The Actual Table

#461

Nice article. I have had players feel extremely frustrated when they’re destroyed by the cylons in Battlestar Galactica. Also a game that takes a bit of time to play and doesn’t award points. As Circe Lannister once said, “You either win, or you die.” She was talking about a different game, but same idea.

I personally do not find it frustrating, but I think I’m in the minority. And Galactica seems as though it is much more tense than Space Clank (from your description–I’ve never played it), so perhaps the level of investment in the experience feels different to people. The Clank games have always seemed a little tongue in cheek.

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#462

I think I’m the same as you. The outcome doesn’t matter in the long run if the game was fun. I’m invested, but I’m invested in trying to win, regardless of how winning is determined.

So to me, it’s no different and I don’t understand people for whom it is different.

Thanks for the kind words!

#463

I’ve finished so many games of Galaxy Trucker with 0 or negative points that I can’t count. Never minded because the game was fun as hell…probably more fun the more pathetic your run turns out to be. I find Clank to be a bit of the same…it’s no fun to run in and get a treasure and run out. You need to pillage until your packs are so full you can barely walk, and then get eaten by the dragon (I’ve not played the In Space version…the theme doesn’t interest me like the fantasy theme of the original does).

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#464

I do like how Clank in Space makes it so you actually can’t just run in and run out, but it does add to the playtime because of it.

But it’s such a fun game, I don’t care.

#465

I have all the expansions for Clank! (the mummy, buried treasures, and the expeditions one) so that’s like 6 new maps. I haven’t played any of them yet, but hoping they make it more like In Space where it’s harder to get in and leave.

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#466

A week’s holiday means a week’s gaming, as far as I am concerned, and we got a lot in, including 504 (we noted the module combinations down and I promptly lost the sheet of paper), Spy Club (“advanced mode is hard” shocker), Arboretum (before the new edition comes out so everyone knows I’m cool), Terraforming Mars (we have now got everything played multiple times, I’m waiting on Prelude), Flamme Rouge (Grand Tour completed) and last but not least, half of Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective (or Thames Murders and Other Cases, as it is now), meaning we’ve polished it off and I got to order Jack the Ripper & West End Adventures for next time.

SHCD was probably our favourite out of the whole week, as we cast about for ideas, found them, discarded them, argued about them (we have more fun and probably spend more time discussing and arguing than actually solving the case), fumed over Holmes’ disregard for dead foreigners, crossed our fingers for gentlemen killers with enormous hands, sought the smell of poison on every woman who crossed our path, followed up on leads that led nowhere or to people who couldn’t shut up, tooks risks and ended up in dead ends or glorious piles of evidence, and generally had a great time. The questions at the end never failed to chafe, especially when you miss an entire subplot, but it was merely grounds for more humour.

As fun as it was, it was humbling to visit friends and watch them with their established (and growing) families. My peer group are nearly all settled now, and it was discomfiting. Nothing like a reminder that you’re not as important as you think you are. The faux-empathy and genuine concern is particularly wearing, but there isn’t a lot to be done about it. A more regular group is on my horizon, probably after a move.

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#467

Had our Sunday game day and it was full of relatively quick games, which is nice sometimes.

We played four in all.

First, we played Majesty for the Realm, a really cool Century/Splendor-like game where you are drafting cards into your village and getting points depending on the combos you make with them.

It’s pretty fun and very fast. Only 12 rounds and almost no downtime.

Then played another game of Cat Lady (I played 2 games of it on Thursday at work), a set collection game about cats (duh). Nine cards are laid out in a 3x3 grid, and you can take any row or column of 3 cards. However, where the cat is prevents a player from taking that row or column. When you take a row/column, you place the cat there so the next player can’t take the replacements.

Really fun for a very quick filler.

Then Istanbul (still without any expansions, unfortunately) and ended with a 2-player game of Hero Realms.

It’s a weird game just because it plays exactly like Star Realms but all of the colours are shifted (and different terminology, of course, like Champions/Actions instead of Bases/Ships).

Took a bit of getting used to, but still fun!

Was nice after a few weeks of not really playing anything.

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#468
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#469
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#470

There are, essentially, no rules beyond those of golf. So instead I introduce everyone to the absolute mechanical marvel that drives this game. It’s a square of cardboard, two opposite corners bent up and the other two bent down. It thus rests on three angles, while the fourth sticks up in the air like a chunky tail. This is the ball, and it’s quite the most amazing piece of engineering I’ve seen in a game since Wallenstein’s cube tower.

Not knowing much about physics, I can’t explain why, but it behaves almost exactly like a golf ball. I demonstrate: you control the length of the shot by the strength of your flick. But, observer, I can get a higher, weaker shot by flicking the tab that sticks up. I can get a longer, lower shot by flicking down toward a corner. You can curve and spin the ball by flicking into the opposite corner, applying light pressure with your other hand for extra bend. Look, like this, I say and pull off the most incredible parabola.

Secretly I wish I could do this actually in play, instead of when demonstrating. But that never happens.

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#471

For those of you not following Stately Play on Twitter, I posted a review of the stained glass window dice game, Sagrada.

Thanks, Dave, for helping a fellow non-content creator out! (sorry, Twitter joke there. :slight_smile:)

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#472
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#473

Played Android: Netrunner for the first time last week in Ohio, and now I’m desperately trawling through the BGG trades pages trying to get my hands on some before it disappears forever. Tried playing some with my girlfriend on jinteki.net, and it was…opaque.

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#474

I ordered the revised core when I heard the game was done, so I’d have a chance to try it, but I really wanted to have a little more deck-building flexibility, so I was looking for Reign and Reverie. Went straight from pre-order to sold out in the online stores I usually check, so I was bummed. Until I walked into my FLGS a couple days ago and they had several copies. If there’s stuff you’d want to buy at retail and pay to have shipped to you, I could check their stock and make it happen.

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#475

Thank you, but I’ll try to satisfy myself with whatever I can grab trading away some of my never-played games. Now if you feel like parting with a few sets in exchange for a copy of Republic of Rome…

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#476

It’s a niche audience, but if you want a sobering game about a subject that most games treat like family-friendly japes:

#477

One day I will win a game of Rhino Hero Super Battle. One day.

rhsb.jpg1349×2209 930 KB

Not today. Today I lost three games in a row. Damn my enormous blunt hands.

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#478

Had an awesome weekend at Dragonflight!

If you want the full experience, see my post.

However, if you just want the list of games (they were all great), here it is:

Cat Lady
Majesty for the Realm
Valley of the Kings: Last Rites
The Palace of Mad King Ludwig
Diamonds
Eldritch Horror
Wasteland Express Delivery Service
Spartacus
Herbaceous
Grandpa Beck’s Cover Your A$$ets
The Prodigals Club
Raiders of the North Sea
Fantastic Factories

Really enjoyed all of them. A great experience I highly recommend!

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#479

A little more info about Gen7.

https://www.plaidhatgames.com/news/928

Players exploring the world of Gen7 will encounter a narrative woven together by carefully crafted layers, each layer blending together to create a storytelling experience that is truly unique.

The overarching plot, detailing the central mystery that plagues the brave commanders and their crew, is told in episodic form in the plot book. As the primary characters, the players’ officers are center stage in these cinematic scenes and their choices will determine the shape of the story that follows.

The crossroads cards provide a glimpse into the lives of the crew themselves. Personal stories of the individuals under the players’ command reveal the culture and beliefs of these interstellar travelers. Such interactions between commanders and their subordinates can have lasting effects, and may even provide insight into the greater mystery.

I’m back on board, now Plaid Hat are no longer the studio forced at gunpoint to milk Dead of Winter.

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#480

I did my “New to Me Games” post for August, and with Dragonflight happening at the end of the month, it was a doozy.

The standout had to be Wasteland Express Delivery Service.

I’ve seen it go on sale many times and just haven’t been able to pull the trigger because I wasn’t sure about getting it to the table.

I think I could now that I’ve played it.

What a fun game!!!

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