[Design Review] Sylvion

I've posted a new video review to YouTube, embedded here for your convenience.

[Design Review] Between the Shadows, an expansion for Star Wars: The Card Game

Hey, sharing something a little different today. This is a review of an expansion to Star Wars: The Card Game from Fantasy Flight Games. In this video, I will not explain how the basic game works, so if you are completely unfamiliar with the game you can probably skip this video. Otherwise, I hope you enjoy!

[Design Review] Blokus

Hey, I just uploaded another short video review. This one is for the family strategy game Blokus.

[Design Review] The Hobbit Card Game

Here's another short video review for a fantasy-themed, trick-taking game by Fantasy Flight Games.

[Design Review] Adventure Time: Card Wars

Check out my video review for this simple and fun collectable card game.

[Design Review] Batt'l Kha'os

Posting another video review tonight - this time of the strategic tile-laying game, Batt'l Kha'os.

[Design Review] Ascension: Apprentice Edition

Trying something a little bit different here. I spliced some video clips together so that I could give a pretty good run down of how this game works before giving my thoughts on the game. I'm curious to get feedback on this approach to game reviews. Feel free to leave a comment below.

[Design Review] Dominion

What is Dominion?

This is a “deck building game”, a relatively new concept in game design. Trading card games like Pokémon or Magic: The Gathering have allowed players to build their own decks to bring to their games for some time, but the idea behind a deck building game is that players build their decks from a common pool during play. Here is how it works:

[Design Review] The Resistance

This is another video post, for a very specific reason. Enjoy!

[Design Review] Infinite City

What is Infinite City?

Times are good, the economy is expanding, the workers are pouring in, and the largest city in the world is growing exponentially! Only one corporation can control it all. Will it be yours? Infinite City is basically a game about controlling territory. The interesting twist is that you’re actually building the territory that you’ll control, rather than just claiming it from a pre-made map.

[Design Review] Summoner Wars

What is Summoner Wars?

This is a tactical board game where cards form a major component. Basically, each player gets an army, represented by a deck of cards. Most of those cards are soldiers of one kind or another. You play your soldiers on a board that is a very simple 8x6 grid. You and your opponent take turns moving your soldiers around the board and attacking each others’ soldiers. Each player has a special unit that begins play on the battlefield, called a summoner. If you can defeat your opponent’s summoner, you win the game.

[Design Review] Gamma World

What is Gamma World?

This is a science-fantasy roleplaying game. An experiment in atomic science went wrong, causing many alternate universes to condense into a single reality. The game pits mutant heroes with advanced technology against renegade robots, feral mutants, alien menaces, and other dangerous threats. It is an action-adventure game, but it is meant to be played with a sense of humor. Rules-wise, it is a stripped down version of the 4th edition of Dungeons & Dragons. It features a lot of simplifications though, and is intended for shorter campaigns.

[Design Review] Mega Man Trading Card Game

What is the Maga Man Trading Card Game?

This is a trading card game based on the popular Mega Man video game franchise. First released almost a year ago, the game now has literally a few hundred unique cards in circulation, and an eager player base with a strong trading community and organized tournaments. In the interests of full disclosure, this is not an officially licensed game. It is a fan-made product designed and produced by my brother for us and a few of our friends. Nevertheless, I think it’s a pretty well polished design, and one of the best games me or my brother have made. I’m writing this as a Design Review, rather than a Design Journal, because my total input on the design of this game has been very minimal.

[Design Review] No Thanks!

This is a “design review”. These are basically reviews of games, but with a focus on what can be gleaned from the game in terms of game design.

What is No Thanks!?

No Thanks! is a simple card game with a bidding mechanic as its central element. The game consists of 33 cards with numbers from 3 to 35, and 55 playing chips. One card lies in the center of the table, face-up. On his turn, each player must decide: Either he takes the card and puts it in front of himself, giving him points equal to the value printed on the card, or he declines the card by putting one of his chips next to it. The turn to play passes clockwise, and the next player faces the same decision, except subsequent players gain all chips next to a card if they accept it. Once a card has been taken, the next card is revealed from the deck, and the next round begins. The game goes on this way until all cards have found someone willing to accept them.

The player with the fewest points wins.

[Design Review] Star Wars Roleplaying Game Saga Edition

This will hopefully be my first of several “design reviews”. These will basically be reviews of games, but with a focus on what can be gleaned from the game in terms of game design. I would be very interested in reading other people’s thoughts on these games and their designs.

What is the Star Wars Roleplaying Game Saga Edition?

This is a roleplaying game based in the Star Wars universe. Rules-wise, it is based off of the “d20” game engine developed for the 3ed edition of Dungeons & Dragons. This makes it more on the denser end of the spectrum of rules complexity. This game is called the “Saga Edition” to make it distinct from the previous original and “Revised” editions of the Star Wars RPG by Wizards of the Coast.