David Neumann

Digital port of Terraforming Mars set to launch on Steam October 17

October 2, 2018 David Neumann 7

PC (for now) • Last year we’d gotten used to Asmodee Digital pumping out so many titles it felt as if a new one arrived each week or so. This year has been a different story. While they’ve had a number of releases (Onitama is fairly fantastic), most of the Asmodee news has focused on the anticipation surrounding two huge board game ports set to release this year: Scythe and Terraforming Mars. Scythe made the leap to Steam last month so all our focus turned to the, hopefully, imminent release of TM. Without a public beta, it’s been tough to discern just when it might be going live, but today we got our answer. We can expect Terraforming Mars to land on Steam for PC on October 17.

Stately Scrying: What we’re playing this weekend

September 28, 2018 David Neumann 14

I didn’t get around to posting our glimpse into the future last week due to a migraine that was delivered directly to my brain from the 6th level of hell. I didn’t do much of anything last Friday but sit in a dark room and pray for death. Come to think of it, replace the dark room with ‘cubicle’ and it kind of describes every Friday. This week we’re back to regale you with prognostications of what we’ll be playing this weekend. If you’re short on time and can’t read through the whole thing, yes, I will be playing more 18xx this weekend. I’m such a wild man.

Color of Madness coming to Darkest Dungeon on all platforms on October 11

September 27, 2018 David Neumann 11

iPad, Switch, Xbox, PC/Mac/Linux • I know Darkest Dungeon has both its fans and critics around these parts (I’m steadfastly in the “fan” category), but even the haters can’t deny that the more big-name PC ports we get on iPad, the better. The downside of not being the game’s primary platform, however, comes with the slow pace of getting new content. We’re all still waiting for Aspyr to release the Rise & Fall expansion for Civ VI on iPad, for example. The latest DLC for Darkest Dungeon, the Color of Madness, was unleashed on Steam back in June but those of us who play on our iPads or Switches were left in the lurch, waiting for any news of its appearance on our platform of choice. Today, that news finally broke. The Color of Madness will be coming to all platforms–iPad, console, Switch–on October 11.

Gorgeous action-RPG, Grimvalor, set to debut on iOS October 10th

September 27, 2018 David Neumann 0

iOS Universal • It’s not often that a game trailer arrives and tricks me the way Grimvalor‘s has. I saw the trailer yesterday on Twitter and immediately wondered if this PC game would be making it to Mac and/or mobile so I’d be able to play it. Little did I realize that, no, it’s not for PC or Mac at all. This is an iOS-only game that looks like it stepped right off the bus to Console-ville. Of course, pretty graphics do not a great game make, so let’s take a look what makes the whole thing tick.

Meteorfall gets demonic

September 25, 2018 David Neumann 5

iOS Universal, Android • Tinder-esque role-playing roguelike, Meteorfall, landed on the App Store back in January like a…um…hmm, something falling from the sky? Can’t think of a good metaphor. It will come to me at some point, I’m sure. Since its release it’s been the recipient of several updates including the massive (and free) Necrodude update which added a new hero, the titular Necrodude. Yesterday another update crashed into Meteorfall like a…jeez, I really just can’t think of anything. Anyway, it’s called the Demon Update and the changes it makes to the game are on the hefty side.

Review: Stockpile

September 19, 2018 David Neumann 16

iOS/Android (out now), PC/Mac/Linux (coming Friday) • There was a time, not long ago, that I dreaded any game that included a stock market mechanism. Something in my brain convinced me that games with stocks and money were the purview of the business-inclined, which I’m definitely not. [For example, look around this website and see how well he’s monetized it. -ed.] Luckily, a little game called Imperial changed my mind and, while I’m terrible at stock games, I discovered that they’re fun as hell. If you’re not aware, stock trading is a (the?) major component of the 18xx family of board games which readers will know I’m currently in love with. Stock games tend to fall into two categories: those that treat stocks fairly realistically and those that don’t. The 18xx games, for example, deal with it somewhat realistically with your stock price rising and falling based on demand and the profitability of your train company. Stockpile falls into the unrealistic camp in which stock prices are randomly in flux. Both are fun, and while I doubt we’ll ever see an 18xx game make its way to our phones, (unless Playdek ever gets around to developing 1846 from GMT) today Stockpile makes its grand entrance on the digital stage.

Stately Scrying: What we’re playing this weekend

September 14, 2018 David Neumann 29

While I know it’s not the most beloved game around these parts, I seem to have fallen pretty hard for One Deck Dungeon from Handelabra. I purchased the Forest of Shadows expansions and promo cards and discovered Quick Play mode which randomly pits one or two adventurers against one of the 10 or so bosses. It’s fantastic. I love learning the quirks of each class and using the hero progression to slowly give them new abilities for the next time they randomly get called to service. I’ve played for hours at a time this week which is not something I’ve done with a video game in quite a while. I bring this up because I will probably be playing it quite a bit over the weekend as well along with a few other things. We’ll all be playing games over the weekend and to see which ones, skip past the jump.

Cities: Skylines releases for Switch (yes, more Switch news)

September 14, 2018 David Neumann 2

PC/Mac/Linux, Switch • Another interesting announcement during the Nintendo Direct that I didn’t watch came from Paradox, makers of all things epic and real-time. Turns out they’re getting in the Switch game as well and their first (and maybe only?) release is the outstanding city builder, Cities: Skylines. The best part is that it wasn’t a tease announcement. No, they were announcing that the game was out for Switch right then and now.

Asmodee bringing a lot more to Switch than just Carcassonne

September 14, 2018 David Neumann 0

Switch • There was a “Nintendo Direct” last night and I’m a bit embarrassed to say that, until last night, I had no idea what a “Nintendo Direct” was. I still really don’t. I mean, I guess it’s when they announce a bunch of stuff, but I have no idea where or how I’d go about watching one. Luckily, I don’t care enough to learn, so it all evens out. This morning, however, Asmodee Digital sent me a press release about their Nintendo plans, and I guess I should maybe pay more attention to these Nintendo Direct things. We already knew they were bringing their version of Carcassonne to Switch at some point down the road. Turns out that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Sequel to Frozen Synapse, creatively monikered Frozen Synapse 2, now available for PC

September 13, 2018 David Neumann 4

Mac/Linux (soon), PC (out now) • When the original Frozen Synapse appeared on the iPad it instantly became one of those “wow” games that you would show off to people who still didn’t grasp what a great game platform the iPad could be. Owen fell in love with its Tron-like graphics and tactical, WEGO turn-based strategy so hard that he finally admitted to sitting on a throne of lies. In other words, it was pretty great. That was 2013, however, and Frozen Synapse has long been relegated to the cloud rather than residing on my tablet. It’s going to stay that way for the foreseeable future, but a new Frozen Synapse is going to be taking up space on my laptop’s hard drive and that’s nearly as good. If you haven’t guessed yet (or not read the headline), Mode 7 has finally released Frozen Synapse 2 for PC.