This summer just like the last two my gaming group got together for a 2 day board gaming super weekend, no kids, no wives, just endless snacks, beer and board games. Its without question my favorite gaming event of the year, it inspired two of my favorite articles from previous events on this blog so I thought I would write one again this year.

Board gaming weekends like this are usually an opportunity for me to test out some new games, fodder for the blog articles but unfortunately this year we played it very safe with our picks playing mostly games we have played before. Still, there was some really great games on the Agenda, here are some of the highlights.

Hero Realms

My buddy and I got to the gaming cabin first and despite the sweltering summer heat while we waited for the rest of the group to arrive we went head to head in a game of Hero Realms.

Now while I have always loved the concept of deck builders, one aspect of a great deal of games in this genre is that they are often a rather benign competitive or sometimes cooperative experience, most deck builders are focused on scoring points rather being a direct duels, which leaves the game feeling a bit flat. I find games like Dominion have really fallen out of favor for me, in fact I culled Dominion from my collection a couple of years ago. Star Realms and now the fantasy version Hero Realms flips things in the genre a bit and lets you actually build decks designed to combat each other in a direct confrontation and to me this is a much more interesting and a lot more fun way to do deck builders. I think I prefer Hero Realms fantasy theme a great deal more than Star Realms, mostly for the theme but also because each player is represented in the game by a character with special powers if using the expansion which I think is the only way to play Hero Realms. Strictly speaking however Star Realms and Hero Realms are basically the same game with different themes, so this is just a matter of theme preference.

This is a pretty fantastic filler that works really well as a two player game, but actually works amazingly as a free for all multiplayer game with up to four players as well. Great art, simple mechanics, fast pace yet clever enough to offer a pretty wide range of strategies and approaches to winning. We played this one last year at our yearly meet up as a group as well and like last time this one fired on all pistons, it definitely deserves your shelf space. It’s a really tight card game and if you enjoy deck builders like Dominion or Thunderstone for example, this one is going to be right up your alley if you like games with a bit more take that, it may even prompt you to do as I did and replace those old point chasers games in this genre on your shelf.

Coup

While this game has been around for quite some time, this was the first time we ever played it in our group, in fact we unpackaged the shrink wrap right at the table for our first game. We were told that it was something akin to a Love Letter or Avalon The Resistance during the introduction, two games I personally love so I was pretty excited to give this one a try.

After a single game we were all hooked and we ended up playing several rounds back to back, it ended up being the only game that got cleaned up during the weekend and pulled back out later for a second round of several rounds.

Mechanically speaking this is a very simple game, after a couple of rounds everyone had the rules memorized. It’s a game of nothing short of trying to pull the wool over your friends eyes and lying about it. Trickery, mind games, bluffing, calling peoples bluff and just trying to catch people on a lie are all part of coup, all activities our gaming group relishes. It registered with us and was without question in competition for one of the highlights of the weekend. Before I even got home from the weekend I had already ordered a copy for myself, rightfully described as a game similar to Love Letter and Avalon the Resistance, If you like those types of games, you are going to love Coup.

Dirk Henns Shogun

Shogun is a staple of my collection, it has been in my collection since its release a decade ago and remains one of my most beloved games I own. I will admit that it’s an acquired taste and while it has always resulted in a positive experience every time I pull it out, not everyone takes kindly to a game posing as hardened area control strategy game with an almost comic, Vlaada Chvatil like nuance ,reminiscent of classics like Galaxy Trucker.

Yes its a strategy game and smart decisions, clever gameplay, good planning, good resource management and all that good stuff you expect to be in a good war game are there, but it also has the dreaded tower of chaos, not to mention the nearly impossible to predict and plan order system that gives this game an atmosphere of hilarity that you can get mad about or you can simply embrace. It’s a nutty experience and luck plays a big role in this game, you can get screwed, the games battles swing wildly and no plan you put together is going to survive first contact with the enemy. Some might argue that it’s a far more realistic representation of warfare, most would argue that it’s too random. To me, it’s in the spirit of gaming and I always say if it’s a fun experience, even if it’s not what you expect, that is a good game and Shogun definitely qualifies for that category.

People will scream, cheer, throw down fists in anger and burst out in laughter as they watch all of their plans ruined by that maddening cube tower and the interaction of chaotic plans scraped together by all the players at the table. I would imagine some will simply hate the fact that you can barely control anything in the game. To truly enjoy Shogun you really have to embrace the experience the game is trying to create, rather than trying to get it to meet the standards of a serious war game, which notably it appears to be upon opening the box and laying out the pieces. Do that and you will love this game, but if too much silliness is not something you want in your war games, I suggest skipping this one.

For me personally, this is exactly what I look forward to in a gaming Spencerian, fun and Shogun has it in spades. . I adore this game, my copy is almost worn out and without question I will be replacing it with a new one when the time comes.

Raise your Goblets

This one debuted at last years big board gaming weekend event and it was no surprise to me at all that it found its way back this year. A game about trying to poison your friends while making sure you don’t get poisoned in what is effectively a game of memorization with a lot of screwing each other over, something that is right in our sweet spot as a group. My gaming group loves take that style games in general and Raise Your Goblets is exclusively about just that, doing it in a more fun rather than mean way.

This is really a party game, It toats the more players the merrier, but I think 5 to 6 players is where it is at its best.

Really fun, this is one of those games you really have to measure against your groups preference, but I think it’s a really great family game as well so if you have some kids at home and can get the whole family to the table, this makes for a very fun evening.

New Angeles

I have talked about New Angeles several times on this blog already since we first discovered it this year, though I’m yet to review it (it’s on my list). For me personally and I think I speak for most of my group, this is probably the game of the year. We have played it several times now on a number of occasions and it has hit it out of the park every time.

To me the most surprising aspect of New Angeles is how little attention it has gotten as a game in particular given that games like Shadows over Camelot, Dead of Winter and Battlestar Galactica enjoy so much praise. New Angeles is really a evolution of those games and really this cooperative/betrayal genre. It takes that concept of cooperative, competitive gameplay with a betrayer element and really perfects the gameplay. It’s an amazingly balanced game, giving way to the psychological games this genre is famous for, yet streamlining the whole into a well oiled machine of mechanics making this without question the best in the genre in my humble opinion.

One core aspect of this betrayer genre of games is that they border on the fringes of being social deduction games and I actually think if you bring this out during a dinner party with non-gamers, if you can get them past the science-fiction theme this would make for a really great party game. Mechanically its very simple, in fact considerably simpler and less involved than most games in this genre, yet it treats the audience with dignity and intelligence without making any presumptions about the players being “hardened board gamers”. Strictly speaking no game should ever do that, but many do so it’s nice to see a science-fiction game being more approachable.

I think it’s not hard to read into this depiction of the game to know how I would review it, it’s absolutely brilliant and belongs in the collection of any fan of the betrayer series of games, yet it has all the qualities of a great introductory game as well. I think it’s much easier to teach than say Dead of Winter or Battlestar Galactica. I fully expect New Angeles to break into my top 10 this year, it comes with my highest recommendation, if you are only going to buy one game this year, this should be it.

Formula D

At last year’s event we went out on a limb and tried several new games, some of which landed flat resulting in us having a few “duds”, so this year we made a lot of safe picks and Formula D is without question one of our old reliable’s when we have a bigger group. When our 6th player arrived part way through the weekend, this was one of the first games we reached for and for good reason.

Formula D is a very simple racing game, pick a gear, roll the dice and move your car up the track. The rules for the game can fit on a cocktail napkin and while the new modern versions of the game have come with some additional optional rules weight to spice up the game, playing it the old classic way is just as fun as it has always been.

I personally think this is more of a “casual” gamers game or a family game, than it is a sort of “gaming group” game, if for no other reason than that I find it’s a bit of a longer game and the mechanics start and remain simple throughout. I always enjoy Formula D with my gaming friends because they are a great group of guys and we can turn just about anything into a hilarious shit show, but strictly speaking as a gamers game I find it to be an odd mix between its simplicity and its length. It’s just a bit too long for how simple of a game it is and when I’m with my gaming group I have a preference to reach for the more complex games that I simply can’t play with non-gamers or the wife and kids.  Or if we are going to play something that is simple, it should be relatively short.

That said Formula D has always landed well with every gaming group we have ever tried it with, whether they are non-gamers, casuals or serious gamers. It’s a pretty game, a simple game and a fun game. It captures the intensity and anxiety of a indy car race and while I find it a bit long for what it is, I still highly recommend it as a staple of a board game collection. I would go further and say that for a family with kids or for casual social circles this game is in particularly a great choice.

Sheriff of Nottingham

The Sheriff of Nottingham to me is a game in a genre all on its own, it’s an extremely simple game that when placed into the hands of a social group with a sense of humor will create fantastic table atmosphere. It’s not hard to imagine however that if played seriously, without a layer of silliness it might land flat. There is not much “game” here, it’s really more of a social activity, than a game. You take some cards, put them in a pouch, tell the Sheriff what you claim to be smuggling and he decides whether or not he believes you. Making that a fun experience with bribes, lies and silliness is really up to the group.

That said in our group its a cluster fuck of lying, bribing, shifty eyes and hilarity. While laughing out and poking fun at each other is something we do constantly pretty much in any game, Sheriff of Nottingham sets us up for so many funny situations we spend almost the entire game laughing our asses off, so for us it’s always a hit.

This time we played it with 6 players using the Merry Men expansion which in my opinion vastly improved the game creating a lot more interactions thanks to the two deputies who must decide together which pouches to inspect or not.

This a staple family game night game if there ever was one, its rules are simple and there is no reading involved so you can play this with kids or adults of any age. In fact, if I were to pick a single game for families, this would be it, it’s really tailor made for family board game nights. The fact that it works great with veteran gaming groups is just a bonus. Always fun, always hilarious, Sheriff of Nottingham is unique and wonderful.

Game of Thrones the board game

Game of Thrones has been on the top of my list of top 10 best games of all time for as long as I have had the list. It’s a more serious game, with a fair amount of complexity both in the rules and in the depths of its strategies, while housing one of my favorite franchises making this a triple threat, gameplay, strategy and theme.

What I love more than anything about Game of Thrones however is how it draws out true raw emotions of the players (me in particular), creating a sense of attachment to the board presence, testing that human condition while challenging you to overcome the many obstacles that both the game and the other players present. It is a deep strategy game that is played on many levels ranging from the manipulation of mechanics to the manipulation of people, all things required to successfully navigate yourself to victory.

That said I do find the games static starting conditions to be a bit dry after you have played a few times. There are certain opening moves with certain factions you must make, certain struggles between factions that are almost scripted and certain events relatively predictable that will happen in every game with experienced players.   It really doesn’t deflate the experience but if you are looking for a game that your group will play repeatedly I think you will find the more you play the more these things might bother you.

It’s also a very long game and one that although it can be played with fewer players, is really at its best at 6. Now complaining that a game designed to be a long game for 6 players, is long and for 6 players may seem silly, so don’t consider that a complaint, but in the modern age of board gaming today, games like Game of Thrones the board game can feel a bit dated and out of touch with the modern approach to streamlining common among today’s games. To me personally some streamlining goes overboard and something is lost, when it comes to Game of Thrones there is a near perfection their in this regard. The fact that its long and for 6 players is simply a fact that requires you to play it at an appropriate time, in other words its a limitation on the game likely resulting in a considerable reduction in how often you play it. Which I think is a good thing because as mentioned, playing this game to often will likely result in the game feeling a bit scripted in certain places, so for our group that probably plays this only once or twice a year, its quite perfect.

Its as streamlined as a game like this can be in my humble opinion, but a 4+ hour game is a 4+ hour game, you really need to know what you are getting into here. It’s important to note as well that this is not a game for casual dabblers or inexperienced gamers. This is for those hardened vets who are looking for a challenge, not that I’m discouraging anyone from trying it but this is not Small World, this is Game of Thrones, its complex, its long, its strategically deep, it’s a cluster fuck of mind games, it’s the definition of a gamers game. It’s one of the best games in this genre and in my humble opinion a masterpiece in the world of boardgaming.

Galaxy Trucker

At this point I have mentioned Galaxy Trucker so many times on this blog I almost feel silly writing about it again. I have a love affair with Vladda Chivatil’s games, to me he is one of the most diverse, unique and adaptable designers in the business. His games are all Masterpieces and you will find every single one of his games in the top 50 on boardgamegeek and several of them in the top 10.

The staple of Chivatil games is that each one is designed to create an experience, in a sense, every one of his games is genre defining and Galaxy Trucker in my humble opinion is among the best of that example. I have never played anything close to Galaxy Trucker, though it’s important to know that calling Galaxy Trucker a “board game” is a pretty loose term. It’s a chaotic adventure through madness, essentially a test to see how much chaos and randomness you can fit into a single game, spoiler alert, it’s a metric fuck ton, but its all done with a quirky sense of humor. A game designed to create funny moments pure and simple.

Galaxy Trucker is along the lines of “activity games” where players attempt to speed design and build space ships that will be put through a gauntlet of horrible events to see if the ship or any of its crew can survive to collect some coin at the end of their galactic trucker journey. On top of that it’s a competitive race against other players, which means you are pushed further into attempting to take risks in hopes of capturing that first place glory.  Simply surviving the game with any money at the end makes you a winner, another spoiler alert, most people won’t make it.

With its many expansions things get even nuttier and while I fully understand that many gamers “don’t get the point”, its because they fail to remove the filters which under normal circumstances we put all other games through. You simply can’t do that with games like Galaxy Trucker, you must embrace it as the silly exercise that it is. If you do that with a group like minded friends, Galaxy Trucker is not only a unique gaming experience, but it’s Monty Python like fun in a box.

Conclusion

Well those are the games that were in the line up this year and I have to say, while we played it safe pulling in only games we were fairly certain would register with our group resulting in a weekend without duds, I do wish we would have taken a couple of risks on some new ones. It was none the less an amazing time as it always is with my friends, I think it was Will Wheaton that once said that “Games are the mortar that keeps our friends together”, something I can wholeheartedly agree with. Board gaming in our modern digital age where people can’t seem to put the cell phones, Ipads and computers down is really the saving grace of the human experience. It brings people together, reintroduces the concept of eye contact and lets us enjoy each other’s company in the real world. I think given the troubling times we live in today, our little blue planet needs a whole lot more of that than anything.

If I had to pick a single of these games as the game of the weekend, I think I would have to go with Game of Thrones. Its raw energy, complex strategic gameplay and endless mental games not only bring the theme together but make this one of the purest board games I can think of. It defines everything I love about boardgaming and brings it together in a single game. Without question in my mind, one of the best board games ever made.