Risk: Legacy...

Bulwyf wrote: With that in mind, I really like the idea of a scenario databank being created for this version of Risk.

Could you imagine F:At picking a date, and game sessions in Georgia, Maryland and Connecticut all breaking open an envelope at the same time to play duplicate scenarios? That would be seriously cool because you compete against two different sets of opponents simultaneously like Duplicate Bridge. That builds community. A game that gets damaged, even with a 20-game lifespan, is going to make for some pretty big pressure to not-buy.

Bulwyf wrote: the colossal letdown that was Battleship Galaxies.

Huh.

S.

I think too big a deal is being made about the permanent nature of the alterations at this point. So the game changes...Big deal. Sure it would be great to play with a dedicated group so a long story arc develops. But really, you aren't playing through the ages of man where a large connected arc develops over time. Since it is Risk I assume it is the same period played over and over again. It is just Risk with slightly different rules each time.

We all talk about how the best games are ones that build a lasting memory. Well here the lasting memories are "recorded" in the game. That way when a new group sits down to play the game there's triggers all over the place to share those stories with the new people.

New Player - How did this rule came about
Old Player - Phil ran out to grab a smoke so Dave (who had an alliance with Phil) decided to talk with Steve while Phil was away to set up some long term plans to turn on him in a few turns. Bitching ensued, boards were almost flipped...It was a hoot...Etc. Etc.

Different game:
Old Player - Oh yeah...I remember when this rule came into play...It was epic...Here's the story.

EDIT: Just read Space Ghost's comment
Yeah, if it did hit a point to where there is no more customization then that would be pretty crummy. I guess it just depends on how long it takes to get to that point. 12 games? 120? 1,200? I think the concept sounds awesome but if it is only a short time before it hits its end, that would suck.

Sounds like a cool concept, but I can't picture myself being crazy about forever altering my game components. I don't even let people cross shuffle my cards.

Sagrilarus wrote:

Bulwyf wrote: the colossal letdown that was Battleship Galaxies.

Huh.

S.

Battleship Galaxies was soo close to being awesome. However without stuff like firing arcs and manuvering(sp?) limits, games ususally degenerate into run in and shoot-em exchanges. My oldest and I still enjoy playing, but I just wish there was more. Maybe the expansions will add something worthwhile to the mix.

-Will

LordVonTush wrote: EDIT: Just read Space Ghost's comment
Yeah, if it did hit a point to where there is no more customization then that would be pretty crummy. I guess it just depends on how long it takes to get to that point. 12 games? 120? 1,200? I think the concept sounds awesome but if it is only a short time before it hits its end, that would suck.

Based on Rob's comments on BGG, it's around 20-25 plays. Honestly, if I get to play this game 20 times, I will have more than gotten my money's worth out of it.

I agree that too much is being made of the permanent alterations to the components. For me, it's a part of the draw - after a few plays, my copy will be unique. Nobody else will ever have a copy that plays like mine does, nor will they ever. And LVT's point about narrative is awesome - talk about a game with narrative. This one enshrines the narrative in permanent alterations to the game state. That, my friends, is a bunch of decisions with real consequence.

Sagrilarus wrote:

Bulwyf wrote: With that in mind, I really like the idea of a scenario databank being created for this version of Risk.

Could you imagine F:At picking a date, and game sessions in Georgia, Maryland and Connecticut all breaking open an envelope at the same time to play duplicate scenarios? That would be seriously cool because you compete against two different sets of opponents simultaneously like Duplicate Bridge. That builds community. A game that gets damaged, even with a 20-game lifespan, is going to make for some pretty big pressure to not-buy.

The game doesn't get damaged. It gets changed. It's supposed to do that.

And I don't think the envelopes are scenarios. I think that you open them when you achieve a certain game state to find out what the consequences of that game state are. For example, the blog post stated that there's a packet that gets opened when the ninth town is founded on the board. What happens? Nobody knows until they open the packet. That's pretty damn cool.

I'm not overly worried about the permanent change to the game. I have no doubt that if this sells well Hasbro is prepared to sell some sort of "reboot kit." How expensive would some cards, stickers and a board be in the quantity Hasbro prints these things in? $30? $20 online? Not sure, but if I got 20-25 plays out of the thing before I felt a need to reset everything, I figure I'm doing pretty good and I'm sure most people in this thread have pissed away more money buying expansions for games long before they were really tired of the base game (I know I have).

What I'm mostly curious about is what the changes are. Irradiated zones like Risk 2210? Semi permanent alliances between certain colors? New unit upgrades? This could be awesome.

Also, it sounds like the colors are different from the get go. Wonder what exactly that means.

We all talk about how the best games are ones that build a lasting memory. Well here the lasting memories are "recorded" in the game. That way when a new group sits down to play the game there's triggers all over the place to share those stories with the new people.

New Player - How did this rule came about
Old Player - Phil ran out to grab a smoke so Dave (who had an alliance with Phil) decided to talk with Steve while Phil was away to set up some long term plans to turn on in a few turns. Bitching ensued, boards were almost flipped...It was a hoot...Etc. Etc.

What you've described here is not something that can be manufactured or, so if this sort of thing is going to work, the game needs to make us care enough about what's happening to remember all that stuff. Not only that, but the memory need to be directly connected to specific game changes, or this whole point just falls off the table.

Anyway, if a lasting memory has been created, we don't really need it recorded, do we? If a session is worth remembering, I'm going to remember it. If that story is worth telling, I'm going to tell it and I don't need some contrived prompting from the game itself in order to do so.

Bully for you if the game gives you this experience, but you have no real reason to expect that it will. After all, if it were possible to just write those qualities into a game reliably, then game design would be trivially easy.

I agree that too much is being made of the permanent alterations to the components. For me, it's a part of the draw - after a few plays, my copy will be unique. Nobody else will ever have a copy that plays like mine does, nor will they ever.

And do we want one that plays like yours does? What if your copy plays like shit, or if it was excellent for games 8-10, but never equalled what it once was after that?

If it isn't a real probability that some people will end up with awesome copies of the game while others' completely suck, then the permanent changes can't be said to be of real consequence.

mjl1783 wrote: And do we want one that plays like yours does? What if your copy plays like shit, or if it was excellent for games 8-10, but never equalled what it once was after that?

This was exactly what I thought when I read the same passage. What if something happens in the first game that turns your copy into a turd?

mjl1783 wrote: If it isn't a real probability that some people will end up with awesome copies of the game while others' completely suck, then the permanent changes can't be said to be of real consequence.

This was too profound a concept to occur to me on short notice.

S.

German rules have been posted:

www.heidelbaer.de/uploads/tx_boardgames/...ution_Spielregel.pdf


Man they get all the good stuff first. Nena, curry wurst, Birkenstocks with socks, The Trabant...

-Will