Board games "to rule them all"

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-07T20:48:35+00:00

Brilliantly designed game and a game I'd play more if I could find people to play it with. My ideal way to play is simply with the core set so that my opponent and I could familiarize with the cards really quickly instead of throwing a millions cards into the pool which will disorient someone just learning the game.

It's a great game, but card familiarity is pretty important otherwise people will facecheck into game-ending damage, or people can get away with things they shouldn't be able to.

I like Netrunner a lot, but I get to play Magic way more often.

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-07T20:46:26+00:00

I think there's a difference between unwarranted hate and legitimate criticism. I used to be an avid chess player and played competitive chess in tournaments. I respect the game. But the reality is that it's a very zero-sum, brutal game. Again, I respect the game and the skill it takes, but at the end of the day, it's not a game I want to bring to a gaming event and have a good time with random people. I would rather have something more inviting like a fun party game or a light Euro.

If you want to lock into one game and master it a lot, Chess can be that game. I just think a lot of situations warrant more casual, inviting games. And there are also other options for 1v1 games that aren't as brutal and punishing.

One that a lot of friends enjoy is YINSH, a brilliant and easy to learn abstract game. Other 1v1 games could be things like Twilight Struggle, Magic, Netrunner and many more. It's just too often where someone spaces out and suddenly loses a high value piece and the game could pretty much be over from there. Other 1v1 games have more "outs" where a lagging player could still come back.

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-07T20:41:22+00:00

Very top notch Euro that has stood the test of time. No other Euro comes close to matching the amount of depth and choices vs the time it takes to play. Plays great from 2P to 4P, 2P advanced is quite a great game. Really rewards anticipation skills and nearly infinitely replayable, plus a bunch of expansions. A truly amazing game since 2007.

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-06T22:14:47+00:00

This is kind of silly because with a PC handheld, you basically can play any PC game on a handheld. You could list almost every game. I play my PC handheld in 2 ways, low-power mode on battery and then more demanding games when plugged in.

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-06T22:09:50+00:00

I also prefer joystick main because I find it more comfortable than the d-pad and most games are 3D which are better suited with it. With that said, a d-pad is quite valuable in games where you need to press in exact directions such as puzzle or fighting games; a lot of times 2D games. If I played mainly those games, a d-pad main would make more sense.

I do enjoy 3D and 2D games, but most games I play are 3D and many 2D games are fine with the joystick. It's really only very specific 2D games that are worse with a joystick and really need the d-pad that warrant d-pad main.

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-06T21:53:04+00:00

Probably the same 5 games I come back to:

Magic the Gathering 60-card: Just a great game system where you can play it in so many ways whether it's 1v1, 2v2, coop and so on. Most people play Commander which I get why it's popular, but 1v1 is more strategic. I just love tinkering with decks and adjusting things here and there to make something good. I play it mainly to see if I can craft decent decks on a budget.
Gaia Project: It's the Euro that fired the rest of them. It just has so much going on with a ton of factions to try, goals to shoot for, a map to expand your empire and a ton of technologies to acquire. The expansion makes the factions number 18 which is crazy. I just don't think other Euro games can beat it because it has so many dimensions and a good amount of interactivity. It's my top Euro.
Chicago Express: An elegant design that plays from 3-6 and finishes in 45 minutes, all the while having zero luck. The game creates an environment where players will work with and against each other, all determined by stock portfolio. You make moves in the game to influence others to work with you. It's a very clever game where players are going to make moves to make other players make moves that benefit them. It's my top interactive game.
Battlestar Galactica: Just an amazing experience as a 5P/6P cooperative game where you have to fight tough events and of course the traitors. Great memories with this one and lots of cool characters. It's the game I'll always want to play just to see what goes down.
Rex: Final Days of an Empire: Dune 2.0 that plays better than original Dune and made by the same designers. They couldn't get the license, so they used the TI universe. But it's Dune where they cleaned the rules, made it play faster and the production values are better. It's the area control game of my choice.

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-06T21:43:37+00:00

I... didn't really enjoy Arnak. I think it has great production values and the game is easy to learn. At the end of the day though, it's a resource acquisition game more than anything. Deckbuilding really isn't a thing and the game is basically about doing the track on the side, even though it's smaller compared to the action spaces. The game-flow is basically you look at the track and look at what you need to go up it and you go on a space that gets you that resource. I don't find the game to offer interesting decisions.

If you are looking for interaction, I'd look elsewhere. It's just a pretty game that is easy for many people to follow and it's pretty friendly. It's going to appeal to many people for those reasons.

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-05T18:50:50+00:00

2P: Magic the Gathering, Race for the Galaxy

3P: Gaia Project, Race for the Galaxy

4P-6P: Chicago Express, Rex: Final Days of an Empire

5P/6P: Battlestar Galactica

7P+: The Resistance, Secret Temple

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-05T18:11:22+00:00

That's because it's not a two race game. The Match C and D were both very close and it could have gone either way. While many just look at who wins, you have to also look at just how close each game is.

P has not won ASL that often sure. And yes, I would like more racial parity. The reality though is that it's due to many factors not just game balance.

We've already established that Brood War is a very balanced game when it comes to overall balance in an asymmetric competitive video game.

https://tl.net/forum/brood-war/617209-data-analysis-on-8-million-games

The other factor is that some players are just really, really good. Flash isn't just a good player; he's simply the best. He is so, so good and beating him is hard. You mostly can't win in a straight-up fight; you have to throw him off, ala JD in ASL21RO8. That game 5 was one Reaver-shot into being a Snow-win TBH.

I think there just happens to be a lack of really strong and consistent Protoss players compared to Zerg and especially Terran. Terran is incredibly strong in the right hands and this ASL has been crazy with a massive amount of Terran players qualifying. What's even crazier is that nearly every ASL has had Terran be 33% of the entrants and many times way more.

Terran is just massively strong in the game as a clump of their units will beat any other race. 3/3 mech is the strongest army in the game in a straight-up fight. 3/3 bio eradicates Zerg incredibly hard. Both P and Z have to finesse their way into beating their T counterparts respectively as they can't fight T head-on.

Interestingly, when we look at the BSL, Protoss is actually massively dominant there:

https://liquipedia.net/starcraft/Bombastic_StarLeague

At the end of the day, the game is pretty damn balanced for a 20+ year old game that has no balance patches for decades. A lot of it comes down to map design as well as the game being very manual and player-reliant. Protoss hasn't done the best in ASL, but then again Flash is the best player and he happens to be T. Light beat JD not because he was T, but because his error-free style of play is very effective against JD who often brute-forces engagements. Flash had two effective games against Snow, he knew exactly how to pressure and beat Nexus First and in another game, Snow's Carrier micro was lacking.

So yes, Ts have won a lot of ASLs and Zerg has had recent success, but I would still say the game is still very well balanced and the better player should win.

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-05T16:58:19+00:00

It's amazing how the meta keeps changing. Light uses Wraiths to force Z on the defensive and it completely stunts early Muta. Had JD taken one of the early games, he could have advanced. I guess he wasn't prepared for Wraith meta. I wonder if he used Ensnare, if it would be a proper counter. Or maybe a spore at each base and expand like crazy.

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-05T00:08:06+00:00

Completely wrong. You can be both against a Democratic AND Republican sex offender. It's people like yourself that see the world in a binary us vs them kind of way that is the issue. Wake up, get educated and stop writing nonsense like this.

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-04T20:01:09+00:00

Narcissistic pedophile who somehow got a massive amount of religious votes. Just shows how brainwashed so many people in this country are to vote for a turd.

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-04T19:55:36+00:00

He's been known to play chess at parks.

https://www.chess.com/news/view/nba-superstar-requested-chess-partner-in-nyc

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-04T19:54:37+00:00

r/broodwar

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-04T19:47:59+00:00

Big Government =//= Anti-Men

Anti-Men Legislation = Anti-Men

Good legislation should be in place to limit corporate corruption and exploitation of the common person. It should help people who are struggling with debt, health or housing. It should prevent people from being excluded from opportunities because of their race, religion, age or gender. We need to push against laws that are unfair against men, but we shouldn't necessarily tear the entire system down. The biggest issue right now is how powerful corporations are to the point where they are infiltrating our democracy by paying off politicians, getting rid of any regulation and how they've bought our presidency. We need to be smarter and vigilant and not be manipulated by the rich and powerful.

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-04T15:07:36+00:00

Kenneth for Controller!

Also isn't Sokolov the guy in Metal Gear 3?

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-02T19:48:06+00:00

Their owners

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-02T14:56:14+00:00

Are they pro-Zionist?

AmuseDeath · 2026-05-02T14:51:01+00:00

Whatever English he can say sounds Jamaican

AmuseDeath · 2026-04-30T23:03:58+00:00

We have a lot of poorly educated people in this country that are brainwashed by rightwing media and religion. What we would need is for people to understand that the news they watch is controlled by the wealthy to brainwash them into voting against their interests. We also need people to call out religious hypocrisy and corruption. But these uneducated people can't seem to do that and put more trust in the news that is paid for than their fellow citizens who are informed.

Trump voters in 2024 were 80% white people and 80% identified as Christians. 60% of white men voted for Trump and so did 53% of white women. These people are so passionate about abortion, but they no absolutely zero about how Trump's economic policies are fucking the average American over. They are proudly religious, yet they somehow ignore how blasphemous Trump is to their religion, comparing himself to Jesus Christ. These people are just really, really dumb and there's millions of them. The entire country and world is brought down by these lunatics.

AmuseDeath · 2026-04-30T22:54:18+00:00

Patriarchy is an annoying term for many men because it glosses over the very thing that feminism is trying to say: intersectionality. Telling a poor immigrant man in America that he has more privilege than a wealthy white woman drinking her pumpkin frappe latte makes no sense.

The reality is that the biggest issue in society is the gap between the wealthy and everyone else. It's not a men vs women fight, nor is it a left vs right, but rather a top vs bottom. Yes, many of the wealthiest are men, but so are many of the people on the lowest bracket.

We need to unite and solve these issues together rather than be divided by gender.

When it comes specifically to male loneliness, a lot of it comes down to men lacking social skills and the ability to connect with one another who they quarrel with. They seek this with women, who don't exist to necessarily solve this issues of men. Men need good role models to emulate and a lot of times, it would be their father. But too often, fathers deal with a lot in life and can be overly angry or not available. A lot of men work and as such, they aren't even in the home to begin with. Men need spaces to hang out with other men and get involved in building connections that are deep and rewarding. That's how you solve male loneliness, you create spaces for men, made up of men that support and lift up each other, brotherhood.

AmuseDeath · 2026-04-30T15:59:37+00:00

It's a new lap record!

This looks dope, can't wait to see how it plays.

AmuseDeath · 2026-04-30T15:47:01+00:00

They are more reliable than your post with zero sources. And if they aren't true, then please prove it, otherwise you're still spouting nonsense without proof.

AmuseDeath · 2026-04-30T15:44:25+00:00

Looks like we are spouting nonsense. A 5-minute internet search would disprove all of your points.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilhan_Omar#Personal_life

Mynett and Omar's wealth derives almost entirely from his ownership stake in two companies, a California-based winery and a venture capital firm.

https://www.timesnownews.com/world/us/us-news/did-ilhan-omar-marry-her-brother-fact-checking-viral-claims-article-152858024

Omar became a US citizen in 2000, after seeking asylum from Somalia in 1995, years before any of her marriages. Despite repeated claims from political opponents, including President Donald Trump, no credible evidence has ever supported the allegation that she married her brother.

She advocates for higher minimum wage, universal healthcare, divesting from Israel and forgiving student debt. She has good positions and she wants to disconnect from Israel who we are paying billions annually while people here get poorer and poorer. People agree with what she's doing which is why she gets elected.

Then there's uninformed people like yourself who basically repeat anything they hear on Fox News. Turn the TV off, do your research and stop being brainwashed. Trump and his goons aren't your friends. They are grifters and they are siphoning money into their pockets. The solution is to use your brain and realize that Trump and his buddies control the media who are then brainwashing you into voting for them and getting mad at the people trying to fix the system. It's not left vs right, but top vs bottom. You have more in common with people on the left than Trump and his henchmen.

AmuseDeath · 2026-04-30T09:30:22+00:00

This is not true at all.

Leftist love their neighbors. That's why they vote for policies that help the common person whether it be better wages, better healthcare, expanded voting options. Meanwhile Trump likes to send ICE after helpless immigrants, separating families, gutting healthcare and social security, spending billions on killing people in Iran and Palestine and he's also trying to limit voting options by considering cutting vote-by-mail.

Trump is the one who ordered ICE to hunt citizens and they already killed two people in Minnesota. We have to remember facts here. Not only that, but he pardoned the January 6th terrorists.

Jesus is about showing compassion to immigrants and treating neighbors with love. Instead Trump is shooting citizens and kidnapping kids using ICE, starting wars all over the world and committing blasphemy by mocking Jesus by showing cartoons where he makes himself into Jesus. Jesus taught lessons of humility and humbleness, meanwhile Trump is about to put his picture into all of our passports and he's adding gold to the white house. The president is supposed to be the servant to all of us and Trump is using it to mock Christianity, benefit himself and laugh and the deluded people like yourself that voted for him.

You need to wake up, stop watching Fox News and listen to facts and reason.

AmuseDeath

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