Gerry's Game Reviews

In the quest to spread myself and my opinions throughout the web, I had to come up with something that would bring others to me. After about ten seconds of brainstorming, my friend Yvette and I came up with the idea of providing reviews of various games. Why me? Why not? Actually, I've been playing games of all sorts for as long as I can recall. My game collection is the envy of many of my friends. I read Games Magazine. I don't work or write for them, mind you, but I'd really like to (though I vow to someday to attempt one of Will Shortz's puzzles on Sunday's All Things Considered on public radio). However, I do work in a retail game store, Boardwalk and Park Place. And I love going to gaming conventions.

This will be an ongoing project, so be patient in its humble beginnings. I will be primarily reviewing "board" and role-playing games, though I may delve a bit into the world of computer gaming and of collectable card games (though, to be honest, the latter has been done by Inquest Magazine, in the May(?) 1997 issue. But who says I have to agree with what they say . . .).

Please be patient while I get my first reviews in. As their number grows, I will begin to catagorize them. In the meantime, I will stick with the games which are I own and those which I have played most recently. If you have a particular game you would like me to research and review, please feel free to email me. And if you're a manufacturer or distributor and would like some initial testing and commenting, I can do that too (and have done so in the past. In fact, tonight I received a demonstration copy of Cooperation, a science-fiction role-playing system from Charles J. Walther. I can't wait to start reading it.).

Well, enough with the introduction. On to the good stuff . . .

Cities of Doom, from Iron Crown Games
Cities of Doom is a two-person game in which the players use various dice--mostly six-sided--to simulate a journeying adventurer. In the basic game, a pre-determined route is set up, consiting of Starting point die, four Landscape dice, and a Destination die. Each player selects a race (human, elf, or dwarf) for his character, and places the Character die and corresponding Weapons dice in his play area. Players then roll from a pool of dice, saving provision faces, magic faces, and monster faces in their play areas as they see fit; the rest are placed in an active area. On a player's turn, if he has a provision in his play area, he may spend it (put it back into the reserve pool) and advance along the route. Here, a monster will be found, whose "value" is determined by the sum of the numbers on the Starting die, that Landscape die, and the Destination die. If his opponent wishes to, he may spend one of his monster faces in his play area and roll his Monster die to increase the monster's value (which corresponds to his toughness). The player may then opt to spend a magic from his play area to make his attack strong. Five attack dice are then rolled and re-rolled in Yahtzee style until the player is defeated by the monster and retreats, or he rolls enough points to defeat the monster. If he is successful, he rolls any remaining dice in his active area to look for book faces. For each one he spends, he rolls a Rune die and finds that corresponding Rune Tablet. Finally, he rolls to stock up for his next movement. If he has no provisions, or simply opts not to continue, he turn ends. The game ends when one player reaches the Destination die with all 6 different Runes. More advanced rules (and more dice) can be used to make the game more comples, such as adding the ability to steal a player's Rules, making monster's more powerful, increasing a player's weapon skill, obtaining better weapons, and the like. Two expansions are presently available, Doom Cubes and Wilds of Doom. You must have the basic set to play, but this set has instructions for all three sets, plus a poster showing all the dice available.

I was a bit skeptical when I first started playing, but this feeling went away quickly. For the most part, the instructions, complete with examples, are very detailed and easy to understand. They are also divided into four sections of rules: start-up, standard, advanced, and optional. The start-up rules get you playing fairly quickly, and after about 2 or 3 games we ready for the standard rules. The game is flexible and lets you use which set of rules you like, or take parts of each. The one thing I really like about this dice game is that it has a logical premise behind it: go out, fight monsters, get treasure, get home. I can relate to this idea much better than that of TSR's Dragon Dice, where the object is to be the first person to flip two eight-sided dice to the 8 side. And for the most part, this is not a collectable dice game. In the basic set there are two dice which are randomly selected (from I think a pool of four), but each has it's own advantage. Since you're somewhat limited in the number of dice you can use at any one time, buying multiple copies of Cities of Doom is unwarrented and quite unnecessary. The cost is $24.95, which is twice as much as Dragon Dice, but you can play many well-balanced games with what you get in the one box. The Doom Cubes booster is $7.95, and you get eight randomly selected dice. This would be the only set you may want to by more than one of. Wilds of Doom is $19.95. Again, a bit high, but you won't need to buy as many. Two people can play a "wilderness" scenario with just one set of Wilds. I only wish the dice were useful outside the game, though what use is a "Get out of Jail Free" card outside of Monopoly? Still, it's a reason to have more dice, and as a gamer, I'll never have enough of those...

Cosmic Encounter, from Mayfair Games
In Cosmic Encounter, each player is an alien race bent on conquest of the universe. Now, let me offer the following caveat: After every sentence, add the phrase, "unless a player has a card or power that says otherwise." Each player has a hand of 7 cards from the Challenge Deck (attack cards, compromises, edicts, flares, and other game manipulatives), a colored home system, twenty tokens to be distributed evenly amongst five home planets, and a randomly selected alien power which will allow him to break (or tremendously bend) a game rule or condition to his advantage (unless a player has a card or power that says otherwise). The object of the game is to establish five external bases in the home system of other players. This is accomplished, basically, though a combat system based on cards. On a player's turn, he will flip a card from the Destiny deck to see the target of his attack. He will then choose a particular planet to attack, and commit 1 to 4 of his tokens to the battle; the defender must defend with whatever tokens are there. Both sides can ask for allies from other players who may also commit 1 to 4 tokens. The two main players will select a Challenge Card to play from their hand and place this card face down in front of them. Cards are flipped up simultaneously. Whoever has the highest numerical total--Challenge card value plus number of tokens--wins (unless a player has a card or alien power that says otherwise. Just checking to make sure you were still doing it). After two successful attacks or one failure, play passes clockwise. The first player who has established 5 external bases wins (and yes, shared wins are allowed).
Okay, you can stop adding the phrase. This is one of my all-time favorite games. It's hard to believe that after playing my first game that I hated it and said I'd never play it again. I'm glad my friends convinced me that that particular session was just awkward for everyone. Nothing in this game is as it seems, and it's very easy to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory (oh, and vice-versa), and for a complex game, everything is pretty much self-explanatory and logical. The alien powers do many different things--allowing the lower combat total to win, giving a player twice as many tokens, allowing a player to look at his opponents Challenge card, changing the victory conditions, switching alien powers, and on and on. The basic Cosmic Encounter set comes with 56 alien powers and enough components for 6 players. The expansion set, More Cosmic Encounter, brings the total number of alien powers to 104. It also includes Reinforcements, which add points to a sides combat total; Comets, which put a twist on how the combat is to be run; Moons that players can establish a base on which don't count for the win but do all sorts of other things; and Lucre--cosmic "money" to buy cards, tokens, or friends. A normal game will last about 2 hours. Depending on what components you decide to play with, it may take 15 minutes. It may take 4 hours. Whatever you're in the mood for. The only reason this game didn't score 6 pips is because the wording on a few of the cards and powers is a bit vague, and it's tough to decide whose power should go into effect first, or what card couldn't be played and why. Sound like a typical Magic: The Gathering argument? You bet. It's easy to see how Magic has it's roots in Cosmic. If you're looking for a low-key introduction to the game, try Simply Cosmic. The rules are the same, but there are only 8 powers in the game. There are also 4 new color systems, so you can combine the two and have a 10 player game (or 12 with the optional rules). Cosmic and More Cosmic retail for $35 each. The original is defintely worth it, while the second is only necessity for those die-hard fans (and there are many out there. See if you can find someone who already has it). Simply is $20, but I recommend this only if you really want the 4 new colors. If you're a new player, go on and invest in the original.

Power Lunch, from Mayfair Games
In Power Lunch, players wheel and deal, talk shop, and gossip at a local posh restaurant. Players are dealt a hand of cards, and the object of the game is to score the most points after three rounds of play. There are five types of cards. Personalities: famous actors, politicians, journalists, leaders, etc. who may or may not be attending lunch at the restaurant. Each has a particular color and number associated with them. Wild Card (the restaurant owner), who may sit at any table. Action Card, whose instructions must be followed when played. Scandal Card, scandals you must deal with as a player. Connection Card, allows a player to discard a scandal. The playing board shows the inside of the restaurant, with a number of various size tables for the personalities to sit at. On a players turn, he must try to meld three or more cards at one of the tables in one of three ways: 1) Meld a run (eg. 7-8-9) consisting of any number of colors, 2) meld cards of the same color, or 3) come up for a reason why those people would be sitting together (such as, Barbara Walters is talking to Whoopi Goldberg and Eddie Murphy about doing a show on African Americans in the movies). In this last case, the other players vote if the meld should take place. Players score points based on the number of cards in the meld and the size of the table. Players can only add cards to existing melds if they can come up with a viable reason why the new person would show up and introduce a new topic. Again, the other players will vote. Action cards allow players to pass any card to the person on their left, a good way to get a scandal card out of their hands. Otherwise, he must have a connection card to discard it. A round is over when a player has melded all his cards.

An interesting idea for a game. However, in order to play it well, you have to be up on your current events. Now, I admit that I don't read a newspaper every day, but there were some personalities in there whom we had no idea who they were (so naturally, we assummed they were politicians or some obscure world leader). Also, it is too easy for other players to simply vote "no" when someone is trying to meld. Often times, I had a hand of personalities in my had, who, in all honestly, would never have reason to be together at lunch, and since in this game you aren't rewarded for creativity, I spent many turns discarding and hoping for a better draw. The art on the cards is in characture style, which does make the game somewhat amusing. There are also optional rules for games of "Power Broker" and "Hollywood Power Broker." At the time of release, Mayfair had plans to release expansions with new personalities, but none have come out in its three years, and the game is slowly becoming out-of-date.

Principia Chaotica, from Monolithic Games
Principia Chaotica is a flexible, multi-genre gaming system, designed to provide a simple, easy to learn framework to emphasize the role-playing aspects of adventure gaming. The simple game mechanism are used consistently throughout the various portions of the system, allowing for more intuitive grasp and easier play. The system is skill and attribute based with each skill being based on the relevant attribute, and with both skills and attributes being rated on an open-ended point system. Skills are automatically improved with successful use, eliminating the need for "experience points". The success of actions and degree of damage are determined by die roll-- primarily six-sided dice. The system also allows for the unexpected to happen with the roll of a twelve-sided die--the "chaos die." Regardless of whether you fail or succeed at a particular action, a roll of 1 or 12 results in . . . well, we'll let the game master decide. The game's optional Magic system is composed of base components, from which the player must construct a spell. This guarantees both balance and a nearly infinite variety of spells. The optional, short section Psionics adds low-power psychic abilities. Perfect for putting a little spice into any fantasy or Sci-fi setting without severely unbalancing it. This second edition also contains a brief supplement for Divine Magic, and master Character sheet on heavy cardstock.

As with most any role-playing system, I think the enjoyment I get out of it is heavily dependent on the creativity of the game master and the players. I have been lucky in this aspect every time I have played. This system also makes it difficult for players to "max/min" characters--squeezing out every advantage and inconsequential disadvantage in order to create the most powerful character in a given party. And in some aspects, the system is a bit more realistic. For example, in many systems, if you don't have a particular skill written on your character sheet, you can't do that skill. This is ridiculous, as anyone can try to do something. Who knows? It may turn out that one-in-a-million chance of something happening happens. This systems allows for this possibility and rewards the character for trying, and if he beats the odds enough times, he may actually learn the skill. Now, I have problems with what happens on the other end of the spectrum. If I've put enough points in a particular attribute and/or a particular skill, rolling dice seems almost irrelevant. Why should a player who rolls 10 on two six-sided dice get to succeed at an action, while another player, attempting to do the same and rolling 10 on eight six-sided dice, fails? Is it possible to be "too flexible?" Maybe.

Quoridor, from Gigamec
Two pawns stand on opposite sides of an 11 by 11 grid, in the center of each player's respective "base line." The object is simple--to reach the base line on the opposing side by moving forward, left, right, or backwards. But there's a catch. Both players are supplied with 10 "walls" which are 2 grid lengths wide. Instead of moving, a player may place a wall anywhere on the grid, the only restriction being that he may not completely block access to his base line. Often times this means his opponent must backtrack like a rat in a maze, searching for the one way out.

For a game with such simple rules, it was very fun to play. And since a typical game lasts about 5 minutes, we had lots of time to try out different stratagies. We played several rounds; often, just when I thought I was in the home stretch, my opponent put a wall in the one spot that would cause me to practically start over. Often times it's a race at the end-- inching closer and closer, pausing only occassionally to consider the best place for that last wall. Quoridor can also be played with 4 players, with each player on one side of the square grid, each supplied with 5 walls. Unfortunately, the version we played, Quoridor Classic costs $35, but it is all wood construction--a refreshing rarity in today's plastic society. I don't know if there's a plastic version available (as with Pyraos), but the game is definitely worth looking into.

Sagarian, from The Sagarian Corporation
Sagarian takes your basic trivia game and makes it playable by all ages at once. Players start out the game with 6 Challenge Cards face down, each with a single question on it. The object of the game is to work your way to the center of the board (the "Fireball") without having any of your cards left. As you work your way in, you have to answer various questions from a variety of subjects and levels. Questions are sometimes scholarly (What is the color of a giraffe's tongue?), sometimes not (Where were you when you learned Elvis was dead?). When you either roll a 6 or land on the same space as another player, you may ask that player one of your Challenge Cards. If he gets it wrong, you may discard that card. If he is correct, you randomly select one of his. Three things make this game unique. 1) If you don't know the answer to a question, the same question is asked to the next player in line. Whoever answers it correctly takes the next turn. 2) The blocking chips. Players a given three chips at the beginning of the game. If, when asked a question, a player doesn't know the correct answer, he may discard one of his chips and take a turn as if he had answered the question correctly. 3) The Black Holes. There's no telling what you will be asked--or asked to do--when you land on these spaces. "What color is your underwear?--Don't look!" "Say, 'Which wrist watch is the Swiss wrist watch' three times fast." Of course, success doesn't necessarily mean you'll get to move forward!

Finally, a trivial game where I don't feel completely unintelligent. I may not be learning as much as in, say, Trivial Pursuit, but I'm having more fun. The rules give everyone a chance to answer another's missed question, keeping more people in play at once. And the blocking chips insure that you will have a turn. However, there are only 800 question supplied. We hit a few repeats the first game we played; a lot more after three games. The Sagarian Corporation plans to release supplements with more questions, but a larger initial pool would be a big improvement.

The Settlers of Catan, from Mayfair Games
In Settlers, players try to develop various parts of a remote island, represented by a random layout of hexagonal tiles which represent various commodoties. A token with a number from 2 to 12 is placed on each hex. On a player's turn, he will roll 2 six-sided dice--the resulting value determines which hexes produce goods. As a player collects the commodoties, he uses them to build roads, settlements, and cities, each with various point values. The first person to reach 10 points wins. Just watch out for the bandit!!

I have yet to come across a person who doesn't like this game. The instructions are well written and humorous at times. Even the assembled "board" itself is quite attractive. A typical game takes about 45 - 60 minutes depending on the number of players present. A single copy of the game is suitable for four players, but reprints of the game come with different colored playing pieces and optional rules for up to 8. My only fault with the game is the $35 price tag. It's a bit high for what you actually get, but you may find yourself playing and enjoying it so much that the price gets overlooked.

Coming Soon

and some of the "classics"

Gerry's Home Page