Board Game – Page 9 – Stately Play

Perchang bringing Warhammer Quest 2 to Android in April

March 29, 2018 David Neumann 7

iOS Universal, Android • Warhammer Quest 2 had a bit of a rough release on iOS with many Stately Players [it’s too early, don’t start -ed.] complaining that the sequel lacked the original‘s tension and difficulty mainly due to a lack of random encounters. Perchang was on top of it, however, and released an expansion as well as updated the game to include, you guessed it, random dungeon encounters. Suddenly our forums were full of happy stories detailing the latest TPK at the hands of some random beastie and all was good again. Or was it? Turns out Android users still weren’t able to play and were crying in their Oreos. Or is it Marshmallows? Or Honeycombs? I can’t keep up. Good news, Android users! Perchang has announced that the Android version of Warhammer Quest 2 will be arriving on Google Play this April.

CGE plays Efficient Upgrade and releases Through the Ages on Steam

March 28, 2018 David Neumann 2

iOS, Android, PC/Mac/Linux • If there’s one thing I’ve learned after doing this at 164, Owen’s old site, and here at Stately Play, it’s that big news will always drop when I’m unable to reach a keyboard. I’ve been behind the wheel of a 13 year-old minivan the last few days, so getting new news up on the site has been…challenging. Luckily, Kelsey filled in and wrote something I can only describe as “don’t miss”. Still, I failed Czech Games and my favorite title of 2017 by missing the launch of Through the Ages on Steam. So, here goes: If you haven’t heard, Through the Ages is now on Steam!

Another victim of the App-ocalypse, Imperial, comes roaring back to life

March 26, 2018 David Neumann 2

Well, what do you know, miracles can happen. Imperial is one of the first board game apps to land on the iPad way back in 2011 or so, and it was not well received by the general public. Much of this was due to the opacity of Mac Gerdt’s original design which has the feel of 18xx, but looks like a Dudes On A Map game, but it was also because the app was, how to say this nicely, not polished. Graphically, it resembled something cobbled together using scans from the cardboard version and pieces created in Microsoft Paint, but under the hood it was a rocket ship. The AI was stellar and the app included all the advanced variants, something even the big publishers don’t always pull off today. Problem is, the app hadn’t seen any love from its developer since 2013 and when iOS 11 rolled into town, Imperial finally left its spot on the home page of my iPad. I’m happy to announce that, yesterday, I was able to reinstall it thanks to a surprise patch that updated it to 64-bits.

Kickstarter Roundup: What’s hot in tabletop gaming on the crowdfunding front

March 22, 2018 David Neumann 7

Tabletop • There are a million discussions out there about Kickstarter and its effect and influence on the world of cardboard gaming with both pros and cons in regards to the crowdfunding giant. Whatever side you may fall on, Kickstarter isn’t going anywhere soon and more and more publishers are finding the pre-order-esque system of Kickstarter a more risk-averse way of publishing than the standard route. From my vantage point the only downside is that many games are Kickstarter only, which means that if you don’t have the time or money to jump on a campaign when it’s live, you’re out of luck and will have to buy the game on the secondary market, which is usually populated by sharks with no interest in said game, only looking to profit and profit big. Then again, it’s only a game, and missing one of the thousands of releases each year isn’t going to ruin anyone’s life. So, I thought it would be a good time to look at some of the games currently on Kickstarter and let you know what’s out there that looks good. I’m not sure if this will be a weekly or monthly feature (or a recurring feature at all), but I’m desperate for stuff to write about, so I’m using you as guinea pigs. Thanks! Of course, there are a ton of games out there on Kickstarter and I can’t cover them all. Thus, I’m only grabbing a handful of the games that have piqued my interest.

Fire & Ice coming to Terra Mystica in April

March 22, 2018 David Neumann 5

iOS, Android, PC/Mac/Linux • I haven’t spent a lot of time singing the praises of Digidiced‘s digital port of the euro-game masterpiece, Terra Mystica. Not because it’s not a great port or the game itself isn’t my cup of tea, the reality is that the game is just too damn confusing. Yes, I’ve played it on the tabletop, but I’m not sure I ever got my head around TM’s wheels-within-wheels design that seems complex for complexity’s sake. Seriously, there are so many different rules, ways to play, and mechanisms that it’s a very hard game to truly understand without many, many playthroughs. And all complexity happens even before you take into account the 14 different races, each with their own tweaks to the base rules. On the tabletop you can take your time to figure out just what the hell is going on, but the app comes at you full speed. There are tokens flying, actions being taken, and points being scored and I JUST CAN’T HANDLE IT.

A weekend of gaming dissected or how I learned to stop worrying and love 18xx

March 21, 2018 David Neumann 23

Tabletop • As I mentioned last Friday, I spent last Thursday through Sunday up in the woods with four of my best [only? -ed.] friends where we would drink and eat far too much while playing as many games as we could fit in the time allotted to us. This was the seventh year we’ve done this and, in the past, I would try to bring as many new games as possible. It slowly dawned on all of us that trying to teach games to folks who’ve been drinking since noon isn’t a great idea unless you start teaching well before noon. Thus, I’ve limited my new game exploration to only one each morning and after that–once the Sailor Jerry starts flowing–we sink back into the comfortable arms of games we already know how to play. This year our fallback was 18xx. Lots and lots of 18xx.

Stately Playthrough: Darkest Night 2nd Edition, Introduction and Turn 1

March 13, 2018 David Neumann 6

Tabletop • Okay, we’re going to try this again and see what happens. Yes, I know I abandoned the Liberty or Death walkthrough but I have several good reasons. Or excuses. Let’s call them excuses. First, right around Thanksgiving my gaming area was “ungamified” due to all the family stuff happening through the holidays. Secondly, I had to pack Liberty or Death away and, thirdly, I’m far too lazy to get it back out and set it up and whatnot. I was also a bit wary of starting up again using the format I had been using, basically my iPhone flying around the board. It made Liberty or Death feel more like the opening scenes of Saving Private Ryan which means the shaky-cam feel was a bit too nauseating. So, it took me awhile to get this new format down, but I like it a bit more. I’m still working on getting my narration to fit what you’re seeing on screen, but it’s not too bad and will get better the more I do this. I will be getting back to Liberty or Death and the hope is to make board game vids (and even video game vids) a more common occurrence. I know a lot of readers dislike videos in general. I get it. I’m trying to figure out how to not have these appear on the front page at all, but instead show up only in a new menu. Hopefully I get that working and this will be the only one that gets front page treatment. Also, they shouldn’t diminish the quantity or quality of the writing. For example, While this series is a walkthrough of Darkest Night 2nd Edition, I still plan on writing a Cardboard Critique and more for the front page, sans video. Thanks for sticking around as I stumble through figuring all this out.

Abstract gem, Feud, heading to Early Access and launching iOS beta

March 12, 2018 David Neumann 6

iOS, Android, PC/Mac/Linux • We talked about an unassuming little abstract game called Feud back in November and, turns out, it was pretty good. And this is coming from someone who doesn’t like abstracts. The game was designed by Dave Cordell originally as a tabletop game, but was quickly moved over to the digital realm where it’s a much better fit. Feud should be heading to Early Access fairly soon, but Bearwaves is adding a healthy heaping of goodness before that happens. Oh, and it sounds like an iOS version is coming down the road as well, and they’re looking for testers.

Through the Ages coming to Steam on March 26

March 8, 2018 David Neumann 5

iOS Universal, Android, PC/Mac • If you’ve been reading Stately Play for any length of time you’re aware that my favorite digital–and tabletop, for that matter–board game of all time is Through the Ages designed by Vlaada Chvátil and developed and published by Czech Games Edition. I’ve played more games of TtA online than any other game and it’s not even close. Before the app released, I played dozens of games on Boardgaming Online and, before that, I developed a VASSAL mod and played dozens of games while trying to get that up and working. Since the app released last year, I’ve had 3-5 games going at all times and I’m still not getting tired of it. On March 26 Through the Ages will arrive on Steam for PC/Mac and being able to play it on my laptop while appearing to work will make my life complete.

Gales of Story

March 8, 2018 Kelsey Rinella 7

Tabletop • I recently got an itch to play Sails of Glory, a game which wonderfully illustrates the joys which games, especially historical games, offer outside of the game itself. Sails of Glory puts each player in charge of one or two warships from the age of sail (late 1700s/early 1800s). Turns out, there are an embarrassing array of ways to commit to it, and it was with an eye toward justifying myself that I thought of writing an article on the topic.

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