Watch your Back: Week May 14 to 20
As we approach the middle of May, crowdfunding is getting busier. We have plenty of releases this time, so let's get started.
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Aeon Trespass: Odyssey returns to Kickstarter with a reprint and the Twelve Sins of Herakles standalone expansion.
AT: O is a 1-4 player cooperative campaign game set in a retro-futurist universe inspired by ancient Greek myths. You are playing as the Argonauts, embarking on adventures and fighting dark Primordial monsters. The expansion is a sequel to the base game, and comes with new campaigns, new heroes and enemies, and new mechanisms. It is launching on Kickstarter on May 16.
Personal opinion: I don't play campaign games anymore, not just because I don't have the time to play them, but also because I don't play them again once finished.
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On the same day (May 16) on Kickstarter, we have Ahotnik: a 1-12 player team vs. team game in which the pilots of mechs fight other mechs as well as interfering demons.
Pilots have to coordinate their actions in order to activate the robots and make them move and attack. In the meantime, if the global threat level rises, demons may spring through portals and threaten to exterminate the mechs. The game may receive a co-op mode during the Kickstarter, which probably means it can then be played solo. There is not enough info out yet.
Personal opinion: I quite like the theme but don't think it's ideal for solo.
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Moving on to Dead Cells: The Rogue-Lite Board Game. This is a 1-4 player cooperative dungeon crawler in which you explore the island of Dead Cells and use the cells to mutate and resurrect yourself when you die.
As you wander through the dungeon, you will be able to pick up scrolls, and open chests to find weapons. These will help you kill a few enemies before you die and come back stronger to kill again. It is launching on Kickstarter on May 16.
Personal opinion: This one sports a French all-star designer team, so I expect it will do well on KS. Malhereusement, I'm not 100% sold on it, and will wait to watch a video first.
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Detective: City of Angels is getting a new expansion called Saints & Sinners.
The base game is a 1-5 player deduction and traitor game in which players solve crimes in 1940s Los Angeles, while one of them is the Chisel, trying to sabotage the investigation. In the solo mode, you are reading through the Sleuth book and trying to solve the cases by yourself.
The expansion includes 3 cases, one of which is Smoke & Mirrors, which was first released as a single case pack. If you already have it, you will be able to pledge for the other two cases only. It is launching on Gamefound on May 16.
Personal opinion: I haven't played D: CoA but, judging by Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective, it may be a game I enjoy more as a co-op.
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Disrupt is a 1-4 player asymmetric economic game in which players take on the role of a StartUp company manager, a market leader, an investor, and a business process outsourcer, all trying to make the most profit. This is a worker placement card-driven game, and each role plays differently. Solo rules haven't been revealed yet. It is launching on Kickstarter on May 16.
Personal opinion: Asymmetry is always interesting, as long as there are multiple players at the table.
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Evolution: Another World is a 1-4 player hand management game in which you create mutated animals so that they can survive their environment.
Your goal is to gather enough energy with which to power your creatures and help them transmute. Opponents' creatures can be attacked for you to gain more energy. Solo rules haven't been revealed yet. It is launching on Kickstarter on May 17.
Personal opinion: Another game which I suspect is better multiplayer.
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And lastly, we have Monster Hunter World Iceborne: The Board Game. This is a standalone sequel to Monster Hunter World, the 1-4 player cooperative arena battle game.
In the base game, you choose your hunter and face giant creatures on the battlefield by playing your hand of cards. The same applies in Iceborne, but this time a second beast may enter the scene. The invader comes in at half its health points but it may still attack you as well as the other creature. It is launching on Kickstarter on May 18.
Personal opinion: I'm not so much into boss battle games, as I feel like I'd be missing other aspects like exploration and variety of encounters.