How To Play The Gang

The Gang is a cooperative Texas Hold’em style poker game where instead of bidding on how strong your hand is, you are trying to get the hands of all the players in order after the river. But you work off of the knowledge from how strong people think their hands are prior to the river. If you get it correct three times you win, if you get it wrong three times, you lose.

The Texas Hold’em

The Gang follows Texas Hold’em style poker when you are building up your best hand of cards. For those who aren’t familiar, I’ll cover it briefly before we get into the rest of the game. You get a two card hand. Then more cards are played out into a communal pool. They are the flop, the turn, and the river. The flop is going to add three cards and the turn and river one card each. The player with the best hand between their cards and the communal cards wins the hand.

Getting the Order Right

So let’s talk about how you get the order right. In The Gang, let’s say for a six player game, you want the player with the best hand to have the poker chip worth six when you rank hands after the river and the player with the worst had having the one.

You are allowed to discuss how strong you feel your hand is. But you are not able to say specifics about your hand. An example might be: “My hand got better with the flop.” Or another example would be “I have a scoring hand now.” You are not allowed to specify how it got better or how it is scoring just that it is.

So after the initial hand of two cards is dealt, the flop, the turn, and the river, players take chips as to how they think their hand is. This is all after the discussion. But it is just the ranking of the hand on the final round that is going to determine if your order is right.

Tie-Breaking

I thought about putting this up in the Texas Hold’em section, but let’s talk about tie breaking. When you think of a scoring hand, for example two pair, you think of that being your hand. But it is possible to have the same thing as someone else. So you use standard tie-breakers like in poker. The higher pair of the two pair is compared, if one person has higher than the other, they are ahead. If they are the same, you check the next pair.

Now let’s use the example of a single pair. If you have a single pair and someone else has that pair, how do you decide the tie-breaker? Well, in that case you look at the kicker. That is that you look at the highest single card that you use to make your hand. If those are the same, often the case if they are in the communal cards, you keep comparing until you get through your hand of five scoring cards. If it is still a tie, the order doesn’t matter because they are the same.

Increasing the Challenge

So it is possible that you’ll find it gets too easy over time. So the game offers ways to make it more challenging or easier. One being positive and negative modifier cards. So if you win one round you flip a negative modifier card, such as a single player must take the one for the first three rounds of discussion. Or it might give you an extra card for your hand if you lost the previous time. This is going to add just a little twist to what the game is already doing.

What Doesn’t Work

The game can skew a bit easy at times. This is something that you can control with how much communication you allow. If you keep that to very general terms it is going to be more difficult. If you reference previous hands or things like that, it is going to be a bit easier. Also player count is going to make it harder or easier depending on how many players you have, the more the harder.

The other thing, and this more of a to be aware of, some knowledge of poker and Texas Hold’em does help. In particular with knowing how strong a hand is in Texas Hold’em can be important. A good pair might be the best overall hand. The game does give you a cheat sheet to know the ranks of hands but if you are a poker novice, this is going to be a notable learning curve.

What Works

The game is fast to set-up and play. While the discussion at times can take a bit, it isn’t generally that long. Because you care about getting it right at the end, only after the river is the discussion highly important. But for getting the game to the table, it is shuffle up and deal cards and that’s about it to get it to work. Especially if the players have played the game before, it is going to instantly get to the table.

The cooperative nature of the game works as well. That was my big concern going into the game. But I like how it works and the challenge of ranking the hands is good. We got better at it as we played. It is common, though, to end the game with a discussion around how strong you feel a hand is and for two players to have extremely close hands. That challenge works well for the game.

I also like the benefits if you fail or the negatives if you pass. And I think I could see even making that more challenging by playing on some of the harder modes. But they offer just a little twist or variety to what is happening in the game. Is it needed for the game, probably not if you don’t play too many times in one sitting. As the group changes, the dynamic is going to change. But with a group playing a few times in a row, it adds in some good variety.

Who is The Gang For?

I think The Gang is a good game for a mixed group of board gamers and maybe poker players or cards players. If you play a lot of cards, you probably have dabbled with poker of some variety. The trickiest part is going to be if you play with someone who doesn’t play poker. And by that I mean more hasn’t played poker. I don’t play poker often, but I know how it works as I’ve played some. But if it is completely new, maybe play a couple of hands of real poker first to get them familiarized.

Final Thoughts and Grade on The Gang

This one is interesting for me. Firstly, I want to say that I really like what it does for a cooperative poker game. And you will find that I rate it highly. However, on the flip side, I think it is a game that I want to play only so often and with varying groups. If I play it with one group over and over again, I suspect I will want to play it on the hardest difficulty. But I want to play it again, so there is that.

The other thing is that I think people who like The Gang are going to like it a lot. The people who doesn’t like The Gang, it is going to be a strong dislike of the game. Mainly because it is cooperative, limited communication, and poker. Somewhere in that combination there is a chance for a lot of players to dislike it. You might dislike cooperative games. Or you might dislike games where it limits what you can say. Or you might dislike the luck of poker. But if you are cool with all of those things, then it is a very good game.

My Grade: B+
Gamer Grade: C+
Casual Grade: B-
Strategy (out of 10): 0
Luck (out of 10): 2

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How To Play Lost Cities

Lost Cities set collection game. You want to collect the best cards of numbers in five different colors and have the most points after doing that a set number of times. It is possible to play it just once, but most of the time I think that three is what people play.

The turn you take is simple. You play a card from you hand to one of two spots. And then you draw a card to your hand from one of a few spots. You keep on doing this until the deck of cards, one of the spots you draw from, is empty. Then you tally up the points.

Scoring and Playing Cards

The main element of the game to know about is the scoring. In Lost Cities you score points for any of the colors here you play cards at. However, there is a penalty for playing cards at a location. The first card you play down sets that locations value to -20. Though, if you play a number card that negative value is going to be less.

There are two types of card for each number. The first is multiplier cards. These double, triple, or more depending on how many you play, the value of the cards. But it also doubles or triples the value of the negative as well. Then there are number cards. These number cards go from two to ten. And as you play out cards, the multiplier cards need to be played first, and then cards in ascending order. For example, if you play out a four or blue, it is no longer possible for you to play a two of blue or a three of blue.

Discarding and Drawing

So I mentioned that there are multiple places to play to and discard to. Let’s use the example of having a blue two after already playing out a blue four. That card has no value for you. So on your turn you might discard that into the blue pile between the sets you and an opponent are collecting. On the other hand, if your opponent were to discard, for example, a green multiplier and you hadn’t started scoring on green yet, you can draw from there. So you either play to the collection on your side, or the middle for that colors discard. And you either draw from one of those color discard piles or the main deck.

What Doesn’t Work

It’s an abstract game where it is possible to just be dealt a hand that is not great to start out with. It might either be so spread out across all the colors you don’t know what to go for, or it might be so high in numbers that your scoring potential is lower as you don’t want to toss those cards. It isn’t that it doesn’t work, it is just that sometimes you might feel like your starting hand is kind of dead, or you might think, with multiple multiplier cards going into a color is smart idea and then never draw that color.

What Works

Now, that negative I just spoke about, that is also a positive for the game. Lost Cities is all about figuring out when to get into a color so that you don’t end up with negative points. And yes, it is very possible to end up with negative points on a round. Lost Cities reminds me of Hanamikoji in that both of them you work off of imperfect knowledge. And you need to make the best decisions that you can.

Game Speed

I like the speed that the game plays at as well. Now, I say that, I play asynchronously on BGA, so some games do take longer than others. But when the players are on at the same time the turns are simple enough, play and draw, that it moves quickly. So the game speed is good, but to tie it to above, it doesn’t just play itself which means sometimes you end up with a turn that takes a bit longer when you aren’t in the middle of a series of plays.

It is also nice that Lost Cities is played over three rounds. Again, this ties into that negative and why it isn’t much of a negative. When you play Lost Cities over three rounds you get a chance to come back. That allows you to play with a bit more risk sometimes and less other times. But there is almost always the chance to recover.

Meanness and Tightness

Finally, as a two player game this is very back and forth. I know, generally, what you want to get. So that might mean that I hold cards in my hand to try and keep you from scoring as well. There isn’t take that, but I might ruin your plans for a round. But that is also true for what you are doing to me as well. So while the game has elements of being mean, it works, as that sort of thing does better at two players.

But with that comes a fun part of the strategy or something you’ll stumble across. As I play out cards and you collect what I might want, you find that you all of a sudden can get a positive score in that color. So it is possible to pivot in the game like that. But with the deck running out as the timing mechanism you can’t overextend yourself because you might not have enough turns to play everything you need. That challenge and balance works very well.

Who Is Lost Cities For?

Obviously this game is for two people. But I think that this is the sort of game that works well for couples even if both of them maybe don’t love board games. The game is easy enough to learn, there is strategy so it isn’t too light, but it’s simple to play. So it’s a good game for couples and you can play a round in a short time, so it is that evening game as well for when you want to do something and not watch TV.

My Grade and Final Thoughts on Lost Cities

Lost Cities definitely impressed me more than I thought it would. I want to compare it to Hanamikoji because there is that element that I don’t know what is in your hand and you don’t know what is in my hand. It is only based off of what we play that we gather information about the other players hand. And that is true for both of the games, plus the row in the middle, but that is not actually similar in how it is used.

I think that Lost Cities is a game where it is possible to really do poorly at, though. But it is a game that is simple enough to learn. I feel like since I enjoyed the premise at the start it was fine even with my first game going poorly. If I hadn’t, I’m not sure I would have loved it as a concept for a game. Mainly because it is possible to get stomped. So if the puzzle doesn’t draw you in, Lost Cities is unlikely to work. Because the theme is not going to draw you in.

My Grade: B
Gamer Grade: B
Casual Grade: B
Strategy (out of 10): 7
Luck (out of 10): 3

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How To Play Imhotep

Imhotep is a pretty simple game to play. On your turn you take one of three actions. You either add a stone from your quarry to a ship. You sail a ship to one of the locations. Or you gather more stone so it is ready for you to use. That’s it, the three actions that you do, and you do them over six rounds until all four ships have sailed to locations.

When you sail a boat you go to one of those different locations. But you can’t sail a boat unless it has enough stones on it. And you can sail any boat. You don’t need stones to be on the boat to sail it. So let’s talk about the locations you can sail to.

Locations

The main part of the game are the five locations. Each one of them is going to give you something different to do, but generally it’s about placing your cubes and scoring points. There is one that is different that we’ll get to, and how each scores points is different.

Obelisks

The Obelisks will be the first location that I talk about. When you sail to that location you add your stones to your obelisk as do your opponents. Whomever at the end of the game has the most stones on their obelisk is going to score the most points, and then fewer points as you go down in height.

Tomb

Next up there is the Tomb. The tomb scores at the end of the game and you score for your areas in the tomb. The larger the area that more points it’s going to score for as scoring scales. And each of your areas is going to score separately at the end of the game. Stones for the tomb and the rest of them are always placed in the order they come off the boat, front to back.

Temple

Then we have the Temple. The temple scores each round. And you score points for each of your cubes visible from the top. Depending on player count the temple is longer and offers more scoring each round that way. Once the temple reaches it maximum length for the player count, you start a second row.

Pyramid

After the temple is going to be Pyramid. The pyramid is built up throughout the game. You start with a three by three base level. Then as you move up it goes to two by two and then a single one on top. Each of the spots has a specific value associated with it. And if more stones are brought to the pyramid than can be placed, each extra stone scores a single point.

Market

Finally there is the Market. The Market doesn’t give you points directly. In the market you gain cards. The cards might give you a special action, bonus scoring for a location, an immediate affect, or set collection scoring. The two scoring you just keep by you for the end of the game. The action will take place instead of your main action. And the immediate affect is, well, immediate.

After six rounds are played the total scoring is tallied. And the player with the most points is going to win the game. I’m sure that there are tiebreakers as well, but you can figure those out when and if you need them.

What Doesn’t Work

I do think there is one flaw that can happen in the game. The game can get stuck in a rut if players aren’t being a bit daring. What do I mean by that? It is probably to your advantage to fill up a boat before sailing it. Because that’s going to limit the number of cubes you can get out. If everyone does that, though, then the game can become stale. Yes, it matters where you end up with your stone still, but it loses some of the fun of the game.

I have only played a game where this became an issue. And I think that is because once a player starts doing it, all other players need to follow suit at least somewhat. Otherwise the one player is potentially going to run away with the stone advantage. Now, you can also stick them in spots, especially just giving them the most stones on the obelisk, but it does make the game less fun.

What Works

So that is a flaw with the game up there. But otherwise I really think the game can sing when played as it’s meant to be played. The game works really well when players are sailing boats early, either to optimize their scoring or the hurt others. And that’s the great cat and mouse of the game. You play a single stone into a boat that holds a single stone, I might sail that to the spot that is least useful for you. It really works best when you get in the other people’s way.

I also like how all of the scoring is different. Each location is going to give you some solid points throughout or at the end of the game. And the scoring you can get from the market, like a point for every three stones in the temple, for example, helps you formulate a strategy because those bonus points can help a lot. It also means that your strategy can be different every game if you want.

Next up, I think the game nails the game speed of play and game length. You feel like you get to do a bunch Imhotep. But it always feels like you want to do just a bit more. Especially when you see a partially filled ship sail, I always wish I could have gotten one more stone on it. But turns go fast, and the game with six rounds lets you do a lot and really optimize some scoring.

Who is Imhotep For?

I think this is a good game for a lot of people. Mainly because it is simple to learn what to do in the game. Then as you play you get to explore more scoring options and challenges of the game. And because there isn’t a ton of variety in the game, it’s going to be one that is easy for people to pull back out and play again.

Final Thoughts on Imhotep

I very much enjoy this game. In fact I picked up a copy of it. And when I can find the New Dynasty Expansion for it I will. The downside is that the expansion is not easy to come by so it’s not that cheap. And the most reasonable priced ones that I found on eBay didn’t ship to the US, to bummer for me.

But that is it that got me to buy the game? I think it’s the different scoring mechanisms. Each of them really does give you a great new way to play the game. And while they are fixed, so I’m a little bit worried that it might become stale over time, it is an easy to play and table game. It falls into that category of a game that I’ll like to pull off the shelf once or twice a year when I don’t know what else to play and I want to a puzzle to get to that is going to be different each time.

My Grade: B+
Gamer Grade: B
Casual Grade: B
Strategy Level (out of 10): 6
Luck Level (out of 10): 4

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Dice Tower Mega Announcement

Rock Manor Games

Maximum Apocalypse 2nd Edition

This is basically making it fitting the Wasted Wilds to make it easier to play and make it faster to play. There’s going to be more information coming, but just very quickly.

Brass Empire 2nd Edition

This is a steampunk deck building game. I am curious about it just because it’s deck building. But it seems like it’s very in your face compared to what I’d want, which is a shame. But then again, maybe I’d like it as a two player game.

Merchants of Magick Expansion

This is their crunchy roll and write game. It’s going to be coming up on Kickstarter with some new modules of the game. It’s not one that I’ve played, but if Rock Manor has some at Gen Con, I might pick up the base game. I think that it sounds interesting and of course I’d love to check it out prior to the crowdfunding campaign.

Bright Eye Games

The Plot Thickens

A cooperative story creation game. We actually talked about this yesterday on the Malts and Meeples for sale at Gen Con live stream. I am curious about it with the Science Fiction version to at least see what it’s like. But I don’t love it in theory.

Ponzi Scheme

This one is coming out in 2024. It’s a game about creating a ponzi scheme and seeing if you can stay afloat with the most money when someone goes bankrupt. It sounds okay, a light, silly game, I’m hoping.

Ares Games

Fire and Swords – War of the Ring The Card Games

This is an expansion, and there is a new expansion at Gen Con, but this one is going to be coming out in 2024. This one doesn’t interest me as much, but the one at Gen Con to make it soloable that one interests me. And if it’s an interesting game, I could see it being one that my wife likes as we’re both big Lord of the Rings fans.

Horrible Guild

Quicksand

A real time cooperative game. That isn’t my sort of game, I’m not a fan of real time. But it does sound fairly interesting to try once or twice because you are playing against puzzles. It’s just that I’m not a big fan of real time.

Sunrise Lane

This is a game from Dr. Reiner Knizia one of the most prolific designers. I’m somewhat interested in it, it’s about building out houses and scoring points. I like the idea of building out houses and how you build out houses. It sounds actually really good now that I hear more about the rules, because it looks very pretty on the table. And it has some fun scoring options with it. Sunrise Lane is very high up there for me from what’s been announced thus far.

Pencil First Games

Sunrise at the Studio

This looks like a small game, and it’s kind of in that Floriferous style of game, or at least box size. This one is a pottery themed games. I like this weight of game, and it has set collection, drafting, and shared goals. So this sounds a lot like Floriferous again, but I’m down for that.

Snowfall over Mountains

Pocket sized solo tile laying game. That is a lot of things that I like. I am very used to a lot of snow. But you build it out a map from your cabin to create different scoring options. This one looks very cool. Pencil First Games makes amazing looking games aesthetically and very fun games.

Stoneblade Entertainment

Solforge Fusion App

It’s meant to improve the game play. Your collection gets automatically imported. That said, this is not a game that I was ever interested in. They are demoing it, and showing stuff off at Gen Con. It’s a fine idea, you don’t have to buy stuff again; it’s still a very specific announcement.

CGE

Kutna Hora

The announcement for a game that is already out. It’s talking about how it is using Re-wood. Re-wood is similar to plastic, but it’s sustainable to use over and over again. And it’s going to be at a similar detail level for plastic components. A cool thing, for a game I’m not interested in. The game is going to be at Gen Con to demo.

Grey Fox Games/Ludeon Studios

Rimworld

A board game adaptation of a video game. I’m not familiar with the video game, but I like the aesthetic thus far. It’s going to be coming to Kickstarter. There is not much information on this, unless you are familiar with Rimworld. Could definitely be a cool one, but I’ll be waiting to see it on Kickstarter.

Board & Dice

Nucleum

This one is going to be a big hit for a lot of people. This is about the nuclear power plants and it’s a very heavy euro game. Unless I build up to something like this over time, I don’t think it’s going to be one for me. There’s definitely a lot going on in the game which is why I think that a lot of people will enjoy it. It’s coming out in October at Essen Spiel

Inside Up Games

Clock & Key

This is going to be a Kickstarter coming in 2024. Another puzzle sort of game like Block & Key which is one that I thought looked interesting but I’ve never tracked it down to learn. I’m curious to see if this game is going to be similar or not. It reminds me of the pipe connecting games, which is something that I do enjoy.

Kosmos

Ingenious

It’s a relaunch of this game, also another Reiner Knizia. Don’t know a ton about this one, but I have heard of it. I think it’s supposed to be a family style abstract game. Probably not one that I’ll look into too much

Dragon keepers

A dragon game where you are taking care of dragons. This is done through card play, and they like to talk about the cute dragons, not to Flamecraft level, but definitely cute.

Rebel Studio

Meadow Adventure Book

It’s now coming out in 2024. This is a campaign or scenario style game. It was going to be a 2023 game, but now it’s been pushed back.

Avel: the Card Game

This is going to be pushed back as well. The timeline is still be determined.

Klink

It’s a number game, supposed to be a quick game. It’s a small box game, not a ton of a details on it. General impression was that this is going to be a family weight filler style game. And this is going to be a card game, or at least an action selection or playing game. Coming in early 2024.

MLEM: Space Agency

Cats… in… space….

That seems like a dangerous combination. It’s going to be a fun game with hopes of creating some laughs. This is going to be a dice game, so I’m thinking it’ll be a pushing your luck kind of game. Another Reiner Knizia game, like I said, he’s very prolific.

Cardboard Alchemy

Bistro Bay

An animal cooking game, but not cooking animals, if that makes sense. This looks like the same artwork style as Flamecraft, so a ton of fun to see it. You are trying to do the best and impress the the food critic. I am going to be looking at this one coming to Kickstarter in 2024.

Pandasaurus

Unrest

An asymmetrical two player card game. The rebellion vs the empire. Now this is not a Star Wars game. The aesthetic of the game is pretty solid, but I’m not sold on it. I feel like it’s a bit like Hanamikoji in some ways with having limited actions, it’s intriguing that way. It could be good. November retail release, and not expensive.

Unexpected Games

3000 Scoundrels Expansion

It’s not a game that I’ve played, but from what I heard of the original game was that it was fine. I this is definitely one that I’d want to checkout. And it sounds like the expansion is going to improve some things or will help with some of the complaints that people had. Definitely makes it sound more intriguing to me. As I do like the Wild West theme. And it’ll now have a solo mode as well, which again interests me.

Arcane Wonders

Foundations of Metropolis

This is going to be a retail version of Foundations of Rome. I’m guessing that this is going to be a smaller version because Foundations of Rome is huge. No miniatures in it, but that might get me to play the game and buy the game. Still looks really good, and it’ll be coming to retail in 2024, I think they said early. This one I’m very excited for, again because it makes it more accessible for more gamers.

Final Thoughts

Goodness, this is a ton of write really fast. I try and pause the video as little as possible because it’d take so much longer if I did pause all the time. I did have to do that a few times. Which ones are most interesting to me, I’m going to say my Top 5 are Foundations of Metropolis, Bistro Bay, and Sunrise Lane, Sunrise at the Studio, and Snowfall over the Mountain.

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My City Roll and Build

Let’s talk about that abrupt end to the game. Was that a good thing or not? Because I think for a lot of people it wouldn’t be. For myself, I didn’t mind it too much for one main reasons.

The reason I didn’t mind it is that the game is so fast. When you sit down and play My City Roll and Build, especially solo, it takes about 10-15 minutes per game. And some of that time is learning the new rules. You play extremely fast. I probably lost another 5 to 10 minute of game time because the game ended quickly.

I think My City Roll and Build would not be an issue to finish it an evening. If I were to start playing at 7 PM, I would be done by 10 PM or at most 10:30. And everyone plays at once, so I think multiplayer, you’d maybe add an hour of time overall. The game is really fast, it is very light, but it matches and does what the board game does as well. So to me, that’s interesting to see what it does and if I can get lucky.

And before you say, I got really unlucky and that makes the game poor. Or that the board game would be better. The exact same thing can happen in the board game. You build out and you can’t skip buildings. So it really does match the board game that way. And maybe that randomness wouldn’t be for you. But for me, like I said, the game is so fast that I don’t mind it.

Upcoming Streams

So what’s coming up this week. Wednesday, as I said in the stream, unlikely that I’ll be playing Isofarian Guard. That is the next campaign I’ll be diving into. But I need to learn the game still. So it’ll be playing a smaller game, or I have a box of Pokemon cards that I might be unboxing just to see what I get. I’ll announce that stream closer to when it happens. Either way the stream is at 8 PM Central time.

And next Monday is going to be more My City Roll and Build. I have two more chapters to go, so let’s see if I can build upon what seems to be some average scores and see if I can push my total score higher. Will it work or will I have an abrupt ending again. Monday streams start around 8:30 PM Central time.

And, again, if you want to know when I go live or a new video goes up (it’s basically always live), please consider subscribing. You can do that here. And click that notification bell on the channel and you’ll always know when I go live.

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Gen Con Preview

The list is just starting at this point with 169 different games. That is a lot of games, though, if you wanted to try and check them all out. I fully expect that more than normal won’t make it in time. But companies might be hedging their bets, as well, as a lot of the games are ones that will be released before hand.

Ra – 25th Century Games

This is one that I’d be surprised if it was out. The Gamefound campaign for it just wrapped up a few weeks ago, but at the same time, Ra is a game that’s already existed. This is an auction game that I’ve had fun with. In it, you are bidding on sets of tiles that get drawn from a bag. And the different things that you get give you bonuses and points.

But the cool thing about the game is the bidding. When you bid and win, you put your number into the middle. And then you take the number that was there. So there is strategy with the bidding because you likely don’t want to bid the 16 when the one is in the middle. Unless the tiles are so amazing. I find it a good and interesting twist on bidding.

First in Flight – Artana

Don’t know much about this one. But according to the description, thi sis going to have you building up a deck of cards and pushing your luck to be the first person to fly. I’m curious as to how it works, but looks like a lighter card game which isn’t bad. And it’s deck building, and I like that.

Call to Adventure: Epic Origins – Brotherwise Games

Call to Adventure: Epic Origins is a prequel to Call to Adventure. And Call to Adventure is a game where you cast runes and try and complete and create your epic story. I own the Stormlight Archives version of Call to Adventure that I need to get played. It seems like a pretty light game, but a good time. And, I believe, that Epic Origins, a standalone game, gives you more of the same, but builds your starting story.

Ark Nova – Capstone Games

Probably not much that I need to say about this one. But Ark Nova is a smash hit, right now, for Capstone and probably breaking into the Top 10 on Board Game Geek very very soon. It gets compared to Terraforming Mars, a game I need to play, in that it’s a bigger engine building game and one that offers lots of possibilities. I want to give this one a try for sure. I suspect it is a game I’d enjoy.

Starship Captains – CGE

The best way I can describe Starship Captains is that it reminds me, art wise, of Star Trek Lower Decks. Or maybe it gives me a bit of a vibe of Galaxy Trucker as well, not in play but in theme. I am curious about it as it has engine building and drafting. Those are two things that I enjoy quite well.

Fit to Print – Flatout Games

Fit to Print is an odd theme for a game but one that I find fun. In Fit to Print you are drafting cards and trying to collect and set-up the best front page of a newspaper for animals. The theme, very different. And I like this idea of trying to collect what you need and put it together.

Sagrada: The Great Facades – Glory – Floodgate Games

Glory is a given at this point. I own all of Sagrada, I believe just missing the Kickstarter promo window. And I know I want to grab this one as well. Sagrada is still one of my favorite games because it offers good choices but isn’t too complex. The expansions can definitely make it more complex, but again, that isn’t a bad thing as they are easy to add or remove and tailor the game to the group.

Oak – Game Brewer

Oak interested me more because of the theme than anything. Hand management and set collection I like. But they are very normal at this point in time. And I feel like I can find so many that it isn’t worth checking out. But add in druids trying to unlock a secret. That theme is what is drawing me in. And it doesn’t hurt that the cover looks great.

Ecosystem – Genius Games

Ecosystem is a game that apparently has been out for while. The Board Game Geek release date was November 20th, 2019. But I wonder if it is newly picked up by Genius Games for an American distribution. I like the them in this game. You draft cards to try and build a balanced ecosystem. It feels different but also not too different. And give a game pretty nature artwork, at least aesthetically it is more interesting. One that I want to checkout for sure.

Critical: Foundation – Season 1 – Gigamic

First of two back to back campaign and adventure style games. It will give you some role playing feeling, at least that is what they are saying. And Critical, it h as an interesting cover. I’m curious to see what type of story it has, set in 2035, so not that far into the future. I feel like they limited how sci-fi they can go with the story, because of the timeline. And also not the normal type of game I expect from Gigamic, but one that’ll be interesting to checkout.

Forgotten Depths – Grand Gamers Guild

I considered backing Forgotten Depths on Kickstarter. I like the artwork on the game and a dungeon crawl style is something I always enjoy. On Kickstarter, I think, I thought it looked lighter than I’d normally back. But for a $40 MSRP, that isn’t bad and for a game that can be played solo, it isn’t bad as well. I think it’d be a much smaller footprint campaign game.

Suspects – Hachette Boardgames

I believe that Zee Garcia, of the Dice Tower, recently did a review on this. Or he will be doing one shortly. But for me, this has two things that interest me. Firstly, I like cooperative deduction where you are trying to solve a mystery. It makes for an interesting time. Generally some very good experiences. And then add in Agatha Christie, or a world inspired by her works, I’m very curious.

Exit: The Game – Lord of the Rings: Shadows over Middle-earth – KOSMOS

I find the Exit escape room style games just okay. They have a destructive element to them which makes it feel like more of a waste. But play with 4 people for an hour, it isn’t bad for $20. And Lord of the Rings, that is a theme that I am curious about. What sort of story can they tell, what puzzles will they create for the game interests me a fair amount. It’s one that I could pick-up and play with my wife and she’ll appreciate the theme a lot.

Perseverance: Castaway Chronicles – Mindclash Games

Now a big Kickstarter. Mindclash always makes big games, and Perseverance with basically two games in one box, created a game with a huge box. I am curious about this one. I didn’t back it on Kickstarter, but dinosaurs, survival, and then building up your society, it is interesting. For demo only at Gen Con, that’s probably a good thing. Means I won’t be tempted on a game for a lot of money because it has dino minis.

Venn – The Op

A party game on the list, and this is one that I want to try, not buy. Mainly because it is a party game, and sometimes they are great, sometimes not so much. But I generally want to try before hand or watch someone play it. This one, though, I find intriguing. As the person who is it, I believe, you put down three cards, and people are trying to guess that middle spot on the Venn diagram. So the word that intersects all of the other words. If that is how it works, I think it is one that could provide a lot of laughs and a lot of replayability.

Long Shot: The Dice Game – Perplext

Another game that is getting a ton of love already. Long Shot: The Dice Game is a horse racing game where you buy and bet and horses. That, combined with a roll and write game. I love my roll and write games. And the idea of one that has a physical board that people race around, it seems different. Often roll and write games can limit interaction, but Long Shot seems to lean into that.

Northgard: Uncharted Lands – Shiro Games

Another big Kickstarter game that I looked at. I believe that Northgard is based off of a video game, which is intriguing. I don’t know anything about the video game though. And for the board game, I like the artwork. I love Norse mythology. So the game seems like it should be one for me. But the fact it is a 4x game makes me a bit hesitant to back it.

Cartographers Map Pack 4 through 6 – Thunderworks Games

And this is another one that I know I’m going to get like the Sagrada Expansion. I own everything for Cartographers thus far, and I really like it as a roll and write. Against, like Long Shot, it is more interactive than a lot of roll and write games. And while I enjoy a good roll and write that is a puzzle, like Railroad Ink or maybe has a race element like Welcome To for objectives, I like placing the monsters onto other players sheets here.

Unboxing

And two games were unboxed last night as well. It is fun to get in new games, and some of them, with Kickstarter, are a good time to show off. Now, this isn’t as minis heavy as a lot of the time, though, because , well, neither game has a ton of minis.

Steelslayer

Steelslayer is an expansion for The Reckoners. And Steelslayer adds in two more major epics. Plus more locations and cities as well. Overall, it just seems to add more to a game that could probably use a bit more. I haven’t played The Reckoners a ton, but I noticed we went through all the epics. Or we got close, in the one play. And while that isn’t a massive issue, it would be nice just to keep more variety built in.

Too Many Bones: Undertow

Too Many Bones: Undertow is going to be another game that I have played before. Or, I should say, I did a demo at Gen Con in 2019. I thought that the game was fun. But it didn’t jump off the table for me, mainly because we played only so little in the demo. I think more chance to play with it, and seeing more game play, the game looks like it should work better for me.

Plus, the price on Chip Theory Games went up at the start of June. So I knew if I wanted to grab it, I wanted to buy it before that happened. And I have another two character standalone game/expansion on Gamefound last year. The gearlocs in the base game are just okay, but the expansion ones, they seem like a lot of fun.

Upcoming Streams

So what is coming up. My plan is to learn and start getting Pathfinder Adventure Card Game to the table of Wednesday. Then for the next Monday, I hopefully will have a whole bunch of Massive Darkness 2 from CMON available to unbox. I believe that will be my plan for the next Monday stream. Another unboxing and picking a topic to chat about.

Let me know how you want me to do my unboxings. I personally like going with a bit more of a BoardGameCo style where I ramble on about a topic and about the game and spend some time. I know there are other channels that do them shorter. But for me, part of the fun, and why I do them live, is I can chat with everyone.

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Wish List Board Games

41: Pyramid of the Pengqueen

Low on the list, but let’s be fair, I do still want all of these games. This one just seems like an interesting idea, and it’s penguins. But the basic concept is what one person is playing as the Pengqueen who is going around her Pyramid, but no one can see where she is going. Everyone else is trying to get treasures. It’s kind of a hidden movement with a board that is vertical and magnets on both sides. So if you get to close, the magnets attract. Cool simple looking game for the holidays and with the toddler eventually. That’s why I want it.

40: Stella: Dixit Universe

A twist on Dixit where it keeps the great artwork. But players are trying to associate words with pictures and match up those words. And to me that sounds more interesting, and overall just a good looking party game. It also doesn’t have the thing that I don’t love of find the right answer in a bunch of them or tailor your answer to whomever is picking the best that so many also have. This one there isn’t a “right” answer, but you’re playing everyone.

39: Thunderstone Quest!

Thunderstone Quest! is a deck building game, so you might think it’d be higher on my list. For me, I think that I’d like the game a lot, but I’m not sure how much I’d play it over the other deck building games that I love. Thunderstone Quest with it’s fantasy theme and dungeon delving looks cool. But compared to something like Xenoshyft: Onslaught, Aeon’s End, or Clank!, I’m not sure that it’ll do enough for me. It looks like it’s basically just a deck building game.

38: Mice and Mystics

Mice and Mystics is one of the older games on the list. And one of the first storybook games from Plaid Hat Games. These are the ones where there is a book with maps and those are the boards that you play on. I like the feel of this where you play as the mice fighting other things. It’s lower because I really wanted to like Stuffed Fables and I thought it was a bit much for what it did. And that was building off of the Mice and Mystics system, slightly. So I’m worried this will feel like there are too many extra rules with the different pages as well.

37: Coconuts

Now for something very silly. Coconuts is a game where you are tossing coconuts with a monkey trying to get them to land in cups. As they land in cups, you get them and you are trying to complete a collection up to a certain number. But people can steal your cups. A fast paced dexterity game that is meant for that fifteen minute palette cleansing game.

36: Blank Slate

Another party game, in Blank Slate. Blank Slate is a matching game, where you put own a word to complete a phrase, [blank] Run for example. And they are trying to match with another player’s word. If they match up with one person, you get two points each. If you match up with more, well, you still get points but not as many. Simple concept of a game, but one that I could see working in almost any situation.

35: Qwirkle

One that I’ve played before. Qwirkle is an abstract game where you try and complete rows of six either of the same color or of the same symbol to get a lot of points. It’s kind of a cross between Scrabble and Rummikub. Both of them are classic games which I still enjoy. This one is definitely in that classic vein, but very easy to learn and play. So good one to pull out and have some fun with.

34: MicroMacro: Crime City

A combination of Where is Waldo and a who done it, MicroMacro: Crime City gives you a big map that you’re looking to follow a crime that has happened. The artwork is pretty cute and done all in black and white. What is cool about this one is that while it’s just a single map for all the cases, the cases are still dynamic. You can follow a blood trail and still see the same character as if they are moving. So the world is in motion which is really clever.

33: SET

Another classic game, and one that I mainly want to have in my collection because I’m good at it, or I was. It would kind of be one of those party trick games where I could dominate and impress. Kind of like Mastermind and always getting it in five rounds. So it’s more nostalgia than I think this is a great game. But I am curious to see if I’d still be as good at it.

32: Unmatched

Unmatched, and in particular I want the Marvel stuff that was announced a while ago and still isn’t out yet. But I do want to play this game system. It’s pretty clever how you spend cards to do actions, including to draw cards, and you’re looking to keep that balance of attack, move, and defend cards to play around with. Plus, when can you fight Bruce Lee vs some Raptors? Or Buffy the Vampire Hunter against Little Red Riding Hood?

31: Ramen! Ramen!

This one I mainly want because I think it’s going to be a small and cute set collection game. And because the artwork really makes me want ramen. So maybe that’s what I really need is to order or make some ramen soon. But the game looks like simple fun in that weight of something like Sushi Go. And with cute artwork like Sushi Go, that generally means that it’ll get played fairly often.

30: Risk: Shadow Forces

This is a new version of Risk Legacy. Now, there does seem to be fewer legacy elements to it than Risk Legacy, but you’ll see a number of legacy games on this list. I really like legacy games, and Risk is a fine game. I thought that Risk Legacy really improved upon it. So I’m hoping that this will just be another fun version of Risk.

29: Transhumanity

This isn’t a legacy game but more of a campaign game. Earth has leapt to somewhere else gone is the sun, next to us now, a scarlet dwarf star. Or maybe Earth stayed and they switched the other way. But the theme is cool and it’s a cooperative campaign where you are trying to influence what happens on Earth or the other Earths that have shown up as well as improve your deck of cards through card drafting. I’m mainly digging this one for the story, but I suspect it’s going to be right up my alley.

28: Gloom of Killforth

I own Shadows of Killforth that I need to play. But this is going to be a fantasy survival game where the world is very shrinking as the gloom takes it over. And you as a hero are building up your cards so that by the end of the game you’ll be able to defeat the big bad. And you can go to spots where gloom has taken over, but it’ll be harder to do anything there. Good concept and good artwork. I mainly want this because of completionist tendencies and I should just play Shadows of Killforth

27: Ghost Stories

Ghost Stories is supposed to be a very hard cooperative game. Players are trying to drive back ghosts and take them out in this game. And I like the horror them. Plus I really like the very hard cooperative nature. I know that sometimes cooperative games can be too hard, and I don’t want them all to be too hard, but this one, I want to bang my head against it’s difficulty and see if I can win.

26: Aqualin

Aqualin is a two player game from Kosmos. It doesn’t seem like too difficult a game but looks fun. One player is trying to group sea creatures by color. The other is trying to do it by fish type. It almost reminds me a bit of Qwirkle, but each player has a specific goal. I like little simple games like this that shouldn’t take too long to play but offer lots of very good choices.

25: Dungeons & Dragons: Dungeon Scrawler – Heroes of the Undermountains

There are a few roll and write games on this list, I don’t own all of them. But this one is on the list for two reasons. Firstly, I like the Dungeons and Dragons theme. And I know it isn’t the first and hasn’t been the last, but I like the idea of a dungeon crawler roll and write. I’m worried that it might be a cash grab of a game, considering the IP and popularity of roll and write games, but I still want to give it a try.

24: Machi Koro Legacy

Another legacy game, this is basically just Machi Koro, a game that I like. But it’s a short legacy campaign and then you can play Machi Koro. So, I want to get the game to just be able to play through the campaign and then have a copy of the game back in my collection. This is a legacy game that I can sit down and play with anyone, or probably even play over a weekend if I really wanted.

23: Menara

Menara is a dexterity stacking game. But a cooperative one, so no one is pulling for someone else to knock over the tower. To me that’s more interesting than something like Jenga. It changes the game from “haha, you knocked down to the tower” to “oh no, the tower fell down”. And that just feels better as a game when something game ending happens and it’s not about it being one person who is losing.

22: The Librarians: Adventure Card Game

This is another one that I’ve played. Granted, it was in prototype form on TableTop Simulator. The game was a good time and I really like the show. And the game has you playing through season one of the show. It’s a good cooperative game with solid mechanics. And I’d be more excited for this if I could play a real copy of it. And even with that less than ideal play, I am still ready to pick it up if I get a chance.

21: Star Wars: Rebellion

And another game that I’ve played. Star Wars: Rebellion is the original trilogy in a box, but your version of the original trilogy. It’s a lot of fun and a great two player game with one side being the Rebels and the other being the Empire. It has been on sale a few times, the only reason I haven’t picked it up is I know someone who owns it.

20: Adventure Ink: Five Factions of Filigree

I don’t know when this one will be hitting Kickstarter or published, I’m not sure which it’ll do, I’m guessing Kickstarter. And for that reason it is pretty low on this list because I am very excited for it. It’s a big story game but also a roll and write type game where things that you roll will get drawn onto things, I believe dry erase. The whole concept sounds very ambitious and very different. So like most games and projects that I enjoy.

19: Star Trek: Super-Skill Pinball

So, I was talking about roll and writes, here’s another one. And one that I know that I like. Super-Skill Pinball is maybe the most thematic roll and write game that I’ve played. And this basically slaps a Star Trek theme onto it, I’m curious I want to know what the tables will do. Because if it’s basically just taking existing tables and making them Star Trek, then this would drop off the list. But I’m guessing it’ll be all new tables.

18: Floor Plan: The Winchester Mystery Mansion

I got rid of Floor Plan, but I’m excited for this. My issue with Floor Plan, while fun, was that I didn’t feel too much like I was making a floor plan. The houses that were made were just too crazy. You could build a room with zero doors, and as long as it met criteria, it would give you points. But the Winchester Mystery Mansion is crazy in real life, so a crazy floor plan will make more sense.

17: Dungeon Party

This could also be called Dungeon Quarters. And that’s why I want the game, it looks like one of those games that would be simple enough to pull out almost anywhere. But also be a silly good time when you play it. It’s, like I said, basically quarters, bouncing a coin onto a monster to deal them damage. Plus then with the dungeon crawl theme on it and powers for your characters. I’d bring this one out to a brewery and have a great time.

16: The King’s Dilemma

More legacy with The King’s Dilemma. This is one that’s kind of a story telling game as you all are making decisions about what to do and opening lots of envelopes with story and more choices. And the choices, you might not agree in real life with what you decide, but it’s to get points, so it gives a chance to role play your character hoping to get your way on this thing that’ll help you. I’m really intrigued by it and another one I want to play but I won’t buy until I know who I’m playing it with.

15: Divinus

Yet more legacy with Divinus. Divinus, from Lucky Duck Games, pits the Greek Pantheon against the Norse Pantheon. And you are working to become a demi-god as you support one of the two sides, or both, throughout the game. It’s intriguing because you are placing dice to get tiles to build out lands in front of you. And then it uses Lucky Duck Games technology to scan locations and tell story. I feel like it might be a bit mechanical from watching some game play, but how will the story develop, I want to know.

14: Hadrian’s Wall

I think this is the final roll and write on the list. Hadrian’s Wall is a hefty roll and write. Two big sheets of stuff as you build up defenses along the wall to keep the invaders from being able to get through. I don’t know a ton about the game, but it’s a heavy roll and write, so I’m interested. And everyone who I’ve talked to about the game who has played it really likes it.

13: Die of the Dead

I wish that I had backed this one on Kickstarter. Then I wish that I had picked up the copy someone traded in at my FLGS. From what I know about this game, you are trying to manipulate dice to get them rolled and played onto this 3D stairs and make it to the top. The concept seems interesting and the game is just amazing to look at.

12: Strike

Now to a much simpler dice game. In Strike, you are rolling dice into a bowl and trying to get matches to build up your die pool and avoid getting a strike which will end your turn. It’s a last person standing with dice sort of game. This is one that just seems like a silly good time and one that would be great to pull out to end a board game night with some good laughs.

11: Tsukuyumi: Full Moon Down

Now we’re into mainly big games, there are a couple of smaller ones left, but Tsukujumi: Full Moon Down is not one of them. This is an area control sort of game where different factions are battling over areas. And what drew me to this game is that Sam Healey, formerly of the Dice Tower liked it, and I tend to like games that he likes. It is one that I think I’ll really dig, but also one with the price tag that I might want to try before I would buy it.

10: Maximum Apocalypse

Survive the zombie apocalypse, or alien, or dinosaur, or kaiju, or well, you get the picture. What is cool about this game is that it’s very much a survival game but feels like on the lighter ends of things. I maybe even want the latest version more so that offers a campaign to the game, but also, without a campaign it might be easier to play. Because who doesn’t want to play a scenario were a kaiju is stomping across the land to get you? And I like that the map is set-up as well.

9: Doodle Dash

Now one of the few smaller games left. This is basically just racing to draw something as fast as possible so that your clue is given first. Though, if you go too fast and draw too poorly, they might not get it. So it’s a balance of how fast you doodle, probably very fast though. Seems like a good party game that is similar to some, but I don’t have many drawing party games.

8: Townsfolk Tussle

This is one that I looked at on Kickstarter as a boss battler game but I didn’t back. I know it’s coming back to Kickstarter, but I’m not sure I’ll back it that time either, even though I definitely want it. But Townsfolk Tussle is a lighter game where you fight against different mustache twirling villains. I like the artwork on the game, which is Cuphead or old cartoon/comic like. And it is kind of a campaign, but not a massive campaign game. I just have Oathsworn and Primal coming as boss battlers.

7: Monumental

Monumental is a game that I wish wasn’t available only on Kickstarter and probably one that had standees. This is a deck building game where you fight, get more cards, and move and explore on a big map. What draws me to this game is how you activate. It isn’t a normal deck builder in that you don’t play a hand of cards. Instead you have a 3×3 grid and you activate a row or a column for the cards. That feels very unique in what it does.

6: Kingdom Death: Monster

Now the grandfather or all boss battlers? Well, maybe it isn’t that, but it’s the biggest one that really put them on the map. I’d love to get my hands on Kingdom Death: Monster. But I really don’t want to spend an arm and a leg like it costs. And I really don’t want to but together all the minis. This is one that I’d love to have, but I’d need to find it for the right price, which I doubt I ever well.

5: Iron Forest

Iron Forest is another one that I could get right now on Kickstarter. But I am not backing it, mainly because $80 for a flicking game, plus shipping, is more than I want to pay. I can probably find it cheaper used later. But I love Icecool from this company, and Iron Forest is two layer Icecool with some extra rules. If there was a game where I wanted to have it in front of me and play it tonight, this might be the one.

4: Arkeis

Arkeis is another legacy style game. I’m not sure if it is truly legacy, it’s been a while since it was on Kickstarter. But this is a game where you are exploring tombs in Egypt, I believe. And that theme is really cool. Plus it’s a campaign game, so I always like those. Just the Egypt theme has me really excited for this one. And it is a game where the box creates rooms for you to go into. It just feels like it’s going to be epic.

3: So Clover!

Now a small game again, So Clover! is a party game from the makers of Just One. In this game you have a clover leaf that you has four cards on it with four words on each card, one per side. So each leaf has two words on it. You put down a word that connects those two for all the leaves you have. And then you shuffle in a fifth card. Everyone else is doing the same thing. Then one player at a time, everyone who didn’t write on the board tries to unscramble it. It seems like it will work with almost anyone and be just a bit harder than Just One.

2: Vampire: The Masquerade – Chapters

Now a really big game, Vampire: The Masquerade – Chapters is going to be playing a story driven dungeon crawl maybe boss battler game. And of course it’s a campaign as well. So really it is everything that I love. I didn’t back it when it was on Kickstarter because I thought it was too expensive, and do I really need another campaign game? I probably don’t, but I love the mystery and intrigue that Vampire: The Masquerade Chapters promises. So I really want to try and track this one down when it finally delivers.

1: Rogue Angels: Legacy of the Burning Suns

Finally Rogue Angels. I don’t need to say much about this one. You can watch me play it here. It’s not even on Kickstarter yet, or back on Kickstarter anyways. And from what I know about the changes coming to the game, all cosmetic, it’s going to be amazing. Plus, the game play itself is great. I can’t wait for this to come back to Kickstarter and then sometime in the future to be delivered.

Final Thoughts

Rogue Angels is easily my top game on my wish list. Though, there are others, So Clover! for sure, that I’ll be getting before it. I’m waiting for that one to come back into stock because when it does, it’ll get played right away. It’s going to be a great game night and holiday option for me. And some of the other ones, they might never get picked up. I mean, Kingdom Death: Monster, I’m never going to buy that. But some others, Vampire The Masquerade – Chapters, I definitely want to track down.

What game is #1 on your wish list?

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