New to board games is the Teburu system which is not going to be the the normal back or brick for me. We’re not going to breakdown the game that comes with it, how the page looks, anything like that. Mainly, the Teburu system is technology in board gaming and I know it won’t be for some. I also think that it is worth talking about, because of what it might mean for board games.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/xplored/the-bad-karmas?ref=profile_saved_projects_live

What Is the Teburu System?

So, this I originally saw, through a window, at GenCon 2019. Basically it is a gaming system where the bases of characters, dice, possibly even cards, though The Bad Karmas and The Curse of the Zodiac, the first game, uses digital cards. I will talk about the game in a little bit.

The board is a pad that you can overlay other boards on, I’m guessing chipped so it knows which board it is. Then when you move pieces around, it knows where you moved and lets you know if it’s a legal move or not. When you roll dice, it knows what you roll and automatically applies damage. Basically, it is a system meant to take away from the house keeping of what the game needs to know or you normally tell the game.

What Interests Me?

So, I know for some of you, you heard technology and were immediately out. That is fine, this article is meant more for the people who are interested in how technology can assist your game. There are a few things about this that interest me for sure. Mainly games that are heavy on house keeping, how this might improve the experience with them. I don’t know that a Gloomhaven would be feasible, but something like Zombicide, I could see it helping.

The first thing I want to know is how consistent the software is. I am always hesitant to back something that is technology because, the consistency of new technology is suspect. The company was planning on launching I believe in 2019 or 2020 and held off until now. Some of that might be because of COVID for sure, but late 2019 was before that, so they clearly wanted the technology right. And how much of a drain the technology is. Will I need to plug in my phone for my character, how fast does it burn the charge?

I also want to know what other games are coming to the system. I know that Sword & Sorcery is being developed by the company and Ares Games. And they have their own game, The Bad Karmas and The Curse of the Zodiac. And I know Sword & Sorcery has a fair amount of bookkeeping that you need to do as you play. So I think it could help with that, but the sprawling map, I wonder how that would work, I have some questions. And I want to know what else might be coming.

I do like that they have an SDK. For non-programmers, that basically means that people will be able to develop for it. It isn’t something that only Xplored will develop for. They might have their own team that does a lot of it to start, but more developers will come over time. And more companies can do it themselves for a launch of a game. Or offering two versions, a Teburu version of the game that comes with fewer components but requires you have the system.

What Concerns Me?

It’s new technology and new technology needs to be adopted to be useful. The stuff that interests me, the whole idea of less bookkeeping, games maybe with fewer components, that’s great. But will there be games for it? I am glad to see them working with Ares Games on Sword & Sorcery, but I wish they had 10 or 15 games right now that they could say would be coming to the system. Maybe as the campaign goes they will announce more.

I am also always very wary of new technology. It’s great that it is coming out. I think that it’s a way that companies could possibly save on number of components and maybe even cost of components. But will the technology be able to handle a wide variety of games. Or is this something that is meant only for a few games. And how long will it last. If I buy a Teburu I want to know it’ll last for 10 years, minimum. But will it travel well? Will it charge well and hold that charge in two years? It’s things that can only be tested so much.

Is Teburu A Back or Brick?

It is a brick for me, and I am excited about the system. I do not buy first editions of new technology. I haven’t with video gaming systems, phones, anything, it’s not worth spending to be on the cutting edge. Plus I want to see that the technology works like they say it will in the wild. Game plays by content creators are great, they help me know what it is, but that is still less than in the wild.

If they are still running fine after a year and they do another crowdfunding campaign, I might be interested in it then. Plus, by then I hope to know more games that they might have on the system. Because The Bad Karmas and The Curse of the Zodiac looks like a fun game, but one game, and not that complex a game isn’t enough for me to buy it right now. And Vampire: The Masquerade and Sword & Sorcery, I am less than excited right now with what’s been announced. Not to knock those games, but it won’t get me to back it.

How about for you, is Teburu and The Bad Karmas and The Curse of the Zodiac something you’ll be backing? Does the system interest you if it had other games on it?

You can find out more on the system here.

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