Board Game News – The Gateway Gazette – 01/09/2016

Cultists and Investigators have been happily reunited in friendship with Mansions of Madness 2nd Edition

Welcome to September gamers and I see you all have a little spring in your step and potentially the fresh smell of pollen wafting to your nostrils. With convention season on a slight hiatus before Spiel happens in Essen where we see another slew of releases, we’re slowly starting to see some of the fantastic GenCon releases hitting the table and seeing whether all the hype was well and truly worth the kidneys and children you sold in order to get a few of the fresh smelling new cardboard scents. Paul sang the finely tuned praises of Scythe which lived up to his expectations of being a fantastic game as well as taking a look at Martin Wallace’s pretty Via Nebula, Jason is finishing up coding a fresh article on all the soon to be released board gaming apps while I am getting as much special time with Mansions of Madness: Second Edition before our review goes up next week as I can. It haunts my dreams and I still hear the screech of claws on cobblestones from the beasts roaming the streets of Innsmouth. I’ll think of happier things shall I, and while there isn’t a wealth of news there may be enough to ease my mind from the clutches of panic.

General Release News:

Many people’s favourite gateway area control game that’s filled to the brim with marauding orcs, diplomatic elves and flying ghouls; Small World, is getting a new map expansion called Small World: River World. In the box are 4 maps, catering for all the various player counts and includes new mechanics of harbours, shipyards and the Temple of the Seer. You’ll gain additional points the more harbours you control, Shipyards offering new spawning points for conquest and the temple allows you to see future events. Like Tales and Legends, various events will trigger during play and even marauding pirates might ruin your conquering ways! You’ll need one of the full base sets to play but the maps look like they will offer some variability for lovers of this classic.

As the sands through the hours glass, so another Carcassonne version is born. Carcassonne: Amazonas will have players travelling down the Amazon river, identifying new animal species, frolicking with the local villagers while you meet and greet them on the way and trying to control areas you explore before you reach the end of the river mouth first to gain bonus points. It will be yet another subtle shift on the tried and true Carcassonne experience with a regional flair in their around the world series. Possibly for collectors and Carcassonne virgins only.

Thought that the biggest thing missing from Legendary Encounters: Aliens was the chance to play as the Alien Queen and hunt down the humans? Well Upper Deck must have picked up on the lack of colonial marine terror and are bringing out the first expansion in September. Bringing in some new characters in Captain Elgyn, Superintendent Andrews and Kane as well as more facehuggers, and aliens in the 400 card deck as well as the Alien Queen mat for the new game mode.

IDW Games has some announcements to make with very little actual detail in them, which seems to be the norm for first announcements. Scott Almes is designing StarFall, which will be an auction bidding set collection type game (possibly like Ra) where 2-4 astronomers will be darting their eyes across the horizons to discover the most fascinating collection of constellations and heavenly bodies at the end of the game. With an interesting theme, good designer pedigree and a 30 min play time this may be worth gazing at for a moment. The partnership forged in the blood of turtles between Kevin Wilson and IDW continues with a time travel themed game; Escape from 10 Million BC. While you’d be forgiven thinking that Asylumn films had anything to do with that title, in this cooperative game, players will be the team on the first time travel mission who sadly went to far (thanks Keanu) and had their time travel machine destroyed on top of an active volcano, which is about to blow. You’ll need to get it back together while avoiding destroying history’s current narrative. I hear Michael Bay is waiting for the call for the movie adaptation already.

Kickstarter:

One of the best presented kickstarters I have seen in a long time is the Endangered Orphans of Condyle Cove from Certifiable Studios. The art is beautiful, the presentation and thought that went into the production of this crowd funding campaign is some of the best marketing for a first project I’ve ever seen with the art and theme being (quite troubling to my psychiatrist who thought I was making progress) right in my wheel house. Each of the 2-3 player adopts an Orphan and is given a hand of options with which to keep their orphan safe while driving the other players orphans into peril. You’ll hide out on a modular map as once you run out of options you’ll be forced to draw an act of desperation, which might give you more options or have you eaten by the boogie man! I’m not sure whether this game will be able to feed the needs of all orphans at your table, but the art and theme have me reaching towards my wallet to sponsor a child.

Fans of Desktop Dungeons may want to pack their swords and wands to head underground at the promise of treasure in Card Rogue. Ryan Saunders has already funded a tabletop rogue style game which will have you flipping over random tiles to explore dungeons in the quest for glory and loot! Up to four players can venture into the caverns together and can aid or hinder each others progress as their can be only one hero to this tale. Fan of the genre should definitely check this out and some questing with take that mechanics are never amiss at our table.

Lastly, Carrotia by Mage Company is in its last few days on Kickstarter urging you to make your pledge in 10 000 carrots (or local currency equivalent thereof) to save the bunnies!  In this co-op tile laying game, players will need to navigate the rabbits through 3 mazes to collect carrots while avoiding hawks and other natural perils all within a timed period. Fun, cutesy art and definitely on the lighter family side of gaming, you can never have TOO much cuteness on your shelves!

For current events, Timeless is having another games day this Saturday in Johannesburg with all the latest releases from Gencon! Make sure you try Bloodborne, Captain Sonar and Vast! if you can get the right players together. The Big Box Cafe in Cape Town is “playing” Cards against Humanity but feel free to pop in play some strategy games as well. The Bacon Battalion continues their excellent RPG guides on Youtube with Intergrating new PC’s into your games, make sure you check it out and support the guys and gals.

And lastly… in awesome this week, someone made their friend a custom Eldritch Horror Trunk which is all types of awesome. If anyone wants to make the CBQ team anything special we’re always open to bribery 😛

So that’s it! Come back tomorrow for Jason’s take on the future of ‘appiness in board gaming and I’ll be still running around screaming in a cult-ridden mansion until next week. Paul will be quietly shaking his head.