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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1 (2010) in Movies
Aug 8, 2019
With the slow, familiar strains of “Hedwig’s Theme”, the leitmotif that shepherds us into the world of Harry Potter, we’re once again immersed in the magic and adventure of the wizarding world. If for some reason you forgot where the story left off at the end of The Half-Blood Prince, the mournful dirge that plays as Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley prepare to meet reminds you that their world has changed drastically.
Like returning to your childhood home, it all looks familiar, but everything feels different. Gone are the school preparations, the train ride to Hogwarts, uniformed students jostling about, the easygoing camaraderie between our favorite trio, all the whimsical elements we’ve come to expect in a Harry Potter movie. Instead we have unease, sorrow and anger taking turns in the form of Hermione, Harry and Ron.
The Deathly Hallows Part I is the first of a two-part adaptation of the final book of J.K. Rowling’s popular series. Just like the anticipation of getting the seventh and final book, my excitement at screening this movie was tempered with the dread of seeing the series end. I actually did not have high expectations for this installment as the first part of the book was slow-paced and, not unlike another movie about wizards and elves, had a lot of walking and searching. But instead of one elusive ring, Harry, Hermione and Ron are searching for three Horcruxes, objects in which Harry’s nemesis, Lord Voldemort has implanted a part of his soul in his quest to achieve immortality. While they seek clues to the remaining Horcruxes, they learn that Voldemort seeks one of three Deathly Hallows, three sacred objects, the stories of which are revealed in a beautifully mesmerizing shadow-puppet sequence.
Director David Yates balances dark action with solid storytelling and arresting cinematography. Daniel Radcliffe is in turn sympathetic and charming as the heavily burdened hero. Rupert Grint’s Ron Weasley brings most of the movie’s humor again, but he’s most impressive when he becomes believably tortured and resentful when the dark magic of Voldemort’s Horcrux takes over. Emma Watson gracefully infuses the normally astute and self-assured Hermione with weary resolve and poignant anguish. The most charged moments are of course when the trio share the screen with the dark wizards, the most notable played with relish by Ralph Fiennes as Voldemort and Helena Bonham Carter as his most ardent minion, Bellatrix.
Having waited what felt like an eternity for this installment, it seems almost cruel to be made to wait until next summer for the conclusion. But that’s the only real complaint I can make about this movie. Widely and wildly anticipated, Deathly Hallows Part I will not disappoint.
Like returning to your childhood home, it all looks familiar, but everything feels different. Gone are the school preparations, the train ride to Hogwarts, uniformed students jostling about, the easygoing camaraderie between our favorite trio, all the whimsical elements we’ve come to expect in a Harry Potter movie. Instead we have unease, sorrow and anger taking turns in the form of Hermione, Harry and Ron.
The Deathly Hallows Part I is the first of a two-part adaptation of the final book of J.K. Rowling’s popular series. Just like the anticipation of getting the seventh and final book, my excitement at screening this movie was tempered with the dread of seeing the series end. I actually did not have high expectations for this installment as the first part of the book was slow-paced and, not unlike another movie about wizards and elves, had a lot of walking and searching. But instead of one elusive ring, Harry, Hermione and Ron are searching for three Horcruxes, objects in which Harry’s nemesis, Lord Voldemort has implanted a part of his soul in his quest to achieve immortality. While they seek clues to the remaining Horcruxes, they learn that Voldemort seeks one of three Deathly Hallows, three sacred objects, the stories of which are revealed in a beautifully mesmerizing shadow-puppet sequence.
Director David Yates balances dark action with solid storytelling and arresting cinematography. Daniel Radcliffe is in turn sympathetic and charming as the heavily burdened hero. Rupert Grint’s Ron Weasley brings most of the movie’s humor again, but he’s most impressive when he becomes believably tortured and resentful when the dark magic of Voldemort’s Horcrux takes over. Emma Watson gracefully infuses the normally astute and self-assured Hermione with weary resolve and poignant anguish. The most charged moments are of course when the trio share the screen with the dark wizards, the most notable played with relish by Ralph Fiennes as Voldemort and Helena Bonham Carter as his most ardent minion, Bellatrix.
Having waited what felt like an eternity for this installment, it seems almost cruel to be made to wait until next summer for the conclusion. But that’s the only real complaint I can make about this movie. Widely and wildly anticipated, Deathly Hallows Part I will not disappoint.
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Inseparable (Rise of the Iliri #4) in Books
Feb 4, 2021
17 of 250
Kindle
Inseparable ( Rise of Iliri book 4)
By Auryn Hadley
Once read a review will be written via Smashbomb and link posted in comments
DISASTER! THE BLACK BLADES DISBANDED, AN ALLIANCE IN TURMOIL...
The intersecting worlds of the iliri, grauori, and men collide when an alliance is declared, and the humans renege. In the midst of offering an olive branch to other races, they seem secretly hellbent on destroying them all - and they begin by putting Sal on trial and disbanding the Black Blades. Auryn Hadley offers up deft commentary on racism between communities - melded with fantastical action-adventure in a world at war, and passionate erotic romance in this fourth installment of the Rise of the Iliri.
True to its title, in Inseparable, on the world of Ogun, it's the connections between all beings - human and otherwise - that will save or destroy them.
Her recent mission a success, fearless (and irresistibly arousing) iliri warrior Lieutenant Salryc Luxx gets thanks in the form of imprisonment by the Conglomerate of Free Citizens. Sal's not even sure what she's accused of, but she suspects it's the color of her pale skin - not her actions - that's really on trial.
Kinetry, an old comrade and ally of the Black Blades now forced to hold Sal, warns her that a rash of anti-iliri sentiment is sweeping Parliament and the military. In fact, it seems men don't care for any race but their own. But Kinetry doesn't know that the King of Anglia is on his way to the military stronghold. Nor does he know the King is bringing with him thousands of grauori soldiers, members of a race of formerly hidden human-like wolves whose hunting and battle skills are unmatched.
If the King arrives before Sal's trial is resolved, he'll learn something in the courtroom that may destroy all hope of the intended alliance. Torn between truth and treason, Sal must navigate political sensitivities to hold the three races together. And just when she seems to get somewhere, the Conglomeration disbands the Black Blades.
Been a while since I caught up with the blades this book was the best so far and yes I say that after every book! Sal is brilliant. My first yay moment was Dom and amAnglia turning up with the army to pull Sal out of jail! Then finally Zep got the job done! I almost squealed when she got her crown finally in place!! The book is just ram packed with moments of about time and thank Gods! Those pups are just out of control cute too!! It almost got me at the end almost I’m so glad she pulled it back! Looking forward to the next book!
Kindle
Inseparable ( Rise of Iliri book 4)
By Auryn Hadley
Once read a review will be written via Smashbomb and link posted in comments
DISASTER! THE BLACK BLADES DISBANDED, AN ALLIANCE IN TURMOIL...
The intersecting worlds of the iliri, grauori, and men collide when an alliance is declared, and the humans renege. In the midst of offering an olive branch to other races, they seem secretly hellbent on destroying them all - and they begin by putting Sal on trial and disbanding the Black Blades. Auryn Hadley offers up deft commentary on racism between communities - melded with fantastical action-adventure in a world at war, and passionate erotic romance in this fourth installment of the Rise of the Iliri.
True to its title, in Inseparable, on the world of Ogun, it's the connections between all beings - human and otherwise - that will save or destroy them.
Her recent mission a success, fearless (and irresistibly arousing) iliri warrior Lieutenant Salryc Luxx gets thanks in the form of imprisonment by the Conglomerate of Free Citizens. Sal's not even sure what she's accused of, but she suspects it's the color of her pale skin - not her actions - that's really on trial.
Kinetry, an old comrade and ally of the Black Blades now forced to hold Sal, warns her that a rash of anti-iliri sentiment is sweeping Parliament and the military. In fact, it seems men don't care for any race but their own. But Kinetry doesn't know that the King of Anglia is on his way to the military stronghold. Nor does he know the King is bringing with him thousands of grauori soldiers, members of a race of formerly hidden human-like wolves whose hunting and battle skills are unmatched.
If the King arrives before Sal's trial is resolved, he'll learn something in the courtroom that may destroy all hope of the intended alliance. Torn between truth and treason, Sal must navigate political sensitivities to hold the three races together. And just when she seems to get somewhere, the Conglomeration disbands the Black Blades.
Been a while since I caught up with the blades this book was the best so far and yes I say that after every book! Sal is brilliant. My first yay moment was Dom and amAnglia turning up with the army to pull Sal out of jail! Then finally Zep got the job done! I almost squealed when she got her crown finally in place!! The book is just ram packed with moments of about time and thank Gods! Those pups are just out of control cute too!! It almost got me at the end almost I’m so glad she pulled it back! Looking forward to the next book!
Inseparable (Rise of the Iliri #4)
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DISASTER! THE BLACK BLADES DISBANDED, AN ALLIANCE IN TURMOIL... Growing ever more tender yet always...
Andy Meakin (5 KP) rated Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017) in Movies
Jul 11, 2018
Welcome back to Jumanji
How dare they make a sequel/remake/reboot of Jumanji? I mean that film was a classic. Admittedly a very average classic that doesn’t really live up to your childhood memory of it, but still. And, yeah, Zathura was a kind of remake given it was adapted from a book by the same writer and explored the same themes, but nobody watched that, so how dare they do a new Jumanji film? I mean it’s only 22 years since the original came out!
Do you find yourself agreeing with any of that little rant? If you do, then I have a few things to say. First, accept that for thousands of years similar tales have been retold to new generations to keep the spirit of a story alive. Second, why not actually wait to see what the new film has to offer before casting judgement as Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle actually serves well as a sequel to the first film, whilst doing something new with the idea.
Starting in the mid-90s, and the board game is unearthed on a beach. Given to a teenage kid by his father, the kid isn’t impressed as ‘nobody plays board games these days’, and he gets back to playing on his console. Overnight, reacting to the changes in gaming culture the box works some magic, and the next day the game has morphed to a video game format, to entice a new generation. Jump forward to present day and a group of unlikely teenagers are cast together in detention when they happen upon the abandoned game console. Taking a break from their junk-room sorting, they fire up the game and find themselves pulled into the game -world, each taking on the avatar of the character template they chose on load up. Presented with a quest in true video-game fashion, they set off to find a way to escape, whilst learning something about themselves in the process.
By transitioning to a video-game setting, the story allows for a great deal of fun to be had poking at the contrivances and conventions of the format, especially for games of the era in which the game was inspired. The characters all have strengths and weaknesses, the spawning of lives by dropping from the sky is so reminiscent of many a side-scrolling platform shooter of yesteryear. Even the behaviour of the NPC – I mean support cast – is perfectly drawn upon the mannerisms that game characters act, being there to spout random exposition to move you on your quest. As for the quests – yep, they are pointlessly complicated, filled with traps and red herrings.
But such pokes at video game culture would be wasted if the casting was wrong, but in the four main stars they have cast the perfect personae for each archetype. The heroic, strong and smouldering hero, who is being played by a soft heated geek – The Rock of course. You want a ‘Lara Croft’ style action heroine, albeit played by a socially awkward teen girl – enter Karen Gillan. Weak sidekick who is only there to carry equipment, but being played by a high school jock who thinks he can do anything – Kevin Hart is your man. Round that off with a studious professor type, being played by a female – that kind of comic role works well for Jack Black. Each of the stars cast has a lot of fun playing with there archetypes, and the film does them all justice to allow them to each have their moments to shine. Gillan, in particular, does a great job at looking entirely awkward yet confident at the same time, and her nerdy seduction scene showcases a comic timing ability equal to her action talents showcased in the GotG films.
The action is thrilling, the humour well placed, and the direction solid enough to bring this video game movie to life. In fact, this is one of the best video game movies to date, even though it isn’t even adapted from a real video game. A few nods to the original Jumanji are present, but without awkwardly placed. The end result is a fun family adventure with some great action set pieces and a wry humour, much like the original was. Don’t let nostalgia for the original put you off exploring the world of Jumanji once more.
Do you find yourself agreeing with any of that little rant? If you do, then I have a few things to say. First, accept that for thousands of years similar tales have been retold to new generations to keep the spirit of a story alive. Second, why not actually wait to see what the new film has to offer before casting judgement as Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle actually serves well as a sequel to the first film, whilst doing something new with the idea.
Starting in the mid-90s, and the board game is unearthed on a beach. Given to a teenage kid by his father, the kid isn’t impressed as ‘nobody plays board games these days’, and he gets back to playing on his console. Overnight, reacting to the changes in gaming culture the box works some magic, and the next day the game has morphed to a video game format, to entice a new generation. Jump forward to present day and a group of unlikely teenagers are cast together in detention when they happen upon the abandoned game console. Taking a break from their junk-room sorting, they fire up the game and find themselves pulled into the game -world, each taking on the avatar of the character template they chose on load up. Presented with a quest in true video-game fashion, they set off to find a way to escape, whilst learning something about themselves in the process.
By transitioning to a video-game setting, the story allows for a great deal of fun to be had poking at the contrivances and conventions of the format, especially for games of the era in which the game was inspired. The characters all have strengths and weaknesses, the spawning of lives by dropping from the sky is so reminiscent of many a side-scrolling platform shooter of yesteryear. Even the behaviour of the NPC – I mean support cast – is perfectly drawn upon the mannerisms that game characters act, being there to spout random exposition to move you on your quest. As for the quests – yep, they are pointlessly complicated, filled with traps and red herrings.
But such pokes at video game culture would be wasted if the casting was wrong, but in the four main stars they have cast the perfect personae for each archetype. The heroic, strong and smouldering hero, who is being played by a soft heated geek – The Rock of course. You want a ‘Lara Croft’ style action heroine, albeit played by a socially awkward teen girl – enter Karen Gillan. Weak sidekick who is only there to carry equipment, but being played by a high school jock who thinks he can do anything – Kevin Hart is your man. Round that off with a studious professor type, being played by a female – that kind of comic role works well for Jack Black. Each of the stars cast has a lot of fun playing with there archetypes, and the film does them all justice to allow them to each have their moments to shine. Gillan, in particular, does a great job at looking entirely awkward yet confident at the same time, and her nerdy seduction scene showcases a comic timing ability equal to her action talents showcased in the GotG films.
The action is thrilling, the humour well placed, and the direction solid enough to bring this video game movie to life. In fact, this is one of the best video game movies to date, even though it isn’t even adapted from a real video game. A few nods to the original Jumanji are present, but without awkwardly placed. The end result is a fun family adventure with some great action set pieces and a wry humour, much like the original was. Don’t let nostalgia for the original put you off exploring the world of Jumanji once more.
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Star Wars™: Knights of the Old Republic™ now includes fully functional MFi controller support,...
100% Biodegradable Comic Collection 2
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Sponsored Purchased on 22 Jun 2020. View order details David Hailwood and 2 more 100%...
Ivana A. | Diary of Difference (1171 KP) rated Codename Villanelle (Killing Eve #1) in Books
Aug 3, 2020
<a href="https://amzn.to/2Wi7amb">Wishlist</a>; | <a
<a href="https://diaryofdifference.com/">Blog</a>; | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/diaryofdifference/">Facebook</a>; | <a href="https://twitter.com/DiaryDifference">Twitter</a>; | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/diaryofdifference/">Instagram</a>; | <a href="https://www.pinterest.co.uk/diaryofdifference/pins/">Pinterest</a>;
#1 <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3346735674">Codename Villanelle</a> - ★★★
#2 <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3350743338">No Tomorrow</a> - To Be Read
<img src="https://diaryofdifference.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Book-Review-Banner-62.png"/>;
<b><i>Codename Villanelle is a book I listened to. I don’t often listen to audiobooks, but I wanted to read this book, and I didn’t own a physical copy.</i></b>
The reason I wanted to read this book is because I heard there is a TV series coming, featuring Sandra Oh from Grey’s Anatomy. I loved Sandra as Christina, and I knew I was going to love her as Eve. The TV Series is a hit, and I love it, but this is not why we’re here. We are here to talk about the books. On this occasion, the first book in the series.
<b><i>Villanelle is one of the world’s best assassins.</i></b>
She is a psychopath who loves her luxurious lifestyle and loves playing mind games. She is hired by a powerful group called the Twelve, and she is tasked to murder rich and influential people.
<b><i>Eve Polastri is a former MI6 operative.</i></b>
She is hired to find and capture or kill this assassin. Eve, who has a quiet life with her husband Nico and enjoys the peace, accepts the mission. However, little does she know, everything is about to change.
The chase is an exciting one and we never know what will happen next.
Honestly, I had troubles with the audiobook. The pronunciation of everything in Russian, French and Italian was a complete miss, and it annoyed me. Names, food, places, cities - it was all said incorrectly. I know for some people this is a minor issue. However, for me, it took away the joy throughout the whole book.
Apart from this, the first book of the series is a great introduction to both Eve and Villanelle. We find out more about their personalities and characters. We follow Villanelle in a few of her assassinations, and we follow Eve in some of her investigations. I think this book focused more on VIllanelle, featuring her childhood and training days as well. The presentation of their feelings and insights was immaculate. I loved their relationship forming, even without them meeting each other. There is tension, there are clues, and there is the play of destiny to always end up chasing each other.
<b><i>The writing was good and the pace was fast, which led to a very fast adventure. Also, the ending was intriguing, and it definitely leaves space for the second book to come in and explain a few things.</i></b>
I am looking forward to continuing this series and reading the second book - No Tomorrow. I recommend Codename Villanelle to everyone that loves action, assassination, murder, spy themes and psychological thrillers.
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#1 <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3346735674">Codename Villanelle</a> - ★★★
#2 <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3350743338">No Tomorrow</a> - To Be Read
<img src="https://diaryofdifference.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Book-Review-Banner-62.png"/>;
<b><i>Codename Villanelle is a book I listened to. I don’t often listen to audiobooks, but I wanted to read this book, and I didn’t own a physical copy.</i></b>
The reason I wanted to read this book is because I heard there is a TV series coming, featuring Sandra Oh from Grey’s Anatomy. I loved Sandra as Christina, and I knew I was going to love her as Eve. The TV Series is a hit, and I love it, but this is not why we’re here. We are here to talk about the books. On this occasion, the first book in the series.
<b><i>Villanelle is one of the world’s best assassins.</i></b>
She is a psychopath who loves her luxurious lifestyle and loves playing mind games. She is hired by a powerful group called the Twelve, and she is tasked to murder rich and influential people.
<b><i>Eve Polastri is a former MI6 operative.</i></b>
She is hired to find and capture or kill this assassin. Eve, who has a quiet life with her husband Nico and enjoys the peace, accepts the mission. However, little does she know, everything is about to change.
The chase is an exciting one and we never know what will happen next.
Honestly, I had troubles with the audiobook. The pronunciation of everything in Russian, French and Italian was a complete miss, and it annoyed me. Names, food, places, cities - it was all said incorrectly. I know for some people this is a minor issue. However, for me, it took away the joy throughout the whole book.
Apart from this, the first book of the series is a great introduction to both Eve and Villanelle. We find out more about their personalities and characters. We follow Villanelle in a few of her assassinations, and we follow Eve in some of her investigations. I think this book focused more on VIllanelle, featuring her childhood and training days as well. The presentation of their feelings and insights was immaculate. I loved their relationship forming, even without them meeting each other. There is tension, there are clues, and there is the play of destiny to always end up chasing each other.
<b><i>The writing was good and the pace was fast, which led to a very fast adventure. Also, the ending was intriguing, and it definitely leaves space for the second book to come in and explain a few things.</i></b>
I am looking forward to continuing this series and reading the second book - No Tomorrow. I recommend Codename Villanelle to everyone that loves action, assassination, murder, spy themes and psychological thrillers.
Sophia (Bookwyrming Thoughts) (530 KP) rated Paranormalcy (Paranormalcy #1) in Books
Jan 23, 2020
Original Review posted on <a href="http://bookwyrming-thoughts.blogspot.com/2012/12/review-paranormalcy-by-kiersten-white.html">Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>.
I'll be honest here: I just adore Evie's personality. And her habit of "bleep" when swearing which she picked up from her watery friend, Lish (such a sad ending for her. Dx *tears up again*). I'll probably face it. I kinda got the bleep habit as well after reading it, LOL. Not that I swear much myself. I kinda use it for fun sometimes when it's appropriate (Read: Really Fun Word to Use When Right).
Did it make a lasting impression? Well...
In the majority of cases, yep, it certainly did. In the meaning of "Will-I-read-it-again-and-again-so-I-can-visit-again" type of thing, it would be an eh... I guess we'll have to see. There's this great perk about the Paranormal genre, but I thought in Paranormalcy's case, it wasn't a lot as I expected it, but overall, it was pretty good.
The title is really catchy and makes you think a bit on what it really means. Though I don't really see how it's related in a way to the story. Maybe it'll come to me later. I hope. (That's right. I still haven't figured it out, XD) Same for the cover in a way. Although... I guess I can. The story is related to Evie after all. I'm assuming the girl on the cover is Evie. No guarantees of being right. I'm just guessing. (And guessing is never wrong. Is it? O_O)
How about the others then? I can't really detect the villains though. There seems to be a few, of which I shall not name for the sake of spoilers. Plus, they're not that scary. I was thinking some creep that would try and steal your soul to live like the villain from Silver Phoenix (read it BEFORE Bookwyrming Thoughts was born, so no review anywhere.) And I despise Reth. Can't you see Evie wants no business with you whatsoever? Dx I guess faeries aren't always smart as mentioned probably in the book already.
But oy, what makes me give it an epic rating of 4.25? Okay, not a 4.25 then. A 4. Not dealing with graphics again... even though I enjoy doing it at times. :) What really makes me give it a high rating and not a "in-the-middle-due-to-a-bit-of-lack-of-action-because-I'm-also-drawn-to-action-and-adventure-books-mixed-in-with-other-genres" type of rating is White's writing style. I just love it. It's light-hearted, kind of care-free, humorous, and cute mixed with awesome-ness and totally fun voice.
Will I read the next book? Yep. Just please keep up the awesomous style. I just adore it (Read: LOVEEE it!). :3
I'll be honest here: I just adore Evie's personality. And her habit of "bleep" when swearing which she picked up from her watery friend, Lish (such a sad ending for her. Dx *tears up again*). I'll probably face it. I kinda got the bleep habit as well after reading it, LOL. Not that I swear much myself. I kinda use it for fun sometimes when it's appropriate (Read: Really Fun Word to Use When Right).
Did it make a lasting impression? Well...
In the majority of cases, yep, it certainly did. In the meaning of "Will-I-read-it-again-and-again-so-I-can-visit-again" type of thing, it would be an eh... I guess we'll have to see. There's this great perk about the Paranormal genre, but I thought in Paranormalcy's case, it wasn't a lot as I expected it, but overall, it was pretty good.
The title is really catchy and makes you think a bit on what it really means. Though I don't really see how it's related in a way to the story. Maybe it'll come to me later. I hope. (That's right. I still haven't figured it out, XD) Same for the cover in a way. Although... I guess I can. The story is related to Evie after all. I'm assuming the girl on the cover is Evie. No guarantees of being right. I'm just guessing. (And guessing is never wrong. Is it? O_O)
How about the others then? I can't really detect the villains though. There seems to be a few, of which I shall not name for the sake of spoilers. Plus, they're not that scary. I was thinking some creep that would try and steal your soul to live like the villain from Silver Phoenix (read it BEFORE Bookwyrming Thoughts was born, so no review anywhere.) And I despise Reth. Can't you see Evie wants no business with you whatsoever? Dx I guess faeries aren't always smart as mentioned probably in the book already.
But oy, what makes me give it an epic rating of 4.25? Okay, not a 4.25 then. A 4. Not dealing with graphics again... even though I enjoy doing it at times. :) What really makes me give it a high rating and not a "in-the-middle-due-to-a-bit-of-lack-of-action-because-I'm-also-drawn-to-action-and-adventure-books-mixed-in-with-other-genres" type of rating is White's writing style. I just love it. It's light-hearted, kind of care-free, humorous, and cute mixed with awesome-ness and totally fun voice.
Will I read the next book? Yep. Just please keep up the awesomous style. I just adore it (Read: LOVEEE it!). :3
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated DiTiC in Tabletop Games
Oct 2, 2019
Purple Phoenix Games Preview
Abstract strategy games hold a special place in my heart. I’m not really a fan of Chess, but I am a fan of games that are light on rules and components but heavier in strategy needed to best your opponents. Yes, I like games that have zombies and gore or adventure and treasures as well, but abstracts are a great escape from those Ameritrashy games we all love.
So my original thought was to try to open this preview with a dastardly abstract statement to truly emphasize how theming is irrelevant with some activities. Not quite having done that, DiTiC is an abstract strategy game of “tile placement and dice-pawn” movement. How does it play? Read on.
In DiTiC the winner is the first player to upgrade one of their dice from a smaller-valued die into a value of six. Bring out smaller value dice and move them around the “board” to combine with other dice and win the game!
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a review copy of this game for the purposes of this review. These are preview copy components, and I do not know if the final components will be similar or different, or if the Kickstarter campaign will alter or add anything through stretch goals. -T
To setup a game of DiTiC, each player chooses a color of dice and takes all dice into their hand. The tile with “DiTiC START” on it is the, well, starting tile and is placed in the middle of the table. Roll off to see who goes first and you are ready to play!
On a turn a player may draw and place a tile or move one of their dice. Players start with zero dice on the board, so the first few turns will be drawing a tile from the bag and placing it on the board either side face-up. As you can see from the photos the tiles will have different colored (and shaped) corners. It’s when these corners complete an intersection of four tile corners that dice may enter the board. Depending on the color of the intersection’s majority control a die of said majority color comes into play on the value of the number of icons present. That’s a mouthful. So there are four corners to the intersection. If said intersection contains two red, a blue, and a black icon then red will place a die with value of two pips showing on that intersection. These dice may now be moved and combined with like-valued dice (with an exception). If a player has at least one die on the board when initiating this action, they may roll the action die after placement and complete any other actions the die result allows.
When a player decides instead to move, combine, or overtake a die, they simply move the die along the edge of a tile to the next closest intersection. Exception to movement: players can move all dice with a value of one BEFORE any other dice movement, and dice with value of one or two may move in any direction – even diagonally.
To combine/upgrade dice players will need to move one die into the same intersection as an equal-valued die in order to combine into a die of value +1. Example: a four die and a four die combine to make a five die. Exception to combinations: a value one die may combine with a value three die (remember the exception from the previous paragraph?) to create a value four die.
To overtake an opponent’s die, a player simply moves a superior die onto an occupied intersection. Typically, a die of larger value can overtake any die of smaller value. Exceptions: nothing may overtake a four or five, and only a five can overtake a three. Three-value dice seem to be the superheros of DiTiC.
So after many back-and-forth turns of placing tiles and rolling dice or moving/combining/overtaking dice the winner is crowned once they have upgraded any die into a value six die.
Components. Again, this is a prototype version of the game, so I will comment on what I can. I think the game looks very nice, even in this stage of production. The icons on the tiles are clear – and THANK YOU for considering the colorblind gamer community by making each icon different by both color and art style. The dice are your typical d6 (and I do not know if there will be any changes made to these as a result of a successful campaign). The icons on the action die make sense and I really dig the laser-etched wooden design, and I kinda hope that detail makes it into the final product. But I prefer wooden dice to plastic every time. The game also came with a burlap bag to house and conceal the tiles, and coupled with the wooden dice makes a nice little natural organic combo. My only request for the final version of the game? Go crazy with the color scheme. Black, red, white, and blue are great colors, but fling out the purple and the gold and the orange and the aqua. But I’m no designer. It looks great as it is.
So like I said up top, I love abstracts. Surprisingly so. The more I play them the more I love them. And this game definitely adds to my love of the genre. The rules are kinda wacky, and the dice of different values each can do their own thing, and I think that’s really interesting. It’s not simply a game of moving big dice around eating all the little dice. I mean, you CAN do that, but you will not advance your own strategies. But there is an amount of take that in this game, from the action dice to the tile placement to the overtaking of dice, that will really appeal to lots of people. It’s not a big game, but it looks great on the table, and plays really well once you have immersed yourself in the rules. I really believe that the more I play it the more I will fall in love with it. In fact, as I type this I want to go home and play it right now. And that’s a mark of a good, if not great, game, isn’t it?
If you like abstract strategy games and have a little room for this small game in your collection (or better, MAKE some room for it) then you should definitely consider backing it on Kickstarter, or (depending on when you read this) picking it up at your FLGS.
So my original thought was to try to open this preview with a dastardly abstract statement to truly emphasize how theming is irrelevant with some activities. Not quite having done that, DiTiC is an abstract strategy game of “tile placement and dice-pawn” movement. How does it play? Read on.
In DiTiC the winner is the first player to upgrade one of their dice from a smaller-valued die into a value of six. Bring out smaller value dice and move them around the “board” to combine with other dice and win the game!
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a review copy of this game for the purposes of this review. These are preview copy components, and I do not know if the final components will be similar or different, or if the Kickstarter campaign will alter or add anything through stretch goals. -T
To setup a game of DiTiC, each player chooses a color of dice and takes all dice into their hand. The tile with “DiTiC START” on it is the, well, starting tile and is placed in the middle of the table. Roll off to see who goes first and you are ready to play!
On a turn a player may draw and place a tile or move one of their dice. Players start with zero dice on the board, so the first few turns will be drawing a tile from the bag and placing it on the board either side face-up. As you can see from the photos the tiles will have different colored (and shaped) corners. It’s when these corners complete an intersection of four tile corners that dice may enter the board. Depending on the color of the intersection’s majority control a die of said majority color comes into play on the value of the number of icons present. That’s a mouthful. So there are four corners to the intersection. If said intersection contains two red, a blue, and a black icon then red will place a die with value of two pips showing on that intersection. These dice may now be moved and combined with like-valued dice (with an exception). If a player has at least one die on the board when initiating this action, they may roll the action die after placement and complete any other actions the die result allows.
When a player decides instead to move, combine, or overtake a die, they simply move the die along the edge of a tile to the next closest intersection. Exception to movement: players can move all dice with a value of one BEFORE any other dice movement, and dice with value of one or two may move in any direction – even diagonally.
To combine/upgrade dice players will need to move one die into the same intersection as an equal-valued die in order to combine into a die of value +1. Example: a four die and a four die combine to make a five die. Exception to combinations: a value one die may combine with a value three die (remember the exception from the previous paragraph?) to create a value four die.
To overtake an opponent’s die, a player simply moves a superior die onto an occupied intersection. Typically, a die of larger value can overtake any die of smaller value. Exceptions: nothing may overtake a four or five, and only a five can overtake a three. Three-value dice seem to be the superheros of DiTiC.
So after many back-and-forth turns of placing tiles and rolling dice or moving/combining/overtaking dice the winner is crowned once they have upgraded any die into a value six die.
Components. Again, this is a prototype version of the game, so I will comment on what I can. I think the game looks very nice, even in this stage of production. The icons on the tiles are clear – and THANK YOU for considering the colorblind gamer community by making each icon different by both color and art style. The dice are your typical d6 (and I do not know if there will be any changes made to these as a result of a successful campaign). The icons on the action die make sense and I really dig the laser-etched wooden design, and I kinda hope that detail makes it into the final product. But I prefer wooden dice to plastic every time. The game also came with a burlap bag to house and conceal the tiles, and coupled with the wooden dice makes a nice little natural organic combo. My only request for the final version of the game? Go crazy with the color scheme. Black, red, white, and blue are great colors, but fling out the purple and the gold and the orange and the aqua. But I’m no designer. It looks great as it is.
So like I said up top, I love abstracts. Surprisingly so. The more I play them the more I love them. And this game definitely adds to my love of the genre. The rules are kinda wacky, and the dice of different values each can do their own thing, and I think that’s really interesting. It’s not simply a game of moving big dice around eating all the little dice. I mean, you CAN do that, but you will not advance your own strategies. But there is an amount of take that in this game, from the action dice to the tile placement to the overtaking of dice, that will really appeal to lots of people. It’s not a big game, but it looks great on the table, and plays really well once you have immersed yourself in the rules. I really believe that the more I play it the more I will fall in love with it. In fact, as I type this I want to go home and play it right now. And that’s a mark of a good, if not great, game, isn’t it?
If you like abstract strategy games and have a little room for this small game in your collection (or better, MAKE some room for it) then you should definitely consider backing it on Kickstarter, or (depending on when you read this) picking it up at your FLGS.