There are certain circles in this hobby where eurogames are looked down upon. There, these games are often decried as soulless cube-pushers, convoluted systems of oh-so-clever mechanisms with the vaguest semblance of a theme draped over them. They get criticized for their lack of player interaction. Playing them rarely succeeds in letting you feel something … More Game Night Verdicts #38 – The Romans
When you design games, write about games and in some cases simply try to make sense of them to better explain them to your gaming group, you eventually have to ask yourself what motivates people to play. Specifically, what goal do they pursue to get the elaborate construction of rules and components going. What exactly … More All Roads Lead to Victory
I don‘t often write about house rules or variants. Mostly because I rarely have much need for them. There are enough games on my shelf or new ones coming out that it doesn‘t seem worth the effort. I also don‘t often have the flexibility to dedicate an undefined amount of time to something that a … More Two co-op rules variants
At first glance, recognizing a good game is simple. Most of the time, you can go with your gut. If you feel good after playing it and look forward to playing again, it must have been a good game. If you don‘t, the game must have been bad. It‘s now up to the passionate game … More Game Night Verdicts #37 – Push
After hearing about it for years, I‘ve finally witnessed it myself. During a recent game, a player suffered such a drastic setback, that tears started to roll. Admittedly, that player was my daughter and she still has a couple of kindergarten years before her, but still. The game caused such a strong response, that tears … More I’ve got a feeling – Emotional gameplay and such
Folks, I wasn‘t ready. I did not see it coming. I thought I had a pretty good handle on The King’s Dilemma as it reached its final chapters. But then the ending landed and I was left stunned and speechless. I didn‘t think any game would be this ambitious, this confident and bold in what … More The King’s Dilemma (concluded)
The King’s Dilemma is something of an odd beast. But probably not for the reasons you might think. The rulebook itself describes it as an interactive narrative experience, which is technically accurate. In much the same way that it is technically accurate to describe a train as a horseless mechanized carriage on tracks. Whatever fancy … More Georgios Draws First Blood – The King‘s Dilemma
For many gaming groups, it’s a rare, although not quite impossible situation to end up in. You’re heavily invested playing a competitive game. Fighting over every little advantage you can get. You’re plotting, scheming and strategizing. Some of you might even employ table talk as a cunning ruse. And then, out of nowhere, somebody makes … More But I was just playing by the rules!
Whether a new game gets to return to the table after its inaugural play, often comes down to how well it was taught. That‘s partly because an introduction to a game‘s rules sets the tone for what to expect. An aimless, vague explanation can turn a game like LAMA into a confusing, complex rules mess, … More What was the middle part? – On rules explanations
NB: This is an unpaid Kickstarter preview. Photography by Ross Connell, courtesy of Alley Cat Games. It is a truism in board games that size does, in fact, matter. Once you drop a massive square crate of a game on the table, you‘ve announced to everyone that they‘re in for a time of furiously furrowed … More Tinderblox – Kickstarter Preview
