The Game – Etherfields

So what is Etherfields. In Etherfields you are traveling through a world of dreams and wonders trying to find keys and survive Each dream is going to be completely different. Most of them probably will be nightmares more than pleasant dreams, but from what I know they play around with so many different options.

There is also a deck construction and deck building element of the game. You collect resources to gets cards that let you complete the challenges. Or you can put them into play and for maybe a bigger affect or an affect you can use right when you need it.

Like most Awaken Realms games Etherfields is a big game, though smaller, I think than Tainted Grail. That does mean that there is a little bit of mess to the game. Not all the rules are maybe going to be as clear as people want them to be. One of the reasons that I’m glad I got everything in wave two is that I have the improved rule book. I also have the option to do the continuous dream mode. Though, sounds like a Slumber and a Dream per session won’t be too bad.

Upcoming Streams

So on Wednesday at 8 PM I am going to be streaming more Stars of Akarios by OOMM Games. It’ll be the second scenario in the prologue and there is a poll out there right now. You can find the video coming up here.

As for Monday, I am not sure what my plan is to stream yet. I am thinking I might look at getting Trek12 to the table. A new roll and write that came in, which you can see at the start of the video. Or some other game, a Top 10 list is also an option, but my plan, I think, will be to get in some gaming.

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Pros

• Price Point
• Theme
• Aesthetic
• Minis or No Minis

Cons

• Stretch Goal Structure
• First Time Company

The Page

Now, I say that this is a first time company and I put that in the cons. However, that is a very minor con for me. I have been hearing about this game for a few years, I think first in 2018 from Sam Healey on the Dice Tower. So this is a game that has been on my radar for a long time and one that the developers are taking their time to get right before it goes to Kickstarter. Andrew Lowen also has been involved with other Kickstarters before so it is a new company, but not a new person to Kickstarter.

The page layout is what I consider the standard at this point. Laying out the pledge levels and everything works well, though, the images repeat a fair amount. So you have to scroll by a lot to get to the actual game play information, which is generally what I’m looking for. However, I do like that they’ve given a pledge level without minis in it.

However, that is going to lead into one of my negatives and this one bugs me. They have a level without minis so why aren’t there non-mini characters for those unlocks. Only the deluxe version gets extra characters and to me that’s a little bit off-putting. I know that it’s trying to create FOMO for the mini pledge level but I have a KS budget and for a game like this, I don’t know that I need the minis. If I get them, it means that I can support fewer Kickstarters later in the year.

The Game

The game itself looks interesting to me. I believe that it gives you one off battles as well as then a campaign that you can play through. It even looks like it has a campaign that teaches you the game, maybe, and then then another bigger one. I like it when games give a tutorial.

It is also a dungeon crawling game which I am always going to be interested in as well. Deliverance, however, puts a new spin and theme on it. It doesn’t look as story heavy as something like Solomon Kane but I feel like I get a little bit of that vibe from it. Or, more so this one really leans into that religious side of things for the theme. And I am actually surprised that this seems to be the first dungeon crawler to really use this theme.

The game play itself sounds interesting. I like that it isn’t just a straight up battle. You need to defend certain Saints to basically keep the darkness from piling up as quickly. The mechanics might not be totally unique, but if a game does them well for a dungeon crawl, I am interested in it.

Back or Brick

This game is a Brick for me. Mainly, the theme works for me. I don’t know why, it reminds me of Diablo for the them, but definitely very different game play. Just the theme being so unique has me backing it at the non-minis level. And that is my one main gripe with it. Backing with minis doesn’t just get you more because you are getting more minis, you are getting more characters to play. So by not getting minis I am going to be missing out on content in the game. Will that cause me to drop my pledge, probably not, but I do find that annoying, seems like they could just print more standees to add into the base game.

How about for you, is this one a Back or a Brick?

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Pros

• Marvel Theme
• Proven Company
• Proven Track record for the game
• New Modes for the game
• Chibi Minis

Cons

• Chibi Minis
• Simple Game Play (at times)

The Page

Now, I already did a Let There Be Hype article on this game. So, needless to say I am a bit excited for it. But I wanted to look at it again when it came out to see what they are doing well and what they could do better. Now, CMON knows how to create and run a Kickstarter. And while in previous Kickstarters they have at times moved away from stretch goals, this type of game is made for it. There are so many X-Men characters that how couldn’t you have some fun with it and release a lot of ones and a lot of obscure ones.

Now, that, thus far, has been a knock for some people. I remember when the first Marvel United Kickstarter was out and Spider-Man wasn’t there, people complained a ton that Spider-Man wasn’t in the game. Turns out that he was, and turns out that then the Sinister Six were which people also complained about. Right now we don’t have the likes of Gambit, Rogue, and Colossus. I need Gambit in the game, but I’m not going to complain, because I know he will be coming. Gambit should be in an expansion for Marvel United X-Men. He is a big enough character that people will pay more money to get him. So it is a smart business move, and in all fairness, I was always going to go all in on this game.

The one knock I will have on the page is where the stretch goals are located. I knocked a game recently for having them too high, here they are too low. They are after the add-ons, which I get. They want people to see the add-ons and decide that they need something they didn’t get in the original Kickstarter. But this is really a campaign about the stretch goals and the extra expansions, and I want to know what I’m going to be unlocking, and there have been a lot of unlocks already. That is really my only knock and that shipping to some places is spendy, but for me in the US, it isn’t bad.

The Game

It happens from time to time that I know something about the game. In this case, it’s because I already own it. Well, I own all of the original stuff. The only thing that I didn’t get was the playmat, and honest, I’m not sure if there is a new playmat that I’ll get it this time around either. Well, I guess, I didn’t get the cardboard location tiles versus the cardstock ones, but that didn’t add anything new to the game.

But is the same good, I clearly am not trying to sell myself on the game. I am going to try and sell others. This game won’t be for everyone. The game is not extremely complex, especially the base box. If you like thinkier games, then I am not sure this game will work in all of it’s forms. This is a family weight game for the most part. But there are a few things that might make the Marvel United X-Men more interesting.

Heroes/Villains

So, two different modes for the same characters. The X-Men is known for this more than the Avengers side of things. A villain who becomes a hero or a hero who becomes a villain. A great example of this is Magneto. Magneto is a major villain for the X-Men, but he is also a leader for the X-Men at times. So you can play Magneto in either role.

Playing the Villain

And as I hinted at above, you can play as the villain. This is something different taking the game from just having to be cooperative to being able to be one versus all. I like that change as well. There are special rules and basically all villains, even in the old stuff, can be played this way. It makes the game more challenging, but it is fun to think of that addition. The person playing the villain gets a hand of three cards and picks versus it being flipped from the top.

But mainly, I think this game is going to be one that works for a really wide group of people. If you only play the base Marvel United, you are missing out. That game is meant to be sold at Wal-Mart and Target and be really accessible. The expansions offer new challenges and really unique characters, and it is so easy to get to the table as you just grab heroes and villains.

Back or Brick

No shock here, for me, it is a Back. I love Marvel, I love the X-Men, and I really enjoy Marvel United, especially with the expansions. This is a fun accessible game that will work for so many people. And I know the art style isn’t for everyone, but I really like it. I think that the chibi minis are cute, and for a family weight game it works. Plus, the minis will be easier for me to paint, which I consider a win.

Now, do you need to back this one?

Unfortunately the answer is yes. Originally some of the expansions were supposed to come to retail, now it’s down to Enter the Spider-Verse I believe. So if you want a million characters, you won’t be able to get them in the story. That sucks, I don’t love that change. However, expansions don’t sell as well as base games do in stores. So if you want Tales of Asgard or Sinister Six, you’ll have to grab it from this Kickstarter.

Is this one a back or a brick for you? What character do you want to see?

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Pros

• Cooperative
• Horror Themed
• Tense
• Great price point
• Known company
• Tough to beat
• Looks like Nic Cage on the cover instead of Night Cage

Cons

• Fairly abstract
• Horror Themed
• Tough to beat

Thoughts on the Page

This is a well laid out page that gives you a solid idea of what the game is like. It does a good job with that primarily black, white, grey and sepia tone to give it that horror vibe to it. And it does a good job of laying out the game play as well.

They’ve done a good job with the price point, not too high for what you’re getting and seems extremely reasonable where the cost plus shipping will be what you’d find it for at retail. And I like that they have a premium level that is just upgrades to components or a creepy soundtrack, not game play related.

And I think that they’ve done a good job with the stretch goals. There is a good balance of game play additions, like new types of monsters, pits, etc. but nothing that massively changes the game and nothing that makes it feel like they are just adding stuff, so no bloat in the game. Plus there are also some nice component upgrades as well to it.

Bonus Video

Bonus video content from GloryHoundd on YouTube, she and DrGloryHogg did a playthrough of the game via TableTop Simulator that they got from Smirk & Dagger

Back or Brick

So when I first saw this game, it was going to be a brick for me. The concept seemed interesting enough, but I wasn’t sure about the game play and the cover, I make Nic Cage jokes about it because it looks a bit like that to me. But as I dug more into it and they talked about it on GloryHoundd YouTube channel and did the play through, I saw the intensity of the game. This is one of those stressful cooperative games where, because the labyrinth is always changing and the candle is burning down, you are going to feel a version of the pressure that the theme is trying to promote. So while I don’t feel like I should back for the soundtrack as well, I did end up up backing it, so it’s a Back for me.

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

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I almost forgot to do this today, but I want to keep it regular, would you back this game or is it a brick?

Pros

• Based on a good game
• Can back part of it and decide more later
• Interesting premise/settings
• Not just a board game, app piece makes it more appealing to a larger crowd

Cons

• App piece, some people don’t like that in their board games
• Got maybe a tiny bit motion sick demoing it at GenCon

The Page

This is a company, in Luck Duck Games, that does a great job of putting together a kickstarter, and this one is nice. The stretch goals being kickstarter exclusive are a bit disappointing. Now, that gets more people to back, so I don’t blame them, but a special scenario and the bit more of the stuff, I don’t love it as it is game play focused. Now, that bothered me less on other campaigns, so not a big knock.

I also like that this is built off of a very popular game of theirs. I think that the game sounds fascinating and having these scenarios that might somehow tie together is really interesting. Plus, I’m a sucker for detective/puzzle games.

Back or Brick?

I don’t want to call it a brick, but I’ve given myself two options so this is a brick for me. First, I know that a lot of it will be hitting retail, so I can pick it up there. But beyond that, I haven’t played the base game yet, while I could just jump in here, I kind of want to try that experience first before going to something completely different. I think that this would be a great kickstarter to back and if I was already invested in it, I probably would be leaning towards backing it at least for one of the packs. And I’d highly recommend it to people, because it is cool, again from the demo that I did. Definitely one worth checking out, just not for me at this time.

Is this a brick or a back for you?

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First off, though, let’s define what a stretch goal is. A stretch goal is a funding goal to get additional content or improvements added to a game. For example, in Marvel United, there are stretch goals to unlock additional characters for the game. Or there are some where it’s less game play focused or additional game play focused and it’ll be something like linen finish for the cards or a Game Trayz insert for the game. So something that is going to make the game feel more special or complete. Another example would be Tainted Grail, they did two expansions that were for added into the Kickstarter pledge but if it goes to retail, you’d have to buy them separately. Basically, they are to add extras into the game, sometimes for the Kickstarter backers only and sometimes for everyone. What is cool about stretch goals is what it can bring the community of board gamers into help something be fully realized. The downside is of course FOMO, that you might be missing out on a bit for the game because it wasn’t unlocked, or because something is exclusive to Kickstarter.

That is one of the toughest things about Kickstarter, the FOMO, not just from stretch goals. If you’re not familiar with the term, FOMO stands for “Fear of Missing Out”. Basically, it’s the idea that you need to do and get everything in order that you don’t miss out on something great. When it’s doing things, it can be a bit paralyzing, because you don’t know which thing is going to be the best or how you’re going to do everything. With buying a Kickstarter, it’s less paralyzing, because it’s money not your time, which isn’t a great thing. There are two ways that Kickstarters can create FOMO for users.

The first is what I mentioned above, Kickstarter exclusive things. Now, going back to Marvel United, a lot of the Marvel characters are going to be Kickstarter exclusive, it isn’t the main characters, but if you wanted Beta-Ray Bill or Spider-Ham, you need to get them through the Kickstarter. So while the game will likely be hitting retail, and I expect it to be pushed big in retail, you’re going to have a more limited number of things that you can get, and to track down those characters later could be spendy. So do you risk missing out on those exclusives? That’s how they get your FOMO going with Kickstarter exclusives.

The other way is technically not a Kickstarter exclusive, but it is pretty similar because it could just be that the game itself is exclusive or not hitting retail for sure. For example, Tainted Grail might not hit retail, and probably the expansions won’t even if the base game does. So do you risk it not hitting retail and having to find it on the secondary market, possibly costing a lot? And some games will only ever be on Kickstarter because they are too large and expensive to stock in stores, or because it is such a small indie project that the person doesn’t have connections to get it into stores. Those I think are easier, but the ones where it might go to retail, how do you handle that? Do you wait and hope that everything makes it to retail or that it isn’t a lesser retail version or do you still go in on the Kickstarter. Add in the fact that deservedly so Kickstarter backers who are making the project happen most of the time get their games first, do you want to wait the extra two months to a year to get the game in retail?

So, is there a good way to avoid FOMO with Kickstarter? I don’t really think that there is. At least nothing that you can do without treating FOMO as a whole. Kickstarter and sales in a brick and mortar store are all built around making you feel like you have to decide now and fast and that you’re going to miss out if you don’t decide fast. I can go into, maybe, in a future article about FOMO and how you can cope with FOMO, but Kickstarter is built to cause FOMO and without just avoiding Kickstarter, I think that FOMO is going to just be a part of it for a lot of people. So, if I were to have a few tips and tricks for helping deal with it with Kickstarter, I can think of a couple.

A lot of Kickstarters allow you to back for $1. You aren’t going to get a game just backing for $1, but it can give you access to the pledge manager quite often. In the pledge manager you basically can always get the same deals as you did on the Kickstarter. What that does is it allows you to consider it for a small amount of money. Get a regular coffee instead of a fancy coffee and you can do 2-3 $1 pledges. This allows you to feel not as rushed about making the decision. The Kickstarter will run for a month, fairly often, then it might be a month setting up the pledge manager and the pledge manager will stay open for another month. In that month between the Kickstarter campaign and the pledge manager, did you think about the game, if you don’t, you’ve just spent $1.

Similar to this, Kickstarter has a final 48 hour notification. That means that they send out an e-mail and notify you when a campaign is ending. I use this all the time. If I think something looks interesting, I save it, I get notified, and generally, if I haven’t backed it before then, I ignore it, because the FOMO wasn’t that strong. But it could be a good reminder or maybe I got some money for spending on games so I might consider it again at that point.

In both of the cases, it’s about seeing how much you actually think about it. In the games that I’ve been interested in and been all in on, I generally look at it, consider it and sleep on it, but if I’m still thinking about it the next day, I know if I’m going to back it, so I do right away. Otherwise, it’s probably isn’t one that I’d back. These can techniques buy you the time to decide that you might not feel like you have otherwise with a Kickstarter, and hopefully can help your budget and your FOMO.

Do you have FOMO with any games? Has it come back to bite you ever?

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(All games are Kickstarter games in images)

Is this big Kickstarter a Back or a Brick for you?
(What does this mean, basically, would you back this or is it a pass?)

First, I’m going to break down the pros and cons of the project.

Pros

• The theme is Marvel and I love Marvel
• The game is cooperative
• CMON is a big company and it’ll get made
• Game play is simple looking
• Game looks like it plays in a reasonable time
• You get a ton of characters with it
• The retail version will pale in comparison to the Kickstarter version
• Reasonable price for base game

Cons

• CMON has a backlog of games to produce first so it won’t come for a while
• Too much PLASTIC
• Game play might be too simple
• FOMO for the add-on, Thanos add on that is Kickstarter exclusive
• FOMO of Kickstarter exclusives
• Possible limited variety in the game
• Shipping costs might be higher

Thoughts on Campaign Page
It’s CMON, this is a well put together campaign with a ton of worry about FOMO for it because there are so many stretch goals being unlocked that are going to be Kickstarter exclusive. This is a downside to the campaign because, I don’t like to feel like I’m backing based out of FOMO.

But, with that said, they do a good job of laying out how the game works and the fact that they do that and they give you a rules book that you can look at means that you know what you’re going to be getting with the game. I feel like the game makes sense in terms of it being a family weight feeling game, which is something that intrigues me. It means that I’ll be able to get it to the table with more people, which is always nice.

Verdict
Right now, I’m going to wait until it’s later in the campaign to make up my mind. How much is going to be unlocked, how much is going to be Kickstarter exclusive, and how much is going to be add-ons. I’m leaning towards Back because I love Marvel and because it’s cooperative, though.

What is this for you, a back or a brick (meaning pass because alliteration)?

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