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alobearLast week was our annual group gaming holiday, though it turned out to be less game-heavy than usual. I did play four games that were new to me, however (and a fair few that weren't):
Celestia:
This is a really fun little 'push-your-luck' game, with an appealing theme. Players take turns as the pilot of an airship, travelling between steampunk towns, with the others being the passengers. The captain rolls some dice to determine the hazards encountered, and the passengers have to decide whether to stay on board or bail out, depending on whether they think the captain has the right cards to counteract the hazards. Players receive different amounts of treasure in relation to how far up the journey track they progress before bailing out (or nothing at all if the airship crashes). It's similar to another game I played earlier this year, but has greater complexity and a more interesting theme (and prettier cards and game pieces) so I enjoyed it a lot more. A good, short, fun game that I would definitely play again.
Marco Polo:
This is a reasonably lengthy, worker placement game, with added complexity provided by the use of dice which affect where on the board you can go, and how much it costs you to take an action. I don't think I did too terribly for a first try, and wouldn't necessarily object to playing again, but I didn't enjoy it enough to want to seek it out, and I think I'd have to play it a lot more to really get to grips with the strategy.
Tragedy Looper:
This is an anime-themed game, where one player runs the board, and the others team up to try and prevent a tragedy. The players have a certain number of 'loops' within which they can gather information, and then try to change things by playing differently the next time around. It's an interesting idea, but not a game that suits me at all. I found it very hard to work out what we were supposed to do, and consequently damaged our chances of success by playing badly.
Odin's Ravens:
This is a beautifully designed two-player game, where you each take a raven and have to race down a track and then up the other side, with one player going one way round, and the other playing going the other. You can affect the track with various cards to make it more difficult for your opponent, or more easy for yourself. It's very short, but quite fun, and very good to fill time if there are only two of you around.
Sherlock Holmes, Consulting Detective:
This is a group, collaborative game whereby a case is presented and each player in turn elects to follow a particular clue. Information is then provided via passages of text to be read out, and the players decide when they think they have worked everything out. They then have to answer a series of questions from a sealed envelope to find out how well they did. It was fun trying to piece the story together, and I enjoyed the collaborative experience.
During the week, I also got to play plenty of old favourites, and I introduced lots of new people to Kodama, which is still my favourite find of this year so far.
Celestia:
This is a really fun little 'push-your-luck' game, with an appealing theme. Players take turns as the pilot of an airship, travelling between steampunk towns, with the others being the passengers. The captain rolls some dice to determine the hazards encountered, and the passengers have to decide whether to stay on board or bail out, depending on whether they think the captain has the right cards to counteract the hazards. Players receive different amounts of treasure in relation to how far up the journey track they progress before bailing out (or nothing at all if the airship crashes). It's similar to another game I played earlier this year, but has greater complexity and a more interesting theme (and prettier cards and game pieces) so I enjoyed it a lot more. A good, short, fun game that I would definitely play again.
Marco Polo:
This is a reasonably lengthy, worker placement game, with added complexity provided by the use of dice which affect where on the board you can go, and how much it costs you to take an action. I don't think I did too terribly for a first try, and wouldn't necessarily object to playing again, but I didn't enjoy it enough to want to seek it out, and I think I'd have to play it a lot more to really get to grips with the strategy.
Tragedy Looper:
This is an anime-themed game, where one player runs the board, and the others team up to try and prevent a tragedy. The players have a certain number of 'loops' within which they can gather information, and then try to change things by playing differently the next time around. It's an interesting idea, but not a game that suits me at all. I found it very hard to work out what we were supposed to do, and consequently damaged our chances of success by playing badly.
Odin's Ravens:
This is a beautifully designed two-player game, where you each take a raven and have to race down a track and then up the other side, with one player going one way round, and the other playing going the other. You can affect the track with various cards to make it more difficult for your opponent, or more easy for yourself. It's very short, but quite fun, and very good to fill time if there are only two of you around.
Sherlock Holmes, Consulting Detective:
This is a group, collaborative game whereby a case is presented and each player in turn elects to follow a particular clue. Information is then provided via passages of text to be read out, and the players decide when they think they have worked everything out. They then have to answer a series of questions from a sealed envelope to find out how well they did. It was fun trying to piece the story together, and I enjoyed the collaborative experience.
During the week, I also got to play plenty of old favourites, and I introduced lots of new people to Kodama, which is still my favourite find of this year so far.
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Date: 2017-10-02 08:17 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2017-10-02 05:47 pm (UTC)(But there were actual mushrooms growing in one of the bathrooms...)