tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post2821420362703279144..comments2023-11-03T02:44:56.790-07:00Comments on Fortress: Ameritrash: games i likeMatt Throwerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04426055092986158446noreply@blogger.comBlogger72125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-65177285509322781342007-08-27T10:54:00.000-07:002007-08-27T10:54:00.000-07:00Too Bad you're not down here in the ATL Riotgrrrl....Too Bad you're not down here in the ATL Riotgrrrl. We have several younger women who game with us. Some of them are quite vicious.<BR/><BR/>(That's right- I'm looking at you Elizabeth!)<BR/><BR/>Steve"weasleboy"AveryStephenAveryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12443764334663921706noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-55240758555883828522007-08-27T04:22:00.000-07:002007-08-27T04:22:00.000-07:00Rambling again. I can't help it. I haven't been th...<I>Rambling again. I can't help it. I haven't been this honestly vocal about my feelings on the community, my age, and how it all makes me feel in quite some time.</I><BR/><BR/>Welcome home, riotgrrlRliyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08644720690880433211noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-29929389659222846672007-08-25T22:27:00.000-07:002007-08-25T22:27:00.000-07:00I wasn't expecting such an overt response to my co...I wasn't expecting such an overt response to my comments, and frankly, I'm shocked.<BR/><BR/>You see, like most of the ATers have felt somewhat marginalized in the mainstream boardgame circles, I, too, have felt that marginalization. Perhaps even worse so, since in my demographic there are very few gamers. And in my city especially, there are few hardcore gamers of my age. It's sort of pushed me out of a hobby that I've wanted to be a part of for the longest time.<BR/><BR/>Boardgames for me have been the absolute guiltiest pleasure. I've only recently attempted to introduce my friends into them, since it is so niche and underground. Nobody really seems to get it. And it's frustrating. Sometimes I get the distinct feeling that I was born into the completely wrong generation.<BR/><BR/>If I introduce my friends into the hobby, their only comfortable source of information would be me. Honestly, a lot of things about BGG makes me uncomfortable. BSW makes me uncomfortable. That's why I wish that FFG and DoW would advertise more. At least there'd be a basis for me to introduce people to games. As it stands now, there is no such basis. Teenagers and young adults are a skeptical bunch. Who the hell would want to play an obsolete thing like a boardgame about StarCraft when you could just play the PC game? You have to give incentive to the newer generation to join the hobby, or else board games will die out past Monopoly, Candyland, and for the fortunate few, Risk (yes, I'd say about 90% of my friends have never played Risk. A few had never even heard of it). <BR/><BR/>The guidelines that I stated about starting up a club at my school were the official club rules. Of course, impromptu meetings of informal clubs could be held on campus and such, but it really is difficult to seek people out. Since I feel so uncomfortable and uncertain about my hobby (due to mainstream marginalization of younger board game player), I'm not really confident enough to "out" myself on my little board game obsession.<BR/><BR/>The college is Fordham, btw. :P<BR/><BR/>As for the column, Michael, I totally applaud you for even attempting to reach out to an audience that most people wouldn't even consider. When I read your blog posts a few months back about the whole youth ideas you had, I couldn't believe how true so much of it rang to me.<BR/><BR/>I can definitely understand showcasing older games. Being a retro videogamer myself, I have absolutely no qualms with it. I myself enjoyed reading about Space Crusade, a game that I would have known nothing about if it were not for F:AT. Although I highly doubt I'd ever play it (since I get to play literally nothing), it's interesting to read about a game that was pretty damn influential and forgotten in the hobby.<BR/><BR/>What might be a good idea would be to do an entire piece on Eon, that way you'd be able to link the upcoming reprints to the older, more classic games. Parallel reviews between old and new games of a similar variety and genre would probably be interesting as well. <BR/><BR/>Rambling again. I can't help it. I haven't been this honestly vocal about my feelings on the community, my age, and how it all makes me feel in quite some time.<BR/><BR/>- ChristineAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-44914095306052052172007-08-25T12:52:00.000-07:002007-08-25T12:52:00.000-07:00I'm sure its possible to form a decent club in thi...I'm sure its possible to form a decent club in this way, but in my experience its best to just focus on your circle of friends and try to get them into the games you like. If you need more people, get them to invite a friend or coworker they think might be interested. Playing in a more public place like a bar or coffee shop will occasionally draw regular people and connect you to more people who have similar interests (but can handle the real world as well). It also draws the ubergeeks but you can usually just ignore them. Of course I'm a male so that makes it easier I think.<BR/><BR/>Now let me just go ahead and say that I'm not against antisocial people in any way, in fact I prefer them most of the time. I've been involved in all kinds of anti-social behavior, from punk rock to dungeons and dragons to Socialist/Anarchist party meetings. But gamers, and RPGers especially...I don't know what it is. I guess what is most annoying is when an antisocial person has a god-like complex of superiority over those that have less knowledge than him in his narrow hobby. Or start taking games a little too seriously.<BR/><BR/>Anyway, riotgrrl your comments are spot on.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-81213528643258399832007-08-25T12:51:00.000-07:002007-08-25T12:51:00.000-07:00I've loved reading riotgrrl's comments on the boar...I've loved reading riotgrrl's comments on the boardgaming community...and the gaming community in general.<BR/><BR/>I grew up playing board games and RPGs with my brother and a few friends in the neighborhood...we were all fairly well adjusted and could function in society.<BR/><BR/>When I went to college in 1997, I tried much of the advice here to put out flyers and such to find some gamers...and only got a few responses from some very annoying people. One was into LARPing and showed up in costume...it was painful. After setting up this "Gamer's Club" thing myself, I was the first person to abandon it and never return after that first day.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-57354488121078908342007-08-25T07:18:00.000-07:002007-08-25T07:18:00.000-07:00anime (which I still hold is almost completely by,...<I>anime (which I still hold is almost completely by, for, and about pedophiles)</I><BR/><BR/>Now you're just falling into the anime version of con scum. It's not for pedos, albeit you take a look a the titles and you'd come to that tenuous connection. You're painting with a pretty broad brush there.<BR/><BR/>Just like with regular movies, they have niches. Most of the stuff I like is pretty vanilla: Record of Lodoss War, Fist of the North Star, Cowboy Bebop (love the theme), Voltron... to name just a few.Rliyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08644720690880433211noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-68374078451666013922007-08-25T06:07:00.000-07:002007-08-25T06:07:00.000-07:00anime (which I still hold is almost completely by,...<I>anime (which I still hold is almost completely by, for, and about pedophiles</I><BR/><BR/>I can't believe I actually agree with you about something.<BR/><BR/>But, just to clarify: is Voltron getting lumped into "Anime"?, because then I'd have to disagree. And I'm talking about the orignal Voltron not the goofy show with the lions.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-72434817753500616872007-08-24T18:22:00.000-07:002007-08-24T18:22:00.000-07:00So for anyone interested in a Dune emulation for t...So for anyone interested in a <I>Dune</I> emulation for the computer, this can be found here for example:<BR/><A HREF="http://www.the-underdogs.info/game.php?id=4802" REL="nofollow"><BR/>the-underdogs.info Link</A>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-16217333613751175692007-08-24T18:15:00.000-07:002007-08-24T18:15:00.000-07:00Michael, I bet one of your next "games i like" art...Michael, I bet one of your next "games i like" articles will include <I>Dune</I>, so make sure to point out to those videogamers, that this game can actually be had for the computer and it's even abandonware, which means it's free and legal to download from several of the pages where it is offered.<BR/><BR/><I>Dune</I> the computer game is exactly like the boardgame; the same goes for <I>Advanced Civilization</I> and the latter even has an excellent AI to play against solo. Otherwise there's the old PBEM system to be used, which is integrated in both games.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-88248222719089151762007-08-24T15:21:00.000-07:002007-08-24T15:21:00.000-07:00I see nothing wrong with taking a column every now...I see nothing wrong with taking a column every now and then to discuss old(er) games. I don't even think it's important if people go out and hunt down a copy. Getting a better understanding of the history of any hobby is a good thing. <BR/><BR/>I'd even be in favor of a Top 20 of All Time column because A) those are usually fun and easy reads and B) they're great debate columns. I know I don't agree with the top 20 games on BGG. Not by a long shot. Doesn't make my opinion right, but it's healthy to debate that sort of thing. <BR/><BR/>Videogame sites do this all the time because people actually like talking about that stuff. I see no reason why the same wouldn't be true for boardgames. <BR/><BR/>So yeah, retrospectives, in general are a good thing if they provide some balance to the rest of the columns.bill abnerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12557904727767952205noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-45346905641327864132007-08-24T14:50:00.000-07:002007-08-24T14:50:00.000-07:00Wow, crap writing...the point I was trying to make...Wow, crap writing...the point I was trying to make about music is that board games very much have a "cult of the new" where new and popular all too often takes precedence over the old...sure, there's a lot of love and appreciation out there for old games but current articles, posts, and reviews tend to be about new stuff. One of the things Bill actually asked me to do was to review some older stuff since everything new tends to be over-covered elsewhere. I agree.Michael Barneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01465993224831900150noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-33331249441170686592007-08-24T14:37:00.000-07:002007-08-24T14:37:00.000-07:00Riotgrrl- everything you wrote needs to be read an...Riotgrrl- everything you wrote needs to be read and apprehended by pretty much everyone working in the board game publishing industry...it's what I've been saying all along. As much as I love FFG, I do think they limit themselves by marketing to the hobby so much when their games- regardless of how big, long, or complex they are- have definite mainstream appeal. Growing up in the 80s, I can tell you that I never worried about those factors when I saw a cool looking game in the store- I bought it, learned to play it, and taught it to friends. Likewise, if a game like STARCRAFT were available in a mainstream venue, it'd pull in A LOT of people.<BR/><BR/>And conventions...the problem is you get hundreds or thousands of people who have no real personality because they define themselves by whatever marginal popular culture sources they choose to define themselves with- hobby games, FIREFLY, anime (which I still hold is almost completely by, for, and about pedophiles), whatever. Throw these folks into a blender and take out all social skills, sense of dignity, self-awareness, and personal ambition and you've got 75% of the attendees at any given gaming, fantasy, or science fiction event. I love going to events like that because I know where my "niche" is and I've been doing it since I was 15 years old...but if I were 20-25 years old and just getting into gaming I can see walking into something like Dragon Con and being fucking revolted by the "con scum" there and never returning.<BR/><BR/>Back to the column...I like bringing up old games because I think it's important for new folks to understand that this stuff didn't come out of nowhere and that old games are still worth playing...yeah, some folks are going to balk at hunting down something like SPACE CRUSADE but there's a lot of people that would really dig it, and for those people (you know who you are) the payoff in reading an article that brings them a bigger awareness outside of whatever "shiny" new junk keeps popping up on the front page of the Leading Board Game Site is huge.<BR/><BR/>It's been interesting over the past several years in music how with the rise of MP3s and on-demand music that catalog artists- not just new, pop sensation type artists- are enjoying more exposure and popularity- across demographics. There's no reason someone that really loves DESCENT or DOOM wouldn't love SPACE CRUSADE, and I find it rewarding to point the way- or even just to rap on how much I like it.Michael Barneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01465993224831900150noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-77772971770865371512007-08-24T13:46:00.000-07:002007-08-24T13:46:00.000-07:00Is all that to create a formal club, or just to po...Is all that to create a formal club, or just to post and say "hey, if people are interested in X, let's meet at XXX Hall on XXX night"? IIRC, when we used to game back at UD, we'd just commandeer a room in the student union or find an empty classroom.<BR/><BR/>Okay, I'm curious enough now; is it CUNY or Queens College?<BR/><BR/>--Mike L.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-12651666426246952672007-08-24T13:26:00.000-07:002007-08-24T13:26:00.000-07:00Oh, totally sister, we hear you.Say, could you lea...Oh, totally sister, we hear you.<BR/><BR/><BR/>Say, could you lean over there and grab that stack of used games for me?Ken B.https://www.blogger.com/profile/01621793460967739987noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-26082805203376553192007-08-24T12:31:00.000-07:002007-08-24T12:31:00.000-07:00There's actually one other person that I know of a...There's actually one other person that I know of at my campus that games. Other than that... yeah. It's an absolute bitch to create any sort of club at my school. Takes about a year for the constitution to go in, or anything like that. As a result, there are literally no sort of recreational clubs at all. It's one of the major things I dislike about my school - every single club/organization is built upon programming or ethnicity/cultural/belief structures. And it's hellishly annoying.<BR/><BR/>I'll probably eventually pop into The Compleat Strategist, eventually. I know that NYU has a games club (but from what I've seen on their web pages, they play pretty damn mainstream stuff), and Columbia's Law School does (but that's a hike and I'm a lazy bitch).<BR/><BR/>And yeah, I was totally not going to get in that car. I don't care if he was being sincere or not. <BR/><BR/>Most of my gaming experiences come from the limited time I've played on BSW and the very few real encounters I've had IRL with me friends. Sad, I know, but true. <BR/><BR/>I don't fit into that whole "geek" persona. If I was like, "OMG GUYZ LET'S PLAY BOARD GAMES!!1" to my friends I think they'd look at me as if I had five heads. Especially if I pulled out something about Renaissance pig herders, or something like that. My boyfriend and I have dubbed ourselves "cool nerds," or individuals that can function in society at a normal level while maintaining a sort of nerdy aura. Or something like that. <BR/><BR/>In order to make teens get into games, you need to make those games COOL. And FFG has done a pretty damn good job of that - StarCraft could sell SO many more copies if they took more initiative. My Settlers of Catan copy has never been played. Why do you think? I'm embarrassed to even drag that godforsaken fugly box out. Look at Carcassonne! So RIVETING in design choice. Yeah, teens are superficial. Which is why Euros don't work (except for stuff that is so absurd that people just laugh through the entire game: i.e. Bohnanza).<BR/><BR/>And yeah, I have to agree with Steve and Pat about the design of the blog. Keep it simple. It's in a much more mainstream venue then BGG and F:AT will ever be in, and people there sure as hell won't be tracking down Space Crusade. The ToI review was a good choice.<BR/><BR/>As for the whole male/female gamer dynamic that Ken mentioned, it's really, really irritating. I worked at GameStop last summer, and obviously most of the people that shop there are male. They approached me three ways: 1. hitting on me an expecting me to hit back ("Girls as pretty as you usually aren't in stores like this...") 2. Trying to stare down my shirt while I searched through the stacks of used games, and 3. Extremely sexist comments (One memorable customer saw me working the counter, and just passed me by, saying, "You don't know a single thing about games." He approached my manager to ask a question, and my manager was livid about the statement. I was probably the most knowledgeable person in the entire store!) Fortunately, most of the male gamers (talking in video game terms) that I surround myself with are pretty laid-back.<BR/><BR/>I'm rambling now, but it's great to get all of this steam and frustration out to a more understanding community. <BR/><BR/>- ChristineAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-46296186552876054222007-08-24T11:47:00.000-07:002007-08-24T11:47:00.000-07:00Life is not like a bad porn. Be responsible.Wasn't...<I>Life is not like a bad porn. Be responsible.</I><BR/><BR/>Wasn't that an episode of Friends?<BR/><BR/>--Mike L.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-10866503206192897292007-08-24T09:48:00.000-07:002007-08-24T09:48:00.000-07:00I agree - enough of the "remember this great game"...I agree - enough of the "remember this great game" stuff. We should focus on Thaadd's next project:<BR/><BR/>"Conquest of Rikter 7"Pat Hhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18200005894774999916noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-73384931275820702302007-08-24T09:21:00.000-07:002007-08-24T09:21:00.000-07:00It's too busy being meshed into Puerto Rico to be ...<I>It's too busy being meshed into Puerto Rico to be known far and wide as My Little Pony Rancher. </I><BR/><BR/>they already have my little Pony Rancher...its called Hacienda.<BR/><BR/><I>Michael, you should write a column for The Onion. Maybe a follow up on "Space Hulk". </I><BR/><BR/>As much as I love older games (and I do love them - I spend an hour or so every night rolling in old wargames and AH classics) I think it would behoove authors of this blog to focus on in print games to help those coming into the hobby. Poor Riotgrrl is going to be hard pressed to find an afordable copy of Spacehulk though there are some newish games that are going to give you excellent AT game experience. <BR/><BR/>Steve"WhineyAss"Avery<BR/><BR/><I>"Queue MB parroting my verbage..." </I>StephenAveryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12443764334663921706noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-66899635212726791312007-08-24T08:37:00.000-07:002007-08-24T08:37:00.000-07:00Holy crap, do NOT get into a car with a stranger o...Holy crap, do NOT get into a car with a stranger offering to drive you two hours to some ubersecret gaming location. I'm sure you're aware having made the right choice, but that is advice that should be etched in stone and displayed everywhere that's appropriate.<BR/><BR/>I don't know what it is, man...if a girl is a gamer, suddenly every guy at the table assumes they have a shot with her (despite the fact that they are absolute luckless Romeos all the rest of the time). Like a girl is going to say, "Wow! You game? Marry me!"<BR/><BR/><BR/>Because, y'know, finding a male gamer is SO difficult, you're just the chap she's been desperately searching for!<BR/><BR/><BR/>I've sat in on many games where a girl is present and suddenly a couple of the guys at the table become Don Juan and can barely concentrate on the game...barely concealed innuendo, trying to edge ever so closer to her chair, stealing glances down her shirt...the funniest I think is when the guy becomes her ardent defender and gets angry at the others for attacking her...<BR/><BR/><BR/>"Why, thank you for keeping Blue and Red from attacking me all game! However could I repay you?!"<BR/><BR/><BR/><BR/>Life is not like a bad porn. Be responsible.<BR/><BR/><BR/>And if you are someone wanting a 17-year old girl to game with your group, invite her but let her provide her own transportation AND make it at a public place like a game store or something.Ken B.https://www.blogger.com/profile/01621793460967739987noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-54148046350654063352007-08-24T08:36:00.000-07:002007-08-24T08:36:00.000-07:00The Compleat Strategist is a good NYC store - I wo...The Compleat Strategist is a good NYC store - I work in Midtown so I checked it out one day. Great selection but very expensive compared to what I'm used to, i.e. online retailers. They had Twilight Struggle for something like $52 for instance. They have gaming sessions at nights - I've never attended one.<BR/><BR/>Every day I walk past the Hallmark Store at Madison and 50th (I think) and they have a whole bunch of games on display in the window. Too bad they're utter shit like "24: the Game" and "Sequence for Kids".<BR/><BR/>I'm not really surprised that our type of board gaming isn't more prevalent...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-53697098408753244192007-08-24T08:17:00.000-07:002007-08-24T08:17:00.000-07:00I'd start with that one board game store (There is...I'd start with that one board game store (There is a thread on BGG discussing NYC gaming). <BR/><BR/>http://www.boardgamegeek.com/article/1676234<BR/><BR/>Maybe talk to the stiffs that work there and see who has what going on and where etc...<BR/><BR/>Failing that just pack it in and head to Pacha on a Saturday night.Pat Hhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18200005894774999916noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-38441503182583608492007-08-24T08:10:00.000-07:002007-08-24T08:10:00.000-07:00Not creepy... but there have been incidents before...<I>Not creepy... but there have been incidents before where a perfect stranger asked me to travel two hours away to game at his house. And he offered to pick me up. At a random location. And he was well aware that I was 17 at the time. SKETCHY.</I><BR/><BR/>I think I'd call that creepy. Especially the fact that he knew you were 17 and that you'd be without transportation. I may have been on the Net a long time, but I've never thought of trying the meeting a perfect stranger part. Too many potentially bad variables.<BR/><BR/>Have you tried posting on a board around campus? Another possibility is to try an RPG site (like penandpapergames.com) that hooks people up for games and check to see if there are any people close to you that way.<BR/><BR/>--Mike L.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-31602191800717797152007-08-24T07:15:00.000-07:002007-08-24T07:15:00.000-07:00Michael, you should write a column for The Onion. ...Michael, you should write a column for The Onion. Maybe a follow up on "Space Hulk".Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-35914463170982226762007-08-24T05:09:00.000-07:002007-08-24T05:09:00.000-07:00My Dreadnaughts arrived in a poor state ... and I ...<I>My Dreadnaughts arrived in a poor state ... and I can't paint to save myself .... oh, the misery.</I><BR/><BR/>I still haven't gotten around finishing painting my SOTC/FOTC/BB minis, not to mention my WH40k armies.<BR/><BR/>I have measured my life in GW acrylic paint pots.Rliyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08644720690880433211noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811769968708731746.post-6734102302612020602007-08-24T04:54:00.000-07:002007-08-24T04:54:00.000-07:00My Dreadnaughts arrived in a poor state ... and I ...My Dreadnaughts arrived in a poor state ... and I can't paint to save myself .... oh, the misery.Southernmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03254183843277088157noreply@blogger.com