Does it have async multiplayer and is the translation to digital any good? I could be interested if so!
Don’t ask me, I’m working. Won’t be able to try it out for a while.
I’m starting to think that games meant to be played at a table with other players, and games meant to be played async online, have exactly opposite goals in this sense. At the table, I don’t want to wait 10 minutes for it to come around to my turn again (particularly if there isn’t anything to do in the meantime, if I can’t plan because the board is going to change too much before it gets to my turn, or I don’t know what I’m going to roll or whatever), but when playing async online I don’t want to have my turn come around to find I can only take one food and click ‘end turn’. I’d rather have a nice big turn where I get to do lots of stuff.
I love playing async boardgames online (I usually have 2-3 games going with my friends at any time on BGA and/or Yucata), but it is becoming increasingly clear to me that it is hard to make a game that works well in both live and async modes.
Regarding Game of Thrones, I played it a lot 15 years ago or so(This and Twilight Imperium 2 had been my first not oldschool board games).
Table talk could be emulated using Discord or a chat application, but if there is no messaging system in game, it would be rough, unless playing with friends (including Steam friends)!
That said, it was hard to have private conversations around the table, so it could be a bit better in a way.
The rules are solid, but the game does indeed suffer from its imbalance, and the fixed start makes most opening play the same.
Playing Lannister is indeed a hopeless experience, and it hasn’t been solved by the second printing…
For digital board games, I think player elimination would be better than being in an unrecoverable position. At least, you can get to play something else if you are out early.
@Mike_Cathcart suggested Starcraft/Forbidden stars instead, but they play rather differently: They have a much more complex combat system, and a strong emphasis on tech upgrades.
I really love both (and they did indeed replace GoT in my group), but I think Starcraft works better as a team game than as a diplomacy game (because you can focus on getting the best armies possible instead of focusing on trying not to get other to gang up against you).
That said, both are out of print, and pretty brutal. I saw people get killed in turn 1 in Starcraft (if you don’t get the implications of the turn order right, you can very well die on the first turn).
Twilight Imperium would also work diplomacy wise.
It is less focused on combat than Starcraft or Forbidden Stars, and it has dedicated trading/diplomacy mechanisms.
But I doubt any of these 3 is getting a digital adaption soon (SC and FS won’t ever be adapted because of licensing issues).
We played A&A a few weeks ago in real-time, and it reminded me what a slog the game is in general. However, it’s one of my favorite games and the next season I may try ranked play. I will get my ass handed to me, but I figure ranked there is less of a chance of someone dropping.
Holy shit, this is so true. I’ve never thought about it, but totally. And we’ve had the last 30 years of board game design with the express purpose of eliminating player elimination. Another way that the needs of digital and the needs of physical are orthogonal.
That’s a really good observation.
It has async and real time.
I’ve only played the tutorial and one game against AI, and never played the physical version, so I can’t speak to AI quality, rules errors etc, but it seems pretty slick so far. The UI captures the aesthetic while still being clear and fairly streamlined, though there is some room for improvement. My only real complaint so far was that as far as I can tell the flavour text is only visible in a separate mode, not while playing the game.
Ah, thanks for the update! It’s on my wishlist!
Am I the only one playing the mobile Roll for the Galaxy adaptation? Like their previous Race implementation, it is pretty information-rich but playable. Also like Race, the AI kicks my butt. I win about 30% of my games against a hard AI in Race. I’ve so far won one of about 20 games of Roll against two medium AI…
I’m playing on iOS in a 5P game with members of Stately Play. It’s a nice app.
Quarter to Three challenge you, Stately Play, to a Roll tourney!
Both Tabletop Simulator and another Tabletop game on Steam support VR. Is that a thing people do in - ahem - reality? Or just a gimmick?
No idea, but TTS is already a bit gimmicky compared to Vassal, so I guess VR kind of makes sense. However, it must feel like playing a tabletop game with mittens or something.
I used to work at a VR company so I’ve played it that way years ago, but I don’t own VR so I haven’t since. My opinions may not be up to date. And I’ve only tried it with a Vive. It was sort of like playing with mittens. It was really great for certain games. I remember really getting in the flow with a game of Go. It took a couple turns to get it down, but the first few turns of Go are automatic for me anyway. That was the longest time I spent in VR without realizing it (I think around an hour). Another neat part about it is you can see the head and hands of who you’re playing with so you end up being able to read a surprising amount of body language.
Overall, I’d recommend it, especially for short games with simple input (like Go). I think TTS’s Crokinole board may be especially fun in VR. But avoid games that are longer than an hour because if you’re like me, having those heavy headsets on that long is killer.
I tried Forbidden Stars once. It’s definitely better than GoT. The approach to combat was interesting.
What totally ruined it for me though was the stupid warp storm system. There are 4 that block movement between borders. Everyone places one to start, then everyone gets to move one a space at the end of every round.
They totally screw you over though. Imagine having your coreward movement blocked round 1&2 in Twilight Imperium. Same impact in Forbidden Stars.
They could have been an interesting catchup mechanic if the player with the fewest victory points got priority in moving them, or at least some sort of bidding system to move them first. But it’s just that turn’s player order that moves them, and first player simply rotates clockwise every round. It became a dumb system of who arbitrarily got blocked early on (you had to place them at setup, when you didn’t know who would pull ahead and need blocking), and who arbitrarily was 1st player right before a crucial round. They were also too static since they could only be moved one space every round, so the person screwed with a block would continue to be screwed.
And you couldn’t house rule by just removing them since Chaos is balanced around being able to ignore them.
Placing each other’s victory objectives sounds interesting in theory, but it was easy for one player to be handed the game or another player to not have a chance right from the start.
(and maybe it was just inexperience, but Elder seemed overpowered. They had ridiculously better mobility than any other faction, and they weren’t any weaker in direct combat to compensate)
I think for the reason you mention as well as the sometimes lengthy 1v1 combats, Forbidden Stars is best as a two-player game. It’s also incredibly quick and moreish at that player count.
A cheap standalone mic is a lifesaver if you really get into long TTS games.
What are the protocols for bailing on a losing game when you can’t chat with the other player? I am playing A&A online and I am going to lose. I want to put both of us out of my misery and forfeit. However, I am afraid that a forfeit will be seen as a rage quit. Plus, he might be working on some strategy he is curious how it plays out. I can’t chat with him to even go “Good game. You won”
So, I guess I just ride it out to the end?
Looks like Steam is having something called a Tabletop Fest in a couple weeks. Good chance of a sale, I’d say, if you’re holding out for one for some of these digital conversions.