Odendo and Yet Another Gaming-Related Post
I was recently talking to someone about what I did in my spare time, and the subject of gaming came up. I
mentioned boardgaming, and the first thing that's said is, "You mean, like Monopoly/Clue/Parcheesi/etc?"
Oh, if only they knew!
And because of that, I was inspired to make this post as a means to enlighten those
who don't know of what's really out there, by mentioning a few that I've played recently and enjoyed:
Settlers of Catan
Probably one of the most popular of the 'obscure' games out there.
Basically, it's about strategically placing settlements to obtain resources, trading with your
opponents, then using those hard-earned resources to expand your presence on the board. Don't let its peaceful
exterior fool you though, experienced players tend to get a bit cutthroat..
If this post made you even mildly curious about gaming at all, go find some way of playing this!
Torres
One of my favorites. The premise is building castles and positioning your knights atop them,
which score points according to how big the castle is, and how high up your knight is. Finding just the right
thing to do with those five actions per round on a playfield that just gives you barely enough space, is all part of the fun of this
one.
Through The Desert
Oooo...edible looking camels! This one's about area control, using chains of like-colored camels to surround
areas of the board(Those that're familiar with Go will get the concept right away). Much like most of the
German-made games, this one is all about the tough decision of having so much you can do, but so little in
your turn to do it.
Samurai
By the same designer of the above, Reiner Knizia. It sounds easy- players take turns surrounding pieces with their tiles, and the player with the highest-numbered total tiles takes that piece. But at the same time it can be the
opposite, since you'll end up seeing so many good spots to place a tile, but only able to place one! Another
good thing is that it plays fast...well, depending on how long players end up staring at the board before
their move. The final scoring is a bit unusual, but makes sense after a few plays.
Descent
Ah...the huge-boxed behemoth that is Descent. Wouldn't have it any other way, however! A hack-
and-slash, competitive dungeon crawler- Three or four players take on a single player, who controls the
dungeon's monsters and traps. There's a bit to know before you start, but nothing approaching the complexity
of the pen and paper RPGs it's similar to. Comes with a bajillon little plastic figures, and lots of
replayability, since you can re-arrange the board pieces all sorts of ways.
Alright, I'm done. Hopefully I've inspired a few of you!
mentioned boardgaming, and the first thing that's said is, "You mean, like Monopoly/Clue/Parcheesi/etc?"
Oh, if only they knew!
And because of that, I was inspired to make this post as a means to enlighten those
who don't know of what's really out there, by mentioning a few that I've played recently and enjoyed:
Settlers of Catan
Probably one of the most popular of the 'obscure' games out there.
Basically, it's about strategically placing settlements to obtain resources, trading with your
opponents, then using those hard-earned resources to expand your presence on the board. Don't let its peaceful
exterior fool you though, experienced players tend to get a bit cutthroat..
If this post made you even mildly curious about gaming at all, go find some way of playing this!
Torres
One of my favorites. The premise is building castles and positioning your knights atop them,
which score points according to how big the castle is, and how high up your knight is. Finding just the right
thing to do with those five actions per round on a playfield that just gives you barely enough space, is all part of the fun of this
one.
Through The Desert
Oooo...edible looking camels! This one's about area control, using chains of like-colored camels to surround
areas of the board(Those that're familiar with Go will get the concept right away). Much like most of the
German-made games, this one is all about the tough decision of having so much you can do, but so little in
your turn to do it.
Samurai
By the same designer of the above, Reiner Knizia. It sounds easy- players take turns surrounding pieces with their tiles, and the player with the highest-numbered total tiles takes that piece. But at the same time it can be the
opposite, since you'll end up seeing so many good spots to place a tile, but only able to place one! Another
good thing is that it plays fast...well, depending on how long players end up staring at the board before
their move. The final scoring is a bit unusual, but makes sense after a few plays.
Descent
Ah...the huge-boxed behemoth that is Descent. Wouldn't have it any other way, however! A hack-
and-slash, competitive dungeon crawler- Three or four players take on a single player, who controls the
dungeon's monsters and traps. There's a bit to know before you start, but nothing approaching the complexity
of the pen and paper RPGs it's similar to. Comes with a bajillon little plastic figures, and lots of
replayability, since you can re-arrange the board pieces all sorts of ways.
Alright, I'm done. Hopefully I've inspired a few of you!