I’m a gamer, always have been. Problem is for a large number of years that’s really just consisted of the video variety. That’s a huge mistake on my part, to not enjoy the video game’s analog brethren… the board game. There’s actually a vibrant and intense board game world out there that’s been pushed to the sidelines by game players such as ourselves for too long. In this column I’ll be diving into this world, looking at games that hopefully you’d like to try out for yourself.

OK I ain’t gonna lie, last column’s game ZERTZ was a bit of a mind-bender. Maybe abstract games aren’t really your thing, and that’s cool. Maybe you’re looking for something a bit lighter, fun and fancy free… well that’s fine too. Actually, it’s better than fine because today I’m going to hit you right in the face with what you’ve been looking for! It’s called Cloud 9 and point of the game is to earn points by braving the ride in a hot air balloon as it rises into the clouds. Potential points increase as the balloon rises, but so does the potential that it’ll crash and you’ll earn nothing! Jump out at the right time and you’ll run away with the victory!

Ready to take a ride? (more…)

I’m a gamer, always have been. Problem is for a large number of years that’s really just consisted of the video variety. That’s a huge mistake on my part, to not enjoy the video game’s analog brethren… the board game. There’s actually a vibrant and intense board game world out there that’s been pushed to the sidelines by game players such as ourselves for too long. In this column I’ll be diving into this world, looking at games that hopefully you’d like to try out for yourself.

A few weeks ago I wrote a column about the abstract board game DVONN, which I said was “harder than checkers but easier than chess.” It proved to be a big hit with readers, and led me down the obvious path of taking a look at another of the abstract games in the same series. ZERTZ is an interesting game and hard to nail down to a simple description, though I suppose I could say it’s kinda like Chinese Checkers on an ever-shrinking board.

It’s an intriguing concept to be sure, but is it fun? (more…)