Oh no. He's eBay bargain hunting for board games. The end is nigh.
nah that was it, those two are the only out of print boardgames I really want :-p
Thanks. Now I just remembered I really want the game "Escape from Colditz" and I found many great copies on eBay. /sigh
I used to play this a lot as a child. It is too easy to escape.
Also, I watched many films about Colditz. Now, even though it isn't, my front yard feels exactly the same shape as the courtyard in Colditz, mainly because in one corner there is a rounded tower.
I heard about Prosperity, but I'm too lazy to see what the cards are. It's cool to try to figure out what cards it would be good to combo with, but I'd rather do all that when the set actually comes out.
Which reminds me I need to get the new promos cards in before PAX. Perhaps they'll be selling the new set at PAX. That would be sweet.
I heard about Prosperity, but I'm too lazy to see what the cards are. It's cool to try to figure out what cards it would be good to combo with, but I'd rather do all that when the set actually comes out.
Prosperity is basically Epic level Dominion. It adds a bunch of shit that's just way more powerful like a bigger treasure card and a bigger victory card and all kinds of stuff. I think it's the last set I'm going to buy.
Prosperity is basically Epic level Dominion. It adds a bunch of shit that's just way more powerful like a bigger treasure card and a bigger victory card and all kinds of stuff. I think it's the last set I'm going to buy.
That's what my friends were saying. Sounds cool. I'll see it when it comes out.
What sets do you have? You don't think future sets would be worth buying?
What sets do you have? You don't think future sets would be worth buying?
I have all the sets. Really the new sets are getting to the point where they're not actually making the game more interesting, they're just expanding it mindlessly to sell more expansions. There are already so many combinations of cards to play with, that I could play forever without running out. Also, I'm not really playing it all that often. I've barely played Seaside or Alchemy enough at all. No real point in continuing to buy another expansion every few months when it's not even that good.
I can understand your point of view, but I'm completely opposite. I play several times a month with my friends and we are enjoying the new sets just as much as the old sets. We have drafts on figuring out what cards we are/aren't going to play with. I think my friend uses some sort of app on his iPhone or website to do a Dominion randomizer as well. It's the game we pretty much play whenever we get together.
Really the new sets are getting to the point where they're not actually making the game more interesting, they're just expanding it mindlessly to sell more expansions.
The same thing you are describing happened to the game Killer Bunnies. A couple that my wife and I are mutual friends with brought over the base game about a year ago, and it was OK. Not a game w/ much strategy, but it was good for some laughs and was a nice diversion. Every time they came over, though, more expansions came with them (nine in total!) I swear that by the end, the deck was almost a foot tall, and we just had to split it in half for fear it would tip over. What was once an average game became this monster that took forever to play, and became impossible to break out if even just one new person was at the table. So many complicated new rules just for the sake of adding new rules, and the new cards threw off the balance of different card types in the deck.
The same thing you are describing happened to the game Killer Bunnies.
I have had that game with one expansion for many years and have yet to play it. I forgot how I got it. I think probably as a gift, but I never got around to playing it. I should just give it to PAX for the TT library.
OMG, that's great idea. I'm totally going to do that since they are asking for more game donations. ^_^
Perhaps I will be making some game donations at PAX East. They need it, since the CTCon library is bigger and badder.
I wonder how CTCon got their library so large.
As for the library at PAX East, it was mostly stuff that was either already owned by PAX, recently donated from a few companies, and the rest were shipped from the west coast from people who were donating their games. More than likely because of shipping costs led to such a small library. I have no doubt that next year at PAX East, the library will be bigger and badder.
I could tell you what is going to be at PAX West so far, but that is a secret.
I picked up The Forbidden Island over the weekend for $15. It was on display at the local game store.
I gave a quick read of the instructions and the store clerk told me it was a simplified version of Pandemic. I figured "What the heck?" and picked it up.
The gist of the game is you are 1 of 6(?) roles in where you have to collect all 4 artifacts of the island and go to the chopper before the island sinks. There are 24 tiles to the island and depending up card play parts will either be flooded or sunk entirely. You work with the other players to get the artifacts using each role's specific bonus to maximize the collection of artifacts and preventing the island from sinking.
It's from the same creator of Pandemic, Matt Leacock, so it does make sense that the game is similar, but the clerk was right. It's pretty much Pandemic for beginners Indiana Jones style. The game is very easy to learn and play time is around 30 minutes. The game pieces are decent quality, especially the artifacts. My bf will apparently be using them in his GURPS campaign.
The first time I played, we lost. Jeremy played with a friend and won, so perhaps I'll give it another go tonight and we'll win.
The game is a really great introduction game for first time gamers and/or children. It's also a good gateway for Pandemic. :P As I said before, easy and fast to learn and the game play isn't too long.
The game is a really great introduction game for first time gamers and/or children. It's also a good gateway for Pandemic. :P As I said before, easy and fast to learn and the game play isn't too long.
Great to hear it. I've had it for a while in the hopes of bringing it to the table with family members (particularly younger ones and non-gamers) but haven't had an opportunity to do so.
Not a fan of Forbidden Island. Not really a fan of Pandemic either. These are games where it's pretty obvious what the best available move is, and winning or losing come down to randomness. Forbidden Island is just even worse because it's so easy that its flaws are easily exposed.
I would like them a lot more if they were competitive as well as cooperative in a more Four Swords kind of way. At least games like Shadows over Camelot, which is flawed for other reasons, has a traitor and some other stuff to mix it up. Even the Lord of the Rings co-op game has the option to fuck over your friends and win by grabbing the ring and being Sauron's buddy.
Jeremy picked up Dominion Prosperity last night. I'll eventually play it. Not really in a Dominion mood. Over the last month we've also purchased Ascension, Snow Tails, and Kingsburg with the expansion. I was going to buy Roll Through the Ages last night, however I found out that Betrayal at the House on the Hill is out, so I plan on getting that instead.
Ascension is a simplified and faster version of Dominion. It's alright, but I'm honestly a bit tired of playing Dominion-like games.
I'm really looking forward to playing Betrayal. It's about time they rereleased that damn game.
I played Modern Art with Ian's homemade version of the game. I didn't get the full jist of the game until the 2nd round. It's a pretty fun bidding game. It was pretty funny at times because some of the strategies people played fucked people royally. They would put down a double auction for a lower ranking art piece, and someone would bid high on it thinking it would be the dominant art. Then the next person plays a higher ranking artist, making that artist no longer counting.
Played a few rounds of Villa Paletti. I used an awesome strategy to where I kept placing a new platform and grabbing a the thick piece of the color and placing it on top. It later backfired on me to where I placed it too far on the platform causing it to topple. Regardless, lots of loud yells and screams happened from that game.
Also played Forbidden Island. Apparently there was a release for the German version that gave different variants of how you built the island. It was pretty cool. They had some really cool looking shapes like a skull, bone, and others. The atoll shape looked ridiculous in regards to the possibility of it being a real challenge. I'll definitely have to play all those different variants.
We also had some high quality 6 man Bomberman on the Sega Saturn. We had one session to where the map was crazy large. It took a while to get through, but very fun.
The world can never have enough multiplayer bomberman. 6 players is awesome. If you really want to experience Bomberman fun, put it on your PAX to-do list and head on over to freeplay. People will join you.
Played two games of Trans Europa last night. I don't have a lot of experience with train games, and there's definitely a portion of gamers I know that hate on them, but I really enjoyed it. The rules were taught in 60 seconds, and the game was done in 15 minutes each time, yet it definitely had strategy.
My impression of train games from the outside is that people like them because they are long, drawn out, ruthless strategy with no luck whatsoever epics. Trans Europa had a small element of luck, but cut out all of the fidly bits by being short and simple.
Trans Europa and Trans America aren't really train games. Heck, Ticket to Ride isn't even really a train game. You can make almost any game with a theme of trains, but real train games are mostly like Age of Steam or Ticket to Ride where you are a rail baron taking out shares and such. Most of the hard ones involve crayons.
OK so it's really just a tile placement game skinned as a train game b/c you're laying track. My only experience w/ the rail baron type is one game of Chicago Express which was not a bad game, but I am not running out to purchase. Wouldn't mind giving it another shot (or one of the other million train games like steam, age of steam, etc).
The best Bomberman is Bomberman '93. Turbo Graphx... such a good, under appreciated console.
Also yeah Pandemic is the best board game experience I've ever had. The game gets way easier when there's table talk though. If you restrict that it's incredibly hard.
Also yeah Pandemic is the best board game experience I've ever had. The game gets way easier when there's table talk though. If you restrict that it's incredibly hard.
There's nothing in the Pandemic rules about restricting table talk. The only thing that is in there is a rule about keeping your cards face down when not playing by beginner rules, so people are free to verbally communication what they have. There are notes from the game designer stating that the rule is actually in there not to make the game harder, but to prevent one overbearing player from analyzing everyone's cards and barking out orders, which could sour some people's experience with the game.
Comments
Also, I watched many films about Colditz. Now, even though it isn't, my front yard feels exactly the same shape as the courtyard in Colditz, mainly because in one corner there is a rounded tower.
Also, I ordered this because I'm a sucker for the Ravenloft setting and the fact that it has solitaire play intrigues me.
Which reminds me I need to get the new promos cards in before PAX. Perhaps they'll be selling the new set at PAX. That would be sweet.
What sets do you have? You don't think future sets would be worth buying?
OMG, that's great idea. I'm totally going to do that since they are asking for more game donations. ^_^
As for the library at PAX East, it was mostly stuff that was either already owned by PAX, recently donated from a few companies, and the rest were shipped from the west coast from people who were donating their games. More than likely because of shipping costs led to such a small library. I have no doubt that next year at PAX East, the library will be bigger and badder.
I could tell you what is going to be at PAX West so far, but that is a secret.
I gave a quick read of the instructions and the store clerk told me it was a simplified version of Pandemic. I figured "What the heck?" and picked it up.
The gist of the game is you are 1 of 6(?) roles in where you have to collect all 4 artifacts of the island and go to the chopper before the island sinks. There are 24 tiles to the island and depending up card play parts will either be flooded or sunk entirely. You work with the other players to get the artifacts using each role's specific bonus to maximize the collection of artifacts and preventing the island from sinking.
It's from the same creator of Pandemic, Matt Leacock, so it does make sense that the game is similar, but the clerk was right. It's pretty much Pandemic for beginners Indiana Jones style. The game is very easy to learn and play time is around 30 minutes. The game pieces are decent quality, especially the artifacts. My bf will apparently be using them in his GURPS campaign.
The first time I played, we lost. Jeremy played with a friend and won, so perhaps I'll give it another go tonight and we'll win.
The game is a really great introduction game for first time gamers and/or children. It's also a good gateway for Pandemic. :P As I said before, easy and fast to learn and the game play isn't too long.
I would like them a lot more if they were competitive as well as cooperative in a more Four Swords kind of way. At least games like Shadows over Camelot, which is flawed for other reasons, has a traitor and some other stuff to mix it up. Even the Lord of the Rings co-op game has the option to fuck over your friends and win by grabbing the ring and being Sauron's buddy.
Ascension is a simplified and faster version of Dominion. It's alright, but I'm honestly a bit tired of playing Dominion-like games.
I'm really looking forward to playing Betrayal. It's about time they rereleased that damn game.
I played Modern Art with Ian's homemade version of the game. I didn't get the full jist of the game until the 2nd round. It's a pretty fun bidding game. It was pretty funny at times because some of the strategies people played fucked people royally. They would put down a double auction for a lower ranking art piece, and someone would bid high on it thinking it would be the dominant art. Then the next person plays a higher ranking artist, making that artist no longer counting.
Played a few rounds of Villa Paletti. I used an awesome strategy to where I kept placing a new platform and grabbing a the thick piece of the color and placing it on top. It later backfired on me to where I placed it too far on the platform causing it to topple. Regardless, lots of loud yells and screams happened from that game.
Also played Forbidden Island. Apparently there was a release for the German version that gave different variants of how you built the island. It was pretty cool. They had some really cool looking shapes like a skull, bone, and others. The atoll shape looked ridiculous in regards to the possibility of it being a real challenge. I'll definitely have to play all those different variants.
We also had some high quality 6 man Bomberman on the Sega Saturn. We had one session to where the map was crazy large. It took a while to get through, but very fun.
Yeah, but really, I've never played bomberman before. Is it fun?
My impression of train games from the outside is that people like them because they are long, drawn out, ruthless strategy with no luck whatsoever epics. Trans Europa had a small element of luck, but cut out all of the fidly bits by being short and simple.
Also yeah Pandemic is the best board game experience I've ever had. The game gets way easier when there's table talk though. If you restrict that it's incredibly hard.