Forum Overview :: Reviews

Fucking iPads by fabio 06/11/2013, 3:32am PDT So a lot of companies are releasing digital versions of their board games, complete with online play and clever AI so you can get satisfying games in...on your fucking iPad. There's been a goddamn explosion of games being released on the thing: Elder Sign, Small World, and Eclipse just to name a few. Not even a mention of any possible PC release. To date the only non-Hasbro game to be released on PC has been the godawful euro Ticket to Ride (or Race to the Galaxy if you count the open source version). Are bribes involved? Do they think iPad - not even the entire tablet market - is a bigger market than PC? It's killing me because a lot of these games are blah in person, but become interesting once you cut out human thinking downtime. Anyway, reviews of these: Ticket to Ride- Bullshit bullshit luck. You draw colors to beat other people to claiming train routes. Everyone gets a secret objective route at the beginning for big points if you complete it. The problem is the east-west cross country routes are by far more rewarding than shorter routes or the north-south routes. I have never, ever seen someone who started with a shorter route beat someone who started with a east-west route. I've heard that the expansion, available as DLC, fix this but nobody is playing the expansions online. Screw this game. Elder Sign- Arkham Horror boiled down to a version of Yhatzee. Very simple and fun, but a little tricky with player numbers. Technically you can have 1-8 players, but I'd say it only works with 3 or 4. The thing is there's a set number of turns and resources available that doesn't change with the number of players, so the game actually gets easier the fewer players there are. It's way too easy with 1 or 2, and nobody gets enough to do with 5-8. If you're in a large game and get wounded so you have to spend turns recovering, you're effectively out of the game. Otherwise with 3 or 4 people it's the perfect quick solution if you liked the idea of Arkham Horror but thought it was too unwieldy. Small World- A fantasy version of History of the World. Imagine Risk where instead of getting reinforcements every turn, you get a new race at a specific location with a set number of armies and unique power. The problem with this game is that by minimizing luck (it takes a set number of armies to knock out a defender with one die roll allowed per turn for a shot at a better exchange), it forces players to spend more time analyzing exact moves which slows everything down for what's supposed to be a light game. Furthermore, each race gets another random ability every game on top of their standard ability which forces you to spend more time analyzing combos. The end result is people who want to win taking for-fucking-ever to take their turn. There's nothing to do when it's not your turn, and half the time you have to skip your turn when it finally comes back to you. Tons of casual players swear by this game, but I'd avoid it unless you put a time limit on turns. This is one that would benefit a ton from playing against a computer. Game of Thrones (2nd edition)-A wargame with an asymmetrical free for all setup. Very similar to Diplomacy. The big differences is battles involve playing a leader card to add to your total strength along with a special effect. You can't use a leader again until you've exhausted your whole hand so there's a bluffing game in blowing your best leader or punting. Another aspect is hidden orders where each region receives a move order, support a neighboring region order, disrupt a neighboring support, or build/income. It's a sound enough game, but the problem is the usual problem with asymmetric games. Each house has a "role" where if you're unaware of it you'll get crushed (Stark plays the defensive long game, Greyjoy and Lannister have to quickly crush each other, etc). Compounding this problem is that victory tends not to go to the best player, but rather who lucked out in getting the weakest player for a neighbor. It can become a satisfying game AFTER everyone is familiar enough with what you have to do for strategies, but is it really worth the time investment when you could be playing something else? I'd say no unless you're huge Diplomacy and GoT fans. Eclipse- Another game I desperately want a digital version of but it's only on the (fucking) iPad. This is the closest you'll get to a functional boardgame version of Master of Orion. There's expanding and dealing with your neighbors, being the first to defeat the guardian in the center to claim the valuable planet, researching new tech, and ship design. A good chunk of techs are new ship parts. You can build small, medium, or heavy ships and the only difference is how many parts you can fit on each one. Do you go heavy on armor to absorb damage, shields to lessen the chance of being hit at all, computers to increase your chance of hitting, tons of guns, or engines to move halfway across the board in one move? You have to watch what your opponents are designing and try to come up with a counter (if he doesn't have any computers, then your shields are worthless, etc.). There's also enough ways to build up victory points without conquest so it just doesn't turn into a straight war game. Very recommended. Very streamlined and simple once you learn the rules. The only problem is in the base game, the luck factor is too high in drawing new systems while exploring and missiles are pretty overpowered. So overpowered that over half the new stuff in the expansion is new tech specifically for countering missiles. The iPad version doesn't have the expansion yet, and the physical game is pretty costly: $100 for the base game and around $40-50 for the expansion.

Boardgame roundup: Vol. 1 by FABIO 04/26/2005, 10:56pm PDT     Re: Boardgame roundup: Vol. 1 by Entropy Stew 04/27/2005, 12:08am PDT     Volume 2, right now! by FABIO 04/27/2005, 3:30am PDT         Re: Volume 2, right now! by Choson 04/27/2005, 6:47am PDT             Re: Volume 2, right now! by theemu 04/27/2005, 11:52am PDT                 Re: Volume 2, right now! by FABIO 04/27/2005, 1:43pm PDT                     Re: Volume 2, right now! by Choson 04/27/2005, 2:40pm PDT                         Re: Volume 2, right now! by laudablepuss 04/27/2005, 2:56pm PDT                             Re: Volume 2, right now! by Choson 04/27/2005, 3:01pm PDT                             laudablepuss says dice are random NT by binkbot 04/27/2005, 4:57pm PDT                                 Like football! I also said that. Also ballooning. And then I said comma. NT by laudablepuss 04/27/2005, 5:09pm PDT         Re: Volume 2, right now! by mark 04/27/2005, 12:10pm PDT         Wow by Arbit 04/28/2005, 12:27am PDT             ARE YOU GOING TO TAKE THAT FABIO NT by the CROWD 04/28/2005, 12:43am PDT                 *shrug* NT by FABIO 04/28/2005, 12:54am PDT     Re: Boardgame roundup: Vol. 1 by Bill Dungsroman 04/27/2005, 7:54am PDT         Re: Boardgame roundup: Vol. 1 by FABIO 04/28/2005, 2:44pm PDT             Fortress America in ACTION! by FABIO 04/29/2005, 1:20pm PDT     Re: Boardgame roundup: Vol. 1 by mark 04/27/2005, 11:56am PDT         Re: Boardgame roundup: Vol. 1 by FABIO 04/27/2005, 1:52pm PDT         Scott Orr disagress with you! by FABIO 05/09/2005, 9:20pm PDT             Man who made game that sucks, sucks :( NT by mark 05/09/2005, 11:10pm PDT         Memoir '44 by fabio 01/24/2012, 9:50pm PST     No Dark Tower? No Stop Thief? by laudablepuss 04/27/2005, 12:31pm PDT         Re: No Dark Tower? No Stop Thief? by mark 04/27/2005, 1:02pm PDT             Re: No Dark Tower? No Stop Thief? by FABIO 04/28/2005, 2:45pm PDT                 yes. by mark 04/28/2005, 3:20pm PDT     Mark's Boardgame Roundup part 1 by mark 04/27/2005, 12:50pm PDT         For the love of God can no one stop these boardgame roundups??? by Ray of Light 04/27/2005, 1:16pm PDT         Re: Mark's Boardgame Roundup part 1 by theemu 04/27/2005, 1:22pm PDT         Mark's Boardgame Roundup part 2 by mark 04/27/2005, 6:11pm PDT             Settlers counter rebuttal by FABIO 04/27/2005, 6:35pm PDT                 Re: Settlers counter rebuttal by Quentin Beck 04/27/2005, 6:47pm PDT                     actually that was me (that's the new mysterio name? I thought he was a poster) NT by mark 04/27/2005, 6:47pm PDT                 Re: Settlers counter rebuttal by Choson 04/27/2005, 7:55pm PDT                     Re: Settlers counter rebuttal by Pre 05/10/2005, 11:14am PDT             I can't believe I never heard of Arkham Horror before. by Fullofkittens 04/28/2005, 9:28pm PDT     Re: Boardgame roundup: Vol. 1 by mark 04/28/2005, 12:32am PDT     Vol. 3 by FABIO 05/09/2005, 11:29pm PDT         Thanks! by laudablepuss 05/10/2005, 7:21pm PDT         suggestions by my$terio 05/10/2005, 9:20pm PDT         Dark Tower sells for hundreds on ebay? by extarbags 05/12/2005, 4:08pm PDT             I shot mine full of BBs. Along with all my classic GI Joes. :( NT by laudablepuss 05/13/2005, 11:11am PDT                 I demolished my star wars toys in my sand box or fed them to my guniea pig :( NT by Mischief Maker 05/13/2005, 1:58pm PDT                     "Putting away childish things" turned out to be a really stupid idea. by laudablepuss 05/13/2005, 4:47pm PDT             Mine sold for $130 by fabio 05/26/2011, 11:14am PDT     Arkham Horror: Making Pen & Paper games obsolete by FABIO 02/13/2008, 9:51pm PST         That should read 1d8 people :( by Erratard 02/13/2008, 10:05pm PST         Wait'll you discover "How to host a murder mystery!" NT by Mischief Maker 02/13/2008, 10:22pm PST             ^ roleplaying =( NT by FABIO 02/14/2008, 4:20am PST         My group hit a bunch of obstacles with Arkham Horror. by Last 05/25/2011, 7:14pm PDT             Re: My group hit a bunch of obstacles with Arkham Horror. by fabio 05/26/2011, 12:06pm PDT                 My group is having fun now with a play-by-email setup in google docs. by Last 07/27/2011, 9:16pm PDT     Boardgame roundup: Pandemic, Longshot by Last 05/26/2011, 10:33am PDT         +1 on Pandemic, it's very fun by Fullofkittens 08/07/2011, 6:14pm PDT             Apparently the expansion is worth it if you like the core game NT by Lizard_King 08/07/2011, 8:29pm PDT     Battlestar Galactica by Lizard_King 08/03/2011, 9:09pm PDT         Re: Battlestar Galactica by fabio 08/04/2011, 12:58am PDT             Re: Battlestar Galactica by Lizard_King 08/04/2011, 5:41am PDT                 Re: Battlestar Galactica by fabio 08/04/2011, 8:31am PDT                     Re: Battlestar Galactica by Lizard_King 08/05/2011, 4:32pm PDT         Tried Exodus by fabio 08/25/2011, 11:52am PDT     Citadels by Lizard_King 08/04/2011, 6:26am PDT         Needs the expansion by fabio 08/04/2011, 8:40am PDT             The expansion comes with every version of the game currently available by Lizard_King 08/05/2011, 4:04pm PDT     Totally worth it by fabio 08/27/2011, 7:44am PDT     Cosmic Encounter by NDD 08/28/2011, 5:23pm PDT         Re: Cosmic Encounter by NDD 08/28/2011, 5:31pm PDT     The best board game review by fabio 01/24/2012, 8:34pm PST     War of the Ring by fabio 01/24/2012, 10:09pm PST     Age of Wonders - Positive! by Last 01/31/2012, 10:29am PST         *80% to 120% NT by Last 01/31/2012, 10:31am PST         I liked this one by fabio 01/31/2012, 7:30pm PST     Review request: REX by fabio 02/24/2012, 5:56am PST         Haven't played it, but I have no faith in FFG NT by mark 03/13/2012, 8:33pm PDT             Why's that by fabio 03/14/2012, 5:42am PDT     Going Cardboard by Souffle of Pain 02/24/2012, 7:10am PST     Ever wish there was a simplified version of Arkham Horror? by fabio 03/23/2012, 12:41pm PDT     REX, aka Dune 2.0, aka Cosmic Encounter Obsolescence by fabio 04/12/2012, 8:01pm PDT         UPDATE: default rules broken, needs fixing NT by fabio 08/23/2012, 8:42am PDT         Dune got a new edition. Rex is the better game by IPB 04/23/2020, 7:06pm PDT     Ticket to Ride: Steam edition by fabio 08/23/2012, 8:47am PDT         How is that different from the boardgame version? by Last 08/23/2012, 9:14am PDT             Never played the boardgame version by fabio 08/23/2012, 10:49am PDT                 Oh, I have the version set in Europe and they fixed that. by Last 08/23/2012, 1:42pm PDT                     Great, no one ever plays the other maps online =( NT by fabio 08/23/2012, 5:43pm PDT     Vassal by fabio 05/04/2013, 2:43pm PDT     Fucking iPads by fabio 06/11/2013, 3:32am PDT     Did you want to like Arkham Horror but couldnt? by fabio 12/12/2013, 8:02pm PST         Thanks, I'll get it. NT by Last 12/13/2013, 8:44am PST     Alhambra - Positive! Guillotine - Positive! by Last 12/13/2013, 9:00am PST     board game review: Twin Tin Robots by blackwater 12/13/2013, 10:33pm PST     Board Games? More like...wait for it...WAIT FOR IT...SNORE-d games! by HA HA HA HA HA HA HA 12/19/2013, 9:54pm PST         In the land of the video gamer, the board gamer is king by motherfuckerfoodeater 12/19/2013, 10:47pm PST             I'd invite you over but I only have one game port on my soundbalaster :( NT by PC GAMING FUCK YEAH!! 12/20/2013, 12:29am PST     Review: Incognito (Board Game) by blackwater 03/24/2014, 12:55am PDT         Shadow Hunters is fun by fabio 03/24/2014, 1:08am PDT     Review: Libertalia (board game) by blackwater 06/17/2014, 11:52pm PDT     Gaming with family by skip 08/04/2016, 7:07am PDT         Re: Gaming with family by laudablepuss 08/04/2016, 8:45am PDT             Re: Gaming with family by laudablepuss 08/04/2016, 8:47am PDT         There is no reason to ever play Ticket to Ride or Dixit by fabio 08/04/2016, 3:56pm PDT             The reason is that they're great family games by skip 08/04/2016, 5:28pm PDT                 The Pink Panther remake is a great family film! NT by fabio 08/04/2016, 9:48pm PDT                     Fabio has never had to game with relatives and it really shows. NT by skip 08/05/2016, 6:06am PDT                         What kind of family get togethers mandate boardgames? by fabio 08/13/2016, 6:16pm PDT                             The kind where we're inside and just need an activity to do? NT by Picionary < Dixit 08/13/2016, 7:54pm PDT     Hey this game is coming out with an expansion. Look at the scenario writers by skip 08/13/2016, 7:59am PDT     GMT games is giving boardgames away to anyone laid off by corona by saltlord 06/29/2020, 8:59am PDT