This War of Mine

This War of Mine is Excellent (see the exciting overview just under the list of links and the calmly passionate look at the game below that). But it is more than just a game. Actually, it is more an EXPERIENCE than a game… kind of a hybrid. It is designed to help you (the player) feel, experience and understand what it might be like to be living (trying to stay alive) in a city that has been devastated by a war. Shops are closed (if the building is even left standing). There are looters. There are homeless. There are hobos. There are snipers! Just trying to find water to drink can be a harrowing experience. The game is hard. Really hard. Online comments have asked how to make it easier. The answer is, please don’t… it is MEANT to be hard, just like life is for those living in the situations in the game (as in real life).

Designing and developing the game was a task of love. They did not sit in a conference room trying to make up things that might happen. They poured over real life diaries, documents, journals, books, photos, videos from people who actually were living in the situation depicted by this game. And that realism shows. The game comes with a logbook with nearly 2,000 log entries that you read throughout the game… and NOT in any specific order! Which log entry you read next is determined by your choices of what you want to do, as well as a roll of the dice and drawing of a card.

Here are some links, followed by an interesting overview of the game. After that is the calmly passionate look at the game and then some tips followed by a complete playthrough of the game if you want to see how it works (and is put together… including how to set up the game)

=> My Website / This War of Ours

=> Board Game Geek
=> Kickstarter (2016)
=> Official Site: Core Game
=> Official Site – expansion: Tales from the Ruined City
=> Official Site – expansion: Days of the Siege
=> This War of Mine Journal
=> Pseudo Rulebook (FAQ’s etc)

=> Video Playlist

Review:

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Canvas

Board Game Geek (for all three editions plus Big Box):

  1. Canvas (original)
  2. Canvas Reflections / Deluxe (first expansion)
  3. Canvas Finishing Touches / Deluxe (second expansion – doesn’t look like it added much)
  4. Big Box (just a master link list system?)

Official Website=> RoadToInfamy.com
Rules=>
 Canvas / Reflections / Finishing Touches

Len’s 1 page rules summaries:
Canvas // Canvas Reflections // Canvas Finishing Touches and Big Box

=> Video Playlist

Tabletop Tolson (Kim Tolson) looks at all three … in three videos … first the original Canvas:

How To Play Canvas:

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Ares Expedition (Terraforming Mars Card Game)

Comments from BGG: Buy Race for the Galaxy instead of its cheap imitation Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition (which had an outsourced design team). Ares Expedition is what happens when you get the idea of mixing two great games, Terraforming Mars and Race for the Galaxy, and somehow leave out the good bits and are left wishing you were playing either of the parent games instead.

=> BoardGameGeek

=> Video Playlist

Overview:

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Castle Panic

=> BoardGameGeek
=> Original Rules / 2nd Edition Rules
=> Castle Panic Made Easy v1-3 (Len’s 2page Rule Summary with options for younger players)
=> Official FAQ

=> Video Playlist

You can add more types of monsters yourself (on your printer)=> Set 1 / Set 2 / Set 3

This is a quick cooperative game where all players try to hold off the attacking orcs :) The game play is interesting. The game was so popular that they now make a DELUXE fancy version of the game (with miniatures).

Watch Will Wheaton (yes, he was Wesley Crusher in Star Trek: The Next Generation) explain it and play it with three guests (a comedian, an actress and a voice actor) … here is the condensed version (you can watch their FULL game video at the bottom of this page):

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Terraforming Mars

Another game that I found I would put into the Settlers of Catan category … a little bit of strategy, a little bit of luck. However Terraforming Mars does it one better … it is almost like a cooperative game but with a “winner” at the end! And instead of DICE (as in Settlers of Catan) there are lots of cards. Each card gives you points or item production or such. It should take about the same amount of time to play as Catan. I also have all the expansions and one of them (Prelude) actually shortens the length of the game (without wrecking it in any way).

=> BoardGameGeek
=> Rules
=> Symbols and Play Guide
=> Len’s Cheatsheet v1
=> Len’s 1 page Rules Summary v1 (includes Prelude expansion).
Also includes Phase 5 Solar as per Fryxgames note in Venus Next rulebook:
The Solar Phase will be used by other expansions as well.

Questions? Clarification Needed? Search inside this=> FAQ (87 pages)

=> Video Playlist

Board Game Co  and christened Terraforming Mars as the #1 best game of all time (video is queued to the right spot):

I put together a summary of the rules (including a couple house rules) and updated it with info on playing with the Prelude, Colonies and Turmoil expansions:

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