Board Game News -The Gateway Gazette – 05/08/2016

Greetings Gamers,

I’m not going to lie, I was very close to calling this week’s news the “Fantasy Flight Edition” because wow, what a week for them in terms of new games – though between all the talk of the shiny new licensed games, we did manage to source some non-FFG news for you too.

As for this week on CBQ, Paul attempted a first impression of Imperial Assault after we sat down to play it together, but the article spiralled into a completely different beast.

New Games

The second Android title this year (after Android: Mainframe) was just announced – New Angeles.

“New Angeles is a board game of corporate greed and machinations for four to six players set in the Android universe. You and your friends each take the reins of a powerful megacorporation. You cut deals and forge temporary alliances to gain leverage and financial superiority over your corporate rivals. All the while, you need to keep a finger on the pulse of the city.”

 

 

We start with a game that was first published under the Fantasy Flight name, but is FFG no more. Bruno Faidutti’s Citadels, the classic city-building card game, will be rereleased in two different flavours by Windrider Games. You’ll be able to play the game as it was first released in the form of Citadels Classic. What most of us will be looking forward to is the new revised edition:

“Citadels was first published in 2000, with eight characters and fourteen unique districts. In 2004, the Dark City expansion introduced more characters and unique districts which were soon included in all printings of the game. The Windrider edition of Citadels now contains a total of twenty-seven characters and thirty unique districts, all developed and refined by Faidutti and the Windrider team. Such rich diversity enables you to customize your game by selecting which characters and unique districts you wish to play with, resulting in literally thousands of possible combinations. “

With the Game of Thrones fame-train still operating at full capacity, it’s no wonder there’s a new game on the way in the form of A Game of Thrones: Hand of the King. What is surprising though is the overall look and theme, opting for a new cartoonish spin instead of basing it on the tv series or on the FFG Living Card Game art.

“Hand of the King is a fast-paced card game of conspiracies and sudden twists of fate for two to four players, challenging each of you to gain the most support among the twisted intrigues of the King’s Landing court. Each turn, you’ll send Varys to do your bidding, moving through the court and inciting iconic characters from A Song of Ice and Fire to support your cause. With the help of some companions and crafty alliances with other players, you just might rise to become the king’s new Hand!”

Hey look, a collectable Star Wars game! No it’s not Star Wars X-Wing, it’s also not Armada or the Card Game. This time Fantasy Flight is releasing a collectable dice and card game called Star Wars Destiny.

“Play out your own epic, saga-spanning, “what if” battles in Star Wars™: Destiny, a collectible dice and card game for two players!

In every game of Star Wars: Destiny, you’ll gather your small team of iconic characters and battle to defeat your foes, using your dice and the cards in your deck. The last player with characters left standing wins the game, but to successfully outmaneuver your opponent, you’ll need to carefully consider your options and enhance your deck with new dice and cards. If you ever wondered who would win a duel between two teams of heroes and villains from the Star Wars universe, there’s no better way to find out than with Star Wars: Destiny.”

Destiny’s Force will awaken in the shape of two starter packs (Kylo Ren and Rey – each with 24 cards, 9 “Premium” dice, tokens and rules), and booster packs (each including 5 cards and 1 “Premium” die).

No doubt influenced by this year’s revival of the classic video game series, Fantasy Flight is releasing a new DOOM: The Board Game. Yes, completely new, and not a revised edition of Kevin Wilson and Christian T. Petersen’s 2004 Doom: The Board Game.

“DOOM: The Board Game is a tactical combat game for two to five players, inspired by Bethesda’s blockbuster video game. The asymmetrical gameplay pits one invader player and their arsenal of bloodthirsty demons against one to four elite marines, each equipped with a customizable deck of intimidating weapons and hardy armor, numerous lives, and the ability to Glory Kill weakened enemies within range. Every mission presents you with a unique map, specific rules, various items for retrieval, and objectives for both invaders and marines. Whether you take on the role of the demonic invader or the continually respawning marines, you’ll have to carefully plan out every move and use your specialized abilities to achieve your given objective and prevent your opponent from completing theirs. Descend into the hellish landscape of DOOM and join the epic struggle between demon and marine.”

Days of Wonder announced Ticket to Ride: First Journey, the next entry in their bestselling series. This version though is aimed for kids aged 6 and higher.

“Easy to learn and quick to play, Ticket to Ride: First Journey is the perfect introduction to the Ticket to Ride series. Players collect train cards, claim routes on the map, and try to connect the cities shown on their tickets to achieve victory. So climb aboard and embark on your very own North American railway adventure!”

Kickstarter

Crisis from LudiCreations is a worker placement title game that was quickly funded. It’s currently sitting on over $88,000 (original goal of $20,000), with 25 days still to go.

“A gritty, dystopian economic game set in a nation on the brink of ruin. Tough decisions & premium components in a dieselpunk setting. Set in a struggling nation rife with social unrest, a handful of industrialists see opportunity in the midst of economic crisis. Players send their managers to bail out struggling businesses, recruit employees, raise capital, and produce goods for export.

Digital

Courtesy of DIGIDICED, we’ll soon have Agricola: All Creatures Big and Small available on the go. Releasing on 9 August 2016, it will join the developer’s other digital tabletop game library

“In the long-awaited digital adaptation of Uwe Rosenberg’s award-winning Agricola: All Creatures Big and Small, you will grow a farm from its simple beginnings with a hut and some fields. You send your workers to the village market to barter for goods and livestock. Breed different animals and grow your farm in every turn. With your ever growing animal population and many special buildings you will compete against your neighbouring farmer. You only have 3 workers in each of the 8 rounds – make your decisions count! Play against different computer opponents or claim your plot in the world wide highscore and become a strategy game legend yourself.”

Cross-platform play will be available between the three platforms the game will be releasing on – iOS, Android and Windows 10.

Events

Stuart and I attended the second annual EGE (Electronic & Gaming Expo) last weekend. While there was still a healthy amount of tabletop gaming representation, it felt slightly scaled back this year – which made sense if you saw how much larger the competitive video gaming was.

Stuart was helping out at the Unplug Yourself section and showing new players the wonders of Pandemic and Codenames, while we attempted a game of Warhammer Quest. Well we tried –  until one of the first copies of Scythe in the country was unleashed upon our table (review coming soon – but wow, that’s a lot of components and a MASSIVE board).

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And that’s it for this week. Stuart and I  will be shifting focus to try out some 2-player games over the weekend, while Paul prepares to be disappointed with a viewing of Suicide Squad (come play games Paul, it will be better for you).

Have a good gaming weekend!