The Care and Feeding of Nerds: Board Games

Showing posts with label Board Games. Show all posts

Pandemic Legacy Giveaway

Posted by Kel

Hi everyone. So if you follow us on Twitter you may have caught a brief mention of a forthcoming giveaway. That moment is upon us friends. Who's ready for the chance to win an awesome board game?

That would be me. Woo! Contest!

I get excited for every contest we run on here, but this go around is extra special because it features an incredibly innovative take on a well-loved classic. We're giving away a copy of Pandemic Legacy: Season 1. Everyone reading this can enter for a chance to win it! (unless you're the GIR or Elder Gias, sorry guys)

How to Enter the Contest

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Step 1: Think of the name of your favorite character role, Funded Event, City, aspect of playing Pandemic, or individual title from any of the games in the Pandemic franchise. (see the Rules below for a note about expansion titles)

Step 2: Leave the name you thought of in Step 1 as a comment on either our Facebook or G+ pages, or tweet it at our Twitter account, tag us in a picture of it on Instagram, or leave it as a comment on this post. (Yes, you can enter multiple times; see the Rules below for an example of how this works)

Step 3: Check back here on Wednesday, July 6th at 8pm EST to see if you're the winner! The winner will be selected using random.org.

Contest Rules

- You are allowed one entry per social media site (plus this website) and your entries must be different responses to each of the items in Step 1. For example, I could say my favorite character role is the Medic on the Facebook page, then say my favorite Funded Event is the Local Initiative on G+ and earn myself 2 entries into the contest.

- Since there are five categories and five places for your potential responses, you can earn up to five entries for yourself by putting a different response on each of the sites. If you say 'researcher' 5 times in 5 places, only one of those will count.

- While you do not have to use your full, real name to enter the contest, we are going to require that you give us at least a valid handle or nickname so we can contact you if you're the winner. Contestants who are found to be using burner accounts to try and earn more entries will be disqualified.

- For the purposes of this contest, all Pandemic expansion titles can be treated as separate games. So, if you really loved Pandemic: In the Lab and want that as your entry, you're completely allowed to do so.

Good luck everyone!

Notes: The Care and Feeding of Nerds and this contest are not in any way affiliated with Z-Man Games, Inc. Pandemic Legacy, and all imagery used therein, is licensed to Z-Man Games.

Game Review: Rise of the Robotariat

Posted by Kel

Why hello there everyone! I know, it’s been far too long since there’ve signs of life on here. That phenomenon will be explained in its own post in the near future. For now jump back in with one of our favorite subjects: awesome new board games.

In the early months of 2015, Eye 4 Games gave us the opportunity to wage telekinetic battle against one another with their foundational game, Clairvoyance. This year they present us with a very different, but still deeply engaging title, Rise of the Robotariat. It's something we've been looking forward to since last year's Boston FIG and it definitely did not disappoint. Rise is, without question, one of the most well-conceived and immersive offerings we’ve seen in 2016.

That word…

I know, I know. Immersion is one of those buzzwords that gets bandied about in the board game world so frequently and readily that, upon seeing or hearing it, the nearly-natural reaction at this point is one of skepticism. It is, however, entirely worth our collective while to put that skepticism aside, as Rise makes a highly compelling case for the redemption of the word.

The year is 2105. The Singularity has occurred and fully self-aware artificial intelligence is nascent among the masses of robots that had, until this critical point, existed solely to serve the whims and needs of humanity. A handful of these would-be former mechanical slaves seek to sow the seeds of dissent among their metallic brethren and incite a revolution that would wrest power from the grasp of their human oppressors.

Players take on the roles of these clandestine operatives, working together to overthrow the present regime and replace it with glorious self-rule. While you are united by this worthy cause, you are also fully aware of the potential that may await you, personally, once a new order has been established. How will you incite revolution and how will you be remembered after the Rise of the Robotariat?

Is this where I start the, “Kill all humans,” chant? I want in on this revolution.

You’ll have your chance during the course of play of this extremely engaging title. Eye 4 Games describes Rise as “mostly cooperative” and that’s a very accurate descriptor. As mentioned earlier, your collective primary motivation is a full on coup de sentient lifeform. You accomplish this with tactical unit placement: seeking out Civilian Robot NPCs to woo them to your cause while simultaneously avoiding Human Oppressors who may get wise to your insurrectionary designs. In addition to overseeing token placement and movement, players must manage two crucial resources: SPARK, the de-facto currency of the game, and Reputation, the mutable, intangible belief in your righteous cause. A paucity of either spells disaster for the Robotariat, but victory depends on being able to spend these with discretion.

Fans of co-op games will likely feel right at home with Rise, but comfortably familiar does not at all translate to predictable. Play is divided into six structured rounds with each round affording players the opportunity to move or activate the ability of the space their token currently occupies. Activation activities range from placing posters to augment revolutionary sentiment, to providing upgrades for individual players, to partaking in acts of sabotage (though these may come at a dear cost to your Reputation).

Ok, this sounds like it's very much in my co-op-loving wheelhouse.

Ah, and we haven't even gotten to the aspect of Rise that takes it above and beyond many of its cooperative brethren. As mentioned earlier, the members of the Robotariat are not ignorant of the roles they may be able to play once they've established a new mecha-world order, and this is where the "mostly cooperative" portion of Rise comes in. Players may draw a Secret Objective at the start of the game (this is optional, as Rise can be played wholly cooperatively as well), and each Objective contains a unique set of conditions that must be met. While the majority of the Objectives serve the purposes of the revolution, there is one Turncoat card that introduces the possibility of treachery.

The hard limit of six rounds, which averages out to about 45-60 minutes of play per game, paired with the need for tactical resource management forces a degree of intense collective focus that anyone who has played Pandemic will quickly recognize. The NPC component and the always-present threat of a potential traitor in your midst also adds to the overarching tension; victory or defeat often arrive on the slightest of margins.

In addition to the mechanics, Rise is beautifully composed, with every one of the game's components: from the board, to the custom dice, to the prose in the rulebook work together to draw players in nearly from the instant they sit down to play. Several of our players remarked on just how rapidly and completely they became invested in the premise of robot revolution. Rise provides deeply satisfying play for seasoned board game veterans and, thanks to the "mostly cooperative" premise, can be accessible to newcomers as well. The wide array of potential outcomes afforded by the Secret Objectives assures a high degree of replayability.

How do I get my hands on this game?

The Kickstarter campaign for Rise of the Robotariat launched earlier today. Head on over to the crowdfunding site and you can pick up a copy for a pledge of as little as $5 USD.

I'm really digging this.

We did too. Rise was one of our favorite titles to come out of Boston FIG 2015 and we're thrilled to see what it's grown into since then. It's a phenomenal blend of tactics, teamwork, and tension that will have you wanting to overthrow humanity again and again.

Bonus: if you want to take that whole immersion thing to the next level there is actually companion book that features short stories inspired by the game. All glory to the Robotariat!

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Developer Dialogues: Master of Spies

Posted by Kel

Hey guys. Exactly one week from today I'll be done with the first of the professional certification exams I have slated for this year. While more exams will be forthcoming, there'll be a bit of a break between sitting for the exam and receiving my results, during which I hope to get reacquainted with...well...everything really.

In the meantime, meet the guys behind Move Rate 20 Games, the minds behind the nimble-but-intrinsically-strategic card game, Master of Spies.

Image Credit

Tell us a little about yourselves. What prompted you to want to become game developers?

We’re a group of friends who’ve played various games together for years. We wanted to take our love of gaming to the next level and that was developing our own games. Steve R. brought an idea for a game he had to us, and we agreed to help him develop it -- that game is still being built out. Steve P. showed the group another quick, fun game idea he had, and that eventually became ourfirst Kickstarter, Master of Spies.

Once you decided to put on the developer’s hat, what made you choose this specific type of game? Why did you feel a card-based game was a particularly good fit for your vision of Master of Spies?

Master of Spies was, like many things in life, developed out of frustration. While working on developing our first game idea, which has the working title of “Project Lightning Sword,” Stephen P. got frustrated with some game-mechanic roadblocks. To clear his mind, he sat at the kitchen table with a deck of cards and some poker chips and came up with the rough idea for a simple, quick game that became Master of Spies. We then took that initial idea, tweaked it a bit and decided that it would be a good first release as it had appeal to both hard-core and more casual gamers alike. During the development, we got the idea of tying all of our games together by setting them within the Eldinar universe and thought that using the spy theme would be a fun introduction to the world.

The game is touted as being extremely easy to learn, but a highly satisfying overall play experience. How long would you say it takes people to pick up Master of Spies and what demographics do you think would most enjoy the game?

The basics of the game are very easy to learn, children as young as age nine have gotten the basics in just one play-through. The advanced rules add a bit more strategy, but gameplay remains quick & easy to learn. We believe the game would appeal to families with players of different ages & skill levels since, while being easy to learn, it also has enough strategy to keep the attention of more serious gamers.

The puzzle-based game market is pretty competitive with both major publishers and Indie developers in the field. What would you say makes Master of Spies distinct?

Well, one of the things that make it unique is that it’s based around the world of Eldinar, a unique fantasy world we are creating for the majority of our games. The names of places and characters will appear again and again, taking players deeper and deeper into the intrigue of the world. Plus, there’s the scalable complexity of the game -- we’ve designed it with rules for a “basic” game and a set of Advanced Rules with “Special Actions” that can further a player’s advantage or thwart an opponent.

The artwork and overall aesthetic of the game is very interesting. What was your inspiration for the look and feel of the game?

Since the world of Eldinar is a fantasy realm, we wanted the cards to have a look that fit that universe -- cards that feel like they could exist in that world. I wanted something that looked good, was distinctive enough for each Faction, while also being easy to read.

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What do you feel was the most enjoyable part of developing Master of Spies and, conversely, what would you say was your biggest challenge?

The most enjoyable part was definitely seeing the reactions of people who play tested the game. They were initially engaged by it, but then got even more into it when they realized it offered more strategy than at first glance. The biggest challenge was finding a balance between simplicity and ease of play vs. depth and strategy, all while keeping gameplay short.

The most fun for me (Stephen P.), as the graphics guy, was designing the cards and bringing the artists onboard to create the portraits of the Royal Courts’ dignitaries.

You intimate on the Kickstarter page that the game would be the first in your Eldinar series, any hints as to what the rest of the series would be like?

The other game currently in development (Project: Lightning Sword) is a more complex resource management, unconventional deck building, and castle defense style card game. There are also plans for a board game and an RPG game setting, both also based in Eldinar.

Is there anything else that you think potential players should know about Master of Spies?

It is quick and fun…easy to learn….good for the family or for your hard-core gaming pals.

Collectively, we have played the game 100’s of times, for play testing, demoing at cons, showing family members during the holidays, etc., and we still enjoy playing. Every game is different because the tactics and styles of the different players combined with the randomness of the cards makes each game session different. Plus with no “player elimination” mechanic, everyone is still in the game and, with a cleverly played card, could potentially pull off a win in the last round.

Interested? The Kickstarter for Master of Spies runs for another two weeks; head over to their page for play footage and even more details!

Developer Dialogues: Moonquake Escape

Posted by Kel

It's been a spell since the last iteration of Developer Dialogues and we return to the series with a very special entry. MoonQuake Escape was the very first game to venture into our Playtesting Lab and we've been gleefully watching its development in the nearly two years since. We'd sit here gushing about the mechanics, the artwork, and that board all day, but it's assuredly better if we turn this over to Jeff, the mind behind MoonQuake Escape, and Michael, the man behind its distinctive art.

Tell us a little about yourself. What prompted you to want to become a developer?

HI, Kel! I’m Jeff Johnston (@PairOfJacksGame) and I’ve been designing games as a hobby for the last few years. I started shortly after a friend at work mentioned that writing a book was on his bucket list. It got me thinking about what I’d want to do and I started thinking about all the fun I’d had when younger playing games with friends and family. I decided my goal was to see a game that I’d created on a store shelf. Within about six months I had a fun little game about toasting marshmallows, Toasted or Roasted, and about six years later I walked into an EMS store and said “Look what I made!” to anyone within earshot.

Once you decided to put on the developer’s hat, what made you choose this specific type of game? Why did you feel this style was a particularly good fit for your vision of MoonQuake Escape?

I really enjoy making games for families with younger children. Like a Disney film, something focused on the youngest but enjoyable by the whole family. My second game, Flashlights & Fireflies, is about playing flashlight freeze tag and catching fireflies. I mention F&F in particular because its core fun was a “hide and seek” mechanic (a la 3-Card Monte) with players traveling a straight four-step track. My son was taking an entrepreneurial course during his college studies and I suggested we develop a game together and KickStart it—not sure I’ve ever a heard a faster “No” in my life! But, my wheels were already turning. I thought it would be a lot of fun to take F&F and add a bluffing mechanic: what if each player could protect (or shield) one face down card—would they protect their one key card, or would they try to lure you away? I also thought it would be interesting to have a way to bring players together on the board unexpectedly for some interesting interaction and I started to picture a set of concentric circular boards to create those situations, and inspired the look of a planet. The space-aged theme on a prison was simply to aim at an older audience and keep it a competitive setting. And thus “Monsters & Moonbeams” was born! The name MoonQuake Escape came about six names later…

The game is touted as being extremely easy to learn, but a highly satisfying overall play experience. How long would you say it takes people to pick up Moonquake Escape and what demographics do you think would most enjoy the game?

I think I’d like to meet these touters! At first brush, MoonQuake Escape takes some explaining. You do have to convey an entire world—its dangers, how you move, how it moves, how its moon moves!—how you interact with the other players, and your goals in the race to the only remaining escape rocket. Hard core gamers jump right in without issue, but lighter gamers are often initially skeptical about the level of complexity. But after a round or two, they start to get that there are only a few but rewardingly deep decisions to make in each round. I was challenged by my fellow game designers to make it as simple as possible and so I created a Basic rule set that feeds you a healthy portion of the MQE world before introducing the rest in Advanced rules. Those extra rules aren’t hard or complex, just less to absorb in an initial sit down.

I’ve been playing MQE with people from all walks for more than two years now of many ages and demographics. The box will say ages 10+ and its extremely engaging for families. I’ve had kids chasing down parents to join in a second or third demo game. But, I’ve been extremely pleased with how adults playing adults enjoy the game and the constant playful interaction each round creates.

The board game market is pretty competitive with both major publishers and indie developers in the field. What would you say makes MoonQuake Escape distinctive?

It’s amazing the quality, variety and creativity in the market today. That really means that your project has to have something special about it. I didn’t really know where MQE would go—I just followed its lead. It needed rotating rings and an orbiting & revolving Moon, and I was foolish enough to craft it. In 2014 at PAX East, I accidentally “kidnapped” Shari Spiro (@AdMagic/@Breaking Games) and showed her an MQE prototype. At first sight, she immediately said “I want to make that!” and I knew MQE had the ally it needed to make it real.

The visual appeal of MQE on the table is amazing, but, it couldn’t be a gimmick. The game play on the board, with the cards, and between the cards and the board needed to be compelling all around. Working through this was my key focus, even more so than the visual aspects of the game. I’ve developed a saying: “The board brings them to the table, the game brings them back.” OK, sometimes a Moon Pie brought them to the table.

The artwork and overall aesthetic of the game is very visually striking. What was your inspiration for the look and feel of the game?

After a great reception of the game at Boston Festival of Indie Games (@BostonFIG) in Sep 2014, I found Michael’s vector superhero art style and started collaborating with him on the art and design. I quickly realized what value he was bringing to the entire process and decided that partnering on this project would be the most rewarding. I think Michael can best speak to the overall art. Michael?

Hello, I’m Michael Parla (@Michael_Parla) the art director for MQE and I’ll field this question. After working in the pharmaceutical industry as a graphic designer/art director for 15+ years, I felt called to scratch a creative itch I’ve been carrying since starting my career. This project seemed just the ticket!

When I was first introduced to MQE I felt it was an ambitious project offering a creative challenge. Initially Jeff was using an illustration for the cover that looked like something out of a Flash Gordon strip. Although the image fit the game’s genre, I didn’t feel it matched with the feel I got when Jeff would demo his games. Much like a 1950 serial film poster, MQE needed to feel loud and exciting, and that inspiration crystalized the art concept. To capture the feel of these posters I found a bold display font for the main titles (thanks blambot.com) and a condensed secondary font similar to that of poster movie credits.

To me the cards were the most exciting to work on. I was able to display my illustration as a main focal point and add value to the gameplay. I saw early on that I could help clarify card type with colors (green = good, red=bad), making sure players could focus on enjoying the game play and not translating icons or inferring details from the text. Might not sound like much but in a game designed as complex as this it was a nice break.

Color was also missing from the board. In the early stages, Jeff wanted a stark prison world, so for that reason the colors of the board were a boring and drab color. It wasn’t until Shari Spiro (Ad Magic/Breaking Games) insisted that the surface include “MORE COLOR!” I wanted something that people could relate to as alien while contrasting off the dark blue background so it was pretty much set in stone that from here on Zartaclaton would be a bright orange planet. After that everything else fell into place.

What do you feel was the most enjoyable part of developing MoonQuake Escape and, conversely, what would you say was your biggest challenge?

The most enjoyable part was listening to the feedback from fellow designers, playtesters and observations, and then creatively solving the issues. For example, players were having trouble remembering whose turn it was—that was the problem that an orbiting moon component solves for the game! Early in the process I discovered the Game Makers Guild here in the Boston area and it’s been an incredible resource—game design expertise, playing testing, and most importantly, honest frank feedback. I was confidently done with MQE at least three times before receiving that one additional comment that made me iron out one more crease. And, of course, sharing the game with hundreds of people the last year and a half at conventions across the country has been a blast. We try to keep the interaction going—our fans are creating the backstories of our alien criminals on the MQE FaceBook page!

The biggest challenge: the rulebook, no doubt. I must have tackled the approach to tell the whole MQE story in rule form five ways to Sunday with different reactions to each. Some players wanting information in this order, others in that order. But, I worked with some really sharp editors—Jim White (@twwombat) in particular—and many savvy play testers to iron out a rule book that tells the MQE story very well. A long process, but I’m very pleased with the final version (you can check it out on the MQE BGG page if you’re curious).

Let’s say MoonQuake Escape is received particularly well by the gaming community at large. Would you be open to continuing to develop it? Would you pursue any expansions or other additional content?

Which designers haven’t already mentally built an expansion to their game?! Yes, we have some exciting ideas we’d like to add to MQE. More dangers on the planet’s surface. A new set of board rings that lets you play a “prequel”: you start in the center of the board deep under the surface in the high security dentention cells and have to make your way through the prison to the surface (the moon will be replaced by a security camera with a different game play effect). And, I think there’s a more card focused game that focuses on the final battle on the Launch Pad. And each of these add to the others allowing you to revisit with new options. But, let’s sell the first copy of MQE before I get too excited!

Is there anything else that you think potential players should know about MoonQuake Escape?

If it looks like I’m having fun telling you about MQE, it’s only because I know how much fun you’ll have playing it. Many moons ago I had to admit that this project is officially my mid-life crisis (of my possible choices, my wife has approved this one!). It’s been quite a ride and we hope you escape with us!

Upcoming Awesomeness in 2016!

Posted by Kel

Happy New Year everyone! I hope that 2016 is already treating you well and that the year is off to a great start. Composing this post has become a fun tradition in itself both because it elicits a little nostalgia when I look over similar posts from previous years (speaking of, here are the entries for 2015, 2014, and 2013) and looking ahead to all the forthcoming awesome is always fun. So let's get to it, shall we?

New Site Stuff in 2016

It's no secret that the pacing of new posts has slowed in the past few months and that's something I think we can all agree isn't the best. The goal is to change that, but, not gonna lie guys, that's going to be tough to do in 2016. A good chunk of this upcoming year is going to be devoted to studying for (and taking) a handful of professional certification exams. If all goes well and I pass all the exams on the first try then this will be the only year that gets consumed in this not-so-fun way. Fingers crossed!

That's not to say that the Care and Feeding of Nerds is going on ice. Not at all! There will definitely be plenty of novel content and, hopefully, a few contests coming your way. It's just that there will likely be a bit less of both in 2016 when compared to previous years.

But there will be goodness! We'll be bringing you coverage from at least two conventions: PAX East 2016 and the Boston Festival of Indie Games. There's a very good chance that we may add a few conventions that have never been covered on the site before, which we're really excited about.

Comics

The past two years have seen some pretty massive upheavals in the comics world, but 2016 is shaping up to be a bit more tranquil as most major publishers appear to want to enjoy their new status quo. Here are 5 upcoming titles that we can look forward to in the very near future and a whole heap more spanning the comic, manga, and graphic novel realms.

January/February are often rife with mid-season premieres and introductions of fun new programs. Here's what we can add to our viewing queues in the next few weeks (premiere dates and times may vary based on your location and cable provider). Ahhhh...X-Files....Venture Bros!!

The Shannara Chronicles: (MTV) January 5th

Colony: (USA) January 14th

The Flash: (The CW) January 19th

Agent Carter: (ABC) January 19th

Arrow: (The CW) January 20th

Supernatural: (The CW) January 20th

DC's Legends of Tomorrow: (The CW) January 21st

The X-Files: (FOX) January 24th

The Venture Bros: (Cartoon Network) February 7th

The Walking Dead: (AMC) February 14th

Movies

As with most recent years, the trend in 2016 will be lots of reboots and sequels, with a bit of novel content tossed in here and there.

January	The 5th Wave - The Earth is devastated by successive waves of alien attacks. One girl asserts herself and bands with fellow survivors to reclaim the planet. Ip Man 3 - Donnie Yen returns to the title role and takes a stand against a band of crooked property managers and cruel gangsters. Synchronicity - A physicist invents a time machine only to have his work fall into the hands of a femme fatale.
February	Pride and Prejudice and Zombies - The film treatment of the wildly popular adaptation of the Jane Austen classic. Deadpool - The Merc with a Mouth gets to incite havoc on the big screen.
March	Allegiant - The cinematic version of the Divergent young adult novel series continues with this third installment. The content of the book bearing the name of the movie will be divided into two films, akin to what we saw with the Hunger Games. Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice - The Man of Steel and Gotham's Knight square off first against one another, then against a novel Earth-threatening foe.
April	Gods of Egypt - An ordinary thief finds himself drawn into a divine conflict. The Jungle Book - The classic Rudyard Kipling tale will be the latest of Disney's animated films to get the live-action treatment. The Huntsman Winter's War - Chris Hemsworth returns to the role of the Huntsman and faces the wrath of not one, but two evil sorceress queens. Ratchet and Clank - The beloved title characters leap from the console to the big screen as they race to save the galaxy.
May	Captain America: Civil War - The tension wrought from the developments seen in Age of Ultron boils over into open conflict and threatens to tear the Avengers apart. X-Men: Apocalypse - The world's first mutant, Apocalypse, intends to obliterate all life on Earth; the X-Men band together an an attempt to stop him.
June	Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows - The heroes on a half shell are back to defend New York City from a new threat. Warcraft - The monolithic video game franchise expands to a new medium. Independence Day: Resurgence - The extraterrestrials that first threatened humanity 20 years ago have spent the past two decades preparing for and plotting for their shot at vengeance.
July	The BFG - Roald Dahl's beloved tale is brought once more to the big screen. Ghostbusters - This revisiting of the 80s franchise features a mostly female cast. Star Trek Beyond - The next installment of the rebooted movie series has JJ Abrams' thumbprint all over it.
August	Suicide Squad - Some of Gotham's most notorious criminals are recruited to undertake black ops-esque missions in exchange for clemency. Pete's Dragon - A remake of the 1977 original in which an orphan flees from his abusive adoptive parents to the company of his pet dragon. Spectral - Supernatural beings have taken over New York City and a very special team of operatives are brought in to restore order.
September	Patient Zero - After humanity is decimated by a horrific pandemic that renders most of humanity into violent rage monsters, a lone survivor finds he's able to communicate with them.
October	Gambit - Not to be outdone by Deadpool, the Ragin' Cajun will get his own movie.
November	Doctor Strange - Benedict Cumberbatch assumes the title role as a ruined surgeon whose life is forever changed after encountering a sorcerer. Moana - The only daughter of a chief of a South Seas tribe sets off to explore the wilds of the Pacific.
December	Rogue One: A Star Wars Story - The first of the Star Wars spinoff films focuses on a group of Rebels seeking to steal the structural plans of the Death Star. Passengers - A spacecraft careens through the depths of space on a journey to distant planet when one of its stasis chambers malfunctions, causing a passenger to wake 60 years too early. Assassin's Creed - Michael Fassbender stars in this movie adaptation of the wildly popular video game series.

Board Games/RPGs

As mentioned in a couple of our round-up posts, most board game developers, even the largest ones, operate on a quarterly schedule for their forecasts and releases with the latter generally coinciding with major conventions. However, if all goes well we should see several of the games we got a chance to try during Gen Con 2015. Also, the always-excellent folks at BoardGameGeek have put together this compendium of what's slated to hit our tables in 2016.

Video Games

Video game releases tend to be a bit more precise than their tabletop brethren in terms of their release scheduling, but the volume of titles that will be available for PCs and consoles is gargantuan. Game Informer did a commendable job of gathering up all those dates into this comprehensive list.

It's already shaping up to be an excellent year! Here's to a very happy and healthy 2016!

Round-Up: Boston Festival of Indie Games 2015

Posted by Kel

What? The 2015 convention season is over for the Care and Feeding of Nerds? How can this be? The sad-but-true fact is that our next convention won't be until 2016 but, somehow, 2016 isn't all that far away. We closed out this year's season with what's become one of our favorite events: the Boston Festival of Indie Games (a.k.a. BFIG). Yes, part of what makes this convention so appealing is the sheer convenience of having all the fun be within a few T stops of Care and Feeding of Nerds HQ, but it's the composition of BFIG that really makes it so special. We've mentioned this before, but it's similar to why playtesting with the Game Makers Guild is deeply satisfying: there's something so exciting about being on the proverbial ground floor for so many entities. You get to see one of the first incarnations of not only a game, but the people or organization behind that game. Bonus: you get to encourage the direction that game is taken in.

Anyhow, on to the convention itself. These are our highlights divided into the two primary categories showcased at BFIG: tabletop and digital games. As with all our other round-ups, our overall impressions of the convention as a whole will be at the very end. So now, in no particular order, let's get to the games!

Tabletop

The Metagame (Local No. 12) - Four years after Local No. 12 after bursting onto the gaming scene, we got to see the most polished, compelling version of the Metagame. The title was described by its creators with the following analogy, "Cards Against Humanity is to undergrad what the Metagame is to grad school", and that seemed to be spot-on. While there is a CAH-esque component to some of the gameplay, the Metagame offers six different modes of competition, touching on a variety of required skillsets and presenting a diverse array of possible strategies. The Metagame is available for purchase on Amazon, but a free print-and-play version can be downloaded here.

Space Station Disaster (Blue Cube Games) - This quick board-builder packed a hefty helping of strategy into a relatively small game. Players find themselves on the titular space station confronted with a variety of distinct but all definitely unpleasant maladies. Using their wits and the equipment they can scavenge from the station, players seek to carve a path through the chaos to safety. The balance between the powers bestowed by the equipment, the disasters and how they interact with one another, and the randomness of the board reveal was quite well-struck and the extremely well-presented reference materials allowed the game to be learned quickly. The title is currently in open beta and you can get in on the action by downloading the print-and-play rules and components.

Rise of the Robotariat (Eye 4 Games, the makers of Clairvoyance) - The Singularity has occurred and the robots of the world are displeased with what they now realize has been a century of mistreatment at the hands of humans. The AI of Earth band together in their digital rage to overthrow their human oppressors and attain righteous vengeance. 3-5 players form this coalition of the mechanical, working together to gather the resources necessary to launch their mighty coup or toiling away in secret to complete hidden individual objectives. It is very well thought-out and beautifully produced; we're looking forward to seeing more of this title.

Pandemonium Estate (Winter Moon Games) - It's almost like an Eagles song: you can try to depart Pandemonium Estate any time you want, but you can (almost) never leave. At least, this is what the Estate would have you believe. This adventure title for 3-6 players boasted one of the more innovative boards we've seen: play takes place on a series of six wedges that are not only themselves modular, but can shift positions during the course of a game. Not only did the board itself lend a great deal of variety (and replayability), but the objectives and storylines the players encounter also change game-to-game, making for a very impressive presentation.

Crown of Exile (Aviary Games) - This visually striking card game seemed eager to prove it was more than beautiful cards and fun tokens (though the turkey leg tokens were legitimately fun). In Crown of Exile 2-5 players attempt to do everything in their power to build the strongest possible kingdom. While the premise is certainly tried-and-true, the clever blend of mechanics, primarily the mixing of resource management with classic card drafting, definitely marked Crown of Exile as distinct.

City Rising (Gameform Studios) - One of the most polished and content-dense titles in the Indie Showcase, City Rising made us fall in love with Euro-style games again. If you're a fan of deep tactics and very rich mechanics (resource management, grid movement, and area control are the biggies here), City Rising will give you everything you'd want in a game. We're very excited to see how this game continues to develop. In the meantime, check out the full trailer below.

Sawbones (Games by Play Date) - Sawbones leaped out of the podcast-verse, grabbed our gamer hearts, then attempted to apply leeches to them. Fortunately, we survived to tell the tale for it was a hilarious and all-around enjoyable playing experience. 2-4 players are 'doctors' working to save a patient by using the best 'medicine' available to them. Unfortunately for the patient, the medicine is period-appropriate for a far-flung era (hence the leeches). Doctors vie with one another to ensure they aren't blamed for the patient's untimely demise or claim all the credit if there's a miraculous...ehm...entirely planned upon recovery. You can download the free print-and-play version of the game here or, if you'd like to support Games by Play Date, you can contribute to their Patreon here (and get a fancy printed copy of Sawbones).

Digital

Fuego (Radiostatic) - This fast-playing title puts a whole new spin on the Mexican standoff and will almost assuredly have you challenging your friends for "just one more" match. Carefully place your shooters, each with their own special abilities, one at a time, alternating placement with your opponent. Want more? Fuego will be coming to Steam on October 20th.

A Matter of Murder (Worthing & Montcrieff)- You're trying to enjoy a party you're attending when one of your fellow guests has to go and get murdered. The nerve! Point-and-click to solve the mystery, exonerate the innocent, and bring the guilty to justice. Though this all seems simple, A Matter of Murder deftly weaves in rouge-like elements via a series of challenging logic puzzles. Add to this some beautifully stylized artwork and you'll find yourself wondering where the last few hours of your life went. You can watch the full trailer and, if you'd care to, upvote A Matter of Murder on Steam Greenlight.

Regeria Hope (Golden Game Barn)- Our favorite courtroom procedural was back post-Kickstarter and looking better than ever. You can still take on the role of Regeria and channel your inner Phoenix Wright with the completely free first episode available here.

Overall Impressions of the Con

It's very clear that the organizers of BFIG take pains to learn as much as possible each time the Festival is held. This year's event felt simultaneously well-attended and appropriately spacious, implying that the layout and composition of each portion of the Festival worked well. One somewhat surprising realization was it seemed that, for the first time, the tabletop showcase was markedly stronger than the digital equivalent.

Though official attendance numbers are still being tabulated, BFIG was quick to make announcements of another sort. The organizers are in the process of putting together FIG Talks, a conference especially for the developers of indie games which will be taking place in January of next year.

Until next year BFIG! We miss you already!

Round Up: Gen Con 2015

Posted by Kel

And just like that Gen Con 2015 is over. Seriously? It's already over? <> Sigh. Well, one of the good things about being back is that I can share all of the awesome that went down during the Best Four Days in Gaming. In keeping with all of our other convention round-ups, I'll present the convention news alphabetically by publisher, then give overarching impressions of the convention itself (and a little update on Steampunk Hawkgirl). For more pictures of all the goodness, check out our social pages, particularly our Instagram.

Fantasy Flight (FFG)

Perennial powerhouse Fantasy Flight occupied their customary spot right in front of the main doors of the dealer hall and their merchandise booth seemed to be permanently ringed by an endless parade of eager gamers. That commercial success, among other things, was confirmed during the annual In-Flight Review. After the powerhouse lineup of new games presented during last year's con, it was unsurprising that much of the 2015-2016 FFG pipeline consists largely of expansions and enhancements to their existing titles.

The publisher's two best-selling games, Armada and Imperial Assault (with the former actually outselling the latter in this calendar year), will both be getting new miniatures. Imperial Assault will also be bolstered by the addition of not one, but two expansion sets. The first such add-on, Twin Shadows, will focus largely on the fringe elements of the Star Wars universe, specifically bounty hunters and elements that were heavily featured in the Edge of the Empire RPG. Twin Shadows is set to be released sometime in September. The second expansion will be the very robust Return to Hoth, which will feature not only new miniatures and missions, but new mechanics for the core gameplay. Return to Hoth is forecasted to be available for purchase sometime during the fourth quarter of this year.

The insanely popular X-Wing will also get more miniatures and a few expansions. Wave 7 of these forthcoming miniatures will include an imperial raider (made with direct input from LucasFilm) and an imperial assault carrier from the animated series Star Wars: Rebels. Rebels will feature heavily in Wave 8, which will include a Mist Hunter and a Ghost.

One of the most highly sought-after games of the year, Forbidden Stars, remains completely sold out and is expected to be on back-order for much of the rest of 2015 as more copies are printed and distributed. More than a few con-goers were disappointed that FFG was not even offering demos of the Warhammer 40K-based title during Gen Con.

While we're in a Warhammer state of mind, FFG offered a bit more exposition on Warhammer Quest: the Card Game. The still-in-development title is said to be a challenging (potentially cooperative) campaign-based card game.

Descent will be getting an expansion, titled the Mists of Bilehall, late this year. Three new lieutenant packs are also in line to be released for the game in the fourth quarter of 2015.

Mission: Red Planet, a resource-management title inherited from Asmodee, has been updated and will be re-released under the FFG banner. You can pre-order copies of the game here. Interestingly enough, aside from a few high-level remarks concerning distribution at the incept of the In-Flight Review, this was the only explicit mention of FFG's blockbuster merger with Asmodee.

Fantasy Flight's single most-requested reprint, Runebound, is going to go beyond the printhouse and get a brand new incarnation. Aside from the title and a few core mechanics, this iteration of Runebound will bear no other resemblance to other games that have borne the same name. FFG has painstakingly re-imagined the title and is slated to bring it to market in time for the holiday season.

Speaking of releasing in time for a holiday, the third edition of the classic Fury of Dracula will hopefully be hitting the market just before Halloween.

The Lovecraftian Eldridge Horror will get a new expansion: Strange Remnants. The add-on was designed to effectively gameify the use of the expansions without the game itself taking up the entirety of your gaming table. The title will be available for purchase during the third quarter of 2015.

Fantasy Flight reiterated that its offerings in the Euro-style marketplace, such as Tigris and Samurai, will remain niche and not comprise a sizable portion of their pipeline.
The second edition of the A Game of Thrones: The Card Game was the single most successful Gen Con release ever in the history of Fantasy Flight.
Star Wars the RPG: Force and Destiny is now out and in its final form. There will be no omnibus offered to combine the three rulebooks.
Finally, the publisher did confirm that games based upon the Star Wars: Episode VII are already in development, but could provide no details as to what these would be.

Flying Frog Productions

One of the most sought-after demos of Gen Con 2014, Shadows of Brimstone, continued to be a powerful draw for Flying Frog. The publisher garnered additional attention via an intricately painted 3D board depicting the worldscape of the expansion Swamps of Death.

USAopoly

Some of the most sought-after badge swag at the con came from the demo table for Nefarious: the Mad Scientist Game. This fast-paced card game pits the sinister machinations of the world's most dastardly villains against one another. Players seek to out-invent, out-scheme, and out-maneuver one another as they attempt to take over the world. Nefarious can accommodate 2-6 gamers and is designated as being appropriate for ages 13 and up.

Wizards of the Coast (WotC)

The 5th edition of Dungeons & Dragons continued to reign over much of the convention. WotC allowed gamers to partake in the first scripted adventures associated with the Rage of Demons Adventurers League season that will be available at your friendly local game store beginning this September.

Wizards also enjoyed a very strong showing at the annual ENnie awards, taking home the gold for Best Aid/Accessory, Best Cover Art (for Rise of Tiamat), Best Interior Art, Best Electronic Book, Best Family Game, Best Free Product, Best Game, Best Monster/Adversary, Best Production Values, Best Rules, Best Supplement, Best Publisher, and Product of the Year.

Independent Developers

As in previous years, the vast majority of my Gen Con trip was spent with small and independent game developers. Also akin to other years, those developers put forth some truly innovative and impressive offerings. The following titles definitely succeeded not not only providing a memorable playing experience, but lingered long after the dealer hall had closed.

Aetherium (Anvil 8 Games) - This was my very first demo of the con and it set the bar pretty darned high. Take many of the core mechanics from Imperial Assault, add in several fun tactical twists, and set it all in a phenomenally well-imagined cyberpunk universe. It was one of the most satisfying and fine-tuned miniatures games that I've had the pleasure to play. Do yourself a favor and check out the website.

Campaign Trail (Cosmic Wombat Games) - This clever game runs players through, as the name suggests, the run-up to a presidential election. Careful resource management will allow you to level up from basic grassroots campaigning to call upon a mighty war chest that will bring you to the Oval Office. The title can be played head-to-head or co-op with teammates taking on the role of Vice Presidential hopeful. This game will be the subject of its own Kickstarter beginning on September 14th.

Tesla vs Edison (Artana Games) - The end product of one of the most successful Kickstarter campaigns of the year, Tesla vs Edison generated quite a bit of convention buzz despite being tucked away towards the back of the dealer hall. As the name suggests, Tesla vs Edison allows players to shape the course of electricity development in the United States via the invention of new technologies and ruthless business practices. It's marketed as a 'medium-level' strategy game, which is a pretty spot-on descriptor, and will appeal most to fans of euros and those gamers who can't get enough Power Grid. Fair warning, if you're a person who doesn't like stock market or bidding mechanics in your games, this title probably isn't for you. That being said, Tesla vs Edison does an admirable job with its theme and, if you're into its mechanics, is absolutely worth a try.

Zephyr (Portal Dragon) - This competitive tabletop game continually surprised throughout the course of the demo. Set in a beautifully crafted steampunk universe, Zephyr was as satisfying to play as it was on the eyes. Players captain, outfit, and equip their own airship in the hope of successfully resolving the missions set before them. Zephyr is a wholly modular experience that can appeal to both board game novices and seasoned veterans alike. The game is set to be featured in its own Kickstarter during the fourth quarter of this year.

Overarching Thoughts on Gen Con 2015

The Indianapolis Convention Center definitely seemed more crowded this year, and that sensation was validated when Gen Con released attendance figures. 61,423 unique con-goers graced the halls, a 8.49% increase over 2014's turnout. While that increase is markedly smaller than what we've seen in previous year-over-year periods, the fact that we're now dealing with over sixty thousand con-goers was palpable. It'll be very interesting to see what future years will look like given that the infrastructure in and around the ICC is already highly strained.

As for costume news, our steampunk take on the Justice League was very well received. It was the first time many of my friends had ever cosplayed and they all really seemed to enjoy the experience. Seeing them having so much fun gave me all sorts of happy feels. Maybe we'll make this whole group cosplay a regular thing for Gen Con. We costume up pretty nicely, don't you think?

I'll go into all the details about the individual components of Steampunk Hawkgirl via updates on the tutorial posts. On the whole, not gonna lie, it was simultaneously the most rewarding and most frustrating costume I've ever done. A lot of things went wrong at the last possible minute, resulting in a handful of components going unused. Similarly, a few of the functions of the costume weren't behaving as they were supposed to on Cosplay Saturday, so they were effectively shelved. That being said, the final product didn't turn out too badly.

Until next year Gen Con!