I played two games in PSG yesterday that, although very different, I won in pretty much the same way: By passing all the time. It's a bizarre tactic that feels very counter intuitive. I want to play more. More importantly however, it feels that in a well balanced game, this should be a losing strategy.
Factory Manager - In this game you pay money to build machines that make you more money. But it only lasts 5 rounds. I noticed that people were paying so much for their machines that the money they would make off them was minimal. So I decided to pass. In the last 2 rounds I built nothing. In the 3rd round I built a single machine. I never upgraded or sold anything. And I won, quite handily, by simply hoarding my money. In this particular case, I was disappointed that this strategy succeeded. If I'm only playing for half the game and blindly passing for the second half of the game, this game overstays it's welcome.
I don't think I'm looking forward to playing this again.
Homesteaders - Immediately after playing the above we played another economic optimization game. And again I started passing. In the 10 round that we played I passed a whopping SIX times. I won on the tie breaker.
One thing that did help: of the four buildings I did buy, two were high victory point buildings (Including the church), and another was making me copper bars that I was exchanging for victory points anyway. The last one was giving me trade tokens in order to keep my options open when I needed them to be.
However, unlike Factory Manager, I wasn't bored. I was passing only after being outbid by my opponents, and not due to a conscious decision to stop buying anything. I very much wanted to stay in the game, but my opponents kept taking loans to overbid me on things. I was still an active participant. It hurt to watch my little town stay so small, but in this game, it had to be done.
This is so far, the hit of the (early) year for me.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Friday, February 19, 2010
Cult of the Old. I mean New.
Generally, there's always a large number of games a year that copy mechanics from a few previous games while providing little new themselves. I usually stay away from these games, because I'd rather dedicate my shelf space to something newer. Lately, however, I've playing a large number of this type of game. I think they've been more common this year. Here's some thoughts about the play-alikes of early 2010:
(Warning - All ratings are tentative and may change on further plays)
Opera: Opera's main mechanic involves picking your role from one of six choices, and in some cases having your opponents follow the same role before they get to pick. To differentiate itself from Puerto Rico, there's a stock market that sets the price for the things you want to buy. Although there's a lot to think about and lots of room for tricky moves, generally the player who bought low/sold high wins the game. In addition there's a blind bidding mechanic that essentially determines who gets to pick a role, in what order, and how many roles. 8/10
I love this game, but I don't know why. It's 2 hours long. Provides little new, and has a theme that interests me none. But everything seems to fit together very well and the opportunity for clever moves is there.
Homesteaders: A near perfect description of this game: take Phoenicia. Add the bidding mechanic from Evo (Vegas Showdown / Amun Re). There's really nothing else new.
The thing that makes this game rise above the rest is the solid testing work that the designer has done. Everything is balanced very well and the opportunity for a multitude of strategy lines is obvious from the very beginning. Also, I like Phoenicia, and haven't seen a game like it since. 8/10
Thunderstone - Everyone compares it to Dominion because it stole the bidding mechanic from Dominion. Which is true, but it also feels like Runebound. You're trying to gain more power to kill this set of monsters that are randomly determined mid game.
This one has fallen flat for two reasons. The first may be simply a question of balance of the cards. So far, I've played games where a few of the cards were obviously better than other cards - making the strategy incredibly obvious. This game was not playtested enough I feel. In particular the Trainer and the Pawnbroker are insanely powerful and make the rest action pointless. In addition, there were a few weapons in the pile but some (Flaming Sword) were clearly better than others. In any case, with the Trainer and Pawnbroker cleaning my deck, it didn't take long for me to be able to buy or kill anything I wanted.
Which brings me to my second problem: Once you have a finely tuned deck, the game is decided by who got lucky enough to find the toughest monsters when they drew a high point hand. Both games I won by killing a few major monsters, and although there was some good strategy on my part, I think a lot of it was the luck of them being revealed at the right time. Unfortunate. 6/10
Dungeon Lords - This, while not a bad game was a huge disappointment to me. Every other Vlaada game has been refreshingly original. This... Just your standard worker placement. Except now it's blind worker placement, so you're never sure exactly what you're getting. On top, add a resolution round that is reminiscent of Space Alert or Galaxy Trucker. In the end it's a game with lots of theme, but seems too shallow in depth for it's length.
Vlaada games have a way of making me like them more on the second and third go around, so I'm still keeping my hopes up but overall, I wish this game was not a me-too. 6/10.
Vasco De Gama - One last comment on this game that I've never played. It was a big hit on Essen, but all I hear is that it's a standard worker placement game with a luck mechanic added that feels very much like the provost in Caylus. I do hear that there's a lot of clever play in this, which is why I like Opera. However, despite my recent successes in playing me-too games, I just can't get myself to play this.
(Warning - All ratings are tentative and may change on further plays)
Opera: Opera's main mechanic involves picking your role from one of six choices, and in some cases having your opponents follow the same role before they get to pick. To differentiate itself from Puerto Rico, there's a stock market that sets the price for the things you want to buy. Although there's a lot to think about and lots of room for tricky moves, generally the player who bought low/sold high wins the game. In addition there's a blind bidding mechanic that essentially determines who gets to pick a role, in what order, and how many roles. 8/10
I love this game, but I don't know why. It's 2 hours long. Provides little new, and has a theme that interests me none. But everything seems to fit together very well and the opportunity for clever moves is there.
Homesteaders: A near perfect description of this game: take Phoenicia. Add the bidding mechanic from Evo (Vegas Showdown / Amun Re). There's really nothing else new.
The thing that makes this game rise above the rest is the solid testing work that the designer has done. Everything is balanced very well and the opportunity for a multitude of strategy lines is obvious from the very beginning. Also, I like Phoenicia, and haven't seen a game like it since. 8/10
Thunderstone - Everyone compares it to Dominion because it stole the bidding mechanic from Dominion. Which is true, but it also feels like Runebound. You're trying to gain more power to kill this set of monsters that are randomly determined mid game.
This one has fallen flat for two reasons. The first may be simply a question of balance of the cards. So far, I've played games where a few of the cards were obviously better than other cards - making the strategy incredibly obvious. This game was not playtested enough I feel. In particular the Trainer and the Pawnbroker are insanely powerful and make the rest action pointless. In addition, there were a few weapons in the pile but some (Flaming Sword) were clearly better than others. In any case, with the Trainer and Pawnbroker cleaning my deck, it didn't take long for me to be able to buy or kill anything I wanted.
Which brings me to my second problem: Once you have a finely tuned deck, the game is decided by who got lucky enough to find the toughest monsters when they drew a high point hand. Both games I won by killing a few major monsters, and although there was some good strategy on my part, I think a lot of it was the luck of them being revealed at the right time. Unfortunate. 6/10
Dungeon Lords - This, while not a bad game was a huge disappointment to me. Every other Vlaada game has been refreshingly original. This... Just your standard worker placement. Except now it's blind worker placement, so you're never sure exactly what you're getting. On top, add a resolution round that is reminiscent of Space Alert or Galaxy Trucker. In the end it's a game with lots of theme, but seems too shallow in depth for it's length.
Vlaada games have a way of making me like them more on the second and third go around, so I'm still keeping my hopes up but overall, I wish this game was not a me-too. 6/10.
Vasco De Gama - One last comment on this game that I've never played. It was a big hit on Essen, but all I hear is that it's a standard worker placement game with a luck mechanic added that feels very much like the provost in Caylus. I do hear that there's a lot of clever play in this, which is why I like Opera. However, despite my recent successes in playing me-too games, I just can't get myself to play this.
Monday, February 15, 2010
Pinball Machines
Here goes. My second attempt at starting a blog. Usually I get bored early and never update. But, I'm going to try it again. What you should expect here are my own comments and mini-reviews of things I enjoy. Most of the time this is likely going to be Board Games, but I could digress sometimes.
In fact, I think I'm going to start with a digression. I just purchased a pinball machine for my game room. I've been saving up for it for quite some time now and I've done a lot of research on which machine to get. I might as well share my opinion.
Top Five Pinball Machines ever made:
Simpsons Party Pinball: This is the one I purchased. I wouldn't necessarily call it the best pinball machine ever, but it's certainly up there. The thing that makes this special is that every mode in the machine stacks. So if you manage to get a couple of 2x scoring markers, then Multiball, then some special loop modes, they all happen at the same time and your score skyrockets. It's all very tricky because there's a timer that counts you out of modes, but the timer is global so you need to keep starting new modes before the timer runs out. This machine is going to challenge me for a long time. Not only do I have to master Multiball and good aiming, but I also have to do it on a timer.
Attack From Mars: I would have bought this if it wasn't for the fact that it was $1000 more expensive. That meant waiting another few months before I could have it. If I'm ever to get a second machine (unlikely) this is it. Attack from Mars couldn't be more different than The Simpsons. It has an wide open playfield and a relatively simple rule set. But it has it's share of challenges. In particular, there's a big UFO in the center that you should hit a lot. But hitting it sometimes means having your ball go SDTM. So you need to do a few tricks, such as starting Multiball before aiming too much. Ultimately the whole machine is very campy and reminds me of the old SCI-FI shows that MST3k spoofs. There's some cool tricks in here too, such as strobelight mode. Good luck with that.
Twilight Zone: Possibly the most complex machine ever made. This machine is a pseudo sequel to the best selling Addams Family Pinball. This one is better however, because it has more variety. When you start playing this game, very little things score high on the board, but your goal is to open up the different modes in the machine to get higher and higher points. Once a mode is open, it doesn't go away and you can decide to keep hitting your favorite mode or try to open more things. You'll likely want to do it all, of course. What gives this thing more variety, is that the order of modes opening is random. So you can't just pick one way to play and stick with it every time. I like hit the camera mode, for example, but if it doesn't get open early, I have to switch to something else for high points.
Funhouse: Funhouse is the oldest machine on this list, released in 1990. It contains a plastic head in the middle of the playfield that insults you while you're playing. Your goal is to make it go to sleep, start Multiball, and then stick a few balls in it's mouth to make it cry like a little girl. This would be simple if it wasn't for an ingenious playfield that encourages you to make multiple shots, in order to line up the ball with the right flipper that gets you where you want to go. This is one of the machines I gravitate to when I find one in good condition. Unfortunately, most I've seen lately have a broken Rudy (the puppet).
Lord of the Rings: Lord of the Rings actually has a similar playfield to Attack from Mars but is much more complex - containing multiple play modes, extra ramps, and quests involving all three books running simultaneously. Although it doesn't have the level of fun of Attack from Mars, and I can't really explain why. It's still a pretty amazing machine that I didn't get only because a friend already bought on herself.
And now for the leftovers...
Great Pinball Games that did not make the list:
Indiana Jones (1993)
The Addams Family
Monster Bash
Terminator 3
Medieval Madness
Pirates of the Caribbean
Earth Shaker
Takes if the Arabian Nights
Ripley's Believe it or Not
Theatre of Magic
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Pinbot
In fact, I think I'm going to start with a digression. I just purchased a pinball machine for my game room. I've been saving up for it for quite some time now and I've done a lot of research on which machine to get. I might as well share my opinion.
Top Five Pinball Machines ever made:
Simpsons Party Pinball: This is the one I purchased. I wouldn't necessarily call it the best pinball machine ever, but it's certainly up there. The thing that makes this special is that every mode in the machine stacks. So if you manage to get a couple of 2x scoring markers, then Multiball, then some special loop modes, they all happen at the same time and your score skyrockets. It's all very tricky because there's a timer that counts you out of modes, but the timer is global so you need to keep starting new modes before the timer runs out. This machine is going to challenge me for a long time. Not only do I have to master Multiball and good aiming, but I also have to do it on a timer.
Attack From Mars: I would have bought this if it wasn't for the fact that it was $1000 more expensive. That meant waiting another few months before I could have it. If I'm ever to get a second machine (unlikely) this is it. Attack from Mars couldn't be more different than The Simpsons. It has an wide open playfield and a relatively simple rule set. But it has it's share of challenges. In particular, there's a big UFO in the center that you should hit a lot. But hitting it sometimes means having your ball go SDTM. So you need to do a few tricks, such as starting Multiball before aiming too much. Ultimately the whole machine is very campy and reminds me of the old SCI-FI shows that MST3k spoofs. There's some cool tricks in here too, such as strobelight mode. Good luck with that.
Twilight Zone: Possibly the most complex machine ever made. This machine is a pseudo sequel to the best selling Addams Family Pinball. This one is better however, because it has more variety. When you start playing this game, very little things score high on the board, but your goal is to open up the different modes in the machine to get higher and higher points. Once a mode is open, it doesn't go away and you can decide to keep hitting your favorite mode or try to open more things. You'll likely want to do it all, of course. What gives this thing more variety, is that the order of modes opening is random. So you can't just pick one way to play and stick with it every time. I like hit the camera mode, for example, but if it doesn't get open early, I have to switch to something else for high points.
Funhouse: Funhouse is the oldest machine on this list, released in 1990. It contains a plastic head in the middle of the playfield that insults you while you're playing. Your goal is to make it go to sleep, start Multiball, and then stick a few balls in it's mouth to make it cry like a little girl. This would be simple if it wasn't for an ingenious playfield that encourages you to make multiple shots, in order to line up the ball with the right flipper that gets you where you want to go. This is one of the machines I gravitate to when I find one in good condition. Unfortunately, most I've seen lately have a broken Rudy (the puppet).
Lord of the Rings: Lord of the Rings actually has a similar playfield to Attack from Mars but is much more complex - containing multiple play modes, extra ramps, and quests involving all three books running simultaneously. Although it doesn't have the level of fun of Attack from Mars, and I can't really explain why. It's still a pretty amazing machine that I didn't get only because a friend already bought on herself.
And now for the leftovers...
Great Pinball Games that did not make the list:
Indiana Jones (1993)
The Addams Family
Monster Bash
Terminator 3
Medieval Madness
Pirates of the Caribbean
Earth Shaker
Takes if the Arabian Nights
Ripley's Believe it or Not
Theatre of Magic
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Pinbot
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