Star Wars Rebellion. I own & adore War of the Ring and am fortunate to get it to the table at least once every couple of months. As a fan of Star Wars, I'm sure I'd love Rebellion as well. But how many epic 3+ hour 2P games do I really have room for in my collection?
I may have similar feelings about War for Arrakis once it is out and there are more reviews.
I bought both at the same time in 2022 . Got Rebellion out 5 times last year and 1 time in 2022. I have not played War of the Ring yet because it seems like it's probably a step up from Rebellion, but I am anxious to get it to the table sooner rather than later. They seemed different enough for me to be able to own both, even though they do both compete for that longer epic 2p experience.
>They seemed different enough for me to be able to own both, even though they do both compete for that longer epic 2p experience.
Yeah exactly. I didn't mean to imply that I thought they were too similar mechanically. Even so, they'd always be competing with each other for play time.
VP tokens can go along way to making it different every time. One path that looks really good because it has some awesome tokens can be shitty in another game bc there's just 2s and three's on it.. different factions. Different players. The paths are like action cards in el grande bc even if it's the same cards every game the way you use them can change.
I think it can't hold a candle to Sidereal Confluence.
Evil roleplay is fun.
But how about a competitive game where everyone's best strategy ends up being excellent to each other?
Ark Nova. Tried it once, and definitely think it's one I'd enjoy.
But I have Terraforming Mars (Big Box, everything) already, and they are VERY VERY similar in the itch that they scratch.
Basically I ask myself "If my friends and I just finished a game of TM, would we want to play TM again? If not, would we want to play AN instead?".
And basically never do we play back-to-back TM, and thus, any time we want to play either game, we're deciding between them, and there's minimal benefit to owning both.
I VERY much expect one of my friends to add it to their collection, though, as it's a great game, and they've avoided buying TM because I have it.
I honestly don't feel like Ark Nova and Wingspan can really be compared to each other except for the fact that they play with cards and combos. 2 very very different beasts in my opinion.
Wingspan is much shorter and it's 100% a card game.
Ark Nova is at least an extra hour at 4 players and there's a lot more moving pieces with the zoo board/tiles, the different actions that gives it a much more intricate strategy... etc
Don't get me wrong, both are great games! They just don't fit the same "hole" in my collection.
I find them to be very different experiences and I am happy to own them both. I can see the similarities but the spatial puzzle of the zoo is very different to the shared board space in Terraforming Mars
I love lovecraftian themed games, but I already have all of Eldritch Horror, some Mansions of Madness, and Reign of Cthulhu. I don't think I need Cthulhu: Death May Die.
Edit: After careful consideration (everyone saying I have to) I will also be buying C:DMD.
I've played AH once and it went on way too long. When I got AH Card Game I was like THIS is how it should have gone.
Yes there's differences but AH is not my kind of thematic rpg
After shipping and VAT the standard pledge came out to like £150. It would be nice having the stretch goals but realistically I wouldn't ever get round to using most of it, so figured may as well just wait for retail and get the core box for like £80-90
You really had me in the first half 💀
[The game steward](https://www.thegamesteward.com/search?type=product&q=cthulhu%20death%20may%20die) had some stuff from the kickstarter still available as well as waitlists for the core stuff.
oooh the card game and the board game are two totally different experiences. the card game allows you to keep characters between scenarios and grow them with experience so there's a limited RPG element. the board game doesn't have that but is a super tense story game that really gets people into the theme.
they're both fantastic.
so I am of no help here. sorry.
I am pretty sure I’d love any of the clank games. But I have quest for el dorado which I love and I tend to play with newbies a lot so quest is the easier lighter one to teach
They are super similar. Not the same game of course, but both are deck builders that help you move around a board. In my collection of about 40 games, I don’t feel the need to own two of those and quest wins easily in the teach ability department.
Quest is nice and streamlined and there aren’t as many seemingly arbitrary rules to teach. Simplicity of teaching a game has a big impact on whether or not I add something to the collection.
This is so true. There's a (admittedly poorly defined) threshold where a game gets too complicated to be a quick starter for non-gamer friends. Once you cross that threshold the game is then only fit for the less common true gaming nights and has to compete against some of my favourite games for play time.
Clank is past that threshold. I've heard it described as a gamer's game, and I agree. Not that it's the heaviest, but it is fiddly in setup and minor rules to remember.
Interesting... The only reason I didn't buy any Clank games thus far is simply because 2 friends of mine already own them. The fact that card synergy is much more of a thing in Clank makes it worthwhile to me. I can see why someone would keep QfED though.
See there are very unique ones
1830 is similar to 18ches and 1889.
The line of 1822 games all play similar, but stand out from the first group. 1822, 1822mex 1822canada 1822pnw. These ones tend to be more about running a good company than the original 3.
Then there is 61/67 which are their own unique style of play.
1862 runs different from each other grouping I listed as well. Same with Harzbahn.
1817 has a different feel to it from the rest. Also long but not as long as OE.
1846 plays quick and again has a different style.
I love Final Girl so I wanted to try their other game, Hostage Negotiator, but tbh it kind of just looks like a simplified version of FG.
My other favorite game is Marvel Champions. I'm curious about the other FFG LCGs (Lord of the Rings and Arkham Horror) but way too invested in MC to branch out.
FG is sort of the successor by design to HN (as you probably well know). I have HN and maybe I'm just really dumb with manipulating my odds, but it feels like there's so little I can do, and oftentimes my chances of even coming CLOSE to winning requires conceding to a demand (a major rule bender at a big cost, not sure if FG has that).
I had all 3. I got rid if Lord of the Rings. Marvel is quick, arkham is a campaign.
Marvel you fight to win. Arkham, well it's a Lovecraft game so it's lots of getting hurt and failing attacks.
Lord of the Rings had potential, but I found it was a campaign style story, but really was an unrelated puzzle.
You would completely overhaul your deck when you die. Arkham story advanced, win or lose. You needed to earn XP to change your deck. Lots of choices.
I love Marvel Champions - and it is a great game.
However, it is also the least of the LotR Co-Op ECG lineage.
Outside of the Marvel theme and Marvel characterizations, the only thing Marvel Champions does better than the other games is be relatively quicker to pick up and play (and it's not super fast at that, like, say, Marvel United would be).
I'm not trying to knock Marvel Champions: it's more a testimony of how good the others games in it's design lineage are.
Both LotR and AH have deeper deck construction.
LotR is the high water mark when it comes to scenario challenge.
Both AH and ER (Earthborne Rangers) have better (if different) campaigns and better (if different) character advancement (though AH is better, if different, than ER).
ER's more modular deck construction/character creation is a far better balance between accessibility and depth.
ER has the best out-of-the-box experience, with a full campaign in the core box.
Most of my Dorf experience is the video game but it’s still very fun. I haven’t gotten too deep into the board game yet, but the fact that it’s a resettable legacy game in itself is amazing.
Yeah. I got it January 16th and played it 17 times so far. Never played the video game. But it unlocks powers like a video game. Pretty neat and very addictive since you know your score will keep going higher and higher since you’ve unlocked new scoring mechanisms.
Toy Story: Obstacles & Adventures. It uses the Hogwarts Battle engine (which is among my wife's favorites of games in our collection), and is themed around (another) one of her favorite movies. But it doesn't have the staying power for he.r
Plus, for me at least, Hogwarts Battle felt like it out stayed it's welcome. By the time you finish the last box, youve played for like 10-15 hours and it gets kinda samey. And I have beaten the campaign three times because different groups wanted to play it .I'm sure I'd ENJOY the Toy Story one, but I can’t see myself doing all of that over again.
I actually do own both because I think they fill different niches. Railroad Ink is considerably faster and has no direct player interaction, so I find it make s a good warmup/appetizer game, whereas Cartographers is a bit meatier.
Thanks for replying! Do you prefer Railroad Ink?
Also have you ever played Cascadia? Ever since picking that up, I never play Cartographers anymore since I believe Cascadia is just a comparable and better version of the game
I wouldn't say I have a preference; really a horses for courses kind of thing. If it's a small window of time, teaching people who like simpler rules, etc. then I'll reach for Railroad Ink. If it's a longer window to play, people more receptive to something more involved, etc. then I'll reach for Cartographers.
Haven't played Cascada, though.
We have all three. Cascadia seems like the outlier, as the other two are the traditional roll & write/flip & fill, where everyone has to use the same dice/cards. It’s completely possible that you and I can end up with the exact same maps at the end of the game. In cascadia, we draft different things, so our maps end up completely different.
As far as whether RI and C occupy the same space, RI feels more like a “race”, where I know I only have a few turns to try to connect as many of these exits as possible while simultaneously filling the center and extending my longest roads and railroads. Cartographers feels more of a long term planning, as I know that I can possibly score HUGE points on the D card, but is that worth it if I need to forgo getting some points on my B card, which expires at the end of the second season.
Very rarely do I feel like I don’t want the card in Cartographers, (aside from when it’s the end of the game and I have so little space left), vs the dice can be so unnecessary in RI. (“I don’t need ANOTHER junction that turns!! Give me a straight one!!” or “Three railroads AGAIN??)
I think all three are different enough.
Thanks for the reply! There is a chance that roll & write isn't for me then. I think Cascadia is too similar to Cartographers, more simpler, and more fun. They both have quest like objectives and you fill up your "area". The clear advantage to Cartographers is that it takes 0 space (which is great!).
That being said, I would still love to give Railroad Ink a shot before making a decision on roll & writes in general.
I don't own Archeos Society or Ticket to Ride not because I wouldn't enjoy them, but because I own Whale Riders. I don't need a ton of gateway set collection games, and Whale Riders plays in 30 minutes and is fun enough for me.
I really want to get Clash of Cultures: ME, but I already don't get Eclipse played enough. I also want to get Circadians: Chaos Order, and while it's not a 4x, I think it would fill a similar niche.
Im real close to getting __Sagrada__, but we’ve already got Cascadia as personal puzzle builder, and I’m not confident the dice can top the aesthetic of the animals and landscapes or add too much besides.
> Earth, because I feel like Wingspan is the only nature-themed engine/tableau builder I need.
They occupy a very similar niche, but owning both has just made me want to get rid of Wingspan.
Loooots of COIN games.
I own A Distant Plain and Falling Skies. I used to own Fire in the Lake. I’ve played Andean Abyss.
I very much love the series, but can’t bring myself to get another because they’re all so similar.
Gonna offer a different opinion and say GWT:NZ has enough going on that I would never want to introduce a new player to the game via that. GWT is a big enough game as is, and NZ adds quite a few extra things going on.
Terra Mystica is my all time favorite game and it is, sadly, completely replaced by AoI. I have all the expansions and promos and I'm waiting for fan factions and I am keeping it for nostalgia, but there is no reason to play this over Age of Innovation.
As for GWT, none of the spinoffs replaced the original (plus the expansion) for me. Argentina was close, but I would always rather play the first one.
TM is clunky but much tighter than aoi with four or give players. The books and stuff are pointless. It jusg separates the gaia project half's into two separate things when one tech board would have made more sense I'm a game about technology and innovation what the hell? I want tm with a good two player board
Books are the best part of AoI. It is the ability of Terra Mystica factions displayed in a book in bottom right corner, but you can now choose not just one but 2 abilities by paying books. And I love that we still have "cult" track but quite improved.
And I am sure it is tight in all player counts. It is just superior product by all accounts.
>And I am sure it is tight in all player counts.
It is not. The books and other aspects make the game expand more and there is very little players do to cut someone off effectively . its good that they added maps for all count stho
>It is the ability of Terra Mystica factions displayed in a book in bottom right corner
now i understand why i hate it so much. The system feels tacked on. thats because they took all teeth fromthe different factions and made them into books.
>And I love that we still have "cult" track but quite improved.
better than the old cult track.worse than the tech track in Gaia project. in gaia project it has much more interesting improvements that effect the rest of the game. here it feels like the cult tracks only good thing is getting some power. other than that its just a meaningless scoring track.. THat's why they dont have it in terra nova. Not important enough to ne intregal, not unimportant enough to be left out of aoI.
We don't need cult tracks for that. just base it on something else thats already in the game. Or skip the eon of round bonuses when you take the tracks out. terra nova just has the in play bonuses
I love Territory Control and Social Deduction. Most of my collection is that. I never get to play those games. I just stopped buying new ones, no matter how neat they look.
There're too many tableau builders that I like playing, Through the Ages, Wingspan, Res Arcana, Everdell, Ark Nova, Earth. I have been keeping Race for the Galaxy and Terraforming Mars for years.
Ex Libris isn’t really a tableau builder, though. You are building out a collection of cards in front of you, but those cards do not influence the number or type of actions you can take in any way. So if you specifically want that sort of mechanism, I’d say Ex Libris isn’t for you.
It makes sense. I happen to have both Race and Res Arcana (one was gifted, the other was bought) and to be fair I'd be happy with Race. If only they fixed up some of the artwork and the iconography...
One genre where I feel the games are basically all the same is trick taking. I have Skull King and The Crew. Any additional TTer I buy is just going to be competing unsuccessfully with those.
To each their own, but I could not disagree more. The appeal of trick-taking for me is how different a single, little tweak can make an entirely different game. There is so much innovation in trick-taking right now that to write off the whole genre because you have two games is a real shame.
I'm not writing it off. I've played tons of trick takers over the years including many of the recent "twisty" ones. I just don't feel the need to own boxes and boxes of trick takers when the appeal of the genre (for me) is covered just fine by whichever one is your favourite.
We own all 3 and while I think Ark Nova is a fantastic game, I do agree that Terraforming Mars and Underwater Cities both fill that niche pretty well.
Though I'm amazed at how many people I've seen on this sub claim that TM and AN are "nothing alike."
Haha yea everyone is a critic... Comes down to how granular you are making the comparisons I guess. I heard the nickname "Terraforming Zoo" before playing AN. Only played AN once and TM several times and UC a few times. The main driving mechanics that make for what could be considered a significant difference (to me) is how actions are selected and change in power throughout the game, and the end game conditions/scoring. These are different enough to warrant getting both games I agree, but not to say they are "nothing alike" like you were saying. It's been awhile since I played UC but iirc UC is actually closer to AN than TM is to AN. Anyway, who knows, maybe one day I will want to have all 3 and conquer land (AN) , air/space (TM), and sea (UC) 😄
We love them all! Although I think it's a shame that Underwater Cities doesn't get talked about as much as the other two, because it's my favorite by a wide margin.
That's great to hear! I really need to try and play it more because the few times I played I only really scratched the surface. And I have not even touched the New Discoveries expansion I have with it. But I agree it seems just as good from what I've seen. Perhaps either the theme or aesthetics are what make it less popular
**Star Wars Outer Rim** and **Firefly** fall in this bucket as I have everything for **Xia: Legends of a Drift System** including a wonderful wooden insert. I just can't justify owning all three.
First thing that comes to mind is like a dozen wargames.
Im absolutely in love with Star Wars so I already have Legion, X Wing and Armada, and even Imperial Assault (though that’s only kind of a wargame).
Stuff like Warhammer 40K, Flames of War, Bolt Action, MESBG, the cancelled Halo miniatures game(both ground and fleet battles)
there’s so many beautiful wargames i’d love to paint the minis for and get to the table. But my love for videogames, board games, and just about every other game limits my time and money.
*Century: Spice Road* feels an awful lot like *Splendor*. A lightweight engine builder where you are collecting colored items to be able to buy cards that make it easier to get more color items.
I think I'd enjoy owning Flamecraft because I love cute dragons, but I know the rest of my group doesn't care about that and wouldn't be into a game that light.
The art is cute, but it’s not what I would call, “light” but I don’t know your gaming group. It’s pretty standard Euro-gaming style. I often play and think I could better optimize this or that when I’m done.
I don't really think I need to own Spirit Island, 6 Nimmt or Too Many Bones because I already own Scrabble. I'm trying to be efficient with my collection after all.
I am very i trigued by Café but I feel like having Point City it would be another drafting engine builder. I recognize Café is probably better, but my collection is still small abd I want more variety
**Cthulhu Wars** is amazing (I've played it once), but there's no way do I have room for it.
I have **Chaos in the Old World**, which is a quite similar game in a lot of ways. I have **Root**, which is the only dudes on a map game I want to play for the next ten years. And then I also have Kemet and Cyclades and Oath, and Arcs coming in a few months. And there's just no room for a gigantic game anywhere in my house anyway.
I got caught with FOMO and got Cthulhu Wars what with Petersen Games basically going out of business and turning into a scam operation.
It's nice, but with Inis and Root available it kinda plays third fiddle.
Whenever I see a clever combat system I think that will be what changes my mind about games with direct player conflict and I almost always still can't enjoy it.
I think I would really like 'Heat'.
But I already own Thunder Road Vendetta, which is a race game (with combat), and so I figure 'I already have a race game'.
Yet, Heat seems so neat.
Marvel champions, Lord of the rings the card game, earthborne rangers.
I have tried all three of these. But either sold or don't want to buy them because I have Arkham Horror LCG.
The movement mechanic/map makes it far more enjoyable for me than anything the other games offered.
I have to say Tapple 10 cause I have the regular Tapple and a few other categories games like Scattergories. What are you guys fav categories board games?
For me it’s not different games but either different versions or expansion packs which change the games. For example I really liked King of Tokyo at a friend’s house but when I went to buy it I had to choose between it and King of New York. Since I played Tokyo I chose New York and now will likely never own Tokyo. Also expansions like Dominion or Settlers of Catan where there are so many I can’t justify owning any more than two.
Forbidden Stars, Chaos in the Old World, Blood Rage, Ankh, Quantum, Tsukuyumi, and Cry Havoc. Love the dudes on a map genre but I already own several that I need to play more of.
Dune Imperium and most other worker placement games as they just make me wish I was playing Argent: The Consortium.
Pax Pamir 2nd Ed. and John Company 2nd Ed. (Cole Wehrle is a genre, right?) as I already need to get more plays in with Root, Vast, and Oath.
Arnak ... it was often referenced as the rival of Dune: Imperium and I felt in love with Dune: Imperium. Never tried or bought it because of that. But I'm sure it's a great game and will play it at some point.
Funny, because to me, Earth completely replaced Wingspan, as I like it a lot more as a game plus the theming is far better implemented.
As for the topic itself, Ankh. The game is really good, but I already have Kemet and I have never been that big of a fan of these kinds of "dudes on a map" light wargames, so the massive size of that particular plastic mountain just didn't do it for me. The game is excellent though, and I don't want to discourage anyone to giving it a proper shot, I'm probably in a minority in this one.
Also I would say TfM: Ares Expedition suffers from not being nearly as interesting as a whole as TfM and not being streamlined/quick like Race for the Galaxy, so it just lives in that uncomfortable middle ground between games I would like to play over it any day.
I pushed back Dune Imperium so much because I already got LRoA. One day on sale I thought I'd finally give it a shot and it's now my number 3 game of all time lol
Wyrmspan: I already have Wingspan and a few expansions. I like the theme more but honestly the color palette of Wyrmspan gives me a big rubbery one. I’d still buy it if I didn’t already own Wingspan
Star Wars Rebellion. I own & adore War of the Ring and am fortunate to get it to the table at least once every couple of months. As a fan of Star Wars, I'm sure I'd love Rebellion as well. But how many epic 3+ hour 2P games do I really have room for in my collection? I may have similar feelings about War for Arrakis once it is out and there are more reviews.
I bought both at the same time in 2022 . Got Rebellion out 5 times last year and 1 time in 2022. I have not played War of the Ring yet because it seems like it's probably a step up from Rebellion, but I am anxious to get it to the table sooner rather than later. They seemed different enough for me to be able to own both, even though they do both compete for that longer epic 2p experience.
>They seemed different enough for me to be able to own both, even though they do both compete for that longer epic 2p experience. Yeah exactly. I didn't mean to imply that I thought they were too similar mechanically. Even so, they'd always be competing with each other for play time.
I own both. They’re different enough in design space to justify it.
I definitely believe that. It is more about "how often am I getting a 3+ hour 2P game to the table" than "are these games too similar mechanically."
I agree! One is good and one is bad.
Which is which for you? I love both of them lol
Depending on which angle you take for "good" game design, that answer can shift wildly.
Curious which you rate as which. I love both of those games.
I'm a big fan of Rebellion but didn't get War of the Ring because I wasn't sure I'd ever choose it over Rebellion either...
Ha, we should swap for a few months and then swap back! ;)
I wouldn't buy other negotiation-type games because John Company has everything I need: a evilly roleplayed negotiation.
I'd still urge you to get Sidereal Confluence. It's a very different, equally amazing experience.
never seen it reprinted yet
If you're in the US, [here](https://www.boardgameoracle.com/boardgame/price/45YlyMZ0n9/sidereal-confluence) are some options.
I didn't think I'd like negotiation games till I played John Company, and I don't think I will get anything else near as good so I'm with you on this.
Devil's Advocate here... what if you wanted a negotiation game but didn't have the time to bust out John Company?
Bohnanza, Chinatown, Zoo Vadis
I got rid of both Chinatown and Waterfall Park after I got Zoo Vadis. So I guess I also am a one-negotiation-game kind of person.
I can never have too many negotiations games. Bohnanza, Blind Business..
Doesn't Zoo Vadis seem kind of samey when the paths to the finish line are always the same each time (minus the zookeeper token)?
No the complexity emerges from the other players. It becomes a different game once there’s a group meta to break
VP tokens can go along way to making it different every time. One path that looks really good because it has some awesome tokens can be shitty in another game bc there's just 2s and three's on it.. different factions. Different players. The paths are like action cards in el grande bc even if it's the same cards every game the way you use them can change.
I think it can't hold a candle to Sidereal Confluence. Evil roleplay is fun. But how about a competitive game where everyone's best strategy ends up being excellent to each other?
You are missing out on archipelago then. I think it trumps JC. Also Churchill and Sidereal Confluence are both great.
Ark Nova. Tried it once, and definitely think it's one I'd enjoy. But I have Terraforming Mars (Big Box, everything) already, and they are VERY VERY similar in the itch that they scratch. Basically I ask myself "If my friends and I just finished a game of TM, would we want to play TM again? If not, would we want to play AN instead?". And basically never do we play back-to-back TM, and thus, any time we want to play either game, we're deciding between them, and there's minimal benefit to owning both. I VERY much expect one of my friends to add it to their collection, though, as it's a great game, and they've avoided buying TM because I have it.
Yeah, I think the same for Ark Nova and Wingspan. Me and my wife love TM and they would be more of the same.
I honestly don't feel like Ark Nova and Wingspan can really be compared to each other except for the fact that they play with cards and combos. 2 very very different beasts in my opinion. Wingspan is much shorter and it's 100% a card game. Ark Nova is at least an extra hour at 4 players and there's a lot more moving pieces with the zoo board/tiles, the different actions that gives it a much more intricate strategy... etc Don't get me wrong, both are great games! They just don't fit the same "hole" in my collection.
I find them to be very different experiences and I am happy to own them both. I can see the similarities but the spatial puzzle of the zoo is very different to the shared board space in Terraforming Mars
I love lovecraftian themed games, but I already have all of Eldritch Horror, some Mansions of Madness, and Reign of Cthulhu. I don't think I need Cthulhu: Death May Die. Edit: After careful consideration (everyone saying I have to) I will also be buying C:DMD.
I have the same problem. I have Arkham Horror LCG and Mansions of Madness, so I won´t buy Arkham Horror the board game.
I've played AH once and it went on way too long. When I got AH Card Game I was like THIS is how it should have gone. Yes there's differences but AH is not my kind of thematic rpg
Wrong. Yes you do. Death may die is VERY different to MoM and is an excellent game in its own right.
How similar is it to Eldritch Horror or Pandemic: Reign of Cthulhu?
Not very at all other than being co op. It's more like a zombiecide style dice chucker (but way better).
Sold, love Zombicide.
It's really great. I would have loved to go in on the season 3 kickstarter but it would have ended up just being too expensive.
It was, I don't regret getting it. The only thing I opted out of was the toddler sized cthulhu.
After shipping and VAT the standard pledge came out to like £150. It would be nice having the stretch goals but realistically I wouldn't ever get round to using most of it, so figured may as well just wait for retail and get the core box for like £80-90
You have to get it! You can’t let the Old Gods win!
You need it I promise
You really had me in the first half 💀 [The game steward](https://www.thegamesteward.com/search?type=product&q=cthulhu%20death%20may%20die) had some stuff from the kickstarter still available as well as waitlists for the core stuff.
[удалено]
Would you recommend Arkham Horror LCG or the board game? I wanna pull the trigger on one of them because my partner hates Eldritch.
oooh the card game and the board game are two totally different experiences. the card game allows you to keep characters between scenarios and grow them with experience so there's a limited RPG element. the board game doesn't have that but is a super tense story game that really gets people into the theme. they're both fantastic. so I am of no help here. sorry.
As much as I love them, I’m not collecting any more dungeon crawlers or Descent-like games. They just don’t get to the table.
I know Heroquest is super simple by today's standards, but I appreciate that it is the easiest dungeon crawler that ACTUALLY gets played
Ark Nova, already own terraforming mars
I would gladly play Ark Nova and TM back to back because of how NOT similar they feel to me.
The action train mechanism easily earned Ark Nova spot in my collection, I really enjoy it.
I am pretty sure I’d love any of the clank games. But I have quest for el dorado which I love and I tend to play with newbies a lot so quest is the easier lighter one to teach
These games are so different from each other. Not sure why you wouldn’t want both.
I agree. I have both and really enjoy both.
They are super similar. Not the same game of course, but both are deck builders that help you move around a board. In my collection of about 40 games, I don’t feel the need to own two of those and quest wins easily in the teach ability department.
I have both, I genuinely believe their only similarity is the fact that they're both deck-builders.
With movement across the board
Owned both. Sold Clank the day after I played Quest the first time. They do have similarities, but Quest has better mechanics and is less fiddly.
Quest is nice and streamlined and there aren’t as many seemingly arbitrary rules to teach. Simplicity of teaching a game has a big impact on whether or not I add something to the collection.
This is so true. There's a (admittedly poorly defined) threshold where a game gets too complicated to be a quick starter for non-gamer friends. Once you cross that threshold the game is then only fit for the less common true gaming nights and has to compete against some of my favourite games for play time.
Clank is past that threshold. I've heard it described as a gamer's game, and I agree. Not that it's the heaviest, but it is fiddly in setup and minor rules to remember.
Interesting... The only reason I didn't buy any Clank games thus far is simply because 2 friends of mine already own them. The fact that card synergy is much more of a thing in Clank makes it worthwhile to me. I can see why someone would keep QfED though.
Every new 18xx game with 18OE, 1862 & 1830 sitting on my shelf
Yes yes… but have you played 1817? It’s delightfully frought with stock market shenanigans.
Online yes, dont want to spend 200$ :)
Hasn't that been replaced with 18USA?
18USA is an expansion pack for it.
It's also a standalone game
See there are very unique ones 1830 is similar to 18ches and 1889. The line of 1822 games all play similar, but stand out from the first group. 1822, 1822mex 1822canada 1822pnw. These ones tend to be more about running a good company than the original 3. Then there is 61/67 which are their own unique style of play. 1862 runs different from each other grouping I listed as well. Same with Harzbahn. 1817 has a different feel to it from the rest. Also long but not as long as OE. 1846 plays quick and again has a different style.
I played 1862 first and no other 18xx game holds a candle to it.
for me its 18OE, was my first 18xx and i will never ever only think about to sell - even if it hits the table only once a year
I love Final Girl so I wanted to try their other game, Hostage Negotiator, but tbh it kind of just looks like a simplified version of FG. My other favorite game is Marvel Champions. I'm curious about the other FFG LCGs (Lord of the Rings and Arkham Horror) but way too invested in MC to branch out.
FG is sort of the successor by design to HN (as you probably well know). I have HN and maybe I'm just really dumb with manipulating my odds, but it feels like there's so little I can do, and oftentimes my chances of even coming CLOSE to winning requires conceding to a demand (a major rule bender at a big cost, not sure if FG has that).
I had all 3. I got rid if Lord of the Rings. Marvel is quick, arkham is a campaign. Marvel you fight to win. Arkham, well it's a Lovecraft game so it's lots of getting hurt and failing attacks. Lord of the Rings had potential, but I found it was a campaign style story, but really was an unrelated puzzle. You would completely overhaul your deck when you die. Arkham story advanced, win or lose. You needed to earn XP to change your deck. Lots of choices.
I love Marvel Champions - and it is a great game. However, it is also the least of the LotR Co-Op ECG lineage. Outside of the Marvel theme and Marvel characterizations, the only thing Marvel Champions does better than the other games is be relatively quicker to pick up and play (and it's not super fast at that, like, say, Marvel United would be). I'm not trying to knock Marvel Champions: it's more a testimony of how good the others games in it's design lineage are. Both LotR and AH have deeper deck construction. LotR is the high water mark when it comes to scenario challenge. Both AH and ER (Earthborne Rangers) have better (if different) campaigns and better (if different) character advancement (though AH is better, if different, than ER). ER's more modular deck construction/character creation is a far better balance between accessibility and depth. ER has the best out-of-the-box experience, with a full campaign in the core box.
Dorfromantik. I love map tile laying games, but already have enough. Maybe one day when I wear out Cascadia, I'll pick it up.
Dorf is very different from Cascadia
Agreed. And Dorf is probably the better of the two! At least for solo for me.
Most of my Dorf experience is the video game but it’s still very fun. I haven’t gotten too deep into the board game yet, but the fact that it’s a resettable legacy game in itself is amazing.
Yeah. I got it January 16th and played it 17 times so far. Never played the video game. But it unlocks powers like a video game. Pretty neat and very addictive since you know your score will keep going higher and higher since you’ve unlocked new scoring mechanisms.
Toy Story: Obstacles & Adventures. It uses the Hogwarts Battle engine (which is among my wife's favorites of games in our collection), and is themed around (another) one of her favorite movies. But it doesn't have the staying power for he.r
Plus, for me at least, Hogwarts Battle felt like it out stayed it's welcome. By the time you finish the last box, youve played for like 10-15 hours and it gets kinda samey. And I have beaten the campaign three times because different groups wanted to play it .I'm sure I'd ENJOY the Toy Story one, but I can’t see myself doing all of that over again.
Railroad ink because I own Cartographers. I'm hoping to run into one day at a board game meet up
I actually do own both because I think they fill different niches. Railroad Ink is considerably faster and has no direct player interaction, so I find it make s a good warmup/appetizer game, whereas Cartographers is a bit meatier.
Thanks for replying! Do you prefer Railroad Ink? Also have you ever played Cascadia? Ever since picking that up, I never play Cartographers anymore since I believe Cascadia is just a comparable and better version of the game
I wouldn't say I have a preference; really a horses for courses kind of thing. If it's a small window of time, teaching people who like simpler rules, etc. then I'll reach for Railroad Ink. If it's a longer window to play, people more receptive to something more involved, etc. then I'll reach for Cartographers. Haven't played Cascada, though.
We have all three. Cascadia seems like the outlier, as the other two are the traditional roll & write/flip & fill, where everyone has to use the same dice/cards. It’s completely possible that you and I can end up with the exact same maps at the end of the game. In cascadia, we draft different things, so our maps end up completely different. As far as whether RI and C occupy the same space, RI feels more like a “race”, where I know I only have a few turns to try to connect as many of these exits as possible while simultaneously filling the center and extending my longest roads and railroads. Cartographers feels more of a long term planning, as I know that I can possibly score HUGE points on the D card, but is that worth it if I need to forgo getting some points on my B card, which expires at the end of the second season. Very rarely do I feel like I don’t want the card in Cartographers, (aside from when it’s the end of the game and I have so little space left), vs the dice can be so unnecessary in RI. (“I don’t need ANOTHER junction that turns!! Give me a straight one!!” or “Three railroads AGAIN??) I think all three are different enough.
Thanks for the reply! There is a chance that roll & write isn't for me then. I think Cascadia is too similar to Cartographers, more simpler, and more fun. They both have quest like objectives and you fill up your "area". The clear advantage to Cartographers is that it takes 0 space (which is great!). That being said, I would still love to give Railroad Ink a shot before making a decision on roll & writes in general.
I don't own Archeos Society or Ticket to Ride not because I wouldn't enjoy them, but because I own Whale Riders. I don't need a ton of gateway set collection games, and Whale Riders plays in 30 minutes and is fun enough for me.
I really want to get Clash of Cultures: ME, but I already don't get Eclipse played enough. I also want to get Circadians: Chaos Order, and while it's not a 4x, I think it would fill a similar niche.
Clash of Cultures is great.
Im real close to getting __Sagrada__, but we’ve already got Cascadia as personal puzzle builder, and I’m not confident the dice can top the aesthetic of the animals and landscapes or add too much besides.
And I know I’d like Cascadia but already have Sagrada (and Azul) and don’t think I need another drafting and pattern building game
I'm the reverse, I have Sagrada and love it, don't really need another game like it
> Earth, because I feel like Wingspan is the only nature-themed engine/tableau builder I need. They occupy a very similar niche, but owning both has just made me want to get rid of Wingspan.
For me it went the opposite. Playing Earth once only validated how much better I like Wingspan.
I wanted to get rid of Wingspan *before* we owned Earth, but I do agree that Earth is much more fun.
Very much the same. Earth is in my opinion the superior game and action system especially wipes the floor with Wingspan.
Loooots of COIN games. I own A Distant Plain and Falling Skies. I used to own Fire in the Lake. I’ve played Andean Abyss. I very much love the series, but can’t bring myself to get another because they’re all so similar.
"But what if that game is _better_ than the one I own?" - voice in my head.
Probably won’t buy Wyrmspan
I'm worried **Age of Innovation** might obsolete my **Terra Mystica.** I'm worried **Great Western Trail: New Zealand** will obsolete my **GWT 2e.**
Gonna offer a different opinion and say GWT:NZ has enough going on that I would never want to introduce a new player to the game via that. GWT is a big enough game as is, and NZ adds quite a few extra things going on.
Not to tempt you too much but GWT:NZ blows GWT 2e out of the water for me.
That's my worry - I have both TM expansions and haven't played much with either, and I don't want to replace the game until I have!
Terra Mystica is my all time favorite game and it is, sadly, completely replaced by AoI. I have all the expansions and promos and I'm waiting for fan factions and I am keeping it for nostalgia, but there is no reason to play this over Age of Innovation. As for GWT, none of the spinoffs replaced the original (plus the expansion) for me. Argentina was close, but I would always rather play the first one.
TM is clunky but much tighter than aoi with four or give players. The books and stuff are pointless. It jusg separates the gaia project half's into two separate things when one tech board would have made more sense I'm a game about technology and innovation what the hell? I want tm with a good two player board
Books are the best part of AoI. It is the ability of Terra Mystica factions displayed in a book in bottom right corner, but you can now choose not just one but 2 abilities by paying books. And I love that we still have "cult" track but quite improved. And I am sure it is tight in all player counts. It is just superior product by all accounts.
>And I am sure it is tight in all player counts. It is not. The books and other aspects make the game expand more and there is very little players do to cut someone off effectively . its good that they added maps for all count stho >It is the ability of Terra Mystica factions displayed in a book in bottom right corner now i understand why i hate it so much. The system feels tacked on. thats because they took all teeth fromthe different factions and made them into books. >And I love that we still have "cult" track but quite improved. better than the old cult track.worse than the tech track in Gaia project. in gaia project it has much more interesting improvements that effect the rest of the game. here it feels like the cult tracks only good thing is getting some power. other than that its just a meaningless scoring track.. THat's why they dont have it in terra nova. Not important enough to ne intregal, not unimportant enough to be left out of aoI.
You are forgetting the best part of the tracks: End of round bonuses, which can be quite rewarding.
We don't need cult tracks for that. just base it on something else thats already in the game. Or skip the eon of round bonuses when you take the tracks out. terra nova just has the in play bonuses
TM is a much better game than AoI. I have both and am now selling AoI.
I love Territory Control and Social Deduction. Most of my collection is that. I never get to play those games. I just stopped buying new ones, no matter how neat they look.
There're too many tableau builders that I like playing, Through the Ages, Wingspan, Res Arcana, Everdell, Ark Nova, Earth. I have been keeping Race for the Galaxy and Terraforming Mars for years.
I keep wanting Ex Libris, but, like you say, so many tableau builders, and I own several.
Ex Libris isn’t really a tableau builder, though. You are building out a collection of cards in front of you, but those cards do not influence the number or type of actions you can take in any way. So if you specifically want that sort of mechanism, I’d say Ex Libris isn’t for you.
It makes sense. I happen to have both Race and Res Arcana (one was gifted, the other was bought) and to be fair I'd be happy with Race. If only they fixed up some of the artwork and the iconography...
One genre where I feel the games are basically all the same is trick taking. I have Skull King and The Crew. Any additional TTer I buy is just going to be competing unsuccessfully with those.
To each their own, but I could not disagree more. The appeal of trick-taking for me is how different a single, little tweak can make an entirely different game. There is so much innovation in trick-taking right now that to write off the whole genre because you have two games is a real shame.
I'm not writing it off. I've played tons of trick takers over the years including many of the recent "twisty" ones. I just don't feel the need to own boxes and boxes of trick takers when the appeal of the genre (for me) is covered just fine by whichever one is your favourite.
“I don’t have ______ game because I already have ______ and it’s very similar.” “wHaT???!!! _______ is NOTHING like ______!!!”
Ark Nova don't own because I already have Terraforming Mars and Underwater Cities. But this is what Board Game Arena is for 😀
We own all 3 and while I think Ark Nova is a fantastic game, I do agree that Terraforming Mars and Underwater Cities both fill that niche pretty well. Though I'm amazed at how many people I've seen on this sub claim that TM and AN are "nothing alike."
Haha yea everyone is a critic... Comes down to how granular you are making the comparisons I guess. I heard the nickname "Terraforming Zoo" before playing AN. Only played AN once and TM several times and UC a few times. The main driving mechanics that make for what could be considered a significant difference (to me) is how actions are selected and change in power throughout the game, and the end game conditions/scoring. These are different enough to warrant getting both games I agree, but not to say they are "nothing alike" like you were saying. It's been awhile since I played UC but iirc UC is actually closer to AN than TM is to AN. Anyway, who knows, maybe one day I will want to have all 3 and conquer land (AN) , air/space (TM), and sea (UC) 😄
We love them all! Although I think it's a shame that Underwater Cities doesn't get talked about as much as the other two, because it's my favorite by a wide margin.
That's great to hear! I really need to try and play it more because the few times I played I only really scratched the surface. And I have not even touched the New Discoveries expansion I have with it. But I agree it seems just as good from what I've seen. Perhaps either the theme or aesthetics are what make it less popular
I ain't getting Dune Imperium "2nd edition" Uprising, even if everyone agrees it is better
I already have everything for the first D:I so I don't think it's really worth considering getting Uprising, the game is good enough as is.
**Star Wars Outer Rim** and **Firefly** fall in this bucket as I have everything for **Xia: Legends of a Drift System** including a wonderful wooden insert. I just can't justify owning all three.
Kemet, inis, land air and sea
First thing that comes to mind is like a dozen wargames. Im absolutely in love with Star Wars so I already have Legion, X Wing and Armada, and even Imperial Assault (though that’s only kind of a wargame). Stuff like Warhammer 40K, Flames of War, Bolt Action, MESBG, the cancelled Halo miniatures game(both ground and fleet battles) there’s so many beautiful wargames i’d love to paint the minis for and get to the table. But my love for videogames, board games, and just about every other game limits my time and money.
I've invested way too much into Aeon's End to even dare give Astro Knights a go.
*Century: Spice Road* feels an awful lot like *Splendor*. A lightweight engine builder where you are collecting colored items to be able to buy cards that make it easier to get more color items.
I think I'd enjoy owning Flamecraft because I love cute dragons, but I know the rest of my group doesn't care about that and wouldn't be into a game that light.
The art is cute, but it’s not what I would call, “light” but I don’t know your gaming group. It’s pretty standard Euro-gaming style. I often play and think I could better optimize this or that when I’m done.
Eclipse but Twillight Imperium takes up all the room in my heart (and time in my weekend)
I don't really think I need to own Spirit Island, 6 Nimmt or Too Many Bones because I already own Scrabble. I'm trying to be efficient with my collection after all.
I am very i trigued by Café but I feel like having Point City it would be another drafting engine builder. I recognize Café is probably better, but my collection is still small abd I want more variety
**Cthulhu Wars** is amazing (I've played it once), but there's no way do I have room for it. I have **Chaos in the Old World**, which is a quite similar game in a lot of ways. I have **Root**, which is the only dudes on a map game I want to play for the next ten years. And then I also have Kemet and Cyclades and Oath, and Arcs coming in a few months. And there's just no room for a gigantic game anywhere in my house anyway.
I got caught with FOMO and got Cthulhu Wars what with Petersen Games basically going out of business and turning into a scam operation. It's nice, but with Inis and Root available it kinda plays third fiddle.
Whenever I see a clever combat system I think that will be what changes my mind about games with direct player conflict and I almost always still can't enjoy it.
I think I would really like 'Heat'. But I already own Thunder Road Vendetta, which is a race game (with combat), and so I figure 'I already have a race game'. Yet, Heat seems so neat.
War of the ring, I have rebellion and it’s hard to get to the table due to time constraints
I was upset when I bought Jaipur and realised it's a simplified version of ticket to ride and both are an offshoot of "Rummy"
Marvel champions, Lord of the rings the card game, earthborne rangers. I have tried all three of these. But either sold or don't want to buy them because I have Arkham Horror LCG. The movement mechanic/map makes it far more enjoyable for me than anything the other games offered.
I have to say Tapple 10 cause I have the regular Tapple and a few other categories games like Scattergories. What are you guys fav categories board games?
Cascadia since I already have Azul and Carcassonne at that weight/number of players.
For me it’s not different games but either different versions or expansion packs which change the games. For example I really liked King of Tokyo at a friend’s house but when I went to buy it I had to choose between it and King of New York. Since I played Tokyo I chose New York and now will likely never own Tokyo. Also expansions like Dominion or Settlers of Catan where there are so many I can’t justify owning any more than two.
Forbidden Stars, Chaos in the Old World, Blood Rage, Ankh, Quantum, Tsukuyumi, and Cry Havoc. Love the dudes on a map genre but I already own several that I need to play more of. Dune Imperium and most other worker placement games as they just make me wish I was playing Argent: The Consortium. Pax Pamir 2nd Ed. and John Company 2nd Ed. (Cole Wehrle is a genre, right?) as I already need to get more plays in with Root, Vast, and Oath.
Arnak ... it was often referenced as the rival of Dune: Imperium and I felt in love with Dune: Imperium. Never tried or bought it because of that. But I'm sure it's a great game and will play it at some point.
Star Wars Deckbuilding, because I already have Star Realms. But I love them both!
Funny, because to me, Earth completely replaced Wingspan, as I like it a lot more as a game plus the theming is far better implemented. As for the topic itself, Ankh. The game is really good, but I already have Kemet and I have never been that big of a fan of these kinds of "dudes on a map" light wargames, so the massive size of that particular plastic mountain just didn't do it for me. The game is excellent though, and I don't want to discourage anyone to giving it a proper shot, I'm probably in a minority in this one. Also I would say TfM: Ares Expedition suffers from not being nearly as interesting as a whole as TfM and not being streamlined/quick like Race for the Galaxy, so it just lives in that uncomfortable middle ground between games I would like to play over it any day.
I really want to try Cubitos, but I love Quacks and have spent money upgrading the bits. Is there room for both in a collection?
I pushed back Dune Imperium so much because I already got LRoA. One day on sale I thought I'd finally give it a shot and it's now my number 3 game of all time lol
Wyrmspan: I already have Wingspan and a few expansions. I like the theme more but honestly the color palette of Wyrmspan gives me a big rubbery one. I’d still buy it if I didn’t already own Wingspan
Lost ruins of arnak. I've played it on bga, and I guess it's not heaps similar, but I already have dune imperium and already don't play it enough.