New to you May 09 => Best new game you played this month and why
Andy
United Kingdom
Stockport
Manchester
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What's the best new game you played this month (May 09) and why? Share your experiences of the new games you've played this month.
It would be helpful, if you could add an entry to the list even if you pick the same game as someone else.. since I use the geeklist entries to compile the summaries. Thanks
The Meta List - http://www.boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/28741
(with summaries)
Forum Subscription thread - http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/297188
Most played Game and More: (coming soon)
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Andy
United Kingdom
Stockport
Manchester
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Despite a drought of new games at the beginning of the month, I managed to finish up with 5 new games, but no new expansions. I managed to play some pretty excellent new games too.
Snow Tails
7 plays
Way out ahead of the pack is this awesome, fun, and attractive race game by the Lamont Brothers, and recently re-published by Asmodee. I got the new edition early in the month, and have managed to notch up 5 plays (4 of which were in the last week). I've found it to be a really enjoyable game, with a good mix of luck and skill. For comparison, I'd say it's like a cross between Ave Caesar and Formula De, with more 'game' than Ave Caesar, and quicker and more fun than Formula De.
Roll Through the Ages: The Bronze Age
1 play
This was a surprise hit with me, as I was not expecting to particularly like this dice based uber-light civ game... however I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it. Definitely one I'd play again, though the high price due to the fairly luxurious wooden components will put me off purchasing this game.
Small World
1 play
Despite a fairly poor experience with Vinci a couple of years ago, I had the opportunity this month to give Small World a try, and I was pleasantly surprised... the updated components and simplified rules are are welcome change (even though we still managed to play it slightly wrong). The combinations of Races and Powers are very nice too, giving a lot of variety to the game. My first civilisation were Fortified Trolls... these scored very well for me in decline. My second civilisation were Mounted Sorcerers, which scored me a lot of points for hill and farm territories, and I was able to use their ability on 3 of my 4 opponents. I finished in 2nd place by just 1 point.
Bump in the Night
2 plays
This was a gift from a fellow BGGer (thanks Steve!), and I finally got to play it with my brother, 2 player. We struggled with the rules at first, especially rules for moving the scared little girls... however we managed a couple of games, and it seems like there is definitely an interesting game here. One thing that seemed like a problem to me, was how powerful the cards for the garage door and cemetery gate were. I won both times we played by using a few locks and one of these cards.
Star Traders
1 play
I had a game session with some gamers who were a bit more old skool... and after playing Race for the Galaxy, and Cosmic Encounter, they suggested this game, which was completely new to me. It's a pickup and delivery game, set in space, and it reminded me a little of the crayon rails games, without the track building. Instead you build space ports on the intersections of pre-defined routes, to mitigate the die-rolling necessary for jumping. I think we also played some house rules pertaining to use of opponents ports when delivering cargo to them. I finished last, thanks to a poor grasp of the critical places to build in the early stages of the game. The game and the components look dated... but it's quite a neat idea, and could certainly benefit from being re-published with a bit more chrome.
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♪ Isaäc Bickërstaff ♫
United States
Greer
South Carolina
Entropy Seminar:
The results of a five yeer studee ntu the sekund lw uf thurmodynamiks aand itz inevibl fxt hon shewb rt nslpn raq liot.
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Woo, FIRST! (Or, second, really.)
NEW GAMES
Through the Ages: A Story of Civilization
It took me over an hour to read through all the rules and feel like I understood them. I had a few questions to ask before delving in to it, and I got those answered. It took about 30-45 minutes to explain the game, and then about 4-5 hours to make it through Age I, when we decided to call it. But up until that point, I was totally into the game (it really didn't feel like that much time had passed). We had a number of questions that arose during the game, and we played a few of them incorrectly (though I'm faulting the rule book for not being clear), but overall, I really enjoyed the game. It was tight and agonizing, with a lot turn angst, choices, and strategy along the way. In order to do most any given action, it means that you have to decide not to do something else, and knowing when to follow one or the other is key to success in the game. That the game is designed to smack you around by itself, without any help from the other players, only adds to the deliciousness of the game. I'm looking forward to another playing of this, possibly this coming weekend!
I have a slight concern that turn order may be an issue, since whoever goes last goes last in EVERY ROUND, but I'm sure I'm overlooking something about the game that alleviates this problem. A game that reaches #5 in the rankings on BGG won't have as grievous an error as that. As it is, this is definitely my May pick.
Antiquity
This is a heavy game that gives you a lot to manage, and it has a number of odd mechanisms that work toward killing you just as well as your opponents, meaning that the bottom line is that this is a game about efficiency. If you don't recognize the best ways to get your game rolling in the first few turns, you're not going to have a hope of remaining competitive. But the whole thing is such a wonderful experience. I don't know what the rate of newbie failure is, but at one point in my game, I had an entire city of nothing but graves. In fact, when we realized that my opponent was only three buildings and three goods away from winning the game, while I was still flailing along trying to manage all of my resources, we called the game. Like Age of Steam, this is a game of planning, executing, and streamlining, all while the game is trying to squeeze the life out of you. It's really a shame that the game is OOP and demanding insane prices on the secondary market.
Edel, Stein & Reich
Frankly, I think all games about money should come with shiny, plastic, colorful gems. Just lookit those things! They glitter and sparkle, and make any game shine (hyuck hyuck!). Luckily, a game like ES&R doesn't need a whole lot outside of the game itself to shine, though you have to be someone who likes the simultaneous-reveal mechanism, since that's pretty much most of what you do. Anyone familiar with Basari will recognize this game, since it's essentially the same game, just with the board movement taken out, and action cards used in its place. The action cards add a subtle form of interaction into the game above and beyond the normal out-thinking of your opponents, since you have the choice of taking the face-up card, OR the top card of the deck. Since some cards will benefit some players more than you, or will have a negative effect if put into play, you might want to intentionally sabotage another player getting the card he needs. Then you have to wonder if they're expecting you to sabotage their plans, and decide to select something else instead, at which it might be better for you to pick something different. I adore the kind of tension that comes from making decisions like these, which is why I enjoyed the game so much. I've heard from many folks over the years that I needed to move this game out of unplayed status, and I'm glad I did. I would easily play this again.
Spinner Dominoes
When we took a weekend trip to the beach with another couple this month, I was a little hesitant when the other couple brought out this game to play. I've played the "Multiples of Five" version of Dominoes, which was interesting, but nothing I would clamor to play on a regular basis. Spinner Dominoes, though, took me by surprise. I mean, I liked this game way, WAY more than I expected to. It seemed to play out like a trick-taking game with two numbers on each card, and multiple tricks to which one could play on any given turn. There was a nice tension in waiting to play your turn, hoping you would still be able to play what you wanted to, as well as a strategic challenge in how you played your dominoes, either to set yourself up for your next turn, or to limit the choices of the next player. Yes, there's some chaos involved, what with the random tile draw if you end up in a position unable to play something, but for the most part, this game has a lot more order and control than I would have expected for a Dominoes variant. There's a hand management aspect and a timing aspect that appealed to me, and we played with a set of double-nine dominoes, one game with three players, and then another directly afterward with four. I thoroughly enjoyed both games, enough so that I bought a copy of my own the Monday after the weekend I played it!
Stone Age
When The Pillars of the Earth first came out, I was really excited about it, since it seemed to be a lighter version of Caylus, a game I couldn't stand because it gave such an advantage to the more experienced players. With Stone Age, though, the designers have found a way to inject some fun back into the idea of a worker placement game, by adding some uncertainty to it. This uncertainty comes from the roll of the dice, which some would argue is more luck-driven than drawing workers from a bag, but somehow it makes the game seem more manageable and interesting. I'm concerned that the three main items on the board -- breeding, feeding, and working -- are often the first three actions picked, but based on what's available to you on a turn, and what your strategy is, you might not always select them. Besides, the game offers you different ways to score your VPs, unlike Pillars, where you mostly just have to use your Craftsmen to earn your points. This is a definite improvement on the idea of worker placement, without taking too much away from the core idea.
Airships
The theme for May turned out to be dice, as this was one of three that were new to me. I was surprised by how well put-together the game was, especially in light of Queen's previous strategy dice game, Lucky Loop. Luckily, from there, the company only had up as a way to go, and they proved that they still had it with this game. It's more a resource management/machine building game, where everyone starts off with a similar engine, and it's up to the player to collect the resources to make their machine more efficient. The dice, really, are just tools, since you don't get multiple rolls to accomplish your goals; in the end, it's up to your special powers and the number of bonuses you have that can determine your course in the game. In a sea of dice games where everything is left up to chance, Airships takes back a little of the decision making, and gives gamers a strategy game that uses dice, instead of making strictly a dice game. Good job.
Powerboats
I like dice, so I'm always on the lookout for games with unique dice, and since racing games tend to have dice as a main mechanism, I tend to pay close attention to them. Powerboats had hit my radar in previous months, but it was a couple of reviews by some Geekbuddies whose opinions I really respect that made me decide to buy a copy. I'm glad I did, because the game has some unique mechanisms, with the modular board and the use of the dice as a speed control. I like that the game allows you to stick with your previous rolls, but forces you to take a risk when you need to slow down. It's a fast racing game, too, which counts for a lot, when Formula Dé can last a couple of hours at least. The other folks in my gaming group liked it, too, and even requested that I keep bringing it back, so we're not going to have a shortage of opportunities to play it. In all respects, the game has been a great investment! And it's fun, to boot!
FITS
This month's buzz game was too much for me to resist, especially considering that the game hasn't had a domestic release yet. Luckily, it had a lot to go with that buzz, not the least of which is that my wife is big on Tetris, and I figured this would be a good game for the two of us. After reading some initial reviews, I was concerned about a possible lack of replayability, since the boards are limited and static, but the upcoming expansions will definitely help the game's shelf life. In addition, that the players all start with a different piece prevents the sameness of other multiplayer puzzle games like Take it Easy!. So, the puzzle aspect of the game is very appealing, and the fact that the game plays quickly means that it's easy to play over and over again. Even if the game does become tiresome or dull over time, I expect that I'm going to get a LOT of plays out of this one before then.
Bakong 
I had a pretty good run going on new games this month, and then I stumbled across Bakong. It presents itself as an exploration game with a backpack (much like Goldland), and the octagonal tiles laid out in a row reminded me a lot of That's Life!. Unfortunately, the reminders were all that were carried over from these two games, as the end result is something far different, and far less interesting. The game is pretty much just a roll-and-move games, with the decisions to be made being very lightweight. Your roll two dice, and choose one of the dice to represent which tile to flip over, and the other to determine how far you move. Since you have to flip the tile before you move, there's not much strategy in your decisions. You do, however, have to return back to the starting point once you reach the end, and it will be possible to flip tiles to something that's known to you from the previous trip, either to help yourself or to hinder your opponent. The game is fine, and inoffensive, but nothing terribly deep or exciting. If you have little ones or want a game that's appropriate for the entire family, you might want to check it out. If your group is primarily hardcore gamers, though, you might want to look elsewhere.
NEW EXPANSIONS
Ghost Stories: The Guardhouse Expansion
This is a bit of a cheat, since I have played a couple of games using the cards from this expansion, but I hadn't yet played the game using the actual Guardhouse tile, and I did manage to do so in May. The tile has its uses -- it's especially useful later in the game, when one player can look at the ghosts who will be coming into play in the next round and arrange them in the most efficient way -- but the rules suggest that you select one tile to replace with the Guardhouse, not pick one randomly. This way, you can keep from removing a critical tile from the game, though it seems that to ensure replayability of the game, you might want to shuffle them randomly. Either way, I think it's a nice way to mix up the game a bit.
Dominion: Black Market Promo Card
On the one hand, it's pretty cool to be the only person in a game of Dominion with a particular card; on the other hand, it's not always good to have just one copy of a card if you're looking to build a consistent strategy from hand to hand. And yet, knowing that you're the only person with a Chapel when the Witch is in play, or knowing that you have the only Moat when there are a lot of attack cards in play is pretty cool. I like this one more than I do the Envoy, which seems to be more of a hassle than it ought to be.
Stone Age: The New Huts
The different huts and their abilities are neat, and add a different sort of variety to the game, but they're really not necessary to have, unless you're a completist, or if you've played the base game so much that you need a little variety to keep the game interesting. It doesn't add so much that it takes away what's good about the game, nor does it take anything away that makes the game suffer, so I suppose it's the perfect expansion for not being invasive to the overall play of the game.
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Mikael Ölmestig
Sweden
Halmstad
Halland
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A lot of work, but I have still managed to play some games during the month, especially expansions to games I already played before.
Railways of Europe  1 play Rating: 9
The expansion feels very fresh and complements the main map great. It works great with four players and I expect it to be good as a three or five player game too. I like that the major lines are open and that railroad executives are removed as they are too hot commodity. The game generally becomes tighter and the small rules differences are to the good. While I don’t think the main game needs a patch, this does fix the game in several ways.
Civilization with Advanced Civilization 1 play Rating: 8
This is an old game and a little cheat, since I have played Civ:the expansion project three years ago. It is the civilization game which all other games of this type is measured from. While the basics of the game is quite simple, there are many decisions and it seems like if you make one mistake it can punish you for many turns. I like the openness of the game though, since it makes it easier to introduce new players to the game and what I like even more is the negotiation and trading, while time consuming is the heart and the gimmick of the game.
It takes long time to play, so I won’t do it that much. I played with veterans and I got of course stomped, but I still loved it. I expect to play it again next Saturday with a new set of people and I am looking forward to it. At this time I have only rated Advanced Civilization, since I haven’t played the original game. Do you think I should rate and comment Civilization too? I don’t expect it to be bad or that much of a difference, just that the expansion fixes the small issues with the original game.
Clay-O-Rama 1 play Rating: 7
Build you monster out of clay, have regular and/or special attacks. The game sounds a little gimmicky and in a way it is, but at the same time it is quite fun too. There is a lot of room for creativity in the construction of the monster, both regarding the modeling and the different powers you can use. Creating a monster that can take a physical beat up is recommended too (learned from a personal experience when my monster, the Multicorn got dropped a few feet above the ground). When built a moderator is evaluating the capabilities and then off you go. Most from that is a dice-and-beat-the-leader-fest, which degrades the rating a bit.
Dominion: Black Market Promo Card 2 plays Rating: 7
I love Dominion, but haven’t ordered the promos; instead I am waiting for the Intrigue expansion. To be honest I am not really that interested in the promos since I think they take more effort than I want.
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Ben Lott
United States
Mason
Michigan
It's time to play the music, It's time to light the lights...
Wocka Wocka Wocka!!
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 = Felix: The Cat in the Sack - Wow! What a really fun little auction game! I suspected, after reading the rules, that this would be right up our alley. However, just reading the rules doesn't give you the entire picture of the kind of decisions you will be forced to make while playing. It's very cool how you are bidding on a collection of cards while only possessing a limited amount of information. I also like the way that you can try staying in the bidding longer in order to get a bigger pay-out for passing. This may be the best filler-length auction game I've ever played. And we taught it to a young middle-schooler with no problems and she competed on a level playing field with the rest of us.
 = The Bottle Imp - This is a very intriguing little trick-taking game. It definitely challenges players to think in a totally different way. After our initial play, I'm a bit torn on whether I really love the game, though. It almost felt like the strategies were too convoluted and/or complex to grasp so it ended up becoming a game with too much luck of the draw. Also, playing to 500 points (as suggested by the rules) was way too long for us to remain interested so we just played one hand per player. I'm sure I'll give it another chance though, since we love unique trick-taking games.
 = Play To Become a Millionaire - From really strategic and interesting trick-taking to more luck-based team trick-taking. I wasn't expecting much here, so it's hard to be disappointed, but I was surprised how little you could affect things once you started playing. There are a few moments where you can make strategic decisions, but in general you seem to be at the mercy of the deal. It's not a horrible game, and there are some places where you can bluff, because each team only scores for one color of cards. All in all, I'm interested in trying it again sometime.
 = Aapep - I've never been a huge abstract fan, but I wanted to try this game out because it's designed by a well-known BGG personality. Unfortunately, I felt like the game was missing something. The components seemed lacking and the game appeared like it was going to be won by whoever didn't make a mistake first instead of who out-thought their opponent. Still, I like the strategy concepts involved, so I want to give it another try.
 = Rocketville - I, honestly, cannot remember a time when I was this thrown off by a set of rules. After reading the rulebook I thought this game was going to be amazingly fun. Everything seemed perfect for my family, and so I rushed to teach them the game. Boy, was I ever wrong. The gameplay is extremely repetitive and not very interesting. There isn't a good way of racking up a nice hand of cards to select from, so you're often at the mercy of luck-of-the-draw. There are a few decisions to be made, in particular when deciding how to maneuver the rocket, but I still felt like I never really was in control of my fate. I'll probably try the game again, but I don't expect this to become a favorite with anyone in my family.
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Bruce Bridges
United States
Los Altos
CA
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This was my biggest gaming month ever with 68 games played overall, 17 of them being new-to-me games. A lot of this was thanks to my wife bringing back a bunch of games from Germany that worked well with my kids and a gaming weekend with 3 buddies. I recently placed two large game orders from Amazon.de and Milan-Spiele, so I hope to have some more new ones to report on in a month or two.
For this month's list, I will break them into three categories: adult games, kid games and expansions. First the adult games:
Adult Games
Fire and Axe: A Viking Saga  
My favorite game of the month was Fire and Axe: A Viking Saga. We first played it at the gaming weekend event and we ended up playing it twice. Also played it a third time later in the month at a game night. The components are awesome with a very nicely illustrated board. There is lots of interaction between the players with plenty of screwage opportunity. What I really like about this game is that there are lots of ways to score points and more than one path to victory. The Bloodied Axe bonus is a little overpowered I think, but that just encourages people to fight over raiding cities early on to avoid locking yourself out of the bonus. The Rune cards spice things up nicely, but some are way stronger than others. Sure, the game has a lot of luck, but it also is a ton of fun. I'm glad I picked this up, now that is out of print.
Imperial
A very close second to Fire & Axe was Imperial, also played once during the gaming weekend. My gaming group enjoyed Hamburgum a lot, so I had been keen to bring out the other rondel games by Mac Gerts. This one is way, way more complicated than Hamburgum since nobody really has a playing color and influencing control of the government is only a temporary activity at best. I'm sure that after playing this only once we have only scratched the surface of the strategy. It's a bit deep for my game group as we like to play multiple games in a night than devote almost an entire evening to one game, but the other players are very keen to get this out again. We definitely appreciated the depth of the game though.
Phoenicia
Right up there with Imperial was Phoenicia, a game we played twice in a row (a rarity during game night) this past week. We played with three players and the first game was pretty much a learning game as we became familiar with what type of Development cards would come up and the relative timing of them. It lasted about 1.5 hours. The second game was just under 45 minutes, but was close right up until the end. There are so many paths to victory in this game, I cannot wait to explore it more. I have a feeling that it plays best with 4 players, which is in line with what the rest of BGG thinks as well. While the components are pretty nice in general, I sure wish the development progress and VP level were on separate tracks. There is no reason why they couldn't have done so without increasing the size of the board. After a few plays, this shouldn't be an issue.
Mission: Red Planet
Definitely lighter than the three games above it, Mission: Red Planet is still a lot of fun. It's quite a chaotic, quick-playing area-majority game with a touch of Citadels thrown in with the role selection mechanic. We played it four player, which seems a good number, but five is probably best. The components are pretty nice, but the boards do not like to lay flat and it would have been nice to have astronauts shaped like astronauts (Galaxy Trucker anyone?) instead of tiny disks. My rocket ship board tore in half, in fact, when I tried to get it lie flat. Grrrr. Anyway, this is a very fun area majority game with lots of take that opportunities courtesy of the role cards. A nice game for families, can be used as a super filler between heavier games for gamers.
Ubongo extrem: Mitbringspiel
The highest rated game on the list of the ones my wife brought back from Germany is Ubongo extrem: Mitbringspiel. My six- and seven-year olds find this one a little too tough, but this will be a good one for my wife and I while traveling. Some of the puzzles are incredibly tough, but that is a good thing. This is way better than the Ubongo BMM version. Even the easiest of Ubongo extrem: Mitbringspiel takes longer than hardest of Ubongo BMM, which will be relegated for playing with the 6-year old until he comes up to speed on the Extrem version. These travel versions whetted my appetite so much that I ordered Ubongo: Duel and Ubongo from Germany. I think the full-sized Extrem might be a little too much for us though, so I haven't ordered that one ... yet.
FITS
Reaching dime status in less than a month should not be a surprise to anybody reading this list since FITS is quite addicting. Everybody I have introduced this to has enjoyed it a lot. One minute to explain, it plays very quickly too. I like the fact that everybody starts with a different starting piece to avoid copying, but some of the pieces are much tougher than others with some of the boards. Each board plays very differently, so playing 4 rounds does not grow stale. I have a ways to go before I get to a high level, but I seem to be consistently scoring over 20 now and have a high of 26 points so far. This is a great family game as it is not confrontational -- ok, it's pretty much a solitaire game. I can't wait for Ted Alspach to come out with his free expansions. I have a couple of ideas to make it more interactive for when gamers play, but the boards that come with the game are perfect for families. I would not be surprised if this wins the SdJ.
Medina
An oldie, but a goodie, Medina finally hit the table during the gaming weekend after owning it for over 2 years. This is definitely an abstract game with a veneer thin theme. The middle part of the game is where all the action is, which lowers its rating for me. There doesn't seem to be much strategy at the beginning of the game as the city begins to form. The end game lacks any tension as the available spaces become quite limited and the game mostly plays itself at the end. The tower scoring is a little confusing, but the rest of the game is very straightforward. Very solid components, if a little bland in appearance. Not sure about its staying power, but I'll keep it in my collection for at least a couple more plays.
Galactic Emperor
Now this game is probably rated a little low compared to how it might end up being rated in my collection because our first game took over 3 hours to play with 4 players. There are a lot of rules in this game and we missed the rule about collecting VPs for successful attacks. The way the game played out was a little sad too. Nobody did any attacking for the first hour of the game and then it was mostly two players battling against each other and weakening each other to the point that the other two players could waltz all over the decimated forces and claim some easy victories. Definitely need to play at least one more time to see if we can get it to finish in under two hours, which seems about right for this type of game. Very nice components from a first time publisher! The rulebook is solid too for a game with many rules.
Keltis: Der Weg der Steine
The second game on the list of games brought back from Germany. I haven't played Keltis yet (on order from Amazon.de), but Keltis: Der Weg der Steine seems to be a stripped down version of it that is great for traveling. I played this once with my kids and then once with two other adults. The cardboard stones are very nicely done. The game is quite simple, but like most Knizia games, the end-game scoring drives some tough decisions. There certainly is a huge amount of luck in the tile draw, but the quick-playing aspect makes it possible to play multiple rounds consecutively to have the luck average out. Very nice game that I probably will end up rating higher in the long run if I play it with the right crowd.
Kremlin
Kremlin is quite an old one, but really has some innovative mechanics. Since none of us had played before, we all fell into the newbie trap of putting all of our influence on nearly all of the first bunch of candidates and politburo members and by the halfway point, nearly none of us had any influence on any living members, making the game pretty boring at the end. Maybe if we played more strategically the game would have been better. As it is, this will probably not be played again since it is somewhat fiddly.
Sector 41
This is a game designed and published locally (in the SF Bay Area). My gaming buddies surprised me with this gift during our gaming weekend, but we didn't break it out until a game night a couple of weeks ago as a 2-player game. 2-player is probably the only way to play as the game can be quite chaotic, even with 2-players. It's very nice that the publisher provided 4 sets of instructions, but it's pretty much necessary to have the glossary of tiles available to everybody as there does not seem to be any correlation between the picture on the tile and what its effect is. After one or two games, I'm sure I'll have the tiles down, but it would have been nice to have some sort of iconography on the tiles to give a clue on what the tiles do. This is probably a little too dry for my taste, but I'm sure others will like this game. It's kind of like chess in space with a constantly changing board.
Kids Games
Welt der Abenteuer
Beautifully produced game that comes in a huge box, I picked this up from Funagain during their Spring sale for almost a sane price. Really, this is basically 4 different games in one box. Two of the games are pretty lame with no decision making or anything of teaching value to the kids. The memory game (Anarctic Adventure) is pretty good, but in the second game, everybody had the location of the tiles memorized pretty quickly and my kids and I were able to travel the maximum distance each turn. Chicken Cha Cha is definitely a better memory game. The best game is the Volcano game where the players launch rain drops from a catapult trying to get it in or near the volcano or at least on the board to advance the player. My kids have played the Volcano game numerous times without me participating which is really a good sign that they enjoy the game. There are not many games that they will pull out on their own. The boards, components and player pawns are quite outstanding and I give Haba props for that. It's just such a shame that there isn't much of a game in the box. More of a toy than a game really.
Einfach Genial: Wer zu viel riskiert, verliert!
Another one from my wife's trip to Germany. This is basically a push your luck game as players try to flip tiles over to match others that are already face-up. If you flip over a tile either doesn't match a previously flipped tile or matches one flipped up on your current turn, then you don't collect anything that round. It is pretty good at teaching restraint [which my boys do not have much of  ] and learning a bit of probability evaluation, but there is way too much luck in the game and very hard to come from behind. Can't Stop is much better for a push your luck game. This is much more transportable and is good for a quick game.
Geistertreppe
Very nice board, very nice components (although very few pieces), there really is not much game here. All player pieces will end up covered as a ghost, so as long as you can remember which ghost is your piece, there is not much to the game. I intentionally wasn't paying attention and instead moving my kids' pawn ghosts around and the kids eventually lost track of which was ghost was their ghost, so by the end of the game, it was a crap shoot who would win the game. We had a lot of laughs at this, but I'm not sure how often we will play this game, so it might go up for sale or on the trade block. The kids did like it enough to play it twice in a row though.
Ubongo BMM
This was probably the weakest of all the games my wife brought back since solving a 2- or 3-piece puzzle is terribly easy, even for my 6-year old. I don't think we spent more than 15 seconds on any of the 3-piece puzzles, so it was just a mad dash to see who could finish first. It is decent as a kids game though since the frustration level is much lower than in the Ubongo extrem: Mitbringspiel version.
Expansions
Galaxy Trucker: The Big Expansion
During our gaming weekend, we broke out the expansion to Galaxy Trucker and had a blast. We played with the new components, including the cyan aliens. It was quite a rough game for us since we really haven't played Galaxy Trucker that much and are not quite the expert ship builders yet. It was a great deal of fun as usual and I really like some of the new tiles. This is a great addition to the base game and if you love the base game, it's a must buy.
The Pillars of the Earth Expansion Set
I'm not a huge fan of the base game, but I do think it's a solid game. The original book is my favorite book of all time, so I had been hoping for more than what the game can deliver (just like the sequel couldn't, unfortunately). The expansion adds more spaces of value to place one's master builders, so the luck of the draw from the bag is significantly mitigated (also due to only 2 of each pawns being placed in the bag with first pawns drawn getting last pick for their 3rd pawn). All the new craftsman and privilege cards add a bit of spice, unpredictability and replayability to the original game. I will definitely only play with the expansion included from now on and I expect to continue to play The Pillars of the Earth at least a few times a year going forward.
All in all, a great month! I wish I had gotten a game of Glory to Rome in since it's my favorite game of all time, but maybe next month ...
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Randy Cox
United States
Clemson
South Carolina
1024x768 works just fine - Don't Wide the Site!
The Back Alley gets no respect.
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Well, there were only two games I played for the first time this month. One of them was just a deluxe model of one I had played many times before--Simply Catan. A friend wanted to learn Settlers, and since I had owned this game for quite awhile without playing it, I brought it. As it turns out, the original one I own (pre-Kosmos) is the far, far better edition. I had played the Mayfair before and really didn't like the hex symbols, so I knew better than to bring that, but the Simply edition is not only user unfriendly like Mayfair, but it has these ugly plastic pieces for the towns and cities and roads. What's wrong with streamlined components? But I digress...
The other game I played for the first time--found out about for the first time ever--in May was Presidential Scrabble Democrats vs. Republicans Board Game, a Scrabble edition with a huge tweak or two. It's a way to play casual Scrabble without being at a disadvantage to those who know all those 7- and 8-letter strange words, because you no longer get a bonus for that. Instead, you get bonus points equal to electoral votes for states you cover on the board. There are also Cosmic Encounter bend-the-rules cards each player gets to use as well. All in all, a pretty solid game.
My Review
My Session Report
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8.
Board Game: Brass
[Average Rating:8.08 Overall Rank:8]
Jesse Dean
United States
Orlando
Florida
Pound for pound, the amoeba is the most vicious predator on Earth!
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This was kind of a bare month for me for new games, but I have always believed in playing games you have, over diving into new stuff constantly.
With that being said, Brass is definitely my favorite game of the month. With its excellent, fun market simulation and its delightful combination of tactical and strategic play, the game ends up being an engaging, challenging experience each and every time I play. It is not in my Top 10, but I would not be surprised if it ends up there eventually.
I also tried out Vegas Showdown this month, and was pretty impressed. While not huge on pure auction games, there was enough going on in this one to keep me engaged and entertained. I am not sure I am ever going to buy it, but I would definitely be willing to play it again
As far as expansions, two knew ones caught my eye this month. The first was Commands & Colors: Ancients Expansion Pack #1: Greece & Eastern Kingdoms. I have actually owned this one for awhile, but we did not get an opportunity to try it out until this month. There are few true surprises here, it is still Command & Colors after all, but the scenarios included are fun and satisfying. Greece and the Eastern Kingdoms has become my favorite scenario set when I just want to sit down and play a battle or two.
The other one was Arkham Horror: Innsmouth Horror Expansion. This one was very, very impressive and almost single-handily renewed me interest in Arkham Horror. It ratchets up the tension considerably and has given me some of the best Arkham Horror experiences that I have had up to this date. I expect it will get a lot of table time.
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Mike
United States
Maple Valley
Washington
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I had some new plays this month of some very light games. I've been an avid thrifter for over a year. And I just recently started telling myself that I need get some of my games played to figure out if I really want to keep them. That's not to say that I've gotten to the point of actually getting rid of anything yet. Oh well, babysteps.
My favorite was Cheeky Monkey. That was a nice group push your luck game. There was a lot of chance (read: I didn't win any of my plays). But I can overlook some chance in a game if it's accompanied by a lot of excited table noise. This game has that.
My second favorite was Frog Juice. I told you these were light games. I tried this 2 player with my wife. We both enjoyed the little bit of take that and subtle strategy. An slightly uneven deal can really tilt this game though (read: it wasn't my fault I lost that game). We'd like to try this with 3 and 4 players just to see how much of a different game it would be.
My daughter was given Tastes Like Chicken by the host of a local game night. It plays a lot like Uno. But at least it's silly.
At that same game night we played Intertwyne with the designer Clint Griffith. That has an interesting switch in gameplay about 2/3 of the way through the game. Like a lot of abstracts though it susceptible to the 'Oh, I missed that' win.
Also new were:
Quixo
Bataclan
The Witch's Cauldron
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A. B. West
United States
Beech Grove
Indiana
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La Città
Awesome game. As a civ style game, it has several true Euro mechanics in the politics cards and wonderfully original methods for growing cities - the voice of the people is particularly engaging and original. Good components combined with nicely arranged, excruciating turn decisions make this game tense. Other players blundered into poor city starting positions, leaving them crushed and out of the end game running. But still, our game ended with a tie breaker by 2 gold pieces!
A Castle for All Seasons
I was expecting to maybe get one play out of this one before putting it on the sell stack. After my second play, I'm looking forward to a third. Very tight game with interesting mechanics. Great production values in every way. I really like the challenge of playing role cards and the variety of scoring options that unfold while the game plays. This gives the game a great foundation for multiple plays. It's my new favorite cube-pusher.
The Princes of Florence
Great game that deserves the praise it receives. Plays quickly with many scoring opportunities. Great interlocking design from auction to placement to scoring. A touch fiddly and sure, it's mathy - so I'm never going to be a winner with this one. But I can see when it came out, it was original in many ways and has influenced a number of other games. This makes it a classic for me and I'd certainly play it again - which could drive up its rating.
Jamaica
Surprisingly great game that plays in about 30-40 minutes even with 4 or 5 people, it's Pirate's Cove light. It is very nicely produced - great components. Definitely a gateway, kid-friendly game which fits well in my collection. The wooden dice are over sized, tactile and easy to handle. Great for kids too since the mechanics are gentle and speedy. The luck is evened out by your card draw decisions. Lovely design and very glad I have it!
Utopian Rummy
Shea says this game is a rip from other rummy games, but I'm not an experienced rummy player - so it all felt pretty original to me. I really like the ease and speed of play - conceptually smooth and neat. The cards from Artscow are really nice. I was whipped in this game twice in a row, but still look forward to my next game, so that's a good indication of a very fun game. Well done!
Fairy Tale
I finally got to play Fairy Tale. It's a fast game completely around the well-known drafting mechanic. I definitely enjoyed it, but it felt a bit simplistic to me in the end. It's mathy too - which is not my favorite aspect to any game. Knowledge of the deck will help an experienced player win. All's forgiven because of the speed and simplicity, but not a game I'll long to play.
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Andreas Johansson
Sweden
Linköping
I spent 200 GG and all I got was this lousy overtext!
I spent 200 GG and all I got was this lousy overtext!
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Wings of War is one of those games that take a clever idea - here the card-movement system - and builds a simple yet engaging game around it. A minute to learn, probably rather less than a lifetime to master, this is a neat little game that both neophytes and veteran wargamers can enjoy.
Also new this month: Notre Dame, a euro that's a bit too dry and abstract for my tastes, and Blokus which I played late at night at LinCon and would need to play again, with my brain in better shape, to properly evaluate.
Edit: I also played Pandemic for the first time this May. I did not like it - it felt more like a puzzle than a game.
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Eddy Richards
Scotland
Allanton
Berwickshire
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Just one new game this month, bought as we like Ticket to Ride: Europe and felt that a new board would be interesting, especially one designed for 2-3 players.
Verdict: we quite liked this, though the tickets to and from the countries seem too easy to do (we've adopted a suggestion to remove the duplicates to amke luck in drawing identical ones less overpowering). There were a few rules queries - can you use stations, how many points for a 5-link route - which we found answers to on BGG but really should have been addressed in the rules. Overall, quite a decent addition to our collection, though not earth shattering, and it will certainly see some play.
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13.
Board Game: Blank
[Average Rating:4.00 Unranked]
Ronald Chavez
United States
Hacienda Heights
California
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I played no new games this month. How can that be.
I must remedy this for next month.
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I suck at Bingo .... but I don't mind
Belgium
Mol
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Winner
Tigris & Euphrates
I've played this before against AI to learn the rules (over two years ago)
Finally managed to play it face to face.
And all I can say is that it fully deserves its high ranking.
Great tactical gameplay. I certainly have to play it more.
Second place
Saint Petersburg
Basicly what you try to do is build an economic engine that will give you a lot of money to buy cards that will give you victory points.
Got seriously beaten in my first game. However the second game with my uncle (third game I played) I got a monster score of 116-46. I Could have scored more but wanted the game to end. I mention this because the game has a very short learning curve.
Looking at the praise it gets from some of my geekbuddies this game has plenty of replayability in it indicating to me that it is easy to learn but hard to master.
The game rules are easy enough to explain in a short amount of time.
Allways a big plus for me.
Works well as a 2 player game.
Third place
Mr. Jack
I teached this to two non gamers. My stephbrother said after playing there are not many games I like to play but this one I really liked.
It is a great deduction game for two players. Allthough the part of Jack is harder, it doesn't take anything away from the experience.
The game looked really hard to him but we managed to play two games fairly quickly affter a quick explanation of the abilities of each character and the visible/unvisible rule. First two games some questions were still asked but basicly everything is explained through the symbols on the cards and the board. The third game we played everything made sense for him and there were absolutely no rule questions remaining.
If you play a lot of two player games this is certainly one to consider.
Joined third place
Commands & Colors: Ancients
I need more plays of this to rate it higher. Allthough we played an easy scenario there was a lot to digest. not so hard just a lot.... It didn't help I picked the weaker side.
Someday soon I have to sticker my copy of the game.
What I can tell from that easy scenario is that there are a lot of different units and ways to fight for a non-wargamer.
I liked the difference in units, the strength of holding a line and the play of cards.
It was a bit strange that you couldn't send reinforcements to a unit or a unit had the same power no matter how many pieces were in that unit. On the other hand it also made sense.
Honorable mentions
I liked all new games to me. These games really deserve to be mentioned here.
Pacal
Great two player card game. the person to go second has an advantage but I don't think this is a problem since you play the first to three wins.
The game is the ancestor of Die Pyramiden des Jaguar. I prefer this one because the scoretrack in Die Pyramiden des Jaguar allthough it adds some extra tactical decision
it also makes the design less pure. (I hope that makes sense)
Oshi
I won't often add abstracts to the list. There is only one abstract I really like and that one has a pasted on theme.
Oshi or push is an abstract with very easy movement rules and with easy to understand victory conditions. You can explain this is 15 seconds to an abstract gamer or in less than two minutes to a non gamer.
If you have Icehouse pieces it shouldn't be to hard to make your own copy of it.
I prefer this over Abalone because of the simplicity.
Grosse Fische, Kleine Fische
HAve to borrow a camera. Sorry no picture.
This is perhaps one of the least known goldsieber games for kids.
Allthough Rudi Hoffman is mentioned on the box cover the rules state that the game is designed by Michael Rüttinger and the artwork is by Heidemarie R
I had fun playing this with my four year old nieces. There is some tactical play in it but it is mainly luck.
Each player is a fisherman who tries to catch big fish or objects that don't belong in the water. The kids love it and they laugh when they see an object that really doesn't belong in the water.
The game takes a little too long to complete with a four year old. But I don't find that a problem at all. The theme is fun for kids and allthough they can count the number of places by themselves they need someone older to play it correctly. Because there is a some tactical play in it I was happy to oblige and wipe the floor with them.
(BTW I was well behind the leader when we stopped around halfway in the game. Until that point luck is more important than skill.)
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All Hail Knucklebeard!
Australia
Wodonga
Victoria
Thanks International SS for A Few Acres of Snow!
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Well May was a downright...er...downer for new games. Work dominated like it does every May so not much to report this month.
They were -
 Galaxy Trucker: The Big Box Expansion
2 Plays
The base game has become a major hit at our club so I had to shill for this baby when I saw it on a sale recently (which of course reduced it to the price of a standard game!).
This baby has everything any good self respecting Space Truckin’ lunatic needs. More components, more cards, more aliens, more cards, more ships, more cards and a million new and exciting ways to blow yourself up en route to making a squillion!
This expansion is ruthless and I’ve only played 2 of the expansions featured in the box at this point. This will get a whole lot of attention in June as we look to play through all the machinations and combo’s of expansions. Worth every penny!
 Formula D - Monaco Circuit
1 Play
This is a little bit of a cheat as I’ve played Formula De many times before and I’ve played the old Monaco Track as well. But this new track is slightly altered in terms of the length of a corner or too. Of course some features are also changed for Formula D but it is much the same game. I was really impressed with the new graphics of the new tracks, they look really sharp and fresh.
For the record this was the launch of my Game’s Clubs ’09 Season. I was taken out for a DNF in race 1, before starting race 2, 2nd on the grid. I managed to get clear of the pack by the middle of the 2nd lap and held on for the Checkered Flag, putting me 2nd in the Driver’s Championship.
 Mulligan Dice Golf
5 Plays
This one I discovered on the BGG boards as a passing reference and someone put me onto the online game. I’m a sucker for Dice Games and gave it a try. It is actually quite a nice little quick filler. D10’s are used and different coloured dice must be rolled that replicate your fairway shot, approach shots, required chips, putting attempts etc. The trick is that they are all rolled at the same and based on the sequence of rolls and how they interact with one another, your score for the hole is determined. You then have the option to keep the result, roll all the dice again (but must take the next roll) or use a Hole Mulligan to re-roll only 1 dice. In this way the game is very much a ‘Push Your Luck’ affair.
It’s good as a passing fancy but nothing more. I’d pick it up if I saw it on a shelf for $20 (Aussie). The only real hassle with online play is that you can’t identify the exact nature of all the faces for a dice. Therefore odds calculations are impossible and that would be a major part of the decision making process. Somebody import this to Australia please.
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16.
Board Game: Jambo
[Average Rating:7.15 Overall Rank:222]
Tim Stellmach
United States
Arlington
Massachusetts
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I'm always looking for good date-night games. Lately, in this quest, I've developed a bit of backlog of Kosmos two-player games. Jambo was a hit with my sweetheart and me, and I'm looking forward to breaking it out again.
Coming in a close second would be No Thanks!. A great little filler game, and incredibly simple to explain. Sure to hit the table again and again.
Other new-to-me games this month include, in no particular order:
Saboteur: I had a good experience with this, though I'm not sure the number of saboteurs in the deal doesn't swing the result too far out of the players' control. Still, I'll play it again.
 Coda: pleasant enough little logic game, though there seems to be enough luck of the draw that it needs to be played at least to best-of-five or so.
 10 Days in the USA: Hardly counts as new, since I've previously played 10 Days in Asia: I'm pretty sure I like the Asia version considerably better, though this is far from a bad game itself.
 Poison: Didn't make a strong impression on me, though it was pleasant enough.
 Sequence for Kids: Much more successful as a kids' game than a grown-up one.
 Unpublished Prototype: A co-worker's side project. Coming along fairly well.
 I also had my first crack at the Agricola: Through the Seasons expansion. A nice change of pace, but beware of letting anybody have that winter action twice!!
All in all, a good month for new games. Eight is a lot for me, and I can't say I disliked any of 'em.
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17.
Board Game: Tichu
[Average Rating:7.73 Overall Rank:36]
[1/2]
Spain
Fort Wayne
Indiana
Don't ask me; ask the anthropomorphic condom.
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Tichu
This was simply an amazing month for me. All month my wife and I have been moving up to beautiful Fort Wayne, Indiana and I was still able to get in tons of new games. Even better, the vast majority of the games were good to excellent.
Of course the cream of the crop was Tichu which my new group in Fort Wayne was able to teach me. To me Tichu is evocative of card nights with my family growing up, but unlike Hearts or Spades, Tichu is so wide open because of bombs. I love the fact the almost no plan is safe because a well timed bomb can steal momentum away.
I have never rated a game a 10 but I could imagine Tichu making the grade after a few more plays. The only drawback is that games can run a bit long, but the time really does fly.
Bucket Brigade
I was stunned by how much fun this game was. It reminds me a lot of Lost Cities but multi-player and with much more interesting choices. I love how scoring is determined both by cards in hand and board position but that cards have to be played to gain board position. It is a great tension and allows for an interesting bluffing element as well.
I'm becoming more and more enamoured with games like Tichu and Bucket Brigade where several hands or individual games are used to determine an overall winner. I've also been encouraged to start carrying around a pad of paper and pen to keep score.
Take it Easy!
I'm also becoming a huge fan of games that can be explained in a few sentences but offer a fun playing experience. Take It Easy very much fits the bill. Matching up the lines is intuitive and it is interesting to see strategies come to fruition or foiled by late tile draws.
I'm especially excited about this game because it is one that is obviously accessible by kids. In fact I played it with two very sharp kids who played quite well. I think within a year my three-year-old is going to be able to at least match up lines.
I imagine with a group of experienced gamers strategies will be remarkably similar because optimal placement is not hard to figure out, but I'm not worried about that right now. I saw the kids do some things that I would have considered suboptimal to start but the late tile draws led to very competitive scores.
This is a game that I would never want to play super seriously, but as long as it is light and breezy, it is always good for a laugh (or some good natured groans).
Marracash
Another game with remarkably simple rules but an amazing depth of play. Many auction games are like this but often suffer if one person does not bid close to optimally. Marracash mitigates this by limiting the amount a person makes when auctioning off a shop. Also the decision making that goes into bringing new pawns onto the board is interesting.
What a great game and it packs all of that into 45 minutes or less. It is almost a crime that this hasn't had a US release and since all the components are language independent, it makes even less sense.
The Name of the Rose
I have no idea how to play this game in order to win it...there seem to be too many intangibles. Still, I greatly enjoyed the experience I had while playing. I think most of that is due to the nice change of pace this game offers. I like getting different parts of my brain exercised and this is a game very much about observation and reading opponents.
I don't envision this game seeing a lot of play time, but I imagine it will be a welcome change of pace when it sees action. Are there better games that are mechanically similar out there?
Small World
One of only two new to me games this month that is actually new and this one is a reworking of an older game. What can I say? I'm really enjoying exploring some older games out there.
Small World falls into a good, ultra-light war game category for me. It is fun to look at the different race and ability combos and it is also fun to time when to go into decline. Good choices with again a relatively simple rule set.
I have two gripes about this game. One, it is a bit longish for the depth. Two, is that there are some pretty good stretches of downtime, especially when going onto decline. Still these are relatively minor and I look forward to playing again.
The Bridges of Shangri-La
Another ultra-light war game but this one is disguised with a fun peaceful theme...but I can't imagine describing moving students to a new village as anything other than an attack. The attacking is controlled by really good timing and setup mechanics.
For a thirty minute game there is a lot going on here. I especially like that a weak village can attack a much stronger one, just to remove the bridge. I never felt like I didn't have a ton of things I could do on any given turn.
Cartagena II
I really liked the original Cartagena as a light filler and thought that Cartagena II would b do the same. I'm not sure why, but it really didn't work for me as well. I don't know if it was the boat or moving opponents forward or what, but it just wasn't quite as good.
Now, clearly I still liked it and in fact I do like that is is slightly more strategic. I need to play this more to see if it shines as its own game.
The Very Clever Pipe Game
A light abstract that plays quickly. I like the choice between completing my own pipe or making it harder for the opponent to complete hers. When a card can accomplish both, it is gold. Both this and the next game are bumped up because they are so inexpensive.
The Big Cheese
Big Cheese is an interesting bidding game where bidding high means that payoff is delayed that much more. I don't think I've ever encountered that mechanic before in a game and liked it quite a bit. Overall the die rolling makes the game a bit unpredictable, but the game is light enough for that.
Animalia
This game reminded me a little bit of Coloretto but not nearly as interesting. It doesn't seem that hard to maximize points on any given turn and all of the special cards don't seem to change game play enough. Also, a couple of lucky draws can really throw this game off.
Vanished Planet
Vanished Planet is simply outdone by the much better coops of the last few years. The thing that threw me off the most is the amount of time invested into converting resources into other resources so that they can be turned into useful technologies. Too much bookkeeping...I'd much rather play Pandemic.
Oh, and did I mention that the art is less than appealing.
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David Reed
United States
College Station
Texas
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Thanks to Friendless' stats engine (another new to me thing for this month), the general lack of new hot titles that demand play, and some friends that are trying to do the same thing, I managed to play a lot of games for the first time in May! As a happy side-effect, a lot of my unplayed games finally made it to the table.
Almost all of the new-to-me games were enjoyable and will see the table again, though, perhaps, not too soon... I have more unplayed games that need to visit the table for their first play!
Games from my collection that were played for the first time:
Fairy Tale, Roma, Poison, Big Points, Witch's Brew, Meepile, R-Eco and High Society. Some of these had been in my collection as long as two years, so it was good to finally make it to the table.
Games from other people's collections that I played for the first time in May: Arch Rival, Tottering Towers, Cartagena, and Marrakech.
While I chose Fairy Tale for the best of the month, I could have easily chosen several of the other new games - it was a very good month for me! I give the edge to Fairy Tale because I think that it has a lot of potential for future exploration.
Well, on to June: I have had several new games come in that I hope to get to the table (they arrived late enough in the month that I needed to read the rules before they could hit the table, hence the older titles getting a chance): Jet Set, Finito, and I'm trying to get my FLGS to get Fits for me. If they don't do it soon, I may have to order it on-line...
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Arden Nelson Jr.
United States
Novelty
Ohio
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This is a game a gamer in my group just go. I was interested in playing it. I really liked this and find myself analyzing our particular game and how I would want to play next time.
There might be a couple of runner's up for this month.
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Stephen Roney
United States
Ladera Ranch
California
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Stephensons Rocket wins a crowded field. After wanting this game for a long time I finally acquired it in a math trade and have gotten two plays in, both with four players. I have not been disappointed, though I still have a ways to go to be any good at it.
Lots (for me) of new games this month as I try to get my unplayed list shorter:
Attika - Picked up from Newspiel's going-out-of-business sale, I finally played two three player games back-to-back and think this one might even work with my wife (unlike Rocket above)
Can't Stop - Another recent math trade acquisition that I got to the table quickly. Have already tried it with my wife in one of two two-player games. The press-your-luck aspect is right up her alley, though I am concerned whether there might be problems with more players (especially four)
Keythedral - Finally got this math trade acquisition from January to the table. Just one play, but looks good so far.
Ghosts! - Had a quick play of this one, which I don't own. It was OK, but I am not that anxious to play it again. I think it would take several plays with the same opponent to make the game start to get very interesting.
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United States
Ithaca
New York
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Someone brought TTR to game night, and taught it to me. It became my most played game this month (11 plays), because I played it with LD, my father and stepmother, friends, and my coworkers. This has great appeal, and was well received all-around.
During the same game night, I got to try Princes of Florence during a 5 player game. I had just gotten a copy, but had not had an opportunity to try it, so I was lucky to not only get to play it, but to be taught by people familiar with it. I liked building up my board, and using different combinations. This had been on my radar for a while, and is a good addition to my collection.
We picked this up at a Friends of the Library sale, and had fun with it - I like the artwork, and the twists on standard Rummy (capturing).
Another one picked up at the FoL sale - a light dice rolling game with some strategy and choices, and you get to drop your pieces through the top, like a big blue volcano.
Same FoL sale. It was amusing, and might be fun to get out around non-gamers.
I liked this one more than I expected. I felt I had enough space to really make the words I wanted to make, and that I got rewarded for the lengthier words. The double scores for matching colors and the bonus for flipping the tiles made it interesting, too. Going to keep this one around for a while.
A crocodile die, and adventures that sink into quicksand - I even wrote a session report about this one. A fun, colorful thrift find that made for an enjoyable evening.
The instructions were a little thick to wade through, but once we gave it a try, it was much more manageable. Great bits, but only "okay" gameplay to me so far.
Interesting, but I didn't really get it for us to play 2-player - I got it because I think our friends will enjoy it, especially the theme. I look forward to giving it a try 4-player with them. Fun bits, fun theme.
Got this in a trade, and enjoyed it during our first run-through. Look forward to playing it with my dad, friends, and possibly co-workers. Easy mechanics and understandable theme should make this a go-to game for get-togethers with non-gamers.
We played this for the first time yesterday, and gave it another try today. It didn't strike a chord in me the way some other games did (Agricola), but it might grow on me, or at least be okay occasionally. LD seems to like it more than I do. Only a from me thus far.
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Joe Geerkin
United States
Eden
New York
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My buddy ran a racing tourney for our group. My favorite of the games we played was Um Reifenbreite. (Pitchcar, New Formula De, Ave Ceasar and Moto Grand Prix were the others.)
Others new to me:
1830- I think I'd really be into these games if they didn't take 7-8 hours. I just don't have the time to play them all that often.
Bombay- This game and a Castle for All Seasons are pretty good strategy games that are a filler's length. The bits are awesome, I love the elephants.
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T. Nomad
New Zealand
Winnipeg/Auckland/Cheonan
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May was a month of decidedly mediocre games, though as long as I'm sitting at the table with good people, the object of our attention matters little.
Valley of the Mammoths Rating: 6
Rare for me, but theme carries the day. Of the four games I rate a 6 this month, VotM is the winner, edging out the runner-up on the basis of story & artwork (ok, more nudity in its cards). Fantastic fun playing against a game that is trying to eradicate the players by proxy. Mammoths and Tigers and Bears, oh crom!
1000 Blank White Cards Rating: 6
I can't believe it has taken me this long to play this shining star among party games. Apparently you can get 200 points for appearing in the latest celebrity internet sex scandal video—who knew?
Eat Poop You Cat Rating: 6
Among the best–titled games in history, Eat Poop You Cat was a huge hit at my teacher training session this month. Great with 5 or 7P at the table!
Paris Paris Rating: 6.
Together with the winner for the month, I got this one at a clearance sale. $10 each for:
Valley of the Mammoths
Paris Paris
Klunker
Iron Dragon
(I know: holy shit!)
Shenomad & I took a bus tour of one of my spiritual hometowns as soon as the delivery arrived. We really enjoyed the 'leftover' wrinkle the game added to the scoring tactics. I imagine of all the games new this month, this is the one that might claw up a point after repeated plays.
Portobello Market Rating: 5.
Odd little euro that seems to create wild point swings by its very nature. Plays either erratic or AP-heavy. Gorgeous components.
Nautilus Rating: 5.
Another wicked-cool set of components, wrapped around a great idea. Pity it's 3x longer than it should be.
Mystery Rummy: Jekyll & Hyde Rating: 4.
P.U. Ok, maybe it's not awful but I have a list longer than my arm of 2P card games I'd rather play. It was great to get a play of this in, though: now I can permanently remove it from my wishlist. I'm leaving its 4P cousins on for now (albeit at the low end), but if someone can clue me in to their similarity, I can purge them, too.
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Tom O'Keefe
United States
Richmond
Virginia
Ever buy snakes from the Egyptian, Taffey?
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Got Notre Dame this month and managed to play it several times, not that getting it to the table was particularly difficult; everybody I taught it to liked it a lot. I especially like how well it scales up and down between numbers of players. I've played it with all possible player counts and every one of them was fun. I will be playing this a lot more in the future.
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Drew Simon
United States
Corona
California
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I played Unhappy King Charles! for the first time this month. It's a fine card-driven wargame with a great period feel. Political control of areas and regions is extremely important, winning battles less so. There are some specific rules that require a couple of readings, but overall the game isn't complex. As with most card-driven games you will be pulling your hair out deciding among some tough choices.
Also new this month: Wings of War Famous Aces, played with Wings of War Miniatures. A lot of fun.
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