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Charlie Cobra Reviews (1840 KP) rated Tom and Jerry (2021) in Movies
Mar 11, 2021 (Updated Mar 27, 2021)
The animation looks nice (2 more)
Decent laughs
Gets the Tom and Jerry part of the movie right
Too predictable (2 more)
Bad plot
Barely above average movie overall
Visually Pleasing With Decent Laughs Sprinkled Throughout
Tom and Jerry is a 2021 live-action/CGI animated comedy movie directed by Tim Story and written by Kevin Costello. The film was produced by Chris DeFaria and Warner Animation Group, The Story Company, and Turner Entertainment Co. and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. The movie stars Chloe Grace Moretz, Michael Pena, Colin Jost, Robe Delaney and Ken Jeong.
Kayla Forester (Chloe Grace Moretz) is a street smart woman doing odd jobs in Manhattan when she bumps into Tom while he's chasing Jerry in Central Park. Jerry, who picked a fight with Tom during a impromptu piano performance is also house hunting and in search of a new home. Kayla, is fortuitous when she goes to the Royal Gate Hotel for a "free" breakfast and presents a stolen resume as her own. She's given a position with helping event manager Terence Mendoza (Michael Pena) with a high profile wedding the very day that Jerry takes up residence in the hotel. Tom and Jerry's usual shenanigans ensue when Kayla hires Tom to "exterminate" him when Jerry begins stealing food and items causing concern about Ben (Colin Jost) and Preeta's (Pallavi Sharda) wedding and for the hotel's reputation to Mr. Dubros (Rob Delaney) the hotel's owner and general manager.
This was a movie that I watched on a whim and didn't have any expectations going into other than the animation looking really nice in the trailer when I first saw it. Also trying to get into the groove of getting back on doing my reviews on the regular again. I'm also a fan of both Chloe Grace Moretz from the Kick-Ass movies and Michael Pena from just about everything he comes out in. Plus I've always been a fan of Tom and Jerry, watching the cartoons as a kid was always fun and it's something that I can still enjoy anytime even though it's something that is really old. But enough of that and let's get to what I thought about the movie. I liked how the movie setup the Tom and Jerry character's similar to how it would in an episode. It showed both of them individually with their own goals before bringing them together. Tom is shown to have aspirations of becoming an accomplished pianist and Jerry is shown house hunting and looking for a new home to live in. That's when Jerry finds Tom pulling a scam in Central Park conning people as a "blind" piano player. Jerry tries to "cash in" on Tom's scheme and begins trying to get in on the action and adding himself and a little flair to the performance. That's when their usual antics ruin the opportunity for both of them. This was a pretty decent opening and I really liked how their animation looked and how the live-action aspect interacted with them, it was very visually pleasing. I really didn't like how it seemed Jerry was the agitator between the two or at least the one who starts the "rivalry" in this movie but I think I've always looked at him through rose colored glasses if you will since he is the smaller and more vulnerable of the two. The comedic antics were very spot on emulating a lot of classic moments from the cartoon with most not all working fairly well in a "real-world" setting. I think where this movie lost me the most was not the backdrop of the New York City being the setting or even the live-action part and actors like Chloe Grace Moretz and Michael Pena but the whole wedding plot being a primary focus of the film. I mean I can totally see it as a catalyst to the whole plot but for it to be the main focus didn't really thrill me. I thought the acting was decent and comedy was good but this movie didn't really strike me as a super funny movie, though it did have me laughing out loud at a couple of parts. I was happy that they also added Spike and the pretty white cat whose name is Toots which are regulars in the cartoon and a host of other cats as part of the alley cat gang who many of which looked familiar. The music soundtrack was good too and had a bunch of popular artists from music of today which didn't really go with the whole "vibe" of Tom and Jerry but didn't take a way from the movie either. Droopy the dog's cameo was also a nice added touch. All-in-all this movie was barely above average for me and I think that's me mainly having nostalgia for the characters and what the show used to be. Definitely not something I would see at theaters but if you have HBO Max you should give it a shot. I give this movie a 6/10.
-------------------------------------------------------
Spoiler Section Review:
So I gave this movie a 6/10 which for me is above average but this movie barely met that criteria. It started off pretty good and funny with Jerry looking for a new place to live and dealing with a dodgy real estate rat. It was also cool to see Tom having dreams or aspirations of becoming a pianist and then seeing how they collide when Jerry tries to own in on his action on the whole blind piano player scheme. That was all classic Tom and Jerry. I also enjoyed the way they interacted with the whole live-action aspect of the film and how the people reacted to them and the environments and how that all worked out was pretty good to me in my opinion. The pigeon singing opening was also pretty funny and cool and when he sings again later in the movie was awesome. I really like Chloe Grace Moretz as Kayla Forester and thought that she did a pretty good job for acting with what was probably people wearing green screen costumes or props and Michael Pena was pretty funny as the event manager. The movie was pretty predictable except for one thing that I guess I would have known about if I bothered to see the second trailer but I never did, and that's the whole sub-plot of the wedding being such a big focus for the film. I don't have anything against weddings except for when it comes to Tv shows and how if any of them run long enough then there's going to be a wedding episode somewhere. But I really felt that it kind of took a way from the whole vibe of it being a Tom and Jerry movie. It was cool how they brought Spike and Toots into the picture by them being the pets of Ben and Preeta. It was pretty obvious when they introduced the bartend character Cameron that he would be Kayla's love interest but I'm kind of glad that they didn't lean too hard into that. I thought that it was pretty funny how Kayla made Tom and Jerry be friends and go out on the town on their own and it was kind of fun to see them get a long for a while but I knew it would never last. I also thought it was pretty messed up that Kayla let Terence take the blame for Spike, Tom and Jerry tearing up the hotel when it all started with Jerry who returned when she said Tom had taken care of him already. I could totally tell that Terence would become the villain of the movie after that but most of the movie is predictable anyways. There was surprisingly an after credits scene where Ben is charged for two different weddings by the hotel which is pretty funny too. Not a great movie by no means and definitely barely above average but if you have HBO Max you should give it a watch for nostalgia's sake especially if your an old Tom and Jerry fan. I gave it a 6/10.
https://youtu.be/nrdsTy_KpwQ
Kayla Forester (Chloe Grace Moretz) is a street smart woman doing odd jobs in Manhattan when she bumps into Tom while he's chasing Jerry in Central Park. Jerry, who picked a fight with Tom during a impromptu piano performance is also house hunting and in search of a new home. Kayla, is fortuitous when she goes to the Royal Gate Hotel for a "free" breakfast and presents a stolen resume as her own. She's given a position with helping event manager Terence Mendoza (Michael Pena) with a high profile wedding the very day that Jerry takes up residence in the hotel. Tom and Jerry's usual shenanigans ensue when Kayla hires Tom to "exterminate" him when Jerry begins stealing food and items causing concern about Ben (Colin Jost) and Preeta's (Pallavi Sharda) wedding and for the hotel's reputation to Mr. Dubros (Rob Delaney) the hotel's owner and general manager.
This was a movie that I watched on a whim and didn't have any expectations going into other than the animation looking really nice in the trailer when I first saw it. Also trying to get into the groove of getting back on doing my reviews on the regular again. I'm also a fan of both Chloe Grace Moretz from the Kick-Ass movies and Michael Pena from just about everything he comes out in. Plus I've always been a fan of Tom and Jerry, watching the cartoons as a kid was always fun and it's something that I can still enjoy anytime even though it's something that is really old. But enough of that and let's get to what I thought about the movie. I liked how the movie setup the Tom and Jerry character's similar to how it would in an episode. It showed both of them individually with their own goals before bringing them together. Tom is shown to have aspirations of becoming an accomplished pianist and Jerry is shown house hunting and looking for a new home to live in. That's when Jerry finds Tom pulling a scam in Central Park conning people as a "blind" piano player. Jerry tries to "cash in" on Tom's scheme and begins trying to get in on the action and adding himself and a little flair to the performance. That's when their usual antics ruin the opportunity for both of them. This was a pretty decent opening and I really liked how their animation looked and how the live-action aspect interacted with them, it was very visually pleasing. I really didn't like how it seemed Jerry was the agitator between the two or at least the one who starts the "rivalry" in this movie but I think I've always looked at him through rose colored glasses if you will since he is the smaller and more vulnerable of the two. The comedic antics were very spot on emulating a lot of classic moments from the cartoon with most not all working fairly well in a "real-world" setting. I think where this movie lost me the most was not the backdrop of the New York City being the setting or even the live-action part and actors like Chloe Grace Moretz and Michael Pena but the whole wedding plot being a primary focus of the film. I mean I can totally see it as a catalyst to the whole plot but for it to be the main focus didn't really thrill me. I thought the acting was decent and comedy was good but this movie didn't really strike me as a super funny movie, though it did have me laughing out loud at a couple of parts. I was happy that they also added Spike and the pretty white cat whose name is Toots which are regulars in the cartoon and a host of other cats as part of the alley cat gang who many of which looked familiar. The music soundtrack was good too and had a bunch of popular artists from music of today which didn't really go with the whole "vibe" of Tom and Jerry but didn't take a way from the movie either. Droopy the dog's cameo was also a nice added touch. All-in-all this movie was barely above average for me and I think that's me mainly having nostalgia for the characters and what the show used to be. Definitely not something I would see at theaters but if you have HBO Max you should give it a shot. I give this movie a 6/10.
-------------------------------------------------------
Spoiler Section Review:
So I gave this movie a 6/10 which for me is above average but this movie barely met that criteria. It started off pretty good and funny with Jerry looking for a new place to live and dealing with a dodgy real estate rat. It was also cool to see Tom having dreams or aspirations of becoming a pianist and then seeing how they collide when Jerry tries to own in on his action on the whole blind piano player scheme. That was all classic Tom and Jerry. I also enjoyed the way they interacted with the whole live-action aspect of the film and how the people reacted to them and the environments and how that all worked out was pretty good to me in my opinion. The pigeon singing opening was also pretty funny and cool and when he sings again later in the movie was awesome. I really like Chloe Grace Moretz as Kayla Forester and thought that she did a pretty good job for acting with what was probably people wearing green screen costumes or props and Michael Pena was pretty funny as the event manager. The movie was pretty predictable except for one thing that I guess I would have known about if I bothered to see the second trailer but I never did, and that's the whole sub-plot of the wedding being such a big focus for the film. I don't have anything against weddings except for when it comes to Tv shows and how if any of them run long enough then there's going to be a wedding episode somewhere. But I really felt that it kind of took a way from the whole vibe of it being a Tom and Jerry movie. It was cool how they brought Spike and Toots into the picture by them being the pets of Ben and Preeta. It was pretty obvious when they introduced the bartend character Cameron that he would be Kayla's love interest but I'm kind of glad that they didn't lean too hard into that. I thought that it was pretty funny how Kayla made Tom and Jerry be friends and go out on the town on their own and it was kind of fun to see them get a long for a while but I knew it would never last. I also thought it was pretty messed up that Kayla let Terence take the blame for Spike, Tom and Jerry tearing up the hotel when it all started with Jerry who returned when she said Tom had taken care of him already. I could totally tell that Terence would become the villain of the movie after that but most of the movie is predictable anyways. There was surprisingly an after credits scene where Ben is charged for two different weddings by the hotel which is pretty funny too. Not a great movie by no means and definitely barely above average but if you have HBO Max you should give it a watch for nostalgia's sake especially if your an old Tom and Jerry fan. I gave it a 6/10.
https://youtu.be/nrdsTy_KpwQ
Gareth von Kallenbach (971 KP) rated The Place Beyond The Pines (2013) in Movies
Aug 7, 2019
I really wanted to sit at my computer tonight and write about how much I disliked this movie. I was practically begging people to go with me, but no one wanted to. So I ended up going on my own. The only thing I really knew about this film going into it was that it was from Derek Cianfrance, the writer/director of “Blue Valentine”. I didn’t care much for BV, and so my hopes were not high for “The Place Beyond the Pines”, but actually, Pines surprised me.
Pines is the story of two men on opposite sides of the law, just trying to do the right thing and how what they do impacts each other’s lives, and the lives of their sons. Of course the means by which they got to the “right thing” was not always the “right way”, but ultimately they were trying to good.
Ryan Gosling plays “Heart Throb” Luke Glanton, a stunt motorcycle rider with a traveling circus. We open on him doing his thing in Schenectady, New York, and after his performance he sees Romina (“Roe”, portrayed by Eva Mendes). You can tell these two have history, as though they met the last time his little side show burned through town. Cutting through the awkwardness, Luke finds out that Roe had a kid. His kid, Jason. Though, he didn’t find out from her. Determined to make things right, despite Roe having moved on being with another man, Luke sticks around Schenectady to try and be part of his son’s life and to win Roe from her man. Only things don’t begin moving fast enough for him, and so turns to robbing banks in this small town as a way to provide for his lover and their newborn child. Only things go south fairly quickly and this puts him on a collision course with an ambitious rookie cop.
Bradley Cooper plays Avery Cross; a rookie cop on the force all of six months. After a harrowing deed that puts takes him off duty for several months and causes him so serious psychological issues which make it hard for him to even look at his son, Avery Jr. After his recovery, Avery returns to the force only to be thrust into a den of corrupt cops, gangs and a genuine fear for his life. He is not sure how to react at first, but eventually knows that he must do the right thing… even if it means ratting out his brothers in arms. This doesn’t prove to be an easy course for him, but he is determined to do the right thing, despite it tearing his family apart.
Act one of this film focuses on Gosling and Mendes’ characters and their tumultuous relationship. When they first brought Mendes on screen, I was really questioning the casting choice. By the end of the act, those questions were still there. It just didn’t seem like Gosling and Mendes had the chemistry that the makers of the film were desperately trying to portray. But we do see a lot into the character of Luke and how much he really just wants to be there for his son. Gosling did an excellent job with the role, but I feel like there was thing that was distracting from his performance: his hair. For some reason they decided bleach blond was the way to go to this character, but mostly what I was thinking when he was on screen was that it just looked out of place and I really had to concentrate to get past it.
Act two focuses on Bradley Cooper and the turmoil he goes through. I can’t say too much without giving away some major plot points of the film, but Bradley Cooper definitely did an excellent job playing the young rookie cop. He has an excellent supporting cast for his act with Harris Yulin playing his father, Rose Byrne as his wife and Bruce Greenwood as the District Attorney. He eventually manages to get from underneath all the lies, coercion and corruption to make a bid for an Assistant District Attorney position.
Fast forward to 15 years later, and this is where our act three takes place. Only now we are focusing on the lives of young Jason and Avery Jr. The deeds of their fathers in yester year, portrayed in our first two acts, affect our young subjects as they become friends without realizing the history between their families. I felt that Dane DeHaan who portrayed a 17-year old Jason knocked it out of the park with his performance. But there is something left to be said for Emory Cohen who is on screen as Avery Jr.
Want to know the rest? Watch the movie. Acts one and two, though long winded at points, blew me out of the water. Cianfrance did an excellent job of captivating the audience and making you care for the two focus points, despite them being on completely different sides of the law (as mentioned earlier). Act three, however, fell kind of flat to me. It very well could be a result of a poor casting choice in Emory Cohen, but I also felt like they could have shaped the end of this tail into so much more.
Overall, I actually enjoyed the movie, despite a lackluster ambition to go see it. Would I have gone to see it on my own if I had to pay for it? Nah! But it is a good date movie and might possibly start some interesting conversations between you and your partner.
Pines is the story of two men on opposite sides of the law, just trying to do the right thing and how what they do impacts each other’s lives, and the lives of their sons. Of course the means by which they got to the “right thing” was not always the “right way”, but ultimately they were trying to good.
Ryan Gosling plays “Heart Throb” Luke Glanton, a stunt motorcycle rider with a traveling circus. We open on him doing his thing in Schenectady, New York, and after his performance he sees Romina (“Roe”, portrayed by Eva Mendes). You can tell these two have history, as though they met the last time his little side show burned through town. Cutting through the awkwardness, Luke finds out that Roe had a kid. His kid, Jason. Though, he didn’t find out from her. Determined to make things right, despite Roe having moved on being with another man, Luke sticks around Schenectady to try and be part of his son’s life and to win Roe from her man. Only things don’t begin moving fast enough for him, and so turns to robbing banks in this small town as a way to provide for his lover and their newborn child. Only things go south fairly quickly and this puts him on a collision course with an ambitious rookie cop.
Bradley Cooper plays Avery Cross; a rookie cop on the force all of six months. After a harrowing deed that puts takes him off duty for several months and causes him so serious psychological issues which make it hard for him to even look at his son, Avery Jr. After his recovery, Avery returns to the force only to be thrust into a den of corrupt cops, gangs and a genuine fear for his life. He is not sure how to react at first, but eventually knows that he must do the right thing… even if it means ratting out his brothers in arms. This doesn’t prove to be an easy course for him, but he is determined to do the right thing, despite it tearing his family apart.
Act one of this film focuses on Gosling and Mendes’ characters and their tumultuous relationship. When they first brought Mendes on screen, I was really questioning the casting choice. By the end of the act, those questions were still there. It just didn’t seem like Gosling and Mendes had the chemistry that the makers of the film were desperately trying to portray. But we do see a lot into the character of Luke and how much he really just wants to be there for his son. Gosling did an excellent job with the role, but I feel like there was thing that was distracting from his performance: his hair. For some reason they decided bleach blond was the way to go to this character, but mostly what I was thinking when he was on screen was that it just looked out of place and I really had to concentrate to get past it.
Act two focuses on Bradley Cooper and the turmoil he goes through. I can’t say too much without giving away some major plot points of the film, but Bradley Cooper definitely did an excellent job playing the young rookie cop. He has an excellent supporting cast for his act with Harris Yulin playing his father, Rose Byrne as his wife and Bruce Greenwood as the District Attorney. He eventually manages to get from underneath all the lies, coercion and corruption to make a bid for an Assistant District Attorney position.
Fast forward to 15 years later, and this is where our act three takes place. Only now we are focusing on the lives of young Jason and Avery Jr. The deeds of their fathers in yester year, portrayed in our first two acts, affect our young subjects as they become friends without realizing the history between their families. I felt that Dane DeHaan who portrayed a 17-year old Jason knocked it out of the park with his performance. But there is something left to be said for Emory Cohen who is on screen as Avery Jr.
Want to know the rest? Watch the movie. Acts one and two, though long winded at points, blew me out of the water. Cianfrance did an excellent job of captivating the audience and making you care for the two focus points, despite them being on completely different sides of the law (as mentioned earlier). Act three, however, fell kind of flat to me. It very well could be a result of a poor casting choice in Emory Cohen, but I also felt like they could have shaped the end of this tail into so much more.
Overall, I actually enjoyed the movie, despite a lackluster ambition to go see it. Would I have gone to see it on my own if I had to pay for it? Nah! But it is a good date movie and might possibly start some interesting conversations between you and your partner.
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Bunny Party at Maple Valley in Tabletop Games
Oct 11, 2021
What kinds of pets did you have growing up? My family was allowed one dog throughout my formative years, and I even tried to keep a turtle once in college. I have not ever had rabbits, but my brother did – Brewster. He was a cool bunny. Kinda freaked out sometimes and made a huge mess, but overall a nice little fella. I am trying to imagine an entire village of Brewsters planning a party and inviting all their friends. I can’t really do it, but now I don’t have to – there’s a game I can play.
Bunny Party at Maple Valley (which I shall refer to as simply Bunny Party from here) is a sweet and cute little card game for three or four players. In it players are the titular bunnies decorating for and competing to win the chance to host the Night Sky Party at their place. However, in this game more often than not the victory is shared between they who amass the requisite five decorations and their neighbor who also co-hosts the event! The bunnies gotta get crackin’ so let’s get going!
PS – I will be reviewing the 3-player version of the game, which has ever-so-slightly different rules.
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy online or from your FLGS. -T
To setup, character cards are shuffled and two dealt to each player. They choose one to be their avatar and discard the other back to the box. The large deck of cards with the house on the back is shuffled and placed on the table within reach. The villager cards are shuffled and one is drawn and placed outside the play area – it will not be used this round. The other five villagers are arranged as a market of friends. Each player draws three cards on the first round, and the game is ready to begin!
Bunny Party is played over a series of rounds until one player satisfies the win condition. Each round consists of eight phases: Turn Start, Tidy a Card, Villagers Visit, Play Cards, Trade, Play Cards (again), Party Start?, and Villagers Go Home. Turn Start typically involves players setting the table for the round. First, the villager cards are re-shuffled, one set aside to be ignored this round (they are staying home), and the remainders displayed. Then each player draws two cards from the deck and collects one Trade Token.
Next, all players will choose one of their cards they drew during the Tidy a Card step to be placed in a temporary discard pile face-down. Alternatively, a player may forego the Tidy in order to place a card in front of another player by spending one Trade Token. Once all players have tidied a card or placed one in front of another player, the Tidy pile is shuffled, then flipped as a stack to the top of the discard pile, face-up.
The villagers are now becoming impatient, so players will allow them audience during this Villagers Visit phase. Each player chooses a villager from those available to host during their party preparation. These villagers offer special abilities each round and can be very valuable at certain times during the game.
While the villagers are visiting, players may next Play Cards from their hand. These cards are typically of three types: Item, Event, or Decoration. Item cards are placed in the player’s tableau and offer one-time or lingering effects. Event cards are typically one-and-done cards to be completed and then discarded. Decorations are what players are really after, as they are what determine win conditions. With five star or moon cards the player can start the party and end the game. At the bottom of the decoration cards is printed an arrow. This arrow points to the neighbor that will co-host and also win the game. In a three-player game Decoration cards are displayed upside down, so that is why the photo below looks a little strange.
When players have all played their hand of cards, the Trade phase may begin. Players may offer Item cards to other players and a trade may be struck by each player discarding a Trade Token from their stash. This may result in a player receiving a new card to be played. When this happens, the next phase is immediately played (after all trades have been completed). Any player who now holds an unplayed card may Play Cards (again) as before.
If a player (or players) have now collected five or more star or moon Decoration cards, they may claim victory during this Party Start? phase. Again, the Decoration cards have arrows printed to determine the co-host/co-victor in the game, and the winners may then invite the rest of the burrow to their den for the Night Sky Party! However, if no victor emerges during the Party Start? phase, then all the Villagers Go Home, and a new round begins with the Turn Start phase.
Play continues in this fashion until winners have been crowned host and co-host of the Night Sky Party in Maple Valley!
Components. This one is a bunch of cards a few cardboard chits. The cards are all fine quality, as are the chits. What is really great about these components is the art on them. I cannot think of many cuter themes than uber-nice bunnies throwing a party and sharing their victory with a neighbor. So obviously the art has to match the theme, tone, and style of the game. I believe Bunny Party knocks it out of the park here. The art is so playful and cute, and I absolutely have to give a huge shout out to Evan’s Games for the very apparent inclusivity and representation. I see you and I applaud you!
Gameplay for me is where I take just a little issue. Everything works, and once you understand the phases it does flow better, but, I can see myself really only playing this with children or in a gateway/breaking in new gamers situation. It is very light, but there are eight phases to a round! So while each phase is easy to understand and execute, each round takes a little longer because there are a few too many steps. Once my kids really know how to read well they will be playing this with me and I know right now that we will have a great time with it. I really do appreciate the special efforts that were made with regards to representation (yes, even with anthropomorphic cartoon animals) and with the design being more focused on sharing victory and being nice to neighbors. My children will certain have good habits reinforced while playing this, and that is what makes this game important.
Again, this is not the game for hardcore gamers, nor those who are interested in bigger and more complex medium-weight games. This is a quick filler at best during a game night when newer gamers are gathered. That being said, I still find a great deal of value in this one, and will be keeping it for a long time. Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a 4 / 6 on stand-by. I do want to try this with different types of people (once we are able again) to see if my predictions are correct. I have only been able to play it with adult family, and none of them are medium to heavy weight game enthusiasts. If you are needing a nice game that can be played among other games for a themed game night (like Bunny Party + Bob Ross: Art of Chill + Hues and Cues + Escape: The Curse of the Temple) then this certainly fits that niche.
So my official stance, for now, is that Bunny Party has a great theme, excellent art, a wonderful message of harmony, but is both too light and too complex for what it is. I realize that sounds ridiculous. Please try it and let me know your thoughts. For now, I am keeping this close and I will be trying it with various groups with whom I game.
Bunny Party at Maple Valley (which I shall refer to as simply Bunny Party from here) is a sweet and cute little card game for three or four players. In it players are the titular bunnies decorating for and competing to win the chance to host the Night Sky Party at their place. However, in this game more often than not the victory is shared between they who amass the requisite five decorations and their neighbor who also co-hosts the event! The bunnies gotta get crackin’ so let’s get going!
PS – I will be reviewing the 3-player version of the game, which has ever-so-slightly different rules.
DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy online or from your FLGS. -T
To setup, character cards are shuffled and two dealt to each player. They choose one to be their avatar and discard the other back to the box. The large deck of cards with the house on the back is shuffled and placed on the table within reach. The villager cards are shuffled and one is drawn and placed outside the play area – it will not be used this round. The other five villagers are arranged as a market of friends. Each player draws three cards on the first round, and the game is ready to begin!
Bunny Party is played over a series of rounds until one player satisfies the win condition. Each round consists of eight phases: Turn Start, Tidy a Card, Villagers Visit, Play Cards, Trade, Play Cards (again), Party Start?, and Villagers Go Home. Turn Start typically involves players setting the table for the round. First, the villager cards are re-shuffled, one set aside to be ignored this round (they are staying home), and the remainders displayed. Then each player draws two cards from the deck and collects one Trade Token.
Next, all players will choose one of their cards they drew during the Tidy a Card step to be placed in a temporary discard pile face-down. Alternatively, a player may forego the Tidy in order to place a card in front of another player by spending one Trade Token. Once all players have tidied a card or placed one in front of another player, the Tidy pile is shuffled, then flipped as a stack to the top of the discard pile, face-up.
The villagers are now becoming impatient, so players will allow them audience during this Villagers Visit phase. Each player chooses a villager from those available to host during their party preparation. These villagers offer special abilities each round and can be very valuable at certain times during the game.
While the villagers are visiting, players may next Play Cards from their hand. These cards are typically of three types: Item, Event, or Decoration. Item cards are placed in the player’s tableau and offer one-time or lingering effects. Event cards are typically one-and-done cards to be completed and then discarded. Decorations are what players are really after, as they are what determine win conditions. With five star or moon cards the player can start the party and end the game. At the bottom of the decoration cards is printed an arrow. This arrow points to the neighbor that will co-host and also win the game. In a three-player game Decoration cards are displayed upside down, so that is why the photo below looks a little strange.
When players have all played their hand of cards, the Trade phase may begin. Players may offer Item cards to other players and a trade may be struck by each player discarding a Trade Token from their stash. This may result in a player receiving a new card to be played. When this happens, the next phase is immediately played (after all trades have been completed). Any player who now holds an unplayed card may Play Cards (again) as before.
If a player (or players) have now collected five or more star or moon Decoration cards, they may claim victory during this Party Start? phase. Again, the Decoration cards have arrows printed to determine the co-host/co-victor in the game, and the winners may then invite the rest of the burrow to their den for the Night Sky Party! However, if no victor emerges during the Party Start? phase, then all the Villagers Go Home, and a new round begins with the Turn Start phase.
Play continues in this fashion until winners have been crowned host and co-host of the Night Sky Party in Maple Valley!
Components. This one is a bunch of cards a few cardboard chits. The cards are all fine quality, as are the chits. What is really great about these components is the art on them. I cannot think of many cuter themes than uber-nice bunnies throwing a party and sharing their victory with a neighbor. So obviously the art has to match the theme, tone, and style of the game. I believe Bunny Party knocks it out of the park here. The art is so playful and cute, and I absolutely have to give a huge shout out to Evan’s Games for the very apparent inclusivity and representation. I see you and I applaud you!
Gameplay for me is where I take just a little issue. Everything works, and once you understand the phases it does flow better, but, I can see myself really only playing this with children or in a gateway/breaking in new gamers situation. It is very light, but there are eight phases to a round! So while each phase is easy to understand and execute, each round takes a little longer because there are a few too many steps. Once my kids really know how to read well they will be playing this with me and I know right now that we will have a great time with it. I really do appreciate the special efforts that were made with regards to representation (yes, even with anthropomorphic cartoon animals) and with the design being more focused on sharing victory and being nice to neighbors. My children will certain have good habits reinforced while playing this, and that is what makes this game important.
Again, this is not the game for hardcore gamers, nor those who are interested in bigger and more complex medium-weight games. This is a quick filler at best during a game night when newer gamers are gathered. That being said, I still find a great deal of value in this one, and will be keeping it for a long time. Purple Phoenix Games gives this one a 4 / 6 on stand-by. I do want to try this with different types of people (once we are able again) to see if my predictions are correct. I have only been able to play it with adult family, and none of them are medium to heavy weight game enthusiasts. If you are needing a nice game that can be played among other games for a themed game night (like Bunny Party + Bob Ross: Art of Chill + Hues and Cues + Escape: The Curse of the Temple) then this certainly fits that niche.
So my official stance, for now, is that Bunny Party has a great theme, excellent art, a wonderful message of harmony, but is both too light and too complex for what it is. I realize that sounds ridiculous. Please try it and let me know your thoughts. For now, I am keeping this close and I will be trying it with various groups with whom I game.
Connor Sheffield (293 KP) rated Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! in Video Games
Apr 24, 2019
The original 151 Pokémon (5 more)
Not just a remake of yellow
Graphics
Gameplay mechanics
Nostalgic but also very fresh
Being able to see what you're running into
A little too easy (1 more)
Sometimes miss the battles between wild pokemon
Fun, adorable and nostalgic
So I got Lets Go Pikachu, and withing 30-40 minutes, I had completed it, Elite four and all, but I had so much fun!
This game was first introduced to me by a friend who told me it was a refreshed version of Pokémon Yellow, but with Eevee as a starter if you got Pokémon Let's Go Eevee. However this game is so much more than a modern day reboot.
Mechanics wise, they've brought in the catching system from the popular mobile app Pokémon Go, with the player having to use the joy cons, the Pokéball Plus or the switch as a whole, to catch Pokémon by throwing a Pokéball with a chance to get 1 of 3 catch ratings (Nice, Great, or Excellent) if you can throw the ball through a ring that shrinks repeatedly. At first I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy this because I suck at this on the app, but it's something that grew on me because the switch version of this mechanic is easier to achieve, and when the player uses the whole handheld format of the switch (joy cons still attached to the sides, holding the whole body of the console) it's a lot easier to catch the Pokémon that move around a lot from side to side, other than the player having to try and throw curve balls which can sometimes ache your arms if your building up a catch combo.
I do however miss battling Pokémon in the wild sometimes, to me the old mechanics had this sense of achievement that (as cruel as it sounds, but come on this is Pokémon we're on about) you were able to beat that high level Pokémon in a battle and have therefore not just got lucky with throwing a Pokéball in the hopes that it stays in. Saying that though, you do have to battle the legendaries, Mewtwo and the two sleeping Snorlax's before you can catch them, which is a nice addition they kept in.
On the other hand though, your entire 6 Pokémon party gets experience from catching and battling, which makes it so much easier to level up your entire party without having to send out a weak Pokémon and bring it back or finding the XP share stone from the scientist guy later in the game. I can now judge which Pokémon I need to send out for the particular battle, and feel comfortable in the knowledge that I can keep my strong Pokémon on the battlefield whilst my other Pokémon share in the levelling up.
Some people have complained that they prefer the grind and think that this makes it far too easy, and I can see what they mean, but at the same time, grinding would take 10x longer due to the previous wild encounter mechanics I just spoke of. No more battling wild Pokémon means that grinding now requires a lot more money and Pokéballs.
I do think this game can be too easy at times, your companion Pokémon (the one you receive from the start, either Pikachu or Eevee) is incredibly Over Powered! I was able to defeat near enough every gym with just my starter, because even though the types weren't weak to electric or fighting, if you level up your Pikachu and are say 5-10 levels higher than the gym Pokémon, I was able to kill most of the Pokémon in one hit and a lot of the Gym battles before you reach the leader, only seem to have one Pokémon nowadays, and this isn't because you can't leave and go heal 'cos you can still do that. I thought battling Misty's Gym was a breeze because my Pikachu was two/three levels higher, and everything died in one shot. So I can see why some people complained it was too easy to complete this game. For anything that wasn't effected by electricity, I used double stomp, which in later battles usually took one hit as well, but as your progressing it can take two-four hits depending on the Pokémon your battling.
To argue with the difficulty level though, I would say that if you've never played a Pokémon game, or at least the original Pokémon games, or maybe you want to introduce someone to Pokémon young or old, this is actually a great starting place. The easy difficulty makes it enjoyable and less frustrating, the designs of characters and Pokémon are fantastic, the story is just about the same but you no longer have items that your Pokémon hold like XP Share, or Everstone. (You just have to press B everytime a Pokémon levels up if you don't want it to evolve).
It's a great introduction to Pokémon with added bonuses. You can actually get the Alolan forms of some Pokémon in the game, as there are NPC's around the map that want to trade you for your Kanto versions such as Geodude, Sandslash, Meowth (Eevee exclusive), Vulpix (Eevee exclusive), Exeggutor and a few others. So it's even more fun to hunt for Pokémon in all shapes and sizes and types.
As usual, there are some Pokémon that are exclusive to one version of the game, which is annoying because the only Pokémon I now need for my Pokédex is Pinsir who just happens to be a Let's Go Eevee exclusive, so make sure that like me, you have friends with the opposite game so you can trade, OR, if you have certain game exclusive Pokémon on Pokémon Go, you can send them across to the Go Park in Fuschia City and catch them there. They'll stay in the box you sent them too and even if they flee while you're trying to catch them, fear not, they can't run away if you sent them over. They will stay in the box and you can just try again instantly. I however do not have Pinsir in Pokémon Go but luckily my friend has a spare ?
Overall this game is so much adorable fun, whether it's catching them all, or battling the trainer's and gyms to be the very best, or even just kicking back and having a little play with your companion, you can be sure that with these new mechanics, including a new system that makes shiny Pokémon easier to find/catch, you'll find plenty to do even after you've completed the game.
This game was first introduced to me by a friend who told me it was a refreshed version of Pokémon Yellow, but with Eevee as a starter if you got Pokémon Let's Go Eevee. However this game is so much more than a modern day reboot.
Mechanics wise, they've brought in the catching system from the popular mobile app Pokémon Go, with the player having to use the joy cons, the Pokéball Plus or the switch as a whole, to catch Pokémon by throwing a Pokéball with a chance to get 1 of 3 catch ratings (Nice, Great, or Excellent) if you can throw the ball through a ring that shrinks repeatedly. At first I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy this because I suck at this on the app, but it's something that grew on me because the switch version of this mechanic is easier to achieve, and when the player uses the whole handheld format of the switch (joy cons still attached to the sides, holding the whole body of the console) it's a lot easier to catch the Pokémon that move around a lot from side to side, other than the player having to try and throw curve balls which can sometimes ache your arms if your building up a catch combo.
I do however miss battling Pokémon in the wild sometimes, to me the old mechanics had this sense of achievement that (as cruel as it sounds, but come on this is Pokémon we're on about) you were able to beat that high level Pokémon in a battle and have therefore not just got lucky with throwing a Pokéball in the hopes that it stays in. Saying that though, you do have to battle the legendaries, Mewtwo and the two sleeping Snorlax's before you can catch them, which is a nice addition they kept in.
On the other hand though, your entire 6 Pokémon party gets experience from catching and battling, which makes it so much easier to level up your entire party without having to send out a weak Pokémon and bring it back or finding the XP share stone from the scientist guy later in the game. I can now judge which Pokémon I need to send out for the particular battle, and feel comfortable in the knowledge that I can keep my strong Pokémon on the battlefield whilst my other Pokémon share in the levelling up.
Some people have complained that they prefer the grind and think that this makes it far too easy, and I can see what they mean, but at the same time, grinding would take 10x longer due to the previous wild encounter mechanics I just spoke of. No more battling wild Pokémon means that grinding now requires a lot more money and Pokéballs.
I do think this game can be too easy at times, your companion Pokémon (the one you receive from the start, either Pikachu or Eevee) is incredibly Over Powered! I was able to defeat near enough every gym with just my starter, because even though the types weren't weak to electric or fighting, if you level up your Pikachu and are say 5-10 levels higher than the gym Pokémon, I was able to kill most of the Pokémon in one hit and a lot of the Gym battles before you reach the leader, only seem to have one Pokémon nowadays, and this isn't because you can't leave and go heal 'cos you can still do that. I thought battling Misty's Gym was a breeze because my Pikachu was two/three levels higher, and everything died in one shot. So I can see why some people complained it was too easy to complete this game. For anything that wasn't effected by electricity, I used double stomp, which in later battles usually took one hit as well, but as your progressing it can take two-four hits depending on the Pokémon your battling.
To argue with the difficulty level though, I would say that if you've never played a Pokémon game, or at least the original Pokémon games, or maybe you want to introduce someone to Pokémon young or old, this is actually a great starting place. The easy difficulty makes it enjoyable and less frustrating, the designs of characters and Pokémon are fantastic, the story is just about the same but you no longer have items that your Pokémon hold like XP Share, or Everstone. (You just have to press B everytime a Pokémon levels up if you don't want it to evolve).
It's a great introduction to Pokémon with added bonuses. You can actually get the Alolan forms of some Pokémon in the game, as there are NPC's around the map that want to trade you for your Kanto versions such as Geodude, Sandslash, Meowth (Eevee exclusive), Vulpix (Eevee exclusive), Exeggutor and a few others. So it's even more fun to hunt for Pokémon in all shapes and sizes and types.
As usual, there are some Pokémon that are exclusive to one version of the game, which is annoying because the only Pokémon I now need for my Pokédex is Pinsir who just happens to be a Let's Go Eevee exclusive, so make sure that like me, you have friends with the opposite game so you can trade, OR, if you have certain game exclusive Pokémon on Pokémon Go, you can send them across to the Go Park in Fuschia City and catch them there. They'll stay in the box you sent them too and even if they flee while you're trying to catch them, fear not, they can't run away if you sent them over. They will stay in the box and you can just try again instantly. I however do not have Pinsir in Pokémon Go but luckily my friend has a spare ?
Overall this game is so much adorable fun, whether it's catching them all, or battling the trainer's and gyms to be the very best, or even just kicking back and having a little play with your companion, you can be sure that with these new mechanics, including a new system that makes shiny Pokémon easier to find/catch, you'll find plenty to do even after you've completed the game.
Bob Mann (459 KP) rated First Man (2018) in Movies
Sep 28, 2021
He captured a feeling. Sky with no ceiling.
A memorable event
I am a child of the 60’s, born in 1961. The “Space Race” for me was not some historical concept but a pervasive backdrop to my childhood. I still recall, at the age of 8, being marched into my junior school’s assembly hall. We all peered at the grainy black-and-white pictures of Neil Armstrong as he spoke his famously fluffed line before stepping onto the lunar surface. The event happened at 3:54am UK time, so clearly my recollection of “seeing it live” is bogus. (I read that the BBC stayed on air until 10:30 in the morning, so it was probably a ‘final review’ of the night’s events I saw). It is probably lodged in my memory less for the historical event and more due to the fact that there was TELEVISION ON IN THE MORNING! (Kids, ask your grandparents!)
A very personal connection. My personal copy of Waddington’s “Blast Off” board game, briefly shown in the film.
The plot
But back to Damien Chazelle‘s film. We start early in the 60’s with America getting well and truly kicked up the proberbial by the Russians in the space race: they fail to get the first man in space; they fail to carry out the first spacewalk. So the Americans, following the famous JFK speech, set their sights on the moon. It’s the equivalent of making a mess of cutting your toenails but then deciding to have a go at brain surgery. NASA develop the Gemini programme to practice the essential docking manoevers required as a precursor for the seemingly impossible (‘two blackboard’) mission that is Apollo.
But the price paid for such ambition is high.
Ryan Gosling plays Neil Armstrong as a dedicated, prickly, professional; altogether not a terribly likeable individual. Claire Foy plays his long-suffering wife Janet, putting her support for her husband’s dangerous profession ahead of her natural fears of becoming a single mother.
Review
There is obviously little tension to be mined from a film that has such a well-known historical context. Those with even a subliminal knowledge of the subject will be aware of the key triumphs and tragedies along the way. The script (by Josh Singer, “The Post“; “Spotlight“) is very well done in developing a creeping dread of knowing what is shortly to come.
Even with these inherent spoilers, Chazelle still manages to evoke armrest-squeezing tension into the space flight sequences. A lot of this is achieved through disorientating camera movements and flashing images that may irritate some but I found to be highly effective. (Did anyone else flash back to that excellent “Mission Space” ride at Epcot during the launch sequences?) This hand-held cinematography by Linus Sandgren (Chazelle’s “La La Land” collaborator) is matched by some utterly drop-dead gorgeous shots – beautifully framed; beautifully lit – that would be worthy of a Kaminski/Spielberg collaboration.
Those expecting a rollercoaster thrill-ride of the likes of “Apollo 13” will be disappointed. The film has more of the slow-and-long-burn feeling of “The Right Stuff” in mood and, at 141 minutes, some might even find it quite boring. There is significant time, for example, spent within the family home. These scenes include turbulent events of which I wasn’t previously aware: events that form the cornerstone of the film’s drama. For me, the balance of the personal and the historical background was perfectly done. I found it curious though that with such a family-oriented drama Chazelle chose to ditch completely any cuts away to the earthbound onlookers during the tense lunar landing sequence. (Compare and contrast with Ron Howard‘s masterly inter-cutting in the re-entry scene of “Apollo 13”). With the outcome foretold, perhaps such tension building was considered unnecessary? I’m not suggesting it was wrong to ‘stay in the moment’ with the astronauts, but it’s a bold directorial move.
Overall, the foolhardiness of NASA trying to do what they did with the 60’s technology at their disposal is well-portrayed. If you’ve been lucky enough, as I have, to view the Apollo 11 capsule in the National Air and Space museum in Washington you can’t help but be impressed by the bravery of Armstong, Aldrin and Collins in getting in that bucket of bolts and putting their lives on the line. True American heroes.
On that topic, the “flag issue” has generated much self-righteous heat within the US media; that is regarding Chazelle not showing the American flag being planted. This seems fatuous to me. Not only is the flag shown on the moon, but the film ably demonstrates the American know-how and bravery behind the mission. If Clint Eastwood had been directing he would have probably gone there: but for me it certainly didn’t need any further patriotism rubbed in the viewer’s face.
The turns
Are Oscar nominations on the cards for Ryan Gosling and Claire Foy? For me, it would be staggering if they are not: this film has “Oscar nomination” written all over it. I’d also certainly not bet against Foy winning for Best Actress: her portrayal of a wife on the edge is nothing short of brilliant. And perhaps, just perhaps, this might be Gosling’s year too.
Elsewhere there are strong supporting performances from Kyle Chandler (as Deke Slayton), Corey Stoll (as the ‘tell it how it is’ Buzz Aldrin) and Jason Clarke (as Ed White). It’s also great to see Belfast-born Ciarán Hinds in another mainstream Hollywood release.
For me, another dead cert Oscar nomination will be Justin Hurwitz for the score which is breathtakingly brilliant, not just in its compelling themes but also in its orchestration: the use of the eerie theremin and melodic harp are just brilliant together. I haven’t heard a score this year that’s more fitting to the visuals: although it’s early in the Oscar season to be calling it, I’d be very surprised if this didn’t walk away with the statuette.
Summary
Loved this. Damien Chazelle – with “Whiplash“, “La La Land” and now “First Man” – has hit all of three out of the park in my book. It’s not really a film for thrill-seekers, who might get bored, but anyone, like me, with an interest in the history of space exploration will I think lap it up: for this was surely the most memorable decade in space history… so far.
On leaving the cinema I looked up at the rising moon and marvelled once more at the audacity of man. My eyes then drifted across to the red dot that was Mars. How long I wonder? And how many dramatic film biographies still to come?
I am a child of the 60’s, born in 1961. The “Space Race” for me was not some historical concept but a pervasive backdrop to my childhood. I still recall, at the age of 8, being marched into my junior school’s assembly hall. We all peered at the grainy black-and-white pictures of Neil Armstrong as he spoke his famously fluffed line before stepping onto the lunar surface. The event happened at 3:54am UK time, so clearly my recollection of “seeing it live” is bogus. (I read that the BBC stayed on air until 10:30 in the morning, so it was probably a ‘final review’ of the night’s events I saw). It is probably lodged in my memory less for the historical event and more due to the fact that there was TELEVISION ON IN THE MORNING! (Kids, ask your grandparents!)
A very personal connection. My personal copy of Waddington’s “Blast Off” board game, briefly shown in the film.
The plot
But back to Damien Chazelle‘s film. We start early in the 60’s with America getting well and truly kicked up the proberbial by the Russians in the space race: they fail to get the first man in space; they fail to carry out the first spacewalk. So the Americans, following the famous JFK speech, set their sights on the moon. It’s the equivalent of making a mess of cutting your toenails but then deciding to have a go at brain surgery. NASA develop the Gemini programme to practice the essential docking manoevers required as a precursor for the seemingly impossible (‘two blackboard’) mission that is Apollo.
But the price paid for such ambition is high.
Ryan Gosling plays Neil Armstrong as a dedicated, prickly, professional; altogether not a terribly likeable individual. Claire Foy plays his long-suffering wife Janet, putting her support for her husband’s dangerous profession ahead of her natural fears of becoming a single mother.
Review
There is obviously little tension to be mined from a film that has such a well-known historical context. Those with even a subliminal knowledge of the subject will be aware of the key triumphs and tragedies along the way. The script (by Josh Singer, “The Post“; “Spotlight“) is very well done in developing a creeping dread of knowing what is shortly to come.
Even with these inherent spoilers, Chazelle still manages to evoke armrest-squeezing tension into the space flight sequences. A lot of this is achieved through disorientating camera movements and flashing images that may irritate some but I found to be highly effective. (Did anyone else flash back to that excellent “Mission Space” ride at Epcot during the launch sequences?) This hand-held cinematography by Linus Sandgren (Chazelle’s “La La Land” collaborator) is matched by some utterly drop-dead gorgeous shots – beautifully framed; beautifully lit – that would be worthy of a Kaminski/Spielberg collaboration.
Those expecting a rollercoaster thrill-ride of the likes of “Apollo 13” will be disappointed. The film has more of the slow-and-long-burn feeling of “The Right Stuff” in mood and, at 141 minutes, some might even find it quite boring. There is significant time, for example, spent within the family home. These scenes include turbulent events of which I wasn’t previously aware: events that form the cornerstone of the film’s drama. For me, the balance of the personal and the historical background was perfectly done. I found it curious though that with such a family-oriented drama Chazelle chose to ditch completely any cuts away to the earthbound onlookers during the tense lunar landing sequence. (Compare and contrast with Ron Howard‘s masterly inter-cutting in the re-entry scene of “Apollo 13”). With the outcome foretold, perhaps such tension building was considered unnecessary? I’m not suggesting it was wrong to ‘stay in the moment’ with the astronauts, but it’s a bold directorial move.
Overall, the foolhardiness of NASA trying to do what they did with the 60’s technology at their disposal is well-portrayed. If you’ve been lucky enough, as I have, to view the Apollo 11 capsule in the National Air and Space museum in Washington you can’t help but be impressed by the bravery of Armstong, Aldrin and Collins in getting in that bucket of bolts and putting their lives on the line. True American heroes.
On that topic, the “flag issue” has generated much self-righteous heat within the US media; that is regarding Chazelle not showing the American flag being planted. This seems fatuous to me. Not only is the flag shown on the moon, but the film ably demonstrates the American know-how and bravery behind the mission. If Clint Eastwood had been directing he would have probably gone there: but for me it certainly didn’t need any further patriotism rubbed in the viewer’s face.
The turns
Are Oscar nominations on the cards for Ryan Gosling and Claire Foy? For me, it would be staggering if they are not: this film has “Oscar nomination” written all over it. I’d also certainly not bet against Foy winning for Best Actress: her portrayal of a wife on the edge is nothing short of brilliant. And perhaps, just perhaps, this might be Gosling’s year too.
Elsewhere there are strong supporting performances from Kyle Chandler (as Deke Slayton), Corey Stoll (as the ‘tell it how it is’ Buzz Aldrin) and Jason Clarke (as Ed White). It’s also great to see Belfast-born Ciarán Hinds in another mainstream Hollywood release.
For me, another dead cert Oscar nomination will be Justin Hurwitz for the score which is breathtakingly brilliant, not just in its compelling themes but also in its orchestration: the use of the eerie theremin and melodic harp are just brilliant together. I haven’t heard a score this year that’s more fitting to the visuals: although it’s early in the Oscar season to be calling it, I’d be very surprised if this didn’t walk away with the statuette.
Summary
Loved this. Damien Chazelle – with “Whiplash“, “La La Land” and now “First Man” – has hit all of three out of the park in my book. It’s not really a film for thrill-seekers, who might get bored, but anyone, like me, with an interest in the history of space exploration will I think lap it up: for this was surely the most memorable decade in space history… so far.
On leaving the cinema I looked up at the rising moon and marvelled once more at the audacity of man. My eyes then drifted across to the red dot that was Mars. How long I wonder? And how many dramatic film biographies still to come?
Dana (24 KP) rated Stars Above (The Lunar Chronicles, #4.5) in Books
Mar 23, 2018
This book is actually receiving a 4.5 star review, but as you all know, we can't do that on here, so I just gave it a four star.
There will be spoliers, so ye be warned.
I'm going to go at this story by story, so bear with me.
The Keeper
I very much enjoyed getting to know Michelle Benoit because we do not get much of her in the base series. I love getting to know her and Scarlet's relationship on a first hand basis, but also getting to see the strain on their relationship because of the secrecy of Cinder. There are quite a few special moments between Michelle and Scarlet, namely, the one where she gives Scarlet her flight pin for her birthday present. Not going to lie, I choked up a bit on that one.
Another level of this story is the interactions between Michelle and Cinder. I loved seeing Michelle doting on Cinder, even though Cinder is in a suspended animation tank where she can't actually interact with Michelle. But being able to see the fear and the care Michelle feels toward Cinder was something very special and it warmed my heart to read it. I loved that Michelle gave Cinder her name to remind her that she is rising from the cinders and ashes of her past. So symbolic!
Glitches
Okay, now moving on to Cinder's early childhood. Garan was not really the best dad, from what I read. He is quite aloof and absent, not only in Cinder's early life, but in his own daughters'. It hurt to see how Cinder was mistreated by Adri from the beginning, even though I kind of undertand where Adri is coming from. I am by no means saying what she did was right. Let me just put that out there. She was a horrible mother to Cinder and I am not forgiving her, but her husband threw this child on her when they were already having a hard enough time supporting their two daughters. It must have been really difficult.
I loved how we got Cinder finding out that she was good at mechanics and fixed Iko! I was so happy when those two got together because I knew it was the beginning of a glorious friendship!
The Queen's Army
Ze'ev! Ugh, his childhood was almost no better. Yes, he had parents that loved him, but he had no choice in being conscripted into the army, then having to take care of his little brother who kinda hated him, then having to prove himself (and in turn save every person in his pack) by killing another person. He didn't even really have a choice in that either because Levana shoved the idea in his head. I'm just glad he gets to be happy with Scarlet.
Carswell's Guide to Being Lucky
Carswell, aka Mr. Smooth, having a crush on the sweet and smart kind. Hm. Where have we seen that before? Oh yeah, with my girl Cress! He has a thing for nerds and I am okay with that. I loved getting to see baby Thorne learning all of his tricks and tricking people out of their money. Goals.
After Sunshine Passes By
Baby Cress! This story made me so emotional because she had so much hope that she was going to go to earth, but beotch Sybil had other plans because she is horrible. Her reaction to learning that she was going to be isolated was heartbreaking as hell. But I did really enjoy getting to see how she was trying to help the other Shells learn how to read. I'm glad she got to learn at least.
The Princess and the Guard
Baby Winter and Jacin playing Princess and the Guard was so freaking cute, but then it got real dark, real quick. We start with the moment she thought she was helping that poor maid who was being manipulated by Thaumaturge Park (asshole #1 right there, by the way), then we have to see her learn that she didn't acutally save the girl, but subjected her to more torment. And then her promise to not use her glamour and her eventually going mad. That first hallucination and her reaction to it made me almost start sobbing, to be completely honest. It hurt so freaking much.
And then we get the big moment: Levana making her cut herself. She was so strong throughout the whole thing. She didn't let it get to her one bit, until she was back with Jacin, the only one who could protect her. She was so strong throughout the whole ordeal, and even afterwards. It breaks my heart to see that she was almost completely broken by not using her gift. I'm just glad everything is okay with her now.
The Little Android
Talk about crying, this story brought out all the tears. The original Little Mermaid is sad enough, but this one got to me so much. I know a lot of people don't really like this story because it didn't add anything to the rest of the series, but it added depth to the world. I loved being able to see another android other that Nasani and Iko. And on top of that, she was another one with a "faulty" programming chip. Is it mandatory that all androids fall in love with Kai or people who look like Kai? No? Okay, it just seems that way from this series.
But in all seriousness, this story was heartbreaking. Especially the ending when she allows herself to die for the one she loved to be happy. Come on! I didn't need this sadness in my life! (But I actually did, because it was beautiful and I loved it. I just wish I didn't cry at it as much.)
The Mechanic:
I was glad to see that this was the next story, because at least it would be happy. Kai's perspective of meeting Cinder was the cutest thing ever. He was so shy and dumbfounded and had no idea how to flirt. It was so endearing. They both also seemed so young becasue, well, it was the beginning. I adored how he was obsessed with the foot from the moment he first saw it. Not because of a foot fetish, but because he was acknowledging cyborgs (that acknowledgement eventually growing into action, but hey, it was a start!)
Something Old, Something New
Talk about super cute, this story stole my heart on the cute scale. A wedding! Woo!! Wolflet's wedding: double WOO!!! I love these two and their interactions, but I loved even more that it was told from Cinder's perspective.
Them setting up an early surprise wedding was so adorable, I almost exploded from happiness. I loved how they all teamed up together to get Scarlet to get ready early and trying to not get her suspicious was adorable. The boys all setting up the wedding and making it beautiful, if not a little dangerous at times, also adorable. Thorne being the number one decorator was hilariously cute! I honestly loved every bit of this story. I called Kai proposing to Cinder from the start of the story, though. I am super happy that it happened though! So cute! And they were looking at the stars because they were star crossed lovers for a while. Ugh. I just can't with these feelings.
Overall, I loved this book. I am giving it a 4.5 because there were a few moments in the stories that were a little slow, but it was still really freaking good!!
There will be spoliers, so ye be warned.
I'm going to go at this story by story, so bear with me.
The Keeper
I very much enjoyed getting to know Michelle Benoit because we do not get much of her in the base series. I love getting to know her and Scarlet's relationship on a first hand basis, but also getting to see the strain on their relationship because of the secrecy of Cinder. There are quite a few special moments between Michelle and Scarlet, namely, the one where she gives Scarlet her flight pin for her birthday present. Not going to lie, I choked up a bit on that one.
Another level of this story is the interactions between Michelle and Cinder. I loved seeing Michelle doting on Cinder, even though Cinder is in a suspended animation tank where she can't actually interact with Michelle. But being able to see the fear and the care Michelle feels toward Cinder was something very special and it warmed my heart to read it. I loved that Michelle gave Cinder her name to remind her that she is rising from the cinders and ashes of her past. So symbolic!
Glitches
Okay, now moving on to Cinder's early childhood. Garan was not really the best dad, from what I read. He is quite aloof and absent, not only in Cinder's early life, but in his own daughters'. It hurt to see how Cinder was mistreated by Adri from the beginning, even though I kind of undertand where Adri is coming from. I am by no means saying what she did was right. Let me just put that out there. She was a horrible mother to Cinder and I am not forgiving her, but her husband threw this child on her when they were already having a hard enough time supporting their two daughters. It must have been really difficult.
I loved how we got Cinder finding out that she was good at mechanics and fixed Iko! I was so happy when those two got together because I knew it was the beginning of a glorious friendship!
The Queen's Army
Ze'ev! Ugh, his childhood was almost no better. Yes, he had parents that loved him, but he had no choice in being conscripted into the army, then having to take care of his little brother who kinda hated him, then having to prove himself (and in turn save every person in his pack) by killing another person. He didn't even really have a choice in that either because Levana shoved the idea in his head. I'm just glad he gets to be happy with Scarlet.
Carswell's Guide to Being Lucky
Carswell, aka Mr. Smooth, having a crush on the sweet and smart kind. Hm. Where have we seen that before? Oh yeah, with my girl Cress! He has a thing for nerds and I am okay with that. I loved getting to see baby Thorne learning all of his tricks and tricking people out of their money. Goals.
After Sunshine Passes By
Baby Cress! This story made me so emotional because she had so much hope that she was going to go to earth, but beotch Sybil had other plans because she is horrible. Her reaction to learning that she was going to be isolated was heartbreaking as hell. But I did really enjoy getting to see how she was trying to help the other Shells learn how to read. I'm glad she got to learn at least.
The Princess and the Guard
Baby Winter and Jacin playing Princess and the Guard was so freaking cute, but then it got real dark, real quick. We start with the moment she thought she was helping that poor maid who was being manipulated by Thaumaturge Park (asshole #1 right there, by the way), then we have to see her learn that she didn't acutally save the girl, but subjected her to more torment. And then her promise to not use her glamour and her eventually going mad. That first hallucination and her reaction to it made me almost start sobbing, to be completely honest. It hurt so freaking much.
And then we get the big moment: Levana making her cut herself. She was so strong throughout the whole thing. She didn't let it get to her one bit, until she was back with Jacin, the only one who could protect her. She was so strong throughout the whole ordeal, and even afterwards. It breaks my heart to see that she was almost completely broken by not using her gift. I'm just glad everything is okay with her now.
The Little Android
Talk about crying, this story brought out all the tears. The original Little Mermaid is sad enough, but this one got to me so much. I know a lot of people don't really like this story because it didn't add anything to the rest of the series, but it added depth to the world. I loved being able to see another android other that Nasani and Iko. And on top of that, she was another one with a "faulty" programming chip. Is it mandatory that all androids fall in love with Kai or people who look like Kai? No? Okay, it just seems that way from this series.
But in all seriousness, this story was heartbreaking. Especially the ending when she allows herself to die for the one she loved to be happy. Come on! I didn't need this sadness in my life! (But I actually did, because it was beautiful and I loved it. I just wish I didn't cry at it as much.)
The Mechanic:
I was glad to see that this was the next story, because at least it would be happy. Kai's perspective of meeting Cinder was the cutest thing ever. He was so shy and dumbfounded and had no idea how to flirt. It was so endearing. They both also seemed so young becasue, well, it was the beginning. I adored how he was obsessed with the foot from the moment he first saw it. Not because of a foot fetish, but because he was acknowledging cyborgs (that acknowledgement eventually growing into action, but hey, it was a start!)
Something Old, Something New
Talk about super cute, this story stole my heart on the cute scale. A wedding! Woo!! Wolflet's wedding: double WOO!!! I love these two and their interactions, but I loved even more that it was told from Cinder's perspective.
Them setting up an early surprise wedding was so adorable, I almost exploded from happiness. I loved how they all teamed up together to get Scarlet to get ready early and trying to not get her suspicious was adorable. The boys all setting up the wedding and making it beautiful, if not a little dangerous at times, also adorable. Thorne being the number one decorator was hilariously cute! I honestly loved every bit of this story. I called Kai proposing to Cinder from the start of the story, though. I am super happy that it happened though! So cute! And they were looking at the stars because they were star crossed lovers for a while. Ugh. I just can't with these feelings.
Overall, I loved this book. I am giving it a 4.5 because there were a few moments in the stories that were a little slow, but it was still really freaking good!!
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Fossilis in Tabletop Games
Feb 17, 2021
Whether it lasted for days, months, or years, I’m willing to bet that you all have had some minor (or maybe even major) fascination with dinosaurs at some point in your life. I am definitely no exception to that statement. When I was younger, I absolutely went through a paleontology phase, and the “Jurassic Park” movies have kept that love of dinosaurs alive. So when I saw KTBG was coming out with a game about excavating dinosaur bones, I was immediately sold. Did it live up to my childhood expectations, or was this excavation a bust?
Fossilis is a game of set collection and tile placement in which players are working to excavate and collect sets of dinosaur bones for display in museums across the world. To setup for a game, prepare the dig site as described in the rulebook. Populate the Score Track board with 9 random Skill tokens, 3 face-down randomly selected Event cards, and a Plaster pool based on the player count. Create a Market of Tool and Supply cards, as well as a Dinosaur Display. Each player receives a mat, Paleontologist meeple, and score marker in their chosen color. Pick a starting player, and in reverse turn order, players place their Paleontologists onto a corner tile of the dig site. The game is now ready to begin!
Every players’ turn has 3 steps: Actions, Market, and Lab. At the start of your turn, you have 4 Energy to spend on Actions. The available action choices are: Gain 1 Plaster (from the Plaster pool), Move up to 2 spaces (orthogonally or diagonally), Climb onto the Dig Site (if your Paleontologist was knocked off the board), Place 1 Sand tile (anywhere on the Dig Site), Dig 1 tile (slide a terrain tile 1 space in any direction), or Extract (excavate a bone/hammer). With the exception of Digging, all other Actions cost 1 Energy to perform. Digging 1 tile costs energy dependent on the type of terrain tile being moved. To dig Sand is 1 Energy, Clay is 2, and Stone is 3. To Dig, you select 1 tile that is orthogonally adjacent to your Paleontologist, and slide it 1 space in any direction you wish. Tiles that are pushed off the edge are claimed by that player, and can be used to purchase cards from the Market. It is possible for a Paleontologist to be pushed off the Dig Site, so watch out! To perform the Extract action, you will excavate a bone or hammer from an open pit orthogonally adjacent to your Paleontologist. Extraction costs Plaster dependent on the type of bone being collected. For example, extracting a tooth costs 2 Plaster, while a skull costs 6. Extracting hammers has no cost, and you immediately trade the hammer for one of the available Skill tokens in play. The Skill tokens provide benefits for the remainder of the game. Once a player has spent their Energy, they move to the next phase.
On your turn, you may buy 1 card from the Market: either a Tool or Supply card. These are purchased using the icons on any tiles you collected during the Action phase. Supply cards gain you immediate resources, while Tool cards are saved for use during a future Action step. After the Market phase is the Lab phase. You may claim a Dinosaur from the Display if you have at least one of the required bones for that Dinosaur. You can only ever have 1 Dinosaur in your Lab at a time, so strategize carefully. At any point during a turn, you can score the Dinosaur in your lab – either for full points if all required bones are present on the card, or partial points if you only have some of the required bones.
Events are triggered 3 times throughout the game when the Plaster pool has been depleted. The active player draws the top Event card, and follows the instructions on the card. Once an Event has been performed, the Plaster pool is refilled and play continues with the next player. After the 3rd event has been triggered, the Plaster pool is refilled one last time. When the last Plaster pool is depleted for this final time, the game ends. Players count up all their points, and the player with the highest score wins!
At first it may seem overwhelming, like there is a lot going on, but after a couple of turns the gameplay feels intuitive and streamlined. There are quite a few aspects to keep track of, but the overall flow of the game makes it feel clear and concise. During my plays, I have never once felt lost or confused as to what the next turn step is. The tight gameplay also lends itself to providing a variety of strategic options for players. Do you want to go for all the highest-scoring Dinosaurs, even though their bones take longer to collect? Or maybe you want to snag as many lower-scoring Dinosaurs as possible, since they should be faster to collect. You can earn end-game points based on Characteristic sets of Dinosaurs (carnivorous, herbivore, etc), so maybe you decide to focus on those sets. Or if you’re in a particularly confrontational mood, maybe you want to knock opposing Paleontologists off the Dig Site, causing them to ‘waste’ an Energy on a future turn just to climb back on into the play area. There really is no right answer as to what strategy is a sure-win, and I like that I can choose and adapt my strategies based on the current standings in the game.
Probably my favorite innovative mechanic in Fossilis is the 3D terrain and ‘digging’ actions. When setting up the game, bones and hammers are randomly scattered and distributed around the Dig Site before terrain tiles are added. So there is absolutely no way to know where you should dig for what you want! Just like a real paleontologist, you’ve got to give it your best guess. I have had some frustrating turns, spending lots of Energy to dig a tile just to find the space to be empty! Or maybe you dig and hit the motherlode, which just means you’ll probably have to fight off other paleontologists for the bones that you need. The 3D board adds another element of strategy that heightens the gameplay and makes it more immersive.
Let’s touch on components for a moment. They are AWESOME. Admittedly, I have the Kickstarter version, but I just love how well-produced this game is. The terrain tiles are nice and thick bakelite-esque tiles, and they are just dang fun to manipulate. The plaster and bones are small, but pretty detailed and sturdy for their size. The artwork on the cards is colorful and clear, the Paleontologist meeples are cute little wooden bits, and the cardboard bits are all good quality. Excellent production quality all around.
It should come as no surprise, based on my score, that I love this game. The gameplay is immersive and engaging, the mechanics add a neat twist to your normal set collection/tile placement game, and the ability to adapt strategy on the fly means that nobody is truly out of the game because of one bad turn. Purple Phoenix Games gives Fossilis a roaring 11 / 12. If you’re looking for a good dinosaur game, look no further. Yeah, they’re technically just bones here, but it still counts!
Fossilis is a game of set collection and tile placement in which players are working to excavate and collect sets of dinosaur bones for display in museums across the world. To setup for a game, prepare the dig site as described in the rulebook. Populate the Score Track board with 9 random Skill tokens, 3 face-down randomly selected Event cards, and a Plaster pool based on the player count. Create a Market of Tool and Supply cards, as well as a Dinosaur Display. Each player receives a mat, Paleontologist meeple, and score marker in their chosen color. Pick a starting player, and in reverse turn order, players place their Paleontologists onto a corner tile of the dig site. The game is now ready to begin!
Every players’ turn has 3 steps: Actions, Market, and Lab. At the start of your turn, you have 4 Energy to spend on Actions. The available action choices are: Gain 1 Plaster (from the Plaster pool), Move up to 2 spaces (orthogonally or diagonally), Climb onto the Dig Site (if your Paleontologist was knocked off the board), Place 1 Sand tile (anywhere on the Dig Site), Dig 1 tile (slide a terrain tile 1 space in any direction), or Extract (excavate a bone/hammer). With the exception of Digging, all other Actions cost 1 Energy to perform. Digging 1 tile costs energy dependent on the type of terrain tile being moved. To dig Sand is 1 Energy, Clay is 2, and Stone is 3. To Dig, you select 1 tile that is orthogonally adjacent to your Paleontologist, and slide it 1 space in any direction you wish. Tiles that are pushed off the edge are claimed by that player, and can be used to purchase cards from the Market. It is possible for a Paleontologist to be pushed off the Dig Site, so watch out! To perform the Extract action, you will excavate a bone or hammer from an open pit orthogonally adjacent to your Paleontologist. Extraction costs Plaster dependent on the type of bone being collected. For example, extracting a tooth costs 2 Plaster, while a skull costs 6. Extracting hammers has no cost, and you immediately trade the hammer for one of the available Skill tokens in play. The Skill tokens provide benefits for the remainder of the game. Once a player has spent their Energy, they move to the next phase.
On your turn, you may buy 1 card from the Market: either a Tool or Supply card. These are purchased using the icons on any tiles you collected during the Action phase. Supply cards gain you immediate resources, while Tool cards are saved for use during a future Action step. After the Market phase is the Lab phase. You may claim a Dinosaur from the Display if you have at least one of the required bones for that Dinosaur. You can only ever have 1 Dinosaur in your Lab at a time, so strategize carefully. At any point during a turn, you can score the Dinosaur in your lab – either for full points if all required bones are present on the card, or partial points if you only have some of the required bones.
Events are triggered 3 times throughout the game when the Plaster pool has been depleted. The active player draws the top Event card, and follows the instructions on the card. Once an Event has been performed, the Plaster pool is refilled and play continues with the next player. After the 3rd event has been triggered, the Plaster pool is refilled one last time. When the last Plaster pool is depleted for this final time, the game ends. Players count up all their points, and the player with the highest score wins!
At first it may seem overwhelming, like there is a lot going on, but after a couple of turns the gameplay feels intuitive and streamlined. There are quite a few aspects to keep track of, but the overall flow of the game makes it feel clear and concise. During my plays, I have never once felt lost or confused as to what the next turn step is. The tight gameplay also lends itself to providing a variety of strategic options for players. Do you want to go for all the highest-scoring Dinosaurs, even though their bones take longer to collect? Or maybe you want to snag as many lower-scoring Dinosaurs as possible, since they should be faster to collect. You can earn end-game points based on Characteristic sets of Dinosaurs (carnivorous, herbivore, etc), so maybe you decide to focus on those sets. Or if you’re in a particularly confrontational mood, maybe you want to knock opposing Paleontologists off the Dig Site, causing them to ‘waste’ an Energy on a future turn just to climb back on into the play area. There really is no right answer as to what strategy is a sure-win, and I like that I can choose and adapt my strategies based on the current standings in the game.
Probably my favorite innovative mechanic in Fossilis is the 3D terrain and ‘digging’ actions. When setting up the game, bones and hammers are randomly scattered and distributed around the Dig Site before terrain tiles are added. So there is absolutely no way to know where you should dig for what you want! Just like a real paleontologist, you’ve got to give it your best guess. I have had some frustrating turns, spending lots of Energy to dig a tile just to find the space to be empty! Or maybe you dig and hit the motherlode, which just means you’ll probably have to fight off other paleontologists for the bones that you need. The 3D board adds another element of strategy that heightens the gameplay and makes it more immersive.
Let’s touch on components for a moment. They are AWESOME. Admittedly, I have the Kickstarter version, but I just love how well-produced this game is. The terrain tiles are nice and thick bakelite-esque tiles, and they are just dang fun to manipulate. The plaster and bones are small, but pretty detailed and sturdy for their size. The artwork on the cards is colorful and clear, the Paleontologist meeples are cute little wooden bits, and the cardboard bits are all good quality. Excellent production quality all around.
It should come as no surprise, based on my score, that I love this game. The gameplay is immersive and engaging, the mechanics add a neat twist to your normal set collection/tile placement game, and the ability to adapt strategy on the fly means that nobody is truly out of the game because of one bad turn. Purple Phoenix Games gives Fossilis a roaring 11 / 12. If you’re looking for a good dinosaur game, look no further. Yeah, they’re technically just bones here, but it still counts!
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated TEN in Tabletop Games
Nov 28, 2021
When it comes to game mechanics, set collection is my JAM. Auction/bidding and push your luck, not so much….. So when Alderac Entertainment Group brought TEN into my life, I was a bit wary at first. A game of collecting sequences/sets of numbers? Awesome!! Add in bidding for Wildcards or pushing your luck to not Bust each turn? A bit too risky, at least for my gaming tastes. After having had the opportunity to play TEN, were my initial feelings misplaced? Spoiler: Yes. For me, TEN was a prime example of “Don’t judge a game by its mechanics.” Keep reading to find out why.
Disclaimer: We were provided with a copy of TEN for the purposes of this review. This is a final production copy, so what you see pictured is what you would receive in a retail copy of the game. -L
TEN is a push-your-luck game of set collection and auction/bidding in which players are trying to amass the most points by the end of the game. Points are earned by collecting sets of numeric sequences in the 4 colors of the game: Blue, Green, Pink, and Orange. Played over a series of turns, players will be drawing/collecting cards from the tableau, buying cards from the Market, or Busting if they push their luck a bit too far. To setup for a game, assemble the deck of cards as dictated by the player count and set it in the play area. Each player gets 5 Currency tokens with which to start the game, and are all dealt a random reference card. The player who was dealt the reference card with the Starting Player symbol will begin the game. Before getting into the actual gameplay, I want to mention the different card types, as to provide a better understanding when reading this review. In each of the 4 colors, there are card values numbered 1-9, with more copies of the lower numbers and fewer of the higher numbers. There are also Wildcards that can be used to represent any #/color, depending on the card. Some cards in the deck are Currency cards and show a value of 1-5 Currency. Should you choose to take these from the tableau, you collect that amount of Currency to be used for auctions or buying cards in later turns.
On your turn, you will perform a series of actions, the first of which is Draw a Card. You will draw a card from the top of the deck and place it in the tableau. If the card is a # card or a Currency card, you will then decide if you wish to continue drawing cards. If you do, draw the next card, and so on, until either you decide to stop or you Bust (more on this in a bit). As long as you do not Bust, you can decide when to stop drawing cards to the tableau. You may then take one of the following rewards: take all the # cards to your play area, or take Currency tokens (equal to the amount shown on the Currency cards in the tableau). When you take the # cards, they go into your play area and all other players will collect Currency tokens. You then have the opportunity to Buy a card from the Market (by paying the numeric value of the card) and add it to your play area. If you instead choose to collect Currency, you will take Currency equal to the total value of Currency in the tableau, and all other players receive nothing from your turn. All # cards are moved to the Market, and your turn ends. In the picture below, if I choose to take the # cards, I would take the Orange 2 and Blue 6 to my play area, and all other players would collect 7 Currency. Conversely, I could choose to take 7 Currency, and the # cards are added to the Market (on the right-hand side of the picture).
So how does Busting work? The tableau may never have a value of more than 10. Every # card you draw adds to your total value, and any Currency card drawn subtracts from the total. If you were to draw a # card that would give you a total value of more than 10, you Bust! OR if you ever have Currency cards that total more than 10, you Bust as well. So there’s a bit of math involved, with addition and subtraction, but you have to make sure you never get more than 10! For example, in the picture below, the net total value of the tableau is 1. (8 from # cards, -7 from Currency cards) If I were to draw a Currency card of 4-5, I would Bust, because that totals more than 10. In this pictured instance, any # card I draw would not make me Bust, as the highest total would only be a 10, given the current cards in play. If you ever push your luck too far and end up Busting, all # cards in the tableau are moved to the Market, and you gain a Bust token (worth 3 Currency). If you Busted with # cards, then all other players will collect Currency tokens, but if you Bust with Currency cards, nobody receives anything. After resolving a Bust, your turn ends and the game continues to the next player.
If, on your turn, you ever draw a Wildcard, your turn pauses and the Wildcard is auctioned. Each player will have one chance to either bid (increasing the bid from the previous) or pass. Whomever wins the auction must pay their bid, and they collect the Wildcard to their play area. Once the auction has been resolved, your turn continues as normal. It is possible to have multiple auctions on your turn – it all depends on the cards. The game continues in this fashion, players taking turns drawing cards, collecting cards/Currency, buying from the Market, bidding in auctions, etc., until the draw deck has been depleted. The active player finishes their turn as normal, but may not draw any more cards. Points are then tallied. All players will arrange their cards to create consecutive sequences of numbers in the 4 different colors. You receive 1 point per card in your longest sequence of each color. If you have a complete set of numbers 1-9 in a color, you get a bonus point. Players count up all their points, and the player with the highest value is the winner!
That kind of seems like a lot, but I promise it’s actually pretty intuitive when you get playing. Also, huge shoutout to AEG for providing such a well-done reference card – it includes a little flowchart to help you with how the turns flow. The gameplay itself is essentially pretty straightforward. You draw a card, and then react based on what it is. Bust? Collect a Bust token and your turn ends. No Bust? Decide if you want to keep drawing. Done pushing your luck? Collect either the # cards or Currency. Try to make sequential runs of numbers in the different colors – the more cards you get in sequence, the more points you’ll get at the end of the game. The thing that elevates TEN beyond a simple push-your-luck game to me is that it requires more strategy than just luck. You can see what cards are available in the Market – is there something you need to buy? You can see everyone else’s playing area – do they need any of the numbers you just revealed? You know how much Currency every player has – do you bid high on this Wildcard because your neighbor can’t outbid you? There is so much more than just luck in this game, and that is what takes it to the next level for me. I know that Travis has reviewed No, Thanks! in the past, and I would say that this gives me similar vibes, but way better in my opinion.
When it comes to playing games, I am generally not a huge risk-taker. I like making logical choices based on known information and end-game strategy. But something about this game just gets me. I think one element that makes me love this game is the different types of cards – # cards and Currency cards. When you’re pushing your luck and drawing cards, there’s an added element of excitement, because the two different types of cards affect the net total differently. It doesn’t all positively add to the net total, which makes me more likely to keep drawing in hopes that things will cancel out and I can maximize the turn. If everything all added together, and you just couldn’t get more than 10, I would probably only ever draw 2 cards per turn, max., just to make sure I didn’t Bust. But the fact that Currency cards subtract from the net total encourages players to keep pushing their luck, and either earning a big payoff or a big Bust. This game is exciting, engaging, and entertaining to play, and that makes it fun!
To touch on components, AEG always hits it out of the park – and TEN is no exception. The game is mostly just a bunch of cards, and some white/black Currency tokens. The tokens themselves are nice plastic, and are smooth and chunky in hand. The cards are thick and sturdy, and hold up to shuffling pretty well. The colors of the game are bright and vibrant, and they are very clear to differentiate between. It’s a nice pop of color on the table, and that adds to the overall enjoyment of the game. Each of the 4 colors, and the Wildcards for that matter, have a unique background design – which can help our colorblind friends who may not necessarily be able to differentiate between the colors. Just an added plus to help the gamers tell what cards belong to what colors! The game box is equally as colorful, and is eye-catching on the shelf. All in all, I’d say AEG gets a 10 for their production quality here. (Get it?)
I spoke earlier about judging a game by its mechanics, and how TEN really challenged me on that. I was expecting a game that I would like, but would be kind of just ok overall for me. What I got is a game that is highly strategic, yet also unpredictable at times. I am definitely a planner when it comes to strategy, but the unpredictability of this game is light, fun, and engaging for all players at all times. It just is fun to play. This is a game that I see staying in my collection for a long time, and hopefully getting to the table quite often when I need a quick filler that isn’t so light that it’s mindless, but not heavy enough that it’s a brain-burner. If you’re in the market for a fun little game that challenges all players, I would definitely recommend checking out TEN. Purple Phoenix Games rates our games on a scale of 1-6 (not 10 unfortunately in this case), and we give this one a solid 5 / 6.
Disclaimer: We were provided with a copy of TEN for the purposes of this review. This is a final production copy, so what you see pictured is what you would receive in a retail copy of the game. -L
TEN is a push-your-luck game of set collection and auction/bidding in which players are trying to amass the most points by the end of the game. Points are earned by collecting sets of numeric sequences in the 4 colors of the game: Blue, Green, Pink, and Orange. Played over a series of turns, players will be drawing/collecting cards from the tableau, buying cards from the Market, or Busting if they push their luck a bit too far. To setup for a game, assemble the deck of cards as dictated by the player count and set it in the play area. Each player gets 5 Currency tokens with which to start the game, and are all dealt a random reference card. The player who was dealt the reference card with the Starting Player symbol will begin the game. Before getting into the actual gameplay, I want to mention the different card types, as to provide a better understanding when reading this review. In each of the 4 colors, there are card values numbered 1-9, with more copies of the lower numbers and fewer of the higher numbers. There are also Wildcards that can be used to represent any #/color, depending on the card. Some cards in the deck are Currency cards and show a value of 1-5 Currency. Should you choose to take these from the tableau, you collect that amount of Currency to be used for auctions or buying cards in later turns.
On your turn, you will perform a series of actions, the first of which is Draw a Card. You will draw a card from the top of the deck and place it in the tableau. If the card is a # card or a Currency card, you will then decide if you wish to continue drawing cards. If you do, draw the next card, and so on, until either you decide to stop or you Bust (more on this in a bit). As long as you do not Bust, you can decide when to stop drawing cards to the tableau. You may then take one of the following rewards: take all the # cards to your play area, or take Currency tokens (equal to the amount shown on the Currency cards in the tableau). When you take the # cards, they go into your play area and all other players will collect Currency tokens. You then have the opportunity to Buy a card from the Market (by paying the numeric value of the card) and add it to your play area. If you instead choose to collect Currency, you will take Currency equal to the total value of Currency in the tableau, and all other players receive nothing from your turn. All # cards are moved to the Market, and your turn ends. In the picture below, if I choose to take the # cards, I would take the Orange 2 and Blue 6 to my play area, and all other players would collect 7 Currency. Conversely, I could choose to take 7 Currency, and the # cards are added to the Market (on the right-hand side of the picture).
So how does Busting work? The tableau may never have a value of more than 10. Every # card you draw adds to your total value, and any Currency card drawn subtracts from the total. If you were to draw a # card that would give you a total value of more than 10, you Bust! OR if you ever have Currency cards that total more than 10, you Bust as well. So there’s a bit of math involved, with addition and subtraction, but you have to make sure you never get more than 10! For example, in the picture below, the net total value of the tableau is 1. (8 from # cards, -7 from Currency cards) If I were to draw a Currency card of 4-5, I would Bust, because that totals more than 10. In this pictured instance, any # card I draw would not make me Bust, as the highest total would only be a 10, given the current cards in play. If you ever push your luck too far and end up Busting, all # cards in the tableau are moved to the Market, and you gain a Bust token (worth 3 Currency). If you Busted with # cards, then all other players will collect Currency tokens, but if you Bust with Currency cards, nobody receives anything. After resolving a Bust, your turn ends and the game continues to the next player.
If, on your turn, you ever draw a Wildcard, your turn pauses and the Wildcard is auctioned. Each player will have one chance to either bid (increasing the bid from the previous) or pass. Whomever wins the auction must pay their bid, and they collect the Wildcard to their play area. Once the auction has been resolved, your turn continues as normal. It is possible to have multiple auctions on your turn – it all depends on the cards. The game continues in this fashion, players taking turns drawing cards, collecting cards/Currency, buying from the Market, bidding in auctions, etc., until the draw deck has been depleted. The active player finishes their turn as normal, but may not draw any more cards. Points are then tallied. All players will arrange their cards to create consecutive sequences of numbers in the 4 different colors. You receive 1 point per card in your longest sequence of each color. If you have a complete set of numbers 1-9 in a color, you get a bonus point. Players count up all their points, and the player with the highest value is the winner!
That kind of seems like a lot, but I promise it’s actually pretty intuitive when you get playing. Also, huge shoutout to AEG for providing such a well-done reference card – it includes a little flowchart to help you with how the turns flow. The gameplay itself is essentially pretty straightforward. You draw a card, and then react based on what it is. Bust? Collect a Bust token and your turn ends. No Bust? Decide if you want to keep drawing. Done pushing your luck? Collect either the # cards or Currency. Try to make sequential runs of numbers in the different colors – the more cards you get in sequence, the more points you’ll get at the end of the game. The thing that elevates TEN beyond a simple push-your-luck game to me is that it requires more strategy than just luck. You can see what cards are available in the Market – is there something you need to buy? You can see everyone else’s playing area – do they need any of the numbers you just revealed? You know how much Currency every player has – do you bid high on this Wildcard because your neighbor can’t outbid you? There is so much more than just luck in this game, and that is what takes it to the next level for me. I know that Travis has reviewed No, Thanks! in the past, and I would say that this gives me similar vibes, but way better in my opinion.
When it comes to playing games, I am generally not a huge risk-taker. I like making logical choices based on known information and end-game strategy. But something about this game just gets me. I think one element that makes me love this game is the different types of cards – # cards and Currency cards. When you’re pushing your luck and drawing cards, there’s an added element of excitement, because the two different types of cards affect the net total differently. It doesn’t all positively add to the net total, which makes me more likely to keep drawing in hopes that things will cancel out and I can maximize the turn. If everything all added together, and you just couldn’t get more than 10, I would probably only ever draw 2 cards per turn, max., just to make sure I didn’t Bust. But the fact that Currency cards subtract from the net total encourages players to keep pushing their luck, and either earning a big payoff or a big Bust. This game is exciting, engaging, and entertaining to play, and that makes it fun!
To touch on components, AEG always hits it out of the park – and TEN is no exception. The game is mostly just a bunch of cards, and some white/black Currency tokens. The tokens themselves are nice plastic, and are smooth and chunky in hand. The cards are thick and sturdy, and hold up to shuffling pretty well. The colors of the game are bright and vibrant, and they are very clear to differentiate between. It’s a nice pop of color on the table, and that adds to the overall enjoyment of the game. Each of the 4 colors, and the Wildcards for that matter, have a unique background design – which can help our colorblind friends who may not necessarily be able to differentiate between the colors. Just an added plus to help the gamers tell what cards belong to what colors! The game box is equally as colorful, and is eye-catching on the shelf. All in all, I’d say AEG gets a 10 for their production quality here. (Get it?)
I spoke earlier about judging a game by its mechanics, and how TEN really challenged me on that. I was expecting a game that I would like, but would be kind of just ok overall for me. What I got is a game that is highly strategic, yet also unpredictable at times. I am definitely a planner when it comes to strategy, but the unpredictability of this game is light, fun, and engaging for all players at all times. It just is fun to play. This is a game that I see staying in my collection for a long time, and hopefully getting to the table quite often when I need a quick filler that isn’t so light that it’s mindless, but not heavy enough that it’s a brain-burner. If you’re in the market for a fun little game that challenges all players, I would definitely recommend checking out TEN. Purple Phoenix Games rates our games on a scale of 1-6 (not 10 unfortunately in this case), and we give this one a solid 5 / 6.
Daniel Boyd (1066 KP) rated Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) in Movies
Jul 24, 2017
Batfleck (1 more)
It's every comic fan's childhood dream
Sloppy editing (2 more)
Bad performances
Poor script
A Whole Mess Of Awesome
Contains spoilers, click to show
Okay, if you are reading this I assume you have at least read a few other reviews of the movie, as it is all that anyone is talking about online at the minute, so what is left to say I hear you ask? Well first off I’ll give you some context, for the last three years I have been reading and collecting comics to an obsessive level and it is due to this movie. I have always been a superhero fan (especially Batman,) and I had read some comics in the past, but when this movie was announced at San Diego Comic-Con in 2013, (3 years ago!!) I was so hyped and I decided that I had to read the comic that this film was taking inspiration from. So I went to my local A1 Comics and bought The Dark Knight Returns, which underwhelmed me but that’s another story. Since then I have become a huge comic book fan and that is thanks to this movie. Seriously what was not to like here, it would have been so difficult to get this wrong, it’s Batman fighting Superman, how amazing is it that this actually happened? And yet they still managed to fuck it up…
Do you read? You will. And then realise how superior the comic that this is based on is to the actual movie itself, (and I’m not even a massive fan of the comic.)
I saw 10 Cloverfield Lane last week and while that movie wasn’t perfect, what made that a great movie is exactly what makes BvS a subpar movie. 10CL had a small team of people working on a restrictive budget, so every aspect of the movie was scrutinised and perfected to make up the end product and that attention to detail really paid off. BvS had a huge budget and a massive team of people working on it and I think that is what gives the movie it’s unfocused and sloppy feel. The script is a mess, there are clearly scenes cut, the editing is jarring, not all of the performances were up to scratch and while the imagery and visuals are incredible, the best way to describe this movie is all style and no substance. I like Zack Snyder, I love his Watchmen movie, I like 300 and I enjoyed Man of Steel, but I can’t help but feel that this is his fault. His decision to make years of comic book stories into one two and a half hour movie honestly baffles me. The events of this movie should have taken place over at least three movies, which I will discuss more in the spoiler section of this review, so stick around for that if you have seen the movie already. This movie really is all over the place and the pace and tone are random at best and if you have seen the trailers then you have essentially seen the movie. Let’s talk about the best part of the movie, which is quite easily Ben Affleck’s Batman and Jeremy Irons’ Alfred. Seeing the two characters and their chemistry are worth the ticket price of the film alone. This is probably the most faithful to the source material Batman that we have had on the big screen to date, except for one pretty major change. Batman in DoJ is pretty much Punisher in a cowl. During the Batmobile chase (which was really fucking awesome by the way,) he questionably kills some goons. I mean, some of them could have survived like, if they had Wolverine’s healing powers I guess? But then there is that badass warehouse scene that we see in the trailers and during that he near enough shoots some guys himself. If you can get over this and see this as an alternate version of Batman you should be able to appreciate Affleck’s performance though, which by the way is amazing, he knocks it out of the park. I would have liked some kind of reference to it, even a scene where he discusses breaking his code with Alfred, just a few lines would have made me get on board with this version of the character a lot quicker. Critics have been calling Henry Cavil’s Superman performance wooden, but I think that is too harsh, he is perfectly serviceable but he isn’t going to be praised for his memorable performance either. Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman is badass, my only complaint is that she isn’t in the movie enough as Wonder Woman. Jesse Eisenberg is the stand out worst performance in the movie. It isn’t necessarily a bad performance, it just does not fit that character at all. He was truly miscast here, if they had cast him as Riddler in the Batman solo movie and he put in this performance I would be praising him like mad. Lex Luthor shouldn’t be crazy on a surface level, he should be a respectable businessman and an intellectual force to be reckoned with and he will go out of his way to ensure that this is what everyone sees him as, it is only ever the people closest to him that that he allows to see him crack. He certainly shouldn’t be making strange noises and gestures like someone with OCD or a mental issue. Also Doomsday is silly and is just shoehorned in at the end for the sake of giving the trinity and enemy to battle against.
Do you pee? You will. After sitting though near three hours of this garbage.
So to give my overall opinion before I get into spoilers, I will say that I enjoyed this movie better than Man of Steel, but only slightly and I dislike it for a lot of the same reasons. Just like Man of Steel there are parts of this movie that I adored and parts that I hated. Mixed emotions is an understatement. In my mind any movie above a 7 is a great movie and unfortunately I can’t call this a great movie. I fully believe that everyone should see this movie and form their own opinion, especially since reactions have been so mixed, but I felt that it simply didn’t live up to the hype that it set for itself and I feel like Zack Snyder may be doing more harm than good setting up the DCU. 6.5/10.
Do you see? You will. Or at least you better have seen it by now because I am about to spoil the shit out of the whole movie.
Like I said earlier, the events of the movie really should have been split across several movies and explored more rather than rushed through at a breakneck speed. We should have had a whole movie on Batman V Superman, the conflict ideals between them and the discussion of whether or not this world needs a Superman. Then we should have had a movie just based on the dawn of the justice league, with Batman and Superman eventually understanding each other and becoming friends and with way more scenes with Wonder Woman and a proper introduction to the other characters rather than the literal plot device USB stick we got in BvS. Then we should have had a few Justice League movies and once Superman was an established character within the universe, they should have killed him off then and did the Death and Return of Superman story, not in this one where Batman and Wonder Woman hardly know him and the public still don’t know whether he is good or bad. Also if Batman kills now, what reason is there for the Joker to still be alive? The whole point of their relationship is that Batman won’t kill Joker because of his code and Joker won’t kill Batman because he loves fighting him, but if Batman has no code and he has been Batman for years then he really should have killed Joker a long time ago. I did enjoy Batfleck and I am very much looking forward to his solo Batman movie, but BvS is rushed and sloppy. So I’ve said my piece, now let the fanboy hate commence.
Do you read? You will. And then realise how superior the comic that this is based on is to the actual movie itself, (and I’m not even a massive fan of the comic.)
I saw 10 Cloverfield Lane last week and while that movie wasn’t perfect, what made that a great movie is exactly what makes BvS a subpar movie. 10CL had a small team of people working on a restrictive budget, so every aspect of the movie was scrutinised and perfected to make up the end product and that attention to detail really paid off. BvS had a huge budget and a massive team of people working on it and I think that is what gives the movie it’s unfocused and sloppy feel. The script is a mess, there are clearly scenes cut, the editing is jarring, not all of the performances were up to scratch and while the imagery and visuals are incredible, the best way to describe this movie is all style and no substance. I like Zack Snyder, I love his Watchmen movie, I like 300 and I enjoyed Man of Steel, but I can’t help but feel that this is his fault. His decision to make years of comic book stories into one two and a half hour movie honestly baffles me. The events of this movie should have taken place over at least three movies, which I will discuss more in the spoiler section of this review, so stick around for that if you have seen the movie already. This movie really is all over the place and the pace and tone are random at best and if you have seen the trailers then you have essentially seen the movie. Let’s talk about the best part of the movie, which is quite easily Ben Affleck’s Batman and Jeremy Irons’ Alfred. Seeing the two characters and their chemistry are worth the ticket price of the film alone. This is probably the most faithful to the source material Batman that we have had on the big screen to date, except for one pretty major change. Batman in DoJ is pretty much Punisher in a cowl. During the Batmobile chase (which was really fucking awesome by the way,) he questionably kills some goons. I mean, some of them could have survived like, if they had Wolverine’s healing powers I guess? But then there is that badass warehouse scene that we see in the trailers and during that he near enough shoots some guys himself. If you can get over this and see this as an alternate version of Batman you should be able to appreciate Affleck’s performance though, which by the way is amazing, he knocks it out of the park. I would have liked some kind of reference to it, even a scene where he discusses breaking his code with Alfred, just a few lines would have made me get on board with this version of the character a lot quicker. Critics have been calling Henry Cavil’s Superman performance wooden, but I think that is too harsh, he is perfectly serviceable but he isn’t going to be praised for his memorable performance either. Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman is badass, my only complaint is that she isn’t in the movie enough as Wonder Woman. Jesse Eisenberg is the stand out worst performance in the movie. It isn’t necessarily a bad performance, it just does not fit that character at all. He was truly miscast here, if they had cast him as Riddler in the Batman solo movie and he put in this performance I would be praising him like mad. Lex Luthor shouldn’t be crazy on a surface level, he should be a respectable businessman and an intellectual force to be reckoned with and he will go out of his way to ensure that this is what everyone sees him as, it is only ever the people closest to him that that he allows to see him crack. He certainly shouldn’t be making strange noises and gestures like someone with OCD or a mental issue. Also Doomsday is silly and is just shoehorned in at the end for the sake of giving the trinity and enemy to battle against.
Do you pee? You will. After sitting though near three hours of this garbage.
So to give my overall opinion before I get into spoilers, I will say that I enjoyed this movie better than Man of Steel, but only slightly and I dislike it for a lot of the same reasons. Just like Man of Steel there are parts of this movie that I adored and parts that I hated. Mixed emotions is an understatement. In my mind any movie above a 7 is a great movie and unfortunately I can’t call this a great movie. I fully believe that everyone should see this movie and form their own opinion, especially since reactions have been so mixed, but I felt that it simply didn’t live up to the hype that it set for itself and I feel like Zack Snyder may be doing more harm than good setting up the DCU. 6.5/10.
Do you see? You will. Or at least you better have seen it by now because I am about to spoil the shit out of the whole movie.
Like I said earlier, the events of the movie really should have been split across several movies and explored more rather than rushed through at a breakneck speed. We should have had a whole movie on Batman V Superman, the conflict ideals between them and the discussion of whether or not this world needs a Superman. Then we should have had a movie just based on the dawn of the justice league, with Batman and Superman eventually understanding each other and becoming friends and with way more scenes with Wonder Woman and a proper introduction to the other characters rather than the literal plot device USB stick we got in BvS. Then we should have had a few Justice League movies and once Superman was an established character within the universe, they should have killed him off then and did the Death and Return of Superman story, not in this one where Batman and Wonder Woman hardly know him and the public still don’t know whether he is good or bad. Also if Batman kills now, what reason is there for the Joker to still be alive? The whole point of their relationship is that Batman won’t kill Joker because of his code and Joker won’t kill Batman because he loves fighting him, but if Batman has no code and he has been Batman for years then he really should have killed Joker a long time ago. I did enjoy Batfleck and I am very much looking forward to his solo Batman movie, but BvS is rushed and sloppy. So I’ve said my piece, now let the fanboy hate commence.
Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Battlestar Galactica: The Board Game in Tabletop Games
Feb 23, 2021
Welcome aboard the Battlestar Galactica, a ship home to the remnants of the human race. After an uprising and near-annihilation by the Cylons (cyborg workers/soldiers created by the humans), the human survivors have taken to space to outrun their mechanical enemies and search for a new world to inhabit. Hardly a walk in the park, this journey through space is filled with many challenges – from fuel and food shortages to mutiny and battles for power. The biggest challenge of all, however, is that the Cylons have advanced to such a high level that they actually appear to be human. Are the Galactica’s misfortunes just bad luck, or are they being orchestrated by a Cylon who has infiltrated the ship and is yet to be discovered? Who can you trust? Which race will end up victorious?
Disclaimer: There are several expansions for Battlestar Galactica. This review will not take any expansions into account, and will focus solely on the base game. Also, I do not intend to rehash the entire rulebook in this review, but rather provide an overview of the gameplay. – L
To setup for a game, follow the instructions in the rulebook – there are simply too many to detail here. Each player selects a Character, and receives the corresponding Character sheet and tokens. Based on the Characters selected, one player will receive the President title and another the Admiral title. Depending on how many players there are, a Loyalty deck is created and each player is secretly dealt a Loyalty card – either “You are not a Cylon” or “You Are a Cylon.” The Loyalty cards determine how you will play the game: human players win if they complete their given objective, and Cylon players win if they prevent the humans from completing their objective (by depleting resources, successfully invading the Galactica, or destroying the Galactica itself). The game is now ready to begin!
Battlestar Galactica is played over a series of rounds in which players take turns moving, performing actions, playing/drawing cards, etc. until either the human players or Cylon players have won the game. A player’s turn consists of 4 main steps, carried out in the following order: Receive Skills, Movement, Action, and Crisis. To begin your turn, you will draw Skill cards according to the skills listed on your Character sheet. Skill cards can be used to address crises or can provide special abilities. In the next step, Movement, you may move your Character to a different location/ship (all provide special actions). After moving, you will then choose one Action to perform – either listed on your current location, Character sheet, by using a Skill card, or you may choose to perform no action at all. Once you have completed your action, draw the top card of the Crisis deck, and resolve it. Depending on the Crisis card drawn, you may need to then Activate Cylon Ships or Prepare for Jump (more on this in a bit). If neither of those are listed on the Crisis card, then your turn ends and play moves to the next player.
I know that seems like a lot, but each turn of Battlestar Galactica can essentially be broken down into 2 phases: Player Actions and Space Combat. The first phase, Player Actions, is what is detailed above – drawing Skills, Movement, Actions, and drawing Crisis cards. This phase is where players make progress towards their objectives. Certain Actions or Skill cards earn specific rewards necessary to move forward in the game. Crisis cards can consist of Cylon attacks (activating and adding new Cylon ships to the board), Skill checks (all players secretly contribute Skill cards to either aid or sabotage the Skill check), or Events (resolved immediately). The second phase of play, Space Combat, takes place after the Crisis card has been drawn on each turn. Certain Crisis cards will show icons of Cylon ships, indicating that they are to be activated for combat, launched into play, or moved around the Galactica. Cylon ships will act based upon an action hierarchy, detailed in the rulebook. If the drawn Crisis card has the “Prepare for Jump” icon, move the fleet token forward on the Jump Preparation track, jumping the fleet if necessary (and moving the humans closer to their game-end objective). I have purposefully left out some elements of play, for you to discover on your own, or because they just provide intricate detail for the steps and actions described above. When the game-end objective is met by either the human players or the Cylons, the game is over and that respective race wins the game!
To say that there is a lot going on in Battlestar Galactica is quite an understatement. There are several rules and game elements that I did not touch upon, just because if I did then this review would be too long. With so many elements in play and of which to keep track, this game is not exactly for the faint of heart. The gameplay is very involved and requires a good amount of strategy – this is definitely a game that could take up most of a game night to play. That being said, I love this game. There is a lot going on, but that just provides players with so many different strategies to complete their objectives. Maybe you want to focus on dealing with Skill checks or Crisis cards, but maybe you’d rather think offensively and be prepared for any potential Space Combat. Can you help the crew efficiently manage its resources, or position its fleet to protect the Galactica itself? Your strategy must be adaptable at a moment’s notice to help you complete your objective….whatever it may be.
Speaking of which, the fact that there may or may not be secret Cylon players attempting to disrupt your plans really takes a hidden identity game to the next level. Cylons want to sabotage the humans, but in subtle ways as to not be found out – because once a Cylon is revealed, the humans can target and hinder their turns. Can you convince the humans that your previous actions were honest mistakes, or will they catch on that you are trying to undermine their efforts? The elements of deception and bluffing in this regard make the game much more immersive and make it feel realistic – there is a traitor among us and we have to find them, while also completing our own objectives. You really start to question who to trust and how your own actions can be perceived by your fellow players. There have been times, when playing this game, that we have taken breaks for dinner or snacks, and all players pocketed their cards rather than leave them on the table, vulnerable to sneaky opponents. Battlestar Galactica is definitely engaging for all players, and for such an involved and lengthy game, that is something to be applauded.
Let’s touch on components for a minute. The production quality of this game is great. The cardboard elements, including resource dials, are thick and sturdy. The cards and Character sheets are quality, colorful, and feel good in hand. And the plastic ships are well made too. The artwork consists mainly of screen caps from the TV show (which I admittedly have not yet seen…) but the theme and cohesiveness of the components makes for an immersive and engaging game overall.
In general, I am not a person who enjoys hidden identity games – simply because I am a bad liar and get found out almost immediately. However, the way this mechanic is incorporated into Battlestar Galactica makes it more a game of strategy than simple deception. And games of strategy are what I truly love. Managing your hand of Skill cards to best overcome Crisis cards, thinking tactically about how to deploy your fleet and battle Cylon ships, and having to determine who among the crew can actually be trusted keeps all players engaged across the board. Nobody can just sit back and relax, every single turn can drastically affect the outcome of the game. Everyone is in it, and that is what I love about this game. Purple Phoenix Games gives it a 11 / 12. This game has been out of print for a while now, but if you ever get a chance to play – jump on it! You don’t have to know the show to enjoy the game. Trust me, I haven’t seen a single episode yet.
Disclaimer: There are several expansions for Battlestar Galactica. This review will not take any expansions into account, and will focus solely on the base game. Also, I do not intend to rehash the entire rulebook in this review, but rather provide an overview of the gameplay. – L
To setup for a game, follow the instructions in the rulebook – there are simply too many to detail here. Each player selects a Character, and receives the corresponding Character sheet and tokens. Based on the Characters selected, one player will receive the President title and another the Admiral title. Depending on how many players there are, a Loyalty deck is created and each player is secretly dealt a Loyalty card – either “You are not a Cylon” or “You Are a Cylon.” The Loyalty cards determine how you will play the game: human players win if they complete their given objective, and Cylon players win if they prevent the humans from completing their objective (by depleting resources, successfully invading the Galactica, or destroying the Galactica itself). The game is now ready to begin!
Battlestar Galactica is played over a series of rounds in which players take turns moving, performing actions, playing/drawing cards, etc. until either the human players or Cylon players have won the game. A player’s turn consists of 4 main steps, carried out in the following order: Receive Skills, Movement, Action, and Crisis. To begin your turn, you will draw Skill cards according to the skills listed on your Character sheet. Skill cards can be used to address crises or can provide special abilities. In the next step, Movement, you may move your Character to a different location/ship (all provide special actions). After moving, you will then choose one Action to perform – either listed on your current location, Character sheet, by using a Skill card, or you may choose to perform no action at all. Once you have completed your action, draw the top card of the Crisis deck, and resolve it. Depending on the Crisis card drawn, you may need to then Activate Cylon Ships or Prepare for Jump (more on this in a bit). If neither of those are listed on the Crisis card, then your turn ends and play moves to the next player.
I know that seems like a lot, but each turn of Battlestar Galactica can essentially be broken down into 2 phases: Player Actions and Space Combat. The first phase, Player Actions, is what is detailed above – drawing Skills, Movement, Actions, and drawing Crisis cards. This phase is where players make progress towards their objectives. Certain Actions or Skill cards earn specific rewards necessary to move forward in the game. Crisis cards can consist of Cylon attacks (activating and adding new Cylon ships to the board), Skill checks (all players secretly contribute Skill cards to either aid or sabotage the Skill check), or Events (resolved immediately). The second phase of play, Space Combat, takes place after the Crisis card has been drawn on each turn. Certain Crisis cards will show icons of Cylon ships, indicating that they are to be activated for combat, launched into play, or moved around the Galactica. Cylon ships will act based upon an action hierarchy, detailed in the rulebook. If the drawn Crisis card has the “Prepare for Jump” icon, move the fleet token forward on the Jump Preparation track, jumping the fleet if necessary (and moving the humans closer to their game-end objective). I have purposefully left out some elements of play, for you to discover on your own, or because they just provide intricate detail for the steps and actions described above. When the game-end objective is met by either the human players or the Cylons, the game is over and that respective race wins the game!
To say that there is a lot going on in Battlestar Galactica is quite an understatement. There are several rules and game elements that I did not touch upon, just because if I did then this review would be too long. With so many elements in play and of which to keep track, this game is not exactly for the faint of heart. The gameplay is very involved and requires a good amount of strategy – this is definitely a game that could take up most of a game night to play. That being said, I love this game. There is a lot going on, but that just provides players with so many different strategies to complete their objectives. Maybe you want to focus on dealing with Skill checks or Crisis cards, but maybe you’d rather think offensively and be prepared for any potential Space Combat. Can you help the crew efficiently manage its resources, or position its fleet to protect the Galactica itself? Your strategy must be adaptable at a moment’s notice to help you complete your objective….whatever it may be.
Speaking of which, the fact that there may or may not be secret Cylon players attempting to disrupt your plans really takes a hidden identity game to the next level. Cylons want to sabotage the humans, but in subtle ways as to not be found out – because once a Cylon is revealed, the humans can target and hinder their turns. Can you convince the humans that your previous actions were honest mistakes, or will they catch on that you are trying to undermine their efforts? The elements of deception and bluffing in this regard make the game much more immersive and make it feel realistic – there is a traitor among us and we have to find them, while also completing our own objectives. You really start to question who to trust and how your own actions can be perceived by your fellow players. There have been times, when playing this game, that we have taken breaks for dinner or snacks, and all players pocketed their cards rather than leave them on the table, vulnerable to sneaky opponents. Battlestar Galactica is definitely engaging for all players, and for such an involved and lengthy game, that is something to be applauded.
Let’s touch on components for a minute. The production quality of this game is great. The cardboard elements, including resource dials, are thick and sturdy. The cards and Character sheets are quality, colorful, and feel good in hand. And the plastic ships are well made too. The artwork consists mainly of screen caps from the TV show (which I admittedly have not yet seen…) but the theme and cohesiveness of the components makes for an immersive and engaging game overall.
In general, I am not a person who enjoys hidden identity games – simply because I am a bad liar and get found out almost immediately. However, the way this mechanic is incorporated into Battlestar Galactica makes it more a game of strategy than simple deception. And games of strategy are what I truly love. Managing your hand of Skill cards to best overcome Crisis cards, thinking tactically about how to deploy your fleet and battle Cylon ships, and having to determine who among the crew can actually be trusted keeps all players engaged across the board. Nobody can just sit back and relax, every single turn can drastically affect the outcome of the game. Everyone is in it, and that is what I love about this game. Purple Phoenix Games gives it a 11 / 12. This game has been out of print for a while now, but if you ever get a chance to play – jump on it! You don’t have to know the show to enjoy the game. Trust me, I haven’t seen a single episode yet.
