The Berlin Crisis was the culmination of a series of events that heated up the Cold War. Following the Bay of Pigs fiasco and the inconclusive Vienna Conference, Khrushchev saw Kennedy as a weak and inexperienced leader. He used this as an opportunity to solve the unresolved and aggravating problem: Berlin. East Germans were escaping to the West weekly by the thousands, creating economic chaos. A solution had to be reached. This led to Khrushchev's ultimatum demanding the withdrawal of Western armed forces from West Berlin and later, the construction of the Berlin Wall. Events continued to escalate to the point where opposing troops faced each other down gun barrels at Checkpoint Charlie. NATO 1961 is a simulation of the potential for war in Germany, covering events that could have led to World War Three. Players assume the roles of President John F. Kennedy and the NATO powers or Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev and the Warsaw Pact general staffs. Confronted with the crisis, players can manage the conflict at a limited level or escalate it to full-out war between the Superpowers. The 17"x22"map covers the Central Front including both East and West Germany as well as part of Czechoslovakia, France and the Low Lands. The 240 1/2" counters (die-cut and back-printed) show regimental, brigade and divisional level forces of the NATO and the Warsaw Pact.