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In 1940 Fletcher Pratt's Naval War Game was first published.

The game started in New York, but other clubs formed around the USA.

Jack Coggins was invited by Pratt to participate, and recalled that Pratt's game involved dozens of tiny wooden ships — built to a scale of about one inch to 50 feet — spread over the living room floor of his apartment.

Their maneuvers and the results of their battles were calculated via a complex mathematical formula, with scale distances marked off with tape measures.

The game's popularity grew and moved to using a ballroom for games with 60 or more players aside.

The game was respected by the Naval War College and serving naval officers regularly participated in games For an evaluation of the Fletcher Pratt Game versus reality see Chapter 10 of The Fletcher Pratt Naval Wargame book.

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