It’s been a busy few weeks for me and Punchboard, so I thought it was high time I used this platform the way I intended to - to send some form of newsletter update.
Conventional Therapy
This past weekend saw Baycon happen in Exeter, here in the south-west of the UK. Despite it being its 37th iteration, it was the first time I’d been, which is criminal really, given that it’s only an hour-and-a-half away.
I won’t bore you with the full run-down of what I ate and what the weather was like. You’re here for the juicy bits - the games.
Within ten minutes of arriving at the venue I was into my first game. A game which turned into the most epic single-session gaming experience I’ve ever had. Along with two Pauls, one of whom was Paul Grogan from Gaming Rules!, we played The Elder Scrolls: Betrayal of the Second Era from Chip Theory Games for around ELEVEN HOURS straight. It might sound trite, but it really didn’t feel like eleven hours, because we were having so much fun. Trying to sleep that night was tricky, with images chips and dice choking my neural pathways. A bit like when you spent the day playing Tetris on the Gameboy as a kid. What an epic game though, I’ll have a full review ready once I’ve played through another stretch of campaign.
Saturday was more normal in terms of being at a convention. I sat down for a first game of Dune Imperium: Uprising, having played the original plenty. I’ll reserve judgement for now, but the things that leapt out at me were the quality-of-life improvements like worms, spies, and some new cards were great, but I’m not sure if I like the prospect of four-point final rounds. It felt a bit too swingy for Dune Imperium, but I definitely want to play it again.
After that, we played Fishing (Fischen), which I’ve played before, and had a great time with. It’s got a really fun twist on a standard trick-taking game, which makes me want to play it more. Shortly after, we sat down for a much-anticipated play of Maria. My goodness, Maria (follow-up to Friedrich, again from Histogame) is a fantastic, three-player wargame. It doesn’t feel much like a traditional wargame though, it’s more a game of logistics and spatial planning. If you get a chance to play it, even though you think it may not be your sort of thing, I urge you to give it a try.
After that, I managed to get another game of El Grande in, which I’ll never turn down, followed by a first play of Bobby Hill’s (Hadrian’s Wall) new game, The Anarchy. To say that it’s based on Hadrian’s Wall is putting it mildly, however, there is a lot of difference between the two games, which means this one is now sitting high on my list of anticipated new games. Building a castle and defending it feels far more thematic, and the whole thing feels a little less abstracted and a little more refined than its predecessor. I was super tired by this point and sadly forgot to take a photo.
Sunday came along all too quickly, which meant it was time to go home, but not before a three-player game of the excellent Galactic Cruise, which, coincidentally, I’ve just reviewed. You can check it out here. I sat down with long-time convention friends Ian and Marcus, and despite it being Marcus’s first time playing, he did a good job of crushing us underfoot.
If you live close enough to make it to Baycon in the future, I recommend checking it out. The hotel staff are friendly and accommodating, and Clive & co, who run the convention, have made something special, with a friendly, relaxed feel to the whole thing. It’s a real change to see children at a convention, but one I really liked. They’re the next generation, after all. You can find out more on the Baycon Facebook page.
New to the Table
I’m going to make an effort to mention what I’m currently playing and what’s in the review backlog.
I have a copy of the aforementioned Elder Scrolls game which is currently testing my kitchen table’s construction. Seriously, this thing is over 10 kg. I need to play it some more to give it a fair review, and while I’ll have a few niggles, I think it’s safe to say it’s going to do very well.
I returned home after the weekend to a pile of boxes filled with games that I’ve either bought or had sent to review. So over the next few months, expect to read reviews of Shuffle & Swing, Bebop, Great Western Trail: El Paso, Tokaido, Between Two Cities, and Cascadito.
I’ve also treated myself to copies of Endeavor: Deep Sea and an elusive Japanese game I’ve been after for a while, Eternal Decks, so don’t be surprised if you see a few words and pictures about those too.
Recent Reviews
Before I finish up, let me point you at some of the recent reviews I’ve published over on Punchboard.
As always, thanks for reading, and if you have any comments about anything in this update, I’ll be glad to read them and respond.