Clue meets alchemy…at least, those were my initial impressions of the game. Throw in some worker placement and you have “Alchemists”. To be honest, this is one of those complex games that I’d no doubt have to research again in order to play it in the distant future (unless I play it regularly, which almost never happens due to time constraints). While deep and quite involved, the deduction mechanics kept me engaged from start to finish.
Board Games
As a huge “Lost Cities” fan, I was pumped to receive “Lost Cities: Rivals” in the mail. Perhaps I was too pumped. While the game is very similar to other in the series in the sense that you’re forming runs (expeditions) in order to score points, the auction mechanic received mixed reviews from Aidalee and me. Personally, I found the original two-player exclusive card game to be more fun than this one. Still, it’s a unique twist on a popular theme that most might enjoy. Take a gander at our gameplay session below if you’re interested in learning more.
I’m hungry, how about you? “What’s for Dinner?”, a game that you can really sink your teeth into, launched on Kickstarter just moments ago. It supports 2-6 players and takes about 15-20 minutes to play. Pledging just $19 will get you access to one copy of the game when it’s ready. “What’s for Dinner” promises to be a palette cleanser, so be sure to check this out before you dive into your next meal.
I can’t ever picture myself not being a dog owner. I’ve owned more cats than dogs, but cats can be jerks when they want to be. Dogs are just so loyal and easy to please and depending on the breed, they’ll follow you EVERYWHERE! If you like dogs as much as I do, then you may want to look at “Dogtag”, a successful Kickstarter project that is now retailing for $25.00. It supports 2-5 players, is appropriate for ages 8+, and the average play time is 20-40 minutes. Special thanks to Marketing & Development Manager Christian Miyamae for sending me a copy of the game for review purposes. FCC Regulations require me to disclose that this article is sponsored, though my opinions are my own.
Are you the type of person who can’t get enough cake? Do you sit on your sofa eating cake while watching “Cake Boss?” Are there pictures of the producers of “Cupcake Wars” sitting in a shrine above your pantry? Do you wish Gordon Ramsey would stop yelling so much about undercooked scallops, but would rather want him to tell the blue team that his dead grandmother made better cakes than them? Maybe you should take a look at “Cake Duel”, a light-hearted two-player card game by Game Designer Haitao Mao. It plays in two-minute rounds, so gameplay is fast and furious…meaning you won’t have to wait hours like you normally would if baking an actual cake. Win-Win!
I’m Italian, so tomato sauce is kind of in my blood. Since I’m not full on Italian, I bleed “Ragu” sauce instead of the homemade kind…but it’s a disability that I don’t mind living with. “Diced Tomatoes”, a 2-4 player game that is currently available for purchase on The Game Crafter for $29.99, promises a good time without the annoying acid reflux that normally comes with tomato sauce. Special thanks to Game Designer Arkadiusz Greniuk for sending a prototype for preview purposes. I’m told that the prototype I received should be of the same quality as what a customer would get if buying from The Game Crafter. Prototypes are not often reflective of the final product however, so everything that you’re about to see (including the rules) are subject to change. Per FCC Regulations I am required to note that this article was sponsored, however the opinions shared here are my own.
Are you an avid “Apples to Apples” fan? Are you a history buff or at least, have a passing interest in historical figures from around the globe? Queue “Headhunter: Hilarious Hires from History”, a 4-10 player family/party game that takes roughly thirty to sixty minutes to play. Your main goal will be to hire clients like Abraham Lincoln and make some money in the process. Do you have what it takes to be the most profitable headhunter? Special thanks to CEO Michael (Austin) Rice for providing me with a prototype for preview purposes. It’s important to stress that prototypes are not reflective of the final product, making everything you see here (including the components and rules) subject to change. I’m also required by FCC regulations to disclose that this article was sponsored, though my opinions are my own.
I have a soft spot for games that include some sort of educational booklet that educates players on the subject matter. “Legendary Inventors” does just that…that is, provides a booklet almost as big as the manual introducing you to all of the inventors in the game. In “Legendary Inventors”, you’ll be collectively contributing cubes to various inventions and scoring them. You can “level up” your four inventors’ skills so that they provide even more cubes per use. I enjoyed this one, though I felt a slight modification could be made for a two-player game to help adjust the reward system and prevent one-cube piggy-backing. Watch the video below and you’ll see what I mean.
There’s something to be said about the flexibility of playing with a deck of plain, old-fashioned cards. Sure, certain tabletop games can become the buzz word of the month, but they are often restricted by the rules set forth in the manual. “MYnd Kraft”, an upcoming Kickstarter project (8/27/18), is an example of the former…but these cards are anything but old-fashioned. One deck will give you access to seven (possibly more) unique games to play with your friends. Special thanks go to Game Creator Tharini Rajamohan for providing me with a prototype for preview purposes. It’s important to stress that prototypes are not often reflective of the final product, making everything you see and read about here subject to change. Per FCC Regulations I’m required to note that this article is sponsored, however my opinions are my own.
I love music. It’s gotten me through some pretty tough times and is my go-to when I’m feeling depressed. Believe it or not I was in my elementary school’s choir as I equally enjoy singing, but I can’t read a musical scale to save my life. Sure, certain key concepts like FACE and EGBDF (every good boy does fine) has stuck with me, but I’m one of those people who labeled the keys on his electric piano and wrote down the letter sequence as I attempted to recreate songs I liked. Luckily, you (supposedly) don’t need to have any musical experience whatsoever to play “Rumix”, a musical card game that’s retailing on Amazon right now for $14.95. Before we untangle this unique treble clef (my favorite musical term even if I don’t know what it means), I’d like to thank Game Designer Maxim Levy for providing me with a press copy for review purposes. Per FCC Regulations I must also inform you that this article was sponsored, but my opinions are my own.
“Havenfall” is absolutely gorgeous and the 8-bit theme really hits me in all the feels. This deck builder acts like your typical deck builder up to a point and then introduces mana which lets you play spell cards and activate card abilities for extra effect. I decided to publish a video as opposed to writing out a review because A) I bought it and B) time, but I can’t stress enough how wonderful this game turned out to be. You can watch it played below, just be sure you reserve some extra play time to learn the nitty-gritties. Continue Reading
“Set phasers to phun!” Ugh…let’s try that again. “Alright folks, time to flip open our tricorders and scan the area for a good time!” Even worse. “You’re gonna want to activate your emotion chip for this one!” Okay, I’m done, I swear. “I’m reaching out to you from the Q Continuum to give you a heads up that…” I apparently lied. If you think you folks can do “Star Trek Puns” any better, leave a comment. Anywho, the folks at Looney Labs were kind enough to send me their latest rendition of “Fluxx” – a simplistic but chaotic card game where the rules are always changing. The Bridge Expansion, you guessed it, bridges the separate TOS and TNG games and allows you to combine them into one game. See what I did there? Bridges? Bridges?! *Sigh*
I bought a house and need to trim my board game collection. I’ll have a full list soon but for now, check out what I’ve listed so far on Ebay. Most games are used, though they are in good shape as I’ve only played them once. Hey, I live a busy life!
If you’re in the Pittsburgh area or are willing to drive to pick up a bunch, more power to you. It’ll save on the shipping. Contact me at vmp0514@msn.com if you’re able to do a meet-up.
https://www.ebay.com/usr/vmp_0514
You’d think “I, Robot” and like movies before it would have warned mankind of the dangers involved with messing with advanced forms of artificial intelligence. Sure, Data wouldn’t be Data (Star Trek: The Next Generation) without it…but then again, Lore wouldn’t be Lore either (Data’s “evil twin”). “The Grid: AI Awakens” is a Kickstarter project that focuses around this subject, with players working against both each other and the game’s AI in order to come out as the dominant speci…I mean, in order to be the game’s champion.
I know jack about politics. I couldn’t tell you the difference between a liberal and a conservative or why one US party uses an elephant to represent them while another uses a donkey. Why not dragons? It worked for Emilia Clarke right? Anywho, I’m not here to convey my limited views on how the US government is run…rather, I’m here to talk about a game that doesn’t care if you don’t know anything about politics. “Mapmaker” is fully accessible and playable for just about anyone, making it a Kickstarter project that one should seriously consider backing. Special thanks to Game Designer Josh Lafair for reaching out and providing me with a prototype for preview purposes. It’s important to stress that prototypes are often not reflective of the final product, making everything you see here (including the rules) subject to change.
I hated gym class. I know, who would have thought, right? A kid half the height and weight of everyone else, including the girls, not liking gym class? “Snag the Flag” is a Kickstarter project aimed at anyone looking to test their reflexes…of course, having fun in the process is not only a side effect, but encouraged! It’s a shame games like these weren’t around when I was a kid…it would have made my gym classes a lot more fun and a lot less bloody.