Deadlands: The Battle for Slaughter Gulch

"Dust, grit, and the smell of fear blow through the quiet streets of a rough and tumble frontier town. Once deemed a refuge from the hazards of the West, the town took a darker turn with the discovery of precious ghost rock. You have come to lay claim to your share of the priceless mineral, only to find that you aren’t the only one who has heard of the fabulous wealth ripe for the plucking. Can you outwit your foes and take control of the town and the limitless wealth it promises to the strong and cunning? Or will an unmarked grave on boot hill be your final resting place?"

Ok, so it's a Twilight Creations game. But they have been climbing the learning curve of boardgame design, and Humans!!! was definitely a better game than Zombies!!! And though it was similar to Fury of Dracula, Innsmouth Escape had some interesting ideas and was a very playable game that just happened to have low quality cards and a drab board. So hopefully this Deadlands boardgame will be their big breakthrough. It looks like the kind of game that I really like, with map tiles and variable player powers and lots of combat. And while some of the cards look drab, they are thematically appropriate, which is a good sign. Items look like they were snipped from old catalogs, while gadgets look like blueprints. And since Frag Deadlands was such a dud, I still need a good boardgame set in the Old West.

I may try to get a review copy on this.

I'm not really a huge fan of the "weird western" theme, and I think DEADLANDS totally overdid everything to the point where it was just SHADOWRUN in the west. I'd like the horror/western hybrid a lot more if it were more subtle and creepy, not so blown out to ludicrous extremes.

But it might be fun. The western theme is WAY underutilized in any capacity. Doubtful anything will ever touch GUNSLINGER though.

Mad props to Killer Kerry, but my aversion to the game company is overwhelming my dedication to the franchise.

This game does look like another step in the right direction as I do think Humans is a far more involving game than Zombies (so is crazy 8's but hey). The inclusion of a shamanic group is appealing. Looks to have just enough flavour to work although I hope the player pieces truly are not all the same shade of tan for the final product.

I'm with Michael -- I'd love to see a good western-themed game, but the whole "weird west" thing just doesn't do it for me.

The next game that I will probably try to prototype is a western game where each player heads a different faction (county sheriff, outlaw leader, rail baron, apache chief, army captain, mining magnate), each of which has a unique set of victory conditions (for instance, the outlaws may need to accumulate a certain amount of loot, while the rail baron may need to complete a certain number of rail connections). There will be a shootout minigame, but the overarching gameplay will emerge from the conflicts that arise from each faction trying to achieve its goals.

I don't know why someone hasn't streamlined and remade Gunslinger. Cowboy was a big let-down for me.

I like Weird West stuff. There should be a Dark Tower game, a Stephen King Dark Tower game that is.

metalface13 wrote:

I like Weird West stuff. There should be a Dark Tower game, a Stephen King Dark Tower game that is.

I also dig that. I love the Marvel DT comic books.

Michael Barnes wrote:

I'm not really a huge fan of the "weird western" theme, and I think DEADLANDS totally overdid everything to the point where it was just SHADOWRUN in the west. I'd like the horror/western hybrid a lot more if it were more subtle and creepy, not so blown out to ludicrous extremes.

I agree that Deadlands is guilty of over-the-top-excess, but what's always separated it from settings like Shadowrun and Rifts(at least in my experience) is it lacks the either game's po-faced attitude. It realizes its goofy and plants its tongue firmly in its cheek, wearing its Sam Raimi/Joe R. Lansdale influences heavily on its sleeve.

Cowboys: The Way of the Gun by Worthington Games was a big let down and had so much hope for it!

the*mad*gamer wrote:

Cowboys: The Way of the Gun by Worthington Games was a big let down and had so much hope for it!

I missed Gunslinger by a few years and was excited about Cowboys, but I've only heard negative things about it. Besides miniatures, what other options exist for western-themed action?

missed Gunslinger by a few years and was excited about Cowboys, but I've only heard negative things about it. Besides miniatures, what other options exist for western-themed action?

There are quite a few Western themed card games:

Wyatt Earp
Bang
Lawless
Boomtown

Wyatt Earp being the best of that bunch. A few Euro designers have touched on western strategy type games with no real success.

My wife and I bought Dice Town a while back, and we've enjoyed it a lot. It isn't too far off from themed Yahtzee, but I like Yahtzee, so that's alright.

The game looks gorgeous, and has been VERY successful with non-gamers. It's seriously one of the best games for playing with parents, relatives, etc.

It's basically a family game, but that's fine. It's worth a look, for sure.

There's also Way Out West by Martin Wallace. I really enjoy the game - but we do play with the optional gunfight rules (wounded cowboys).