Races of Twilight Imperium

Space is an awfully big place. In order to fully reflect that, a space boardgame needs to be appropriately-scaled; hence Twilight Imperium, a game that comes in a box as big as a 1980s Hyundai and takes longer to play than it takes Frodo and Samwise to walk to the slopes of Mordor. Twilight Imperium is not for the attention-deficit crowd, nor is it for the non-committed gamers who would rather fast-deal a set of 5 or 6 card games in an hour. However, for those who few gamers who love a good challenge and are committed to excellence, TI:3 can provide one of the most epic board game experiences anyone is likely to encounter. This weekend, I’m... Read More

Launch Pad: In Space, No One Can Hear You Whimper

From 1957 until the early 70s, the national super powers of the United States and the Soviet Union were pitted together in a heated head-to-head race for space. In their quest to reach the cosmos, each nation recruited top technicians and harvested vast resources, all while trying their best to protect their budding rockets from spies and saboteurs. Launch Pad is a lot like that, except this time imagine that JFK strapped on a rocket pack, flew over to Kruschev’s pad and booted him right in the kremlins. In Launch Pad the objective is simple: use resource cards to build cool spaceships, send them through quality control, and then roll ’em... Read More

The Game Crafter – Personal Boardgame Production Made Possible

Gather around, youngsters, as I craft you a tale of days of legend. Many, many eons ago – about 30 years, give or take – if an adventurer wandered into a hobby establishment, they might find strange and wondrous treasures locked inside small, plastic bags or unmarked cardboard receptacles. As it turns out, these treasures were board and card games from small, independent publishers, often printed on inexpensive stock, heavy in theme and playability, and low on cost. These small rebels were fighting against the giant mainstays – the Parker Brothers and Milton Bradley – and generating a gaming renaissance that paved the way... Read More

Alien Frontiers: The First Transport is Away!

Last month on Dice Hate Me, I published an interview with Clever Mojo Games‘ owner and publisher W. David MacKenzie and board game designer Tory Niemann about their upcoming strategy game Alien Frontiers. I recently spoke with MacKenzie about the status of production, availability schedule and advanced buzz for the game. Clever Mojo Games expects to receive the full shipment of Alien Frontiers from the printer by October 12th. Kickstarter backers and customers who have pre-ordered the game should begin receiving their copies by the end of October. Although it is too late to contribute to the Alien Frontiers‘ Kickstarter campaign and... Read More

Pub Play: Cathedral

In 1962, Royal New Zealand Air force pilot Bob Moore flew several training maneuvers around Christchurch Cathedral and became fascinated by the architecture and the interlocking structure of the streets and buildings below. Several years later, Bob spun this early fascination into the prototype for Cathedral, a game in which the pieces evoke a medieval city surrounded by a wall. Cathedral is played on a grid with interlocking, building-like pieces. The object is simple: capture as much territory in the city grid as possible by taking turns placing your differently-shaped building pieces. With careful placement, whole sections of the city can be... Read More