while designed primarily for two players, "midway" is an excellent candidate for an umpired multiplayer game. for example, a four-player game might divide the united states forces into the historical task forces 16 and 17 while the japanese forces could separate between the carrier group and the surface invasion force. in these games, the individual search boards are complete only for the forces under an individual player's control. communication between allied players is limited (and subject to interception) and possibilities for confusion of friendly and opposing forces exist. the umpire serves to mediate all exchange of information and conduct all dice rolls in such games.