Posted this elsewhere, time to post it here. My BGG.Con run-down:
Fantastic few days of gaming, and easily the most slickly run BGG.Con I've been to (past 3). They've got this down to a well oiled machine at the Westin, so next year's change of venue, and likely some growth, is going to be interesting. They're definitely over capacity in the current mix of large conference space & smaller rooms, and tickets sold out in record time (though there was quite a churn of resales late on), but it still feels small & relatively intimate, generally. Lots of familiar faces, a familiar structure/rhythm to the Con routine, and lots of games
I'm lucky to have a bunch of my regular gaming group go up to the Con, so most of my gaming time (and social time) was spent with them, with some random 'pickup' games thrown into the mix in-between.
Here's a random run down of what I played:
Eclipse - Game of the show. It's a civ-lite set in space, featuring a bunch of large hexes for locations, abstracted resource mechanics, semi-random techs available each turn, tight economy, ship upgrading (fantastically well done) and easy to resolve dice based combat. It *looks* intimidating in photos & from a rules description, but it's /real/ easy to play & quick too. 2 hours for 4 players. We played it twice in a row, that's how much we enjoyed it, and all 4 of us will likely end up owning it despite the pointlessness of that
It's dang perfect for the group I played with. I would have played it a third time if I could have.
Ore et Labora - new Uwe Rosenburg game (Agricola etc). Think Le Havre without the fiddly resource management, with added spatial management for bonuses/end game scores. Uses a rondel for managing good availability that works /fantastically/ well. Stroke of genius. The theme of making whiskey helps
Despite the cards being in German, I really liked this, more than Le Have. Just the right level of complexity & engine building for me.
Vanatu - the third big hit for our group. Manage a Polynesian island by fishing, selling fish for goods, converting goods into VP etc. Throw in role selection with a nice variety of important bonuses. Nothing /new/ but exceptionally well executed. What makes it stand out is the turn order importance. There's 8 different actions you can bid for each turn with your five actions markers. When it's your turn, you can choose to execute any of those actions your highest bidder in... Ties are broken by turn order from the start player this round. Which is *brutal* as other players ahead of you can block you really easily, making start player /really/ important. A little long, but I want to play it again.
Nefarios - new card game by the Dominion designer. Fun, 'evil super villian' theme combined with nice artwork & simple mechanics, but nothing /fantastic/... We played it twice to get a better feel of it because of the two changing 'game tweaks' that are random (our first made it /very/ simple). Fun, but at $60 from Essen, and $45 US RRP, it feels expensive.
Lancaster - a Queen game that's been out for a few months but new to my group. Area control, kind of, mixed with economic engine, kind of, a dash of voting, and a good old "Medieval English Kingdom" theme. Great production quality from Queen, as usual. Liked it enough to teach it and play it later in the weekend.
Pax - Roman themed card game that's real simple to teach, real simple to play. twenty minutes or so, and would play again.
Core Worlds - deck building game in the vein of Ascenion/Thunderstone etc, but with a sci-fi theme. Massive dud. Got a three player demo with two random gamers & we all were "meh" almost immediately. Just nothing compelling about it, nothing interesting about the theme, fiddly energy/action management, and heavily weighted to the first player each round because of how the card drafting works. Meh.
Dungeon Runners - new dungeon crawler by the Summoner Wars guys (which I love). Semi-cooperative dungeon crawler - once you beat the big-baddy, everyone is out for themselves to escape with the prize. Reminds me a little of Claustrophobia but without the asymmetric gameplay. Enjoyed, might buy.
Walnut Grove - "meh". Not /bad/ but not good. Typical economic engine game with an added tile building/management aspect for production, which I enjoyed.... But the game overall? Meh. Nothing stood out, nothing grabbed me.
Dark Horse - Kickstarter indie game that's effectively a Wild West mix of Kingsburg action selection & Catan expansion/resource gathering on a map. Worked very well for what it is, is already in production, and played well. Didn't overstay its welcome - 60 mins for 3. Designer was /very/ nice & looking for feedback on the role I played.
Rise! - Another Kickstarter game, this one is up for funding right now. Two player abstract, 20 minutes long, simple to learn,nice to play. Enjoyed this & would fund it if I thought it'd make it.
7 Wonders - not a favourite game, but decided to do the tournament as it's such a quick & random game. Ended up easily winning my first game, which put me into the "money" table. Came 4th overall, got a copy of an Essen card I'd been interested in, and had a good time.
Kingdom Builder - mixed reaction in our group. We had a relatively sucky setup for 4 players with only 2 "move" powers available - they were grabbed & the two of us who couldn't get them were kinda stuck most of the game relatively. Would play it again, and happy some friends bought it, but not in a rush to buy.
Played a bunch of older games too, of course, and had my yearly "epic" game on Friday with the same guys I've been doing since my first year at the Con (this year Warrior Knights). Met a nice friendly couple from the same town as me who plied me with liquor while we played Formula De.
All in all, a great long weekend away. Met a bunch of interesting new people, traded for a bunch of new to me games, and played a bunch of good games. Well worth it. I *thoroughly* recommend the BoardGameGeek.Con for any board gamers out there. It's filled with friendly normal people who *love* to game.
