Jan 24th

These days were the last of out in-game class days, and though it is a tad sad it's still exciting because we get to present our games in class on Monday and Tuesday. Thursday I ended up playing Fresco, which was an interesting game focused on acquiring paints to mix to paint a mural for a Cathedral. I liked the overall mood of this game, it's kind of like Ticket to Ride in that it's a friendly competition. You choose what time your character wakes up to buy paints and then paint the Cathedral to get victory points. The one funniest part about this game was I sometimes forgot my basic colors and what makes them! But I liked it a lot overall, and I would definitely play it again.

Friday was Werewolf, which is a variation of Mafia that is focused somewhat on luck and your ability to defer attention away from yourself. The first round I was the first person killed, so I didn't really get to enjoy it that much though it was interesting to see the people who were the Werewolves deflect attention away from themselves and even convince people they were legitimate for a little bit. The second round had everyone in class participating, and we included many of the other cards that add effects. The end result was a little bit of a mess, I felt we had a little too many people, and the effects kind of dragged out the game more than I think it needed to. I accidentally got two innocent villagers killed though, so I kind of feel I'm not necessarily meant for Werewolf. It's not really my cup of tea.

Tomorrow is our presentation for our game, and although I'm somewhat nervous, I'm also really excited to show off what we've been working on. We had a lot of fun playtesting so I'm hoping that transcribes over to others!

Jan 22

The past few days have been pretty interesting, because they've been the games that the people who are teaching are unfamiliar with. This makes it a tad easier to get into, because you don't feel like you're working against insurmountable odds as much. On Tuesday we played Carcassone, which is one I've heard about quite a bit. I really enjoyed it, because there's a lot of strategy that goes into making sure you control certain things without ceding to your opponents. One aspect I noticed was taking gambles on what tiles you have. I was building a large castle, and as it went on it began to take up around 7-8 tiles. I took a gamble on making the castle that actually paid off for me, because with one of my final tiles I was able to complete it and get a large number of points. I also noticed how much work went into planning out a game like this. Each tile should be able to interact with the others in a way that allows the player to set it down, and the sheer amount of time that it took to plan all of this out so that it could work seems incredible to me. This was one of the first games where I looked at it and saw a large amount of complexity, and that really interested me.

On Weds, I taught Acquire in the first half. This one was a game I had played last Thursday at the game night, which I figured I knew well enough to teach, but was still confused enough as I played it that I would be on par with the other players. I ended up winning, but it wasn't without a lot of work. There's a ton of different ways to make money in that game, and you're constantly having to see how much stock the other players have to make it so that you have the best opportunity to win. I really like it, but it's actually kind of tiring with all of the mental work you have to do.

Finally we played King of Tokyo. Out of all of the games in the class I've played, this is perhaps the one I've enjoyed the least. It was alright, but I don't like games where there isn't at least a little strategy. There is a few ways you can win, but I ended up dying quickly in the first one and halfway through the second one, so I basically ended up watching the last two people duke it out for 20 minutes while we waited. I can see how for younger people, this game would be a lot of fun, but I didn't get a lot out of it personally.

Jan 20

Today was coop games, and once again Betrayal was the game of choice. I love Betrayal because for the first half you all end up working together and there's really nothing happening that pushes you to compete. It was kind of fun too playing with people that didn't have any knowledge of how to play either, because the game can come across as boring until the haunt occurs. Once it does though, it's really fun seeing everyone come together and try to come up with a plan to somehow beat the betrayer. For us, we were able to take his character out quite early, but it ultimately proved futile as the monster we were working against was able to stop all of us. One thing I like though is that in certain scenarios, coop elements are always in play. For this particular one, even after a person was caught, they still were able to control their character and work for the bad guy. This adds a lot of tension to the game, because if you're the last person alive, you're playing against the other 5 players, without a big monster to assist you! But it can also be pretty rewarding if you end up winning.

Coop games are nice, because I prefer working together with other players than competing against them. I enjoy games where everything is on the table and you all have an ultimate goal you're trying to achieve, because it can really make it much easier to get to know a person when you're working together. For us, it was trying to best figure out how to balance our particular character strengths. One person had more speed than I did, so I felt it was necessary to defer to them in certain situations to best give us a chance to win. I enjoy winning as a team better than winning as an individual, because it can form a nice, rewarding bond as a group. I'm looking forward to this week to play the games we aren't familiar with, because it will allow us to be on a bit more fairer and equal terms. I'm leaning towards doing Carcassone or Forbidden Desert, both seem like they'd be a lot of fun.

Jan 16-17th

Thursday was the last day of teaching games that we are familiar with, and because I taught on Tuesday I was assigned to play a game. We ended up playing Amazonas, which is a resource based game that is set around establishing settlements in the Amazon. I found this one to be pretty interesting, because it combines with how well you can plan for the future. You play a resource card that gives you income, but depending on the card that is flipped on the field, you may have your income halved, or with luck doubled. So it really forces you to play to the future, because if you use your high income cards early, you might have trouble keeping up with everyone. I thought it was interesting though how it combined the river and the jungle paths, because I was used to just focusing on the jungle paths. It was somewhat like Ticket to Ride because your goal is to take control of settlements on certain areas of the map. I was planning a long path to get my 4th and final settlement, but I ended up realizing that I could move on the rivers for half the cost. There's a lot of planning on the game, which makes it a lot deeper than it first appears.

After that we ended up playing a card game. Card games are probably my least favorite group games to play, they've just never grabbed my interest. It took a little while to get the hang of the game, especially because the game isn't of english origin, and whenever a phrase came in I didn't know I got confused. But it was fun overall, and by the end I feel like I was starting to get the hang of it. I enjoyed the competition, though I'm more looking forward to the Coop stuff on Monday. I really enjoy games where you work together, it makes it that much more entertaining and strategic.

I enjoyed the speaker on Friday, it was interesting to see how something such as an interest in games can last an entire lifetime. His collection and knowledge of games was impressive, and I really appreciated his enthusiasm for the games and the groups of friends that he's fostered. I also found the cons really interesting too. I personally want to go to Comicon at some point, but the one convention in Indianapolis sounds really cool, and it's a lot closer. It's something I'm definitely going to consider going to in the future.

Jan 15th

So, a two-parter here today because I wasn't able to post yesterday. Yesterday was my first day of leading a group, and I chose the game Betrayal at House on the Hill. This has been one of my favorite games for a few years now, and I actually credit it with getting me back into board games and group games. I remember the first time I played it was when I went over a friend's house at midnight, and me, my friends Peter Jared and Chris, and two other people I had never even met before played it together and ended up playing it two more times before we finished up at 5 am. The best part about the game is I remember feeling no desire to stop. As soon as we finished, we already had basically agreed to start the next round of play. My love for that game is what made me want to bring it in, and after the class I was really happy by how well it seemed to go over. Initially, the game starts out somewhat slow because of everyone trying to go through the house. It can come off almost boring because if it's your first time playing, it's hard to really see anything that's happening in the game world. But once the betrayal happens, it's funny to see how much the action ramps up, and how much luck can factor into the game. When the card was flipped to show that the attic was on the other side of the house, the heroes were obviously disheartened, but through that they came up with other strategies, and even contingency plans in case those strategies fell through. My favorite was the person who didn't seem to be enjoying it as much as the others at first volunteered if necessary to stick in the room with the betrayer so that he could be blown up by dynamite. So, even though she would have died, the team would have won overall. Another was just how organic and funny the game can be. The game was won by a 63 year old priest beating up a track and field star! The way the game plays out is one of my favorite parts about Betrayal, and it always comes back to surprise me. The best part though is you always feel like you're doing something. People actually grouped around us to check it out, so I'm excited to bring it tomorrow night. I feel like it'll be the hit of the party.

Today's games went pretty well too, and I really began to appreciate how much thought goes into making these games so that everyone has a good chance to win. Ticket to Ride was a lot of fun because you never know what is going to happen next, you could be ready to place down a 7 section of track, only to have someone right before you have it done. It's also interesting to see the strategies develop and grow as the game goes on. I expected to stick with my short tracks and not even go for my long one, but I realized I was able to make it work after a bit of luck. I definitely want to play that one again.

7 Wonders was a lot of fun too, albeit a bit confusing. It had so many levels to it that you can score points on that it's actually staggering how much thought went into it so that it could be played out and balanced. Each card seems powerful, but you're never completely out of the game. I ended up winning, and had a fun time being able to see what I did in the first Age play through to the last. Though it's all cards, I felt like I was building a great city that would really rival one of the ancient wonders of the world.

Overall, I'm really enjoying this class. I love the games we're playing, and I'm glad I'm able to meet a lot of friendly people I probably wouldn't have before. Even with our group project, I ended up not having one and now all of the people who didn't have one are consolidating with an idea everyone seems excited about. I'm really looking forward to the next few weeks!

Jan 12th Reflection

I've always considered myself more on the analytical side of games, focusing on strategy and math to serve me more than thinking outside the box. But, growing older I began to embrace my ability to think creatively. Everyone has some type of creative outlet that they can express themselves through, and for me I found out it was through writing. That's why, in class today it was extremely interesting to hear the two speakers detail how they've evolved with their creative ideas to actually make games that are sold in stores. I've always held myself back with my creative side because I looked at it as, if I can't make a living off of it, why try? But they both enjoy gaming so much that they still find time to make it work, even with working full time jobs. I've been asked to be a Campaign Leader for a new quest for my friends for the role playing game Legend of the Five Rings. I've been struggling with coming up with something, but hearing them today made me realize that I shouldn't kill myself trying to come up with something perfect. Life is all about trial and error, and with games it's all about learning what works and what you need to improve on. I really enjoyed today's class because it gave a different perspective of games that many wouldn't even consider, but it makes it that much more enjoyable that you know there are people out there that enjoy something so much they commit themselves to creating enjoyment for others.

Jan 10 Reflection

Jan 10th Reflection

Since I transferred to Calvin, one of the constants that I've noticed is that everyone seems to have played Settlers of Catan at least once. I myself played it back when I first arrived over a year ago, but I didn't completely understand what I was doing, and my overall impression of it was that it was fun, but not something that really fired me up. Over New Year's Eve these past few weeks ago though, a group of my friends ended up playing it, and although I didn't participate, I was surprised by how much I remembered of when I played. So, I figured I would give it my best shot when we played in class on Friday, and just try to enjoy myself. I didn't expect the game to take over two and a half hours, but I also didn't expect to end up winning either! As I played, I really began to notice the finer points of the strategy behind it, and that each person who plays it has their own style that they undergo. I myself remembered that roads were important, so I ended up having the longest road for much of the game. As time went on, I gradually upgraded my cities and expanded, opting for saving and making large spurts of growth rather than a continuous approach. For a time, this was a good plan, because the other players would focus on improving themselves as well. I also forged a balanced reputation with them early. In trades, I wanted to gain their approval early, so that way when I needed certain supplies later, they would be more inclined to work with me on something. I would offer two of my resources for one of theirs, and build something small like a road. As time went on though, I expanded and when I would need a sheep or grain to make a new settlement, I would usually have someone willing to work with me. It showed me how interesting a game like Settlers could be, because the goal is obviously to win, but you need to enlist the help of the other players to have a decent shot at doing so.

Another interesting aspect I noticed was how much of a role momentum played in the final result. On the final few turns, I had a large amount of resource cards, but I had lost the longest road and was in 2nd with 7 VP, with the leader having 9. As the other players went, I began to hatch a plan that would allow me to build a settlement and 3 roads in one turn, swinging the game in my favor to win. I had been in 1st for most of our play-through, so I think it helped that once I fell off from being so close, the other players didn't seem to have regarded me as big of a threat as they had previously. Then, with luck in my favor by not getting the robber on any of the other rolls, I was able to completely take them by surprise. I ended up winning, and although I count myself as a pretty level-headed player (i.e. not super-competitive), I must admit it was somewhat of a good feeling to lay down all of my cards and see their expressions change as I detailed what I ultimately did. I really see how different Catan play-throughs can be, and I chalk up my previous opinion to my misunderstanding of the finer points of the game. I really enjoy it now, and I look forward to playing it with my friends back home a lot in the future.