Brian

Overview This game is on its own a brilliant idea! I love 8 bit games and really do miss the good times we’ve had together. If I were to rate based on “Brilliant” alone this would get an easy 11 out of 10. However, because there is more to games than that, I’m afraid that in practice the rating has to drop…a bit.

Materials As straight forward as they come. One will find cards when opening the box, and a plastic “Organizer”. Truly nothing to write home about in here. Five years ago I wouldn’t have thought about reducing a game’s rating because of the packaging, but with so many games out there really bringing it in the packaging department, this one gets an unimpressed “meh”

Game play Again, brilliant to begin with, until you start playing. To those who are unfamiliar; the basic premise is that each player has a big bad boss and builds a dungeon in front of it. Each turn (as the dungeon is being built) heroes come from the local town and attack. If your dungeon kills the hero your boss collects its soul, otherwise it wounds your boss. First player to 10 souls wins, first player to 5 wounds looses. You build your dungeon one room per turn and can play spell cards to mess with the hero in your dungeon or mess with other players.

Straight forward for the most part. However, the heroes are usually either way overpowered (enter the tools of the hero kind expansion…yikes) or just plain easy. Also (as may have been mentioned before) the only thing that really does damage is the dungeon. Back in my day, if you survived the dungeon at all the boss at the very least was able to jab! Bosses here just sit back and take it. Would’ve liked to see a change there. Finally, the spell cards aren’t a given. You can use room abilities to draw from the spell card pile if you have those rooms, but otherwise it’s “Hands off” the spell deck. I would’ve liked to see a rule that allows for a spell card to be drawn each turn (like the room card). This would have negated my gripe about the boss not being able to fight back.

Pros:
Easy to learn and play
Quick filler type game
AWESOME idea for a game!

Cons:
Game mechanics seem a bit forced
Not enough access to spell cards

In brief: The CDC has recorded a marked increase over the last 8 years or so of recreational use of this game. Symptoms include: Rapid onset of addiction, increased socialization between users, and in some extreme cases, trouble breathing during the moment a “helpful” card is flipped in anticipation of an epidemic card.

The Game: This game is as addicting and fast acting as they come! The rules are easy to learn and it is one of the first games I’ve played that are not plagued by constant references to the manual. The set up is easily understood and can be repeated with minimal effort which is good because in this game, you will most probably die (lose).

Replay Value: Very high! Not only because of the quick set up time but also because the moment after you loose (which follows a universal stunned silence) you actually have to force yourself from setting up again. This game is so much fun to lose, as many have said before me.

Overall: This game has managed to pull it all together. The components are simple, not complicated. The learning curve is almost non-existent. The difficulty level is incredibly high, but for reasons I still don’t understand, loosing this game is the most fun I’ve had in some time! I challenge you to only play one game, especially your first few times pulling it from the box. This will be a game requested again and again at game night.

I love this game! As a geek for the better part of 20 years, I feel very qualified to offer an opinion as to the nature of this game. They actually found a way for geeks (and that term is meant as a compliment) to once and for all (until the next game) decide who will win between ninjas and space aliens, dinosaurs and pirates! ***MIND BLOWN***
You would think this would keep us from arguing about these things, but it really just fuels the flames.

Overall: Literally hours of fun, this game has a high replay factor. One could easily go quite some time without playing the same game again. Then to make it better, there are a bunch of expansions available! I love this aspect of the game. I can sit down and play a quick game, or I can spend hours planning the best combo of factions with which I shall destroy all who oppose me and RULE THE WORLD!!!! MWA-HA-HA-HA!!!!

…ehem

Materials: Like many new games today, the materials are high quality, meant to be transported from game night to game night. I have reviewed The Big Geeky Box under its own heading but that review applies here as well. Excellent construction down to the card separators. These people knew what they were doing when they built this game. Well done!

Game play: Easy to learn, easy to play. There is a lot of room for strategy here, but you can also “Draft” and play random factions against one another. This game is highly versatile and will entertain even the most game wary among your friends. If you are looking for a lighthearted intro to game night this should be a strong contender.

Conclusion:This is the game you are looking for. Find that Friendly Local Game Store and ask…no, plead for…NO! DEMAND they stock this one. It is worth the effort, I assure you. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a global domination to plan…

Now then…pirates or laser dinosaurs….decisions decisions….

Since this be a pirate game, I’ll be obliged to offer a pirate review…aargh! This be a game that gets two thumbs (er…at least a thumb and a hook) up from this salty captain. Since bringin’ it to me cabin and requesting parlay with me crew, it has been played at least once a day.

Overview With a similar set up, this game offers far less complexity than the original Settlers of Catan. Furthermore with streamlined trading and building rules it moves much faster for the younger crowd. This is exactly what I expected from a “Junior” game. What I didn’t expect was that this game is how much the adults who play enjoy it too! For once there is a kids game I don’t mind playing a few times in a row!

Materials This is a game build to last! The cardboard from the tokens to the box are of high quality that will definitely withstand heavier than normal wear and tear. The plastic feels a bit thin, but the molding ensures that they won’t smash if stepped on. This is a well-built game.

Conclusion Family gamers rejoice, this is truly a family game. For my “crew” there are older kids who are just able to play the game and younger kids who are far too young to try. The great thing is that once the older kids outgrow it, they will still play with the young ones. To take this a step further, Casual/Avid Gamers rejoice as well. This is a very easy game to teach and would be a great intro to Settlers for the game-wary!

Be ye captain or crew, I highly recommend ye find yerself a copy of this Tot-targeted Treasure. Get a map and plot a course to yer Friendly Local Game Store (where all the greatest of treasure lies)!

Alright, I’m an order type of guy, so let’s start from the top.

Replay Value I’ll give it a solid two because it has some replay value. The game plays the same each time but a person can be different characters. Given a little imagination one could come up with some interesting stories.

Components Three seems fair. I love the fact that it comes in a treasure box that you use during the game. Dice are solid construction, cardboard is what I’d call standard, certainly nothing to write home about. I’m a little concerned about how long the treasure box may last under use, though.
What I would really love to see is a game that came packaged in a way that stores the components well. This one works but isn’t taking home any awards from me. Sentinels of the Multiverse is about the closest I’ve seen. Smash Up went above and beyond, but at a price. I digress, moving on.

Easy to Learn This is where the game REALLY shines. If you are looking for something fun and easy to learn this is it! Even for a casual gamer, I wouldn’t advise this be the only game you try. However for that reluctant significant other who doesn’t know if they want to get into this whole “gaming” hobby of yours, or for that group sitting around stuck in the whole “I dunno, what do you wanna do?” loop, this game will do nicely. Who knows? This game may just be the introduction to gaming your friends need.

I hope this idea starts migrating to other card games. As if it wasn’t enough to geek out on the games themselves. Now we can geek out on organizing and storing those games!

This box keeps your cards safe and by itself provides “Replay Value” in the hours you can spend organizing things “just right”. The construction is quality and will last. As for the easy to learn, well, that is all part of this game which I intend to review in another field.

If you, dear reader, consider this review too short to be useful, I remind you that I’m reviewing a box.