Some thoughts on some of the solo games I played in April 2022
Ark Nova - The big hype for some months now on BGG. I enjoyed several multiplayer games and hearing there was an out of the box solo variant, I pre-ordered the Dutch edition. Having received my copy and playing the solo variant 5 times, at this moment I'm a bit lukewarm on the solo game. It a different game compared to the multiplayer game. It's fixed 27 actions with pauses at fixed times and I'm not so sure I'm a big fan of that. It's marked as a heavy game but for that type of game, I have the impression the luck in card draw is a big factor. You only maybe see like 30 of the 200+ cards. So I don't know, are my expectations incorrect, do I just need to get good at the solo game? Mixed feelings.
Paper Tales - At the start of the month, I actually put this game up for sale on a Facebook page. After getting some feedback, I gave it another try and now I really like it and in the foreseeable future can't see me selling it. I initially got burned on the game because I played it multiplayer and the group didn't like the game. But now that the dust has settled, I'm happy I gave it a second chance and allow myself to look at the game with a fresh pair of eyes.
Unsettled - I'm playing the 4th planet (out of 6) and really enjoying this game. This is in my regular rotation for the coming months.
Astroforce - a smooth and enjoyable dice chucker and something I pull out when my brain energy is low.
Rove - One of the PnPs I constructed this month and the one I liked the most. Tricky spatial puzzle and I have yet to get a win in.
Island Alone - A PnP which I only printed the minimum to see how it played. It was ok but not really challenging. Hope it's not a beat your own score. I'll print some of the other scenario's and see if that provides more of a challenge.
Ragemore - Another PnP but for the moment can't really grasp what I'm supposed to do. Need to play it a bit more.
"...the card game where you do stuff then lose". 😄
Little story: I had purchased everything for Paper Tales (that is, the game, and the expansion that introduced the solo mode). Then I started to play the game on Steam. I thought it was interesting, but not something I would feel like keeping. So I sold back everything, still new in shrink (and of course, I lost money in the process).
It does seem like a nice game. I am really interested in whatever the designer may be doing. Somehow my story is a bit sad as it shows that some people in the hobby just utterly lack control and lash on consumerism in despicable ways. But I also don't regret getting rid of it, in the end. I didn't like the "aging" mechanism that forces you to lose the cards you have drafted - I'm the kind of person who, somehow, likes to hold on. I also didn't like finding the right synergies between the cards.
Still, it's a very nice game. I can definitely see how it could be enjoyable to many.
Ragemore: I'm like you. I think of this game as "the card game where you do stuff then lose". Actually, the designer very kindly offered some advice (here):
Try to build your party so you have 3 or 4 strength. It will help you to get even more cards into the party as you will win fights.
Then, when the moment is right, start questing.
Skip actions if they will build a quest with cards that have same resources as you have, then quest.
Sacrifice party members into the graveyard only as a last option, and if you do, do it to gain the card with most strength.
That seems like a nice mix, Wouter. I've only played Ragemore and Astroforce, but the low brain-energy games work well for me. 🙂 My brain generally doesn't willingly engage in much high-energy activity anymore.