1862 War in Virginia was the decisive year of the Civil War, especially in Virginia. There was a real chance that the Union could have won the war early if Richmond had been taken. It was the only time during the conflict that the war could have ended in a Southern victory, had the Confederates been able to occupy Washington. Neither side accomplished these objectives, resulting in a draw in 1862.

1862 War in Virginia is a solitaire game on the Civil War campaigns in Virginia. You take the role of the Confederates against a card driven Union Artificial Intelligence (AI) player to determine the outcome of the Civil War in 1862.

Players will have to fight along the four major fronts during 1862, The Valley, Overland, The Peninsula, and The James. Can you hold the Union at bay --- and possibly take the war north of the Potomac. The decisions are yours!

On the map, there are four tracks that have advancement routes to Richmond with locations along the routes. Two of the tracks have routes that connect Washington and Richmond. Locations are circles and fortified locations are pentagons. Confederate and Union armies attempt to advance into and occupy opposing locations by attacking opposing army markers defending the location.

There are on board spaces for Confederate Reserve Attacks, as well as the Merrimac making an appearance.

The Confederate player wins the instant he is able to enter Washington with a Confederate army before the game ends. Otherwise, he can achieve a draw if the Union side does not enter Richmond by the end of the game. The Confederate player loses, and the Union side wins the instant a Union army enters Richmond before the game ends. Victory is checked when the last card is played from the draw deck.