Board & Card Games

Originally posted by Digi
I had a starter deck back in high school, so I at least know how Magic is played. The deck-building stuff never really appealed to me, but it obviously has a lot of mass appeal. I know a guy who makes more buying and reselling Magic cards than he does in his day job. Crazy stuff.

The deck building is half the fun, imo. I love the challenge of building a trimmed deck of 60 or 61 cards and then testing it out against skilled opponents to see how it plays. I'm speaking in regards to "Duels of the Planeswalkers" though which is a videogame version of the real game. It has a more limited format. For example, in most decks you can't edit your lands at all.

Originally posted by Star428
The deck building is half the fun, imo. I love the challenge of building a trimmed deck of 60 or 61 cards and then testing it out against skilled opponents to see how it plays. I'm speaking in regards to "Duels of the Planeswalkers" though which is a videogame version of the real game. It has a more limited format. For example, in most decks you can't edit your lands at all.

The competitive aspect of it is indeed appealing. My objection is more toward their business model, which, while clearly affective, feels somewhat exploitive. Deck builders in general have a tendency to want to devolve into an endless string of collecting, either via expansions, new editions, or individual cards. I'm very wary of anything where my initial investment isn't enough to experience the game at its height indefinitely.

VG versions tend to be less exciting for me, though. I played a Magic VG at a friend's place once and it felt weird. Much more fun to have someone literally across the table from you.

Probably my favorite Magic experience was before the card game took off. I read an early book set in the M:tG universe called Arena:
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/263208.Arena

No idea if it holds up. I was quite young when I read it. But at the time, I thought it was cool.

I played a lot of Magic in my day, lovely game.

Of course, it is also a compendium of horrible design choices (contrained by its economic model) and the very definition of a pay-to-win game. Just print your own cards if you want to play something like this.

Originally posted by Digi
The competitive aspect of it is indeed appealing. My objection is more toward their business model, which, while clearly affective, feels somewhat exploitive. Deck builders in general have a tendency to want to devolve into an endless string of collecting, either via expansions, new editions, or individual cards. I'm very wary of anything where my initial investment isn't enough to experience the game at its height indefinitely.

VG versions tend to be less exciting for me, though. I played a Magic VG at a friend's place once and it felt weird. Much more fun to have someone literally across the table from you.

Probably my favorite Magic experience was before the card game took off. I read an early book set in the M:tG universe called Arena:
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/263208.Arena

No idea if it holds up. I was quite young when I read it. But at the time, I thought it was cool.

Eh, to each his own I guess. I enjoy the videogame versions of card games much more. For one, the action moves a lot faster and two, you get combat animations to help out with the immersion of creatures fighting and spells being cast. Also, the game keeps track of everything for you like your life total. I got the entire DoTP: Magic 2013 game with all the expansions, all cards in all decks already unlocked, and even the foil versions of the cards (really nice looking on my HDD big screen plasma tv) all for around $25-$30. I won't have to put any more money into the 2013 version of the game. Ever. I will also never need to buy the 2014 or 2015 versions of game because 2013 is enough fun and has enough replayability to last a long time. From all the reviews I've heard, 2013 is best version anyway. You can get the 10 starter decks without unlocked cards or foil cards for around $10. It's well worth the price if you have a PS3, XBOX, or PC.

I'm playing Stratego against a friend this weekend, and we may go to our local game shop's game night as well.

Stratego was always one of my favorite games as a kid. My brother - who was much better than me at the time - got me into it. It's not the flashiest, but it's good strategic fun.

Originally posted by Star428
The deck building is half the fun, imo.

Agree 100%. When I was into Magic for those few months I had more fun building decks than playing the actual game. It's really fun making your own deck and then seeing it have success against other people. And tweaking it and perfecting it is very satisfying. I miss that game, but it can get expensive.

Playing Online

Here's the master link of places to play, and what games they have:
http://boardgamegeek.com/wiki/page/On-line_Games&redirectedfrom=Online_Play#

I've searched through a bunch of them, and many are hard to navigate or require downloads that I'm uncomfortable with. But I've found a few good sites:

Board Game Arena: http://en.boardgamearena.com/
Probably the most frequented online site, with a good variety of games that are legit, not just dinky Flash games.

Days of Wonder: http://www.daysofwonder.com/online/en/play/
A publishing company, they specialize in their own games. I'm excited to play some Ticket to Ride in order to learn it.

Risk: http://www.wargear.net/
Only for Risk, but it's far and away the best site for it.

Stratego: http://www.stratego.com/
Again, just one game, but it's among my favorites. I've already played some matches (I'm 3-1!).

Originally posted by Digi
So I made a list on BGG, stopped by a local gaming shop to see their selection, and also to see when they have game nights and tournaments. I also scoured BGG for good print-and-play games - those that are free to play and downloadable. I have about four that I'll be trying at some point. And a tiered list of games to purchase. It's exciting.

New? A2A came out in, I think, 1999. 😛

Otherwise, 👆

seriously it's not everday that a game like apples to appels comes along. That is a game that i think anyone can find enjoyment out of.

thank you for information

Originally posted by jinXed by JaNx
seriously it's not everday that a game like apples to appels comes along. That is a game that i think anyone can find enjoyment out of.

But see, I'd contend that there are lots of games that are as good at parties and such as A2A. And for mixed audiences (gamers, children, strangers, etc.). They just aren't as well-known. That's kind of my whole point.

A2A is an excellent game, and it used a model that wasn't widely accepted in gaming at the time, so there are props to be given for originality. But it's also been mimicked by other games that have, arguably, surpassed it or at least equaled it. I don't get much enjoyment from playing it anymore, though some of that is that I just played it too much for a period of years.

So I don't disagree with you. It's just that if there's a point to this thread, it's to look beyond the games we all collectively know and find stuff that is, potentially, even better.

I had a friend over for beers and Stratego. It was fun. I kicked his ass. Twice. I cheated a bit with practicing online (I think I'm 7-3 now), and reading some strategy articles. But I gave him many of the same links to practice on his own, with the promise of a rematch.

I also played a couple rounds of Ticket to Ride online (linked earlier on this page). It's known as a "gateway" game for many. Something that can introduce non-gamers, children, families, etc. It's apparently good at introducing them to indie games without scaring them away, while also retaining enough strategy for more experienced gamers.

I lost both rounds that I played, alas. But it seems fun. Simple to learn, though I misunderstood a couple things until I read up on it a little more just now. Probably a good game to recommend to anyone, since it has such broad appeal.

Also, I walked in to the game shop during one of their free-for-all game times, expecting a nice variety and hopefully an invite to some random game. It was my first time attending it.

Instead, there was about six tables of Magic and just one with anything different. I can respect Magic for their success, but since the business model keeps me well away, the sight was incredibly disappointing. The shop already has 2-3 nights a week devoted to Magic. I thought this would be the "other" stuff. Alas, it may be harder than I thought.

Puerto Rico and Union Pacific are two of my favorites.

Originally posted by Zampanó
Puerto Rico and Union Pacific are two of my favorites.

👆

Puerto Rico seems pretty well-known in gaming circles, and has received a lot of acclaim. I've not heard of Union Pacific though. At some point I may try to play PR, on one of the websites I listed earlier that has a lot of games for free online:
http://en.boardgamearena.com/

It's not on my list of games to purchase, but I'm always looking for new ideas.

My game shop is having a Dominion tournament this Saturday. I missed out on last month's Love Letter tourney, which I would have been fine at. But Dominion is a much more complex game, and I'll get my ass handed to me if I enter. I'm debating trying to cram some strategy guides and online plays in, then entering. But I'm quite sure I'd still lose. They need a Stratego tournament!

I went to board game night again at my local shop, and this time it was awesome! I had never met anyone there, but everyone was inviting, and I had a great time. I played three different games - Werewolves of Miller's Hollow; Coup; and The Red Dragon Inn - which were all fun and interesting (though in vastly different ways). I had already been considering purchasing the 3rd of those, and Werewolves is fairly cheap and accommodates gigantic groups of people. Coup was my least favorite, but not everything will be amazing.

If you have a local shop, find out their weekly schedule. It can be a ton of fun.

Though I realize I may be speaking to myself at this point (or at least largely so, though others have popped in)...

I just played what might be my new favorite game: Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/2511/sherlock-holmes-consulting-detective

It's unfortunately out of print, so there's no such thing as a cheap copy (got mine on Ebay for about $60+shipping, which is cheaper than most copies). But it's incredible.

You're given a case description, the local newspaper of recent events, and a directory and map of London with literally hundreds of potential people, places of interest, etc. to investigate, and the game lets you go with it. There are no rails. You're free to follow leads down obscure rabbit holes, question or ignore individuals, and even pursue side cases. It's almost like a choose your own adventure, with just as much reading, but it's all incorporated in a way that makes you feel like Sherlock Holmes. No hand holding, and lots of deduction necessary. Some clues will come from the crime scene, suspects, or people involved in the case somehow. Others may come from a stray comment in a newspaper that relates to something a suspect said. Sometimes it will come from the map...he said he was at {x} at 7:30pm, so he couldn't have committed the murder at location {y} at 7:15pm, which is at least 45 minutes away by foot or carriage.

Then you have to solve the case. Unlike a "Choose Your Own..." there's no location where you arrive that says "YOU DID IT!" You have to deduce it from the evidence you've gathered. And it's not easy. My gf and I played through the first case....it took us about four hours! We successfully solved the crime and lots of side stuff, but the secondary challenge is doing it as quickly as Holmes did (which is nearly impossible). We took FAR more time than Holmes to solve the case, which deducts from your "Case Score" at the end. It's co-op by default, but can also be competitive, where players each play separately and try to "beat" the others by solving more stuff or solving it more quickly.

It's not for everyone. Some will dislike all the reading and note-taking required. Others will get frustrated (we twice took breaks to decompress when we felt stuck). But the overall experience was unique and incredible.

Bump

I've been playing all kinds of things, both at parties, smaller gatherings, and the weekly game night at my local shop. It's been good times.

I've also slowly started following trends in Kickstarter games, some of which are successful (and many of which aren't). There are certain types of games that can be produced for far less than others. With the right marketing, reasonable costs, and engaging concept, you can make bank on a game. I don't necessarily have a marketable concept, but the possibility of it intrigues me. I have the requisite marketing knowledge, and really good contacts in the production industry. It's probably something I could pull off with the right idea.

I've also discovered a great web series, Wil Wheaton's Tabletop:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4F80C7D2DC8D9B6C

Really fun, and a great way to learn about cool games.

Originally posted by Star428
The deck building is half the fun, imo.

Originally posted by BackFire
Agree 100%. When I was into Magic for those few months I had more fun building decks than playing the actual game. It's really fun making your own deck and then seeing it have success against other people. And tweaking it and perfecting it is very satisfying. I miss that game, but it can get expensive.

That is loser talk. "Yes, the participation medal is half the fun"

Originally posted by Digi
Bump

I've been playing all kinds of things, both at parties, smaller gatherings, and the weekly game night at my local shop. It's been good times.

I've also slowly started following trends in Kickstarter games, some of which are successful (and many of which aren't). There are certain types of games that can be produced for far less than others. With the right marketing, reasonable costs, and engaging concept, you can make bank on a game. I don't necessarily have a marketable concept, but the possibility of it intrigues me. I have the requisite marketing knowledge, and really good contacts in the production industry. It's probably something I could pull off with the right idea.

I've also discovered a great web series, Wil Wheaton's Tabletop:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4F80C7D2DC8D9B6C

Really fun, and a great way to learn about cool games.

Speaking of Kickstarters have you had the chance to play Zombicide?