008. The Cardboard Cartographer issue 8.

Welcome to issue 8 of The Cardboard Cartographer.

Editorial.

In this issue of The Cardboard Cartographer we'll be reviewing 'Terror in Meeple City'.
But first I'd like to thank you for visiting our website!

Each issue we hope to post some news, a game review and talk about topics relevant to table top games, such as mechanics, conventions, Kickstarter and so on.

I'd also like to mention that all opinions in this issue, and all subsequent issues, are those of their respective authors.
Please don't feel like they are a personal attack or an attempt to undermine or void the opinions of others.
Feel free to agree, disagree, debate and discuss, or simply ignore any or all that is written here.
Whatever you do, be civil. Thank you.

If you have any suggestions feel free to comment, email us, or hit us up @TCBCartographer on Twitter.

News.

Origins.

Because of the sheer UK games Expo content in the last issue, we did not get to cover Origins which hit Columbus, Ohio (US) from June 3rd to the 5th.
Origins is similar to the UK Games Expo in so far that it is a board gaming convention with focus on playing games, rather than the larger conventions such as GenCon and Essen which focus more on trading.

As always there was a huge amount of games on show.
If you'd like to check it out, we strongly recommend checking out the Dice Tower's Origins playlist on YouTube, as their coverage of the events was excellent!

Publishers not paying designers.

This issue was first bought to our attention by Board Game Brawl in one of their 'Kickstarter Update' segments.

It has been claimed that Queen games has not honoured numerous contract agreements between a handful of designers including Donald X Vaccarino, Sen-Foong Lim and Jay Cormier; printing their games without the designers permission and without paying the royalties necessary to do so.

In addition to this Martin Wallace has had a similar experience with Eagle-Gryphon Games which has gone very public on Board Game Geek.

For more information on the Queen Games incident, click here to watch the Board game Brawl episode here.

Alternatively read up on each separate case here:
Donald X Vaccarino.

Sen-Foong Lim & Jay Cormier.

For more information about the Martian Wallace vs. Eagle-Gryphon Games incident, there is a thread about it on Board Game Geek.

This is quite distressing news.
As a general rule, the boardgaming community is quite open, fair and friendly.
This kind of controversy brings bad blood to a community that isn't brimming with negativity.

It will be interesting to see how these disputes are resolved, and how the community reacts to it.

We hope for an all round positive resolution so that all parties can carry on making and publishing great games.

Samurai Reprint.

Back in issue 2 we reviewed the out of print Reiner Knizia game, Samurai, published by Rio Grande Games.

Samurai is getting a reprint!


Hot on the heels of another Reiner Knizia game; Tigris and Euphrates, Samurai is being reprinted by Fantasy Flight Games, and is due out in the 4th quarter of 2015.

 For more information head over to the Fantasy Flight Games website.

Kickstarter.

Yet more Kickstarter projects!


Zombicide: Black Plague.

Zombicide: Black Plague is a standalone cooperative boardgame for 1 to 6 players that brings the relentless zombie-killing action of Zombicide into a brand new fantasy setting! Players control a party of survivors as they fight to rid the land of an invasion of zombies controlled by the game itself. Survivors find weapons, learn spells, battle zombies, and gain experience. The more experienced they get, the more powerful they become, but the more zombies rise to face them!

Ending on July 7th 2015,'Zombicide: Black Plague,' by Cool Mini or Not has so far smashed it's funding target.
Initially looking for $125,000 the project has achieved over $2,300,000.
Success isn't unknown to the Cool Mini or Not team; Zombicide Season 2 and 3 both surpassed $2.5 million.

For those of you unfamiliar with Zombicide, Cool Mini or Not originally Kickstarteted this game back in May 2012.
Black plague is their 18th project, all of which have been hugely successful.

The game is a cooperative one where players use their skills and weapons to fight their way through huge hordes of zombies to achieve a certain goal.
Zombicide: Black Plague brings a fantasy setting to Zombicide, tweaking the game along the way.
The game adds enchanted weapons, spells and armour.

The jury is out on how playable Zombicide is as a game, but it's success and popularity is undeniable.
Simply put: If this is your kind of game, there is no reason this shouldn't excite you.

It adds a nice twist to an established system.
The Fantasy theme really comes across quite well through the cards, characters and their well crafted miniatures.

There is no questions over reliability.
This project has been funded, and they will deliver.
By now Cool mini or Not are seasoned Kickstarter veterans.
If there are problems they will deal with them, so there should be no worries here.

With so many games like this on Kickstarter, my main gripe is 'why is this here?'

Zombicicde is hugely successful.
I can understand why the first iteration back in 2012 took to Kickstarter, but now some 3 years later, it is an established company with a product that will shift a ton of units.

It does not need Kickstarter in any way.
They clearly understand this too, as their stretch goals go all the way up to $2.4 Miilion.

Another gripe I have is concerned with the manner of these stretch goals.
The entire Zombicide franchise is plagued with Kickstarter only backer rewards unlocked via stretch goals; adding additional characters, missions, miniatures and so on.
These will be in limited supply once the projects funds, and after each campaign, they have been sold separately for extortionate prices.

I know this is not Cool Mini or Not's fault directly, but these kind of rewards encourage this behaviour.

I personally am not a fan of this.
Limited rewards are meant to be just that; rewards.
Giving something back to people who genuinely have an interest in the game and not just something for someone to make some quick money on.

Personally, I'm not sold on Zombicide.
The game works well enough but it relies heavily on theme over mechanics, with a heavy focus on flooding the gameboard with miniatures to add any feeling of tension or engagement.


Apotheca: The Secret Potion Society.


Across the land, an invitation has summoned the most clever apprentices: a chance to enter the secret potion society. The cutthroat members, the Apothecaries, have grown too savvy of each other's schemes. They've chosen you to compete in their black market game! Conjuring powerful magic and deception, outwit your adversaries, and you too might join Apotheca.

Ending on July 10th 2015, 'Apotheca' by Knapsack Games has achieved more than double its $20,000 funding goal, sitting at just over $45,000 at the time of writing.

Apotheca is a game for 1-4 players which focuses around making potions.
Players take it in turn to perform 2 of the 4 available actions; Reveal, Power, Restock or Hire.

The Restock actions allow a player to take two potions, look at what they are and place them face down on the board.

The Reveal action allows players to reveal 1 face down potion card on the game board, and collect the corresponding gem.
These Gems are in turn used when performing the Hire action.

Hiring allows a player to gain extra apothecaries, granting them additional powers.
Powers are unique to each Apothecary meaning the more hired, they more versatility a player has.

Apothecaries are the key to winning to the game; the object of game is to satisfy 3 apothecaries by making matches on the game board.
Matches are horizontal or vertical rows of at least 3 face up potion cards of the same colour on the board.
Once a match is made, those potions are removed from the board and placed on a player Apothecary.
This Apothecary is now satisfied.
This provides the player with 1 point towards victory, but at the same time stops the player from using its power in the future.

This game is really well put together.
The rules are simple and easy to understand, meaning the game isn't complicated or hard to learn.
Due to this the game is straightforward to play, making it really accessible to all types of player.
The hidden potion deployment as part of the Restock action gives the game some depth and room for passive player interaction; having a bit of bite without any outward aggression.

This is only Knapsack's second Kickstarter project, and you wouldn't know it from the quality of this project and how well it is presented.
Andrew Federspiel has spent an outrageous amount of time researching just what makes a Kickstarter campaign tick; how to present it, how funding levels should be tiered, the type and level of backer rewards and stretch goals and so much more.
Due to this level of commitment to the project, I have no doubt they will deliver on their commitments; any delays or problems will probably come from manufacturing.

Apotheca is a project we'd happily back because of how much effort has gone into the game and the campaign.
For these reasons it is our pick of the issue.
Though if you're unconvinced there is a print and play version available, as well as a pdf of the rules available, so you can try it out in advance.

Mare Nostrum - Empires.


'Mare Nostrum - Empires' is a French language board game classic designed by Serge Laget that is being re-introduced by Academy Games and Asyncron. This expanded title includes updated rules, counters, and map board, many new components, and multiple new ways to win!'

Ending on July 5th 2015, 'Mare Nostrum - Empires' by Academy Games has completely destroyed its funding goal of $15,000, raising over $425,000 with days to spare.

Mare Nostrum is empire building meets area control, very reminiscent of 4 ex strategy games.
It is what I imagine would happen if you crossed a game like Sid Meirs Civilization with a territory control game like Game of Thrones.

The project page does touch on some aspects of how the game works, but doesn't go into great detail.
As it doesn't have downloadable rules or a gameplay video it is hard to tell how well the game actually plays.

The way the board is laid out seems similar to a Kickstarter project we looked at in issue 2 called Hands In The Sea. - http://thecardboardcartographer.blogspot.co.uk/2015/03/002-cardboard-cartographer-issue-2.html
Where Hands in the Sea's visuals were 'dull, dated and just not visually pleasing in the slightest,' Mare Nostrum is the complete opposite.
Everything looks well designed and polished ; the components are clean, visually distinct and look set to be of decent quality when made.

The game also comes with summary sheets; a feature I'd like more games to have.

Academy games have put out two fairly successful Kickstarter campaigns prior to this including Fief - France 1429 and Freedom: The Underground Railroad, so have decent experience with this type of project.
The Fief Kickstarter especially would had provided a wealth of experience as like Mare Nostrum it did exceptionally well.
This did cause delays, and as such is something they will have planned for this time around.

I'd like to talk more about it, but there isn't much that can be said due to the lack of gameplay explanation, rulebook or related media.
Certainly something worth checking out if these types of games are interesting to you.

'Terror in Meeple City' Review by 'DarkHaZZl3.'


Google - Fu.

Terror in Meeple City (Formerly known as Rampage) is a dexterity game for 2- 4 player, in which players collect sets of Meeples.
Designed by Antonie Bauza and Ludovic Maublanc, the game was originally publish under the name Rampage by Repos Production in 2013. Due to the similarities between the boardgame and the arcade game of the same name, Repos changed the name to Terror in Meeple City in 2014.

For more information head over to the Terror in Meeple City page on the Repos Production website.

Alternatively you can check out their page on Board Game Geek.

Contents and Impressions.


• 4 body pawns,
• 4 Paws tokens,
• 4 Mouth/ Stomach player screens,
• 16 Teeth Tokens,
• 1 City Board (in two parts),
• 1 Runaway board (double-sided),
• 90 Meeples (15x6 colours),
• 4 Vehicles,
• 19 Floor Tiles (12 small squares, 6 rectangles, 1 large square),
• 48 Monster cards (16 Characters, 16 Powers, 16 Secret Superpowers),
• 1 reference sheet.

The visual style of this game really jumps out at you.
All the components are big, bold and colourful and the art style is the same.

The art style is very cartoon-esq.
Despite this style there is actually quite a lot of attention to detail .

For example, the details on the players screens match the details on their corresponding pawns.


The purple dragon's pawn has an earring as does it's player screen and the floor tiles all have little details on them.


There is a game of Cash & Guns being played in one, a pokéball in another.
I also like how the game comes with a sticker sheet to make the Meeples more interesting.


It might not seem important, but details like this are a really nice feature.
You get the feel that a lot of time and effort has gone into the game, and that is a somewhat satisfying feeling.


All these game pieces; the cardboard floor tiles, the game board and the wooden pawns are fairly sturdy, as they have to be, but it really adds a sense of quality.


The rules are fairly clear, simple and well laid out, and the reference sheet is extremely helpful as the cards don't explicitly explain what they actually do.


Despite this the cards are all pretty cool.
The artwork is colourful and has a sense of humour.


The overall impression you get before you've even played the game is that it doesn't take itself too seriously, and wants you to have fun with it.

Game Play.

The objective of Terror in Meeple City is to gain the most victory points by the end of the game, which last until the last building has been destroyed.
Players do this by taking turns to perform various actions to knock down buildings and eat their inhabitants.

The set up Terror in Meeple City is always the same with more monster for more players.
In addition there are two runaway board options to change up the game.

To set the game up, Meeples are drawn at random and placed onto the Meeple icons on each of the ruins and then a floor is added on top of them.
This process continues until each building has three floors, with the middle building being the exception.
Players then pick a monster and place its corresponding pawn on its paws in one of the four corners.

In this example the game is set up for two players, using side B of the runaway board.


Players are then dealt a Character card, a Power card and a Secret Superpower card.

The Character card gives the player a goal for the game that provides them with additional victory points when scoring.


The Power card allows a player to perform a unique action.


The Secret Superpower card allows a player to use one off unique action.


The Secret Superpower card remains a secret, however the other two cards are played face up for all to see.

Once this is all done, the game is ready to be played.

It is worth noting at this point that the game board is broken down into 'areas.'
These are distinctly marked with boarders around them and are also different colours to help them stand out form each other.
It should also be noted that if any part of a piece is touching an area it counts as in that area, which means pieces can be in more than one area at once.

Players take it in turns to perform 2 from the 4 available.
These can be in any combination and in any order.

The 4 actions are Move, Breathe, Demolish and Toss a Vehicle.


To move, a player removes their pawn from their paws, and flicks the paws token in the desired direction.
Wherever the paws end up is where the move ends and the player place their pawn back onto their paws.



If the controlling player knocks over another players pawn by doing this, the controlling player takes one of the now prone players teeth and places it behind their player screen.
The prone player pawn remains that way until it is their turn.


In this example the Purple player has knocked down the Blue players pawn while using a move action.
The purple player then places one of the Blue players teeth tokens behind their player screen.


In addition to this, if a player flicks their paws off the game board they lose one of their own teeth, which is returned to the box.


If the player has another action, the player places their paws in one of the corners and continues their turn.
If it was their lats action then that player remains off the game board until their next turn.

To perform a Breathe action a player place their chin on top of their player pawn and simply blows.
Carnage ensues.

To perform a Demolish action a players paws must be touching a pavement which surrounds the buildings on the game board.
The player then picks up their pawn and drops it onto the building from anywhere above the building.



If the player somehow manages to miss the building entirely, they lose 1 tooth which is return to the box.

To perform a Toss action, the player must be in the same location of the board as a vehicle.


The player then places the vehicle on top of their player pawn and flicks the vehicle off in a chosen direction.



If while performing any of these actions a Floor Tile has no Meeples on top of it then the player whose turn it is gets to take that tile and put it behind their player screen.

Also, if at any point during their turn a Meeple is knocked off of the game board it 'runs away' and is placed on the Runaway board.


Once the threshold of Meeples is reached its effect is activated. These are different for each different Meeple type and also vary depending on which Runaway board is being used.


Once a player has performed two actions they then get to eat Meeples.

Players can only eat Meeples who are not touching/ partially touching a building.
In addition to this a player can only eat as many Meeples as they have teeth.
Players start with 6 teeth, and will minimum have two teeth (these cannot be knocked out).
To eat Meeples a player picks 1 location they are in and eats as many Meeples as they are allowed to following the above rules.


In this example the Purple player can eat the Red Meeple and the Yellow Meeple from the location they are standing in.

These Meeples are then placed behind the players screen.


The game continues in this fashion until the last floor ties is removed.


The current player finishes their turn, and then each other players get to take one more turn.
Once this is done the game is over.

Players then calculate how many points they have earned.

10 points are awarded for each set of Meeples collected.
A set of Meeples is 1 of each colour.
Each floor tile is worth 1 points and the teeth taken from other monsters is worth 2 points per tooth.
In addition to this, players may score additional points depending on their Character card.


In this example Purple has won the game.
The blue player has 17 points; 10 for a complete set of Meeples and 7 for the floor tiles they've consumed. They did not achieve their Character card's goal of eating the most Green Meeples.
Purple player has 38 points; 20 for 2 complete sets of Meeples, 1o for the floor tiles consumed and because of their character card, 8 points for the teeth they've taken from the other player.



There are a lot of little extra rules as a result of the various cards and variations on how to play.

If you want to know more about these, or read the rules for yourself, you can download the rules from the Repos Production website.

Personal Opinion.

Terror in Meeple City is not a game you're going to play all of the time.
It is not a deep, heavy strategy game.

It is simply a fun, family friendly game.

Personally, I am not a fan of dexterity games.
When I first played this game I was very apprehensive because of that.
One of the reasons I think this game is quite good is all throughout my first game, in spite of my apprehension, I was giggling like an idiot.

The simple rule system and absurdity of flicking tokens and dropping pawns allow for the game to provide a funny, enjoyable and thoroughly entertaining experience.
The first time someone tries to blow down a building, or drops a pawn on a building is always a great moment as Meeples go flying in every direction.

Because of this game and the amount of fun I have playing it, I have decided to give dexterity games another chance.
So take that as you like.

The main downside of this game is obvious.
Pieces literally fly off in all directions, and it is extremely easy to lose pieces because of this.

When you first get the game some assembly is required.
None of the pawns or Meeples have sticker on them, and sticking them all on is a tedious process.
I can look past it as it is a one time problem.

Another problem is the 'sticky' ruin tiles.
To raise the buildings from the game board, you have to stick ruin tiles over the ruin locations on the game board.
The adhesive quality of these tiles is terrible.
I ended up super gluing mine on as it was a better alternative.

Another little gripe I have is that during set Meeples are to be drawn at random, but no opaque bag is supplied.
Again, it isn't a major thing, I just feel it would just make the game a more complete package.

Re-playability is also a potential issue.
The game is a simple, light and fun.
Unfortunately that means it lacks depth and diversity in terms of game play.
While the different card combinations do switch it up a bit, I don't feel it is a significant enough change to extend the games longevity.

While this may be a problem for some, I personally am fine with it.
The game is not designed to be that type of experience; it is lighthearted, fun and not really serious in any way.


Overall I think Terror in Meeple City provides a really fun gaming experience, is very pretty to look at and if it sounds like something you'd enjoy I'd happily recommend you pick up a copy.

Expansions, Reprints and Different Versions.

The first edition of Terror in Meeple City was called Rampage.
Other than the name there are no differences between the two.

There is a mini expansion available for Rampage/ Terror in Meeple City called 'Rampage: The Space Cowboys.'
Image courtesy of Board Game Geek
This mini expansion adds track for the Grey Meeples whilst playing side B of the runaway board.
Unlike all the other tracks the Grey Meeples reward the player that knocked them off.

The availability of this expansion is questionable, but can a print and play file can be purchased from the Repos Production web store.

Alternatively you can download and lower quality version for free from Board Game Geek.

Considering it costs very little, or nothing, it is certainly worth picking up.


Digital Spotlight.

As far as we're aware there doesn't exist an app, digital version or tabletop simulator version of Terror in Meeple City.

That being said, you can always play the classic Rampage arcade game!
http://game-oldies.com/play-online/rampage-nintendo-nes#

Outro.

What did you think of this issue? Pro's, Con's?
Did any other Kickstarter projects grab your attention?

Have you played Rampage/ Terror in Meeple City?
What do you think?

Are you a fan of dexterity game or not?

Feel free to comment on this post, or alternatively hit us up on Twitter @TCBCartographer.

Thank you for reading this issue of The Cardboard Cartographer, until next time!

002. The Cardboard Cartographer issue 2.

Welcome to issue 2 of The Cardboard Cartographer.

Editorial.

In this issue of The Cardboard Cartographer we'll be reviewing Samurai.
But first I'd like to thank you for visiting our website!

Each issue we hope to post some news, a game review and talk about topics relevant to table top games, such as mechanics, conventions, Kickstarter and so on.

We had some logistical problems with this issue.

Firstly, the Gama trade show happened the week before this issue was due to be published.
In addition, we attended Birmingham Comic Con and Memorabilia the same weekend.
As news from Gama filtered in throughout the week, and Comic Con takes up a whole weekend, a great deal was done on the day of uploading, instead of well in advance.
 
A bit of a nightmare.

While Birmingham Comic Con isn't a boardgame heavy event, Esdevium Games, part of the Asmodee group, were there giving attendees the chance to try out some of their games.
Which was awesome!

There just isn't enough time to cover Gama and Comic Con in the same issue, so we'll come to that next time.
In the meantime, enjoy this picture form the weekend!


As always, if you have any suggestions feel free to comment, email us, or hit us up @TCBCartographer on twitter.

News.

GAMA Trade Show.

GAMA Trade Show 2015; the first big boardgame convention of the season.
With the likes of Fantasy Flight games, Wizards of the Coast, AEG, Steve Jackson games and many more featured there was bound to be some exciting news.
The GAMA trade show has so much going on that listing everything would be ridiculous. So here are our standout announcements of the show.

Fantasy Flight Games gave an outline of the state of their business showing a continuation of fairly sharp growth, and went into the technical details of their recent merge into the Asmodee Group. As well as this they announced a huge amount of new products.
FFG have extended their Start Wars license agreement, meaning that they can keep pumping out Imperial Assault miniatures as well as new ships for X-Wing and Armada. In addition to this it means they can also create products based around the 7th film in the series.
In more FFG star Wars related news, Star Wars: Force and Destiny was announced. The third installment completes FFG's Star Wars RPG trilogy.
Another big Sci-fi announcement coming from FFG is Forbidden Stars.
Forbidden Stars is another Warhammer 40,000 big box game that combines both the ground and space aspects of 40k in one combat heavy game.
The game is about galactic conquest with direct player interaction across the board. Asymmetric player powers and Starcraft/ Twilight Imperium style combat system ensures that Forbidden Stars is going to be a frenetic experience.
Fantasy Flight games also announced that Tigris and Euphrates will ship with the original version of the game as well as new gaming options, meaning fans of the original game don't have to play a system they are uncomfortable with. While it isn't a huge announcement it is a nice addition.

Steve Jackson Games, publishers of Munchkin had a myriad of announcements too.
Almost exclusively in regards to Munchkin.
Not only will SJG will be releasing a new Munchkin version; Munchkin; The Nightmare Before Christmas, but it also has allowed Renegade Game Studios to produce Munchkin trading Cards. This may seem like an odd choice, but it fits the Munchkin sales model extremely well.

A handful of games currently on Kickstarter were also featured; above and Below by Red Raven games amongst them. Which will be hitting stores in Q4.
Another game that was recently on Kickstarter that caught our attention was Parfum by Queens games. A very arty, simple game about making perfume. Another game to look out for when the retail versions its shelves.

There is a ton more stuff. We recommend you check it out if you're interested in what will be hitting stores this year.

Cards Against Originality.

Since 2011 Cards Against Humanity has taken the world by storm. It is a game that almost everyone has heard about.
Due to the creators opting for Cards Against Humanity to be available under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 2.0 license (meaning you can use, remix, and share the game for free, but you can’t sell it without permission), it has seen many web and app based adaptations.
The vast majority of these are terrible.

Enter 'Cards Against Originality'; a new, free web app of the game that works on computers, tablets and smart phones. 

The difference between this and the adaptations out there is that  you 'need' to be in the same room to play, just like the card game.
Functionally it works quite well, and honestly, with software like Google hangouts and Skype I'm not convinced you 'need' to be in the same room.
If you want to try it out for yourself head over to http://cardsagainstoriginality.com
 

Kickstarter.

Another two weeks have gone by, and another swathe of Kickstarter projects have been launched, as well as coming to an end.
Here is a smattering of what stood out in my opinion.

Myth Journeyman.
 

'Myth is a cooperative game for 2 to 5 players developed and published by MegaCon Games. Blackwall Warrens and the Shores of Kanis expand and update the world of Myth with Journeyman Heroes, terrifying new monsters, exciting new weapons and armor sets, and a revised rule set and cards.'

Ending on March 29th 2015, Myth: Journey man by MERCS Miniatures is over 500% of their funding goal at the time of writing.
It is exactly what it says in the description; new modules for the existing Myth game. With revised rules, new miniatures and a swathe of new features it hopes to build on the success of previous Myth campaigns.
The original Myth campaign clocked in at $926,112 from 5,360 backers. That is 2,315% of the original $40,00 funding target!
All of this sounds great. New stuff, tweaks to old stuff from a company that has done this before.

Before the excitement and optimism gets too carried away, some issues need to be addressed.

In issue 1 I stated my concern over Kickstarter projects with lots of mini's.
Well Myth is one of the reasons why.
Yes, Myth smashed it's funding goal. The first part was done well, no one can really argue about that. The issue arises with backer fulfillment.
Now, there is always a risk when it comes to backing projects via Kickstarter. If something bad happens you chalk it up to experience and move on.
Lesson learned.
Well Myth's original campaign was just that. Bad.
The fulfillment process was littered with problems; very, very late delivery of rewards, warped miniatures, missing pieces, and a pretty much unfinished rule book.
If you want to hear a great explanation of why I'm planning to skip over anything Myth related, check out the 'Board Game Brawl Kickstarter Update' made for 'The Dice Tower's Board Game Breakfast.'

Hands In The Sea.

'Hands in the Sea is a two-player deck building war game set during the First Punic War between Rome and Carthage from 264-241 BC. Each player uses their deck of cards to perform up to two actions per round. Actions range from colonization, to naval movement, to battle, with most activity centred in Sicily, Sardinia, and Corsica. Players may also purchase additional cards to bolster their decks and provide them with more choices. There are also Strategy cards that players can purchase to give them additional advantages. The game is played over the course of several turns, up to a maximum of twelve. At the end of each turn, players resolve random events, collect income and score victory points. There are several paths to victory, from simply having the highest score at the end of the game, to capturing the opposing player's capital.'

Ending on March 25th 2015, Hands in the Sea by Knight Works sits at 133% of the initial funding goal.
This game is one of those games that has a great deal of detail and various small rules that make it very complex to understand in a quick glance.
If you want to know more about the game, check out Board Game Brawl's video preview of the game.
It is the best overview we've found of the game.

It is hard to tell what kind of game Hand in the Sea will be.
Board Game Brawl suggests it bridges the gap between board gamers and war gamers.
Personally I've found games that try to do that get lost in the void between the two.
It honestly could go either way.

Focusing on what we know for certain is that Knight Works hasn't made anything as of yet that has really grabbed the headlines. One of their previous Kickstarter projects, 'Forged in Steel,' was a Kickstarter Staff Pick, but excitement for the game has subsequently faded into the background.
That may be down to order fulfillment hitting around winter this year, which seems like an extremely long time.

I don't think Hands in the Sea's cause is helped by a extremely poor visual style. The project artwork that is displayed at top of the project is fantastic.

The problem is that the project is almost over and this is what they are trying to sell to you.


The game looks like it was designed using Microsoft paint and word 1995, which would be fine for an initial prototype, but this is for intents and purposes the final product.
Additionally the 'upgraded components' unlocked as stretch goals are not enticing at all.
Everything else is dull, dated and just not visually pleasing in the slightest.

The jury is out on this one.

Alien Frontiers Big Box.

'Alien Frontiers was funded on Kickstarter back in 2010. Since then, this gripping game of colonizing an alien world has grown to include two major expansions: Factions and Outer Belt, along with a galaxy of other fun additions. To celebrate, we've collected them all into the new Alien Frontiers Big Box. If you haven't played or always wanted to get into Alien Frontiers, this may be your discount ticket to Planet Maxwell.'

Ending on March 26th 2015, Alien Frontiers Big Box by Game Salute currently sits a few thousand over their $45,786 funding goal at the time of writing.

This is the Big Box edition of Alien Frontiers.
That means it contains the game and every expansion and add on ever released for the game. Nearly $250 worth of product for $125 is always something worth noting, especially when you consider the rave reviews Alien Frontiers has.
In 2010 the game won The Dice Tower awards for 'best game of the year,' 'best game designer,' and 'best small publisher.' As well as MTV geek top toy of 2012, and the 'Dice Hate Me game of the year.'

That is a lot of praise.
The game looks good and seems to play very well. With all the expansions you certainly have plenty of bang for your buck.
Again, in issue 1 we talked about Empire of Ages, another project where the publisher has done a similar thing.
Games Salute may well be a small publisher, but it is a successful one. Much Like Eagle Gryphon Games.
I find myself asking if this really needed to be Kickstarted.
Indeed, everything Alien Frontiers has been launched via Kickstarter.
Yes, it mitigates risk, but that is part and parcel of being a business, especially one that has consistently provided a quality product for 5+ years.

Regardless of my beliefs on Kickstarter ethics, this is certainly one to look at, if you can afford the large price tag and postage.
It is one heavy board game that's for sure.

Above and Below.

'Above and Below is a mashup of town-building and storytelling where you and up to three friends compete to build the best village above and below ground. In the game, you send your villagers to perform jobs like exploring the cave, harvesting resources, and constructing houses. Each villager has unique skills and abilities, and you must decide how to best use them. You have your own personal village board, and you slide the villagers on this board to various areas to indicate that they've been given jobs to do.'

Ending on March 26th 2015 Above and Below by Red Raven Games is floating around 486% of their funding goal at the time of writing.

If Hand in the Sea is dull and drab, Above and Below is anything but.
Ryan Laukat is both the designer and artist, and has done an amazing job on the visuals.
The game is extremely visually pleasing; fantastic artwork that is stylistic and simplistic at the same time.
Great colour combinations make everything blend well together, but stand out enough to be clear and easy to understand.

Great visuals don't always make for a great game. Above and Below doesn't seem to have that problem.
The game seems to be a cross between a Civilization building game, and a choose you own adventure game.
On the face of it the game seems extremely simple, but the game maintains a decent level of complexity through various player choices. In addition Above and Below creates a lot of character through exploring and the events that happen as a result of that.
We suggest you check out the game play run through.

Needless to say, Above and Below is this issue's stand out game on Kickstarter.

'Samurai' Review by DarKHaZZl3.

Google - Fu.

Samurai is a tile laying, area control/ enclosure game for 2 - 4 players, designed by Reiner Knizia and Published by Rio Grande Games in 1997. Samurai is one of three games in the community named 'Knizia tile laying trilogy' alongside 'Tigris & Euphrates' and 'Through the Desert.'
Unfortunately the game is currently out of print, but can still be found via various online outlets.

If you'd like to know more, you can check out Rio Grande's Samurai webpage.
Alternatively head over to the Samurai page on Board Game Geek.

Contents and Impressions.

• 39 Figures:
• 13 High Helmets,
• 13 Buddhas,
• 13 Rice Fields,
• 80 Tokens (20 x 4 Colours),
• 4 Player Screens,
• Game board (Japan in 4 Parts),
• 1  Rule Book.

I love the box art.
Strong, bold colours and very thematic.
Once you open the box everything is the complete opposite.

Gone is the bold style and grand, thematic artwork, replaced by almost pastel colours and very simplistic graphics.
While it is rather bland, it actually suits the game fairly well.


The game board is a 4 piece map of old Japan broken down into 4 provinces.
If you look at the board as a map then the visual style makes sense. It fits in with ancient maps of Japan in style.


The player screens are probably the most recognisably Japanese themed pieces in the form of Shoji screens.


The player tokens also have simple visuals. The bold colours are reserved for these pieces to help make them stand out on the game board. A function they perform well enough.

The acrylic figures all mimic black glass, a such a lot of the detail is lost. However, they are distinct enough in shape for players to be able to tell them apart.

The rule book is what it should be; simple and easy to understand.
Having said that, there is literally no flavour text to build up theme.
So if you like a bit of story or role playing in your games, be aware that you won't be finding that here.

Overall, the game is inoffensive to look at and while it is quite a bland affair it sort of suits the game.
Even with that in mind, you're not going to rate it in your top ten visually pleasing artwork.
That said, great artwork and visuals do not guarantee a good game.
Personally, I'd take a game that plays well and is enjoyable over something beautiful any day.

Game Play.

The object of the game is to capture the most figures in a certain way; this will be covered a little more in depth later one.
To do this players take turns to deploy their tokens to exert influence over certain locations containing these figures.

This set up of this game is dependent on the number of players.
In this example we have two players.


To set up the two piece region of Honshu is set out.

Players then simultaneously select five of their tokens (by choice or randomly) and shuffle the remaining tokens and place them face down beside their screens.

Players then place one of each of the figures in the Capital; Edo.
After this players take it in turns placing a figure in cities until each city contains two figures that are different.
They then take turns placing figures in each of the villages until each village contains a single figure.


When all figures have been placed on the board, the game begins.



During in each turn a player will select one or more tokens to place from the five they have behind their screen to place on the board to exert influence over the figures on the board.

The tokens are broken down into a handful if different varieties.


These tokens match the three different figures. The higher the number, the more influence it exerts on the matching figure. These can only be placed on land.

These tokens are neutral; they influence every figure they are next to. The Samurai can only be placed on land, while the ships can be only be played in the sea.


This token is the Token Exchange. When this token is played it takes the place of a token you have already played, which the player immediately places that token elsewhere on the board.


This token is the Figure Exchange. When played a player can, but doesn't have to, swap any singular figure on the board with any other singular figure on the board, so long as it doesn't break the rules regarding figure placement in set up.


Finally, some tokens have a Kanji symbol on the same side as the symbol dictating its power. A kanji means that this can be played for free. In essence it allows a player to play more than one token per turn. Note; a player doesn't have to play more than one token.

Players take turns doing this in an attempt to capture figures.


A figure is captured when it has been surrounded on land.


When this happens, the player exerting the most influence on that figure take sit and places it behind their player screen.


If there is a draw between two or more players the figure is placed beside the board and cannot be claimed.


However, with this example, a player could utilise the ability of the ship which has a Kanji on to sneak in and claim the figure.



Another more complex example is when multiple players are influencing multiple figures.


In this example each player adds up the total influence they exert over each figure and compare them.

Red exerts a total of 9 influence on rice paddy, while Blue only exerts 5. Red captures the rice paddy.
Red exerts 2 influence on the Buddha, while Blue exerts 9. Blue captures the Buddha.
Red exerts 2 influence on the High Helmet, while Blue exerts 5. Blue Captures the High Helmet.
This happens because the Samurai token influences all figures, making them very valuable.


Players continue in this manner until the last figure of any single type is captured, which signals the end of the game.


Players then score their figures.

In this example Blue is the winner.
Red has captured the most High Helmets, However Blue has captured the most Buddhas and the most Rice paddies making blue the immediate winner.

The scoring is very specific when it comes to deciding who has one in more complex outcomes.
For example, if Both players have captured the 'most' of one type, this qualifies them for victory.
Those players then add together their other figures. The player with the most of these wins.
If both players have equal 'other' figures, then the player with the most total figures wins.
If players are still tied, then the game ends in a draw.

If you want to check out the rules for yourself then you can head over to Rio Grande's website; alternatively click here to download.

Personal Opinion.

In a market filled with micro games and heavy euro's some people will look at this and skip over it.
Others will look at the almost complete lack of theme in this game and do the same.

I honestly think that that would be a huge loss on their part.
Samurai is deceptively simple; the visuals and rules do not allude to how cerebral this game really is.

The game has great depth in terms of strategy and tactics.
Havering a game plan and sticking to it means you'll rack up certain figures quickly in the early game, but other players will then move to contain that momentum.
On the other hand, being too balanced will result in you not having enough of one type of figure to qualify for victory.
Knowing when to change up your play style is key to winning the game.
What makes this game really enjoyable is that this will be different in every game you play.
The distribution of the figures, the tiles you chose to start with, the moves other players make and when give this game a different structure every time without being too random.

Another nice things is that the game is quick and easy to set up, and assuming everyone knows how to play, relatively quick to play.

That being said, I have two main criticisms about the game.

Firstly, other than drawing random tokens to refill your hand, there is very little luck. This can be frustrating for new players.
I don't see this as a huge problem.
If you are a fan of strategy games you will pick this game up very quickly.
If you are not, the rules and mechanics are relatively simple to pick up, even for inexperienced gamers.

Secondly is how the game plays depending on the number of players.

In a two player game you have a single defined opponent. In a game all about area control and capturing pieces it is hard to out manoeuvre a single opponent who knows exactly how many pieces a player has at any given time.

In a four player game I feel the lack of luck is a more telling factor.
The Maths is simple. 4 players and 3 types of figures.
Someone will lose out.
With three types of figures it is reasonable to expect that at the very least two players will fight for control over the same type of figure from the outset, leaving the other two to dominate a type of figure each.
If this happens it is very hard for the two players who have fought over one type of figure to catch up with those who have not.
At best this can lead to great meta type game, where players change up tactics and targeting different players.
At worst it can separate the players into a top two, bottom two scenario.
Nothing is worse than playing a game with the sole purpose to not come last.

This is why I recommend Samurai be played with three players.

With 3 players and 3 figure types there is technically enough room for each player to claim one type of figure each.
This transforms the game into a much more strategic and brutal one.
It is now up to each player to actively ruin each other players plans to win.
There is a greater impetuous to achieve a balance between attacking other players and gaining figures for yourself.
It makes the game even more cerebral and tactical.

When you win a three player game you feel as if you 100% earned it.

Overall I still strongly recommend you check out Samurai, especially if you're a fan of strategy games, area control and capture or games where your actions impact other players.

Expansions, Reprints and Different Versions. 

This is one of the few games that does not have any expansions.
It has several different versions of the game for different languages, however they all have a similar same rules set (the tied player scenario is somewhat different).

There is a samurai card game.

Unlike most games, the card game appears to have no digital version of the rules. and ;lke Samurai itself, it is out of print.
So ii really is hard to judge what the game play of this game is like.

Digital Spotlight.

Samurai does have a couple of App versions of the game available.

There is an official ios version of the game available on the Apple store.
The ios versions seems to be reasonable; very much like the board game. The user interface is a bit off, but that can be over looked.
The biggest problem is that at the top of the screen it displays exactly what figures are owned by what player.
I think this takes a fair amount from the game; keeping the figures secret is an intrinsic part of the game.


Additionally there is an unofficial adaptation for Android called Shogun Hex available from Google play.
The Android adaptation however is a different story. Added tokens that add different powers, empty territory where nothing is influenced and an extremely clunky user interface that makes the game painful to play for a prolonged period of time.
100% avoid in every single way.


There is, or rather, was, an official PC version of the game by Klear Games.
The fate of this game is unknown as the domain is no longer active, but it seemed to operate very much like the ios version. If you're interested in it regardless there is an article about it here - http://archive.gamedev.net/archive/reference/articles/article1887.html
 

Outro.

What did you think of this issue? Pro's, Con's?
Did any other Kickstarter projects grab your attention?

Have you played Samurai, or any of the App versions?
What did you think?

Feel free to comment on this post, or alternatively hit us up on twitter @TCBCartographer

Thank you for reading this issue of The Cardboard Cartographer, until next time!