Pros

• Fun Theme
• Fun Mechanic
• Great Look
• Known Company
• Price

Cons

• Limited Player Counter for Dex game

The Page

This is a well laid out Kickstarter page. What I really like about it is that it highlights the pieces and aesthetic, but also highlights the game and game play. Now, it doesn’t have minis so they don’t have to do all the glamour shots of the minis, but it does a good job of highlighting and getting right to the point of how the game works.

I also like when you can get previous games as well, that helps them keep this game affordable and not need an insanely high number of backers to reach the stretch goals. Add in that Itten isn’t highly distributed in the US that I’ve seen, it means that these games which I have mainly seen at cons are available to a US audience again.

The Game

The game itself seems like a lot of fun. I like dexterity and flicking games generally because they’re good for a light and fun time. And I feel like flicking with the flags and just how the game works, it seems like it is going to have some interesting and different feeling things to it.

I also like that it doesn’t seem too simple or too complicated. With a flicking or dexterity game, I want more going on than just playing Jenga, but I don’t want a lot of convoluted rules about where things can go, and how I have to do everything, because that’s no fun. This looks to hit that balance of a fun game you can play while drinking but also one that you need to think about a little bit.

Back or Brick

So is this game a back or a brick for me? For me this was an easy back. The price is great, I know the company and I know that they make amazing products, I have Tokyo Highway, that are almost art pieces, so I expect the same from this game. I also just love the goofiness of the theme. Plus, the price point and shipping are really good. Compared to a CMON Kickstarter or one with minis, the value is there and the game play looks to be there as well. Now, I like dexterity games a lot, so that colors it a bit for me as well, but a good selling point for me.

So how about for you, is this game a Back or a Brick?

Share questions, ideas for articles, or comments with us!

Email us at nerdologists@gmail.com
Message me directly on Twitter at @TheScando
Visit us on Facebook here.

1. It’ll be really nice to already have one of my games ready to go for next year. There was one of the two games that I ran which I’ll have to rework, but it’s nice to know that one of them is ready to go. Along with this, I also need to plan out my games starting a bit sooner than the last minute. I did the character creation on live stream well ahead of time, but actually get the details in place and the encounters, that would be good.
2. Plan more downtime. I always want to be around people, and I loved playing in the games that I did, however, I was burned out physically by the end of it. My mind was telling me to keep going, and my body on Sunday was like “nope” and that won out. So plan a few more open time slots, go back and rest at the hotel more just to keep myself ready for the whole weekend. The nice thing with planning downtime is that if you want to join a game that someone is randomly putting together, you totally can with that downtime or break out a board game, but if you don’t have it scheduled, you can play it by ear or by how you feel.
3. Don’t do a late night game followed by an early morning game. In this case I ran them, one got done just about midnight, and the other started at 9 AM, so really a good amount of time to rest, but not when are you stressed about the upcoming game and wanting that to go well. A late night game and a midday game (or even starting at 10 in the morning) would work better.
4. In my case, bring my own pillow. I’m a light sleeper, and without my own pillow, I was tossing and turning all night, and that led into my body being like “nope” on Sunday. If you need something in particular to ensure you get a good nights sleep, bring it along.

   

5. If you are driving more than 8 hours, split it up into a couple of days.  I think that would have helped myself as well, since I do most of the driving for Kristen and myself, the 13 hours out there was a lot. Splitting it up on the way back with a 5 hour and a 7 hour was much much better, and we’ll definitely be splitting it up next year on the way out as well.
6. Plan snacks and water better. With it being in a convention center, you had to buy their snacks to eat at the place, but we definitely should have done that. Already traveling and eating poorer because of that, we were hungry a lot. I also drink about 75-100 oz of water on an average work day. When I don’t drink that much water for a few days in a row, I start to notice it and that also contributed the Sunday flop. So, healthy snacks or small meals even, at the hotel room, and drink lots of water are going to be key for a better time next year.

For me #4 and #6 are probably the biggest ones for me to remember. I try to eat healthy fairly often, and the food at the convention center was kind of terrible. So next year, I definitely  need my pillow so I can get better rest, but also should try and eat better, have some good snacks and keep that physical energy level higher even when by brain is still telling me go go go.

What are some tips or useful things you’ve found when traveling to a convention?

Share questions, ideas for articles, or comments with us!

Email us at nerdologists@gmail.com
Follow us on Twitter at @NerdologistCast
Message me directly on Twitter at @TheScando
Visit us on Facebook here.

So let’s start out with, what is CONvergence?

CONvergence is a nerdy convention based out of Minneapolis. It is around the fourth of July weekend every year. They have different themes every year, and this year it is about the nerdy means of travel. This is by far the weakest theme that I’ve gone to, the British Invasion and Dystopian. However, besides the theme, there are a lot of other interesting things about the con. It isn’t that large a con, only gathering around 6,000 people, but that means that it isn’t nearly as crazy as larger cons. In the evening the party suites/rooms open up and you can walk around the cabana getting drinks and going into different themed rooms. There have been some that are Zelda themed, the Eolian from the Kingkiller Chronicles, Star Trek, and many other different rooms. A lot of them have booze, some of them have tea, and there is the House of Toast which has something like 100 different ingredients that they put on the toast.

Why CONvergence?

Now that Wizard World Comic Con is coming to Minneapolis for the past few years, why do I still go to the small CONvergence? It’s because it is small and it attracts and older crowd. Because the drinking/party rooms are a fun part of it, it tends to have an older crowd. Along with that, you tend to have a crowd that handles themselves better. I’m sure there are incidents that happen every year there, but it tends to be less crazy. That said, the big reason I went in the first place was because James Moran was going to be there one year. He is a screenwriter who wrote “The Fires of Pompeii” episode of Doctor Who and the screenplays for the movies Severance and Cockneys vs Zombies. If you haven’t seen either of those films, do yourself and watch at least Cockneys vs Zombies. My wife doesn’t like zombies all that well, and she enjoyed Cockneys vs Zombies. It’s in the vein of Shaun of the Dead.

What Keeps Me Coming Back?

Probably the biggest thing is the panels. There are often a lot of interesting panels on different nerdy topics. The first time there were a lot of British themed panels and I got to learn a whole bunch more British slang which I’ve probably lost most of now. But the panels are probably one of my favorite parts. I’m sure that other people are really tied into the gaming aspect, or the party aspect (which is fun), or just the social aspect of cosplay and the other random events that they have going on. But when I go to a con, like CONvergence, I always hope to learn something new, and generally I do. I lost of list when I got a new phone, but I had a list of something over 50+ lousy dystopian movies that I could watch, and I maybe got through one or two during the year, but it’s fun stuff like that which keeps me coming back.

Should You Go To CONvergence?

I would recommend it. I think it is a CON that most people would have fun going to. It is one that is fairly family friendly during the day, and is a blast for the 20 and 30 year-olds who want to party in the evening. People are respectful and generally the themes are very interesting. And if you like the Cosplay, it is a great spot to do it.

If you are going to be there, look for Raven and Beast Boy on the Friday as Kristen and I will be there, and say hi. We’ll have some Nerdologists.com badge ribbons on us.

Check out CONvergence here!

And as always find us on twitter @NerdologistCast and search for us on Facebook under Nerdologists. You can find me on twitter @TheScando. Hope to see you at the CON!