News Bits 3/4/2013

Lots and lots of news this week:

TableTop invites you to International Tabletop Day [Link] The Geek & Sundry web sensation TableTop has started its own holiday. On March 30, 2013, board and RPG gamers are encouraged to do what they love--play games. At home, in public, wherever (here's the video announcement). I hope I can participate in something. (Any excuse for games, says I.) (And the story was also picked up by someone at USA Today.)


7 Wonders: Wonder Pack rules posted [Link] I like the 7 Wonders expansions that have been released so far, but I don't often have opportunity to use them. There's usually a new player in the game, and I played probably 15-20 games of 7 Wonders before I had any desire to expand, so I like new players to explore a bit before throwing new things at them. The one place where 7 Wonders is ripe for expansion, though, regardless of player experience, is in additional wonders. Reading through these rules, I'm super stoked for this. Also, Stonehenge side B, stage 2: watch out.

New game from Carl Chudyk (Glory to Rome) and Asmadi Games is in development [Link] I was introduced to Carl Chudyk's games last year through Glory to Rome and FlowerFall, both of which were among my favorites of the year (and both made 2012's dimes list). Not much info is available in the announcement save that it's another "cards serve multiple purposes" game and it's in space. So maybe @Futurewolfie will like it.

Another article on board games hitting the mainstream [Link] This time without the condescending tone. Seriously, the BBC has done a nice job with this article. The interesting angle here is the mobile/digital segment of traditional board games.

The shortest game of Monopoly ever [Link] Scatterplot posits what, theoretically, could be a 21-second game of Monopoly. My beef is with the income tax. Paying the $200 would not be in a player's best interest, especially at the start of the game. But that's a quibble: even if player 2 was $50 richer, he'd still be bankrupt by this scenario. Of course, this still doesn't make me eager to play Monopoly.

The top ten games not to play with angry people [Link] The Dice Tower put together this list. It might be more worthwhile for you to put together a list of the top ten angry people who may want to play games with you and avoid them.

The state of print-on-demand publishing for prototypers [Link] This post on the Board Game Design Forum is exactly what it sounds like.

Kickstarter launch-day advice [Link] I've appreciated Stonemaier Games' (Viticulture) window into their Kickstarter process, but the latest article is especially good. Jamey Stegmaier talks specifically about not spamming and being personal about recommending the project. This is both sane and welcome. (I may forward the link to those who spam my Twitter feed--or just unfollow them.)

Mythbusting Kickstarter referrals [Link] James Mathe (Minion Games) has talked to other publishers and discussed which Kickstarter referral methods achieve the best results. This is good information if you're running a Kickstarter campaign, I would imagine.

Last week on the Dragon [News Bits, Milestones review, Flash Duel review, Guide to Gaming: When is it time to cull my collection?] Lots of good stuff last week, with more to come this week, including the second half of this article in the guide to gaming about how to make effective trades. Stay tuned!


Kickstarters of Note
Watch out for your wallets, folks. Lots of good stuff. LOTS:

• Wizard's Brew: Another reprint has come to Kickstarter, this one a first English printing of Alan Moon and Aaron Weissblum's Das Amulett. The buy-in is $50.
• Metal money/VP tokens: Minion Games just recently (way over-)funded their 4X space game Hegemonic, but they didn't quite reach the metal coin goal. This Kickstarter is specifically for the metal coins, but anyone can pledge for them. They look nice for use in any game. $17 gets you the coins.
• Doppelganger: The Universal Game Piece: Okay, this is weird, but kind of cool. It's a game pawn that's like those digital picture frames. So your pawn can be whatever you want it to be. Kind of neat. $25 for one, $45 for two.
• Odin's Ravens: I've seen this game referenced everywhere as a great two-player-only game, but copies have been scarce. The reprint for this just went live on Kickstarter. $28 gets you the game.
• Dragon Whisperer: This is a trick-taking game from Albino Dragon Games. The artwork is evocative, and the designer's name--Richard Borg--is well known. It's already been funded, and the $25 buy-in is reasonable.
• Drum Roll: This game has already been produced, but Artipia Games is funding their second printing via Kickstarter. (The first printing had limited availability in the States.) The game looks beautiful, and the theme is fairly novel. $50 gets you the game.
• Evil Intent: This game looks interesting. It failed its funding the first time (though the reason looks like the way-too-high goal), but it's back with a vengeance and almost funded now. $45 gets you the game.
• The Card Game of Oz: I love the artwork for this one. It looks a little like a CCG-type game, so it won't be for everyone, but it does look like fun. $40.
• Legacy: Forbidden Machines: This is the expansion to Legacy: Gears of Time, a time-traveling board game that was successfully funded on Kickstarter. I've not played the original, so this one isn't really tempting me, but I know the game has its fans. $27 for the expansion.
• Dungeon Roll: This game blew past its funding quickly. It's a quick dice game with a fantasy theme from Tasty Minstrel Games. $15. (Friend of the Dragon BGJosh wrote a good preview here.)
• Triassic Terror: Do we really need another board game about dinosaurs fighting to be the dominant species? The answer is yes, particularly if plastic dinosaurs are involved. This one's expensive but looks great. $60.
• Deadwood Studios: I'm so glad Jame Ernest is back at it. I played the original Deadwood many moons ago. This new edition looks great. $40

What I've Been Playing
I didn't get a lot of gaming in this week (we were recovering from illness), but I did get to play more...

• Coup: My lunch games group had too many people to play a single game on Friday, so we split into two groups, Glory to Rome and Coup. I ended up playing more Coup. We fit eight games into a lunch hour. While eight games in a row is a little more than this tiny game is able to bear, I had a great time. And there was a lot more bluffing this time around. And also a lot more accusation. This game is a great time. A review should be coming soon.
• Copycat: I convinced my wife to play this new acquisition with me. While I definitely see the potential, it didn't wow me with two players. The turn-order bidding was lackluster with two, and several of the cards were not very important with just two players. Still, this game was fun, and I can't wait to play it with more.

Completely Unrelated Awesomeness of the Week
This geeklist: game boxes made better through googly eyes. My favorite? Check out Dune. I also really like Die Macher.


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