6561

If he likes Risk take a look at Nexus Ops.

I think there was a recent discussion on Risk like games in either the 2016 or 2017 main boardgame threads.

Note:
The latest edition does not have the glow in the dark pieces.

6562

No, I’m talking about the other LOTR game. You need to look for the person I’m replying to in discourse (and maybe click it) to get the full context since it doesn’t quote everything by default here. I’ve never played Confrontation but I’ve heard it’s good.

6563

Got it. Thanks.

6564

Thanks. I think Risk is fine for now - his friends know it and it fits the bill for when 4 or 5 of them are down in the basement for the afternoon.

What I’m always on the lookout for are short (or shortish), easy-set-up 2-player games.

6565

The LOTR cooperative game by Knizia is one of the first coop boardgames, and it is still regarded by many as among the best cooperative games. But it’s also a controversial game, and some people really don’t like it (including a few people here, I guess). I’ve played it and I think it’s perfectly fine for a coop (though I’m not a huge fan of coops). Compared to (say) Pandemic, there is a stronger emphasis on role-playing and less emphasis on forming a long-term strategy. You will be asking yourself “Should I volunteer to donate my cards to the other player?” as opposed to “What is the most efficient way to solve this puzzle?” For children, I think that’s especially good.

I do think it helps to understand the way Knizia approached the setting. He was clearly more interested in the theme of friendship and self-sacrifice in the books than in the combat and glory of various other adaptations. Once you understand that, his choice to focus on the hobbits at the expense of Aragorn et al. makes more sense.

Before deciding, I suggest playing the game or watching a playthrough or two

6566

I think the Knizia LOTR coop is a perfectly solid coop game but it’s very dry compared to a lot of what’s come afterwards and so I personally wouldn’t buy it at this point.

6567

There are definitely coop games that have more thematic mechanisms to explore, including the LOTR coop card game. However, those games also require players with more evenly matched skills. I would put the LOTR coop boardgame at about the same level as Forbidden Desert, another decent choice for playing with children.

Incidentally, @orald, I do not recommend Forbidden Island at all. Forbidden Desert (its sequel) is a much better game.

6568

I’ll stand up for the old Lord of the Rings co-op game by Reiner Knizia. The genre of cooperative games has definitely expanded, but it took LOTR to inspire Pandemic to inspire the rest of the scene. So historically it deserves some respect, but admittedly, that doesn’t mean it’s necessarily fun to play now.

But I think it can be, especially if you’re playing it because you love the story of LOTR. Some ways I think it works well: The plot points of the books are well-represented (unlike Confrontation). If you play it to death, then that means it tends to get samey. But played more casually, the way things unfold is different enough that you may or may not have to face, say, the Palantir, and when careful planning makes that possible, you feel pretty awesome.

There’s a lot of drama in how things play out. Each turn you have to draw from a stack of tiles and, I tell ya, you come to dread those tiles because they almost always ruin your day. At the same time, the corruption track that has your little hobbits advancing toward a monolithic Sauron figure gives you a sense of inexorable despair.

Oh, also, that Sauron piece is still the best component in a board game pretty much ever.

I admit, it’s now been years since I’ve played it, but I did play it post-Pandemic and still felt that it had plenty of merit. Historically a very important board game, but also a playable and fun one.

6569

LOTR was considered to be a great game in its day. It can be difficult to win IIRC but you lose or win as a group and I think that is a great point especially when playing as a family.

6570

If you’re into story and want tons of theme, then get Mice and Mystics. The rules aren’t for the faint of heart though so watch the rules summary video and just tell the kids what they can do and what the rules are for the thing they’re trying to do. I ran it with my kids and it was a blast.

Knizia usually makes games with a pasted on theme. LOTR isn’t quite that bad but I really feel like newer games surpass it easily.

6571

We went an unexpected direction and bought Hanabi as our first coop game. After talking to my daughter to find out what she would like, the woman who works at the game store in our town recommended it.

6572

Got two mates coming over this weekend for a few hours, which will mark the start of a new gaming group. Possibly a regular thing but I guess that depends on the success of this first event!

So what should we play, best suitable for 3 players?

Pandemic Legacy
Flashpoint Fire Resuce
7 Wonders
Alien Frontiers
Deck-builder like Legendary Encounters Alien, or Thunderstone

6573

Three player games?

I’d suggest Churchill:

or Triumph and Tragedy:

You’ve got all day right? ;)

Tom Mc

6574

Haha … no. :)

I’m promoting new player retention, not the opposite. ;)

6575

Pandemic Legacy easily from that list, although it’s a bit of a commitment so maybe worth saving until you know the group is a regular thing :)

6576

Since a big factor is whether the other players are interested or not, I’d look each game you are considering up on BGG and check if any are rated “Best with” 3 players.

I’d then inform the other two for each title:

  1. If any are “best with” 3
  2. Estimated play time
  3. Short summary of game theme and mechanics

Then have them rank their interest in each title 1/2/3 with three being highest, and take the game with the highest score. Of course, you vote, too!

6577

I’d try flashpoint. It’s a fun game and coops are nice ways to break the ice with a new group.

6578

I would say to not play Pandemic Legacy until it becomes a regular thing. you could play it just out of the box with regular Pandemic rules without yet activating the Legacy elements, but once you start the story, I think it’s best for all players to play through the game.

Regular Pandemic it’s a so-so game (good introductory game that soon loses appeal). Pandemic Legacy is, in my opinion, truly great. But the greatness is found on it’s unfolding session to session.

6579

That’s what the instructions recommend doing at least twice before playing with Legacy rules, if you haven’t played Pandemic before - which none of us have.

Yeah this is the game I play most and I love it, so it’d go smoothly and be easy to teach as well.

My concern would be that when I do want to get Pandemic Legacy going, would it be too similar?

6580

Basic Pandemic has some similarities to Flash Point, enough so that I’d only play one and Flash Point is better. But they’re meaningfully different as well, and the Legacy elements of Pandemic Legacy make it a very, very distinct experience.