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Purple Phoenix Games (2266 KP) rated Dogo Dash in Tabletop Games
Oct 15, 2020
During my youth, the best way to settle a disagreement was with a classic game of Rock, Paper, Scissors. As I got older, that translated to the card game War. What would happen if you mixed the two into one hybrid game? You’d get Dogo Dash!
Disclaimer: We were provided a PnP version of Dogo Dash for the purposes of this preview. The artwork and colors may see some changes between this preview and the final production, but is the most current version. -L
Dogo Dash is a trick-taking party game in which players are trying to earn points by collecting the most cards by the time the draw deck runs out. Setup is quick and easy – shuffle the deck and deal 4 cards to each player. Looking at their hands, players will then select one card to play this turn, and will place it face-down on the table. Once all players have chosen their card, everyone will reveal their cards at the same time. The player that played the strongest card is the winner for the turn, and collects all of the played cards. The strength of the cards is as follows: Cookie beats Bear and Dog, Bear beats Dog and Cat, Dog beats Cat, and Cat beats Cookie (and therefore all other cards this turn).
In the event of any ties, where multiple players have played the strongest card, play continues with a small change – the cards played in the round of the tie remain on the table. The tied players select another card from their hand and reveal it simultaneously. Whomever wins this tiebreaker collects all the cards. If the tiebreaker ends in another tie, then the tied players split the cards between themselves. If any player plays a Good Boy card, that round automatically is considered a tie, and a tiebreaker commences with all players. All players draw back up to 4 cards, and play continues in this fashion until the draw deck is empty. The player with the most cards at the end of the game is the winner!
As you can see, this game is pretty simple to learn and fast to play! The elements of War and Rock, Paper, Scissors are evident, but altered with more ‘character’ options and a more involved hierarchy of power. Unlike traditional Rock, Paper, Scissors, the animals/cards of Dogo Dash are more versatile in play. Instead of only beating one other type of card, each card will act differently based upon what other cards are played that turn. For example, Dog always beats Cat – unless someone also played Cookie. Because Cat beats Cookie, which beats Dog, so Cat wins this round! Instead of relying simply on numerical order to determine the hierarchy of power, the game feels more engaging and fun to play.
Another neat element is the inclusion of the Good Boy cards. When played, they automatically force a tie. All players then must participate in the tiebreaker. The Good Boy cards could be a strategic way to bag a ton of cards for yourself – forcing a tie and then winning the tiebreaker earns you essentially 2 rounds worth of cards! Or they could just be a silly way to interfere with opponents or just to keep a round from ending. There are also a couple of special card combos that can be played in a round, but I will leave those for you to discover on your own!
So all in all, how does Dogo Dash perform? I think it is a fast, fun, and light little game that can be played in many different situations. Whether you need a small filler game, are introducing newer gamers to the hobby, or want to find a game that is kid-friendly, Dogo Dash fits the bill. The gameplay feels familiar, but with a few twists, and that makes the overall game fun to play. Definitely check out Dogo Dash once it hits Kickstarter – you don’t want to miss out on this treat!
Disclaimer: We were provided a PnP version of Dogo Dash for the purposes of this preview. The artwork and colors may see some changes between this preview and the final production, but is the most current version. -L
Dogo Dash is a trick-taking party game in which players are trying to earn points by collecting the most cards by the time the draw deck runs out. Setup is quick and easy – shuffle the deck and deal 4 cards to each player. Looking at their hands, players will then select one card to play this turn, and will place it face-down on the table. Once all players have chosen their card, everyone will reveal their cards at the same time. The player that played the strongest card is the winner for the turn, and collects all of the played cards. The strength of the cards is as follows: Cookie beats Bear and Dog, Bear beats Dog and Cat, Dog beats Cat, and Cat beats Cookie (and therefore all other cards this turn).
In the event of any ties, where multiple players have played the strongest card, play continues with a small change – the cards played in the round of the tie remain on the table. The tied players select another card from their hand and reveal it simultaneously. Whomever wins this tiebreaker collects all the cards. If the tiebreaker ends in another tie, then the tied players split the cards between themselves. If any player plays a Good Boy card, that round automatically is considered a tie, and a tiebreaker commences with all players. All players draw back up to 4 cards, and play continues in this fashion until the draw deck is empty. The player with the most cards at the end of the game is the winner!
As you can see, this game is pretty simple to learn and fast to play! The elements of War and Rock, Paper, Scissors are evident, but altered with more ‘character’ options and a more involved hierarchy of power. Unlike traditional Rock, Paper, Scissors, the animals/cards of Dogo Dash are more versatile in play. Instead of only beating one other type of card, each card will act differently based upon what other cards are played that turn. For example, Dog always beats Cat – unless someone also played Cookie. Because Cat beats Cookie, which beats Dog, so Cat wins this round! Instead of relying simply on numerical order to determine the hierarchy of power, the game feels more engaging and fun to play.
Another neat element is the inclusion of the Good Boy cards. When played, they automatically force a tie. All players then must participate in the tiebreaker. The Good Boy cards could be a strategic way to bag a ton of cards for yourself – forcing a tie and then winning the tiebreaker earns you essentially 2 rounds worth of cards! Or they could just be a silly way to interfere with opponents or just to keep a round from ending. There are also a couple of special card combos that can be played in a round, but I will leave those for you to discover on your own!
So all in all, how does Dogo Dash perform? I think it is a fast, fun, and light little game that can be played in many different situations. Whether you need a small filler game, are introducing newer gamers to the hobby, or want to find a game that is kid-friendly, Dogo Dash fits the bill. The gameplay feels familiar, but with a few twists, and that makes the overall game fun to play. Definitely check out Dogo Dash once it hits Kickstarter – you don’t want to miss out on this treat!
Eleanor Luhar (47 KP) rated Nothing Tastes as Good in Books
Jun 24, 2019
I happened to see this book by chance, in my local library. I was drawn to it because it's cover, it's title - I'm anorexic, and I happen to be drawn to things relating to mental health. It doesn't expressly say on it that it's about anorexia, but the cover made it pretty obvious to me. A warning to anyone that wants to read it: it's hard. If you suffer from something like this, like me, then you will probably have difficulty reading something so close to home. Especially if you're recovering. But it gets better. (I mean the book; I'm not using that "life gets better" crap.)
So Annabel is dead. I'm studying The Lovely Bones at school so the whole beyond-death narration isn't that special to me now. But Hennessy does it pretty differently to Sebold.
We don't know much about Annabel, not at first. But we begin to learn about her while she helps her assigned "soul-in-need" - The Boss (definitely not God) has promised her a final communication with her family if she helps Julia. And this looks easy, at first - Julia is from Annabel's old school, with a loving family and good grades. Everything is fine, except she's fat. Annabel thinks this should be easy - after all, she's an expert in weight loss. She lost weight until she died.
But Annabel soon finds out that Julia's issues are a whole lot more complex than her weight. At first, losing weight helps. But then her old scars come back to haunt her, and Annabel realises that maybe losing weight isn't going to fix all her problems.
Aside from the obvious issue, this book does talk about a lot of important topics. It covers friendships and relationships, like most YA novels do, but it also combats ideas on feminism, affairs with older men, and people all having their own hidden demons.
At first, I wasn't keen on Annabel. I wanted to like her - I felt I should, because I could relate to her story so much. But she was a bitch. She wanted other people to be like her, and rather than encouraging recovery and health and happiness, she shared tipped on weight loss. It really did hurt to read. Her ideas on "perfection" and being weak for eating just really hit a nerve for me. Not because it was wrong (though I'd never encourage an eating disorder in someone else), but because it's exactly how I'd think about myself. Her behaviours, her worries, her anger - they were so real.
But Annabel, despite being dead, grows alongside Julia. Yes, she tells Julia to starve herself and run on an empty stomach and hate herself, but eventually she starts to feel for her. She wants Julia to combat her issues, to actually be happy. And she realises, despite having been so upset with her old friends for recovering, that maybe she wasted her life. Maybe she could have been something more, rather than striving to be less.
I found this really emotional. Annabel's love for her sister, the sister she neglected for years while she was focused on her goals, and the future she cut short. The way Julia's life changed when her passion for writing and journalism was overtaken by her obsession with food, calories, exercise. It's so real and so sad. And the ending isn't "happily ever after" - Annabel's still dead, Julia's in counselling - but it's real. It gives hope that things can change, that Julia can really achieve happiness.
At first, I didn't like this that much. I know Annabel is just a character, but I just didn't like her. She was one of those girls that makes anorexia sound like a choice, a lifestyle, and I hated that. But later she realises she is sick, and I actually felt sorry for her. I was sorry that she had been brainwashed by her illness into believing she was doing what was right.
The only reason I'm giving just 4.5 stars to this book is because Annabel was a bitch. Yes, she is a character, and yes, she grows considerably throughout the novel, but her encouragement of EDs just drove me insane. Personal pet peeve, I guess.
So Annabel is dead. I'm studying The Lovely Bones at school so the whole beyond-death narration isn't that special to me now. But Hennessy does it pretty differently to Sebold.
We don't know much about Annabel, not at first. But we begin to learn about her while she helps her assigned "soul-in-need" - The Boss (definitely not God) has promised her a final communication with her family if she helps Julia. And this looks easy, at first - Julia is from Annabel's old school, with a loving family and good grades. Everything is fine, except she's fat. Annabel thinks this should be easy - after all, she's an expert in weight loss. She lost weight until she died.
But Annabel soon finds out that Julia's issues are a whole lot more complex than her weight. At first, losing weight helps. But then her old scars come back to haunt her, and Annabel realises that maybe losing weight isn't going to fix all her problems.
Aside from the obvious issue, this book does talk about a lot of important topics. It covers friendships and relationships, like most YA novels do, but it also combats ideas on feminism, affairs with older men, and people all having their own hidden demons.
At first, I wasn't keen on Annabel. I wanted to like her - I felt I should, because I could relate to her story so much. But she was a bitch. She wanted other people to be like her, and rather than encouraging recovery and health and happiness, she shared tipped on weight loss. It really did hurt to read. Her ideas on "perfection" and being weak for eating just really hit a nerve for me. Not because it was wrong (though I'd never encourage an eating disorder in someone else), but because it's exactly how I'd think about myself. Her behaviours, her worries, her anger - they were so real.
But Annabel, despite being dead, grows alongside Julia. Yes, she tells Julia to starve herself and run on an empty stomach and hate herself, but eventually she starts to feel for her. She wants Julia to combat her issues, to actually be happy. And she realises, despite having been so upset with her old friends for recovering, that maybe she wasted her life. Maybe she could have been something more, rather than striving to be less.
I found this really emotional. Annabel's love for her sister, the sister she neglected for years while she was focused on her goals, and the future she cut short. The way Julia's life changed when her passion for writing and journalism was overtaken by her obsession with food, calories, exercise. It's so real and so sad. And the ending isn't "happily ever after" - Annabel's still dead, Julia's in counselling - but it's real. It gives hope that things can change, that Julia can really achieve happiness.
At first, I didn't like this that much. I know Annabel is just a character, but I just didn't like her. She was one of those girls that makes anorexia sound like a choice, a lifestyle, and I hated that. But later she realises she is sick, and I actually felt sorry for her. I was sorry that she had been brainwashed by her illness into believing she was doing what was right.
The only reason I'm giving just 4.5 stars to this book is because Annabel was a bitch. Yes, she is a character, and yes, she grows considerably throughout the novel, but her encouragement of EDs just drove me insane. Personal pet peeve, I guess.
Darren (1599 KP) rated Needful Things (1993) in Movies
Aug 29, 2019
Verdict: One of King’s Most Interesting Stories
Story: Needful Things starts when Leland Gaunt (von Sydow) opens up an antique shop in the small town of Castle Rock, the shop known as Needful Things, see the locals visit, with them getting an unusually attachment to certain items in the shop, items that are clearly meant for each individual person, one that strikes a memory.
As the town starts flocking to the shop, it becomes clear that Leland has alternate plans for the town, with Sheriff Alan Pangborn (Harris) needing to investigate a new increase amount of small crimes, which slowly start to build in seriousness before the town turns to chaos.
Thoughts on Needful Things
Characters – Leland Gaunt is the mysterious shopkeeper that arrives to Castle Rock, his shop has everything the people of the town want and he knows everything about everyone in the town. He trades their desires for favours, which mostly involve going against people in the town, he knows how to remain calm through the conversations, knowing just what they want to hear. Sheriff Alan Pangborn left the big city for a quiet life, he is enjoying his life in the town, with his new fiancée, until the crime levels start to rise, which sees him going from dealing with cats in trees, to murders, can he stop the power Leland has over the town before it is too late. Polly is Alan’s fiancée, she runs the local diner opposite the new shop, she doesn’t run in like some of the other residents, which sees her witnessing the changes from the locals. Nettie is a shy former abuse victim that becomes one of the first customers of the shop, showing how easily people can like what he is willing to offer. We do get a string of people that start to get caught in his ideas.
Performances – Max von Sydow is wonderful to watch in this film, he gives the character the mystery and charisma he needs to seem like a friendly person. Ed Harris is always good to watch, here he does the small town cop routine with ease, playing a good man who must help his people. Bennie Bedelia is strong without getting enough important early scenes to make us understand how disturbed her character’s life is.
Story – The story here follows a small town that gets a new visitor in a shopkeeper that soon starts giving the locals everything they ever wanted, for a price, which sees the town turn to chaos and the sheriff needing to solve the problem before it is too late. This is one of the most interesting of the Stephen King stories, it looks at human desires taking control over our own sanity, how one town can be turned upside down by the ideas of what could be ours, rather than giving us what we need. The story is shown to unfold at a delightful pace because it shows how the deals are put in place with each deal, slowly starting to growing from disruptive behaviour right up to murder. The story does rely on the idea of town working together to prove themselves.
Fantasy/Horror – The fantasy side of the film shows just how Leland can bring about whatever the person in the town wants, he can make the impossible, possible, which only plays into the horrors of just what he can do to this world, when people get everything they ever wanted.
Settings – The film is set in the small town of Castle Rock, this is one location where everybody knows each other, which is one of the trademarks for any Stephen King novel.
Special Effects – The effects in the film are very simple, they do play into the idea of fantasy elements, when we see just what will happen with the power given to the people.
Scene of the Movie – He is a monster.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – It does feel like it could have gone a lot darker.
Final Thoughts – This is easily one of the more underrated of Stephen King’s adaptions, it gives us a perfect moral dilemma and keeps everything feel a lot more grounded for a horror one.
Overall: Entertaining throughout.
Story: Needful Things starts when Leland Gaunt (von Sydow) opens up an antique shop in the small town of Castle Rock, the shop known as Needful Things, see the locals visit, with them getting an unusually attachment to certain items in the shop, items that are clearly meant for each individual person, one that strikes a memory.
As the town starts flocking to the shop, it becomes clear that Leland has alternate plans for the town, with Sheriff Alan Pangborn (Harris) needing to investigate a new increase amount of small crimes, which slowly start to build in seriousness before the town turns to chaos.
Thoughts on Needful Things
Characters – Leland Gaunt is the mysterious shopkeeper that arrives to Castle Rock, his shop has everything the people of the town want and he knows everything about everyone in the town. He trades their desires for favours, which mostly involve going against people in the town, he knows how to remain calm through the conversations, knowing just what they want to hear. Sheriff Alan Pangborn left the big city for a quiet life, he is enjoying his life in the town, with his new fiancée, until the crime levels start to rise, which sees him going from dealing with cats in trees, to murders, can he stop the power Leland has over the town before it is too late. Polly is Alan’s fiancée, she runs the local diner opposite the new shop, she doesn’t run in like some of the other residents, which sees her witnessing the changes from the locals. Nettie is a shy former abuse victim that becomes one of the first customers of the shop, showing how easily people can like what he is willing to offer. We do get a string of people that start to get caught in his ideas.
Performances – Max von Sydow is wonderful to watch in this film, he gives the character the mystery and charisma he needs to seem like a friendly person. Ed Harris is always good to watch, here he does the small town cop routine with ease, playing a good man who must help his people. Bennie Bedelia is strong without getting enough important early scenes to make us understand how disturbed her character’s life is.
Story – The story here follows a small town that gets a new visitor in a shopkeeper that soon starts giving the locals everything they ever wanted, for a price, which sees the town turn to chaos and the sheriff needing to solve the problem before it is too late. This is one of the most interesting of the Stephen King stories, it looks at human desires taking control over our own sanity, how one town can be turned upside down by the ideas of what could be ours, rather than giving us what we need. The story is shown to unfold at a delightful pace because it shows how the deals are put in place with each deal, slowly starting to growing from disruptive behaviour right up to murder. The story does rely on the idea of town working together to prove themselves.
Fantasy/Horror – The fantasy side of the film shows just how Leland can bring about whatever the person in the town wants, he can make the impossible, possible, which only plays into the horrors of just what he can do to this world, when people get everything they ever wanted.
Settings – The film is set in the small town of Castle Rock, this is one location where everybody knows each other, which is one of the trademarks for any Stephen King novel.
Special Effects – The effects in the film are very simple, they do play into the idea of fantasy elements, when we see just what will happen with the power given to the people.
Scene of the Movie – He is a monster.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – It does feel like it could have gone a lot darker.
Final Thoughts – This is easily one of the more underrated of Stephen King’s adaptions, it gives us a perfect moral dilemma and keeps everything feel a lot more grounded for a horror one.
Overall: Entertaining throughout.
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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) rated The Safe Place in Books
May 30, 2020
I'm a sucker for psychological thrillers, so when the opportunity arose to read The Safe Place by Anna Downes, I jumped at the chance! Luckily, I ended up loving this book!
Emily Proudman just can't catch a break. After losing her job as well as her acting agent, things are looking grim. After being late on the rent again, she's also facing eviction from her apartment. However, things start looking up when she runs into Scott Denny. Scott, a successful CEO of the company she's just been fired from, feels like Emily would be perfect working for his wife, Nina, and living on their very remote property in France. Things seem perfect, but they are a little too perfect. When Emily finds out the truth behind Nina's and Scott's ideal life, she puts herself in grave danger and finds out how far some people will go to protect their secrets.
While the idea behind The Safe Place has been done before, Downes does a fantastic job of making it feel like it was her idea and hers alone. To me, The Safe Place felt like it was a slow burn as the action didn't really take place until towards the end. I would say the first 85 percent of the book or so is just the backstory and build up to all the action which happens in the last few chapters. The pacing is a little slow throughout most of the book, but it isn't so slow that I became bored - quite the contrary. While the pacing is fairly slow, I did enjoy what I read thanks to Downes' brilliant way with words. There are a few plot twists although I found them fairly easy to figure out, but I think that's only because I've read so many psychological thrillers before. Some of my guesses were wrong though, I admit. Even though there's an epilogue, I would have liked to have known more about what happened with Denny family. I just need a little more closure when it came to that.
Downes did a fantastic job with all of her characters. It was easy to imagine every single character in The Safe Place as a real person. The main characters all had plenty of backstory (or just enough to keep them mysterious), and the minor characters were all described very well. I liked how Emily seemed to want to please those around her. While she didn't feel like a pushover, it was nice to see her wanting to fit in with her new employer as well as Yves, the sometimes handyman. Nina was definitely an interesting character. I didn't know what to make of her before Emily met her in the book, but once Emily met Nina, and I read more about her, I ended up liking her. (I kept trying to figure out why Scott didn't want to be around her though.) Aurelia, the Denny's daughter, was my favorite character. She seemed like such a sweet little girl who had been through so much. I found myself wishing I could meet Aurelia and give her a hug (only if she'd let me since she took a long time to warm up to people).
Trigger warnings for The Safe Place include profanity, mental illness, alcohol use, prescription pill abuse, self harm, violence, and attempted murder.
Overall, The Safe Place is a highly intriguing book that makes each and every word on the page come alive. With a great set of characters, beautiful descriptions of the scenery, and a highly intriguing plot, this is one book that's sure to become a best seller. I would definitely recommend The Safe Place by Anna Downes to those aged 20+ who enjoy psychological thrillers and/or want to be instantly transported into a fantastic book!
--
(A special thank you to Minotaur Books for sending me a paperback ARC of The Safe Place by Anna Downes. A review was not required but appreciated. This was my honest and unbiased review.)
Emily Proudman just can't catch a break. After losing her job as well as her acting agent, things are looking grim. After being late on the rent again, she's also facing eviction from her apartment. However, things start looking up when she runs into Scott Denny. Scott, a successful CEO of the company she's just been fired from, feels like Emily would be perfect working for his wife, Nina, and living on their very remote property in France. Things seem perfect, but they are a little too perfect. When Emily finds out the truth behind Nina's and Scott's ideal life, she puts herself in grave danger and finds out how far some people will go to protect their secrets.
While the idea behind The Safe Place has been done before, Downes does a fantastic job of making it feel like it was her idea and hers alone. To me, The Safe Place felt like it was a slow burn as the action didn't really take place until towards the end. I would say the first 85 percent of the book or so is just the backstory and build up to all the action which happens in the last few chapters. The pacing is a little slow throughout most of the book, but it isn't so slow that I became bored - quite the contrary. While the pacing is fairly slow, I did enjoy what I read thanks to Downes' brilliant way with words. There are a few plot twists although I found them fairly easy to figure out, but I think that's only because I've read so many psychological thrillers before. Some of my guesses were wrong though, I admit. Even though there's an epilogue, I would have liked to have known more about what happened with Denny family. I just need a little more closure when it came to that.
Downes did a fantastic job with all of her characters. It was easy to imagine every single character in The Safe Place as a real person. The main characters all had plenty of backstory (or just enough to keep them mysterious), and the minor characters were all described very well. I liked how Emily seemed to want to please those around her. While she didn't feel like a pushover, it was nice to see her wanting to fit in with her new employer as well as Yves, the sometimes handyman. Nina was definitely an interesting character. I didn't know what to make of her before Emily met her in the book, but once Emily met Nina, and I read more about her, I ended up liking her. (I kept trying to figure out why Scott didn't want to be around her though.) Aurelia, the Denny's daughter, was my favorite character. She seemed like such a sweet little girl who had been through so much. I found myself wishing I could meet Aurelia and give her a hug (only if she'd let me since she took a long time to warm up to people).
Trigger warnings for The Safe Place include profanity, mental illness, alcohol use, prescription pill abuse, self harm, violence, and attempted murder.
Overall, The Safe Place is a highly intriguing book that makes each and every word on the page come alive. With a great set of characters, beautiful descriptions of the scenery, and a highly intriguing plot, this is one book that's sure to become a best seller. I would definitely recommend The Safe Place by Anna Downes to those aged 20+ who enjoy psychological thrillers and/or want to be instantly transported into a fantastic book!
--
(A special thank you to Minotaur Books for sending me a paperback ARC of The Safe Place by Anna Downes. A review was not required but appreciated. This was my honest and unbiased review.)
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