Panzer, 88, and Armor. These games shared a related system and pursued a level of tactical detail that was notable for their time. Their emphasis on vehicle performance, armor, and battlefield decision-making helped point toward more elaborate military simulations, including later computer-based derivatives and adaptations in the broader history of simulation gaming. The 1980 and 1981 catalogs show Yaquinto attempting to diversify. Releases included 88, Armor, Attack of the Mutants!, Beachhead, Dallas: A Game of the Ewing Family, Fast Attack Boats, Hero, Mythology, Pickett's Charge, Shooting Stars, and Swashbuckler in 1980. The following year brought Adventurer, Apache, Asteroid Pirates, Battles & Leaders, Commando Actions, Demon's Run, The Fall of South Vietnam, Market Madness, Neck and Neck, Raider!, Roaring 20's, Superiority, The Barbarians, and Wings. Some titles remained firmly within historical gaming, while others addressed aviation, science fiction, fantasy, popular culture, economics, racing, or television. In 1982, Yaquinto released Bomber, French Foreign Legion, and United Nations, while also entering the role-playing market with Man, Myth & Magic and Pirates & Plunder. Man, Myth & Magic was a Roman-themed fantasy role-playing game, while Pirates & Plunder focused on pirate adventures. Timeship, a time-travel role-playing game, followed in 1983. The expansion reflected the commercial appeal of role-playing games at the time, but it came as the economics of simulation gaming were changing. The growing influence of personal computers threatened to redirect some demand for detailed military and strategic play toward electronic formats. Yaquinto Publications closed its operations by 1983. The parent printing business survived and was later acquired by Cartamundi in 2006. The publishing imprint itself did not continue as an active company, but portions of its catalog retained commercial and historical value. In 2018, Precis Intermedia acquired the rights to Man, Myth & Magic and Timeship, allowing those two role-playing properties to be reissued or developed separately from the defunct Yaquinto imprint.

• 2018

  Selected role-playing rights change hands

  [1]Yaquinto Publicationsen.wikipedia.org

  Precis Intermedia acquires rights to Man, Myth & Magic and Timeship.

• 2006

  Cartamundi acquires the associated printing company

  [1]Yaquinto Publicationsen.wikipedia.org

  The continuing Robert Yaquinto printing business is acquired by Cartamundi.

• 1983

  The imprint ceases operations

  [1]Yaquinto Publicationsen.wikipedia.org

  Yaquinto Publications closes after a short operating history; the related printing company continues.

• 1982

  Role-playing-game expansion begins

  [1]Yaquinto Publicationsen.wikipedia.org

  Man, Myth & Magic and Pirates & Plunder mark Yaquinto's entry into role-playing games.

• 1980

  Yaquinto broadens its board-game catalog

  [1]Yaquinto Publicationsen.wikipedia.org

  The company publishes titles including Dallas, Armor, 88, and Swashbuckler, extending beyond narrowly defined historical wargames.

• 1979

  Yaquinto Publications is founded

  [1]Yaquinto Publicationsen.wikipedia.org

  The Robert Yaquinto Printing Company establishes a game-publishing arm in Dallas, initially focused on wargames.

• 1979

  Steve Peek and Craig Taylor join the new imprint

  [1]Yaquinto Publicationsen.wikipedia.org

  The two experienced designers are hired in March and help shape Yaquinto's initial catalog.

• 1979

  The Ironclads wins a Charles S. Roberts Award

  [1]Yaquinto Publicationsen.wikipedia.org

  The game receives the award for Best Initial Release of 1979.

A specialist hobby-game publisher combining historically oriented simulation design with unusually durable printed components, experimental album packaging, and occasional mass-market and role-playing releases.

• Historical naval wargame · 1979

  The Ironclads

  A simulation of combat between ironclad warships during the American Civil War. The game was one of Yaquinto's most successful and respected releases and received the Charles S. Roberts Award for Best Initial Release of 1979. Its subject combined naval history with tactical decision-making and exemplified the company's interest in detailed historical simulations.

• Colonial-era skirmish rules · 1979

  The Sword and The Flame

  A set of wargame rules for colonial-era miniature battles. Yaquinto was the original publisher of the rules, which became one of the company's most distinctive contributions to the historical gaming community. The title emphasized small-unit action rather than large operational campaigns.

• Armored warfare wargame · 1979

  Panzer

  An early James M. Day design centered on armored warfare. Panzer used a detailed system associated with other Yaquinto titles such as 88 and Armor. Its attention to tactical vehicle combat made it a notable example of the company's technically ambitious approach to military simulation.

• Military wargame · 1980

  88

  One of the early James M. Day games published by Yaquinto. It shared design lineage with Panzer and Armor and contributed to the imprint's reputation for detailed, system-driven treatments of twentieth-century armored combat.

• Armored warfare wargame · 1980

  Armor

  A James M. Day military simulation published within the same broad design family as Panzer and 88. The title focused on mechanized warfare and reflected Yaquinto's interest in games that modeled battlefield movement, armor, and tactical engagement with more detail than mainstream board games.

• Cinematic combat board game · 1980

  Swashbuckler

  A theatrical combat game depicting either a barroom fight or a boarding action on a sailing vessel. It mixed swordplay with intentionally humorous maneuvers, including throwing mugs, swinging from chandeliers, and using a feathered hat as a distraction. The design offered a lighter, more performative alternative to conventional historical wargames.

• Fantasy role-playing game · 1982

  Man, Myth & Magic

  A Roman-themed fantasy role-playing game released during Yaquinto's early-1980s attempt to enter the RPG market. It was one of three role-playing properties published by the company and later became one of the Yaquinto titles whose rights were acquired by Precis Intermedia.

• Pirate role-playing game · 1982

  Pirates & Plunder

  A role-playing game built around pirate adventures. It formed part of Yaquinto's short-lived expansion beyond board games and historical simulations into the growing RPG market of the early 1980s.

• Time-travel role-playing game · 1983

  Timeship

  A time-travel role-playing game and the last of Yaquinto's three identified RPG releases. It was published in 1983, shortly before the imprint closed, and its rights were later acquired by Precis Intermedia.

• Television tie-in board game · 1980

  Dallas: A Game of the Ewing Family

  A board game based on the Dallas television series and its fictional Ewing family. The title demonstrated Yaquinto's effort to reach a broader audience through popular-culture licensing rather than relying exclusively on specialist wargamers.

• Stock-market board game · 1981

  Market Madness

  A game themed around stock-market activity and financial speculation. Along with Neck and Neck and the Dallas tie-in, it represented Yaquinto's diversification into more accessible subjects outside military simulation.

• Horse-racing board game · 1981

  Neck and Neck

  A horse-racing game published as part of Yaquinto's broader board-game program. Its subject matter was substantially more mainstream than the company's historical combat catalog and illustrated the effort to serve different types of hobby and family-game players.

• 1983

  Close the publishing imprintOther

  Background

  The company faced a changing simulation market, including the growing influence of personal computers, after only a few years of operation.

  Action taken

  Yaquinto Publications ceased publishing by 1983, while the associated printing company continued.

  Aftermath

  The original game imprint became defunct, although individual titles and intellectual-property rights continued to circulate or change hands.

  Source

• 1982

  Enter the role-playing-game marketStrategy

  Background

  Role-playing games had become an important and expanding segment of hobby gaming by the early 1980s.

  Action taken

  Yaquinto published Man, Myth & Magic and Pirates & Plunder in 1982, then Timeship in 1983.

  Aftermath

  The RPG expansion was short-lived because Yaquinto closed its publishing operations by 1983, but rights to two of the games later moved to Precis Intermedia.

  Source

• 1980

  Broaden the catalog beyond specialist wargamesStrategy

  Background

  While historical simulation remained Yaquinto's core business, the company sought additional audiences during the expansion of the hobby-game market.

  Action taken

  It released subjects including horse racing, stock-market speculation, television entertainment, science fiction, fantasy, and cinematic combat.

  Aftermath

  The catalog became more varied, although the imprint remained identified primarily with wargames.

  Source

• 1979

  Use commercial-printing expertise to differentiate game productionStrategy

  Background

  Yaquinto operated within the Robert Yaquinto Printing Company, giving it access to production knowledge and equipment uncommon among small hobby publishers.

  Action taken

  The imprint used especially thick cardboard counters and developed distinctive Album Games packaging based on double-record-album jackets.

  Aftermath

  The approach became a defining feature of Yaquinto's products and helped distinguish the company in the wargame market.

  Source

1. 1Yaquinto Publicationsen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Yaquinto Publishing entry on BoardGameGeekboardgamegeek.com
3. 3Yaquinto Publishing entry on RPGnetrpg.net