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Dominion: Dark Ages
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Mage Knight: Board Game
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Descent: Journeys in the Dark (Second Edition)
Eclipse
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Collapsible D: The Final Minutes of the Titanic
Lords of Waterdeep
Agricola: All Creatures Big and Small
Libertalia
Android: Netrunner
Virgin Queen
The Lord of the Rings: Nazgul
A Game of Thrones: The Board Game (Second Edition)
Dominion
Star Wars: X-Wing Miniatures Game
Infiltration
The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game
Among the Stars
Twilight Struggle
The Swarm
Agricola
1989: Dawn of Freedom
Goa
7 Wonders
Glory to Rome
Arkham Horror
Village
Ora et Labora
Battles of Westeros: House Baratheon Army Expansion
Through the Ages: A Story of Civilization
Thunder Road
Trajan
Zombicide
The Castles of Burgundy
7 Wonders: Cities
Ace of Spies
War of the Ring
Skyline
Space Alert
Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective
City of Horror
Race for the Galaxy
Dungeon Command: Sting of Lolth
Twilight Imperium (third edition)
Kingdom Builder
Le Havre
Battlestar Galactica

Lacxox.

I have no idea what I'm going to write in this blog. Quite possibly nothing. We'll see.

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Spiel des Jahres - The Nominations are out

Laszlo Molnar
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So it seems I wasn't right

Spiel des Jahres nominations:
Kingdom Builder - well, at least I had this one right
Vegas - I could only foresee it getting recommended, still I'm surprised a bit
Eselsbrücke - of which I didn't know anything.

Recommended for SdJ:

Well, at least I was right thinking Indigo, Kalimambo and Rapa Nui would be recommended and two of my "nominations" were also recommended - Santa Cruz and Pictomania. I don't know the other titles - Drecksau, Miss Lupun und das Geheimnis der Zahlen and Kulami.

Kennerspiel des Jahres nominations:
K2 - I thought it was published in the previous year, but it's fine (I like the expansion better).
Targi - is a 2-player game! It's a big surprise and very unusual that a 2-player game could grab a nomination.
Village - The only one I mentioned was Village which I thought had theme that would not be right for the jury - but I can be happy it was nominated.

Recommendations (this year they were separated from SdJ) :
Hawaii (I guessed it as a possible nom), Ora et Labora (I guessed this one as well) and Freitag (a one-player game, wow!).


(And I still can't say a lot about the Kinderspiel des Jahres noms - I don't know children's games - yet).

So what about games that I guessed and aren't featured at all? As for Takenoko I guessed it might be the Tobago of this year and it seems I was right - I'm not sure I am sad to see it miss the award, however it's a nice family title. Turmbauer - is said to have a very poorly written rulebook so that's another game where it could be foreseen that it's going to have problems.
Trajan is a great game but quite dry. Last Will, as I said, is not really original, however original it feels. And Santiago de Cuba - I don't know, I haven't played it yet.

And as for the games that were nominated but I haven't played yet, I should get a copy. The SdJ jury usually knows what game is fun.
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Mon May 21, 2012 8:30 am
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Spiel des Jahres - Guessing the Nominations

Laszlo Molnar
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On Monday the nominations for Spiel des Jahres and Kennerspiel des Jahres will be out. Last year, not knowing enough about the new system (3-3 games in two separate award categories, one for beginners and one for more experienced players, still not really gamers’ games; one common pool of recommended games for the two categories) I made my predictions which games would be nominated and win. My guesses weren’t that bad; I guessed the Kennerspiel winner correctly and guessed 2 of the 3 nominated games for Spiel des Jahres correctly.
This year things are not that easy. Partly because there just too many games that I haven’t played from the 2011/2012 crop and partly because I can’t find many outstanding games in the list that I think would have a chance (they are original enough, family-friendly/accessible, have a nice replayability, sold in a big box, scale well, published between last May and this April in Germany – and they are fun) .
Still, I try do do my best…

Spiel des Jahres:
I should select 3 titles but I can’t. And one of the reasons for this is that I just don’t know enough of the German versions of these games – quality, rulebook etc. But let’s give it a try.
One of the possible Spiel des Jahres nominations goes for Takenoko which has a lot going for it. It’s family-friendly, looks great, has a cute theme, is luck-dependent enough but still you can feel a little control and are making meaningful decisions all the time. But it has some things going against its chances as well: one is that while it’s as light as Carcassonne or Ticket to Ride, it’s not as beginner-friendly. What do I mean? In the best gateway games you usually have a very limited array of possible actions to take on your turn – place the tile and place or don’t place a meeple; draw a card or place trains etc. – while in Takenoko you have to choose 2 from 5 possible actions – after rolling the die which has quite possibly given you the task of choosing 1 from 5 possible actions. I don’t say it makes the game very complex or too complex for Spiel des Jahres; I just don’t think it a perfect gateway because of this. Another possible problem: the English rulebook is very poorly written and the FAQ is quite long; I just don’t know if these problems exist with the German rulebook as well. If they do, these two problems together might make Takenoko the Tobago of this year (Tobago, however original, family-friendly and great-looking, was not even nominated just because of its poorly written and confusing ruleset in the first editions).

What else? Kingdom Builder is obviously a strong contender. It looks good, it’s quite original, I guess it’s simple enough for Spiel des Jahres (note: last year the jury said Dominion would have been Kennerspiel des Jahres if the category existed back then) and it honors repeated play. Unless the jury members were turned away by the first play and Dominion-expectations it has a strong chance to be nominated.

What else? There are 3 more titles I’m thinking about, not sure about either. Santa Cruz is a nice, interesting game, probably light enough for SdJ. Also it’s interesting and fun for the whole family. This year hans im Glück is back in form after a few weaker years and the jury might honor it with a nomination.

And there are the dark horses, the games the average geek doesn’t necessarily play. But the jury likes diversity as it’s not a „best euro of the year” prize. One of the possible contenders is Pictomania from Vlaada Chvátil – this drawing game gets rave reviews everywhere; the only warning sign is that they say it’s a bit hard to get the rules first. The other dark horse is actually a 2010 game, Cornerstone Essential, but it was released as Turmbauer only last October in Germany. It’s an original mix of different game elements – even including some dexterity; too bad they say the German rules are poorly written which might kill its chances.


Some possible recommendations (note: last year SdJ and KdJ had the same pool for recommendations, but I’m listing those games here that might have a very small chance to get nominated for SdJ) :
Africana – The Spiel des Jahres jury likes Michael Schacht and Africana is a good family game. I don’t think this one gets nominated but it is more possible than with any of the titles below.
Rapa Nui – Might be the first time since Klaus-Jürgen Wrede won with Carcassonne that the jury mentions his name – in the list of recommended games.
Kalimambo – Looks like a game that could get a recommendation but I don’t know enough about it to decide.
Vegas – is the lightest Alea game ever. It’s fun but it’s really simple, almost a direct-to-PnP that has the “depth” of games like Pickomino or Loco! so while I don’t think it gets nominated it might grab a recommendation.
Indigo – Looks beautiful but isn’t a lot more than a Ta Yü/Metro-like game with tantrix-like geometry. Might be recommended but definitely not nominated.
Kreuz & Quer – is another title in the long line of Take it Easy!-like Ravensburger/Knizia games that started with FITS which was nominated for SdJ. I’d guess it won’t get a recommendation but it might.
Waka Waka – Looks nice but right now it has rather low ratings. I don’t know if it’s because gamers were expecting Jambo: The Board Game from this or because it’s poor. If the former, it might have a chance to be mentioned as a nice family game.
Mondo Sapiens – As Mondo was recommended last year I guess this one won’t get a recommendation this year.

Kennerspiel des Jahres:
What about Kennerspiel des Jahres, the category most geeks are looking at? Based on last year’s games and what jury members said it should be noted that it’s not an award for complex games; it’s an award for games that require some previous board game experience. They mean games like Tikal, El Grande, Vikings or Dominion would have won Kennerspiel des Jahres if this category existed back then.

So I’m really not sure if Ora et Labora or Trajan has a chance to be nominated. They might be nominated as they are critically praised and really good games but they might be still too complex for this category. Looking at the list of eligible games it seems another gamer favorite (not counting the “it’s broken” crying), A Few Acres of Snow won’t be nominated because it’s strictly 2-player. And don’t even think of games like Eclipse, Quarriors! and Mage Knight as they are really not the games the jury is looking for.

So what about the other games? It’s hard to predict especially as there are lots of games that I haven’t played and don’t know how fun they are – being fun is one of the key factors when you are talking about Spiel des Jahres. This is what puts a question mark to games like Hawaii (I told you Hans im Glück is back in form; Hawaii also has a really nice replayability, but is it fun enough for the general crowd? I don’t know) and Coney Island (which, I believe, isn’t fun enough for the prize, although I haven’t played it yet). Hawaii still has a little chance to be nominated.

What else? Last Will has a fun theme (while the mechanism isn’t that original) and isn’t even language-dependent; I’d say if it has a good rulebook it might be nominated. And then there is Santiago de Cuba, which is a fun game with dice. Is it too light for the prize? It has a 2.2 weight rating at BGG but that might be partly a result of lots of Cuba fans giving the game a weight rating. The 8-page rulebook might be long and ‘complex’ enough to scare beginners away so I’d guess it can be nominated only for the KdJ.

There are a few more games that might get a nomination although some factors are working against them – still, they might appear among the recommended titles. For example Village would be a strong contender but I’m not sure a family-oriented award can go to a game that has things like “let’s bury grandma before the cemetery is full”. Another game about village life is Helvetia which has nice ideas and a complexity that just fits KdJ – but its first edition had a bad rulebook, its artwork is not fully functional and even its theme doesn’t really please Swiss people – and the head of the jury is Swiss.
Then there is Fortuna, designed by the designer duo behind Cuba and the Spiel des Jahres special award-winning World Without End – but based on the ratings it might not be another winner this time. Finally there is the question of Discworld: Ankh-Morpork: is it too random and/or too offensive, confrontative for the award? I guess a lot depends on the personal taste of the jury members, although they might feel it’s time to mention a Martin Wallace game somehow.

edit: someone mentioned Power Grid: The First Sparks to me. It might get a recommendation, I'd say. Even though it's not as deep or good as the original, for a non-gamer it's possibly more enjoyable than Power Grid and the theme is more fun. Hey, it might even get a nomination (well, it has a small chance), and if it does, it will be nominated for Kennerspiel des Jahres, however light it is compared to the original.

So, the nominations are out on Monday. I’m curious…
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Fri May 18, 2012 1:28 pm
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About Reiner Knizia's latest, Kreuz und Quer...

Laszlo Molnar
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I wanted to write a review about Reiner Knizia's latest Take it Easy!-like game, Nürnberg 2012 release Kreuz & Quer, I really did, but then I realised I don't have a lot to say about its qualities.


Sure, I can tell you about the rules (thick pipes, narrow pipes, no pipes; the sides of the tiles must match; you get negative points for placing a tile wrong and for not reaching the 16 numbered pipe exits; other than that, the gameplay itself is like Take it Easy!) but what can I say about it as a review? I can't say anything that hasn't already been said about Take it Easy! - it's multiplayer solitaire but that's not a problem, it's enjoyable and tense, it has a high dose of luck but also rewards skill and so on.

I found out I would say more about the game's connections to other games, especially Knizia's line-up of games that are played like Take it Easy! - but hey, that means I don't even want to write a review! I want to write a geeklist!

I was relieved to come to this revelation.

So I did write the geeklist... Here you are:
Reiner Knizia's Take it Easy!
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Sun Apr 22, 2012 1:24 pm
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So... when is there nothing to be added?

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Having learned Tower of Babel recently, I just found out there is quite a debate about „with or without bonus cards” in case of this game, and I just thought the issue is the same as the „Battle Line/Schotten Totten with or without tactic cards” question.
Thinking about it, I found there were lots of Knizia designs later updated with added bonus cards, special powers and so on – I have just published a geeklist about it as well.
The title refers to his quote:
Reiner_Knizia wrote:
Many people think that a game is finished when there is nothing more to be added. I believe a game is finished when there is nothing more that can be taken away and still leave a good game.

The question is, does adding bonus cards, adding material that makes the game less elegant, more chaotic and random stuff make Knizia turn against his own design principles? How do you know the game is better without these, anyway?

Reiner_Knizia wrote:
Designing a game is like raising a child. You cannot change its personality, but you can help maximize its potential.

So how do you maximize the potential of these games?
Checking the games in the geeklist above you’ll find lots of movie tie-ins, actually 4 Lord of the Rings, 1 Star Wars, 1 Chronicles of Narnia, 1 Beowulf games. Also theree are 4 games for wargame publishers GMT and Avalon Hill and a whooping 9 titles for Fantasy Flight Games. It means many of these changes were made to make the games more thematic (focused on theme) and they were made with a different target group in mind than the original games.

Reiner Knizia is known at BGG as the designer who was great around the turn of the millennia while now he mostly designs very light fillers, family games – and, maybe some add, lots of games for iPad. I also add lots of puzzle games and kids’ games. While from a geek perspective it would be definitely better to see that he designs only gamers’ games he is a designer who makes a living out of designing games and we can be pretty sure designing and publishing gamers’ games isn’t the most profitable activity of allthese choices. Also he stated
Reiner_Knizia wrote:
I’ve made an aware decision not to become a specialist in one particular area but to look at all possible aspects of gaming, because I think they inspire each other.

One of Knizia’s abilities that make him as successful as he is now is that he knows he has to deliver different stuff to different target groups and different publishers. So it is quite probable that while European design school and Euro gamers prefer elegance (or at least preferred it 10 years ago), some randomness and theme-driven chaos is more important than elegance when it comes to gaming American-style and in games that are strongly theme-based.

But what about typical Eurogame publishers Hans im Glück (Tower of Babel) or Queen Games (Res Publica), Ravensburger (Duell), Kosmos etc. adding further cards/complexity/chaos to these games? Don't they know their Euro target group?

Being one of the biggest fans of Samurai, the brain-burning game that is basically Elegance Itself, I have always thought I prefer elegance over thematic variety. Nowadays I’m starting to see it’s not true. I have played Lords of Waterdeep which is a pretty basic worker placement game with the added chaos and “take that!” factor of different special cards (missions and intrigue cards) and liked it. I have played Eclipse which would be another boring efficiency engine building Euro but it has lots of random “take that” factor from tiles, cards and even dice and, surprisingly, loved it. Had their designers followed the Euro school the games would have remained boring.
I guess these games might make a change in the way I see games now. (It intrigues me so much that I even asked about this in the latest TGIF poll.) Eclipse was certainly the greatest cornerstone: before playing Eclipse I strongly believed “The more complex/long/heavy a game is the less luck-dependent it needs to be” and now I believe “…or the more fun it needs to be”. Cards, tiles, player figures with special powers, special abilities make games more varied and more fun.

Of course you should not add these to games at all costs but even as an aspiring (yet mostly unpublished) game designer (well, anyway, that’s the way I’d love to see myself one day ) it provides me a lesson learned. And it also shows that maybe Knizia isn’t really against his Da Vincian design principles
Leonardo_da_Vinci wrote:
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.

when he agrees to add randomness and variety to games that already work without them.
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Mon Apr 9, 2012 8:25 am
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Should I write about my experiences on introducing my kids to the world of board gaming?

Laszlo Molnar
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I'm just wondering. I do write about it weekly in Hungarian in another blog but I was thinking if I should do it in English as well. (My son is 3 and a half, my daughter is 1 and a half.)
So
Poll
Should I start writing about the introduction of my kids to board gaming?
  Your Answer   Vote Percent Vote Count
Yes, please!
66.7% 16
Yes, but in a separate (thematic) blog
33.3% 8
No, I think it's a bad idea.
0.0% 0
Voters 24
This poll is now closed.   24 answers
Poll created by lacxox
Closes: Wed Mar 14, 2012 5:00 am
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Tue Mar 6, 2012 5:13 pm
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Zooloretto Dice Game and the Coloretto Family Tree

Laszlo Molnar
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For an explanation of this + some quick & dirty ruleset for a Coloretto Dice Game check my Zooloretto Würfelspiel review.
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Sun Feb 19, 2012 8:07 pm
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What (Not) to Do When You Win

Laszlo Molnar
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Some thoughts in relation to my ’win’ at the Spiel Mini design contest.

1. Be patient but know when it’s too much. When I sent the rules in November I knew that often it takes lots of time until publishers can check rules sent. So I was patient – but after some weeks I started to feel uncertain: did it reach them at all? I sent another mail, asking only for confirmation of my mail (trying to be very polite – I really didn’t want to hurry anyone) but Christmas passed and I still didn’t get any response. So in January I wrote to all the contact addresses found at the company’s website. I was afraid they would think I was very impatient but it turned out the mails sent weren’t forwarded to the right address yet so in the end it was the right thing to do. Phew.

2. Know who you are talking to. The most embarrassing moment came when I was informed I won and should choose my prize (games worth 100 Euros from the current line-up of the company). The e-mail had a long signature with an Airlines and Abacusspiele logo, link to the Abacusspiele homepage, Abacusspiele facebook page, Abacusspiele address, but all this didn’t stop me asking about where I can find the game+price list of wow Schmidt Spiele wow to choose from, even mentioning the url of the Schmidt spiele online shop in the mail.
I don’t know of any reasons why I did this mistake. Even in November when I sent my rules I checked the online shop of Schmidt Spiele, thinking about which games I would choose if I won (well, we can dream, can’t we?). After this, when I looked for the company addresses I was looking at the abacusspiele site; but when I responded to the mail I was once again in the world of Schmidt Spiele. I’m sure it ‘helped’ that I was writing an article about the new games of Schmidt right then, but still, why did I look for the games in the Schmidt catalogue already in November? Was itt he blue-orange-yellow colors of Spiel that are the same as the ones in the Schmidt logo? Was it the name of the company (Schmidt Spiel & Freizeit GmbH)? Or some advertisement next to the call for designers in one of the Essen magazines? I have no idea but I felt extremely ashamed…

3. Choose wisely. I think I made good decisions. It wasn’t easy to choose the games that I won as usually I buy the games I like and I prefer buying games that I have played and liked over games that I haven’t played yet. I realized I had 25 Abacusspiele games at home so I had to choose from the “rest”. Old big box games were out as most publishers sell these for full price while quite often you can buy them for half price at webshops; also however much I like Medici and like Strozzi, these are multiplayer games so right now (when I play mostly 2-player with my wife) I could not find a reason to own them (other than making my huge Knizia collection even bigger). I don’t really like Bang! nor Race for the Galaxy and all the Anno Domini series is language dependent so that was also out. Still there were lots of games to choose from.
Finally I chose
- Africana (I like Schacht’s games and this one looked to be perfect for playing with my family),
- Gonzaga (which looks intriguing, has nice ratings and is a family game, but – or therefore – I just can’t play It in the gaming club),
- Mamma Mia! Plus – which, besides Bohnanza which I know, is the only pre-Agricola, light Uwe Rosenberg game I’m interested in,
- and Zooloretto Würfelspiel – as I like dice games, I like Coloretto and this one looked nice.
I think I made good choices; if I had to decide now I would make the same choices (although I’d love to own a copy of the new edition of Spiel Mini of course – I guess I’ll buy that later). Would you have chosen different games?

4. Don’t look like a complete idiot. After the Schmidt/Abacus mistake, when I chose the games, I sent my address as well – and half an hour later I also sent my ZIP code that I forgot to send in the first mail. So I guess I made the impression of being rather absent-minded. But the truth is… Oh well, probably I am.

Anyway, the games arrived very fast, and I’m happy I could participate in the contest. The contest is still up and running so if you have ideas of your own, just send them to the publisher… And remember: it’s Abacusspiele.
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Fri Feb 17, 2012 11:52 am
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Spiel Mini Designer Diary – Well, Not Really

Laszlo Molnar
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(It's so fun to write Designer Diary in a blog post title that I could not resist, even though the game in question was designed in something like one hour...)

I’m not really deterministic but sometimes life seems to prove that there are no coincidences.
Before I went to Essen I pre-arranged some buys, like 4 games from Néstor Romeral Andrés. Then, in Essen I forgot that he was there only for one day and I just could not buy these games (as written in my Essen diary). So I had some spare money. Had I bought Néstor’s games in Essen, I would not have bought Spiel and would not have gotten Spiel Mini for free for buying the big brother. (I chose green, as I also wrote it here.)

And then I would not have designed my first game that will be published.
And it’s true even if it’s a very small, very simple, silly game for some-year-olds.

So I got Spiel Mini and as the game was published just like the very first edition of the original back in 1980 (with no published rules but a call for inventing new rules), I started toying with the 20 dice. The challenge was creating games using a system where there are no different colored game pieces: everyone has or can use the same dice that come in one color. (I chose green dice in Essen – I thought they fit nicely to the 3 basic colors of Spiel. And I love green.)
It took the longest time to design the first game. The second one came a lot easier. The third one was just born in an hour. And the fourth one… Why not, I thought.

The first game
is a little brain-burner. I’m not sure if exhaustive playtesting would not prove it’s solved but for some games it surely works – and really needs lots of very basic calculation and combination for a game of 20 steps only. The challenge of common pieces is solved by making a distinction between the sides of the board, the faces of the pyramid being built: in the end of the game your score depends on your side.

The second one is a bit like the pair discovery game published in the rulebook of the big brother, Spiel. It has different rules and some further twists and uses a board as big as it can be – I turned the base platelet upside down for some more spaces. Pair discovery games usually use common pieces so this part wasn’t a challenge at all.

For the third one I thought dice rolling can be also fun; it’s a tactical game where you have to make decisions based on the die rolls. Of course it’s still a very luck-dependent game but I kind of liked the dynamics of it; I think this is the most fun game of the three. Here, once again, the sides make the distinction, so it’s another 2 to 3-player game.

By this time I was really toying with all the possibilities of the game pieces. I realized the base can stand on its side and tried to create a game where the dice try to climb up to the top but never found any really satisfying solutions for some problems. I have also designed a game with hidden motivations but never wrote the rules down.

But I was toying with all the game components even further… And I invented something really silly: a dexterity game which used the components creatively. I wouldn’t say this game is something the geek crowd should really care for… Also I don’t force getting a designer badge just for this silly thing… But I can’t deny I’m happy because Abacusspiele chose this concept and (with small changes, of course) it is going to be included in the next edition of the game.

Reading the rules that will be attached to the game
it’s obvious the publisher tried to choose very simple and very creative concepts that are accessible for the widest possible crowd (The “rulebook” has “6+” written on it). One of the 2 other rules included is a solitaire game by original Spiel designer Reinhold Wittig and it even manages to do what I failed to do – create rules that work using the base standing on its side.
I must admit I feel honored to share the same rulebook with Mr. Wittig!
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Tue Feb 14, 2012 3:14 pm
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Zooloretto Dice Game, Africana, Pics, Review and Questioning if the Latter’s a Pick up and Deliver Game at All

Laszlo Molnar
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Some random thoughts and infos.

From Abacusspiele I have already received my copy (wow, they were fast!) of Zooloretto Würfelspiel and Africana, the new Michael Schacht game in the „book of adventures” series started by Valdora.

I have taken some pics (here: Africana, Zooloretto Dice Game)– I wanted to take them in natural light but it was rather impossible when the kids were awake so these are simple pics with kit flashlight.

I have added some of these pics to my Africana review. I guess the it is is easier to read this way.

I was also thinking of how different Africana is from Valdora. It’s not only different, I’d say it takes the book of adventures series as close to the Ticket to Ride series, or maybe the world of Alan R. Moon as it can get. It feels a bit like Ticket to Ride with open cards – in part the book of adventures in part 5 cards laying open and accessible for everyone – or is it like in Elfenland? Elfenland is more about taking your adventurers from here to there, paying by specific cards that are needed to move to the neighbouring city, just like in Africana. But as in Ticket to Ride, you have tickets with starting and end stations that you have to connect some way (even a map is drawn on each card to make it easy to connect them).
It’s a point-to-point movement game that is probably as close to the most popular (and Spiel des Jahres-winning) Alan R. Moon designs as a game by Michael Schacht can get. But well, the game is listed as „pick up and deliver”, probably based on its similarities with Valdora. I don’t think it’s right. I don’t think this is a pick up and deliver game. You don’t really pick up and transport anything but your researcher. You get some bonuses for reaching certain cities but you don’t take these to anywhere on the board.
Unless anyone explains me why it’s a pick up and deliver game, I will ask the mods to change the game entry. Until then, read my review.. Thanks for your attention.
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Mon Feb 13, 2012 8:49 am
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Das Spiel, Spiel, Spiel mini, …1 die?

Laszlo Molnar
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I think I’m going to write 3 blog entries in a short time now. I should write them in one but they don’t really have anything in common but one of the games included: Spiel mini.

I find it interesting to see how Reinhold Wittig’s Das Spiel, this game, or better to say game system of a pyramid built of lots of dice, “evolved” during its more than 30-year history.

Originally published in 1980, the game had 281 dice included. The very first edition (by Edition Perlhuhn) had no rules attached but a call for designing your own game. The next edition already had 57 game rules included (truth be told, some of them are almost unplayable). It had the same number of dice throughout the 80s.



Then in 2004, the new edition by Abacusspiele had only 166 dice and fewer (better selected) games. (It also had an expansion of 55 dice in the next year.)


Then in 2011, the newest edition, with the title Spiel, had only 121 dice included (and only 5 rules).



And at the same time, Spiel Mini was also released, with only 20 dice in one color (and once again, no rules, just a call for designing your own game)…




What does this show? Possibly nothing, but I’d say it tells a lot about how different 1980s gaming and publishing was from present day.
1. Production costs: The new edition of Spiel (the 121-dice one) is sold for 36 Euros. Even if I don’t use simple multiplication, a game with 281 dice would probably have a price of at least 70 Euros (or let's say only 60 Euros) right now. It’s simply too much for a family game these days.
2. Optimization: 281 dice sure look great, but do these games really need so many dice? Don’t they outstay their welcome by the time you add your 140th die to a pyramid in a 2-player game? Aren’t they too long for what they are? Wouldn’t they work even better if they were shorter? What’s more, don’t (Eurogamer) families prefer several shorter games over one long (and probably repetitive) game? I do think these questions are easy to answer. I also think it’s more important to playtest and optimize your games in this decade than it was in 1980 and publishers know it.

Every once in a while I’m asked if present day games (now let’s say present day means A.C., After Catan time) are better than older games. I always tell they are better for the present day crowd as they are developed to fit the taste and habits of the present day crowd. And quite often these games are objectively better as well – as designers can learn from the problems with older games, invent new solutions to avoid these problems and then these inventions become widely accepted.
So games really do evolve. Even if, in case of Das Spiel, this means having fewer and fewer dice in the box.
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Wed Feb 8, 2012 1:17 pm

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