Everything including the kitchen sink... but with special attention paid to board games, Jesus Christ, my family, being a "professional" (and I use that word loosely) Christian, and the random firing of the 10% of the synapses I'm currently using.
A civilization-building game that plays in under an hour with an evolving set of technologies to power your development.
Tips & Tricks:
Pay attention to the order in which the events are coming as well as their effects.
Each player starts from a slightly different position - don't waste that bump by ignoring how it helps you.
You are unlikely to be able to both build the highest level monuments and recruit the highest level leaders - so specialize in one of those.
The one rule I consistently forget - you do get to purchase a technology card at the end of the final round. (You never use it - but it does count for points and card type scoring.)
Extras
I like the solo system a lot - at least once you start adding to the difficulty level. Once the game is set up, it's easy to reset and play again - which makes it like a bag of potato chips for solo gaming.
This is the ninth new-to-the-top-100 game on the countdown.
A pile of clever mechanisms interlocking create a compelling set of puzzles... but that would just be mish-mash if it wasn't for the excellent production and graphics to accompany it.
Tips & Tricks:
The cardinal rule of these kind of games - you can NOT do everything. Make good decisions about what you will and will not try to focus on. (A little bit of everything is a risky strategic choice.)
You need to invest some energy early on in building your income, especially when playing just the base game.
Often, early point-scoring to get you past the first threshold will allow you to choose the best spot on one of the goals... and that will give you a clear picture of what to chase through the mid- and end-game.
Extras
The Space Agencies expansion is really good - it not only adds new alien species but also a TM: Prelude-ish way to have asymmetric starting positions.
Take the basic card combat idea behind Star Wars: Epic Duels... add in the brilliant LOS board configuration system from Tannhäuser...and infuse the game thematically with a "mix of characters across time & reality" vibe from Heroscape... and then do a top-notch production job... and you've got Unmatched.
Tips & Tricks:
One of the biggest issues in Epic Duels (the need of some characters to turtle for multiple turns in order to make decent attacks) is fixed here... both by better balancing the decks AND by instituting a "getting to the end of your deck" penalty.
Each character/team has different strengths and weaknesses... you cannot play each character the same way and be successful.
The character receiving the least love out of the gate was King Arthur... but I've managed to pull off some wins with him by playing the cards in his deck, not the cards I wish he had.
Some of the newer boxes (and there are a LOT of them) have more complicated decks - but I'm happy to have the variety in play styles and characters.
Extras
Due to the expiration of publication rights, the Restoration Games Unmatched vault already contains the Jurassic Park, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Deadpool sets. While Deadpool is impossible to find in retail (and have been for quite a while), the other sets are still available - so if you're interested, it's time to pick them up.
Some quick thoughts on the various boxes - all of which are stand-alone expansions:
Robin Hood vs Big Foot - the best introduction if you're not sure about the series... two great characters and two great maps
Cobble & Fog - two more great maps with four excellent characters - though three of the four characters are not quite as straightforward to play
Jurassic Park: InGen vs Raptors - my least favorite map, though both characters are fun to play. Dr. Sattler vs T-Rex contains the only large figure in the system (so far)... the dino is fun to play occasionally.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer - two more excellent maps... don't love the Buffy character in 1v1 play but otherwise a fan of this box
Volume II - a great map and four excellent medium-difficulty characters
Bruce Lee - a solo character (no map) that's a lot of fun to play... now rereleased as Lee vs Ali with another great fighting character.
Marvel: Redemption Row, Marvel: Hell's Kitchen, Marvel: Teen Spirit, and Marvel: For King & Country - I like the creativity in the Marvel maps and the figures are incredible. Due to some balance issues across the set (my sons both swear that Bullseye is "way OP, dad" and I'm not sure we've ever seen Elektra win), I like these better for 2v2 play. (Note: I love the teen heroes in Teen Spirit... and I haven't seen a production copy of Brains & Brawn yet, which was a great deal of fun to playtest.)
Unmatched Adventures: Tales to Amaze! - we hated the playtest... .but Restoration knocked this one out of the park and it's one of my favorite cooperative games of the last few years (and the heroes are playable in head-to-head fights as well!)
Slings & Arrows - these are not beginner characters... but there's not a bad hero in the set (and the theme comes through beautifully [speaking as a former English/theater major])
The Witcher: both Witcher boxes are really good (Steel & Silver and Realms Fall) - interesting maps, interesting characters... and I'm not even a fan of the IP.
Volume III - we playtested this box as well... and these are the trickiest characters to play in the "volume" boxes.
Stars & Stripes - working on a review of this RIGHT NOW... my younger son & I have been waiting for these characters since we playtested them!
My boys & I have been playtesters on a number of Unmatched sets: Vol. II & III, the Marvel boxes, Tales to Amaze!, Slings & Arrows, the Witcher boxes, Lee vs. Ali, and Stars & Stripes.
I've written a number of reviews about Unmatched for the Opinionated Gamers site:
I wouldn't go as far to say that New Frontiers has fired the classic Puerto Rico for me... but it covers a lot of the same ground with better graphics and a more compelling theme.
Tips & Tricks:
New Frontiers does not seem to have the same "newbie automatically assists player to their left" problem as Puerto Rico... but players still need to pay careful attention to the downstream effects of their action choices.
Don't put all your point-scoring eggs in one basket - especially when it comes to the 9 cost technologies. I have been known to buy a 9 cost tech that was only marginal for me in order to keep it out of the hands of someone who could really benefit from it.
I personally like the goals (which is also true for with both the original card game and Roll for the Galaxy)... but not everyone is fond of them.
Extras
The Starry Rift expansion adds new worlds, a much greater selection of developments, and an excellent solo option.
This is the fifth of seven (7!) Tom Lehmann games that will appear on my top 100 list this time around... and the second of three Race for the Galaxy universe games. Sue me.
It doesn't so much simulate soccer (like Pursue the Pennant attempts to simulate baseball)... instead, it uses a backgammon-ish mechanic to simulate the feel of a soccer game - and does so brilliantly.
Tips & Tricks:
Like playing backgammon, winning at StreetSoccer is as much about the position you leave yourself in as well as pushing hard to score...
And like backgammon, what appears initially to be a random dice game actually reveals itself to be a very tactical game of risk & probability.
Extras
There are three different online PBEM versions of StreetSoccer... the one I used to play on (a lot!) was Little Golem.
A civilization-building game that packs in the game mechanics: deckbuilding, resource management, tableau building, asymmetric factions, multiple game timers, keywords to differentiate similar actions… and each individual civilization has a uniquely structured deck.
Tips & Tricks:
Know what's in the deck you're playing... they do NOT work the same way and tactics can be very different.
Don't forget about Innovate (dropping your hand to get a card you want from the market)... sometimes, it's the best thing you can do.
It will take a few plays, but watching what other players are doing is key to winning.
Extras
I'm on the fence about buying the 3D-printed bits from MeepleSource - but they look really nice..
Here's the review I wrote about Imperium Classics/Legends for the Opinionated Gamers website.
It is a brilliant solo system.
Horizons adds a LOT of content to the game... as well as a trade module which twists things in some interesting ways. It's also has the best comprehensive rulebook for the game.
This is the first of two games on my list by designer Nigel Buckle & the third of four games by Dávid Turczi. (Extra credit - Imperium is the first of two games designed by this team on my list!)
This 3D re-implementation of Matt Leacock's classic Roll Through The Ages did not impress me on my first play... but subsequent plays changed my mind. It's not the same game with cuter bits - it is a different (and more confrontational) game with limited amounts of certain buildings and the ability to bleed your opponents if you choose to pursue that route.
Tips &Tricks:
Important safety tip: don't forget the final phase of each turn, which is Extort. Simply using all your resources won't prevent pain (you gain disaster points instead).
Corollary to the safety tip: in a 3 or 4 player game, you could potentially get hit multiple times in the Extort phase. Plan accordingly.
You can't do everything - but you should at least build a walled area and put some valuable buildings in it (since they are doubled in a completed walled area).
Extras
I consider the Rivers & Roads expansion essential - not only does it add some very interesting new buildings and the titular rivers & roads, it also adds cards for the middle of the table that are much easier to see and understand about the cost & power of each building.
I also own all of the Collector Set expansions... which add a variety of tricky twists to the system. They're not cheap (I used leftover Christmas money to buy them) but if you're enjoying the game system, they're pretty nifty.
The solo mode works well... and building a little working medieval city is very satisfying.
follower of Jesus, husband, father, "pastor", boardgamer, writer, Legomaniac, Disneyphile, voted most likely to have the same Christmas wish list at age 58 as he did at age 8
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