You may have noticed I’ve had a lot of Kickstarter Tabletop Alerts in the past few weeks (as have some of my fellow GeekDads)–I think we’ve hit that point of the year where everyone decides it’s long enough after the holidays that people will spend money again. Despite all those articles, there are still several projects I won’t be able to review–usually because I didn’t get a prototype in time. (See our crowdfunding review guidelines.)
This project is entering its last day, so if you’re interested you should check it out quickly. Dirigible Disaster is a real-time cooperative game about keeping an airship afloat for its maiden voyage despite lots of things going wrong. I haven’t gotten a chance to play it myself, but the premise sounds fun.
Tiny Epic Western Character Meeples
Here’s another short project–Gamelyn Games and Meeple Source are teaming up yet again for some custom meeples, this time for Tiny Epic Western (which just finished funding last week). If you want some great Western-themed meeples, check out this project, which only lasts until Saturday.
I did get a prototype of Control after the Kickstarter campaign already launched, so I’m including it here since I won’t have time for a full review. It’s a quick-playing card game with a time travel theme–you’re trying to build up your fuel cells, but other players can use their cards to defuse your fuel cells, or burn them for special abilities. It’s fairly light strategy and has a nice look to it.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shadows of the Past
Clearly, this game was an insta-back for many, many people. Over 3,000 people have already pledged over $400k for this adventure game, hitting stretch goals to turn most of the enemies into plastic miniatures instead of cardboard tokens, and adding more characters like Splinter and Casey Jones. From what I’ve read of the gameplay, it looks like it’ll be a lot of fun. One caveat: do pay attention to the shipping explanation at the bottom of the campaign page, because it will be calculated separately and this is going to be a heavy game! But if you like miniatures (and turtles!), it may be a tough one to resist even with the $90 price tag.
I backed the original Province when it was on Kickstarter, and it’s a great little 2-player Eurogame that fits in your pocket. One of the most common comments Laboratory got about their game is that people wished it were bigger. (The tokens are teeny.) So, while this edition is still a small, portable size, you won’t need to put on your reading glasses or get out your tweezers to play. I still like my pocket-sized version, but this larger version may be a little more functional.
David Sirlin, designer of Yomi and Pandante (among other games), gives us his take on CCGs–except, in this twist, they aren’t actually collectible, because you get the cards you need in a common set. It’s a two-player strategy card game, but the trick is that you build your deck from your codex as you play, so that your deck can respond to your opponent during the game. It’s a fascinating concept, though it also looks like something that could take a lot of practice to master. Based on Sirlin’s other games, though, I expect this is a game that will attract some very enthusiastic fans. (Looks like many of the backers are taking the plunge for the $200 deluxe set, but you can get started for as little as $20.)
Okay, I’ve got two projects that are not tabletop games exactly, but I just couldn’t resist.
First, Quantum Chess. Before I tell you about the project itself, though, you should watch this video. Really. It’s got Stephen Hawking and Paul Rudd in it.
Okay, so Quantum Chess is a chess-based video game in which pieces can be in superposition–the exact location of a piece can be uncertain–and there can also be quantum entanglement. It looks like a really fun way to play chess, plus learn a bit about some quantum physics concepts at the same time.
Okay, this last one has nothing to do with tabletop games. I’m a sucker for beautiful books, and this set of books looks absolutely gorgeous. 3 separate hardcover books, about 250 pages each, filled with stories and pictures about what it means to be a knight. The project creators were interested in having a wide range of characters represented, and I love the samples they’ve shown. It’s not cheap–you get a random hardcover for $40, or the whole set for $100, but it looks like a book I’d keep for a long, long time.
The Turtles game is way overpriced for a game of that caliber. I spend 100’s of dollars a month on games and there most def is not $150 worth of stuff in this game. $75 tops.
Based on what I’ve seen of Kickstarter campaigns, there is a sizable population of people who back very expensive games for the miniatures, so anything with this number of miniatures gets a lot of attention. In this particular instance, I think you’re adding enthusiasm for TMNT into the mix, plus what looks to be a decent game in itself. Is it worth $150? Well, probably not to most people, but apparently it’s worth it to enough people. I’m not heavily into miniatures so I’d love a chance to play the game but probably can’t afford to buy it myself. But it’s definitely one I’m keeping my eye on, if I get a chance to play it later on.