Power Grid is actually one of the highest rated boardgames ever. I haven't gotten to play it yet but a few of my friends swear by it. Or at it. Hmm.
You always think harder is better. Maybe next time I patrol, I should carry bricks and use a stake made out of butter.
Buffy ,'The Killer In Me'
Gaming 1: You are likely to be eaten by a grue
A thread for the discussion of games: board, LARP, MMORPG, video, tabletop RPG, game theory etc. etc. and all attendant news, developments and ancillary subjects thereof, as well as coordinating/scheduling games either online or IRL. All are welcome to chime in, talk about their favorite games or learn about gaming of any sort.
PLEASE TO WHITEFONT SPOILERS for video games, RPG modules or anything for which foreknowledge of events might lessen one's enjoyment of whatever gaming experience.
Pete, Husband of Jilli - Aug 08, 2008 5:20:15 pm PDT #1166 of 26133
"I've got a gun! I've got a mother-flippin' gun!" - Moss, The IT Crowd
billytea - Aug 08, 2008 7:06:49 pm PDT #1167 of 26133
You were a wrong baby who grew up wrong. The wrong kind of wrong. It's better you hear it from a friend.
Power Grid is actually one of the highest rated boardgames ever. I haven't gotten to play it yet but a few of my friends swear by it. Or at it. Hmm.
This is true, and with good reason. I think it's something of a gamer's game - the high rating is mainly from fairly serious gamers (who favour Euro games). For a casual gamer, there's a lot to keep track of, and most turns you'll be counting your money fairly closely to avoid coming up just a dollar or two short for what you want to do. It's also clunkier than most Euros, there are a lot of things that change by phase or number of players; for instance there's an actual table for resource renewal. (For someone used to D&D, this shouldn't be a drawback.)
Another couple of notes. It's at heart an auction game, the biggest determinant of success is getting the right power plants for the right price. Also, although there are mechanisms to penalise the leader, it can still often be too hard to catch someone who takes an early lead.
If you enjoy it, there are a couple of expansion boards available (France/Italy and Benelux/Central Europe), with a couple of variant rules. Oh, final note, last game I had one player refused to buy any nuclear plants because of their opposition to nuclear power. Apropos of nothing.
Kevin - Aug 09, 2008 3:12:18 am PDT #1168 of 26133
Never fall in love with somebody you actually love.
anybody else looking forward to Fallout 3?
knave - Aug 09, 2008 3:32:24 am PDT #1169 of 26133
"The Head Crusher likes visa cards." The man smiles. "He slathers peanut butter on them and eats them." He shakes his head. "Weird, but then, most everything is weird out here -- present company excepted, of course."
anybody else looking forward to Fallout 3?
If by looking forward to, you mean watching the few trailers that are out there about twice a day, then yes.
I didn't waste enough time with Oblivion, so I need another sprawling RPG from Bethesda.
Kevin - Aug 09, 2008 4:26:20 am PDT #1170 of 26133
Never fall in love with somebody you actually love.
I'm wasting time on Oblivion RIGHT NOW. It's still awesome.
Frankenbuddha - Aug 09, 2008 7:24:44 pm PDT #1171 of 26133
"We are the Goon Squad and we're coming to town...Beep! Beep!" - David Bowie, "Fashion"
anybody else looking forward to Fallout 3?
I'm going to go out on a limb and say NOT billytea's friend who wouldn't buy the nuclear power plants.
Sorry - the x-post just made me laugh and laugh.
Pete, Husband of Jilli - Aug 09, 2008 11:11:50 pm PDT #1172 of 26133
"I've got a gun! I've got a mother-flippin' gun!" - Moss, The IT Crowd
Actually, while a lot of Fallout 3's trailers & screenshots had me excited, when I finally got down to watching actual gameplay I was left with a decided feeling of "meh".
I'm looking forward to Castle Crashers & Gears of War 2. Those are some seriously disparate games.
Kevin - Aug 09, 2008 11:25:22 pm PDT #1173 of 26133
Never fall in love with somebody you actually love.
Gears 2, Fallout 3, Fable 2 and the next CoD game are all on my to buy list. And they're all coming out this year. I'm gonna be broke.
Sean K - Aug 10, 2008 5:33:06 am PDT #1174 of 26133
You can't leave me to my own devices; my devices are Nap and Eat. -Zenkitty
Glad to see this thread picking up a little bit after a small lull. I know I've been slacking a bit about posting in here. I get to play some D&D today, and I'm looking forward to it. I'll report back later.
Volans - Aug 11, 2008 6:26:47 pm PDT #1175 of 26133
move out and draw fire
We didn't end up playing Power Grid this weekend. We did play Rock Band (RB2 coming out 9/14 for Xbox!), but mostly we played Ticket to Ride and San Juan.
San Juan. I won, but I'm not sure I like it. It seems like a pointless debasement of Puerto Rico. OTOH, it's a leaner meaner PR with excellent decisions for what to cut and what to keep. It was not easy for the first-timer to pick up, however.
Ticket to Ride was awesome. I lost (3rd out of 4 players), but I see a lot of potential for different strategies to try. Plus little plastic trains! Nice art direction through and through.
On another topic, I had to give a spiel today on identity in virtual worlds, and some of the research (hi Sox) on Second Life included the phrase "It's not a game. I don't ask for do-over [if I do something wrong]."
Which got me thinking...I'm used to going back to the last save point in computer RPGs, and in fact timely saves are a key gaming skill. But only once in a serious pen-and-paper RPG (a couple times in goofy ones like Paranoia) have I ever seen a "do-over" happen.
Survey? Do you tabletop gamers expect computer-like do-overs while playing D&D or similar? Or is it more "like real life" and you always deal with the consequences of your actions?