Trashdome - Fury Of Dracula v Battlestar Galactica

WELCOME TO TRASHDOME!

This is part of a series of bloody matches to the death. Show support for your favorite game so it will do better in the fight. You can support it by writing why you think its the better game and more importantly by betting on it. End your first post in this thread with the title of the game you're placing a bet on (i.e. voting for) so its clear to me when reading it later. You have until Friday when I tally the bets and declare the winner. The winning game may return for future matches, the loser will be dead. I will reserve my vote for any tie-breakers.

Although you should be familiar with both games, there is no rule that says you have to have played both of them. The only rule in Trashdome is this;

Two games enter! One game leaves!

Only played each once, but Battlestar grabbed me in a way that Fury did not. Can't quite put my finger on it, but all I really know is I'd play Battlestar again without a doubt, and I'd have to have few other options (AT options that is) to play Fury again.

Winner: BSG.

Battlestar Galactica



Fury of Dracula is most excellent, but really requires the right kind of players. Also, Hunters can get 'isolated' with little to do and lose interest in the game. Fury of Dracula is probably most fun for the Dracula player by far.

Battlestar--I've had fun as a human, I've had fun as a Cylon. It's the kind of game that keeps you engaged all the way through. It's easy to teach and always seems to draw everyone in.


Fury of Dracula is a modern remake masterpiece, but the edge goes to BSG.

Tough call, but BSG probably edges it out.

FURY OF DRACULA


No question that "Fury of Dracula" is the top game. The very fact that it is a remake from a classic should tell you that it is a top shelf game that is hard to top.


BSG is a flash in the pan. If it goes out of print I doubt if it will ever be reprinted. The fact that it is in stock almost everywhere on on sale should tell you the game is not going over well except to a bunch of FFG goose steppers. It is a game that caters to a "super niche" based on a miserable feminist Sci Fi show. The fact that a few of you here say that even non fans of the show enjoy BSG is not enough for it to break out of the bargain bin at Barnes and Noble.

"Fury of Dracula" on the other hand comes from the noble Games Workshop line and is superior in every way.

This is a really tough one. In truth, I probably haven't played enough BSG yet to really compare these two games.

Fury of Dracula is an excellent game, and with my current vampire-hunting strategy, every recent game has been incredibly close. The combat system is fun, but the move and hide system is where the game really shines. It's like playing hide-and-seek in a boardgame, and I loved hide-and-seek as a kid. The game has really nice components that really convey the feeling of the Victorian era. If only the figures had been painted. And the game doesn't really come to life until the hunters have at least a general idea of where Dracula is. Also, I am slightly burned out on FoD, as one of my friends always wants to play this, and another friend dislikes AmeriTrash games but enjoys FoD. Still, this is a great game.

Battlestar Galactica is also an excellent game, engaging and suspenseful. It is the best traitor game posing as a great co-op game. The special abilities and weakness of each character make the game much more interesting than other traitor games like Shadows Over Camelot or Werewolf. The game is so thematic that I know at least two people who have finally gotten interested in the series after playing just one game. And then after watching some season 1, they have enjoyed the game even more. However, the game can get really boring for a Human player stuck in the brig, as there is little to do there but whine and beg. And online comments seem to indicate that the game is unbalanced in favor of the Cylons, though my own experience has been two wins for the Cylons and two wins for the Humans. Because I've only played four games so far, I would rather play BSG than FoD in the near future.

In the end, we are comparing two great AmeriTrash games with rich themes. One is well-balanced and the other one may be unbalanced in favor of one side. So I choose Fury of Dracula.

D&D Intelligence Check Of The Day:


Did you know that both FURY OF DRACULA and BATTLESTAR GALACTICA are released by Fantasy Flight Games?

Did you know that both FURY OF DRACULA and BATTLESTAR GALACTICA are released by Fantasy Flight Games?

Yes, I am well aware of that Ken. You "gotcha" attempt is as weak as your argument for BSG.

My point is that support for the game BSG come ONLY from FFG fanboys not for the merits of the game itself.

"Fury of Dracula" is a remake and typical of the lack of creative energy at FFG. Easier to reprint a classic than come up with something original.

I'm going to vote Fury of Dracula on this one.

BSG is fun, but as others have noticed it's deeply situational - it only takes one wooden player or the wrong sort of crisis draws to become something of a yawn fest. FoD is just a more reliably entertaining game.

Matt, would you agree that the Games Workshop line far outshines ANYTHING Fantasy Flight Games has ever attempted?

the*mad*gamer wrote:

Matt, would you agree that the Games Workshop line far outshines ANYTHING Fantasy Flight Games has every attempted?

I wouldn't go quite that far. But I do think the original versions of all the GW games FFG re-worked are marginally superior to the newer ones (especially true of FoD), and I also think that the quality of a lot of those GW games in general is higher than people seem to remember them. Shiny plastic figures aren't everything, you know.

I wouldn't go quite that far. But I do think the original versions of all the GW games FFG re-worked are marginally superior to the newer ones (especially true of FoD), and I also think that the quality of a lot of those GW games in general is higher than people seem to remember them. Shiny plastic figures aren't everything, you know.

That's interesting Matt. In my interview of Robert Martin on my podcast he was talking about the original "Fury of Dracula" and how it was still his favorite. As I remember he did not like the card mechanism for tracking Dracula in the new version.

I am trying to find a reasonable priced original "Fury of Dracula" and would easily get rid of my FFG version if I found one.

I also prefer "DungeonQuest" to Descent.

the*mad*gamer wrote:

That's interesting Matt. In my interview of Robert Martin on my podcast he was talking about the original "Fury of Dracula" and how it was still his favorite. As I remember he did not like the card mechanism for tracking Dracula in the new version.

There's a lot of minor reasons I prefer the original, none of them show-stealers on their own, but they add up. I'd agree with Robert for starters, in that it seems bizarre to me that requiring the Dracula player to remember about eight cards at once (card trail plus permanent encounters) is somehow better than having everything laid out neatly on a board. I prefer the "hunt" feel of the original to the "chase" feel of the reprint. I think the fact that both Dracula and his minions are more powerful than the hunters in the original is important in giving it a true horror feel. The original is actually simpler to play, with many of Dracula's special powers being neatly encapsulated by the combat chart/chits and the cards.

The only thing I thought superior about the new version is the removal of a random roll to determine day or night. But that only works in the reprint because the power of Dracula is toned down - if could time his attacks for night in the original he'd go through the hunters like a hot knife through butter.

I've only played Battlestar Galactica, but it has completely made me understand the appeal in Ameritrash. This is coming from someone who is mainly a Eurogamer.

I find that these days, no matter what I'm playing, I would pretty much rather be playing BSG. I haven't even yet played a game where the humans have won, but the experience of the game trumps any misgivings I might have.

No doubt Fury of Dracula is a great game (it sounds right up my alley), but BSG has been a singular experience for me.

So my vote is for BSG.

the*mad*gamer wrote:

Did you know that both FURY OF DRACULA and BATTLESTAR GALACTICA are released by Fantasy Flight Games?

Yes, I am well aware of that Ken. You "gotcha" attempt is as weak as your argument for BSG.

My point is that support for the game BSG come ONLY from FFG fanboys not for the merits of the game itself.

"Fury of Dracula" is a remake and typical of the lack of creative energy at FFG. Easier to reprint a classic than come up with something original.

Intelligence Check #2
Did you know that GW signed a deal with FFG in 2008 to publish and develop board games, collectible card games and role playing games based on Games Workshop properties?

Sounds like GW is a FFG goose stepper too.