Rudi Hoffmann, Game Designer 1924-2008
Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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I just read that Rudi Hoffmann passed away on the 18th. He wasnt active in the last years due to illness, but I was fortunate enough to have emailed with him about featuring one of his games in one of my books. He was very nice, funny and curious :-)
And he had a certain style in his games that certainly was unique.
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1.
Board Game: Flora
[Average Rating:0.00 Unranked]
Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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The first game that is credited to him (1968)
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Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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This was the first design that I know about and that did get some recognition by the media. It was a precessor of Halali.
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3.
Board Game: Numeri
[Average Rating:5.56 Overall Rank:6019]
Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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This was considered a classic. Of Course - after 30 years it doesnt hold its original appeal, but as a children games its still so much better than Candyland :-)
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4.
Board Game: Loreley
[Average Rating:6.00 Unranked]
Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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Another game from the 70s that feature the famous Hoffmann-graphics. The main character is rumoured to be the piece of graphics that Hoffmann himself liked most (from all of his graphic work on games)
(mmh, the edition that is shown on the geek doesnt have the Hoffmann-Artwork)
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Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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This was a classic of the 70s and it got a later re-work by Klaus Teuber. It is quite ironic with all the ministers stepping on top of each other. It hasnt really aged well though.
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6.
Board Game: Dorada
[Average Rating:6.12 Overall Rank:4464]
Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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The year in the BGG database is not correct - This is a remake of the older "Dorado"from 1974. Not a great game. Its an example of the work he did in the 70s - solid games where he was asked to do a game by a publisher (AFAICR)
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Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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This is a classic Cardgame and you can "feel" the typical Hoffmann-touch when playing it. It was long out of print (the original was from 1973) then re-published first by Franjos and later by Lookout Games.
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Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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This quick (5 Minutes) two-player-game gave Rudi his first nomination for game of the year.
It was first published by Buetehorn and later by Hexagames. Both companys ceased to exist later, so this game isnt easy to get hold of.
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Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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His first big success and a game that is still very much associated with him. There were several versions of this (including a rogue one by Games Workshop), but the first one is still consodered the best. And this one did feature his own graphics (he was a graphic designer by trade)
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Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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With this he won the game of the year award. Its a typical "Hoffmann", with the ironic art and the easy, but somewhat nasty, gameplay. I still like to play it (But avoid the card version).
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Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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This was nominated for Game of the year when his Cafe International one. These two games are quite similar in the main mechanics, so there was some discussion which is the better one.
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12.
Board Game: Janus
[Average Rating:6.20 Overall Rank:4534]
Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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This was considered as one of his best games and he did get a nomination for it. Its a more abstract game but it does have an interesting mechanic.
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Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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He recieved another nomination for this game. He also did the artwork on the tiles. It might not be a great game, but it does feature the ironic touch of Hoffmann, simulating the struggle to climb the class-ladder (is that a word?)
He also was (in-)famous for always playing his games with different rules. One time a journalist sat down and started the game according to the rules and he said "Oh, thats how you want to play that. Well, I guess that can be fun too."
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Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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This is my personal favorite from him. Its not a typical Hoffmann-Game: Its abstract, its not that light, but it does play very well. He recieved his last nomination for game of the year with this one and this was the highlight of the shortlived "Designer series" from Schmidt.
It got republished 2 years ago by Pro Ludo.
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Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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The infamous crocodile pool party is also by him. The original dated back to 1968 and was played with open cards. Its also a very nasty game, but not really his masterwork.
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Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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Another easy game, one of the last he was credited for and for which he got recognition within the scene.
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Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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This was his last big box game, and while I dont know it, it seems like a rework of his Maestro.
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Peer Sylvester
Germany
Berlin
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And probably his last published game was "Simpel, aber genial" a pen & paper game that was featured in my book "So spielt die Welt". It originaly was published in Spielbox magazine (1992) and I contacted him via email to ask permission. We emailed a bit and I really appreciated the time he put into it (he wanted to test it first tosee if it still hold its standards). Like I said in the introduction, he was a kind and funny guy!
You will be missed, Rudi!
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Matt Davis
United States
Upland
California
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This needs to be here as well. Thanks to BSW for letting me learn this and Cafe International. This one in particular is a big favorite among my friends and me. It's often highly unbalanced, but so often you find yourself in really interesting situations.
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Morgan Dontanville
United States
Brooklyn
New York
Plate of Shrimp.
Here we are folks, the dream we all dream of.
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Hallo Pauker should be on this list.
This is certainly one of my favorite games of his. Cafe International, Tally Ho! and this game all hold a permanent place in my collection.
I find the 10 cards to be a bit too powerful, so I play without them, and find this to be quite enjoyable. This is a remarkably unique game, that really is a lovely filler. Great for people that like card games, but are sick of the standard fair.
I like Spiel de Turme and Up the Creek as well, but not nearly as much. Even my least favorite of his designs were groundbreaking little gems in the rough.
Well, the Three Pillars of Proto-Eurogame design are now gone. It makes me feel melancholy, a little like moving, knowing you'll never see the town and its people ever again.
We are now in a new era.
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Antonio Recuenco-Muñoz
Germany
Berlin
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This one is from 1971, still before Numeri and Ogallala. The topic is very German indeed: to achieve success in all areas of life (possessions, family, leisure, work) players need to be insured against all troubles that could stand on the way (throw in all kinds of insurance policies and gather four of them with a little discount in a comfy family insurance).
Bist du sicher? works fabulously for a game driven by dice rolls. It's not too long, and luck tends to even out; almost every game I've played was close at the end. The choices are not always easy: some bonuses help, and so does a list of all accidents in the box that allows players to estimate risks. The graphics are very charming, as usual.
So there you go - this is a perfect example of Rudi Hoffmann's style and one of his best tile-laying efforts.
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22.
Board Game: Momox
[Average Rating:6.38 Unranked]
Antonio Recuenco-Muñoz
Germany
Berlin
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Are there any other race games with a memory element? This one is really elegant, the only asymmetries in the game are in the board to keep players from moving forward too quickly. It can work very well both for families and players who like games to be a bit deeper.
(Momox was later republished by Franjos as Trüffeln Schnüffeln, it's a pity that neither edition made a lasting impact).
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23.
Board Game: Figuro
[Average Rating:7.00 Unranked]
Antonio Recuenco-Muñoz
Germany
Berlin
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A quick and cute game where each player has got to assemble his figure from four tiles spread over the board, moving them orthogonally. Assembled pieces move together as a unit, and each time a player moves a unit of one colour it's got to be a different one to the unit moved before. As usual: trickier than it looks, easy to teach, and with the typical Rudi Hoffmann artwork.
...and yes, it does bring a taste of puzzle games in the vein of Rush Hour.
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Antonio Recuenco-Muñoz
Germany
Berlin
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Rudi Hoffmann's take on memory games - it uses cards with two different faces instead of the usual cards with one face down on the table. The rules are horrendously written. The concept is nice but the game has got the same flaw that Loreley has: the two-player game hardly ever works. Overall the game feels unfinished.
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Antonio Recuenco-Muñoz
Germany
Berlin
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Little known book, only available in German, in which old master Rudi Hoffmann and Peter Neugebauer present 25 games for paper and pencil, all of them original (rare feature in books of this sort) and played on an 8x8 board.
Several elements appear within different formats throughout the book: there are games with graphic symbols, numbers and words, some of them have got quite a bit of luck (sometimes requiring dice) and others rely only on skill. Overall the book leaves a good taste, providing a good impression of Rudi Hoffmann's inventive use of simple game mechanisms.
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Posted Tue Jul 22, 2008 12:43 pm
This is not his first game published and credited to him.
You should look for the first edition with his (Rudi's) original graphics, as these always add to the fun and atmosphere of his games...
Corrected, here is the picture of his 1st. edition...
. Tasteless.
Arlington
Virginia
Manassas
Virginia
Now all we have to do is get him to buy a Geekbadge!
Westborough
Massachusetts
Now all we have to do is get him to buy a Geekbadge!
Larry, Larry, Larry...
Check my profile. I have more than one.
It's only the second one I've ever displayed; I hope not to display another (edit: besides the modification I just made to include the trio) for many years.
Santiago
I am the daughter of Rudi Hoffmann and I read your comments. Thank you. It really touched me what you have said about him and mourn with us. I was very surprised that even people in the US know about my dad and his games and that he has fans even over there. He was a great man and extremely talented in so many areas. I wish he would have read what you said. It really would have given him joy. Even before his death he still worked on a new game. I am in the middle of creating a web site for him with a forum and a trading page and all kinds of things about him. I will let you know when it is done and you all are welcome to come and visit.
I hope you will continue to enjoy his games.
Greetings,
Sandra Hoffmann