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Andrew Stingel
Australia
Cairns
Queensland
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Mail has been slow in the wake of TC Yasi - received about a week's worth today which included several boardgames.
I have three kids (aged 15, 12 and 7) and I try to play something with my two boys after school each day (their older sister gets home when my wife gets home from work, too late for weekday gaming)
Today we checked out two new arrivals, Flash Duel and Rallyman.
About six weeks ago I ordered all three of David Sirlin's "Fantasy Strike"-based games. Puzzle Strike and Yomi arrived a couple of weeks ago (and I love them both) and I've been looking forward impatiently to Flash Duel.
First impressions weren't terribly good. I opted for the deluxe version and my wooden box has acquired a large thumbprint (in glue I think) on its's lid which somewhat marrs its appearance, and the cardboard insert in my box was torn in two. A little tape has made the insert functional though.
The game itself plays much faster than either either Puzzle Strike or Yomi, with standard best-of-three matches taking ten minutes or less. We've only played with a few of the characters but those I've seen have a decent array of moves - my boys both currently favour Lum the Panda for his "Poker Flourish" which allows him to win a bout simply by starting his turn standing on a light-coloured board space while holding a "five-card straight". I'm sure all characters will see their moments of favour though, and can see Flash Duel being pulled out regularly when we only have a few minutes to squeeze some gaming into.
Rallyman is a rally-themed driving game in which players compete for the fastest time over (usually three) courses. Because this is a rally game players aim complete courses in the best possible time rather than to reach the finish line first - to facilitate this the game uses a rolling start system in which one player joins the game each turn keeping cars well spaced out on the course. Overtaking the car ahead of you isn't easy or even important.. but it feels good.
The game comes with four dual-sided map boards, each depicting several intertwining sections of track. By fitting these boards together in various ways it is possible to build a large number of different rally courses, short or long according to preference and over asphalt, snow or a combination of the two surfaces (players choose whether to race with tyres suited to asphalt or snow, combined courses leave everyone at a disadvantage when on the surface they're not equipped for)
Movement is achieved by planning gear changes - my boys don't understand gears but they were able to quickly grasp the system here which allows for each of five "gear dice" to be rolled only once per turn (and sequentially) so if one begins a turn in 5th gear one had better have allowed enough time to move through 4th, 3rd and 2nd before hitting a hairpin curve only navigable in 1st gear. I've played several different racing games in the past couple of years and this one feels more "right" than any of them after only one play.
So that's what we played today. Tomorrow (time permitting) I hope to check out The Great Fire of London 1666..
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