March 17, 2011
So what does Olivia Munn choking a chicken have to do with board and card game news you ask? Well, nothing really, I just wanted to get your attention and until I come up with a nice Critical Gamers news picture, randomness will have to do for now. It's been a few weeks since we have done a Newsapalooza post, so there is some catching up to do. Let's do this!
Continue reading: "Newsapalooza - Critical Gamers 3/17/11"
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March 16, 2011
While attending PAX East '11 this weekend in downtown Boston, I was fortunate enough to sit down with Lorien Green, the filmmaker for the board gaming documentary "Going Cardboard". We both have roots in the video gaming industry and shortly discovered we had both worked at the same company! She had left the company only a few months before I started there. While having something in common like that can help break the ice, there was no doubt in my mind that Lorien would have been just as friendly had that connection been missing. She was undoubtedly enthusiastic about her project, the status of the gaming industry, and her experiences throughout the film making process. For some background about Lorien and the documentary, I suggest visiting her Hustream video, which can be found here - Introducing Going Cardboard: A Board Game Documentary.
Continue reading: "Critical Gamers Interviews Lorien Green Creator of the "Going Cardboard" Documentary"
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March 14, 2011
Part 1 - Here
Part 2 - Here
Part 3 - Here
Having fought the deciding battle and finding out that it led to my team's victory in my absence, I now had time to think about my experience with Warparty. First and foremost, it was fun! It was balanced, extremely well-polished, and fast paced. I had enjoyed a two hour game session and left wanting to play longer. There were multiple strategies and races that I had yet to experience. The inflation component of the resource and purchase structure was a great way to force action and strategic thinking. I would have liked to experience another one of the races like the Dwarves and tried out the research component or gone dungeon diving with my heroes to see what kinds of treasure I could uncover. Even better, I would have had a massive battle in the middle of the map for the precious +3 resources as the rest of the map is occupied. I left wanting more and now I understood why the guys came back to play again.
Continue reading: "Warparty - The Hidden Gem at Total Confusion XXV Finale"
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March 13, 2011
Part 1 - Here
Part 2 - Here
The showdown was about to begin. Man's forces were split into two armies, as were mine. I was not in a good spot as Man was able to collect more resources per turn and would soon have a stronger army if we continued the standoff. All that stood in the way of a massive clash was a mountain range, but a move had to be made and I had to make it soon.
Continue reading: "Warparty - The Hidden Gem at Total Confusion XXV Part 3"
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March 8, 2011
Last episode (found here), I had shown up at the Holiday Inn hotel in Mansfield, MA where Total Confusion XXV was being held. There were a lot of people playing a lot of games all over the place, from pen & paper RPGs, to all out mini Wargames, to popular Euro and Ameritrash. Everyone was having a great time, myself included. While perusing the scene, I came across an unmanned table with what appeared to be a prototype map. I read the flyer and check out the map as Larry Bogucki approached and began to explain the game of Warparty. He explained to me that it is a combination of RTS, RPG, and Wargame that pits teams of opposing armies against each other in order to capture the enemy capital. I signed myself up for a demonstration play and continued to examine the convention while I waited for the assigned play time.
Continue reading: "Warparty - The Hidden Gem at Total Confusion XXV Part 2"
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March 2, 2011
In a tucked away little corner of Mansfield, Massachusetts stands a modest looking Holiday Inn hotel. However, from Thursday February 24th to Sunday the 27th, the inside of the hotel was anything but modest. It was at this hotel and at this time that the Total Confusion XXV convention was held. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the entire duration, but was fortunate enough to get to spend my Saturday there. The convention was great, with about a couple hundred gamers coming together for friendship and for a weekend of RPGs, miniatures, eurogames, ameritrash, war games, panels and tourneys. Unless you were in the bathroom, then a game session was taking place with intensely focused faces. Also, for a industry that thrives on competition, there really couldn't be a friendlier group of people.
Continue reading: "Warparty - The Hidden Gem at Total Confusion XXV Part 1"
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February 28, 2011
It seems like this might be turning into a somewhat consistent thing here at Critical Gamers. We are getting so much awesome news that if we don't post multiple times a day, we would never get it all out there. Why not just grab a bunch of the best articles and toss them together into a massive news update?
Continue reading: "Newsapalooza - Critical Gamers 2/28/11"
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February 26, 2011
Yesterday, Fantasy Flight Games announced Black Crusade, the latest standalone RPG in the Warhammer 40,000 line. Black Crusade will offer players a unique experience in the conflict between the forces of Chaos and the Imperium of Man. Players will be able to play as a Disciple of the Dark Gods, as a either a Chaos Space Marine or a human Servant of Chaos. This latest edition gives us the ability to examine Chaos from a different angle. We will be able to learn out about their characters and what steered them into the path of corruption. Head over to the official Black Crusade website and get ready to surround yourself in Chaos this summer!
Black Crusade
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February 17, 2011
Fans of the comic books, AMC series, and zombie fans in general, will be excited to know that Robert Kirkman, creator of the Walking Dead, has announced a partnership with Telltale Games (Sam & Max, Back to the Future) to create a "multi-year, multi-platform, multi-title" video game series based off of the franchise. Specifics weren't announced but it appears to be heading to most of the major gaming platforms such as PC/Mac, consoles, handhelds, mobile, and social media outlets. No official release date has been announced but Telltale Games is expecting a Q4 2011 release.
Head over to IGN for the breaking news and an interview with creator Robert Kirkman.
At IGN.com
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February 16, 2011
With the 2011 Toy Fair in New York nearing its end, news abounds among the analog gaming and toy industries. Instead of devoting an individual entry per news article, we are just going to give it to you lottery style, one lump sum (minus the ridiculous taxes). Please feel free to comment about the articles in the comments fields below. We are looking for input on the types of articles you are interested in so we can keep the content relative and fresh. Any input would be greatly appreciated and we at Critical Gamers thank you for your patronage.
Continue reading: "Newsapalooza - Critical Gamers 2/16/11"
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Newsapalooza - Critical Gamers 3/17/11
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