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Category: Tabletop News

Coming Soon: 5 First Time Game Designers (and Their Games)

Coming Soon: 5 First Time Game Designers (and Their Games)

Thanks to this blog, I have had the opportunity to connect with a variety of tabletop and boardgame enthusiasts, including those involved in the design and development of new games. There are loads of great creative minds out there working on all sorts of great ideas. Thanks to the internet, crowdfunding, and the popularity the hobby is experiencing, publishing your own game is more accessible than ever before.

To showcase what is out there, I decided to eschew designers with a game or two under their belts and go straight to the first timers. I sat down (virtually) with five developers hard at work on their first games and discussed their games and what drives them to design them. What follows is a summary of our conversations and a look at their games (in no particular order).

Ryan Dalton: Velocity-9
Ryan Dalton, who is also a sci-fi author, is nearing completion on Velocity-9. A spaceship racing game that uses a heavily modified roll and move mechanic and puts Dalton’s sci-fi writing into the factions, abilities and events. Players take control of various factions (space pirates, shady governments, etc) and race to a newly-discovered planet in what Dalton calls “… a fast paced game with no actual combat.”

Players roll a 6-sided die to move, but then modify their rolls with cards to increase their speed or slow their enemies. Turn order also varies throughout the game. Each faction has a pair of advantages and a liability. Players can use their first advantage with no strings attached, but using the second also triggers the liability, adding a bit of press your luck.

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Top 4 Anticipated Games: Gen Con 2017

Top 4 Anticipated Games: Gen Con 2017

Gen Con 2017 is fast approaching, bringing with it a metric ton of board game news. Publishers have spent months constructing hype, teasing games to be released or mystery announcements to be made. While there will certainly be plenty of surprises, I’ve compiled my personal top 4 anticipated games based on what we know so far.

Hunt for the Ring

Hunt for the Ring
Image Credit: BoardGameGeek.com

This hidden movement game from the team behind War of the Ring has been floating near the top of my list since it was teased last year. Where War of the Ring picks up Tolkien’s tale as the Fellowship departs Rivendell and war spreads across Middle Earth, Hunt for the Ring aims to tell the story of Frodo and his companions journey from the Shire to Rivendell. Previews have showcased plenty of twists on the hidden movement genre and based on my own experience with War of the Ring, I am looking forward to another game that expertly marries theme and game mechanics.

Imperial Assault

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