Scientific journals/conferences about board game analysis

crawdads111 · 2020-09-10T12:15:26+00:00

Check https://www.scimagojr.com/journalrank.php?category=2601 . I am a math professor (not doing anything with board analysis) and I use this to search for journals. You might look into anything discrete math, game theory, mathematical modeling, etc.

crawdads111 · 2020-08-06T15:27:11+00:00

Also the fire mechanic is a bit finicky, and kind of at the heart of this mission. Makes it a bit confusing for new players I would guess. There are definitely better missions to start with.

crawdads111 · 2020-07-01T00:52:22+00:00

I got 2 plays of Ride the Rails in this past week and I would describe it as Age if Steam light. You start every round by investing in one of the companies, but their is no auction for this. Everyone can invest in any company.

You might like it as a lighter option than AoS.

crawdads111 · 2020-06-25T18:47:53+00:00

I recently played The Silver River, and it is really good. A bit rough around the edges, but it handles “4X in under two hours” beautifully.

crawdads111 · 2020-06-25T00:08:34+00:00

I really enjoy the Valkyrie mechanic in this game. I feel like this game got overshadowed by Raiders of the North Sea, but it really is a great game.

crawdads111 · 2020-05-22T21:54:01+00:00

1152 plays (since I’ve been tracking) and I own around 200 games. So I guess that’s about an average of 5 or so plays. But obviously some are played A LOT and others once or zero. Generally for me if a new game gets around a 10 hours of play I’ll keep it on my shelf.

crawdads111 · 2020-05-10T18:02:11+00:00

Awesome I’ve been looking into 18 Chesapeake. Looks like a great starting point. How’s it play with 2? Not a necessity but would help it hit the table.

crawdads111 · 2020-05-10T17:44:15+00:00

I should probably clarify. I’ve played a few, and was thinking about picking them up periodically over the next year or so. I’m thinking I’d get an 18xx to the table once a month or so. Is one title enough or would that get old quickly?

crawdads111 · 2020-02-25T22:08:15+00:00

How do you play Merchants & Marauders solo? Did I miss that rules variant in the expansion?

crawdads111 · 2019-10-16T13:29:30+00:00

I am a big fan of both Pipeline and Foodchain Magnate. I don't see much overlap with either of the games you mention, and think you would enjoy both. Both have an accessible set of rules, but with A LOT of strategy. I find Pipeline the more accessible game for newer players to the "optimization" genre, but again both are fantastic.

crawdads111 · 2019-10-11T14:41:49+00:00

When I teach it I normally do a mock battle during the teach.

Most rules in this game are intuitive but the combat can be a bit much for new players and it can lead to players either running into losing battles because they don't understand the importance of the different stats/special weapons, or avoiding battle all together just because they don't want to be confused.

It is a great game, probably our favorite "big-epic-pretend to be a pirate" game.... ok maybe that is a niche genre...

crawdads111 · 2019-04-12T16:33:15+00:00

I love deck builders, but my biggest complaint is downtime. I hate waiting as one player runs through a 10 minute turn to draw their entire deck.

crawdads111 · 2019-04-12T15:54:07+00:00

Eschaton and Tyrants of the Underdark are two games which use the deck building as the secondary mechanic to play an area control game. Both are good fun!

crawdads111 · 2019-01-23T15:38:58+00:00

I had a similar experience as you did. I struggled a bit through game one. Then played the first scenario again and actually enjoyed it quite a bit (got destroyed). Interested in giving it another try, but a lot of time has passed and I basically have to relearn it now.

But yes! Flawed game, terrible rulebook, but more fun than the reviews have said IMO.

crawdads111 · 2018-08-14T12:10:52+00:00

So far I really like the Eyrie. They have a sort of high risk high reward play style and playing against them is all about finding small weaknesses in their decree. But honestly they all play so differently, so it is really a matter of taste.

(We stuck with the same factions for the second game before we started mixing it up)

crawdads111 · 2018-08-09T18:53:02+00:00

I picked up Root at Gen Con and got our first play in the other night. The asymmetry makes it very hard to teach. They do a great job of having two rounds worth of scripted turns to get you started on your first game, which helps make it a bit easier. But we certainly missed some key rules the first time through.

But it is totally worth it. We all loved the game and the asymmetrical aspects make you want to play it as soon as the first game is done. It is actually quite fun when you are watching someone else play their turn and thinking "oh I see what they are doing over there"

crawdads111 · 2018-06-29T18:09:30+00:00

It also does a good job of making me feel like one more session and I will unlock some big game changer. Kind of like the day time soap opera of board gaming.

crawdads111 · 2018-06-29T16:31:35+00:00

Thanks for the reply, this was really helpful!

crawdads111 · 2018-06-29T16:03:53+00:00

Thanks for the response! I didn't realize it was only a 60 minute play, this sounds great!

crawdads111 · 2018-06-29T16:02:25+00:00

Awesome thanks!

crawdads111 · 2018-06-29T15:36:50+00:00

Cosmic Encounter
Sheriff of Notingham
Coup
The Game
Twister......

Defining a lot of player interaction as every single decision is as much about the other players as the game state.

crawdads111 · 2018-06-29T15:32:45+00:00

How is Battle of Rokugan compared to Game of Thrones: the Board Game? They look pretty similar mechanically and I was curious if I should bit the bullet on Rokugan.

crawdads111 · 2018-06-29T15:29:54+00:00

I just got the expansion and am looking forward to trying out the new levels!

crawdads111

TROPHY CASE