Games you didn't "get" on your first time through but now resonate

ubarose wrote: Wiraqocha. It seemed like it was a Euro resource collection and tech building game, but it is actually a brutal, vicious game of attacking and knocking other players off the board at every opportunity. It is a very hard game for me to even describe because if I do, it will sound like a Euro resource collection and tech building game, which it totally isn't.

I'm totally intrigued. I've never heard of this game and looked it up on BGG. Sounds cool, but seems to be out of print. Wonder if I can trade for a copy...

mc wrote: I have only read the Hobbit with my kids, they've not read LOTR or seen the films. They LOVE this game. They love the approaching doom of Sauron and all that tension of the stack of tiles and the joy of making it to the end. They get it, even if they don't know the ins and outs of the story.

That is great to hear! All right then, it’s hitting the table next family game night.

Heh ok but just remember

1) first time or two we played I did some good storytelling and, you know, had the Sauron piece scanning slowly in between turns fixing his eye on them etc.

and,

2) my kids are weird


Enjoy!

Zombie Survival:
The rules made it hard AF to understand despite there being a really fun game beneath.

Mall of Horror:
The steps involved kind of threw me, the fact that you have to divide items as you see fit was understandable but the idea that you can bribe/threaten/negotiate to be a recipient of largesse was not, initially.

T&E:
I still don’t have any idea how to play this, despite 15 games under my belt.

I'm gonna go with Monopoly. There's tons of luck AND skill in it. My win rate lifetime is over 95%. It rewards skills that aren't gratified by goatee scratching Neo Feldians. If you complain about the dice there (or in Catan), you probably think that bringing a person to orgasm involves luck.

Games in the top 20 I'd pass up to play Monopoly:

2. Pandemic Legacy Season 1 (I actually love it, but we already beat it).
3. Through the Ages- I've made it this far without playing this one- sounds a bit dry.
6. Star Wars Rebellion- probably a fine game, this one is close. I'm just not a huge star wars fan so it gets no bonus points for that.
8. Terra Mystica- I'd rather go to a friend's 4-year-old's dance recital. I haven't played this, and can tell that I don't need to
12. Castles of Burgundy- This is the game that typically inspires this line of thought. When people describe this as a "Better Catan," I gag.
13-19. more complicated euros or essentially solo games. War of the Ring sounds okay, but I sure won't drop $80 on it.

As long as Power Grid exists, I have little interest in other medium-heavy economic games. 7 Wonders and RftG make me never wanna waste 60-90 minutes on a middle weight euro.

Granted, I rarely have this choice, since no one brings Monopoly to game nights. I think it's a solid 7-8 game though. Sample 9+'s for me: Advanced Civilization, Codenames, Race for the Galaxy, Star Wars X Wing, Heroscape, Kingdomino, Power Grid, Settlers of Catan, Resistance: Avalon, Magic: the Gathering. Call that my unofficial top 10.

Scythe and Terraforming Mars are the latest hotness that I'd like to try. I know I'd like Gloomhaven but don't ahve the spare cash or time to play it.

oh man, i hate games with long playtimes but I still would not pass on an opportunity to play Rebellion as a card-holding SW fan.

War of the Ring is one of the two best board games I've ever played. It's easily the best DoaM game of all time. Thematically, it's all there too.

Black Barney wrote: War of the Ring is one of the two best board games I've ever played. It's easily the best DoaM game of all time. Thematically, it's all there too.

I don't doubt that. I just don't know when I'll get the opportunity. So many good 2-player only games to fight for too.

Jexik wrote:

Black Barney wrote: War of the Ring is one of the two best board games I've ever played. It's easily the best DoaM game of all time. Thematically, it's all there too.

I don't doubt that. I just don't know when I'll get the opportunity. So many good 2-player only games to fight for too.

The next time I see you (September) I’m playing Monopoly with you. It’s still one of my favorite games of all time. It’s way better than people give credit for and most of my games last an hour or less. Funny how playing by the rules (no such thing as free parking tax money, if you don’t buy a property you land on, it MUST be auctioned, etc) makes the game so much shorter

SuperflyTNT wrote:

Jexik wrote:

Black Barney wrote: War of the Ring is one of the two best board games I've ever played. It's easily the best DoaM game of all time. Thematically, it's all there too.

I don't doubt that. I just don't know when I'll get the opportunity. So many good 2-player only games to fight for too.

The next time I see you (September) I’m playing Monopoly with you. It’s still one of my favorite games of all time. It’s way better than people give credit for and most of my games last an hour or less. Funny how playing by the rules (no such thing as free parking tax money, if you don’t buy a property you land on, it MUST be auctioned, etc) makes the game so much shorter

and potentially whatever wife/kids/friends are around too depending whose house. Let's do this.

I played it at work with some kids a few years ago and gained renewed appreciation for it. It teaches real life lessons about budgeting and interest rates, something that Agricola will never do.

I like that game too with the original rules only

But if you make me a bad trade offer, don’t be surprised if I swear at you. I think some of the offers people have made me should have been prefaced with, « I think you’re a total moron so how about...’

Count me as a Monopoly fan as well. Player elimination a) isn't a bad thing and b) means even less when the game lasts about an hour. Play by the rules, people!

About a year ago my game group was wasting a lot of time trying to decide what to play each week. One day, the host suggested we all send him a list of 2 games we wanted to play, then he sent out the full list to everyone, who then secretly ranked them. Monopoly came out on top by a wide margin! We played, people lost, someone won, we all had a great time and then moved on.

I sometimes think the disdain for Monopoly comes from people who are insecure about losing. I used to love the aspect of Euros that everyone stayed involved the whole game. But when you're the guy getting reamed in Settlers for an hour, you start to realize that sometimes being eliminated is a good thing.

My disdain for Monopoly is the utter lack of control you have over how you do on a relative basis. When you witness a king making trade you are not taking part in, it’s brutal. I don’t table talk either to talk the guy out of it.

This should be happening in Catan too but for some reason it doesn’t. One or two insane trades doesn’t determine a match like it does in Monopoly





Also I don’t like losing

Monopoly was probably the first boardgame that I really loved. My family played it from time to time, along with the usual family boardgame classics of the day, plus my dad's favorite game Acquire. Unfortunately, we played with a few common household rules, like the money on Free Parking. In hindsight, I see how those rules made the game last too long by helping weak players stay in the game. I don't own Monopoly and haven't played it as an adult. But I do have Pirate King, which is basically Pirate Monopoly with lavish components, a simple combat system, and a few additional elements that add to the re-theming. I need to play Pirate King again soon.

Gregarius wrote: I sometimes think the disdain for Monopoly comes from people who are insecure about losing. I used to love the aspect of Euros that everyone stayed involved the whole game. But when you're the guy getting reamed in Settlers for an hour, you start to realize that sometimes being eliminated is a good thing.

When you are at an event or venue with multiple tables of players, player elimination is a great way to encourage some migration from table to table. Get people playing with different people potentially.

Gregarius wrote: About a year ago my game group was wasting a lot of time trying to decide what to play each week. One day, the host suggested we all send him a list of 2 games we wanted to play, then he sent out the full list to everyone, who then secretly ranked them. Monopoly came out on top by a wide margin! We played, people lost, someone won, we all had a great time and then moved on.

Sounds like I need a group like yours! I went to a Tuesday group I hadn't been to for awhile, and mentioned that if I'm gonna play a dice game I'd rather play Monopoly than Castles of Burgundy, and there was stunned silence all around. The guy who runs the group even said, "I read on BGG, someone made a proof that all you need to do is buy all the houses first and you win. It's a broken game." "Have you done this yourself? Did you write the proof?" "Well, no, but... I'll never play Monopoly again!"