January 23, 2012

Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots Of Money) – Acquire review

There aren’t many games out there that I’d call stone cold classics. There’s Power Grid, of course – that’s a given when you’re in my house – but one game that definitely deserves that very heavy mantle is Acquire. Originally released by 3M way back in 1962, this release from the legendary Sid Sackson still stands up to this day – and if you’ve not played it, you don’t know what you’re missing.

The premise is simple: invest in some (or all) of the seven available companies, grow them, organise takeovers and get paid. Whoever has the most cash at the end is the winner; it’s so straightforward it hurts. I can’t imagine what it would have been like to see this hit a table in the early sixties. Even now it feels spectacularly tight to play, a near perfect game with just a little hint of randomness to keep you on your toes…

Acquire is for between three and six players – there are rules for two but they aren’t perfect, you really need more to truly get the full experience. The play board is a 12×9 grid that will eventually be covered in tiles placed each turn. These tiles represent the companies players will be investing in that will (hopefully) get bigger and bigger, making plenty of money!

Turns are simple. A single tile is placed from a player’s hand of six. If that tile is adjacent to another that isn’t part of a group, a new company is formed (as long as there’s one available). That player receives a free share in that start-up, then is allowed to purchase a further three shares in any of the currently active companies on the board. A new tile is drawn and play moves on… see? Easy.

If a tile is placed that links two (or more) companies, it’s merger time. Players only have a limited amount of cash at the start of the game and mergers are the ONLY way you can get more money for further investment. It’s really easy to find yourself high and dry with stacks of shares but not a penny to spend – and it WILL happen. Eventually though, mergers will occur: the larger company eats up the smaller one, then investors in the soon-to-be defunct concern will get some much needed money. Maybe.

The iconic 1968 edition, manufactured by 3M. Best cover ever, no?

The two players with the most shares get a bonus payout, as if they were the president and vice-president. Then (beginning with the player who instigated the merger) you go round the table and decide what to do with your shares. You can either:

  • Sell your shares, the value of which is determined by the size of the company pre-merger.
  • Trade them in, two for one, for shares in the newly-massive company.
  • Keep them in the hope that the company may be relaunched at some future time.

You can do any combination of the three options, each one having good and bad points. Getting money is always important, of course – without it, you’re stuck and can’t keep investing. However, it can sometimes be a good idea to perhaps keep a couple of shares back, especially early in the game when there’s a very good chance companies will rise from the ashes. The skill to getting ahead in Acquire is knowing when to switch strategies, pull the trigger and just go for cash. It’s the American dream in game form.

As play moves on, companies will get larger and larger. Once they get to eleven tiles in size, they’re declared “safe” and can’t be taken over, but can still devour the opposition. The game can end in one of two ways: either when all companies on the board are safe and no more tiles can be legally placed, or when one company gets to forty-one tiles or more. It’s down to the active player to call the game as over – they then get to finish their turn, and it’s followed by a mass payout session. Every active company is dealt with as it would be during the game, with money going to the president and VP, then all shares get sold.

I’ve been playing Acquire for a few years now and every game has been different. It’s got to be said I prefer the free-for-all massacres of five and six player games, but it really doesn’t matter how many people you have sitting around that table. Each time is a different experience even though the gameplay remains constant – the tiles will always be placed, the mergers will always happen, but the story is always changing.

The drawing of the tiles are Sackson’s only nod to randomness, emulating the fickle nature of business; sometimes the game just won’t go your way, but you should still be able to stay in with a shout through clever share purchases. Obviously life is a bit easier if you’re triggering mergers yourself, but you can still end up as the winner despite not ever being the majority shareholder in any company.

The best version (I reckon). You see this in a store, you buy it, RIGHT?

Acquire is a game that rewards careful, clever play – but it also requires an investment of time. It’s truly a game that improves with experience, maturing as you play more and more, learning when to merge companies and – often more importantly – when to hold off. Choosing to play with secret information adds yet another level to the game: keeping your shares and cash under wraps brings in the need for a good memory, but that’s really for those who enjoy a more masochistic time amongst friends. Keep it simple for your early plays. There’ll be plenty of time for pain later on.

Having been around for so long, Acquire has been available from many producers and in plenty of different versions. I’m far from a game snob – they exist to be played, not to be kept in a safe – but for me, you’ve got to play the Avalon Hill / Hasbro version released in 1999. It’s an explosion of multi-coloured plastic brilliance, a beautifully over-produced tribute to one of the finest games ever made. The latest version, all cardboard chits and (comparatively) understated design just doesn’t feel the same despite the fact everything’s exactly the same under the hood.

It's all so... beautiful.

Acquire, to reiterate, is fifty years old this year. Despite its age, I honestly believe it’s one of the greatest games of all time and it deserves its legendary status. I also think it would be a fitting tribute for Hasbro to release a beautifully realised fiftieth anniversary edition of the game, with a production quality that lives up to how good this game is. Something that Sid Sackson would be truly proud of.

The campaign starts here.

For more information on Acquire, I heartily recommend listening to Ryan Sturm’s excellent How to Play Podcast. Episode 28 covers this often overlooked masterpiece and Ryan really explains the strategies behind the game in detail – check it out for yourself on iTunes or at http://howtoplaypodcast.com/episodes/episodes-21-30/episode-28-acquire/

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January 19, 2012

Glory Days – For The Win preview

So, let’s talk about For The Win. It’s a new project launched on Kickstarter by the folks over at Tasty Minstrel Games that seems to have come from nowhere that caught the imagination of the pledging public when TMG’s owner Michael Mindes announced that the game would be initially funded under a Pay What You Want deal. With seven hundred people signing up for that within a couple of days, the game is nearly two thirds of the way to funding with just under three weeks to go on the campaign. The question is should you chuck your money behind this project?

Well, to decide that you’ll want to know what the game’s about – and if it’s any good… Ostensibly it’s a simple abstract for two players that – from the outside at least – feels very much like John Yianni’s classic Hive. Players each get ten double sided tiles split into five pairs, each represented by a different icon. Some of the internet’s favourite things are the stars of this game with Ninjas, Monkeys, Pirates, Aliens and Zombies coming together in a battle for the ages – and you’ve got two of each of them on your side. The objective is straightforward enough: get the five different icons face up and adjacent to each other (orthogonally, diagonally or a mix of both) before the other person does by adding tiles to the grid, moving them around and flipping them.

There's plenty of actions available to a player, but do you use just one or go for two?

At the start of each round, players are given five actions that can be used in ones and twos before passing over to your opponent. These actions are your standard move a tile / shove a line affairs, but that flipping aspect is a whole new thing. By turning a tile face down you activate that creature’s power, each one allowing you to do something a little different to the playing grid. The Ninja, for example, can be moved to any location on the play space, showing how stealthy and sneaky it can be, while the Zombie infects pieces around it turning them undead. The Pirate’s power allows you to move any other piece (firing them out of a cannon), the Alien attracts pieces towards it (tractor beam) and the Monkey flips over all adjacent tiles thanks to its banana skin power.

It’s a quick playing game that – thanks to its portability – can be pretty much set up anywhere as long as you’ve got a flat surface. Despite the simple ruleset it’s got quite a lot of think to it. You’ve really got to pay attention to what the other player is doing while trying not to screw up your own plans. A game can switch from victory within your grasp to utter defeat in a couple of turns if you don’t focus, so don’t take the cutesy icons for granted! Also, with clever play you can actually turn the game round so you can get a stack of actions to play through while your opposition sadly shakes their head, frustrated that you’re wiping the floor with them… and there’s nothing they can do.

Player Two For The Win! Set-up for the next game will take about five seconds...

The addition of powers and the decisions you need to make regarding spending your actions mean that For The Win is no Hive rip-off. It’s a whole new deal from designer Michael Eskue that feels fresh and fun – and this isn’t even the finished version of the game. I’m trying out the print and play demo; all I have is a few bits of paper stuck on card and I can still see the game shining through. I’m looking forward to getting my hands on the final version which will come with big chunky plasticised tiles, adding a level of tactile appeal that’s always nice to have.

If you’re interested in getting a copy yourself, there’s only one way: get yourself over to Kickstarter (here’s a link to make your life easy) and put your money where your mouth is. The game will eventually be available through regular retail channels, but to keep ahead of the pack you’ll want to back the campaign. This is a quality little game that deserves your attention – even if you’re not totally into abstracts, For The Win has that combination of quick playtime and straight-up enjoyment that could be enough to change your mind for good!

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January 13, 2012

Episode 36 – A Few Good (Mad) Men

So here it is, the first Little Metal Dog Show of 2012, and my oh my, it’s a doozy.

I’m joined by three upstanding gentlemen to discuss the gaming year that was 2011, talking about our favourite games that we’ve played as well as a few of the terrible ones. Steve, Ben, Campfire and myself also look to the future (well, this year) and reveal some of the titles that we’re looking forward to getting to try out in the coming months. Oh, and I’m also joined by a certain Rich Sommer. “Who he?” I hear you ask, “His name sounds familiar!” Well it bloody should, for he plays Harry Crane in the rather splendid TV show Mad Men as well as acting as gaming evangelist-in-residence on US network G4. Enjoy!

This episode’s links are here – hoorah!

Direct download: http://littlemetaldog.podbean.com/mf/web/3gafhh/LMD_Episode36.mp3

Summoner Wars from Plaid Hat Games: http://www.plaidhatgames.com/sum_home.html

Caveman Curling from Eagle Games – Kickstarter: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/167427101/caveman-curling-a-game-of-stones?ref=live

Rich Sommer’s rather splendid games blog: http://games.richsommer.com/

Rich on G4TV: http://www.g4tv.com/videos/55658/game-night-with-rich-sommer/

Rich’s Twitter: http://twitter.com/richsommer

Campfire’s Twitter: http://twitter.com/campfireburning

Steve’s Twitter: http://twitter.com/moosegrinder

Ben’s Twitter: http://twitter.com/JoyrexJ9

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January 7, 2012

Stepping Stone – Dungeon Run review

People play games for many reasons, but I find you can generally split them into two camps; those who love the chaos of a dice roll against the folks who demand total control over their gaming destiny. Personally, I’m in the first camp – I don’t mind losing a game should a crucial dice roll not go my way. For me, the joy in a game comes from the playing and the stories that are told. The latest release from Plaid Hat Games, Dungeon Run, is a game that is very much reliant on dice – lots of dice, in fact – so before I go on, I’ll put my cards on the table and say that it’s not for everyone.

Originally a print and play title designed by the curiously named Mr. Bistro, it was picked up by Plaid Hat, given a very shiny makeover and is now available in your Friendly Local Game Store. Set in Colby Dauch’s Summoner Wars universe, it’s kind of halfway between co-op and confrontation with players becoming mighty(ish) heroes who explore a randomly generated dungeon in order to take down one of four Big Bads.

You kick off by choosing one of eight characters, each of whom begin with some standard powers as well as a small deck of extra abilities. Dealing a couple out before you start, you choose one then discard the other – there’ll also be the opportunity later in the game to trade in cards to get your hands on more powers, bolstering your character as you progress. Once selections have been made, it’s off to the dungeon…

All players begin in the entry hall and have a range of actions that can be performed, up to a maximum of two per turn. Should you choose to move, you pull the top tile from a pre-prepared stack – this pile is sorted out before the game starts and is a random selection of regular and special rooms. If a regular one appears, the active player rolls a single dice and checks if any cards will be put on the tile; these will either be monster to beat up, traps to disarm or gear to grab and will go on the room depending on what number comes up. Special tiles have instructions that need to be followed printed on them every time you enter the room and can cause some… interesting situations.

Should you come up against a monster, you’ll indulge in a little combat which is heavily reliant on dice. The enemy rolls first and will normally get a few hits on you. Your roll follows and dice can be spent either cancelling out the hits, getting in some damage yourself, or a combination of both. It’s an interesting little system that I think works quite well, but that’s not everything. Should a fellow dungeoneer be on the same tile as you, they can choose to assist you… or hamper your efforts.

Click this for a MASSIVE demo picture.

This is where Dungeon Run gets interesting. As I mentioned previously, it’s not a co-op game in the traditional sense – at any time, you can choose to be nasty and screw your opposition over, either affecting your side of a fight or even straight out attacking you. This is more important at the end of the game as once the Boss for the dungeon has been defeated, the player who dealt the killing blow recieves the Summoning Stone, essentially becoming the new target. Manage to get back to the entry hall with the Stone in your clutches and you’ll be declared the winner – and that’s it. You could make your way all the way through, get the hell beaten out of you one room away from the exit and still lose, but that’s the way the game goes.

Production quality throughout is excellent. You get eight plastic minis to represent your heroes, room tiles are nice and thick, cards are great quality. I personally like the artwork (which is splashed all over the place, cards, rulebook, everywhere!) but then I like how Summoner Wars looks too – your mileage may vary. The rules are clear and concise too; all available actions have also been condensed down onto little cards that mean you’ll barely look back at the book.

One (minor) down side, I’d like to have seen miniatures for the the baddies, but perhaps that kind of thing will come with expansions (and you just know they’re coming – Plaid Hat Games aren’t exactly shy about expanding Summoner Wars, so why wouldn’t they do the same with Dungeon Run?). Having them appear on cards is fine, plus it keeps the cost down, but there’s nothing like moving little dudes around a map.

Also on the (slightly) negative side, despite the rules saying it can be played from one to six, I’d say it’s only really good with three or four. Two players feels like an exercise in frustration and there’s just not enough in the box to spread between five and six. The solo experience is pretty good and functions as a kind of score-attack extravaganza, but the game really works best as a group experience.

I’ve found in playing Dungeon Run that you need a certain kind of person sitting around the table with you. As I said earlier, you need to be someone who doesn’t mind their game being predominantly ruled by the dice. Though some rolls can be mitigated or boosted by using equipment that you might pick up throughout your quest, most of the time it’s all down to the decisions you make with the numbers you roll and if you roll poorly, you’ll be pretty much boned.

You also need someone who will be happy to throw themselves into the experience. In order to get the most from it, you’ve got to be a bit of a swine from the get go. Yes, it’s nice to help each other out when someone’s in need, but don’t be afraid to get in there and start mixing things up a bit. After all, at the end of the game there’s only going to be one winner so you should do all you can in order to make sure you come out top. When you’re running through the dungeon everyone else will be doing what they can to cut you to pieces – it’s only right to get your attacks in first.

Last of all, your fellow players need to have a good attitude. If you know someone who is going to moan because people are picking on them, put Dungeon Run away and play something like Forbidden Island instead – this game NEEDS confrontation to work properly, so if that’s not your bag this won’t work for you.

Treat this like something hardcore like Descent and you won’t enjoy this at all. It’s light. It’s throwaway in the extreme. But it’s fun. If you don’t take it too seriously and just have a laugh, Dungeon Run will be a nice little addition to your collection. It’s an arcade game transferred to your table, but to me that’s no bad thing. Perhaps I should start putting 20p in a box every time I play – that might pay for the expansion when it comes out…

Dungeon Run, designed by the enigmatic Mr Bistro, was originally released in 2011 and is available through Plaid Hat Games for around £35/$50. Cheers to the folks at Plaid Hat for sending a copy over for us to play!

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January 6, 2012

First Play Friday: Ora et Labora and Kingdom Builder

New year, new feature! First Play Friday is new to LMDS and is pretty straightforward. While it won’t pop up on the site every week, I plan on regularly giving a few opinions on games that I’ve managed to try out for the first time that week. Of course, these aren’t going to be full reviews – they’re more like early impressions after getting to experience a game for the first time. Complete reviews may well follow soon after, mind you, so keep an eye out!

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First up, Ora et Labora, the brand new Euro hotness from Uwe Rosenberg with the English language edition coming from the fine folks at Z-Man Games. I may well have my gamer’s licence revoked for admitting this, but I’ve never played Rosenberg’s much loved Agricola. I know that it’s meant to be an incredible game (if only because Tony from Surprised Stare Games keeps saying so) but the chance to get a game has never arisen. I plan on changing that in future (and quickly) because Ora et Labora is brilliant. There’s an awful lot going on for a game about clergy building stuff, but not enough to totally destroy your brain.

We played the France variant of the game with four people – two variants come in the box that apparently have slight differences, the other one being based in Ireland. The game starts slowly with players collecting basic resources to create low level buildings, developing engines to make bigger and better things, eventually getting some big point items. With some resources also usable as energy or food, the amount of options that you have can initially appear quite daunting, but I have the feeling that after a few plays strategies will make themselves more evident. Thankfully if your opponents pick up buildings that you’ve had your eye on you can still use them by paying out your hard earned cash (or wine, I later discovered), meaning that your long-term plans can’t be ruined by someone else grabbing what you hoped would soon be yours.

There’s a great mechanism with doling out resources too, a wheel that moves on one step every turn that incrementally increases the amount of stuff that’s available of each type. If a resource is chosen, it’s moved to the zero space and begins slowly growing again. The wheel also marks the passage of time in the game so you know exactly how long you’ve got left to get your ideas into action – something that I pretty much screwed up, but the fact that even though I did that *and* lost by a good sixty points but still want to play again is surely a very good sign. With so many ways of getting points, I’ve already got a few ideas for next time I get to give it a shot.

I also tried out Kingdom Builder from Dominion designer Donald X. Vaccarino, a game I saw a lot of people picking up at Essen 2011 but didn’t get to play myself. It’s very light indeed but that’s not a bad thing (especially after two hours in medieval France). With a quick set-up and even speedier run-through of the rules, the four of us set about placing our little houses on the board. You play a single card each turn and put your buildings on the matching area type, occasionally grabbing bonus tokens that can be used once every go and bend the rules ever so slightly.

Scoring happens at the end of the game and is dependent on three cards that are drawn from a wide selection – in this instance it was all about making long lines of buildings, dominating one of the four quadrants that make the board, and then getting bonus points for the lowest amount of buildings in one section. You also get points for having a building near city spaces marked on the board, something which I failed to do quite spectacularly. Still, an interesting little game that while I probably wouldn’t fork out hard cash for I’d certainly keep an eye out for it in a trade.

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Watch out for the latest episode of The Little Metal Dog Show which will be available next week. There’s a look back at some gaming highlights for 2011 as well as what’s on the radar for 2012, plus an interview with celebrity gamer Rich Sommer from the mighty award-winning TV show Mad Men! Next week should also see the release of The Dice Tower’s Best Of 2011 show which has contributions from pretty much everyone from the Dice Tower Network including me. Keep an eye on Twitter (where I’m @idlemichael – do add me!) for more updates as and when. Have a great weekend!

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