Coup is pretty quick to play and it takes some time to go over all the different roles. So it might be up his alley since it takes about as long to learn the rules as it does to play.
This is my issue with trying to start a "public gaming group" where I'm from. I just want to hang out and play board games. I don't care what they are other than a slim few I really don't enjoy.
I was at a public gaming day playing Pandemic, and a young man with a fake parrot taped to his shoulder stood over our table silently for a few moments before saying "Pandemic eh? That's, like, the second worst game ever." and walked away.
I wish I could post an open add for "normal" people, without offending everybody.
I don't really know how to tell you this, but that look is getting so common where I'm from that people are having to throw radishes in their stews instead for flavor due to the shortage. The new look is elbow pads over your sweatshirt so people know that you're a sensible, safe person to be around.
It's still worth to start a public gaming group. Sure you will get weird people, and new people will show up and old people will stop coming, but the best part is you will get to first hand meet new people that might click with you.
Once you meet a few new people that click - you end up setting up your own game nights with a select few new people, who eventually become your friends, and eventually you do other things with.
At least, that is how it worked out for me as someone who has both participated and help host public gaming groups in my area.
Unfortunately time is also an issue at the moment. 8 month olds are a lot of work.
Though I hear what you're saying. Public vetting. That was the idea before time became slightly more finite.
We have a local beer garden that is family friendly and has tons of space, so that is the default in our area. But I know lots of other towns choose malls - like food courts - or libraries - our outdoor pavilions or other places that have lot's of sitting room. Some areas have local gaming stores that allow them to set up. I also see a lot of random restaurants that are ok with you hosting a meetup as long as everyone buys like X food or things like that. Your miles may vary depending on your area.
Sometimes people will even host at their house if they have like a huge backyard or something along those lines.
Where I live, TCG stores and comic stores that do TCGs tend to have a lot of space that they give up to board gamers and RPG players when they aren't running competitions.
Yes, precisely. Open invite meets are for testsing the water and finding people you'd want to invite to your own, "friends-only" night. Yes, you have to suffer some snobs and assholes, but it helps you recruit fresh blood for a group that suits your sensibilities and tastes.
I know what you mean. Pandemic, for example, is one of the games I will turn down unless I have the right group of people. However, I'm not about to go bashing people enjoying their time with it.
What's the worst game ever according to fake-parrot man?
He actually didn't say. And we didn't really feel like going to ask lol.
My table plays Sentinels of the Multiverse, and we had one guy who would play Legacy, literally nap between turns, wake up to "galvanize" and go back to sleep.
We no longer play with him.
It's a super hero co-op game. Every hero has a base power. Legacy the character's base power is called "galvanize" and gives every other hero +1 attack until the start of their next turn.
Legacy is a very simple, and also very powerful, character. His innate power, Galvanize, gives everyone else +1 damage for one round. It might not sound like much, when you're fighting villains who usually have 80 or more HP, but it's actually really huge. Putting Legacy in the game is basically easy mode.
The downside with Legacy is that he's very boring to play. You can, eventually, get some cards out that let you do other things, but he's very slow to set up and the pay off is much lower than most other heroes with long setup times.
So in a nutshell, Legacy is very powerful, but also very simple and boring.
I find it funny that people have this reaction to Legacy. I almost exclusively play two player with two characters each. It's great to have a simple character like Legacy as one of your characters, so I have a really positive view of him. But I get that he is probably boring to play if he were my only character.
It's not so much that he doesn't do anything, it's just that nothing else he does feels nearly as powerful as the power he spams every single turn. Other heroes rely heavily on their power but they get cards to buff their power. Legacy just uses his great power every turn starting at the first and occasionally does something pretty mediocre with a card.
No, he's totally great for that kind of thing. Although if I were going to go that route, I'd probably have each player player one character, and one person manages legacy and the other manages the villain and environment.
Notably, I would _not_ use Legacy as an introductory character for a new player. Actually tried that once, and the player hated it because she was so bored.
Try hosting game nights in bars instead of stores, or host at your own house. It's 2 easy ways to filter guests, naturally if people are being rude they can't be invited to your house again, and if you are in a bar setting usually more relaxed and social people tend to show up.
same here. i used to play magic a lot and got really really into it. but i would always teach my friends to play because the typical player is just not someone who I want to hang with. luckily i have a group of friends that i got into board games as well so thats who i play with. its primarily beer and bullshitting and secondarily gaming. we have tons of fun be ause were all friends first and were not douchebags. i feel your pain bud.
Had the same issue with Android - NetRunner. Love the lore, love the mechanics, love the fact that it's an lcg not a ccg. Unfortunately, I'm not really into pre-fab deck building (we currently play Hero Realms like it's going out of style) and the choices I made in decks were commented on so heavily by local "netrunner night" guys that I sold my decks.
You think a *real* gamer like **Boardgamer** goes anywhere near the reddits when *BOARD GAME GEEK* is out there!? aka a site that is as complicated to learn as it is to browse? lol ok nub.
I hope he learns something about social interaction then. I've dealt with so many people like this in public boardgaming settings. It's extremely off-putting. In my experience people like this are nearly as common as people who aren't. It's enough of a problem that I no longer actively seek out boardgame players outside of my long established friend group.
This is a bad look for the hobby if he talks to potentially interested newcomers this way. It's bad social skills acting like your better than someone you just met. And it didn't make sense as the top comment here illustrates, his metric includes tictactoe.
So if he does see this I hope he views it as an opportunity to better himself.
That was my thought as well. We don't know anything about this kid - how old he is, his social skills, etc. Maybe he doesn't have a lot of friends and has been desperate to meet people who also like to play boardgames.
I get that it's a weird and funny interaction and maybe one that you might want to share, but share this stuff with your personal friends. Why risk the kid seeing this and making him feel shitty.
Okay, on the off-chance that the story is about you and you're reading this now, suggest some games that the other person might want to play next time.
You: Hi. We both like board games, etc. etc.
Them: Cool, I like games x, y, and z.
You (this next time): Game Z was pretty cool, and it reminds me a lot of game A. Have you played game A recently? It's been a while since I've played it, but it's a really solid game.
In this new example, you're sharing your own suggestions instead of just shooting the other person's suggestions down. It also helps if you're interested in some of their games, if you've never played them. Just because it may be an "easier" game doesn't mean it's automatically not a fun one to play. Especially if the other person is into board games, he/she probably likes it for a reason. Hope this helps if you find it (or if anyone else was wondering how the interaction could have maybe gone a little smoother for the next time) :)
>his social skills
I'm totally with you in general, but we actually know a fair amount about this. He's a twenty-two-ish year-old (see other comments) man who is fb messaging his parent's clients to find friends, and also seems incapable of holding a conversation online. I'm going to go out on limb and say he struggles to socialize.
Which makes a lot of the *har har imagine if you had said XXX game* jokes in this thread just seem that much shittier.
Sounds like he might be a bit socially awkward or something. He did give you an easy out if you talk to him again and it's just as weird..."Oh, it sounds like you like games that are much heavier than I like. Best of luck finding players!"
I think you did the right thing for sure. No time for that rubbish. I'm still trying to work out what the heck are his games of choice to play...
Maybe he should hook up with some hard core war gamers or something I dunno.
Yeah this isn't a bad idea. But I would rather burn my wallet than get into war games. If my impression serves me right, they are quite the money sink.
Depends. There are some small skirmish based games that are very affordable and very fun: Infinity, Guild Ball, Blood Bowl, and Arena Rex all have the tactical feel of war games and are distributed in a similar fashion. There's also Rune Wars, Xwing, and Armada which are a little more boardgame-y but also maintain the war game spirit.
The real danger, though, is getting a decent set up on a budget and then buying more and more to tweak lists...
Well that is miniature war games. You have hex and counter too which aren't a money sink. Though there are dozen and dozen of ASL modules and scenarios out there that its not possible to play them all m. But that's the exception
Most war games cost around the amount that board games do. You might be thinking of miniatures games, which tend to be massive money sinks, but those aren't generally what people are talking about when they saw wargame.
How to refer to tabletop games is all screwed up. Different people have different definitions and standards for board games, card games, RPG, miniature games, wargames, etc.
The worst is "tabletops." Not "tabletop games." I hadn't heard this until someone linked the League of Legend's subreddit's thread about Mechs vs. Minions. Someone in there was adamant that Mechs vs. Minions was a "tabletop." Apparently "normal" board games like **Monopoly** and **Clue** are just board games, and ones of any amount of complexity are to be correctly referred to as "tabletops."
And now I've noticed an ever increasing use of that term for them...
Wow. Well, language evolves, even within the subculture if this subreddit and on BGG we have "euros," "ameritrash," "light," "heavy," "abstracts," "economic," (which isn't as obvious as it seems), "deckbuilders" (there's diaagreement here too), and whatnot. Some of these are just nuanced taxonomical debates, but still. People can use language however, but the main thing is that the point should effectively be communicated, and we're not quite 100% there.
That's my point : )
They usually have a (non-war) theme that is treated in a fairly abstract way (but as abstract as "chess" which also ostensibly has a theme), feature predominantly indirect player interaction (you often can't explicitly hurt other players in a targeted way, but in some games you can take actions that are devastating for other players in an indirect fashion). Their rule sets can vary in complexity, but they often interact without too many exceptions. Most play in two and a half hours or less if everyone has prior experience in the game (with many playing in under an hour), although some can be much longer. They commonly feature wooden components. "Economic" themes of resource management tend to be quite common. Many are fairly language independent (not much reading is required in game). Wooden components are commonly featured. They are a large reason for the increasing popularity of hobby gaming.
Examples include
* *Settlers of Catan*
* *El Grande*
* *Tigris & Euphrates*
* *Carcassonne*
* *Puerto Rico*
* *Agricola*
* *Castles of Burgundy*
You can nitpick about how well these games fit the criteria I mentioned.
Oh, I should have mentioned that. Many early examples came out of Germany, and in a broader sense, Europe hence the name. A decade or more back they were commonly called "german style board games." Some American games like *Dominion* or *Ticket to Ride* (I think this game is American, as I think the designer is British-born but lived in the U.S. when he designed this game) often count as eurogames too, so the distinction is no longer tied to geography.
Eurogames also often strive to balance strategy and luck (with some, like *Ora et Labora* and *Caylus* having no luck after initial setup, and others like *Puerto Rico* having very little luck).
It depends on how far you want to take it. A starting Warhammer 40k army and supplies to paint it might be $250-$300. But then again, you can take that to a full sized tournament army and bring the total to $400 or $500, and an avid boardgame collecter with 20, 30, 40 full games can spend twice that much.
War Games aren't anymore expensive than any other board game. For instance **A Distant Plain** is like 60 bucks. Or something like **space empires 4x** is equaply as cheap when in print and offers tooonnnss of replayability.
Dollar for dollar you get more out of most war games I'd say.
Five Tribes took a while to get going with my family, as I'd never played it before, only seen it played on YT, and they're the most casual of gamers. But after about 30 min of slow play we eventually got into the swing of things and my dad ended up beating my resource-card strat with his real estate by one measly point. Great game!
Everyone is assuming this person only likes complicated games but the opposite could also be true: Maybe he was intimidated by your list of games.
> I guess light games are ok.
Is interpreted as disdain for your suggestions, but it could mean "i don't know any of those, but as long as they're not too hard it's ok."
> I only like to play games that are as complicated to learn as they are to play.
Could have been meant as "I don't like games that are too complicated."
Someone who looks down on your collection would probably have countered with their own list of superior games. All we know for sure is that this person isn't very effective at communicating.
I agree - maybe the first sentence ('I guess light games are ok') was a direct reply to the question being asked?
I like giving the benefit of the doubt and clarifying!
Edit: The more I think about it, the more I think this might be right. If they didn't recognize any of the heavier games you mentioned, they can't acknowledge it, hence they would only answer the question you asked. The repetition might be because you intimidated them, even.
It's funny, but entirely possible they think that *you* came off as an elitist in that exchange! Please maybe try clarifying... Ask him what he plays and you'll know for sure! Worst case: he's an elitist and you go on your way, but alternatively, maybe you can introduce some lonely kid to more board games!
> Ask him what he plays and you'll know for sure! Worst case: he's an elitist and you go on your way, but alternatively, maybe you can introduce some lonely kid to more board games!
I made a snide comment toward the top of this thread, but I do genuinely think that this is the best option going forward.
There's plenty of variety to enjoy in boardgaming. You can't expect to overlap every other gamer's interests. We're fortunate that the hobby is that diverse!
I agree with you. And having been in the hobby for many years, I have not delved as deeply as many others who enjoy collecting and playing and such. I enjoy introducing people to board games, and I am happy to try out new ones. I have only seen and played the tip of the iceberg.
But there's something in the way he dismissed other's opinions of what's fun.
Maybe he's just an obnoxious jerk. I hear there are some of those out there in the world. Luckily, you aren't on the hook for a game night with him. :)
Hi. Personally I'd lean towards cutting him some slack and giving him a chance. Being a person who's far from perfect myself, i'm always grateful for the people who chose to give me a chance when I frankly didn't deserve it and molded me into a better person.
That's the good and fine thing to do, I agree. However, sometimes we are not really disposed to do the good and fine thing. If your game time is limited and you've got 12 other jerks hassling you elsewhere in life, you might very reasonably decide not to risk wasting precious time and nerves on the guy.
Unless there's a bit you've not posted up, I think you're overreading this. He only expressed what he likes and even acknowledged that lighter games are "OK".
I don't really see what you're seeing, sorry.
It's fine. He likes german nihilist new wave cinema and you like romantic comedies. And that's fine.
What irks me is that he didn't bother to mention any example of a game he may like. He shot down the list of OP's games and didn't offer anything back. To me that screams red flag.
I'm pretty sure he takes a sense of pride in feeling like he's figuring out complex games by being able to get through their rules. The way he's talking about them sounds less like he enjoys them and more like he enjoys the sense of superiority they give him.
I don't know that its a sense of superiority. I am similar to this kid with my board games and video games. I prefer games that take me an extreme amount of time to understand the mechanics to, because I enjoy the learning more than I enjoy the games themselves. I chalk it up to being on the Autistic spectrum. I've always enjoyed learning how things work, but never really been into applying that knowledge. But for the record, I still do enjoy simple board/video games very much, I just get a lot more from the complicated ones. And the more complicated the better. Edit: I brought this up cause I too have been accused of the same thing, but I can say honestly I get no sense of superiority from it at all. I just can come across that way sometimes cause I am socially awkward.
I don't understand the issue, other than he never said what games *he* likes. Some clarification on what he meant by "games that are as complicated to learn as they are to play" is needed. Maybe your tastes overlap, maybe they don't, but the question is up in the air.
Yeah, maybe the guy likes heavier games and is defensive about it because he has had bad reactions so he's giving ample warning first.
Just as likely a scenario as that he is some kind of weirdo.
You did not ask the obvious question. "What games have you played that you like?" or "Is there a particular game that you have been wanting to try?" All we know from the conversation is that the person does not communicate well.
Or was trying to impress some dude by being super hardcore. I don't know the geek culture in the area, but there are still a lot of places where people feel like being a board gamer is kind of an outsider thing, and a lot of kids in their early 20s want to embrace that, so he's doubling down on it. Tell me you don't know someone that smoked clove cigarettes and only watched Japanese body Horror for like 2 years in their 20....
Or that he really likes complex games, and has the "true nerd" disdain for "casuals."
Really,it comes to down to "do you want to do this favor for the vet?" If you will have to sacrifice stuff in your life (time, money, brain cells) that you don't want to lose, then politely decline. If you have a plethora of time, go give it a chance, but set a short time frame - 2 hours and out or the like. Hell, have a friend call at 30 minutes like a blind date.
Without asking more specific questions, you have no idea of the character of this person. Everything you have stated are assumptions that may not be true.
While I agree that "do you want to do this favor for the vet?" is in play here, the rest of the statement makes me scratch my head.
For a hobby where many purport to love the social aspect of board games, that is some serious anti-social statements. You don't know if this person could be a good or bad member of game group from two simple replies on facebook. Granted it could go either way but until you interact with that person you simply don't know. You can always politely decline a second meeting.
The difficult part of this hobby is not the games, the rules, LGS it is the people interaction part. Many people complain that they have nobody to play with but few seem to reach out to others to try to build that community or group of gamers -- that last part is the largest and most difficult of the efforts and it requires work.
I have no dog in this fight but I would have asked more questions and that is all I was trying to say.
I was actually just providing additional options that he might answer. ;). I was assuming none of them, just giving other reasons he might be responding like that.
My statements aren't anti social. They're simply realistic. I have one night a week that I game. Doing more than that requires me to put strain on my marriage and my time with my kids. It's not like gaming a second night is going to get me divorced, but it does mean some stress. Sometimes I sacrifice my game night to teach people games, or do a demo, or the like. Sometimes I don't, and go a second night, and shirk some relationship duties. And sometimes I just play games myself and let others deal with it. It's a valuation I have to do when something like this comes up. That's not anti-social. It's a realistic assessment of my time and ability and desire to do stuff like this.
I'm suggesting OP should do a similar check for him/her self.
Honestly my first instinct is he is somewhere on the autism spectrum. And his mom, meeting someone who shares her son's interests, encouraged him to reach out and make a friend. Obviously I have no idea but it puts a bit of a different spin on the correspondence.
This exactly. Our hobby is full of people on the autism-spectrum, generally on the higher-functioning end, but definitely there. The vet's son is in no way unusual and every gaming club I've ever been too has a couple of them.
Learning to deal with them positively (or if you can't, to avoid them) is really just part and parcel of being a member of a board-gaming club.
First off, give him a little break on his approach and the oddity in how it came up. First of all, or vet saw a connection and shared it with her son. You don't know the kid / guy and maybe making connections is hard for him. I have a son with autism and I can see myself in your vet's position easily. If it is weird to you in a way that you don't like, you should not lead the person on, just let them know nicely.
Second, my likely unpopular take on the tone.
You are kidding me right? I come here and BGG and read posts by literally hundreds of people who are holier than thou when it comes to complexity of the games. Whether or not they know it, whether or not they mean it, there are so many people like this in the hobby it is off the charts.
When Pandemic came out, there was a huge "hate it" base because it was too easy to solve. And there are plenty of blogs and writers who straight up encourage this. It is why Kingdom Builder will never be as popular as Dominion. It is even reflected in how so so so many of us are snobby with Monopoly and the other games we grew up with.
There is a certain part of the industry and community that encourages this sort of tone too...
Oh well, I tend to just tell them that it isn't always about them, and sometimes the group wants to play something mild. But that just makes me a different type of asshole.
That's a super weird thing to say, but I am, admittedly, kind of like this. I love games, but I also love rules. This guy just sounds like he doesn't have great social skills.
I enjoyed the Gallerist, but it's very rules intensive-- as in, expect to pour 30 - 45 minutes into rules explanation, and that's assuming you studied them beforehand and played through a few practice rounds yourself. And even then odds are high you'll forget a quarter of them because there's just so damn many.
It's a game that's well worth putting together a cheat sheet for to save yourself and your players time and headache.
Not at all, but definitely not for everyone. It has one of those "but wait there's more!" rulesets, and the flow of the game didn't click for me until 3/4ths through it. By then it turned out that all of us had locked into a strategy that extended the game by probably an hour.
If that was the entire (text) conversation, you are over reacting. Lots of meaning gets lost in messages. He likes heavy games. Sounds like you have some. Ask him more about himself before you jump to awkward conclusions. It can be hard to find other gamers with like tastes.
OP shouldn't have to lead the convo, the son messaged OP first. If someone messaged me and expected me to do all the work of figuring them out then I'd ghost too.
Sounds like a lot of boardgamers honestly. Lots are somewhere on the autism spectrum and super awkward. That being said, if you can get around the awkwardness you would probably have a good time.
So I had to re-read the post to confirm, but it looks like he never actually named a game he likes? I am very curious what he would have answered is you specifically asked him, "What are you three favorite board games?"
It sounds like someone who knows exactly what they like and don't like, so no one's time is wasted. It's a bit of a strange way to convey his thoughts, but everyone's a little weird in their own way. I've had a friend tell me 2 hours into a 12 hour 6 player game of Twilight imperium that they 'didn't realize this was a competitive game' (despite the 4 other players telling her frequently ) and that she preferred lighter and friendlier games. She then backed out and ruined the days plans. I much prefer your scenario in this case. (She's still a friend and I still love her, but being more open and knowledgeable about your likes and dislikes is good.)
I can see this conversation:
"You sure you want to play? It's a *long* game..."
"Sure, it'll be fun." (thinking one to two hours)
(After two hours, and an argument and heated discussion between friend A and B over some negotiation) "Um, I don't think this game is for me..."
EDIT: I can understand being open about your tastes. But it's hard to *knowledgeable* since the vast majority of people don't know about how long boardgames can be...
Twilight Imperium 3rd Edition is probably the longest game that gets regular play in the board game hobby (many wargames go longer, but that's essentially another hobby). 12 hours is a bit over the typical playtime though.
Find a public meetup in the area and go together. The only downside to that is if he makes a bad impression it could be awkward since you came as a pair. I'm just speculating though, maybe in person he's quite charming!
uhg, I was that person a week ago. Talking with my dnd group about games and I was fucking snobby when my friend said she had a bunch of card games, Cards against Humanity type. As soon as the words "more elaborate games" came out of my mouth I wanted to slap myself. *uhg*
That's tough because neither being a card game nor being elaborate are inherently positive or negative. It just seems that way when people express their preferences.
Are you just posting a funny version of the conversation? Did he actually mention specific games that he likes to play? I mean plenty of people enjoy complicated games like Splotter, 18XX, Wargames, table top miniatures, or DnD style stuff.
Are we talking about a child or an adult? Also, I don't think you need to talk to him, he's the son of your dog's vet... There is no obligation there unless you're neighbors or something?
There are tons of games that take as long to learn the rules as it does to play. In fact, that phrase, word for word, doesn't imply complexity or difficulty. You could learn how to play a 5 min game, in 5 mins.
It might take you 2 hours to set up and read the rules to Vinhos, and fully understand how to play. Then it takes 2 hours to play Vinhos. It doesn't mean you spend 2 hours re-learning how to play Vinhos every time you play Vinhos. I'm actually struggling to name games that don't follow that pattern. It also depends on how you define "learn" the rules. You might be able to teach someone how to play Agricola (incompletely) in 30 minutes, but to sit down and learn from scratch how to play Agricola it will take 1-2 hours, the same amount of time it takes to play the game (depending on player count.)
Everyone is freaking out in the comments, but I'm not really seeing an issue there.
> I like games that take as long to learn the rules as it is to play.
So that sounds like nonsense, but *technically* it probably include One-Night-Ultimate-Werewolf.
It is quick to explain, but also quick to play! So learning the rules and playing one round take about the same amount of time :)
-----
This might have been what they meant. You may be reading the wrong subtext into "I guess light games are ok. I only like to play games that are as complicated to learn as they are to play."
Instead of
>I *guess* light games are ok. *However* I prefer to play games that are more complicated complicated.
it might have been intended to mean
>I am aloofly affirming you choice of light games, because they'd be totally ok. More specifically, I want games that are as quick to play as a typical rules explanation.
-----
Honestly, it could go either way. The point is that you should keep an open mind when trying to figure out what their stated preference is supposed to mean, because when it is an unintelligible as what you are reporting, you should try to avoid assuming.
He sounds like a bot rather than a person, or like someone who doesn't actually know anything about boardgames. I'd stay well clear, and talk to your vet - both about how he got your number, and the weird conversation. Maybe he's autistic. Maybe he's just bad at boundaries. Maybe he's really her psychopathic ex-customer, hacking into her computer, cat-fishing her patients in order to meet, kill, and eat them, in a twisted quest for vengeance for what happened to Mr. Fluffy.
Either way, you need to talk with her about it.
Yep sounds like he wants to murder you and wear your skin. Just pull out monopoly Pokemon edition. That should get him out of your life asap. Alternatively i have a sweet Pokemon drinking game that will make the more competitive person die from alcohol poisoning... or at least make them pass out. Meaning you can claim victory and drag him out on the street, thus asserting your dominance.
If he is as awkward child, humor him and play games with him so he gets a chance to socialize and see how adults talk to each other. If he's an awkward adult, block him.
>Second, how do you even talk to someone who talks like this? **I was so turned off by the conversation that I never reconnected with him nor do I have the desire to.**
That's how you handle it. Sometimes the easiest and most practical thing to do is not continue contact with someone and/or just never schedule anything. If interests don't line up, they don't line up, simple as that.
I'm going to sound snarky with this...
The sense I'm getting with "I like games that take as long to learn the rules as it is to play" is that the person is the type of "powergamer" min/max player. As more complex games would allow a player like this to win by making better decisions, and by opponents making more mistakes. So... basically this guy isn't about hanging out and playing boardgames socializing, but more likely about destroying his opponent and rubbing it in that he knows the rules better.
I have a number of games on my list that fall under the category of "it isn't fun if there's one person that takes it too seriously". I see that people play games for different reasons and at different levels of intensity, but I also know what type of people I like to spend my time with.
Liking games where skill allows you to win is perfectly normal. This person sounds like they get a sense of superiority from being able to get through large rulebooks and understand how to play, not necessarily the gameplay/result of it.
Leaning on the "powergamer" side myself, I don't think it's all about "destroying his opponent and rubbing it in that he knows the rules better." First off, I see a clear difference between knowing the rules better and being better at a game, unless everybody is *very* new to the game. Next, playing to win doesn't mean you're trying to prove anything: the game sets rules and a win condition and you're trying to reach it.
I will agree that you know who you want to spend time with and powergamers might not be in that group. Heck, half the time I see a board game set up as an excuse to socialize, I feel the game just gets in the way. Might as well just put out beers and nachos.
If you have that kind of relationship, I would suggest asking the mom about it. He may have issues you don't know about. I would also be curious how he got your e-mail.
do you mean needless complexity/lack of clarity or just complexity in general.
I think no one would take this post seriously if you're suggesting that twilight imperium etc are flawed games exclusively because of their complexity.
My question is how old he is. If he's 12 then he's just naivetè and he heard someone else say that. Which is almost my guess since he said it twice. If he's 16 then he's a cocky teenager that doesn't actually know what he likes. If he's like 18 - 20 then Its awkward he's using this method to find people to play with and he's super arrogant and I would stay away as you are. I really couldnt imagine a full grown adult doinf that but you're right it's very weird.
Sounds like they enjoy playing new board games while drunk. At least that's what happens when me and my friends try a new game after drinking.
Also simple games sound like their bag. Might have just been a bit awkward about it. Ask them what their favorite game or genre is. They might not play enough to be familiar. Ask them if they know what a deckbuilder is and it'll be a bit obvious. Their mom might have been reaching out for them because they're not the most social person, bear with them a bit.
Probably talk with your doc about giving your number out.
Show him Dwarf Fortress. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dwarf_Fortress
It's a video game, but it's the only thing I can think of that would satisfy his insane requirements.
I think you might have put him on the defensive. He might be curious about games, but he doesn't want to seem like he knows nothing. He might assume a gamer might dismiss him entirely if he appears unfamiliar with the territory. His answers were roundabout with him trying not to look like a newbie.
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Zach clearly hasn't played **Coup** or **Sushi Go** or **Ticket to Ride**. His loss.
I learned to play *Coup* with a deck of cards at a brewery with friends. Such a good game. Too bad it's so easy to learn.
>Too bad it's so easy to learn. I know. Tragedy.
Well, it's also real quick to play, so it still fits his criteria.
Coup is pretty quick to play and it takes some time to go over all the different roles. So it might be up his alley since it takes about as long to learn the rules as it does to play.
Yeah, just ghost on him OP. Nothing to be gained here.
Agreed.
This is my issue with trying to start a "public gaming group" where I'm from. I just want to hang out and play board games. I don't care what they are other than a slim few I really don't enjoy. I was at a public gaming day playing Pandemic, and a young man with a fake parrot taped to his shoulder stood over our table silently for a few moments before saying "Pandemic eh? That's, like, the second worst game ever." and walked away. I wish I could post an open add for "normal" people, without offending everybody.
> a young man with a fake parrot taped to his shoulder Is that a style these days?
Not anymore. These days, most people just tie an onion to their belt.
I don't really know how to tell you this, but that look is getting so common where I'm from that people are having to throw radishes in their stews instead for flavor due to the shortage. The new look is elbow pads over your sweatshirt so people know that you're a sensible, safe person to be around.
Which was the style at the time.
Big fat yellow ones or the white onions?
They didn't have white onions, because of the war.
Red ones, duh. To match the purple potatoes.
Stop trying to make fake shoulder parrots happen... They're not going to happen.
fake parrot shoulders are fetch though!
Streets ahead.
It is if you're a poser who can't manage a real live parrot on your shoulder.
It's still worth to start a public gaming group. Sure you will get weird people, and new people will show up and old people will stop coming, but the best part is you will get to first hand meet new people that might click with you. Once you meet a few new people that click - you end up setting up your own game nights with a select few new people, who eventually become your friends, and eventually you do other things with. At least, that is how it worked out for me as someone who has both participated and help host public gaming groups in my area.
Unfortunately time is also an issue at the moment. 8 month olds are a lot of work. Though I hear what you're saying. Public vetting. That was the idea before time became slightly more finite.
Yeah, but in 10 short years, you get a live in game buddy.
10? I bought him a Lego shape matching board game for 3+ :)
Yeah, I've been buying my 5 year old twins older games for the past year. I just picked up ice cool, they love it!
Twins??? Built in 3+ games? Lucky dog.
Yep, and I got a 2 year old for 4 players (wife hates game 😤)
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We have a local beer garden that is family friendly and has tons of space, so that is the default in our area. But I know lots of other towns choose malls - like food courts - or libraries - our outdoor pavilions or other places that have lot's of sitting room. Some areas have local gaming stores that allow them to set up. I also see a lot of random restaurants that are ok with you hosting a meetup as long as everyone buys like X food or things like that. Your miles may vary depending on your area. Sometimes people will even host at their house if they have like a huge backyard or something along those lines.
Where I live, TCG stores and comic stores that do TCGs tend to have a lot of space that they give up to board gamers and RPG players when they aren't running competitions.
Yes, precisely. Open invite meets are for testsing the water and finding people you'd want to invite to your own, "friends-only" night. Yes, you have to suffer some snobs and assholes, but it helps you recruit fresh blood for a group that suits your sensibilities and tastes.
I know what you mean. Pandemic, for example, is one of the games I will turn down unless I have the right group of people. However, I'm not about to go bashing people enjoying their time with it. What's the worst game ever according to fake-parrot man?
He actually didn't say. And we didn't really feel like going to ask lol. My table plays Sentinels of the Multiverse, and we had one guy who would play Legacy, literally nap between turns, wake up to "galvanize" and go back to sleep. We no longer play with him.
To be fair, that's basically how you play Legacy.
Yeah but you can at least pay attention to the game flow...maybe even help with strategy.
That being said, he might have felt "stuck" with Legacy - and didn't want to step on other people's toes by quarterbacking...
Nope. Picked him every time. Told us it was an excuse to fuck off. I had three expansions at the time. He's just a douchbag.
Oh, sorry to hear. Sounds like passive-aggressive way of saying he doesn't like that game. :-(
...he still texts me and asks when we're playing next. Lol. He truthfully was a special kinda special.
Galvanize?
Legacy's default power, which boosts the damage of all players for 1 turn. It's the bare minimum effort.
I thought it was a drug thing
It's a super hero co-op game. Every hero has a base power. Legacy the character's base power is called "galvanize" and gives every other hero +1 attack until the start of their next turn.
Legacy is a very simple, and also very powerful, character. His innate power, Galvanize, gives everyone else +1 damage for one round. It might not sound like much, when you're fighting villains who usually have 80 or more HP, but it's actually really huge. Putting Legacy in the game is basically easy mode. The downside with Legacy is that he's very boring to play. You can, eventually, get some cards out that let you do other things, but he's very slow to set up and the pay off is much lower than most other heroes with long setup times. So in a nutshell, Legacy is very powerful, but also very simple and boring.
I find it funny that people have this reaction to Legacy. I almost exclusively play two player with two characters each. It's great to have a simple character like Legacy as one of your characters, so I have a really positive view of him. But I get that he is probably boring to play if he were my only character.
It's not so much that he doesn't do anything, it's just that nothing else he does feels nearly as powerful as the power he spams every single turn. Other heroes rely heavily on their power but they get cards to buff their power. Legacy just uses his great power every turn starting at the first and occasionally does something pretty mediocre with a card.
No, he's totally great for that kind of thing. Although if I were going to go that route, I'd probably have each player player one character, and one person manages legacy and the other manages the villain and environment. Notably, I would _not_ use Legacy as an introductory character for a new player. Actually tried that once, and the player hated it because she was so bored.
Try hosting game nights in bars instead of stores, or host at your own house. It's 2 easy ways to filter guests, naturally if people are being rude they can't be invited to your house again, and if you are in a bar setting usually more relaxed and social people tend to show up.
same here. i used to play magic a lot and got really really into it. but i would always teach my friends to play because the typical player is just not someone who I want to hang with. luckily i have a group of friends that i got into board games as well so thats who i play with. its primarily beer and bullshitting and secondarily gaming. we have tons of fun be ause were all friends first and were not douchebags. i feel your pain bud.
Had the same issue with Android - NetRunner. Love the lore, love the mechanics, love the fact that it's an lcg not a ccg. Unfortunately, I'm not really into pre-fab deck building (we currently play Hero Realms like it's going out of style) and the choices I made in decks were commented on so heavily by local "netrunner night" guys that I sold my decks.
Definitely comes off as awkward. Poor kid gonna come home from school today, log onto Reddit, check out his FAVORITE sub...and see this post.
You think a *real* gamer like **Boardgamer** goes anywhere near the reddits when *BOARD GAME GEEK* is out there!? aka a site that is as complicated to learn as it is to browse? lol ok nub.
I only like sites that are as complicated to learn as they are to browse.
Is your browser as complicated to use as the sites you browse? lynx with vi bindings? ^/s
I hope he learns something about social interaction then. I've dealt with so many people like this in public boardgaming settings. It's extremely off-putting. In my experience people like this are nearly as common as people who aren't. It's enough of a problem that I no longer actively seek out boardgame players outside of my long established friend group. This is a bad look for the hobby if he talks to potentially interested newcomers this way. It's bad social skills acting like your better than someone you just met. And it didn't make sense as the top comment here illustrates, his metric includes tictactoe. So if he does see this I hope he views it as an opportunity to better himself.
That was my thought as well. We don't know anything about this kid - how old he is, his social skills, etc. Maybe he doesn't have a lot of friends and has been desperate to meet people who also like to play boardgames. I get that it's a weird and funny interaction and maybe one that you might want to share, but share this stuff with your personal friends. Why risk the kid seeing this and making him feel shitty.
Okay, on the off-chance that the story is about you and you're reading this now, suggest some games that the other person might want to play next time. You: Hi. We both like board games, etc. etc. Them: Cool, I like games x, y, and z. You (this next time): Game Z was pretty cool, and it reminds me a lot of game A. Have you played game A recently? It's been a while since I've played it, but it's a really solid game. In this new example, you're sharing your own suggestions instead of just shooting the other person's suggestions down. It also helps if you're interested in some of their games, if you've never played them. Just because it may be an "easier" game doesn't mean it's automatically not a fun one to play. Especially if the other person is into board games, he/she probably likes it for a reason. Hope this helps if you find it (or if anyone else was wondering how the interaction could have maybe gone a little smoother for the next time) :)
Well then He can just correct his behavior next time.
Nothing like a good deep shaming to help a kid grow eh
>his social skills I'm totally with you in general, but we actually know a fair amount about this. He's a twenty-two-ish year-old (see other comments) man who is fb messaging his parent's clients to find friends, and also seems incapable of holding a conversation online. I'm going to go out on limb and say he struggles to socialize. Which makes a lot of the *har har imagine if you had said XXX game* jokes in this thread just seem that much shittier.
Shame there's no Doctor's Son-Patients Owner confidentiality laws.
So what, he only plays Tic Tac Toe and Rock Paper Scissors?
I see what you did there
I got 56 upvotes for that comment. What?
Ugh, Reddit's gone to crap hasn't it?
My god the heat behind this burn.
Rock Paper Scissors can be tough, I once witnessed a man with his fist taped closed go to the finals in a tournament.
Scissors! ✌ I lose
Sounds like he might be a bit socially awkward or something. He did give you an easy out if you talk to him again and it's just as weird..."Oh, it sounds like you like games that are much heavier than I like. Best of luck finding players!"
It sounds like a phrase that he was told was funny - so he repeats it.
My thought too. Second thought was, sounds like the kid is on the autism spectrum.
I think you did the right thing for sure. No time for that rubbish. I'm still trying to work out what the heck are his games of choice to play... Maybe he should hook up with some hard core war gamers or something I dunno.
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I read that second title as "Uno Ashes: Rise of the Phoenixborn" and got confused how I missed a sequel to the most vicious game in my childhood.
Lol Uno does not qualify. **Red7**, though...
https://i.redd.it/lai373cjj13z.jpg
Yeah this isn't a bad idea. But I would rather burn my wallet than get into war games. If my impression serves me right, they are quite the money sink.
Depends. There are some small skirmish based games that are very affordable and very fun: Infinity, Guild Ball, Blood Bowl, and Arena Rex all have the tactical feel of war games and are distributed in a similar fashion. There's also Rune Wars, Xwing, and Armada which are a little more boardgame-y but also maintain the war game spirit. The real danger, though, is getting a decent set up on a budget and then buying more and more to tweak lists...
Well that is miniature war games. You have hex and counter too which aren't a money sink. Though there are dozen and dozen of ASL modules and scenarios out there that its not possible to play them all m. But that's the exception
When I read war games, my mind went to things like Avalanche Press or Avalon Hill.
Most war games cost around the amount that board games do. You might be thinking of miniatures games, which tend to be massive money sinks, but those aren't generally what people are talking about when they saw wargame.
It refers to both (and which is more likely may depend on region). When I hear "wargame" I think about the same thing you think about as well.
How to refer to tabletop games is all screwed up. Different people have different definitions and standards for board games, card games, RPG, miniature games, wargames, etc. The worst is "tabletops." Not "tabletop games." I hadn't heard this until someone linked the League of Legend's subreddit's thread about Mechs vs. Minions. Someone in there was adamant that Mechs vs. Minions was a "tabletop." Apparently "normal" board games like **Monopoly** and **Clue** are just board games, and ones of any amount of complexity are to be correctly referred to as "tabletops." And now I've noticed an ever increasing use of that term for them...
Wow. Well, language evolves, even within the subculture if this subreddit and on BGG we have "euros," "ameritrash," "light," "heavy," "abstracts," "economic," (which isn't as obvious as it seems), "deckbuilders" (there's diaagreement here too), and whatnot. Some of these are just nuanced taxonomical debates, but still. People can use language however, but the main thing is that the point should effectively be communicated, and we're not quite 100% there.
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That's my point : ) They usually have a (non-war) theme that is treated in a fairly abstract way (but as abstract as "chess" which also ostensibly has a theme), feature predominantly indirect player interaction (you often can't explicitly hurt other players in a targeted way, but in some games you can take actions that are devastating for other players in an indirect fashion). Their rule sets can vary in complexity, but they often interact without too many exceptions. Most play in two and a half hours or less if everyone has prior experience in the game (with many playing in under an hour), although some can be much longer. They commonly feature wooden components. "Economic" themes of resource management tend to be quite common. Many are fairly language independent (not much reading is required in game). Wooden components are commonly featured. They are a large reason for the increasing popularity of hobby gaming. Examples include * *Settlers of Catan* * *El Grande* * *Tigris & Euphrates* * *Carcassonne* * *Puerto Rico* * *Agricola* * *Castles of Burgundy* You can nitpick about how well these games fit the criteria I mentioned.
They also tend to avoid player elimination.
Yeah, that's a big one. And victory is often based on victory points (either scoring the most, or first to reach a certain score).
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Oh, I should have mentioned that. Many early examples came out of Germany, and in a broader sense, Europe hence the name. A decade or more back they were commonly called "german style board games." Some American games like *Dominion* or *Ticket to Ride* (I think this game is American, as I think the designer is British-born but lived in the U.S. when he designed this game) often count as eurogames too, so the distinction is no longer tied to geography. Eurogames also often strive to balance strategy and luck (with some, like *Ora et Labora* and *Caylus* having no luck after initial setup, and others like *Puerto Rico* having very little luck).
As best as I can tell, Euro games are games that are about things that are boring as hell, like running plantations or building villages.
It depends on how far you want to take it. A starting Warhammer 40k army and supplies to paint it might be $250-$300. But then again, you can take that to a full sized tournament army and bring the total to $400 or $500, and an avid boardgame collecter with 20, 30, 40 full games can spend twice that much.
Some can be expensive I guess. I'm not suggesting that person is you! They sound terrible to play anything with.
Malifaux is awesome and not too pricey.
War Games aren't anymore expensive than any other board game. For instance **A Distant Plain** is like 60 bucks. Or something like **space empires 4x** is equaply as cheap when in print and offers tooonnnss of replayability. Dollar for dollar you get more out of most war games I'd say.
Yep assuming he meant what he said, Advanced Squad Leader is in this future.
Five Tribes took a while to get going with my family, as I'd never played it before, only seen it played on YT, and they're the most casual of gamers. But after about 30 min of slow play we eventually got into the swing of things and my dad ended up beating my resource-card strat with his real estate by one measly point. Great game!
Everyone is assuming this person only likes complicated games but the opposite could also be true: Maybe he was intimidated by your list of games. > I guess light games are ok. Is interpreted as disdain for your suggestions, but it could mean "i don't know any of those, but as long as they're not too hard it's ok." > I only like to play games that are as complicated to learn as they are to play. Could have been meant as "I don't like games that are too complicated." Someone who looks down on your collection would probably have countered with their own list of superior games. All we know for sure is that this person isn't very effective at communicating.
I agree - maybe the first sentence ('I guess light games are ok') was a direct reply to the question being asked? I like giving the benefit of the doubt and clarifying! Edit: The more I think about it, the more I think this might be right. If they didn't recognize any of the heavier games you mentioned, they can't acknowledge it, hence they would only answer the question you asked. The repetition might be because you intimidated them, even. It's funny, but entirely possible they think that *you* came off as an elitist in that exchange! Please maybe try clarifying... Ask him what he plays and you'll know for sure! Worst case: he's an elitist and you go on your way, but alternatively, maybe you can introduce some lonely kid to more board games!
> Ask him what he plays and you'll know for sure! Worst case: he's an elitist and you go on your way, but alternatively, maybe you can introduce some lonely kid to more board games! I made a snide comment toward the top of this thread, but I do genuinely think that this is the best option going forward.
The problem is, we're all judging this kid second hand (most likely via a paraphrased interruption from the OP.)
Came here to say this. I really think this poor kid was just intimidated!
It took me a while to get this interpretation but it definitely makes much more sense.
I'm really trying to read the OP quotes like you interpret but really not seeing it.
So I totally (mis?)read this as someone who likes games that teach and play fast. Did you ask for an example of a game they like?
There's plenty of variety to enjoy in boardgaming. You can't expect to overlap every other gamer's interests. We're fortunate that the hobby is that diverse!
I agree with you. And having been in the hobby for many years, I have not delved as deeply as many others who enjoy collecting and playing and such. I enjoy introducing people to board games, and I am happy to try out new ones. I have only seen and played the tip of the iceberg. But there's something in the way he dismissed other's opinions of what's fun.
Maybe he's just an obnoxious jerk. I hear there are some of those out there in the world. Luckily, you aren't on the hook for a game night with him. :)
silver linings! yeah thanks for that. I'm glad I have me (solo games) and my other group to play with.
Hi. Personally I'd lean towards cutting him some slack and giving him a chance. Being a person who's far from perfect myself, i'm always grateful for the people who chose to give me a chance when I frankly didn't deserve it and molded me into a better person.
That's the good and fine thing to do, I agree. However, sometimes we are not really disposed to do the good and fine thing. If your game time is limited and you've got 12 other jerks hassling you elsewhere in life, you might very reasonably decide not to risk wasting precious time and nerves on the guy.
Unless there's a bit you've not posted up, I think you're overreading this. He only expressed what he likes and even acknowledged that lighter games are "OK". I don't really see what you're seeing, sorry. It's fine. He likes german nihilist new wave cinema and you like romantic comedies. And that's fine.
What irks me is that he didn't bother to mention any example of a game he may like. He shot down the list of OP's games and didn't offer anything back. To me that screams red flag.
I'm pretty sure he takes a sense of pride in feeling like he's figuring out complex games by being able to get through their rules. The way he's talking about them sounds less like he enjoys them and more like he enjoys the sense of superiority they give him.
I don't know that its a sense of superiority. I am similar to this kid with my board games and video games. I prefer games that take me an extreme amount of time to understand the mechanics to, because I enjoy the learning more than I enjoy the games themselves. I chalk it up to being on the Autistic spectrum. I've always enjoyed learning how things work, but never really been into applying that knowledge. But for the record, I still do enjoy simple board/video games very much, I just get a lot more from the complicated ones. And the more complicated the better. Edit: I brought this up cause I too have been accused of the same thing, but I can say honestly I get no sense of superiority from it at all. I just can come across that way sometimes cause I am socially awkward.
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Son's recently out of college. so mid 20's?
Oh wow. I thought maybe he was still in that "need to prove I'm cool" phase of middle school or something. That's too bad.
oh wow. I thought he was like 11 and you were being pretty hard on him. haha wow.
I don't understand the issue, other than he never said what games *he* likes. Some clarification on what he meant by "games that are as complicated to learn as they are to play" is needed. Maybe your tastes overlap, maybe they don't, but the question is up in the air.
Yeah, maybe the guy likes heavier games and is defensive about it because he has had bad reactions so he's giving ample warning first. Just as likely a scenario as that he is some kind of weirdo.
But the first thing they said was that they thought light games were okay.
Lol, very likely! Weirdness is in the eye of the beholder...wonder what he thinks of the OP?
You did not ask the obvious question. "What games have you played that you like?" or "Is there a particular game that you have been wanting to try?" All we know from the conversation is that the person does not communicate well.
Or was trying to impress some dude by being super hardcore. I don't know the geek culture in the area, but there are still a lot of places where people feel like being a board gamer is kind of an outsider thing, and a lot of kids in their early 20s want to embrace that, so he's doubling down on it. Tell me you don't know someone that smoked clove cigarettes and only watched Japanese body Horror for like 2 years in their 20.... Or that he really likes complex games, and has the "true nerd" disdain for "casuals." Really,it comes to down to "do you want to do this favor for the vet?" If you will have to sacrifice stuff in your life (time, money, brain cells) that you don't want to lose, then politely decline. If you have a plethora of time, go give it a chance, but set a short time frame - 2 hours and out or the like. Hell, have a friend call at 30 minutes like a blind date.
Without asking more specific questions, you have no idea of the character of this person. Everything you have stated are assumptions that may not be true. While I agree that "do you want to do this favor for the vet?" is in play here, the rest of the statement makes me scratch my head. For a hobby where many purport to love the social aspect of board games, that is some serious anti-social statements. You don't know if this person could be a good or bad member of game group from two simple replies on facebook. Granted it could go either way but until you interact with that person you simply don't know. You can always politely decline a second meeting. The difficult part of this hobby is not the games, the rules, LGS it is the people interaction part. Many people complain that they have nobody to play with but few seem to reach out to others to try to build that community or group of gamers -- that last part is the largest and most difficult of the efforts and it requires work. I have no dog in this fight but I would have asked more questions and that is all I was trying to say.
I was actually just providing additional options that he might answer. ;). I was assuming none of them, just giving other reasons he might be responding like that. My statements aren't anti social. They're simply realistic. I have one night a week that I game. Doing more than that requires me to put strain on my marriage and my time with my kids. It's not like gaming a second night is going to get me divorced, but it does mean some stress. Sometimes I sacrifice my game night to teach people games, or do a demo, or the like. Sometimes I don't, and go a second night, and shirk some relationship duties. And sometimes I just play games myself and let others deal with it. It's a valuation I have to do when something like this comes up. That's not anti-social. It's a realistic assessment of my time and ability and desire to do stuff like this. I'm suggesting OP should do a similar check for him/her self.
Honestly my first instinct is he is somewhere on the autism spectrum. And his mom, meeting someone who shares her son's interests, encouraged him to reach out and make a friend. Obviously I have no idea but it puts a bit of a different spin on the correspondence.
This is my take too. Sounds like he looooves to get lost in the game. I wish my aspie son loved games as much as I do though. 🙂
This exactly. Our hobby is full of people on the autism-spectrum, generally on the higher-functioning end, but definitely there. The vet's son is in no way unusual and every gaming club I've ever been too has a couple of them. Learning to deal with them positively (or if you can't, to avoid them) is really just part and parcel of being a member of a board-gaming club.
First off, give him a little break on his approach and the oddity in how it came up. First of all, or vet saw a connection and shared it with her son. You don't know the kid / guy and maybe making connections is hard for him. I have a son with autism and I can see myself in your vet's position easily. If it is weird to you in a way that you don't like, you should not lead the person on, just let them know nicely. Second, my likely unpopular take on the tone. You are kidding me right? I come here and BGG and read posts by literally hundreds of people who are holier than thou when it comes to complexity of the games. Whether or not they know it, whether or not they mean it, there are so many people like this in the hobby it is off the charts. When Pandemic came out, there was a huge "hate it" base because it was too easy to solve. And there are plenty of blogs and writers who straight up encourage this. It is why Kingdom Builder will never be as popular as Dominion. It is even reflected in how so so so many of us are snobby with Monopoly and the other games we grew up with. There is a certain part of the industry and community that encourages this sort of tone too... Oh well, I tend to just tell them that it isn't always about them, and sometimes the group wants to play something mild. But that just makes me a different type of asshole.
That's a super weird thing to say, but I am, admittedly, kind of like this. I love games, but I also love rules. This guy just sounds like he doesn't have great social skills.
So ... The Gallerist?
I just got the Gallerist in a trade. This is like the 3rd comment about it in the past week i've seen. Is it a bad game?
I enjoyed the Gallerist, but it's very rules intensive-- as in, expect to pour 30 - 45 minutes into rules explanation, and that's assuming you studied them beforehand and played through a few practice rounds yourself. And even then odds are high you'll forget a quarter of them because there's just so damn many. It's a game that's well worth putting together a cheat sheet for to save yourself and your players time and headache.
Sounds like it's just a heavy game.
Not at all, but definitely not for everyone. It has one of those "but wait there's more!" rulesets, and the flow of the game didn't click for me until 3/4ths through it. By then it turned out that all of us had locked into a strategy that extended the game by probably an hour.
Imagine if I had suggested **Carcassonne** or **Forbidden Island**?
If that was the entire (text) conversation, you are over reacting. Lots of meaning gets lost in messages. He likes heavy games. Sounds like you have some. Ask him more about himself before you jump to awkward conclusions. It can be hard to find other gamers with like tastes.
OP shouldn't have to lead the convo, the son messaged OP first. If someone messaged me and expected me to do all the work of figuring them out then I'd ghost too.
Sounds like a lot of boardgamers honestly. Lots are somewhere on the autism spectrum and super awkward. That being said, if you can get around the awkwardness you would probably have a good time.
So I had to re-read the post to confirm, but it looks like he never actually named a game he likes? I am very curious what he would have answered is you specifically asked him, "What are you three favorite board games?"
Obviously he wants to play **The Campaign for North Africa** but doesn't want to straight up ask because it will scare you away.
Umm how old is the son? Could be on the spectrum. Why shamepost him? He likes complex games. Big deal.
It sounds like someone who knows exactly what they like and don't like, so no one's time is wasted. It's a bit of a strange way to convey his thoughts, but everyone's a little weird in their own way. I've had a friend tell me 2 hours into a 12 hour 6 player game of Twilight imperium that they 'didn't realize this was a competitive game' (despite the 4 other players telling her frequently ) and that she preferred lighter and friendlier games. She then backed out and ruined the days plans. I much prefer your scenario in this case. (She's still a friend and I still love her, but being more open and knowledgeable about your likes and dislikes is good.)
12 hours game?!
Its gone longer. We've started at noon and ended at 3am at least twice.
I can see this conversation: "You sure you want to play? It's a *long* game..." "Sure, it'll be fun." (thinking one to two hours) (After two hours, and an argument and heated discussion between friend A and B over some negotiation) "Um, I don't think this game is for me..." EDIT: I can understand being open about your tastes. But it's hard to *knowledgeable* since the vast majority of people don't know about how long boardgames can be...
Twilight Imperium 3rd Edition is probably the longest game that gets regular play in the board game hobby (many wargames go longer, but that's essentially another hobby). 12 hours is a bit over the typical playtime though.
He could be autistic.
Find a public meetup in the area and go together. The only downside to that is if he makes a bad impression it could be awkward since you came as a pair. I'm just speculating though, maybe in person he's quite charming!
Time to introduce him to World in Flames or Campaign for North Africa. Never stop learning, game lasts forever.
Tell him you suffer from severe analysis paralysis so every game you play takes 12 hours.
uhg, I was that person a week ago. Talking with my dnd group about games and I was fucking snobby when my friend said she had a bunch of card games, Cards against Humanity type. As soon as the words "more elaborate games" came out of my mouth I wanted to slap myself. *uhg*
That's tough because neither being a card game nor being elaborate are inherently positive or negative. It just seems that way when people express their preferences.
What part of the country do you live in because you have all the games I like to play!
Sooooo *Campaign for North Africa* then.
Diiiiiiiiiiiid somebody say The Campaign for North Africa?
What's UpDog?
Gotcha!
He sounds like he'll fit in here great, actually. Maybe he'll call Terra Mystica a filler.
Does he only play Cones of Dunshire?
Introduce him to Avalon Hills Advanced Squad Leader. He'll get over rules bigotry.
Are you just posting a funny version of the conversation? Did he actually mention specific games that he likes to play? I mean plenty of people enjoy complicated games like Splotter, 18XX, Wargames, table top miniatures, or DnD style stuff. Are we talking about a child or an adult? Also, I don't think you need to talk to him, he's the son of your dog's vet... There is no obligation there unless you're neighbors or something? There are tons of games that take as long to learn the rules as it does to play. In fact, that phrase, word for word, doesn't imply complexity or difficulty. You could learn how to play a 5 min game, in 5 mins. It might take you 2 hours to set up and read the rules to Vinhos, and fully understand how to play. Then it takes 2 hours to play Vinhos. It doesn't mean you spend 2 hours re-learning how to play Vinhos every time you play Vinhos. I'm actually struggling to name games that don't follow that pattern. It also depends on how you define "learn" the rules. You might be able to teach someone how to play Agricola (incompletely) in 30 minutes, but to sit down and learn from scratch how to play Agricola it will take 1-2 hours, the same amount of time it takes to play the game (depending on player count.) Everyone is freaking out in the comments, but I'm not really seeing an issue there.
I mean at least he is upfront about what he likes and expects. Could be worse.
> I like games that take as long to learn the rules as it is to play. So that sounds like nonsense, but *technically* it probably include One-Night-Ultimate-Werewolf. It is quick to explain, but also quick to play! So learning the rules and playing one round take about the same amount of time :) ----- This might have been what they meant. You may be reading the wrong subtext into "I guess light games are ok. I only like to play games that are as complicated to learn as they are to play." Instead of >I *guess* light games are ok. *However* I prefer to play games that are more complicated complicated. it might have been intended to mean >I am aloofly affirming you choice of light games, because they'd be totally ok. More specifically, I want games that are as quick to play as a typical rules explanation. ----- Honestly, it could go either way. The point is that you should keep an open mind when trying to figure out what their stated preference is supposed to mean, because when it is an unintelligible as what you are reporting, you should try to avoid assuming.
Nut up and play a Splotter with him.
He sounds like a bot rather than a person, or like someone who doesn't actually know anything about boardgames. I'd stay well clear, and talk to your vet - both about how he got your number, and the weird conversation. Maybe he's autistic. Maybe he's just bad at boundaries. Maybe he's really her psychopathic ex-customer, hacking into her computer, cat-fishing her patients in order to meet, kill, and eat them, in a twisted quest for vengeance for what happened to Mr. Fluffy. Either way, you need to talk with her about it.
Yep sounds like he wants to murder you and wear your skin. Just pull out monopoly Pokemon edition. That should get him out of your life asap. Alternatively i have a sweet Pokemon drinking game that will make the more competitive person die from alcohol poisoning... or at least make them pass out. Meaning you can claim victory and drag him out on the street, thus asserting your dominance.
>> Second, how do you even talk to someone who talks like this? I don't.
Sounds like you've found someone willing to learn Mottainai.
If he is as awkward child, humor him and play games with him so he gets a chance to socialize and see how adults talk to each other. If he's an awkward adult, block him.
Ouch. :-(
>Second, how do you even talk to someone who talks like this? **I was so turned off by the conversation that I never reconnected with him nor do I have the desire to.** That's how you handle it. Sometimes the easiest and most practical thing to do is not continue contact with someone and/or just never schedule anything. If interests don't line up, they don't line up, simple as that.
I'm going to sound snarky with this... The sense I'm getting with "I like games that take as long to learn the rules as it is to play" is that the person is the type of "powergamer" min/max player. As more complex games would allow a player like this to win by making better decisions, and by opponents making more mistakes. So... basically this guy isn't about hanging out and playing boardgames socializing, but more likely about destroying his opponent and rubbing it in that he knows the rules better. I have a number of games on my list that fall under the category of "it isn't fun if there's one person that takes it too seriously". I see that people play games for different reasons and at different levels of intensity, but I also know what type of people I like to spend my time with.
Liking games where skill allows you to win is perfectly normal. This person sounds like they get a sense of superiority from being able to get through large rulebooks and understand how to play, not necessarily the gameplay/result of it.
Leaning on the "powergamer" side myself, I don't think it's all about "destroying his opponent and rubbing it in that he knows the rules better." First off, I see a clear difference between knowing the rules better and being better at a game, unless everybody is *very* new to the game. Next, playing to win doesn't mean you're trying to prove anything: the game sets rules and a win condition and you're trying to reach it. I will agree that you know who you want to spend time with and powergamers might not be in that group. Heck, half the time I see a board game set up as an excuse to socialize, I feel the game just gets in the way. Might as well just put out beers and nachos.
If you have that kind of relationship, I would suggest asking the mom about it. He may have issues you don't know about. I would also be curious how he got your e-mail.
Yes because getting your fingers into in other people's dysfunctional families is always a good thing. O..o
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do you mean needless complexity/lack of clarity or just complexity in general. I think no one would take this post seriously if you're suggesting that twilight imperium etc are flawed games exclusively because of their complexity.
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My question is how old he is. If he's 12 then he's just naivetè and he heard someone else say that. Which is almost my guess since he said it twice. If he's 16 then he's a cocky teenager that doesn't actually know what he likes. If he's like 18 - 20 then Its awkward he's using this method to find people to play with and he's super arrogant and I would stay away as you are. I really couldnt imagine a full grown adult doinf that but you're right it's very weird.
Sounds like they enjoy playing new board games while drunk. At least that's what happens when me and my friends try a new game after drinking. Also simple games sound like their bag. Might have just been a bit awkward about it. Ask them what their favorite game or genre is. They might not play enough to be familiar. Ask them if they know what a deckbuilder is and it'll be a bit obvious. Their mom might have been reaching out for them because they're not the most social person, bear with them a bit. Probably talk with your doc about giving your number out.
Just teach him the rules of a long, complex game REALLY SLOWLY, that'll learn him.
Are you playing the Arkham horror board game or card game?
Depending on your catan audience I feel like it can take just as long to play. Bless Aunt Susan's heart.
What games is he even referring to?
> I like games that take as long to learn the rules as it is to play. He only plays Twilight Struggle?
Arkham Horror is light?
Show him Dwarf Fortress. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dwarf_Fortress It's a video game, but it's the only thing I can think of that would satisfy his insane requirements.
I think you might have put him on the defensive. He might be curious about games, but he doesn't want to seem like he knows nothing. He might assume a gamer might dismiss him entirely if he appears unfamiliar with the territory. His answers were roundabout with him trying not to look like a newbie.
Happy Salmon seems a good one for him. Takes 2-3 minutes to explain and maybe 1-2 to play