ARK NOVA A sprawling simulator-type game in which you manage pretty much everything involved with running a zoo. So much of this game I’ve never seen implemented in another game before. The action selection mechanic has you assigning actions to power spaces increasing from 1 to 5, from left to right. As you use an action at a specific power level, it is shifted back to the start of the line, making room for every other choice to shift up, rewarding the player for diversifying the actions they take. Also, the game has two score tracks, one moving clockwise and […]Read more »
games
5 posts
Sidereal Confluence is a negotiation and trading game designed by TauCeti Deichmann and first published by WizKids Games in 2017. Thematically, players each play as one of nine distinct races of aliens working together to achieve The Confluence, an idealized society where technological advancements are shared throughout the galaxy. Everyone is working towards the same goal, but this is no cooperative game; everyone is vying to do it “more better” than each of their opponents. The rule book describes it as a game of “aggressive cooperation.” A breakdown of the teach At its core, gameplay revolves around engine-building, which is […]Read more »
In an effort to try to pump out at least a post a week here, I’m going to shake up my format a little bit and condense my thoughts on movies and TV that I’ve been watching as well as any games I might be playing. This of course will not preclude me from my normal review posts, but I appreciate any and all feedback.
Maracaibo is an exploration Euro-style game set in the age of piracy in the 17th century Caribbean. Players assume the roles of ship captains assembling crews, delivering goods, and vying for influence of the European superpowers that control the area. While at its core, gameplay consists of moving your ship, performing one or more actions, and refilling your hand of cards, the game offers a wide range of different things to do and strategies to employ, not dissimilar from most modern strategy games. The complexity lies in the sheer number of things you can do that constitutes taking an action. […]Read more »
Cryptid is a deduction board game that lets players assume the roles of cryptozoologists each trying to pinpoint the location of the titular cryptid, an undocumented, and possibly mythical species of animal. At the start of each game the board state is set up based on a randomly selected, pre-determined arrangement and players are each given a secret unique clue that details one facet of the creature’s habitat. These clues vary, ranging from proximity to landmarks, terrain types, or even other indigenous wildlife, but each is only a piece to the larger puzzle and is next to useless by itself. Because […]Read more »