Reviews & Previews of Indie and Kickstarted Games
Fairway’s a patent attorney. So when he heard Gamelyn Games’ news that they were seeking patent protection for their meeple with holes for items, his professional interest and curiosity was picqued. He takes you through patent law, but his recommendation to game designer may come as a surprise.
I’m not sure if it has more to do with science or the stunning crimson vistas, but lately it seems like everyone is packing their bags for Mars. The red planet has been a beacon for human imagination for years, from Robert Heinlein’s The Green Hills of Earth to NASA’s push to the stars. Novelist Andy Weir stranded us on Mars in 2011, an adventure echoed four years later in Ridley Scott’s big screen adaptation of The Martian. Now game designer Jacob Fryxelius has set his sights on the planet as well, asking players to spend a couple hours bringing life and sustainability to the fourth rock from the Sun.
Fulfilling a campaign is one of the most expensive and time consuming aspects of running a Kickstarter campaign. Many first-time creators do not realize just how much work and money are going to spent on distributing the games to their backers. I have now fulfilled two campaigns, shipping the US rewards out myself, and I wanted to take the time to discuss the methods I chose for fulfillment in the hopes that it makes your lives easier when fulfilling your own campaigns!
When Fairway was a kid, he lived at a place with a great big woods in the backyard. There were plenty of places to build what he thought would be the Best Tree House Ever. It turns out that’s actually a really hard thing to do. Well, as luck would have it, Scott Almes and Green Couch Games have made it a lot easier. Today, Fairway reviews a Kickstarted game: Best Tree House Ever.
In episode 47, we go dinosaur wrangling in Dino Dude Ranch! A family friendly 2-5 player game that is really easy to learn, and really fun to play.
In what was quite possibly the fastest Kickstarter delivery ever, Fairway received his copy of Under My Bed. Under My Bed is a micro, deduction game by Chris Rowland. Find out if the Fairway’s scared of monsters or whether there’s only good fun in this tiny game.
Aliens know that the best thing in the universe is ice cream. Players have been saving the world from them for years now on their mobile devices. But Fairway was asked to save the universe, yet again, in today’s preview of the cooperative card game: Robots ❤️ Ice Cream.
In this edition of One to Many, we talk with designers about handling disagreements when it comes to co-designing.
Everyone knows elves love baking cookies even if OSHA might object to their unsafe working conditions–who puts hot ovens inside trees? But did you know that gnomes are willing to work really hard to steal them? Fairway found out the hard way that gnomes will stop at nothing to prevent other gnomes from making off with their precious cookie when he reviewed Steal the Cookie by Bradley Gaurano. Steal the Cookie is coming to Kickstarter, soon.
Fairway had a tough weekend for a convention, but managed to get in a few games: Lanterns, Valeria Card Kingdoms, The Guardians: EXPLORE, and Potion Explosion. Check out these mini-reviews!