x
search
menu

Game Preview: Ninja Taisen, or For Those About to Rock/Paper/Scissor, We Slash You

Game Preview: Ninja Taisen, or For Those About to Rock/Paper/Scissor, We Slash You
Board Game: Ninja Taisen
While at Gen Con 2014, BGG advertising manager Chad Krizan relayed to me and a fellow roommate a few details from an article profiling a rock/paper/scissors champion, noting, among other things, that people often think that RPS is a random activity, but is instead anything but as you need to pay attention to what the other person is doing so that you can anticipate future throws and counter them. This champion specifically mentioned that people rarely throw the same symbol three times in a row as apparently it feels wrong to do so, much like dressing a cow in a stovepipe hat, so when an opponent throws the same symbol twice, you know that he's probably not going to throw it a third time, which thereby increases your chances of throwing the correct counter and beating him.

Thus, when it came time to have an RPS shootout with Chad following the close of Gen Con 2014 on Sunday afternoon, with the loser needing to sit in the backseat underneath an assortment of poky and jabby objects, and I just happened to throw the same symbol twice in a row, I confidently threw the same symbol a third time and soon found myself enjoying the comforts of the passenger seat while Chad had a faceful of metal.

All of which is to say that RPS can be used thoughtfully when designing or playing a game, and one example of that is Katsumasa Tomioka's Ninja Taisen from Table Cross and Penta merone. During the game, you move ninja from your village to the opponent's, being aware the whole time of which of your RPS ninja are vulnerable to attack from which of the opponent's and trying to cluster them in protective clans so that your opponent cannot attack without retribution.

Related

Videos from Gen Con 2014: D&D Attack Wing, Marvel Dice Masters, Diamonsters, Machi Koro: Harbor, Draco Magi & Operation F.A.U.S.T.

Videos from Gen Con 2014: D&D Attack Wing, Marvel Dice Masters, Diamonsters, Machi Koro: Harbor, Draco Magi & Operation F.A.U.S.T.

Sep 25, 2014

Carrying on with the last of the game demonstrations recorded in the BGG booth at Gen Con 2014 we have the Dungeons & Dragons: Attack Wing – Starter Set from designers Andrew Parks and Manny...
Designer Diary: GodZ, or Making the Makers

Designer Diary: GodZ, or Making the Makers

Sep 24, 2014

"A god game, with tiles."It sounded at the same time as a lot and a lack of information, but that was, in a few words, the publisher's request.Red Glove was planning to release a new game set in...
Game Preview: 8 The Liar, or I Am the One in Ten Even Though I Don't Exist

Game Preview: 8 The Liar, or I Am the One in Ten Even Though I Don't Exist

Sep 24, 2014

I mentioned in my preview of See-Know-Buzz that "bluffing seems to play a core role in a larger percentage of games from Japanese designers", but to some degree I think that's because I tend to...
Hans im Glück Prepares Die Staufer, Finds Gold in a Revamped Carcassonne, and Preps a Russian Railroads Expansion

Hans im Glück Prepares Die Staufer, Finds Gold in a Revamped Carcassonne, and Preps a Russian Railroads Expansion

Sep 23, 2014

• Time to get away from the game previews and recorded game demonstrations for at least one post and do a good old-fashioned round-up focusing on upcoming games! Yeah! And what better title to...
Videos from Gen Con 2014: Imperial Settlers, Strife, Evolution, War Stories: Liberty Road & Board Games That Tell Stories

Videos from Gen Con 2014: Imperial Settlers, Strife, Evolution, War Stories: Liberty Road & Board Games That Tell Stories

Sep 23, 2014

• In case anyone is not yet familiar with Portal Games' Imperial Settlers, designer Ignacy Trzewiczek will be happy to correct that error, forcibly if need be since he knows aikido. •...
ads