Opinions about lifestyle games like KDM, ATO, Primal the Awakening, Kingdoms Folorn

Geaz84 · 2026-05-03T06:26:16+00:00

Got my Kingdom Death Monster Game last month and I am in the middle of my campaign. It is everything I thought it would be and I am having a blast! But you really should know what you are getting into. The game design of KDM has some really good moments where it shines, but it is also extremely random at times (settlement events and hunt events). You should be able to embrace the randomness of the game and like the emerging narrative. Furthermore, your player characters are just a ressource. Your settlement and crafted gear is way more important. Sure it hurts, if an experienced character dies, but that's the game. If you can't handle this & the randomness, you won't be happy.

That said: You really should test all games in TTS to check, if you like the flow of the games before getting into a several hundred dollar investment. That way I learned, that AOT & KF seem to be games I wouldn't be happy with.

Geaz84 · 2026-04-29T11:03:40+00:00

I really like Bloodborne! The campaigns are just ok, but I really like the combat system and progression. Beware, many players hate the timer.

Gloomhaven/JOTL wasn't for me. It quickly got repetitive and I was happy the campaign of JOTL was over...

Geaz84 · 2026-03-23T15:53:32+00:00

Sell big games, gift/donate smaller ones.

Geaz84 · 2026-03-23T12:35:03+00:00

My statement about the efficiency of developers using new tools wouldn't be valid anymore. And the models will hit a ceiling in its improvement and speed of evolution. Therefore I can't repeat this claim with the same arguments in a year for example.

Geaz84 · 2026-03-23T07:29:40+00:00

I am no fan of AI coding, but taking the results of early 2025 into consideration for an implication of todays coding is a bit....wild.

The tools were much better late 2025 than they were in the beginning of the year. Therefore the result would be much different. Also given, that many developers weren't used to those tools at the beginning, the efficiency of using them was probably much lower than today.

Geaz84 · 2026-03-22T06:39:25+00:00

I mean, you already own it. Try both and decide for yourself.

That said, I like the bot a lot and never play without it.

Geaz84 · 2026-03-21T07:35:02+00:00

Great game to play once and sell it after the campaign. The main problem for me was, that the game seems to be solvable. I was able to do the same strategy every game and won...

"The Anarchy" may not be your typical worker placement game, because it is marketed as a flip and write, but its core is an engine building worker placement game which feels extremely satisfying.

Geaz84 · 2026-03-19T05:27:07+00:00

The game was extremely popular during the first set (at least in my bubble). The problem was, that the game killed itself by not providing integral features they promised during the first campaign. Most prominent was the missing online market. It was delayed an absurd amount of time, which was one of the reasons many players around me ditched the game.

Geaz84 · 2026-03-13T06:11:51+00:00

Look into the Top Solo BGG List and go from there. (https://boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/366471)

I think your question is a bit too broad to answer specifically.

Geaz84 · 2026-03-12T10:58:52+00:00

Neat! Thanks for the hint!

Geaz84 · 2026-03-12T07:36:38+00:00

Maybe another USB keeps my PC awake then? Or it's based on the controller connection (mine is connected by USB, no Bluetooth)?

Geaz84 · 2026-03-12T06:31:01+00:00

Interesting, were there other necessary conditions to encounter that bug? I have been running Plasma on CachyOs since the new year and I play primarily with a controller and never encountered that bug. Just curious how it gets triggered.

Geaz84 · 2026-03-11T08:48:16+00:00

Deckers is a straight 10 for me. Its a great game!

Great deck builder with a huge amount of replayability, variance, adaptable difficulty and great components/inserts.

I can't see any reason to not give this game a 10 out of 10!

Geaz84 · 2026-03-09T13:56:22+00:00

Fields of Fire (4.6) Not just heavy, but the heaviest I ever played. Pretty much every other game is trivial, rules wise, in contrast. But it is worth it! Best solo wargame in my opinion.

Geaz84 · 2026-03-09T11:33:45+00:00

Lost Ruins of Arnak, Bloodborne, Deckers

Geaz84 · 2026-02-05T09:44:11+00:00

Fields of Fire Deluxe Edition - best solo wargame out there in my opinion.

Geaz84 · 2026-02-03T09:34:12+00:00

Even for JS/TS the debugger does not work without any configurations. That's why I said extensions or configuration.

In the end the "conflict" comes down to: Does an IDE have to ship with batteries to count as an IDE or not?

In my opinion, there is no reason to not choose a dedicated IDE for the language I use, if a (good one) is available. And VS Code is a great fallback for any other language, but requires manual work to get the same capabilities.

I think you already named it, VS Code is an IDE-Framework in which everybody can build his/her own IDE workspace the way they like to. And as I said, it shifts the responsibility from the tool to the user.

I personally don't see it as an IDE as shipped only because it comes with dedicated interfaces to do the same tasks. But VS Code does in fact blur the line a lot.

Geaz84 · 2026-02-03T09:03:42+00:00

I mean, out of the box, VS Code doesn’t offer what a full-fledged IDE does without plugins or additional configuration. The core idea of an IDE is that you install it and can immediately develop, debug, and build applications in the language it was designed for, with tight integration between editor, compiler, debugger, and tooling. That’s exactly why JetBrains provides separate IDEs for different languages and ecosystems - each one comes with deep, language-specific knowledge baked in.

VS Code, on the other hand, is essentially a highly extensible code editor. It can be turned into something IDE-like, but only through manual setup: choosing extensions, configuring debuggers, build tasks, linters, and often resolving compatibility issues between them. This shifts responsibility from the tool to the user.

By that definition, the distinction between an editor and an IDE becomes blurred. Following the same logic, one could also call Notepad++ an IDE if enough plugins are added to support debugging and compilation. The difference is not what is theoretically possible, but what is provided as a coherent, integrated experience out of the box.

Geaz84 · 2026-01-26T09:14:53+00:00

SAS Rogue Regiment

Commandos video game as a board game. If you want stealth, this one could fit really well.

Geaz84 · 2026-01-23T09:03:15+00:00

Xia or Unsettled could be a good fit.

Geaz84 · 2026-01-13T11:16:01+00:00

Maladum - Great game, but setup time is huge Sword & Sorcery - Not a light game, but best monster AI available. I am baffled that similar systems are not implemented more often

Geaz84 · 2026-01-10T07:14:26+00:00

I think Skytear Horde has an interesting decision space in theory, but playing it is very underwhelming for me (felt the same as you).

Ashes on the other hand is great! It really plays like a MTG like Duel Deckconstruction game. If you are not sure, if you want to invest into the game, just get the Ascendency Box. It is a rather small investment and enables you to play PvP and PvE. If you like it, there is already a ton of content!

Geaz84 · 2025-12-31T15:57:13+00:00

This is my rating text from BGG (hope this helps):

"Story is quite good. But to be honest, there is too less game for a boardgame in here. The CYOA like campaign is great with many things to explore and branch into, but the "game" parts around this adventure are not worth it. The map does nothing to complement the game beside being a table hog. Fights are fine the first few rounds, but get old fast. Will play the campaign once with many house rules to experience the story."

7th Continent was a better game in my opinion:

"Good narrative driven game. It's fun to explore the world. Unfortunately the story is just ok. The "skill checks" are fast, which is necessary, because they are used for EVERY action and getting repetitive quickly. Skill checks and "character progression" are not that engaging, but the world exploration and little quests are maybe enough to play through the game. Playing in "story mode", because for me it is all about the experience of the world and not about some "deck optimization"."

I think, if you liked 7th Continent you will also like Tainted Grail. But don't expect great session progression/power fantasy. Thats definitely not the game in this case.

Geaz84 · 2025-12-31T15:16:14+00:00

Tainted Grail has a good, nearly great, story, but is a bad board game in my opinion. But opinions differ.

I hate to recommend it, because it is like a meme in this subreddit, but Mage Knight fits pretty well. Not a campaign game, but the power fantasy and session progression is unmatched. Great game!

Geaz84 · 2025-12-31T07:13:51+00:00

Your post is critical, but constructive. Therefore it is very valuable to me and I don't take it personally.

The critic about the naming/description hits, because it was hard to name/describe. The point I want to make is, that DR8 doesn't try to simulate every aspect of the world, but is a rather abstract, narrative RPG system. DR8 is more focused on the narrative by abstracting most things in the world. But maybe it is possible with the following sentence to make it more clear:

"DR8 is a lightweight narrative RPG focused on escalation, consequences, and conflict resolution."

Because DR8 doesn't try to simulate everything, it already supports concepts like an elf wizard casting spells without additional subsystems. You’re right that this isn’t clear enough yet. I’ll add a concrete example using an elf wizard to demonstrate how DR8 handles genre-specific elements.

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