cooperative games?

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I'm always skeptical of board games that require some kind of app, because I know how ephemeral technology is. My copy of Axis & Allies plays just as well now as it did in 1984. The same won't be true of many app-assisted games (such as Clue: Secrets and Spies).
 
Of course Descent doesn't need the app, the app is simply a convenience that is currently available.
 
I'm always skeptical of board games that require some kind of app, because I know how ephemeral technology is. My copy of Axis & Allies plays just as well now as it did in 1984. The same won't be true of many app-assisted games (such as Clue: Secrets and Spies).
As mentioned above the co-op mode app is an addition to the normal multiplayer mode.

Also some of the old games don't play as well now as they did before technology appeared at it's current level. Many games that we'd happily have sat around playing for hours back then when replayed now make any me and most younger people think 'dude I could play this in 1/10 the time with a decent app!'. Some of Vassals appeal is the speeding up of setup and shuffling etc that slow down many games. Add in rule enforcement and tracking and many games could benefit from electronic enhancement and without them become for all intensive purposes unplayable with busy schedules and extended work hours.

What would he great is a way to do it without taking away the physicality of board games. I want to push the mini or token around. I don't want to sort them, set them out, shuffle the cards etc. I don't think we're at a technical level where I can get everything I'd like now but depending on how VR turns out, it might not be too far off.

Put another way there has never been a time in my life where I could say 'Given an ideal world I'd prefer to spend 20 minutes setting up a game vs 20 more minutes to play a game'.
 
Also some of the old games don't play as well now as they did before technology appeared at it's current level.

One of the great things about the board game revolution is the way designers have figured out how to simplify those kinds of mechanics. I just obtained Leaving Earth, which is effectively a Euro rewrite of Liftoff! But it plays in half the time and fits in a box half the size. Star Wars: Rebellion is an actually playable redesign of Avalon Hill's Freedom in the Galaxy.

To get back to the point, Descent: Journeys in the Dark isn't a fully co-op game without a helper app, which won't last as long as the game already has. Descent was released two years before the iPhone.
 
To get back to the point, Descent: Journeys in the Dark isn't a fully co-op game without a helper app, which won't last as long as the game already has. Descent was released two years before the iPhone.

I guess I have to ask "so what?" What is the big deal here?
 
I'm not necessarily opposed to using an app, though I still like the charm of full analog games. :grin:
 
The wife and I quite like the WW1 card game The Grizzled, although it probably plays better with three players we still enjoy it a lot. We also play the rather massive Legendary Alien card game too.
 
We recently decided to back this game on Kickstarter that is coop and very RPG-like:
Folklore: The Affliction (2nd Printing) by Greenbrier Games INC — Kickstarter

My friends and I have played Zombicide and have had a lot of fun playing it. Some of the missions weren't long, so that was cool.
I am told Massive Darkness runs on a refined version of the Zombicide Black Plague rules, to the point where cross-overs between the two are easy to do. How's Zombicide compared to Zombicide Black Plague?
 
The wife and I quite like the WW1 card game The Grizzled, although it probably plays better with three players we still enjoy it a lot. We also play the rather massive Legendary Alien card game too.
I keep hearing good stuff about Grizzled. I love WW1 stuff so this might be right up my alley
 
We recently decided to back this game on Kickstarter that is coop and very RPG-like:
Folklore: The Affliction (2nd Printing) by Greenbrier Games INC — Kickstarter


I am told Massive Darkness runs on a refined version of the Zombicide Black Plague rules, to the point where cross-overs between the two are easy to do. How's Zombicide compared to Zombicide Black Plague?
I have Black Plague and Massive Darkness however I haven't played MD. I'll let you know when I do how close the two are.
 
I played Legendary Aliens and it was good. I don't know if its got much replayability once you go through the movies. Interested in trying out the traitor rules at some point.
 
We recently picked up Osprey Publishing's The Lost Expedition card game but haven't played it yet.
The title sounded intriguing to me. So I looked around a bit. This game looks really cool. Is going on the "list" asap.
 
I have Black Plague and Massive Darkness however I haven't played MD. I'll let you know when I do how close the two are.

I played Massive Darkness last weekend. Meh. It's video game dungeon crawl. You level-up repeatedly during the dungeon and magically upgrade your gear throughout. The monsters/fighting felt kinda Warhammer Questy, but we crushed the first mission we did rather easily - maybe it was just lucky dice, but we were never in any meaningful danger.
 
I'm always skeptical of board games that require some kind of app, because I know how ephemeral technology is. My copy of Axis & Allies plays just as well now as it did in 1984. The same won't be true of many app-assisted games (such as Clue: Secrets and Spies).
Honestly part of why I play a board game or roleplaying game is to get away from screens and phones. I deal with enough screens and phones at work.
 
Space Hulk: Death Angel.

Protip: open the box, throw away the rules booklet, look for a YouTube video explaining how to play.
 
So I got into Aeon's End thanks to the Handelabra kickstarter and it is a lot of fun.

It's also probably at its best with two players. It's a cooperative deckbuilder but you not only get to buy cards you get to discard them in any order you wish, and don't shuffle before returning the discard pile to the deck.
 
Space Hulk: Death Angel.

Protip: open the box, throw away the rules booklet, look for a YouTube video explaining how to play.
If you like Death Angel, the Warhammer Quest ACG and Heroes of Terrinoth will probably be up your alley too; they're clearly evolutions of the same concept.

WHQ is out of print, but that's okay because Heroes of Terrinoth improves on it in pretty much every way.
 
  1. Space Hulk: Death Angel
  2. Legendary Encounters: Alien
  3. Arkham Horror
  4. Robinson Crusoe: Adventures on the Cursed Island
These are my favourites. Arkham has Dunwich and Innsmouth as expansions worth getting, Robinson Crusoe's single expansion is a good addition.
 
Adding to the list several that have been recommended to me. The ones with * are the ones I've played

Nemesis
* Shadowrift
* Red Dragon Inn: Battle for Freeport
Reckoners
Gloomhaven (expensive, and like 100+ hours of content to play through, plus it's a legacy game)
Eldritch Horror
Mysterium
Ghost Stories
Spirit Island
* One Deck Dungeon (for two players, have to buy two sets for four...or just get the expansion)
Attack on Titan Deck Building Game
The Big Book of Madness
Dark Souls: The Boardgame
Shadowrun: Crossfire
XCOM the boardgame (requires a mobile app)
* Elder Sign
Forbidden Desert
Forbidden Island
 
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It's aimed at little kids but we still play it once in a while. You're all trying to spot hidden objects and get to the island for your picnic before the pigs eat all your food.
 
It's aimed at little kids but we still play it once in a while. You're all trying to spot hidden objects and get to the island for your picnic before the pigs eat all your food.
My daughter got the PJ Masks : Team of Heroes game for christmas, and I really like it; it's a light co-op game, with the heroes having to beat up a horde of robots and stop them getting to their base long enough that the villain's evil sciencemobile shuts down. Games take about twenty minutes, and while the mechanics are simple, it's engaging enough to keep my interest as well.
 
My favourite cooperative game is Unicornus Knights (https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/204605/unicornus-knights). I like how it avoids the repetitive mechanic of a "bad guy turn" which most coops use (such as Pandemic, Forbidden Island, and Shadows of Camelot) for more organic antagonism.

The players play the members of a court of a dead king deposed by his evil brother, and are now trying to help his daughter retake the kingdom. She is a force of nature and can win any fight but at high cost. So the players need to subtly influence her whilst scrambling away behind the scenes, fighting the bad guys who would stop her and making sure she has the armies and supplies she needs.

It has an anime aesthetic (its originally a Japanese game) and looks heavier than it is in practice. Make sure you grab the PDF of the reprinted rulebook too.
 
It's aimed at little kids but we still play it once in a while. You're all trying to spot hidden objects and get to the island for your picnic before the pigs eat all your food.
OMG Richard Scarry!
tenor.gif
 
Where passengers need to go and where they want to go are two very different things.
 
I've nearly pulled the trigger on The Lost Expedition from Osprey Games. Co-op or solo apparently and supposed to be very challenging to win.
 
Fallout New Vegas expansion has a cooperative mode
 
I've just purchased the entire Aeon's End line of games and expansions and expect to back the fourth major installment once the kickstarter goes live in nine hours. Also ordered some Pandemic, although getting all the Pandemic I want (which is a lot) will be a bit of a project.
 
I've just purchased the entire Aeon's End line of games and expansions and expect to back the fourth major installment once the kickstarter goes live in nine hours. Also ordered some Pandemic, although getting all the Pandemic I want (which is a lot) will be a bit of a project.
Check out Flash Point : Fire Rescue :smile:
 
One of the great things about the board game revolution is the way designers have figured out how to simplify those kinds of mechanics. I just obtained Leaving Earth, which is effectively a Euro rewrite of Liftoff! But it plays in half the time and fits in a box half the size. Star Wars: Rebellion is an actually playable redesign of Avalon Hill's Freedom in the Galaxy.

To get back to the point, Descent: Journeys in the Dark isn't a fully co-op game without a helper app, which won't last as long as the game already has. Descent was released two years before the iPhone.
I love Liftoff! Got to get Leaving Earth.
 
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