The point is...I am not sure what the point was or where I was going with that. Moving on to the games! There are some biggies this month since W. Eric was too busy gallivanting around Germany to steal them from me.
*I have a gigantic melon head, so I have joke immunity on that one. Sorry if there are any albinos who were offended. If it helps, my wife is quite pale.
• Dice Hate Me Games has launched a funding project for Brew Crafters, a board game about zombies and aliens fighting for control of the Intergalactic Senate, set in the ancient city of Rhodes. Either that or it's about brewing beer. Not sure which one on account of the title being so vague.
What I do know is that making a game about brewing beer is a great idea. People LOVE beer. Leave it to designer Ben Rosset and the company that has done games about coffee and chemistry. I appreciate that Dice Hate Me Games has never given in to standard gaming tropes and done a game about shipping goods. How boring would that be? That game would probably be terrible and be designed by an awful person.* (KS link)
*Hey! Another asterisk thingy already! I am off to a good start! Dice Hate Me Games DID do a game about shipping, The Great Heartland Hauling Co, and it is my favorite DHM game to date and designer Jason Kotarski is a scholar and a gentleman. Go buy it.
Brew Crafters honors the tradition of classic Euro-style board games, but at its heart beats a unique brewery processing system that must be constantly improved, monitored, and manned in order to keep the beloved beverages rolling off the line. Each brewery has access to a variety of equipment upgrades, farms, markets, and a plethora of specialty workers, ensuring a high level of replayability and strategic avenues. In addition, each player is studiously working to be first to develop several rotating gold-label specialty recipes that will earn them a better reputation at the end of year three when the best local brewer will be honored.
• Cheapass Games is back on KS with Get Lucky, the Kill Doctor Lucky card game. Shockingly, I have never played a Cheapass Game. For whatever reason, there just aren't any in my circle of influence. Get Lucky is kicking Cheapass (see what I did there?) and is already over 200% funded with lots of time to go. At $20, including shipping in the USA, it IS pretty Cheapass...though the game is only 72 cards and a pawn, so maybe it's really just Sorta Cheapass or Nearly Cheapass or Cheap-ish-ass. One of those. There is a PnP, and if anyone has played it, let us know what you think in the comments below. If interested, the project allows you to add copies of other games from the Cheapass collection. (KS link)
Get Lucky is fast, fun, and funny, playable by 2-6 players. It will be packaged in a compact two-piece box, similar to the one in the video. It has 72 cards and a single black pawn. Playing time is about 20 minutes. Age rating is 12+, mostly for theme. (The rules are easy.)
• Now for a project that does not qualify as Cheapass. Flying Frog Games is using KS for the first time to bring you Shadows of Brimstone. (KS link)
This looks really dang cool, but it had better at $75 for one core set. Shadows of Brimstone is a mini-laden cooperative dungeon crawl set in the Old West. I like the cover art a lot. This is notable to me because I hate the covers of the other Flying Frog games of which I am aware: Last Night on Earth: The Zombie Game, A Touch of Evil: The Supernatural Game, and Fortune and Glory: The Cliffhanger Game. Obviously the cheesy movie actor shots work for them as the games are all popular, but I definitely prefer the illustrated style. The bits look fantastic, from the aforementioned minis to the puzzle board and even the box. As usual, since there are dice and minis, I have no idea on the gameplay. Anyone? One of these days I am going to play a minis game — maybe this one!
An exciting campaign system allows the Players to visit local frontier towns between adventures, spending their hard-earned Loot and building their characters from game to game! As players find fantastic Gear and Artifacts to equip their Heroes, they also gain experience from their adventures. This experience is used to level up, guiding the Hero’s path through an expansive, class-specific upgrade tree of new skills and abilities, allowing each player to develop their Hero to fit their own play style.
So load up yer' six shooter, throw on yer' hat and poncho, and gather the posse, the darkness is coming, and all hell's about to break loose... in the Shadows of Brimstone!
• It is impossible for me to write one of these without the venerable Richard Launius being in it. I read somewhere that if a day goes by and there is not an active KS project designed by Launius, it's the first sign of the gaming apocalypse. The gaming apocalypse is like Revelations but with more dice, boring European cities, and wood bits shaped as enormous red dragons with seven heads and ten horns — all of which are then used in a game designed by Richard called Gaming Apocalypse. This time around, 8th Summit has teamed up with the Duke of Dice to bring you Run, Fight, or Die!. Zombie minis! Zombies are the only thing on Kickstarter more the Launius!
Oh, also, SURPRISE! You can buy other 8th Summit titles! Kickstarter is NOT a store BTW. Just ask them. I say that not as a shot at 8th Summit. They are just using the tools they have been given and promoting their earlier titles like Agents of Smersh. I have never played Agents of Smersh as it does not interest me, but my buddy Matt loves it. (KS link)
Quick Hits
• The Secret Games Company are bringing its first KS project to life with Game Salute help, the uniquely themed Dreaming Spires. (KS link) In it, "players each build their own Oxford college out of building tiles. The buildings you choose and how you place them will give your college benefits, which allow you to attract the great scholars of Oxford's history." Including Tolkien! I assume if you attract Tolkien you auto-win. I did not check the rules to verify that though, but it only makes sense.
• For something a bit different and VERY cool, check out Scott King's project for a board game-themed 2014 calendar. (KS link) This thing is has great photography, and there's even an option to customize the calendar or order prints from it. I backed it, though we will see whether my lovely wife is interested in using it as our family planning calendar that hangs on the family bulletin board thingy. "I HAVE to go to BGG.CON; it is ON the calendar!" Seriously, that damn calendar runs our life. EVERYTHING is on there. I need to start secretly adding things to it like... well, nothing I wanted to add to the calendar was appropriate for this public space. Not to mention that it would probably have the exact opposite effect, hence ending any hope of said scheduled activities. Moving on...
• On a completely unrelated note, the next project is W.A.N.K. I.T. from RamLick Games. I do not really have much to add. The video is actually pretty funny. The game had better be funny, too, because it doesn't look any good. (KS link)
• Clever Mojo Games is trying to gather backers for a quick and fun dice game with Monsters and Maidens. Cool art, bright colored dice, and a lowish price point. (KS link)
Going, Going, Gone!
Not much to say here this month. Nothing really grabbed my attention, and I have already gone on WAY too long.
See you in a month and remember that if you have any questions, shoot me a Geekmail or post it in here. Complaints and/or rants can be directed at W. Eric as it was likely his fault anyway.