Mrtwills

I was introduced to this game by my friend Chris while we were waiting for a friend to arrive to game night at the Dice Dojo in Chicago one night. He said it was quick and fun and is a great way to spend a half hour (although it can be longer if the game is close).

This game is simple straight out of the box, read the rules in five minutes and start playing kind of game. Each player takes the role of either the CIA or KGB, hence the name of the game. Both sides are identical and the only difference is the art on the agent cards.

Each round of the game will pit the two sides against each other to gain control of a region of the world with varying point values. Some being ten points and ranging up, I know that Egypt is a high point value for example. After seeing what the goal is for the round each player secretly picks an agent from their pool of active ones to send on the mission. There is Double Agent, Master Spy, Assassin and more each with their own ability based on whether you win the region or lose the region. For example if you win the region with the Assassin then you effectively kill the other persons agent. Another example that can be fun is is you lose the region but have played Master Spy then you still win the region, always a fun bit of trickery to play on someone when they think they’ve won.

In each game round once you’ve chosen an agent, and kept it secret, play revolves around enlisting various groups (Military, Media etc) till you have reached the number listed on the contested country. There is always a limit to the number of group cards you can play. The four type of group cards have abilities, all the same between the four groups, although each card has its own value that when grouped together add up towards the contested regions total for the win. If you exceed the total then the region is in Chaos and you might kill your agent.

Without going into more detail about the game play, I feel as though this is a simple game once you learn it and has a lot of strategy. The game play is more about knowing your opponent and trying to put up a good poker face and be unpredictable in the agent you choose. This is always a great quick game to play with a friend prior to playing something bigger. I highly recommend.

There is a special place in my heart for this game. When I was a kid I played it once and loved it. Always stuck in my memory as being an interesting board, because I love maps. Then about 6 years ago I bought the new edition and played it again and it still holds up. I attribute this game to being one of the reasons I am so intrigued, fascinated and the love I hold for games and gaming in general.

Now that I’ve raved about the game on a personal level I’ll mention the mechanics. The game is simple and fun for a large group who doesn’t want to get overly invested or bogged down with cards, or actions. There is one action in the game to move from space to space. The idea of the game is that Mr. X, a notorious London criminal is on the loose and Scotland Yard must find him. One player takes the role of Mr. X and his given a hat so that the person who plays Mr. X may look at the board without people reading eye movements (I like to wear my Starbucks work hat and pretend I’m the evil Howard Shultz, Starbucks CEO by day and Diamond thief by night).

Movement is simple. Each location has varied transportation types depending on the color of the line or around the numbered spot. Each Detective searching for Mr. X is given a finite number of Taxi, Bus and Underground tickets to spend on movement so the player must converse with other players about movement and plan wisely because if your just moving without any thought you will run out of tokens and be stuck on a location. However Mr. X is able to move freely for the most part trying to evade the detectives. His location will only be revealed at specific intervals throughout the game play which will allow the detectives time to mobilize and plan an action of attack to corner and try and capture Mr. X.

However Mr. X is tricky to catch. Detectives must work together and plan as a team or else it will be easier for Mr. X to escape. His movement is unlimited seeing he is given all of the players used tokens, then as bonus has secret movements and double movement tokens and access to waterways that detectives aren’t able to access.

The game is quick and fun. I’ve found that my gaming friends love this game and that my non-gaming friends find it to be slow which I don’t fully understand myself but should be noted. The board and design are one my favorites. Being a fan of maps myself I am biased but the switch from the older game which was a day map to the new night map was an extremely pretty transition that created an awesome board which can easily attract new players to if pulled out at game night.

My last note I will mention that I hate Fury of Dracula and the reason being is because Scotland Yard is so great. I feel that what is missing from Fury of Dracula is that Dracula can go so many turns without showing up and I appreciate that Mr. X has specified periods in which he must show himself. I do love the fighting and cards in Dracula but wish the movement and appearance of Dracula were more similar to that of Mr. X.

This game is great for people who love Euro games or fantasy themes, which I love both. Also the simplicity in the rules is amazing. My wife and mother-in-law were both hesitant to play this because it looks complicated at first. But once I forced them to sit down they got it right away. And my mother-in-law, who rarely wins, won and I believe this game is her new favorite.

Though the game is simple there are still some strategy involved in playing the game that makes it fun for repeat plays. Unlike stone age which can become old after repeat plays with singular strategies Lords of Waterdeep can be varied from play to play more than most Euro games I have played. Though the goals might be the same from game to games the ways in which you read the goals will vary depending on cards, lords, buildings and what the other players are doing.

This game is great and a recommend it for any family game closet!

I own this game and have played three times now. Twice as the US and once as all the other invading forces. This game seems simple but is super difficult in my opinion to be the US. Both times I got my *** handed to me and as the invading forces I slaughtered the US. The reason why I like this game is the same reason why gamblers continue to us slot machines the “near miss effect.” As the US player there is always some glimmer of hope that seems as though you could win and I still think it’s possible and why I’ll keep trying.

The mechanics are interesting with helicopters scouting abilities to cut off enemy retreat. Then the ability to make bombing runs. The custom dice are fun and rules are hard to get through because Fantasy Flight is repetitive to the point of confusion sometimes. Overall it’s a fun hack and slash throw dice game if that’s your thing. My group of gamers however made a good point about the game. How can air units defend?

This game is really fun to play with a group of people where there can be smack talk and a lot of player interaction. However I bought the app and was disappointed by the game. It’s not really like you play or decide that much. It’s all very random and most the game plays for itself in the iOS version. Playdek usually has great apps having enjoyed both Ascension and Nightfall but Food Fight is just not a great translation. Save your money or even better yet try the real card game.

This is a fun game that is a great break for any power gamer that has been rolling dice and trying to get a five or six unsuccessfully lately. Put the dice away and stop trying to kill. Instead try to create the best meal possible.

In the game you are dealt ten cards. Some are food soldiers such as General Doughnut and Private Pancake for example. Other cards are called Instants and usually state when they can be played out of your hand. Meals are presented at the beginning of each round and by winning a meal you will win points. You choose what soldier cards you want to use as your army depending on what meal you want to fight for (breakfast, lunch or dinner). Then by using a token to signify which meal your playing each player flips over the meal they’ve chosen to fight at and war begins.

Each meal you play the cards and resolve the text on the card. As the meal goes on whoever has won the most breath mints wins by the end of game round. It’s simple but loads of fun.

The game really shins when you have four or more people and is a great end of the night I want to keep playing games but I don’t have time game, if you know what I mean. It does sometimes take longer than you think to finish a game but its still a blast. Don’t expect to much strategy but just enjoy the ride and the art on the cards is really funny.

This is the game that makes me say I’m a power gamer. Twilight Imperium is an amazing one of a kind game that has everything. When people ask me what its like I always say its Risk on steroids but it’s really more than that. The unique game has bits and pieces from many other games all melded into one amazing game.

The politics, one of my favorite aspects of the game, are amazing and get even better when you add the expansions. The ability to barter with people and make non binding promises to vote on rules that can change the course of the game is a great aspect.

Then there is the races, I haven’t played enough to be all of them, but Twilight was the first game I played with race specific abilities and I find that to be fun. The group I play with usually chooses races randomly, with the option to discard the race if you have already been them before.

I still have yet to play a five player version of the game, and three players which I’ve done once was not great, ended up being two people fighting and the other winning. I’m waiting for the legendary five or six player game myself that adds a new quality to the game, in the only choosing one role each turn instead of two.

The reason why I say this game is not for the light of heart is the amount of time it takes. You need to be able to get some dedicated gamers, a nice space to play and to start early. My group usually always starts before 1pm. It usually takes a good hour of handing out races, setting up the board and of course just talking smack and believe me there is a lot of smack talk in this game.

My final thoughts on Twilight Imperium is that if you love games and don’t mind and even enjoy longs ones you need to play this game. It’s amazing and my all time favorite because there is always intense strategy and even if you think your losing you can usually do something to come back and be a threat to someone. Play this game you won’t regret it, I hope.

I love Carcassonne. It’s easy to learn and strategy is infinite and varied depending on your opponent. I play a lot with my wife with our iphone app while watching TV so we don’t really break out the real tiles to much anymore. Yet if you have family or friends that aren’t that into the bigger more complicated games you are it’s always easy to teach Carcassonne to basically anyone. It’s a gateway game in my opinion that can be given as a great gift to almost anyone. I highly recommend this game to all people, hopefully someday I will really visit the city too.

I love Dominion and it replay ability factor. I buy one expansion a year usually at Gen Con and then with the increased options with what can be played. I currently own the base game and prosperity.

The game is great and my wife and I always go back to it and play it from time to time but it can become boring in my opinion with the lack of strategy that is required to play the game.

Overall though it’s a must have in any game closet.