1965, Vietnam.
You arrive at the 173rd Airborne Brigade not as a frontline fighter, but as the administrative officer responsible for keeping a platoon alive on paper.
Your decisions determine everything:
– who deploys,
– who rests,
– who gets promoted,
– who goes home,
– and who will remain forever inside a personnel file.
12 Months: Vietnam is a minimalist yet emotionally heavy, paper-based military simulation inspired by historical statistics, period-accurate organization, and real wartime casualty patterns.
Your task is simple only on paper — survive your Tour of Duty while keeping your unit combat-ready.
In reality… nothing about it is simple.
Key Features
► Tour of Duty Simulation (12-Month Cycle)
Every soldier serves a 12-month tour, with optional extensions up to 3 tours — if morale allows it.
Soldiers constantly:
– arrive
– rotate out
– get wounded
– recover
– die
– change roles
– or extend their service
You must maintain a deployable platoon at all costs.
► Morale System That Truly Matters
Every decision affects morale:
– medals
– rest
– casualties
– promotions
– injuries
– deployments
Low morale collapses the entire unit.
High morale boosts survival — but nobody is bulletproof.
► Injuries and Consequences
– Three wounds = automatic discharge
– Severe wounds = permanent removal from duty
– Every death lowers morale and adds pressure on you
► Promotions & Qualifications
Wartime cares nothing for protocol.
If a leader is needed, even a fresh replacement may be promoted instantly.
The machine must keep turning.
► Paper-Based Presentation
The entire game takes place inside the administrative reality of the platoon:
– dossiers
– reports
– assignment boards
– personnel files
– wounded and casualty logs
No combat.
No cinematics.
Just the quiet horror of paperwork in war.
► A System Built on Chain Reactions
Every choice ripples outward:
→ bad choises
→ more injuries
→ morale collapse
→ an undeployable unit
→ you are relieved from duty
Every campaign is different:
– different casualties
– different outcomes
Infinite replayability — with a finite number of men.
► You Can Send Them Out — But You Can’t Bring Them Back
The game offers:
no reload
no undo
no alternate saves
Every choice is final.
This Is Not…
Not an action game
Not a shooter
Not a power fantasy
This is a responsibility–morale–decision simulator, depicting the most invisible yet most brutal side of war: the administrative burden of keeping a unit alive.
The game does not depict:
– civilian casualties
– graphic violence
– real historical tragedies
– war crimes
Everything occurs within fictionalized military structures.
Content Warning
Themes include:
– war and military loss
– stress and moral decline
– administrative pressure
– failure and monotony
No blood or graphic violence.
Flashing effects can be disabled.
About the Developer
12 Months: Vietnam was created by a solo indie developer with a background in law enforcement.
The goal is not to glorify war, but to reveal its unseen side — where paperwork decides who goes home and who does not.
Your Mission
– Serve your Tour of Duty
– Keep the platoon alive
– And try to keep your conscience intact
