|
After receiving a minor correction to one of the OPs (thank you to the goon who reached out via PM), I went over the recommendation OP and changed a few things that I won't bore you with. In the course of that, I started wondering if we should also include some information on solo games, as they are becoming a much larger of the board gaming landscape than it was even 5 years ago. I could write up a description of how they work generally, but I have not played any yet. If people have goon-approved solo board gaming suggestions, I'd be interested to hear them. They will have to probably rise to a certain level of general availability and acclaim to be useful recommendations to newer gamers, so something like Rocky Mountain Main might not make it, cool as it sounds.
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 10:04
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 1, 2024 02:34 |
|
|
CitizenKeen posted:Oh nan, I’m sorry. You talked about those a lot. It's fine. I'm sure there'll be another KS and I can always pick them up later. Have to wait to see if they will offer a refund as well
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 10:08
|
|
|
Has anyone played Fantasy Realms? Seems like a nice silly rummy-like filler for small gatherings. There is a deluxe version coming this fall with an expansion included and I'm thinking about ordering it.
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 11:10
|
|
|
I enjoy it, but I'm not sue the central gameplay of point optimisation is fun for everyone. I've not played the expansion.
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 11:16
|
|
|
High Tension Wire posted:Has anyone played Fantasy Realms? Seems like a nice silly rummy-like filler for small gatherings. There is a deluxe version coming this fall with an expansion included and I'm thinking about ordering it. I played like 8 or so games of it (3 with the new epansion cards) and enjoyed it enough. Rounds are fast so if you loose it doesn't really matter. Just play another round. Only thing that can be annoying is the time the scoring can take. There is an app for it which speeds things up. Without it the scoring sometimes feels longer then the game itself.
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 11:18
|
|
|
Magnetic North posted:After receiving a minor correction to one of the OPs (thank you to the goon who reached out via PM), I went over the recommendation OP and changed a few things that I won't bore you with. In the course of that, I started wondering if we should also include some information on solo games, as they are becoming a much larger of the board gaming landscape than it was even 5 years ago. I could write up a description of how they work generally, but I have not played any yet. Solo only, or games well suited to solo? The former is going to be a lot of wargamey stuff, though there's a new game coming out from Hollandspiele about recovering from brain trauma that sounds fascinating and horrifying at the same time, and a few others like Nemo's war. The latter, there's a whole host of stuff, ranging from coops (spirit island I've heard is one of the best here) to mage knight (probably my favorite) to euros that simply have a solo mode like a feast for Odin.
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 11:21
|
|
|
High Tension Wire posted:Has anyone played Fantasy Realms? Seems like a nice silly rummy-like filler for small gatherings. There is a deluxe version coming this fall with an expansion included and I'm thinking about ordering it. I play it with my son all the time and it’s great, only takes a few minutes. The scoring app (its a webpage though not something you download) is vital and it would be half as fun without it.
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 11:44
|
|
|
Also solo-only: Heavy: Navajo Wars and Comanchería. Medium: Thunderbolt Apache Leader (/ Hornet Leader) Medium-Light: Under Falling Skies, Warp's Edge Light: Food Chain Island, Deep Space D6, Four Against Darkness
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 11:49
|
|
|
Thanks for the quick replies 'bout Fantasy Realms! I think I'll get just the base game, since reviews of the expansion are quite mixed.
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 14:04
|
|
|
Thirding that Fantasy Realms is a good filler game but the scoring app on the website is required because the math is otherwise very time consuming.
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 14:06
|
|
|
silvergoose posted:Solo only, or games well suited to solo? Either. We have 2 player suggestions that aren't 2 player only.
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 15:13
|
|
|
High Tension Wire posted:Thanks for the quick replies 'bout Fantasy Realms! I think I'll get just the base game, since reviews of the expansion are quite mixed. it's not a good game to play with people who want to math out their best moves, because they can with this game. Unlike Five Tribes, though, both the game and the math take less time, so it's less offensive.
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 16:29
|
|
|
homullus posted:it's not a good game to play with people who want to math out their best moves, because they can with this game. Unlike Five Tribes, though, both the game and the math take less time, so it's less offensive. I will go to bat for Five Tribes that as someone who is a long-time sufferer and enjoyer of AP, it's not that bad. Maybe at the beginning it can seem overwhelming but your choices are usually clear and the most mathing being done is figuring out how to bid properly to grab that sick set up left behind by the dummy who went last. Dummy!
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 17:02
|
|
|
Infinitum posted:It's fine. I'm sure there'll be another KS and I can always pick them up later. Eagle-gryphon has their "kickstarter deluxe" games at retail, so all you'll miss is the price discount for preordering/backing. It's like a $30 difference
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 17:05
|
|
|
FulsomFrank posted:I will go to bat for Five Tribes that as someone who is a long-time sufferer and enjoyer of AP, it's not that bad. Maybe at the beginning it can seem overwhelming but your choices are usually clear and the most mathing being done is figuring out how to bid properly to grab that sick set up left behind by the dummy who went last. Agreed. If you play it with AP people it can be bad, but no worse than any other game and I played it with some people the other day it went as quickly as you'd like. Don't hate the game, hate the player (who you probably shouldn't play ANYTHING with)
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 17:10
|
|
|
I will continue to hate the game.
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 17:33
|
|
|
Hate the gamer don't hate the game
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 17:36
|
|
|
Magnetic North posted:After receiving a minor correction to one of the OPs (thank you to the goon who reached out via PM), I went over the recommendation OP and changed a few things that I won't bore you with. In the course of that, I started wondering if we should also include some information on solo games, as they are becoming a much larger of the board gaming landscape than it was even 5 years ago. I could write up a description of how they work generally, but I have not played any yet. goon approved : https://melodice.org soundtracks for games add to op tia
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 17:36
|
|
|
homullus posted:it's not a good game to play with people who want to math out their best moves, because they can with this game. Unlike Five Tribes, though, both the game and the math take less time, so it's less offensive. Yeah, figuring out math problems is not really my favourite thing in games, but luckily Fantasy Realms is pretty silly theme-wise, so at least it isn't dry. Also luckily my group doesn't really have anyone with severe analysis paralysis. That reminds me - I still have my unplayed copy of Five Tribes! Should really get that on the table some time.
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 19:01
|
|
|
FulsomFrank posted:I will go to bat for Five Tribes that as someone who is a long-time sufferer and enjoyer of AP, it's not that bad. Maybe at the beginning it can seem overwhelming but your choices are usually clear and the most mathing being done is figuring out how to bid properly to grab that sick set up left behind by the dummy who went last. I want to separate people with AP and people who always determine their greatest mathematical advantage (maybe it's AP, maybe it's competitiveness), because my experience with AP-havers is that they feel its effects even when they literally cannot actually determine their optimal play. Many games have too many unknowns! You may well be right that Five Tribes is not that bad for people with AP; for me, the game is intolerable to play with people who have to math out their turn. They can't start their math until their turn starts. Add to that the misplaced depth of the Djinns, and the game easily earns a place on my Never Play Again list.
|
|
#
?
May 25, 2022 20:01
|
|
|
Ausgoons  I'm selling a bunch of stuff on the Board Games of Oz Marketplace, cause my PC has blown up and yeah... Need a new pc Hit me up if you want the link. I'm selling: Western Empires Root + Root Marauders KS Edition Xia Legends of a Drift System KS Edition Tiny Epic Dungeons KS Edition /w Boss Meeples Tiny Epic Pirates KS Edition Twilight Struggle Deluxe 7th Edition Mini Express Dune Catan Arkham Horror LCG Base Micro City KS Edition Poetry for Neanderthals Ticket to Ride New York Throw Throw Burrito What Do You Meme Aussie Edition Codenames Pandemic Hot Zone North America Avalon Railroad Ink Blazing Red Edition
|
|
#
?
May 26, 2022 12:54
|
|
|
Rockman Reserve posted:Does anyone have any thoughts about 60 Second City? It’s currently stupidly cheap at Target and I’m always on the prowl for lighter 2p games to play with my spouse. Repostin’ this cuz it came near the bottom of a page during another discussion.
|
|
#
?
May 26, 2022 18:47
|
|
|
Rockman Reserve posted:Repostin’ this cuz it came near the bottom of a page during another discussion. I’ve tried it, it makes for a real cute time filler and although the game isn’t deep the production is great. E: It’s Between Two Cities’s dumb sporty brother, if that makes sense.
|
|
#
?
May 26, 2022 20:05
|
|
|
my copy of the root marauders KS came in today. I remember when I kickstarted it thinking "it will be fun to celebrate the end of the pandemic with this game" 
|
|
#
?
May 26, 2022 20:23
|
|
|
I've got the kickstarter version of Return to Dark Tower and several plays under my belt. So here's my review. Components. Something I don't normally do, but whatever possessed me 2 years ago, I sprang for whatever deluxe version that kickstarter offered with all the bells and whistles. They do not disappoint. This is one the most gorgeous games that I've played. I'm no collector or connoisseur of miniatures, but they look and feel exquisite, expensive, and exciting. They inspire me to paint them, or at least put in the man hours to learn how. Are they necessary? Absolutely not, which is why they are in their own superfluous expansion. Likewise the deluxe acrylic coffers tokens have a good weight to them that is a joy to handle. Totally unnecessary, but welcome none the less since I happen to have them. I also got the larger neoprene map which is also both beautiful and spacious. I'm very much a fan of neoprene over cardboard, and recommend it if you are going with the miniatures which are bulkier than the standard cardboard tokens. The rest of the tokens and cards are fairly standard, as good as you would find in a higher quality boardgame these days. The one complaint that I would have here is that I don't care for the player character cards which are large 8x11 cardstock mats. They're a lot less functional that I would like for being such an awkward size. It's the only weak point in the component design. Tower. The big central piece of the game that requires it's own discussion. It's the whole point of this decadent production. How intricate are the mechanics of it? Well, not that much actually. The internals of it are rather simple all said. It basically has LEDs, a sound board, infra-red sensors, and some rotating gears/chambers. Otherwise, it's a glorified cube tower, which is not necessarily a knock. But do understand that it's not some 8th wonder of the board gaming world. For what it is, it does its job well. It sits at the center of the board, dominating the map, always drawing your attention. At the end of every turn, you must drop a skull into the tower and you grit your teeth as this glowing angry tower starts whirring and hissing. It's a spectacle alright! It's the IMAX 3D equivalent of a boardgame experience. After four 2-ish hour games, the app said the batteries were getting low which feels a little too soon to be honest on power usage. Alas, if only the tower could have been rechargeable from the get go. The App. Paired with the tower, the app is the brains of the game. It is essential. You can't play with out it. So not only must you have batteries for the tower, you need a charged mobile device. This is a power hungry game! The app is used to 1) battle foes 2) delve dungeons 3) track quest completeness 4) handles end of turn events. It doesn't do anything that probably couldn't have been physically implemented with lots of card decks and tokens. So really it's trying its best to abstract jobs 1, 2, and 3. But 4 is where it drives the Tower and there is no flashy Tower action with out the app. So if the game requires an app, you might as well use it to off load some of the more fiddly components. There feels like a good balance struck in what the app handles versus what you as the player must physically handle. And you still need to move plenty of stuff around the real world board. There is also the (potential) advantage of patching the game in real time. When half the components exist in a digital format, you can just patch your app in order to fix typos or address game balance. I saw only one update initially and I have no idea what they have already changed. So it remains to be seen if they try to fiddle with things too much or at all. As an app, it's fairly functional out of the box. Aside from some quibbles over small features and work flow, its very serviceable, stable, and pleasant to work with. If you need to table things for the night, you can save your game and turn off the tower, and come back to everything the next day with out issue. My one complaint here about the app is the complete lack of transparency. It abstracts several decks worth of game mechanics, but there is no way to view these in an offline fashion. I feel like I am entitled to peruse the attack decks of the various foes or review the events outside of the game to familiarize myself with the possibilities. But you can't. How should I know what Shadow Wolves can do at the end of a turn and make priority calls on what to attack if you won't let me look at the cards? I want to know exactly what a companion might do for me before I waste precious resources recruiting them. Currently the app doesn't let you look at these things and the only way to know is by experience. As a gamer who wants to immerse themselves in preponderance of stats, that irks me. It remains a feature I hope they add to the app. Gameplay. Right off the bat, this game reminded me of another dicey adventure (Defenders of the Realm), but nicer, cleaner, far easier to setup, and bit more deterministic. There's a whole lot of poo poo on the map, limited moves, and even more limited actions. You can't do everything and have to plan out your moves to a degree. But unlike say Pandemic, there never felt like there was an absolute crisis spot on the board that had to be dealt with right here and now. The board is divided into 4 kingdom quadrants and maybe one kingdom required a bit more attention to their skull situation at a given time, but there was never a powder keg waiting to blow. Part of this may be from again the app obscuring the consequences of things leaving the player oblivious to the danger. You mainly wander around, trying to do things opportunistically, as you build your character over several rounds and work towards the main quest goal. Then once you complete the main quest, the big bad comes out of tower and you wail on them. Unfortunately the big bad tended to fall over like wet tissue at that point leading to anti-climatic wins. The bosses certainly have bite to them, but as the very last enemy to beat, you tend to throw everything you can at them and can eat a few corruption to boot with out consequence. I experienced more tension fighting the level 4 foes than I have the big bad. Also, once you win, there's little fanfare. This is something to that can be fixed in the app programming (an advantage here I hope they take), but one would expect the super cool blinged out Tower to light up , make noises, maybe do a little angry dance. Something or at least anything to celebrate the end of the game. But nope! Overall. It's a solid B- in terms of gameplay with some absolute over the top glitzy and indulgent game components that definitely nudge the experience a few points on the margins just on production value alone. I recommend the Alliances expansion and would consider that essential now to the baseline game experience. It adds enough complexity to really up the decision matrix of your turns. I can envision myself playing this every now and again as a treat to change things up, but I doubt it will replace the more solid gameplay coops like Spirit Island or Mage Knight when I am craving more meat on the bones.
|
|
#
?
May 26, 2022 22:44
|
|
|
I ordered a copy as an indulgence and it arrived this week. Looking forward to playing my big dumb game 
|
|
#
?
May 26, 2022 23:34
|
|
|
iceyman posted:Overall. It's a solid B- in terms of gameplay with some absolute over the top glitzy and indulgent game components that definitely nudge the experience a few points on the margins just on production value alone. I recommend the Alliances expansion and would consider that essential now to the baseline game experience. It adds enough complexity to really up the decision matrix of your turns. I can envision myself playing this every now and again as a treat to change things up, but I doubt it will replace the more solid gameplay coops like Spirit Island or Mage Knight when I am craving more meat on the bones. I pretty much agree with everything you said there. It's a great game when I want to play a co-op that doesn't require the level of brain-burning like Spirit Island, or when friends who aren't hardcore board gamers come over to play games since the actual rules are quite simple. My kid loves it and wants to play it almost every night too.
|
|
#
?
May 27, 2022 09:15
|
|
|
Does anyone know anything about 21 Moon? Looks like AAG is KSing it in about two weeks. 18xx.... in... SPAAAAAACE sounds pretty sweet but curious if anyone has tried it on 18xx.games or elsewhere.
|
|
#
?
May 27, 2022 16:11
|
|
|
FulsomFrank posted:Does anyone know anything about 21 Moon? Looks like AAG is KSing it in about two weeks. 18xx.... in... SPAAAAAACE sounds pretty sweet but curious if anyone has tried it on 18xx.games or elsewhere. Not sure of all the quirks but i know it has a randomized setup of what “cities” are worth what, and some of the cities lose value as they upgrade. Also you have to build to a central location and run it at least once or you insta-lose. I’d be interested in getting a game going online sometime because i would also like to try it
|
|
#
?
May 27, 2022 19:21
|
|
|
verdict: burncycle is good and ctg continues its cycle of Making Good Games. it's basically Invisible Inc the board game Also, learning the game and going through the introductory mission took 8 hours so its.. not a short game
|
|
#
?
May 28, 2022 17:22
|
|
|
Long time no see SA. I got Oath and Bullet this weekend! I know I’m going to love Bullet, as I’ve been playing it on TTS a lot. Is the opinion on Oath still good? It seems really cool and ticks a lot of boxes I have, but just grasping going on is kind of insane. I haven’t gotten it to the table yet, but do people recommend the initial setup and walkthrough for the first game of it?
|
|
#
?
May 29, 2022 15:28
|
|
|
OmegaGoo posted:Long time no see SA. Bullet has such an amazing TTS mod. It definitely sold me on the game and I'll probably pick it up on the near future. My group really likes Oath with the caveat that we have only played a few times. It's a weird game, and teaching is also a little strange. We followed the initial setup and walkthrough for the first game and I did find it to be helpful. It's full of negotiation, king making, squashing the leader, but somehow it works for us where other games with those traits do not.
|
|
#
?
May 29, 2022 16:40
|
|
|
Oath is a very interesting and usually fun game to play. It’s biggest hurdle is existing in a hyper consumerist hobby where everyone wants to move on to the next big thing
|
|
#
?
May 29, 2022 16:54
|
|
|
Downtime can be killer so try to encourage people to play fast and loose and just enjoy the weirdness.
|
|
#
?
May 29, 2022 17:00
|
|
|
PRADA SLUT posted:verdict: burncycle is good and ctg continues its cycle of Making Good Games. it's basically Invisible Inc the board game I'd chaulk up that time to setup and just being a more paced learner of the game. The actual rules aren't that heavy and the game flows super quick once you're into it and getting familiar with the system. I haven't setup the physical version because I played on TTS to see if I'd enjoy it (and thus want to buy it) and after finishing the intro scenario I went through a second three floor solo two-handed game in about an hour, although the TTS module makes setup and floor changes real quick. The biggest time savings will come when you're not tracking each action round and network phase independently, instead just running through them because you know what they are and what actions you can take without looking back to the command bot mat. More players will make it take longer and will probably have a real alpha gamer problem if anyone you're going to play with is like that. I enjoyed it to start with but it wore after the second and third play. It was still fun but the stealth mechanic feels tedious, as opposed to engaging and meaningful, when you're stuck with the decision of remaining hidden and letting a turn pass for the corporate turn to move things around or taking a risk. And so many of the missions have dull and bland final tasks that you can puzzle your way to do with minimal exposure. Which is sort of the point given it's a stealth game but it didn't feel like I'd beat the puzzle, instead it just felt like a disappointment and wondering "that's it?" Obviously I only tried a few and not all of them but just from reading the mission cards a few of the missions had some interesting looking conditions where you really had to manipulating the corporate action list in creative ways, but most didn't seem like that. nessin fucked around with this message at 19:10 on May 29, 2022 |
|
#
?
May 29, 2022 18:49
|
|
|
I got to finally try out Exit: The Game - The Secret Lab. It's one of those single-use puzzle games, but this brand is quite a bit more literal in that. During the course of play, you will mark, fold, tear, and destroy certain components, rendering it completely un-re-playable. To make this thought more palatable, they are only $15 and printed on recyclable paper, which is not the case for most board games. I don't want to spoil anything, even simple mechanical things. I will say that the way the game can tell you if you're right or wrong was incredibly clever. The answers are encoded but it's not like a choose-your-own-adventure book where you turn to page 200 and you die. It manages to obfuscate right and wrong answers for ten or more puzzles amongst a fairly small number of cards. The puzzles themselves were overall pretty good. They gave us that "big brain" puzzle solving feeling, though there were a few that were too easy and one that was not very well written. The game also contains a generous hint system that felt a bit like Thimbleweed Park's hint system, if people have played that video game. You can get a basic hint, a larger hint, and then you can be given then solution. The game is timed but there is no time limit, so you will eventually manage it unless you give up, and there is no punishment for wrong answers except the lost time. The art is a little... Highlights Magazine? But it's servicable. It was good, not great, built on a core that is a mechanical accomplishment. I'd still much rather get more Consulting Detective cases any day of the week. Still, $15 for about 2 hours of entertainment for two is better value than a lot of entertainment choices outside of standard non-consumable board games.
|
|
#
?
May 29, 2022 20:03
|
|
|
Magnetic North posted:I got to finally try out Exit: The Game - The Secret Lab. It's one of those single-use puzzle games, but this brand is quite a bit more literal in that. During the course of play, you will mark, fold, tear, and destroy certain components, rendering it completely un-re-playable. To make this thought more palatable, they are only $15 and printed on recyclable paper, which is not the case for most board games. Secret Lab isn’t very good. Try Murder on the Orient Express or Cemetery of the Knight (minus one bad puzzle)
|
|
#
?
May 29, 2022 20:27
|
|
|
nessin posted:I'd chaulk up that time to setup and just being a more paced learner of the game. The actual rules aren't that heavy and the game flows super quick once you're into it and getting familiar with the system. I haven't setup the physical version because I played on TTS to see if I'd enjoy it (and thus want to buy it) and after finishing the intro scenario I went through a second three floor solo two-handed game in about an hour, although the TTS module makes setup and floor changes real quick. The biggest time savings will come when you're not tracking each action round and network phase independently, instead just running through them because you know what they are and what actions you can take without looking back to the command bot mat. More players will make it take longer and will probably have a real alpha gamer problem if anyone you're going to play with is like that. Yeah, it’s significantly shorter on subsequent plays (3-5ish hours), but I started the first mission at like 8PM and there was no way to finish it in one sitting that late. My real complaint is that there isn’t a conclusion to read after each mission. It just kind of ends. Where’s my thematics? At least Too Many Bones has the tyrant item cards you can read. e: Now that I think about it, it should have a few sentences to read after you complete each floor objective too. It has a giant paragraph setting it up but then nothing. PRADA SLUT fucked around with this message at 20:35 on May 29, 2022 |
|
#
?
May 29, 2022 20:31
|
|
|
The Secret Lab has the best ending of any of the Exit games I've played imo "Thanks for taking part in our test, here's your pittance of a paycheck, gtfo"
|
|
#
?
May 29, 2022 20:38
|
|
|
|
| # ? Jun 1, 2024 02:34 |
|
|
It sat around for a while after being delivered but we finally tried out Foundations of Rome at 2p. The game is: (1) insanely overproduced, turning a game that could have fit in two Patchwork boxes into a Gloomhaven-sized battlestation; (2) better than I expected due to the option to build over your placed buildings, as long as they are bigger -- you can change the building type to help yourself/reduce opponents' gains; (3) not very deep, in the base game: it's about getting lots at auction adjacent to your starting lots, getting enough big buildings out at the right time, and placing civic buildings (which score based on what they're next to) on the lots you bought to block opponents. We haven't played with the expansions yet, but it's good enough to keep for now.
|
|
#
?
May 29, 2022 20:56
|
|