Games, Games, Games...
Jan. 19th, 2015 02:12 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
alobearSpent a very pleasant day at Draughts on Saturday and discovered three new games I'd never played before:
Splendor:
I saw people playing this at New Year, and Corone had previously recommended it to me as well. It's another one of those "really easy to learn, really hard to play well" games, with a simple mechanic and complex strategy. Dave and I were both within a couple of turns of winning when my dad came out of nowhere to claim the victory. I'd quite like to play it again, though I don't see it becoming a staple part of my gaming.
Winter Tales:
Didn't quite get round to playing this at the last Landmark Trust holiday, so was pleased that Quintus_Marcius picked it as his choice to play. It was lots of fun - our plot involved the Ku Klux Klan, the subjugation of theatre performers, cat people being shot with arrows, the Scarecrow getting carried away with the rebels' manifesto, and Alice accidentally blowing up the rebellion headquarters with a live grenade. I thought the game mechanic had some weaknesses - actually doing things on the board seemed a bit arbitrary - but the storytelling was very enjoyable and, of course, winter prevailed!
Clans:
Another very simple game with hidden complexities. It was well designed to fill a gap towards the end of the day, as it didn't take very long, but I certainly didn't get the hang of any kind of strategy on a first play. The only way to make villages seemed to be for the player before you to make a mistake, which I did a lot, but the other players not so much. I'd like to learn more about how it works and the best way to play but, again, not one I plan to play a lot.
I also finished The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss over the weekend. At 994 pages, it was quite mammoth, but zipped along at a good pace, apart from a section in the middle where the protagonist took a trip to faerie, which dragged interminably. Other than that, though, I enjoyed it just as much as the first in the series, and am very much looking forward to whenever the finale is published (hopefully this year). The mysterious Bast is still my favourite character, despite some rather dubious activities on his part. He means well...
Splendor:
I saw people playing this at New Year, and Corone had previously recommended it to me as well. It's another one of those "really easy to learn, really hard to play well" games, with a simple mechanic and complex strategy. Dave and I were both within a couple of turns of winning when my dad came out of nowhere to claim the victory. I'd quite like to play it again, though I don't see it becoming a staple part of my gaming.
Winter Tales:
Didn't quite get round to playing this at the last Landmark Trust holiday, so was pleased that Quintus_Marcius picked it as his choice to play. It was lots of fun - our plot involved the Ku Klux Klan, the subjugation of theatre performers, cat people being shot with arrows, the Scarecrow getting carried away with the rebels' manifesto, and Alice accidentally blowing up the rebellion headquarters with a live grenade. I thought the game mechanic had some weaknesses - actually doing things on the board seemed a bit arbitrary - but the storytelling was very enjoyable and, of course, winter prevailed!
Clans:
Another very simple game with hidden complexities. It was well designed to fill a gap towards the end of the day, as it didn't take very long, but I certainly didn't get the hang of any kind of strategy on a first play. The only way to make villages seemed to be for the player before you to make a mistake, which I did a lot, but the other players not so much. I'd like to learn more about how it works and the best way to play but, again, not one I plan to play a lot.
I also finished The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss over the weekend. At 994 pages, it was quite mammoth, but zipped along at a good pace, apart from a section in the middle where the protagonist took a trip to faerie, which dragged interminably. Other than that, though, I enjoyed it just as much as the first in the series, and am very much looking forward to whenever the finale is published (hopefully this year). The mysterious Bast is still my favourite character, despite some rather dubious activities on his part. He means well...
