Search
Search results
ExplosmEntertainment
5.0
Rate It
YouTube Channel
The C&H Shorts need your help! Become an Ultra Mega Pal and save the day!...
Random Minds
6.7
Rate It
Tabletop Game
Every wondered what a Leper could use a female mind control device for? Ever imagined who might...
Mage Knight Board Game
8.3
Rate It
Tabletop Game
The Mage Knight board game puts you in control of one of four powerful Mage Knights as you explore...
Boardgames RPGgames
Bingo Heaven!
Games and Lifestyle
6.0
Rate It
App
THE BEST BINGO CASINO GAMES on iOS! Bingo Heaven: Bingo Casino Games is the top bingo game for...
Peter Russell (61 KP) rated Harry Potter: Hogwarts Battle in Tabletop Games
Mar 21, 2019
A friendly jaunt through the world of Harry Potter
This is a cooperative Harry Potter Board game for 1-4 players. A cooperative board game puts all players on the same team against the board with challenges that are randomly generated by a deck of cards in this case. This game is a deckbuilder/ card drafter and each play you build a new deck thoughout the gameplay. This game also has elements similar to a legacy game (a game that has more content that is unlocked after each playthough), however, this game does not require any destruction of parts and can be completely reset. There are 7 boxes, corresponding to the 7 books/ years of Harry Potter. You start at year 1 and after each play through and defeating the villains, the group can choose to move on to the next year, adding the secrets of the next box to your next play through. Each year does get more difficult. I love this game for the theme, the cooperative working together part and the thrill of getting a new experience with each playthough. The only bad aspect of this game I have experienced is that because the random generation of challenges by the board, a scenario can become unbeatable, the good news if that happens, ypu just reset where ypu are, shuffle everything and try again. I really love this game and after writing this review I even increased my rating from 7 to 9, as writing this made me happier about the game.
If you get through year 7, there is an expansion with more boxes to open and work through.
If you get through year 7, there is an expansion with more boxes to open and work through.
Peter Shephard (2822 KP) rated Catan in Tabletop Games
May 26, 2019
Classic family friendly game
I do enjoy Catan, my wife and family enjoys Catan. It is a nice and easy enough game to play. It is challenging enough without being difficult, and I would go as far as to suggest the age bracket is slightly lower than the suggested. It's one of the games we turn to when there isn't enough time left for Agricola or Terrforming Mars or a similar, long length game.
The game itself is varied each time you play, and although there is a lot of commonality between games, it only takes a couple if minor changes (even as random as a particularly lucky or unlucky roll) and the game can take a drastically different direction. Playing a Road card, instead of saving for a settlement, can come back to haunt you when the resource you *nearly* got would have been vital.
Having played the base game for a good few years, we are looking for the expansions, but they are either/both difficult to get hold of, or quite expensive. The base game is a staple which should be in most collections, especially for casual gamers.
The game itself is varied each time you play, and although there is a lot of commonality between games, it only takes a couple if minor changes (even as random as a particularly lucky or unlucky roll) and the game can take a drastically different direction. Playing a Road card, instead of saving for a settlement, can come back to haunt you when the resource you *nearly* got would have been vital.
Having played the base game for a good few years, we are looking for the expansions, but they are either/both difficult to get hold of, or quite expensive. The base game is a staple which should be in most collections, especially for casual gamers.
Chloe (778 KP) rated Dobble - Harry Potter version in Tabletop Games
Apr 24, 2020
Simple (4 more)
Easy to pick up
Fun
Fast-paced
Addictive
Like advanced snap
I received this as part of a smashbomb competition!
The game has 5 different mini games which are all very fun. Each card has several different characters or objects on it and these have to be matched with various paired cards.
The game is very easy to pick up with simple instructions for all the mini games. It would suit all types of people/family members even those without prior Harry Potter knowledge. The different icons are depicted within the instructions with names.
We spent quite some time playing this game eventhough each game is fairly short. Its addictive and much harder than the description sounds.
Sometimes you have the flow of things and blast through several pairs. Other times you are stumped and cant pick out any difference between the cards.
The game has 5 different mini games which are all very fun. Each card has several different characters or objects on it and these have to be matched with various paired cards.
The game is very easy to pick up with simple instructions for all the mini games. It would suit all types of people/family members even those without prior Harry Potter knowledge. The different icons are depicted within the instructions with names.
We spent quite some time playing this game eventhough each game is fairly short. Its addictive and much harder than the description sounds.
Sometimes you have the flow of things and blast through several pairs. Other times you are stumped and cant pick out any difference between the cards.
Colt Express
7.7
Rate It
Tabletop Game
On the 11th of July, 1899 at 10 a.m., the Union Pacific Express has left Folsom, New Mexico, with 47...
BoardGames AwardWinningGames PartyGames WildWestGames
Tichu
8.2
Rate It
Tabletop Game
Even though over 642 million Chinese play Tichu nearly every day, the game is very complicated for...
BoardGames CardGames TricktakingGames
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Dragons Wild in Tabletop Games
Feb 1, 2021
Have you ever had Gamer Deja Vu? Like you know youâve played this game before but donât remember, or the mechanics just feel so familiar? I have it seldomly, but I still feel it at times. What I enjoy about certain games is how quick they are teach, have familiar mechanics, but also have their own twists to truly make it unique. Have I found that here with Dragons Wild?
Dragons Wild is a trick-taking game very similar to the old standard, Rummy. So like its predecessor players are trying to rid their hands of cards in order to signal the end of the game. Where this version separates is in the little details that are absent from Rummy.
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a prototype copy of this game for the purposes of this review. These are preview copy components, and I do not know for sure if the final components will be any different from these shown. Also, it is not my intention to detail every rule in the game, as there are just too many. You are invited to download the rulebook, back the game through the Kickstarter campaign launching February 2, 2021, or through any retailers stocking it after fulfillment. -T
To setup choose a dealer and a scorer (different players). The dealer will shuffle the entire deck of cards, save for the scoring cards, and deal each player seven cards. The draw deck is placed in the middle of the table and the dealer flips the top card to create the discard pile. The scorer finds the reference score card and places the dragon token on or near the âRound 1, Score 8 per cardâ text. The game may now begin!
Generally, the game is played much like Rummy where players are attempting to lay down melds of cards containing either runs (1, 2, 3, 4, etc) or sets (2, 2, 2 of different suits). Once a player has a meld in front of themselves they may play their cards onto other playersâ melds. Players must discard a card at the end of each turn, and play continues in this manner until a player runs out of cards.
Dragons Wild, however, adds a few twists to pump up the play of traditional Rummy. Each player will need to keep track of their point totals as they will change with each play of a card. Should a player lay a meld on Round 1 they score eight VP for each card laid. In Round 2 cards are worth seven points each. Round 3 each card is worth six points and so on until Round 8 (or more) where each card is worth just one point.
Another way in which Dragons Wild differs from its older cousin is in the buying of cards (as far as I remember â Iâm no Rummy expert). On their turn the active player must draw a card from either the top of the draw deck or the top of the discard pile. However, before the active player chooses, should another player wish to buy the face-up discard card the active player decides to allow or disallow the buy. With a successful buy the buying player takes the discarded card as well as the top card of the draw deck as payment. A player may buy as many as three cards in this fashion for each new active player.
Also, Dragons Wild offers a slight rule change for Wild cards in melds. Every time I have played Rummy in my lifetime any Wild is up for grabs as long as it can be replaced with a legal card from any playerâs hand on their turn. This is not the case in Dragons Wild, as only Wild cards that hang on the end of a RUN of cards may be taken, replaced, or moved to the other end by the active player.
The game ends once one player is able to rid their entire hand of cards and still have one card to discard at the end of their turn. Players then total their scores from all cards played, scoring points differently depending on the Round in which they were laid. Other players still possessing cards then subtract the NUMBER of cards still held from their entire score, not their values. The player with the most points after this scoring phase is the winner!
Components. Again, this is a prototype copy of the game, and I am completely unsure which, if any, components will be upgraded as a result of a successful Kickstarter campaign. That said, I can comment on a couple things. First, the art style. While it is not my cup of tea (dragons have tea parties, right?) I can see where others may quite enjoy its fancifulness and whimsy. The game is very colorful, and I do appreciate that quite a lot. The cards are laid out well, and each suit is a different species of fantastic beast (though I rarely knew which was which â I just paid attention to the background color in the corners of the cards mostly). So I have no real problems with the components at all, I just wish for different art. The designer was nice enough to send along a print of a purple phoenix with this copy, which is super rad of her, and it looks great. Maybe she will add them into the final versionâŚ
Gameplay is familiar, like I stated earlier, because I would think most people have played Rummy or a variation of it at some point. In fact, my family was big into Rummikub growing up, and my grandparents were big into Rummy proper. So this was somewhat nostalgic for me while also bringing a few house rules and art that is different from a boring deck of normal playing cards.
The rules are not at all difficult, so learning, teaching, and playing have not seemed to be an issue at all here. If players have all played a version of Rummy before then this one will fly pretty quickly. It is a simple, fast, and slightly unique version of Rummy that would be nice to keep around if you need to wait on another player to arrive and they are 10 minutes away, or as a palette cleanser between games. Definitely a filler game, and not at all a bad one!
If you are looking for a differently-themed Rummy replacement with a twist, I recommend checking out Dragons Wild. Itâs cute, quick, and has dragons, for Peteâs sake. Consider backing the Kickstarter campaign or asking your LFGS to stock it upon release.
Dragons Wild is a trick-taking game very similar to the old standard, Rummy. So like its predecessor players are trying to rid their hands of cards in order to signal the end of the game. Where this version separates is in the little details that are absent from Rummy.
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a prototype copy of this game for the purposes of this review. These are preview copy components, and I do not know for sure if the final components will be any different from these shown. Also, it is not my intention to detail every rule in the game, as there are just too many. You are invited to download the rulebook, back the game through the Kickstarter campaign launching February 2, 2021, or through any retailers stocking it after fulfillment. -T
To setup choose a dealer and a scorer (different players). The dealer will shuffle the entire deck of cards, save for the scoring cards, and deal each player seven cards. The draw deck is placed in the middle of the table and the dealer flips the top card to create the discard pile. The scorer finds the reference score card and places the dragon token on or near the âRound 1, Score 8 per cardâ text. The game may now begin!
Generally, the game is played much like Rummy where players are attempting to lay down melds of cards containing either runs (1, 2, 3, 4, etc) or sets (2, 2, 2 of different suits). Once a player has a meld in front of themselves they may play their cards onto other playersâ melds. Players must discard a card at the end of each turn, and play continues in this manner until a player runs out of cards.
Dragons Wild, however, adds a few twists to pump up the play of traditional Rummy. Each player will need to keep track of their point totals as they will change with each play of a card. Should a player lay a meld on Round 1 they score eight VP for each card laid. In Round 2 cards are worth seven points each. Round 3 each card is worth six points and so on until Round 8 (or more) where each card is worth just one point.
Another way in which Dragons Wild differs from its older cousin is in the buying of cards (as far as I remember â Iâm no Rummy expert). On their turn the active player must draw a card from either the top of the draw deck or the top of the discard pile. However, before the active player chooses, should another player wish to buy the face-up discard card the active player decides to allow or disallow the buy. With a successful buy the buying player takes the discarded card as well as the top card of the draw deck as payment. A player may buy as many as three cards in this fashion for each new active player.
Also, Dragons Wild offers a slight rule change for Wild cards in melds. Every time I have played Rummy in my lifetime any Wild is up for grabs as long as it can be replaced with a legal card from any playerâs hand on their turn. This is not the case in Dragons Wild, as only Wild cards that hang on the end of a RUN of cards may be taken, replaced, or moved to the other end by the active player.
The game ends once one player is able to rid their entire hand of cards and still have one card to discard at the end of their turn. Players then total their scores from all cards played, scoring points differently depending on the Round in which they were laid. Other players still possessing cards then subtract the NUMBER of cards still held from their entire score, not their values. The player with the most points after this scoring phase is the winner!
Components. Again, this is a prototype copy of the game, and I am completely unsure which, if any, components will be upgraded as a result of a successful Kickstarter campaign. That said, I can comment on a couple things. First, the art style. While it is not my cup of tea (dragons have tea parties, right?) I can see where others may quite enjoy its fancifulness and whimsy. The game is very colorful, and I do appreciate that quite a lot. The cards are laid out well, and each suit is a different species of fantastic beast (though I rarely knew which was which â I just paid attention to the background color in the corners of the cards mostly). So I have no real problems with the components at all, I just wish for different art. The designer was nice enough to send along a print of a purple phoenix with this copy, which is super rad of her, and it looks great. Maybe she will add them into the final versionâŚ
Gameplay is familiar, like I stated earlier, because I would think most people have played Rummy or a variation of it at some point. In fact, my family was big into Rummikub growing up, and my grandparents were big into Rummy proper. So this was somewhat nostalgic for me while also bringing a few house rules and art that is different from a boring deck of normal playing cards.
The rules are not at all difficult, so learning, teaching, and playing have not seemed to be an issue at all here. If players have all played a version of Rummy before then this one will fly pretty quickly. It is a simple, fast, and slightly unique version of Rummy that would be nice to keep around if you need to wait on another player to arrive and they are 10 minutes away, or as a palette cleanser between games. Definitely a filler game, and not at all a bad one!
If you are looking for a differently-themed Rummy replacement with a twist, I recommend checking out Dragons Wild. Itâs cute, quick, and has dragons, for Peteâs sake. Consider backing the Kickstarter campaign or asking your LFGS to stock it upon release.
