Finched

I have both the actual physical game (with expansions) and the iPad version of the game. Both are fun to pull out when wanting to kill a few minutes while waiting for other things to get going. It’s a lot like “Pass the Pigs” where you roll some dice and have to choose- keep rolling to potentially score more points (in this game- you score by eating brains) but risk getting shot-gunned and loose all the points this round. it’s a little mix of luck and risk.
This isn’t the game to build your game night around but its fun, its silly (if not a tad morbid- I mean you are playing as a zombie wanting to eat brains) and its quick to learn and quick to play.

First time I played this game was a few months ago at a gaming night. And that experience wasn’t great. We (my husband and I) wound up joining two guys who had played this game countless times and knew too well what they were doing and directed our efforts. It made the game no fun at all.

We wound up buying the game anyway a couple of months ago and now also have two of the expansions- and I have come to really enjoy the game- once I was given the opportunity to read through everything and explore the game with someone as being told “just play this.”

The game will (or at least for us) will take up to two hours. The villain will will win half the time (which means we lose half the time).

We bought the sidekick app for my iPad which has been tremendously helpful in keeping up with damage. (I recommend this).

Why I like this game: the character’s abilities are creative- and depending on which heroes you are playing with and even in which order they are played in- changes the game tremendously. Which means- lots of replayability. The fact that you win or loose rather evenly means that it’s not a forgone conclusion at the get go which helps a casual gamer like me be invested in the process of playing the game.

The game will take a couple of play throughs to get the hang of it. But it really is fun. The variety of heroes and villains and environments (not to mention the comic book quality and ever expanding verse) all make this a game worth while.

My husband and I have played this game twice through now (and admittedly, we realized that we played parts of it wrong the first time & probably the second), but nevertheless, thought I’d post a review:
The game is big. In that there is a lot in that box- lots of different decks, lots of different pieces- so lots of space is needed to play the game. Like more than a card table. Just warning you.

The artwork and choices they (the game designers) made for every single card and detail are spot on (if not actual photos) from the series/movie- so that part makes the game way cool if you a fan of the show/movie (which is probably why you are playing the game).

The rule book is very confusing. That first game we played (and have never seen it played prior) was stressful in that it caused us to argue over our understanding of the rules- the second game got better since we had worked out a number of the kinks the first go through). Although, having played it twice (with two different game objective cards) we still have a few questions (which I posted in the discussion). This is the most frustrating part of the game.

The missions, the “aimin’ to misbehave objectives, the movement when you burn fuel- and the ability to play with characters you know and love- make this game fun and worthwhile. I am glad that there is an expansion already in the works- it will be neat to see what cards show up next.

All in all- this game is best played the first time through with someone who has played it before if possible- if not, expect to be frustrated (with the rules not the actual game play). It’s a creative tribute to a great show/movie and as a fan- you will enjoy it.

one of the things I like about digital versions of these games is the lack of mess/ upkeep of the individual pieces- so I tend to buy the digital versions when available- I also like that they are much more cost efficient than their actual game costs- which is why I bought this game. I had seen it on this site and at the store and wondered if i would like to play it- committing to the $5.00 was easier than the $20ish at the store.

Having said all this- I am glad that I bought this version and not the actual game. I am still relatively new to all these types of games and just started playing cooperative games this fall and enjoy what I know of them- so far, I think Pandemic is my favorite. This game reminds me a little of Pandemic but for some reason- not nearly as fun. The idea is similar- gather enough of a particular card to turn in and (in this case) rescue the object. Once you rescue the four objects, you then have to get all players to a particular place on the board (and this is the particular twist I like) and then you can leave the island and win the game.
Like other co-ops, you are assigned a particular job/skill that can help move everyone along in the game- and depending on the skill- the ease of actually winning can vary.

In this game- the board (individual tile cards) is sinking- every turn more of it sinks- if the card is sunk completely- you loose that piece of the island. Loose the piece that you need to leave the island- the game ends with you loosing. Loose the treasure places before you rescue the treasure- you loose. Be on a piece that sinks with no connecting “dry” land you loose.
However- what i find frustrating is that the game has created little use for me to care about any of the island that isn’t a treasured place, the landing or in the path in between. There is no “reason” to worry about the other parts of the island (much like Pandemic when you win with the viruses still running on the board).

The game is easy enough to learn and is mildly entertaining- but it lacks the story/motivation/something for me to care about the whole board- which leaves me wanting something more.

In other words- worth the $5.00 for the digital board (especially since I can play it by myself) but I don’t see me buying the hard copy of this game. So- just ok.

So I bought the iPad version of Puerto Rico before going on vacation- wanting a portable game to play and this is one my boyfriend had wanted to try out. The iPad version comes with a tutorial that you can play essentially a shortened version of the game as it tries to teach you the game. I will admit, I didn’t get all the strategy it takes to win at first- when playing computer players, they move so quickly that its hard to try and learn the “why” behind the move part of the game.
As luck would have it, the ship we were on had a physical copy of the game which we checked out and attempted to play a two person version of the game. And although we discovered later that we played several things wrong- playing the actual game at the slower pace helped us both understand the game and made the next few attempts on the iPad much more enjoyable- the combination of having the rule book and trying to figure it out on our own (when we were both novices) and the computer version setting up the game right/proper amounts/turns/coins made it now a joy to play.
The obvious pros to the computer version is that the physical game has a lot of little playing pieces- and the computer version you don’t have to keep up with all those little pieces. thats helpful- especially when traveling or if you have cats like we do that like to jump on tables. It also sets up everything and controls play/order of turns/which role you took which is helpful.
I’d say, the iPad version is pretty solid- the cons would be for me it helps to talk out whats going on in other peoples turns as well to learn how to play- cant do that here.
Puerto Rico is a fun game once you get the hang of it. I’m still learning but enjoying the challenge of it.

this is a hard game to win- it takes a while to play one game, to seal a gate, and to feel like the possibility of even winning is within reach. But it is nice to play on the same side as the players versus playing against each other…
If there were a dificulty in winning category/rating I would give it a 9 on a 10 point scale.
The graphics are cool- the monsters can be tough to beat- the challenges can be devastaing. IS this 500 characters yet???