Board Games

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Warhammer

Galaxy Trucker

I can't stand "Galaxy Trucker." I think it's a good game and see the appeal, but I'm just horrible at it. I am lucky if the ship I create is even functional, much less actually make it to the end. I've never been all that good at puzzles and this game plays on my weakness.

That said, I am pretty kick ass at any number of those European resource-based games like Agricola and the like.

I am also an excellent at "Dungeon Lords". Dungeon Lords is one of my newest favorite games. I love how the two different aspects of the game - dungeon building/resource management and dungeon defense - are so very different, but yet are so elegrantly integrated. Good stuff.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Autumn

My 7 year old son has played a couple games of Pandemic (http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/30549/pandemic with us. I've been really happy about how quickly he understood the game and the strategy. Cooperative games like this are great with kids, or anyone new really, because you don't have to reduce the competitiveness of the game to include them, you can help them along.

Maybe I need your son to tutor me. I think I've played the game about 5 times and have never won.

[Warhammer]

Also, if you can squeeze 3 hours, look for Through the Ages, great Civ style game.

[Warhammer]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

I can't stand "Galaxy Trucker." I think it's a good game and see the appeal, but I'm just horrible at it. I am lucky if the ship I create is even functional, much less actually make it to the end. I've never been all that good at puzzles and this game plays on my weakness.

The key to Galaxy Trucker is looking at the cards and seeing what is coming up. Sometimes you can get by with engines and cargo, other times you need lasers, other times you need a balanced ship.

What I love are the expansion goodies, that makes piloting your bucket of bolts exciting!

[Mustang]

Found a copy of Ambush! in my basement yesterday that was complete and I didn't know I had which was nice because I've been meaning to replace my original one which is pretty much destroyed.

[Autumn]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

Maybe I need your son to tutor me. I think I've played the game about 5 times and have never won.

He and I won the first time, I put it at introductory level for him (only 4 epidemics). He played later with his mom and lost and doesn't seem to like it as much any more ;-)

[Autumn]

Do any of you guys play online? My friend and I play a lot of games, slowly, online. We've recently been playing Brass, Puerto Rico, we've tried Tikal and Tigris & Euphrates. It's a great way to try out games without spending.

[Thomkal]

Not sure if its mentioned in this thread or not, but there's a good German site for board games (or at least it was when I played regularly a couple years back) BrettSpielWelt. Had a good selection of games back then, just checked now, many still there. I would recommend Trans America, a railroad themed game.

Main Page * BrettspielWelt - Online Portal für Brettspiele

[Abe Sargent]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

I can't stand "Galaxy Trucker." I think it's a good game and see the appeal, but I'm just horrible at it. I am lucky if the ship I create is even functional, much less actually make it to the end. I've never been all that good at puzzles and this game plays on my weakness.

That said, I am pretty kick ass at any number of those European resource-based games like Agricola and the like.

I am also an excellent at "Dungeon Lords". Dungeon Lords is one of my newest favorite games. I love how the two different aspects of the game - dungeon building/resource management and dungeon defense - are so very different, but yet are so elegrantly integrated. Good stuff.

I own and enjoy Dlords too

[Warhammer]

If you are looking for a light wargame, playable in 30 mins., Manouvre is a great game.

[TRO]

Originally Posted by Warhammer

Also, if you can squeeze 3 hours, look for Through the Ages, great Civ style game.

It is also available to play for free online at http://www.boardgaming-online.com/

I've recently started playing some games there, very addicting. With the added benefit of being able to carry out the game over the course of several days.

[moriarty]

Originally Posted by Autumn

Do any of you guys play online? My friend and I play a lot of games, slowly, online. We've recently been playing Brass, Puerto Rico, we've tried Tikal and Tigris & Euphrates. It's a great way to try out games without spending.

I've been dabbling around w/ Vassal lately. Haven't taken the plunge in playing a game against an opponent on it yet though.

[sachmo71]

Anyone tried any of these Victory Point games? Good reviews for [url=http://victorypointgames.com/details.php?prodId=132]We Must Tell the Emperor.[url]

[Glengoyne]

Originally Posted by sachmo71

Anyone tried any of these Victory Point games? Good reviews for [url=http://victorypointgames.com/details.php?prodId=132]We Must Tell the Emperor.[url]

I'm looking to spend some of my Fantasy Football winnings on a Victory Point Game. I'm thinking Star Borders: Humanity, but may give one of their more Solitaire offerings a shot.

I've heard a lot of good things about VPG, but be aware these are relatively low production value games. That is more than sufficient for me, but some folks are finicky.

[moriarty]

Originally Posted by sachmo71

Anyone tried any of these Victory Point games? Good reviews for [url=http://victorypointgames.com/details.php?prodId=132]We Must Tell the Emperor.[url]

I prefer the GMT Games myself. Zulu on the Ramparts though is a pretty decent solitaire game by VP (haven't heard about We Must Tell the Emperor).

[Mustang]

For those that like Blood Bowl, fantasy flight games is coming out with Blood Bowl Manager (non-collectible card game) in Q2.

[Passacaglia]

Sounds cool!

[OldGiants]

Originally Posted by sachmo71

Anyone tried any of these Victory Point games? Good reviews for [url=http://victorypointgames.com/details.php?prodId=132]We Must Tell the Emperor.[url]

I've been playing Ancient Battles Deluxe for a few months lately. A bit disappointing, all told. the components are great, as good as any out there. However, the combat system is unusual and a bit fluky at times. By that I mean the method of computing the combat odds. Reading the on-line rules before buying did not alert me to the oddity of it all. That and you better have an overwhelming attack to stand any chance of winning. It also plays quickly and gives historic results, so good enough.

I do plan to pick up the State Of Siege games at some point. Likely I'll start with the Civil War game, since this is the 150th of that conflict.

[Warhammer]

Dominant Species an awesome game. It takes about 3 hours to play, but it is worth it.

[Honolulu_Blue]

The Blood Bowl card game looks interesting. I hope it's good. I have been playing a bit of Blood Bowl on-line with the PC game. I have been enjoying it.

I finally got around to playing "Mansions Of Madness" last weekend. The game looks to have a ton of potential. It has a lot of the flavor of "Arkham Horror", but different enough that it's a very different game.

It should have some good re-playability.

I really liked the mechanics they had for opening locks and solving puzzles. There are actual puzzle-type pieces in the game and you get to move/swap-out any number of pieces per turn depending on your character's intellect score. It makes having a balanced party - some fighers/some smart guys - very key.

We also played a game of BSG. The humans lost. Again.

[moriarty]

Originally Posted by Warhammer

Dominant Species an awesome game. It takes about 3 hours to play, but it is worth it.

They just announced a card game version of Dominant Species that supposedly plays much faster. Not sure how much it differs from the regular game.

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by Mustang

For those that like Blood Bowl, fantasy flight games is coming out with Blood Bowl Manager (non-collectible card game) in Q2.

I'll probably have to try that one out at the Fantasy Flight Event Center after it comes out. Blood Bowl always looked interesting but a bit too much to get into.

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

We also played a game of BSG. The humans lost. Again.

I just got Battlestar Gallactica but haven't had a chance to play it yet. I may need to ease my group into hidden role games with The Resistance and Shadow Hunters first.

I'm also finally getting 7 Wonders and Cargo Noir tomorrow. Cargo Noir looks a bit like Ra, which should go over well with my friends.

[Danny]

Dominant species looks interesting, but I don't think I'd get a chance to play it if I owned it. Hopefully I play it with one of the groups I game with occasionally. My collection sits at 126 games now with 32 unplayed. I'm completely out of room now without selling or trading any. I'm hoping with the summer off I can get my unplayed list down to 0 and then I'll probably prune the collection a little bit getting rid of games I don't care to play again all that much. Unfortunately (and fortunately) I tend to research and enjoy all the games I buy, so not sure how many that would be.

[Danny]

mckerney, from what I have seen Cargo Noir seems a bit bleh on gameplay, so I wouldn't expect it to hold up to Ra which is an excellent game. 7 wonders is great fun though.

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by Danny

mckerney, from what I have seen Cargo Noir seems a bit bleh on gameplay, so I wouldn't expect it to hold up to Ra which is an excellent game. 7 wonders is great fun though.

I'm not expecting something quite as good as Ra, but we often have a few players who are more casual at our board game nights so I'm hoping for something from Days of Wonder that still fun while not quite as complex. Unfortunately we have some nights where most of the group doesn't have the patience or desire to go through a game like Power Grid or Agricola.

I am really looking forward to 7 Wonders and excited that it's supposed to be a good game for new players to pick up.

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by Danny

Dominant species looks interesting, but I don't think I'd get a chance to play it if I owned it. Hopefully I play it with one of the groups I game with occasionally. My collection sits at 126 games now with 32 unplayed. I'm completely out of room now without selling or trading any. I'm hoping with the summer off I can get my unplayed list down to 0 and then I'll probably prune the collection a little bit getting rid of games I don't care to play again all that much. Unfortunately (and fortunately) I tend to research and enjoy all the games I buy, so not sure how many that would be.

Dominant Species is a game that looked interesting, but decided not to get it (for now anyway) because I don't think I need another 3 hour plus game right now. The table next to me was playing it the last time I was at Fantasy Flight and it looked fun, but I don't think I'd get much play out of it any time soon.

[Danny]

Originally Posted by mckerney

I'm not expecting something quite as good as Ra, but we often have a few players who are more casual at our board game nights so I'm hoping for something from Days of Wonder that still fun while not quite as complex. Unfortunately we have some nights where most of the group doesn't have the patience or desire to go through a game like Power Grid or Agricola.

I am really looking forward to 7 Wonders and excited that it's supposed to be a good game for new players to pick up.

Ah, it should be a solid game for those needs then and from the videos / pics I saw, it's a very attractive game.

And ditto on Dominant Species, especially since 3 hours is the quick play time and I've seen reports of it often being a 5+ hour game depending on the group.

7 wonders is a little tougher than say ticket to ride to pick up, but after the first age or so, everyone should at least sort of get it.

[BYU 14]

Checked out the videos of the LOTR game on the FF site, looks intriguing, though a tad complex. I may end up giving it a shot.

[Fidatelo]

I picked up Fantasy Flight Games' "Warhammer: Invasion" core set recently, and have really enjoyed the half-dozen games I've played so far. I think the Blood Bowl Game could be really fun as well, I'll be keeping my eye on that.

There seem to be so many cool board/card games right now, it must be great to be 16 these days.

[Warhammer]

Dominant Species will only be 5+ hours on possibly the first play, (our first game at a Con was 5 or so hours, the next couple of games were 3 hours) but after that any player with AP should be dragged out and shot.

7 Wonders is a good game, but don't play it repeatedly. It will get old. It is an ideal filler game, there is no reason it should take longer than 30-45 minutes, if that.

Dominion is a good gateway game for new players as is Ticket to Ride (even though I dislike it) and Settlers.

Our game group has seen a surge in interest of some older games, Tigris & Euphrates, Formula De, Puerto Rico, etc. Now if only I could get El Grande to the table again...

[Danny]

Originally Posted by Fidatelo

I picked up Fantasy Flight Games' "Warhammer: Invasion" core set recently, and have really enjoyed the half-dozen games I've played so far. I think the Blood Bowl Game could be really fun as well, I'll be keeping my eye on that.

There seem to be so many cool board/card games right now, it must be great to be 16 these days.

Except all the 16 year olds are only playing video games

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by Danny

Except all the 16 year olds are only playing video games

Well, at least there are some good Warhammer games out. Warhammer 40,000 anyway.

[Warhammer]

Originally Posted by Danny

Except all the 16 year olds are only playing video games

I can honestly say that my kids (6 and 9 yrs old) look forward to every game convention that I go to, in the hopes that I bring them along. At the last con, my 9 yr old played 3 or 4 games of Cosmic Encounter (another great game) a couple games of Risk and another game which escapes my mind.

[Mustang]

Originally Posted by Warhammer

I can honestly say that my kids (6 and 9 yrs old) look forward to every game convention that I go to, in the hopes that I bring them along. At the last con, my 9 yr old played 3 or 4 games of Cosmic Encounter (another great game) a couple games of Risk and another game which escapes my mind.

I have my work cut out for me. I need to mold my daughter into a board game player. If I can get her to even play Risk, I consider it a success and I'm only at Candyland, Hi-Ho Cherry-O and Memory right now.

[Glengoyne]

The family and I are gearing up for Kubla Con in San Francisco. I've usually attended by myself, but this year I'm taking my son(7) and daughter(11) along with my nephews twelve and sixteen. Oh and my lovely wife as well.

I'm making a list of must plays while there. Twilight Imperium 3 and Battlestar Galactica (I just got the main game and first expansion yesterday) for starters.

For those looking at Pandemic...Forbidden Island plays well with younger kids, and is quite similar. I'm looking closely at seven wonders.

All in all I've got more games than we have time to play, but I'm trying to get the kids interested in Board games as opposed to just electronics.

[mckerney]

I got my copy of 7 Wonders today and was happy to see it doesn't seem to have the problem some copies in the second printing have had of some Age III cards having a different colored back.

Originally Posted by Glengoyne

For those looking at Pandemic...Forbidden Island plays well with younger kids, and is quite similar. I'm looking closely at seven wonders.

I was reading through the rules for 7 Wonders tonight and one thing that I think may help with kids is that everyone plays there turn at once so there's no time spend waiting for your turn to come up, it could be good for kids who might get bored waiting for something to do.

Also, I have he Manneken Pis wonder which could expand the game to 8 players with a slight tweak to the rules, though it's not designed to be played that way. To play with 8 you can deal everyone 6 cards instead of 7 and skip the part of the round where you discard your last card. Another benefit of the Mannekin Pis is that if you use it and lose the winner is required to get you a beer.

[Warhammer]

Originally Posted by Mustang

I have my work cut out for me. I need to mold my daughter into a board game player. If I can get her to even play Risk, I consider it a success and I'm only at Candyland, Hi-Ho Cherry-O and Memory right now.

I guess I shouldn't mention that Alex (my 6 yr old) played Dominant Species with me last weekend! He has been asking me since to play again.

[Mustang]

Originally Posted by Warhammer

I guess I shouldn't mention that Alex (my 6 yr old) played Dominant Species with me last weekend! He has been asking me since to play again.

Hey, its a process. I have several years to go.

[PilotMan]

Alright, I just picked up Munchkin when I was at the game store my last time through Minneapolis. I played with my 2 oldest sons (16 and 9) and they both really liked it. We had a good time laughing, and the 9 year old was able to pick it up really quick. I think we played a little slow at first, but I am sure that will get better. I can see us playing this quite a bit, especially when the 7 year old gets a little older. So if anyone has any expansion's they would like to part with drop me a line.

[Honolulu_Blue]

My wife recently expressed an interest in board games. She hasn't played too many, so most of the ones I own, Arkham Horror, Dungeon Lord, Mansions of Madness, or either a bit too involved or geeky. She's super geek tolerant, but she has her limits.

I think we're looking for something beyond, say, Cranium or Apples to Apples types of games, but something still accessible. She really enjoyed "Ticket To Ride" when we played it at a friend's house.

Any recommendations?

[Autumn]

I'd recommend Puerto Rico, Pandemic, Brass, Tigris & Euphrates, Dominion, Agricola. My wife has enjoyed all of those, they have various, not so geeky themes. And Settlers of Catan would be a clear choice too.

[DanGarion]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

My wife recently expressed an interest in board games. She hasn't played too many, so most of the ones I own, Arkham Horror, Dungeon Lord, Mansions of Madness, or either a bit too involved or geeky. She's super geek tolerant, but she has her limits.

I think we're looking for something beyond, say, Cranium or Apples to Apples types of games, but something still accessible. She really enjoyed "Ticket To Ride" when we played it at a friend's house.

Any recommendations?

Fluxx is always enjoyable, but stick to the original. My wife LOVES Ticket to Ride, I haven't found a single person that we have introduced it to that hasn't enjoyed it.

[Glengoyne]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

My wife recently expressed an interest in board games. She hasn't played too many, so most of the ones I own, Arkham Horror, Dungeon Lord, Mansions of Madness, or either a bit too involved or geeky. She's super geek tolerant, but she has her limits.

I think we're looking for something beyond, say, Cranium or Apples to Apples types of games, but something still accessible. She really enjoyed "Ticket To Ride" when we played it at a friend's house.

Any recommendations?

This sounds similar to my wife's level of interest. She enjoys Dominion and Puerto Rico as well as Ticket to Ride.

I'll be picking out the games for the Kublacon trip tonight.

[Suburban Rhythm]

Cleaning out a closet a couple weekends ago, my wife found MindTrap, that we haven't played for I bet 8-10 years.

Maybe not quite technically a board game, but I always enjoyed that.

[path12]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

My wife recently expressed an interest in board games. She hasn't played too many, so most of the ones I own, Arkham Horror, Dungeon Lord, Mansions of Madness, or either a bit too involved or geeky. She's super geek tolerant, but she has her limits.

I think we're looking for something beyond, say, Cranium or Apples to Apples types of games, but something still accessible. She really enjoyed "Ticket To Ride" when we played it at a friend's house.

Any recommendations?

My wife sounds very similar, though she loves the party games like Apples to Apples.

Games I've had great success with for her and her friends: Ticket to Ride, Pandemic, Guillotine and Carcassone (though I don't like that one as much). And for a good gateway two player game she loves Lost Cities.

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by path12

My wife sounds very similar, though she loves the party games like Apples to Apples.

Games I've had great success with for her and her friends: Ticket to Ride, Pandemic, Guillotine and Carcassone (though I don't like that one as much). And for a good gateway two player game she loves Lost Cities.

If you like Lost Cities I recommend checking out Battle Line, another 2 player card game by Riener Knizia. Another card game I like is Haggis, a trick taking card game for 2 or 3 players that is similar to Tichu.

[Grammaticus]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

My wife recently expressed an interest in board games. She hasn't played too many, so most of the ones I own, Arkham Horror, Dungeon Lord, Mansions of Madness, or either a bit too involved or geeky. She's super geek tolerant, but she has her limits.

I think we're looking for something beyond, say, Cranium or Apples to Apples types of games, but something still accessible. She really enjoyed "Ticket To Ride" when we played it at a friend's house.

Any recommendations?

As others have said, Settlers of Catan and Puerto Rico are good ones that females tend to like, based on my experiences.

[Vince, Pt. II]

A little thread necromancy here, as I've gotten way into board gaming lately with my roommate and her boyfriend. Our current rotation is Settlers of Catan, Carcassone and Dominion, but we're itching to branch out to more complex games. I think Arkham Horror is next on our list, but here's our wish list - anything missing, or any suggestions for games to get sooner rather than later?

Arkham Horror
Agricola
Ticket to Ride
Battlestar Galactica
1830: Railways and Robber Barons
Puerto Rico
Diplomacy
Pandemic
Dominion Expansions
Settlers Expansions

We tend to be up for anything (we're all big nerds, so even D&D type stuff isn't out of the realm), though I'd imagine they would be less likely to enjoy military strategy type games. I'm intrigued by Pandemic, because of the cooperative aspect; the three of us are intensely competitive, and the loser in a heated game of Settlers tends to be a pain to hang around for a few minutes after the game.

[Autumn]

You'll love Pandemic. It makes for a very fun night to be working together on something like that. I haven't tried Castle Ravenloft, but if you're D&D geeks and like cooperative play you might like that.

I would put Power Grid up there in that list as well. Brass is also a big favorite of mine.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Pandemic is great. I also enjoy "Defenders of The Realm", which is just like Pandemix, very similar rules and concept, but instead of researchers fighting diseases, you're heroes fighting orcs, demons, undead, etc. Both co-op games and good fun.

I am not sure how well BSG would play with just 3 people.

"Dungeon Lords" is an excellent game. Easily one of my favorites. While it's made for four players, it's totally fine with three.