David Fair: One Is the Loneliest Number Part Three: No One Will Ever Love You Quite the Way I Do

Every year, a lot of gamers talk about their “Five and Dime List�. I usually find the first couple of them interesting, especially if the writer has taken time to add a little commentary to the list. After a while though, you just scan them looking for pithy commentary. I thought it would be an interesting change of pace to examine the 151 games that I played only once each during 2005. These 151 games fall into several different categories, and over the next few articles, I will examine each of them.

Prior articles in the series can be found here on Boardgamenews.com.

This column is a bit late (even though I am not on a set schedule with BGN, I had planned to be more regular). Most of the delay can be blamed on the Gathering, and the recovery from it. I don’t really feel much like writing a Gathering recap, and there are so many out there already that it is entirely possible that an independent observer could piece together much of what I played and who I played it with from everyone else’s lists anyways.

Part Three: No One Will Ever Love You Quite the Way I Do (19 games)

There is someone for everyone, the saying goes, and every game seems to have someone that likes it. These are the games that I played once in 2005 and loved, but none of my friends shared the feeling. Since there are so many good games out there, there are always other options for us to play together, so these rest of the back of The Wall, loved but alone.

Auf Achse: This is an older pickup-and-deliver game from Jumbo. It has two strikes against it when introducing it to new players: Dice & Action Cards. Despite the luck and chaos that those items can introduce, this is a good game. There is a lot of strategic planning, as well as tactical choice on your turn. Alas, the friends I played it with in 2005 have since moved away, and no others have been excited by my description of it.

Balderdash: I have learned to like certain party games. This is one of them. There are not many party games that get played in my normal game groups (Wits and Wagers and Coyote are two exceptions), but I enjoy playing Balderdash whenever possible, which seems to be only at conventions. Stephen Glenn should be on the list of mandatory components for this game.

Bridges of Shangri-La: It took me three playings of this game to “get it�. It still is dry, unapproachable, and a little more than a little weird, but I enjoy the tactical nature of the movement and careful planning that must be made. I seem to be alone in this admiration, however.

Corruption: Bruno Faidutti’s card game of illegally influencing government contracts is fast, fun, and involves plenty of second-guessing, outmaneuvering, and deliberate screwage. I love the game, but it only gets barely passing marks from my group (though I have just discovered that another in my Monday Night group likes it as much as I, so there is hope here).

Dungeon Twister: I really enjoyed the deep-thinking tactical play, but I have not been able to get my son or wife interested enough to give it another go. Most 2-player games I play are only ever played with them, so this may languish some time before it gets played again.

Elfenland: I like this little race/hand management game. It has a nice level of screwage, and the game isn’t too long. No matter what you are usually able to do something. Still, it seems to get voted down a bit too much. I think we need to try harder with it though, as the game is truly a classic.

High Society: I like this little filler of an auction game, but when Uberplay released For Sale, this got moved to the back seat, and I don’t get many takers anymore. Most people suggest For Sale as an alternative. I like For Sale, but variety is the life in the spice.

Ice Cream: I learned this game from the designer himself, and then some friends played it together at one of my game nights. Those same friends keep voting it down when I suggest it. I suspect they got a rule wrong or just need another playing to appreciate the depth here, but it looks as if I won’t be able to convince them of that.

Johnny Controlotti: This is a fun little luck-filled filler about making blind-bids, bluffs and payoffs in the mafia. I quite enjoyed my first playing, and went to some amount of trouble to acquire a second copy. It hasn’t yet gotten played, unfortunately.

Land Unter: This is a great card game that really tests your hand management and trick-taking skills. By now everyone should know about my problems in getting trick-taking games on the table (My wife seems to be the main problem.  She doesn’t appreciate them and is usually the fourth player when a 4-player game is suggested.). I will take this to more game days that she does not attend.

Maharaja: This is a really good game from Wolfgang Kramer. It has a bit of AP issues, and it can run long even when players don’t let AP set in. Also, those in the back of the pack often have to collude to stop a potential runaway leader, but it is still a gem of a game, to me. If it were a half-hour shorter, I am sure it would get more play.

Octiles: This little path game of tiles is a favorite of mine, and my wife used to suggest it often, but whenever it gets suggested lately, we find something different to play instead. A shame, as this has beautiful wooden components and terrific gameplay.

Oh Zoolo Mio: AKA ZooSim. This is a nice tile-lying game of majorities and it has a very smart tie-breaking mechanism that should be used in other games. The game has slightly garish artwork, but is otherwise terrific. I am not sure but I think most people for whom I suggest expect a childish game.

Pit: One of my favorite games from my childhood. Alas, it just gets too loud for many of my gaming venues.

Pizarro & Co.: I like this game. It has a terrific tension in almost every turn, and players have to make some very tough decisions. It also has advantages in that it plays quickly and handles up to 6. I need to make more of an effort to get this played again soon. It really is great. I do have a group I play with once a month where others also like it, so there is hope here.

Runebound 2nd Edition: Due to my background in RPG’s, I tend to like most dungeon crawl games. Even so, Runebound is better than most. It does run a bit long, and it can be a bit repetitive (though the myriad new decks should help alleviate that). I plan to play it with my kids this year, and see what they think.

Schnappen Jagd: The first time I played this gem, I got it. I understood it, I would even say that I grokked it. And I excelled at it as my opponents faltered. The scores were decidedly lopsided, and I have had trouble convincing them to give it another try.

Union Pacific: I like UP, but only with the right set of variant rules. Most people agree with me on that. Where we tend to diverge is on deciding what the “right set of variant rules� are. Get enough people together that agree on a set of rules and you are ok, but the stock rules for the game just don’t do it for me.

Zendo: I like deduction games, and this one turns that on its head, making it not a deduction game, but an induction game wherein the players must determine the rule given the instances they create where the rule is broken or is not broken. It can be very tough, and masters should avoid any rule with the word “or� in it, and any math-based rules until all players achieve a certain proficiency with it. I, of course, found this out too late after I ruined the game for most of my regular players with far too difficult a rule. We have some new players now, perhaps the new-found wisdom I have could get this on the table again…

Coming Soon:
Part Three: No One Will Ever Love You Quite The Way I Do (Apparently)
Part Four: Voted Off the Island
Part Five: I Don’t Know Where We Went Wrong
Part Six: Too Long, Too New, Two Player

© 2006 David Fair

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It’s nice to see some love for poor Pizarro & Co.  I am not sure why it doesn’t get much attention as I think it holds up just fine amongst the grand Knizia pantheon of sacred auction games. I would be curious to know what variant rules you like the most for Union Pacific. Posted by Ogdred Weary on May 8, 2006 at 01:39 PM | #

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