Operation PBSUCCESS: The 1954 Guatemalan Coup

Operation PBSUCCESS is a fast-playing solitaire game that simulates the 1954 coup of Guatemala. The player takes the role of the CIA-backed and Castillo Armas-led rebels, fighting against the Árbenz presidency. But it also models the wider Cold War political and economic issues faced by President Eisenhower’s team, his CIA leadership, the surrounding Central American countries, and even the United Nations. This card-driven game takes place through the weeks and months of early to mid-1954. The object of the player is to use political, covert, and paramilitary operations to effect regime change by isolating Árbenz and preparing rebel forces to take the capital of Guatemala City. The game system will play the role of the Árbenz government as it tries to hold on to power. —description from the designer