Coming Soon to iOS
A Strategic Crisis Simulation

First Island Chain

What happens when the world's most dangerous flashpoint finally erupts — and you're the one who has to respond?

The Western Pacific is the theater that keeps defense planners and world leaders awake at night — the flashpoint where great power competition could tip into something far worse. In First Island Chain, that crisis has arrived. You are the US President, and every decision you make has consequences.

App Store — Coming Soon
Six Scenarios. Six Different Crises.
Taiwan Strait Crisis. PLA troops are already on the beaches. Every minute you delay, they consolidate. Escalate too fast, and you lose the coalition.
South China Sea Flashpoint. China seized Scarborough Shoal and is daring you to take it back. Beijing is betting you won't fight over a shoal — and your allies aren't sure either.
Northern Escalation. China encircles the Senkakus while North Korea launches missiles into the Sea of Japan. Two crises, finite forces, and you don't know if they're coordinating.
Blockade. Submarines dominate the chokepoints. Container ships turned back at gunpoint. Every turn the blockade holds, Taiwan weakens. Time is on their side.
The Quarantine. Eighty coast guard vessels enforce "safety inspections" around Taiwan. Fire first and you're the aggressor. Do nothing and Taiwan suffocates.
First Strike. A coordinated missile barrage hits US bases across the Pacific. Warhead type uncertain. You must decide retaliatory scope while the nuclear question hangs over everything.
You are the President, and there are no good choices.
About

The Pentagon and war colleges run crisis simulations about a great power conflict in the Western Pacific. I wanted to explore what those scenarios actually feel like when you're the one making the decisions. That game didn't exist — so I built one, using AI to help develop the simulation.

First Island Chain is a solo indie project. It is not a AAA production and doesn't pretend to be. It's an attempt to capture the weight and complexity of these decisions in a way that's genuinely engaging to play — and it's still evolving. I'm actively developing based on player feedback, especially on finding the right balance between realism and fun. If something doesn't work right or doesn't feel right, I want to hear about it.

Camp Clipper Games is named after a WWII training camp in the Mojave Desert, part of General Patton's Desert Training Center. We aspire to make strategy games that take complex systems seriously.

Questions or feedback? hello@campclippergames.com