Top Ten Board Game Websites

by Brett Holbrook

It is difficult to find your way around the world of board games. What is a meeple? (game pieces made popular from the game Carcasonne). What is AP that afflicts many game players? (Analysis Paralysis). What is the difference between Monopoly and Designer Board Games? (miles and miles). Where do I go for news, reviews & prices on board games? Here is where I frequent on the net:


1. http://www.boardgamegeek.com/ . Simply the best place to find reviews, commentary and playtesting on any board game you want. The all-time ranking system and bajillion entries make this the mecca. The well-organized user reviews with pros and cons make this spot absolutely necessary to visit before you buy any game. Even has a collection of variant rules or game helps for each game. No games sold from here, but there are links.
2. http://www.timewellspent.org/ . A great place to review, window shop and buy games. The layout is easy to navigate, with rankings of popular games by month and all-time. Also links to the Spiel des Jahres winner (the Oscar of the hobby) and Deutscher Spiele Preis (for heavier/brainier games). Great customer service for purchasing.
3. http://www.cardhaus.com/ . I know this site deals more with Collectible Card Games, but they have a good list of board games with great prices, and I was able to sell them cards and trade for games painlessly. Great customer service.
4. http://www.criticalgamers.com/ . I can spend hours here reading articles. Goes more in depth in the gaming world with strong reviews and even helps one to understand game development. Not a huge variety of what you find, but it doesn't get meatier. It will even include tips for game strategy.
5. http://www.boardgamenews.com/ . Another portal into the board game world, they also have good in-depth articles, I especially enjoy the interviews with game designers. They don't pull any punches in their observations, but give you a great feel for what is out there. They even have a cartoon strip of game pieces for some comic relief.
6. http://www.funagain.com/ . Excellent overall site that is easy to navigate with top sellers, reviews and favorites. The reviews are substantial to allow you to assess the game. Their beginners guide is great, with "building bridges" to help you make the transition from kid games like monopoly to strategy games, tailoring a game to your personality, and even video blogs that show, explain and review games.
7. http://www.boardsandbits.com/ . A nice site to order from with a great layout and a rotating front page that highlights many games at once. Good prices and a constant list of new arrivals every day.
8. http://www.boardgamerevolution.com/ . Bundles, bundles, bundles. The best place to buy games in groups, or basic games along with all of their expansions. Discount prices for the game bundles makes this a must for bigger orders.
9. http://www.gateplay.com/ . Great place for basic designer game understanding. Simple reviews, but the complexity rating groups for games will help a novice navigate. Free shipping over $100 attractive, and their gateway bundles to introduce you to gaming well-thought out.
10. http://www.tabletopwars.com/ . This is a colorful site, but hard to find your way around. The best part are the forums and user reviews of games.

Pandemic: the new drug

by Brett Holbrook

When the outbreak in Mexico City triggered an outbreak in Los Angeles, the yellow virus had taken over. And we were just one move from curing all four diseases! Such was the drama last night as I played Pandemic with my two boys. Pandemic is one of my favorite new designer board games that I got at the end of last year. It is part of a fairly new genre of cooperative-style games where either all players win or all players lose, it's you against the game. It's an intriguing concept, and very likable for some people who hold disdain for overly aggressive competition pitting players against each other (which I don't mind!). Basically each player plays a role as a scientist, researcher, medic, etc. on a team trying to find cures (and even eradicate) 4 different diseases all over the world, while at the same time trying to halt their spreading and preventing outbreaks.

Every game I have played has been intense and nail-biting. Last night we were sure we had the game won as we had cured three diseases, and on the next move my son was going to a research station to cure the last one and win the game. That is the only way to win, but one of the many ways to lose snuck up on us as a single infection caused multiple outbreaks on the last turn that put victory out of reach. Ugh!

Pandemic is great for family play as it builds communication and it requires everyone to work together. Moves cannot be made haphazardly without effecting everyone else. The game is unique in its approach, and I am geek enough to have watched this video of a speech by the designer to explain game design and some of the mathematical models behind it. Its 50 minutes and not for the faint of heart, but there is one part in it that really struck a chord with me as I identified with what he was saying and seemed to reveal part of me. At 21:30 of the video he quoted Raph Koster in his book A Theory of Fun who said: "Fun from games arises out of mastery. It arises out of comprehension. It is the act of solving puzzles that makes games fun." When we solve a problem, the brain kicks off endorphins. In other words, Learning=Fun. I get that kind of kick in solving things, figuring things out. In fact, when there is no longer a need to solve, I can get bored quite quickly. Not only in games, but with projects and tasks. Add a challenge and I can't put it down.

We were recently moving rooms around over the holidays, and I found a complex puzzle, a "Triazzle", that I had completed over a decade ago. It depicted deep seas creatures on triangle pieces that could be put together in a variety of ways, but only one correctly. When I had solved it I wrote a code on the back of the pieces that told me how to put it together. But of course when we found it I could not remember how the code worked. I sat on the floor for an hour and struggled with it. When I couldn't figure the code, I just set about to solve the puzzle again. I mean, I couldn't just let it sit there! So I picked it apart in a soduku-like fashion and got it done. WooHoo! The endorphins kicked in and I was stoked. Games are my drug of choice.
Saturday night Update:
VICTORY!!! We couldn't just let the diseases take over. We played again and this is just before Caleb on the left cures the last disease in Europe.

GAME DEVELOPMENT

We have a couple of new games that have been introduced for the LaMont Group to playtest. Neither is in an advanced enough stage to playtest as a full game, but some mechanics are in place:

1. Bibliotheke - this game is based upon ancient libraries around the mediterranean and mesopotamia, and the ancient writings that have been found therein. Originally to just center on the library at Alexandria, it has expanded on a board to locations your pawns can travel to. In the library the goal is to collect and then organize great literary works. The main mechanics are set collection, and a variety of different roles played by your pawns to guard, research, acquire, and as a librarian to create the collections. Each of the books have different subjects and regions that are used as "suits" to match the cards/books.

2. A baseball game (yet unnamed) that plays more as runnung a franchise than just the games. It is also based upon collecting and drafting cards of players, and collecting cards of actions that can effect the franchise, rosters and seasons of the team. Economics will play a role as funds need to be used not only for contracts, but for the facilities, advertising, merchandising, etc. Mainly a card game using multiple sets of cards.