Well a lot of that is because of one man and his scoring systems. Indeed, I have a theory that Reiner Knizia works out the arcane scoring system first and then bolts a game onto it later.Jesse Custer said:
Board Games: The Ultimate Multiplayer Experience
- Thread starter Game People
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Knizia makes a lot of very good games (works of art, some) - but the theme is nearly always lacking. You have to like abstract games to like them. Which is fine sometimes (Chess, Checkers, Go, Poker - all pure abstracts) - and other times I want to crush the silly Scottish rebellion into the ground with my horse's hooves.GloatingSwine said:
But it's not just Knizia's creating games like this (maybe you meant just that he started the trend, if so you can stop reading) - Puerto Rico, Agricola (to some degree), Saboteur... even North American companies are getting it - see the Ticket to Ride series [http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgamefamily/17/ticket-to-ride] from Days of Wonder.
Jesse Custer said:
Jesse Custer said:
My god, you're like the Rain Man of boardgames!Jesse Custer said:
I wish I had someone like you as a friend for those dreary rainy days when the power goes out.
A few years back me and my friends would play Settlers of Catan on a weekly basis and since that time I hate the game. Not because I've never won, I did every now and then, I simply played the game a few times too often. I like diversity and when we started playing other boardgames it became fun again.
But this "dedication" mentioned in the article, I dunno. During my WoW time I considered a lot of the people from the guild I was in my friends and would have gone to great lengths to meet them and hang out with them. It didn't really matter that I only new a handful in person and it was because of the people on the other side of those voices coming out of my speakers/headset that it took me a long time to leave WoW.
I know people that play other games via LAN, Online, XBLA, PSN and aaaaall the ways you can play without ever seeing who's out there beating the crap outta you or helping you survive that beating, but they all have a lot of friends made on the Interwebs whom they never even met once in real life.
But this "dedication" mentioned in the article, I dunno. During my WoW time I considered a lot of the people from the guild I was in my friends and would have gone to great lengths to meet them and hang out with them. It didn't really matter that I only new a handful in person and it was because of the people on the other side of those voices coming out of my speakers/headset that it took me a long time to leave WoW.
I know people that play other games via LAN, Online, XBLA, PSN and aaaaall the ways you can play without ever seeing who's out there beating the crap outta you or helping you survive that beating, but they all have a lot of friends made on the Interwebs whom they never even met once in real life.
I agree, plus in most designer games you don't loose until the game ends, you can probably see things are going bad for you or at least not as good as for others but you can keep playing maybe trying to slow down others or preventing them from wining some achievements, who knows, when the victory points counting is over you might not be the last.Noelveiga said:
Take THAT counter strike!
Thanks for the info. The only place I have near me for something like that is a general store for comic books, card games and tabletop games but I have never seen any board games like these there. Half the place is just tables and chairs so people can meet and play whatever there. I will have to explore this in the near future. Thank you for the information!tscook said:
All right! Glad this article is finally viewable.
As someone who sells video games, I cannot tell you how often I am asked for a game that provides split-screen multiplayer options. There is still a rather large contingent of the gaming public who value couch co-op to over playing online and I tend to agree. It is sort of disheartening that there are so few options nowadays for the gamer who wants to play with his children or spend the evening goofing off with his friends. I know that most designers must have grown up playing Golden Eye's deathmatch till the early morning hours and know the joy of passing the controller around a group of friends huddled around a TV. Why have we forgotten the camaraderie the split-screen can create?
As someone who sells video games, I cannot tell you how often I am asked for a game that provides split-screen multiplayer options. There is still a rather large contingent of the gaming public who value couch co-op to over playing online and I tend to agree. It is sort of disheartening that there are so few options nowadays for the gamer who wants to play with his children or spend the evening goofing off with his friends. I know that most designers must have grown up playing Golden Eye's deathmatch till the early morning hours and know the joy of passing the controller around a group of friends huddled around a TV. Why have we forgotten the camaraderie the split-screen can create?
I've been playing a couple of boardgames with my kids lately.
The Dungeons & Dragons Computer Labyrinth Game [http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/4746/dungeons-dragons-computer-labyrinth-game] and Dungeon Dice [http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/1555/dungeon-dice].
The D&D game is pretty fun, though it can sometimes be a bit tough to figure out exactly where the dragon is so as not to be munched by it. And it can be played single-player (though I have yet to play it solo.) Dungeon Dice is pretty simple, enough so that my 4-year-old son can grasp the gameplay enough to have fun with my 10-year-old daughter and I (the D&D game is a bit much for him but it looks too cool with the figures and all the wall pieces) so he always has his nose in it when we play.
I picked both up on eBay. Dungeon Dice goes for pretty cheap but the D&D game can get pricey and it's tough to find one complete (4 figures, 50 wall pieces, 3 green markers, instruction booklet, battery door, pull-out tray...and make sure it actually works.) I got my D&D game for $35-$40 complete in NM box, was pretty stoked; more so now that my daughter wants to actually play it with her nerdy dad.
EDIT: One game I've been itching to play is Tannhauser [http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/25261/tannhauser]. The art is really cool and there are so many cool bits to it, a very visually-appealing game. Kinda expensive new (I think I saw it for $80 at my FLGS) which is why I haven't picked it up (plus, I need to have friends around to actually play it.) Someday...
The Dungeons & Dragons Computer Labyrinth Game [http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/4746/dungeons-dragons-computer-labyrinth-game] and Dungeon Dice [http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/1555/dungeon-dice].
The D&D game is pretty fun, though it can sometimes be a bit tough to figure out exactly where the dragon is so as not to be munched by it. And it can be played single-player (though I have yet to play it solo.) Dungeon Dice is pretty simple, enough so that my 4-year-old son can grasp the gameplay enough to have fun with my 10-year-old daughter and I (the D&D game is a bit much for him but it looks too cool with the figures and all the wall pieces) so he always has his nose in it when we play.
I picked both up on eBay. Dungeon Dice goes for pretty cheap but the D&D game can get pricey and it's tough to find one complete (4 figures, 50 wall pieces, 3 green markers, instruction booklet, battery door, pull-out tray...and make sure it actually works.) I got my D&D game for $35-$40 complete in NM box, was pretty stoked; more so now that my daughter wants to actually play it with her nerdy dad.
EDIT: One game I've been itching to play is Tannhauser [http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/25261/tannhauser]. The art is really cool and there are so many cool bits to it, a very visually-appealing game. Kinda expensive new (I think I saw it for $80 at my FLGS) which is why I haven't picked it up (plus, I need to have friends around to actually play it.) Someday...
Actually, my last post was We-Go tactical, RTT, RTT and FPS...Andronicus said:
Anyway, the whole point that people are trying to put across is that board games are not just for power-less, rainy nights.
We're pretty much of the opinion that the definitive Zombie game has yet to be written.Quad08 said:Zombie board games are always a good time
Mall of Horror is my personal favorite
I've taken a stab at it, and I've got the easy early, mounting threat, inevitable doom to unlimited horde thing down, it tells stories that feel like zombie movies (good board and tabletop games tell stories, not narrative stories, but stories which start "that time when"), I just need a tight endgame and a way to figure out who lost least.
If your trying to get a video gamer into board games why not try to make them feel right at home and give Doom the board game a try.
With the expansion you get both Death match & Capture the flag modes to play and the miniatures look fantastic.
I have played it with hard core video gamers and they have had a blast.
Doom is made by Fantasy Flight Games [http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_minisite_sec.asp?eidm=34&esem=1].
With the expansion you get both Death match & Capture the flag modes to play and the miniatures look fantastic.
I have played it with hard core video gamers and they have had a blast.
Doom is made by Fantasy Flight Games [http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_minisite_sec.asp?eidm=34&esem=1].