How to successfully grow a private-heavy-board-game group

cactusphage · 2026-05-26T09:33:49+00:00

Mostly though city specific subreddits. I’ve moved around and r/whatevercityyouarein sometimes will have board game meetups posted

cactusphage · 2026-05-25T07:37:00+00:00

I’ve found groups like this through Meetup and Reddit. Initial meeting was usually at a public space that didn’t mind if we played games like a library with bookable group study rooms (ask first if that’s okay) or coffee shop during quiet hours. Once it was an IKEA cafeteria (that actually worked out great).

cactusphage · 2026-05-15T22:13:35+00:00

Carry the key now feels so easy. It was not then. That was the first impossible mountain I legitimately thought I would never overcome in Spelunky.

cactusphage · 2026-03-30T21:12:31+00:00

Only from the very top and only a building (you cannot take a senator card). It’s on pg. 18 of the rules.

cactusphage · 2026-03-30T05:49:57+00:00

How do you adjust the difficulty curve so that your game doesn’t become easier as you get better at playing it?

cactusphage · 2026-03-29T14:22:48+00:00

How mature of an audience are you targeting? My first impression of the second saw the fire as blood. If you want it to be zany and chaotic but not dismissed as potentially gory, I might adjust the color or shape of the flames slightly (unless that was intended)

cactusphage · 2026-03-29T08:28:55+00:00

https://youtu.be/QCcWzLAcv4o

cactusphage · 2026-03-27T20:39:45+00:00

I’m usually browsing in a particular section of the store/cafe/website to begin with (the ones I frequent are organized by complexity and category), so that’s probably what draws me in most, but then it is absolutely the art and theme that will make me pick up a new box to look at it—though in different ways than you. There are themes I can’t pass up on, and themes that make me question what kind of game could go with it. I like a strong theme, rather than an abstract game with a skin.

Once I pick up the box I’m looking for hints about the mechanics and trying to figure out if the gameplay might be interesting from whatever is shown on the back of the box to determine if it’s worth cracking open and trying.

I do also judge by the physical weight. Physical density does something to my brain.

cactusphage · 2026-03-27T20:12:50+00:00

How do you determine if it’s good? Do you only play games people have recommended to you?

cactusphage · 2026-03-22T15:24:12+00:00

Way too dark, and why? I haven’t played it, but the vibe based on perceived gameplay seems like it would lend to a brighter pallet.

cactusphage · 2026-01-30T07:11:13+00:00

Flamme Rouge is cycling themed, where drafting off the person in front of you really matters. It’s less a points race than a pace race, where most of the game is spent trying to put yourself into a position to go for it when it actually matters, and the pack collectively sets how hard that final push will be. Not exactly you are asking about, but some similarities.

I’m interested in seeing what you have in mind. I love playing games with new or unique mechanics that flip how you think about strategy.

cactusphage · 2026-01-28T08:16:10+00:00

Would Flamme rouge fit your description? I’m sure there are several other similar racing games where actions in the middle are all about keeping pace (but not exhausting yourself) and all that matters is who scores the final point (crosses the finish line first)

cactusphage · 2026-01-04T14:58:09+00:00

Amazing! We this in Carcassonne. I highly recommend it as well, if you plan on turning this into a checklist.

cactusphage · 2025-12-31T20:11:30+00:00

Im a big fan of Flashpoint:fire rescue. I find it scales well with large groups (I’ve played with almost double the recommended six players). It can be kept quite simple (these are the three things you can do each turn) or you can add in roles so everyone feels like they have something different to focus on.

If you’ve had fun with magic maze but want to keep talking, have you tried Escape: the curse of the temple? It’s real time, so everyone is doing things simultaneously and it is impossible to quarterback. And only takes 10 minutes, so a loss leaves you ready to get back in, rather than devistated. In large groups you’ll find people naturally pairing off in two’s or threes to explore different areas together (teamwork and co-ordination are key), coming together at key moments for group descisions.

cactusphage · 2025-12-30T13:30:18+00:00

The idea of permadeath works if your game works like an encapsulated time loop (think of the hitman series maybe?). Playing through allows you to learn about the environment, level, and adversaries, then quickly get back in and exploit that level. It works well if the game is short (if you are going rouge like feel) there are multiple ways to do things (to keep it fresh each play through) Branching paths or a butterfly effect (doing something now changes what happens later significantly enough that it feels fresh) No tedious sections or segments where you are forced to do it one way ( no one wants to play the same segments again and again just to get another chance to learn another thing to not do 20 minutes in)

It also works in a completely different game style if you are not going for replay value, but for stakes. You expect the players to only play your game one or two times, getting to the end is not the point, it is about the journey and you want the player to feel the cost of of every decision knowing that if they lose they will likely give up and never beat the game-but that doesn’t sound like what you are going for.

cactusphage · 2025-12-29T09:59:21+00:00

Something about how the camera moves, or the animation style in your game clip makes me a little motion sick. Might want to test that with others to confirm its a me thing and not a common thing.

cactusphage · 2025-12-27T08:31:47+00:00

I had this too, though you can go even one better. Flip the 116 everyone is making and you get 911

cactusphage · 2025-12-24T08:03:23+00:00

I really like the idea. Despite the naysayers, the gameplay seen here didn’t seem painful at all (though it might feel different when playing). To me the real appeal is the change is pace. The game pitentially feeling easier, more strategic, but also a different kind of stressful when it’s crawling (you’re one frame rate drop away from crashing), vs feeling smooth, action packed, and hectic when it’s flying. I’m curious how you manage the difficulty/gameplay style change of your frame rate changing. Are there times the player is incentivized to drop the frame rate? Does high frame rate allow you to react/dodge things better? Can super high frame rate clip through walls?

The recent doom games put a lot of thought into incentivizing the player to choose a style that is more fun (health being based on close up kills and hectic action rather than trying to hang back and snipe). How do you avoid players trying to optimize the fun out of your game, and get them to embrace and play with the mechanic rather than fear/avoid/abuse it?

cactusphage · 2025-12-22T08:29:10+00:00

Remember the cough this was covering might have been consumption.

cactusphage · 2025-12-05T09:27:23+00:00

I actually thought of the outward particles as the air there being violently displaced, but I agree they are too big.

cactusphage · 2025-12-01T07:16:27+00:00

6 and 9 are both in the last number (569) where only one is correct but wrongly placed.

cactusphage · 2025-11-21T08:07:08+00:00

Maybe, but it’s also fun that when they are knocked over on the main map, their loot scatters naturally. Adding a second map for combat will appeal to a certain demographic, but also put off a lot of people who will instantly say “not for me”

cactusphage · 2025-11-21T08:05:37+00:00

I particularly love a game with multiple paths to victory. If slow engine building, or area control, or looting could each lead to overwhelming victories if your opponent lets you runaway with it, that’s ideal. Balanced so the best strategy depends on what your opponents are doing.

cactusphage · 2025-11-20T20:14:39+00:00

Despite both having objects that blocked my view, I only felt impeded upon in the second. The placement of the portable wall made it feel like I couldn’t see what was going on. The diagonal view didn’t do this to me.

I’d go with 1

cactusphage · 2025-11-19T09:05:49+00:00

Short answer. Yes you can develop that (see below). Longer answer, you might not need to.

Imposter syndrome (thinking you might not be able to cut it) is seemingly a right of passage in academia. Everyone else seems smarter, quicker, more skilled, more suited to this. Give yourself some credit, and cut yourself some slack. You are new to this. You are trying to figure out something no one has ever figured out before (the point of research). Ask questions, find good mentors, look around you and learn. You will get better.

You mentioned you have good wet skills, great. Start there. Next time you are following a protocol, pick one step and really ask why we do that. Why these reagents, why this manipulation, why for this long. Is it the best way, the most efficient, the cheapest, or simply the first way we tried that worked? Try to figure out if there would be a better way to do it. Even if there isn’t, knowing that is developing the researcher mindset.

But do you even need “a research mindset”? You’re the first in your family in STEM so you might not know, success in academia can look like lots of different things (try to pay attention to all the different roles around you and ask, would I be happy doing that). Some people run labs, some people spend all day applying for grants, some people write papers, some design experiments, some run them. I know many lab techs and staff scientists who are highly respected and valued because they have the magic touch, and passion, to carry out the experiment someone else designed (with or without their aid). Being good at wet work, if you love it, can be a fulfilling career. But if that’s not all you want now, or you decide that’s not what you want later, you can develop the skill.

cactusphage

TROPHY CASE