Well, having Slaine and his family square off against Dredd say awkwardly with me. That would have sat awkwardly with teams of perps or rogue Block Defence units or, better yet, the Dark Judges. But it felt more like an excuse to roll with Wildland’s mechanic of picking up shards for points. It seems this was loosely inspired by a story from the comics, Helter Skelter. However iconic they were in their own right, I couldn’t square up with the idea of Slaine, Strontium Dog and Nikolai Dante all being in Mega-City One. But why was Mean Machine Angel standing with them, instead of with his own villainous family as their own faction? And why were the teams arrayed against them from other 2000ad strips? Yes, there were some stunning ink-washed figures of Dredd and a team of judges. Yes, there was a board illustrated in fine cartoon style with futuristic scenery.

On lifting the lid, though, that’s not what I found.

That game’s mix of close-quarters skirmish combat should be a great fit for a Block War or some perp busting action on some of Mega-City One’s cramped plazas. But it was doubly so to see, above his helmet, the Wildlands logo that belongs on one of the best titles from 2018. So it was exciting enough to get a box with ol’ stony face glowering out from the box. Judge Dredd is too iconic to stay away from gaming tables for long.

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