Tuesday Reviewsday... or not!

I confess, I'm quitting. Kind of. I'm very proud of myself for blogging weekly for a month, and then twice a week for three month, but I can't keep it up. I'm a little ashamed of some of the half arsed effort that I've been putting up in the last month-ish. Since Roller Derby started up again in January I've been feeling a little overwhelmed. I work 8:30-5:00 Monday to Friday, head out to roller derby training Tuesday, Wednesday and Sunday for a total of 8 hours a week, cook, clean, half-assedly renovate my house and sleep. With this blog I've been sacrificing Monday nights and Thursday nights to writing. Maybe sacrifice is a little melodramatic since I do enjoy writing it.

Tuesday Reviewsday: Small World

Players: 2+  
Playtime: 45minutes+
Replay Value: 10/10

Small World (released in 2009) is a brilliant example of a game that has been play-tested, balanced, re-tested, re-balanced, critiqued, and trialed, then put on a shelf for six months before being play-tested again with fresh eyes. There may be overpowered combinations, and 'weaker' combinations, but after just one play through you'll learn to lynch whoever is winning at the time as you fight to control most of the Small World.

The plot of every fantasy book you have ever read (a how-to guide)

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1. Pick a protagonist, orphans are popular. If your protagonist has both parents, then one of the parents has to be a bit of a jerk. Make your protagonist an outcast. Alternatively, give them a happy family and lots of friends. Then kill them off so you have a quest for revenge.

2. Travel alone for a while. Or be alone and friendless in a crowded place, generally a castle. For older protagonists, hint at a tortured past.

Tuesday Reviewsday: Killer Bunnies and the Quest for the Magic Carrot

Players: 3+  
Playtime: 30minutes+
Replay Value: 2/10

Killer Bunnies and the Quest for the Magic Carrot, released in 2002 and followed by a plethora of expansions, is a terrible game. Someone forgot to play test this, and the rules were written at 4am after too many shots of laced-coffee. The jokes barely raise a chuckle, and the game play is too messy to allow glorious 'Take that!' moments.