lost in games

2011 was finally the year when me and my boardgames group finally settled down into a consistent schedule of at least 1 weekly session and on occasion 2.  As a result, we not only managed to play a lot more new games than in 2009 but also replayed some of them a few more times.

The group is also increasing in numbers and i really hope that in 2011 we reach that critical mass of people needed to play games that are best played with more players.  It also increases the likelihood that someone will be available when i want to play a 2 player game.

I was going to write a single post about all the boardgames i played in 2010 but because it would be too long i am going to split it into two parts. The first part is the Boardgames i Enjoyed and the second Boardgames i did not enjoy.

Boardgames i enjoyed

Unfortunately there was not a particular game that i can say i “loved playing” although there were many which i enjoyed. I have put in brackets the number of sessions i played each game.

Dominion (1) - This is one that i bought two years ago after hearing great things about it but never managed to play it. We finally had a session in December this year with Michalis and Martin (2 of my boardgaming buddies) and it proved to be really good. Although i detested the shuffling, especially when in the middle of my own turn, i liked the pace and decision making it required. It seemed that were a lot of different winning strategies one could try and different combos of cards.

It was only 1 game so i am not sure whether it really is that open ended in terms of winning strategies but that was the impression i got. It’s definitely a game i would like to play more often, especially as you can change the available decks and also we don’t play a lot of card games.

Agricola (3) - Similarly to Dominion, i bought Agricola two years ago but only managed to play it late in 2010. It’s very good as well and i liked the theme as it’s different to what we usually play.  The options of what actions to take combined with the occupation/minor improvement cards you hold in your hand can seem overwhelming but it gives the game more replayability i think. It also, again like Dominion, gives me the impression that it allows players to follow different paths to victory.

Galaxy Trucker (3) -  In my search to purchase boardgames that are different to the usual boardgames i already own, i bought on ebay a used Galaxy Trucker. What can i say. I have certainly not played anything like GT before and it’s great fun. The frantic search of components during the building phase and then waiting for those events to take place which slowly destroy the spaceship is truly hysterical at times.

The only issue i might have with the game is that (as many people have said) it will be beatable after several plays. Once you get comfortable with the events and know how to build the spaceship, players that are experienced in GT will be able to finish the journey comfortably. So although i am enjoying it right now and will definitely aim for more playing time in 2011 it’s a game there is a risk that i will stop playing at some point.

Traders of Carthage (3) -  The surprise game of 2010 for me. I wanted a light hearted card game and stumbled upon Traders of Carthage. It’s a wonderful game which i played with 2, 3 and 4 players. The 2 player is considerably more tactical and enjoyable as you have more control of the ships’ movement and what goods you are transporting. Almost perfectly balanced in time, randomness and decision making.

Long Shot (2) -  Both times I played Long Shot (4 player sessions) was with non-boardgamers and we had a great time. It’s a very light game but the theme and components really give you the sensation of a horse race. It’s a game i wish i could play more often with many of my non-boardgamer friends.

Dungeons & Dragons: The Castle of Ravenloft (1) - Castle Ravenloft was the last board game i played this year. I heard great things about it on the GamersWithJobs podcast and decided to take the plunge when i saw that Bookdepository.co.uk was shipping it free to Cyprus. Upon reading the rulebook i was genuinely disappointed as it looked too light and even boring. My worry was that if i did not like it i would find it extremely difficult to sell it if i did not like it since the box i big and very heavy which would mean high shipping costs.

Again i managed to gather 4 non-boardgamer friends and played the 2nd scenario.  It took us 3hrs but it did not feel long at all. It felt like we were in an adventure with our 4 distinguishable (to an extent) heroes. I would agree that it is still light but the experience of playing compensates for it. Like Battlestar Galactica, the rules are not that great, but with the right crowd you can get an awesome experience. This one will see the table often i think because a lot of my friends will be willing to play it.

This is my Top 10 list of 2010.

Although it wasn’t a particularly great year for videogames for me there still were a lot of good titles. Many of the games in my Top 10 are downloadable ones which shows the trend of a decreasing amount of time available to play games.

The highlighted games were released in 2010.

1. Valkyria Chronicles (PS3)

A strategy RPG that largely went unnoticed in 2008 but i finally made the time to play it this year. It proved to be the best game i played in 2010. I loved the brilliant combination of real-time and turn based combat and a great variety of scenarios to enjoy it in. Some battles were large in scale while in others only one character was used to give the player the background stories of the main characters.

Along with the great combat system, came a very satisfying levelling mechanic and the upgrading of equipment using R&D. Gorgeous graphics and artwork, a relatively satisfying story and some interesting characters kept the game’s quality very high throughout its duration.

2. Heavy Rain (PS3)

In my opinion, one of the most important games of recent times and it’s one of the most thought provoking (in terms of what videogames are about) i have ever played.

Why do we play games? What is a game? These are some of the questions that Heavy Rain raised. I have not yet decided whether or not Heavy Rain is actually a game because i am not sure there is not enough gameplay to warrant it. However, since it has managed to make me think as few games do it deserves a lot of praise.

3. Bayonetta (360)

I am not a fan of the genre, but Bayonetta stands tall above the rest of the competition. Even Ninja Gaiden has to take 2nd place when compared to Bayonetta. Pure gameplay joy.

4. Toy Soldiers (XBLA)

The best tower defense game i have ever played which brought back a lot of childhood memories. Me and my toy soldiers….

5. Nier (360)

I really don’t understand why big budget RPGs like Mass Effect 2 get all the love from critics and gamers while this sleeper was given the low scores it received. The most underrated game of 2010 in my opinion. A fantastic cast of characters, superb voice acting and an interesting story. It tries to do some new things in terms of gameplay mixing up shooting, platforming, real-time RPG. Some more successfully than others but it felt fresh. Oh yes, and what a soundtrack it has.

6. Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes (DS)

Addictive as hell, this is now in my Top 5 DS games

7. Halo 3: Reach

It’s just Halo. Just a bloody great one at that.  Halo, is probably the last high profile FPS which does not have a tighly scripted single player campaign. Instead Bungie’s single player combat feels very “organic” where every time you entered into a fight there was almost always something new. Reach was a wonderful end for Bungie and it’s in my top 3 Halos (Halo: Combat Evolved, ODST the other two).

8. Persona 3 (PS2)

It took me 110hrs to complete, frustrating and full of grinding. If i was 15 years younger i might have loved it. Now, i just appreciate it and glad it’s over.

9. Limbo (XBLA)

A game with no tutorial and yet so natural to get into. Marvelous art style, especially the first 1/3 of the game. It loses some of its appeal later on but still managed to be great.

10. Lara Croft: Guardian of Light (XBLA)

The best co-op game of the year.

Other games of note:

The Misadventures of P.B Winterbottom (XBLA) - I was not as good as Braid but it was still excellent.  It just missed the Top 10 list.

Vanquish (360) - very good game but not as good as i wanted/expected it to be.

Enslaved: Odyssey to the West (360) - in terms of gameplay it’s just very average. But the voice acting, facial animations and chemistry of the two central characters set a new benchmark for videogames. If only the last 2/3 of the game was as solid as the first one it would definitely have made m Top 10 list

Biggest disappointment:

Splinter Cell: Conviction (360) i was a big fan of the Splinter Cell series but Ubisoft has taken it to a much more action oriented direction and it’s all the worse for it. It has lost its personality and identity.

I have not written anything for quite some time now but i have missed it. I would also like to take the blog to a less videogame centric direction(the why, is something i will write about).

In the past year or so i have been steadily allocating my time in a more “balanced” manner. In 2009 and especially 2010 i spent a lot more of my leisure time on books, movies, boardgames and also people. I would like to think and write about all of these. Also, one my resolutions for next year is to expand my horizons in general so whenever i am asked to do something new or go somewhere i have not been before i do my best to say yes.

The blog therefore will cover a lot more areas now. I may change the site’s name and domain as well but i have not decided on that yet.

Finally, i do find that writing down my thoughts helps me form a more coherent, clear and structured opinion on certain things that preoccupy me which is something that i would like to improve.

The conclusion of all the above?

The blog is active once again.

Oh how we love the World Cup. It gives us an excuse to consume an obscene amount of alcohol together with lots and lots of chips and nuts while it’s still daylight. It also gives us an excuse to leave work on time (or even earlier)! Maybe extend those lunch breaks as well?

Anyways…

Contest Instructions

In order to celebrate this heavenly event i am inviting you to answer a simple question “Which team will win the World Cup?”.

The winner of the contest can select one of the below games titles which will be mailed to him/her as soon as the World Cup is over. If there are two or more winners then a draw will be made to get the final winner.

1. God of War 3 (PS3)
2. Red Dead Redemption (PS3/360)
3. Alan Wake (360)
4. Heavy Rain (PS3)
5. Splinter Cell: Conviction (360)
6. Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii)
7. New Super Mario Bros (Wii)

more details on how to enter this contest at Onthisisland

Edge claims that it has been told by a trusted source that the video camera-controller, Natal, will be released this October at US$150. If this is true, i think it will prove to be an expensive proposition for most people. It will only be able to capture a very small niche market within the 360 community. Unless of course Natal comes with a really compelling game like Wii did with Wii Sports. LINK

There are rumours flying around that Sony will give the HD treatment to Ico and Shadow of the Colossus (like it did with the God of War series) and release the pack just before the Last Guardian. This is indeed great, great news as Sony did a great job with the God of War collection. I am not sure though thay these two games need the upgrade as much as the GoW did because of their minimalism in design.

The bad news is that according to the rumours the pack will be released in 2011, which means no Last Guardian this year?? LINK

I am playing Dragon Age: Origins on the 360. I was planning on writing a few things about it but i came across Jim Sterling’s review on Destructoid. It’s what i would have wrote if i was any good at this.  We share the same opinion for the game so far so here’s a link to the review. LINK

Hey, it’s Mario!

In 2007 Edge magazine awarded the first Super Mario Galaxy with a perfect 10. Now SMG2 (Wii) has also received a 10 from Edge. It seems that a perfect game has been improved to perfection in the space of two and a half years…..

If you own a Wii, it’s time to dust it off. Mario is the unidisputed game of the week.

360

UFC Undisputed 2010
Blur

PS3

UFC Undisputed 2010
Blur
ModNation Racers
Soldner-X-2: Final Prototype

Wii

Super Mario Galaxy 2
Pirates Blun-Arrr

PC

Blur

DS

Club Penguin: Elite Penguin Force: Herbert’s Revenge
Dawn of Heroes

PSP

Hexyz Force
ModNation Racers

Is that possible? This morning Micromania had a games bazaar at their Nicosia store and had some really good deals. I managed to get 13 games for 120 Euros including Saboteur (360), Little Big Planet (PS3) and Trauma Center (Wii) for just Euros5 each. When you also consider that 1 of them was Euros40 that leaves Euros80 for 12.

Games shops should do these more often to clear out unsold games and also to attract customers (like myself) who usually find their bargains online.

What a wonderful little game this proved to be. Impressive visuals that really suit the theme and some great characters to play with. The interaction of the 4 Wonderland characters you are using with Alice is also really well executed with you helping her out to make big jumps, climb and also protecting her against the Red Queen’s soldiers. The puzzles are well thought out and never frustrating (it is an easy and short game). What is frustrating though is the fiddly and repetitive combat. This is the one big let down in the game.

All in all, i recommend it to practically everyone but especially as a game for a younger audience.