That TCG Blogger

Ask me anything http://formspring.me/ThatTCGBlogger

Ask me anything http://formspring.me/ThatTCGBlogger

Ask me anything http://formspring.me/ThatTCGBlogger

Ask me anything http://formspring.me/ThatTCGBlogger

Ask me anything http://formspring.me/ThatTCGBlogger

Ask me anything http://formspring.me/ThatTCGBlogger

Ask me anything http://formspring.me/ThatTCGBlogger

Good day everyone, I have returned from my week long Hiatus from the blog due to Drumline state finals. If you were wondering we got third at state and it was an awesome final competition. Without further ado, let us wrap up what I started two weeks ago. Now that I have a copy of Pokemon Heart Gold in my hands, its time for a proper review for this excellent game. Don’t worry though, I’ll be heading back to the table-top stating tomorrow.

When I first opened up my package of Heart Gold, I had high expectations for this game; with all the hype I brought up with the blogs and in my personal life, this game had to be good. I must say, those expectations were met and then blown out of the water. First, I must admit that the last mainstream Pokemon game I played was Diamond; so I had no idea that the Battle Frontier and WiFi-Plaza existed and those were mind blowing enough. Anyway, I had turned on the game for the first time and watched the opening movie and drooled at the revamp that this game well deserved. Everything was simply beautiful visually: the music was so well re-orchestrated, the graphics were mind blowing compared to Diamond and Pearl, and the game itself is bigger than the others covering two regions rather than the one. Not to mention the brand new features such as the Pokethlon and the Pokewalker Device. This is the game that fans of the series have been waiting for, and the game that past fans can jump into easily.

One of the most astounding features in this game is the fact that all of the songs in the past Gold/Silver games have been re-mastered to the point where they are simply mind blowing. When you play the game its hard to believe that it is still on a handheld when you hear the music. One of my personal favorite additions to this game’s music is how the battle theme features about 80% mallet percussion (xylophone, etc), which I play in real life. One of the complaints I’ve read about the sound in this game is how the Pokemon still sound the same; and if Nintendo were to change that feature in the game of keeping the original Red/Blue voices, then that level of nostalgia would be killed. Even with that, the music and sound in this game is perfect.

Great sound would be nothing if there wasn’t anything to look at, and Pokemon Heart Gold and Soul Silver do not disappoint. The graphics in this game made me think that it was an entirely new game in itself, rather than another Pokemon game. The Buildings are completely rendered past the point of Diamond and Pearl versions and there are points in the game where you see a ground level view of your character (in the lighthouse, on top of the tower, etc) which also looks brilliant. The Pokemon also have different poses than before: generations 3-4 have the same sprites as in Platinum and generations 1-2 have completely new sprites. One small visual change that blows my mind is how each individual gym leader (and major trainer) moves when you enter a battle with them, much like the Pokemon do which is very cool. The visuals in this game make it more than just a remake of an old game and turn it into something new.

One of the most prominent additions to this game is the Pokewalker device that comes with each copy of the game. It is a small Poke ball shaped Tamagotchi in which you wirelessly place a Pokemon into it through your cartridge and carry it around with you to collect items and Pokemon. The device itself is simple, but the idea is simply genius. Being able to finally bring the experience of training Pokemon into the real world has been what every die hard fan of the series wanted since the original 151. The device is easy to wear and makes as a good social device if you see a fellow trainer wearing one, you can easily connect with the world in this game now.

To say that this game is a remake is a complete understatement. Pokemon Heart Gold and Soul Silver are amazing games and truly innovate the series before we see the fifth generation released. Not to mention that it introduces the Pokewalker which I believe will be here for a long time to come in other games (maybe even updated more). If you are a fan of the series you will love this game, if you haven’t played in years then this is the perfect game to get started back into.

Gameplay: 9/10

Visuals: 10/10

Sound: 10/10

Multiplayer: 10/10

FINAL SCORE…….9.8/10!!!

-That TCG Blogger-

Got a question, comment, concern? Email me at Ecomicsinc@gmail.com!!

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The Pokemon franchise has always been known for its ability to slap a Pikachu onto anything and have it sell like wildfire. Thus, why wouldn’t they dip their characters into the miniature gaming franchise world to make even more money? With that, the Pokemon Trading Figure Game was a born. The game was based on a base that players spin in order to deal attacks, dodge, or miss. A player wins by reaching their opponent’s side of the board or taking out their trainer figure. All in all, the game-play is very basic and was designed to bring children into the table-top gaming, such as with Duel Masters. As said in the other FotW about Duel Masters, games designed to dumb down the concepts for children are doomed to fail as they insult the intelligence of all the other players.

The whole idea of a Pokemon Miniature Game could’ve have been pulled off a lot better than in this spinning figure game that Nintendo chose to release. At the time of its release, the game Pokemon: Mystery Dungeon had been released. With that new game (which is a very popular spin-off to the series), they could’ve created a miniature game in which players control armies of these creatures and battling it out for superiority. Sure the concept has been done before, but its worked over the years. Besides, who wouldn’t want to see their favorite Pokemon battle it out in mass?

The Pokemon Trading Figure Game was doomed to fail at its release, being centered towards one audience and no one else truly caused this to be a disaster. Gamers today want to see something new and innovative, but also something challenging to boot. The only assumption that I can come up with is that the game was rushed in order for Nintendo to make a quick buck off of the name. It only goes to prove that something truly great cannot be created overnight, it takes a lot of time and hard work in order to construct a hit game and the Pokemon Trading Figure Game obviously didn’t do that.

-That TCG Blogger-

Got a question, comment, concern, or you just completely disagree with me?

Then Email me at Ecomicsinc@gmail.com (going to get a blog email account soon, I promise)

Or at http://formspring.me/ThatTCGBlogger/

Also, you can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/Ecomics21 (Might be changing that name soon too.)

Tomorrow: We’ll have a special guest writer giving a review on the new Pokemon TCG Set based on Heart Gold and Soul Silver.

The hippies defined the sixties, disco ruled the seventies, and the reign of pop controlled the eighties, but what defines the time most of us grew up in; the nineties? If you think about it, the three things listed for the previous generation were fads; widely popular for awhile then suddenly just a boring thing to do; so wouldn’t it make sense that the Pokémon craze would define the nineties? At the time of its release, everyone had Pokémon Fever and fell in love with the one hundred and fifty one critters and knew them by heart. They played the video games, collected the toys, and more importantly played the card game.

The Pokémon TCG is easily one of the biggest games to sell when it first came out, even becoming more talked about than Magic. It was released in the right place at the right time, just as the franchise was at its prime. But, was it really that good of a card game to sell so much? After all, it was only a fad and is not played as much (there still are big tournaments) as it was when first released. I know for a fact that most people got into it only to impress their friends and not get lost in the crowds. Perhaps one of the best selling TCGs of this time isn’t all its cracked up to be?

The Pokémon TCG was based on the interaction between two trainers and their creatures of choice. It’s a great concept, allows for a lot of player confrontation which is what every game needs. They would start out with their un-evolved Pokémon and then make them grow stronger through evolution cards, still very flavorful. Battle to reduce the opposing creatures hit points to zero, not bad at all. Play energy cards in order to use effects, kind of using the mana system of Magic, but I’ll let it slide. But the one big killer in all of this is the fact that they have a set number of Pokémon they can create in each set. What made Magic so successful in its run is how diverse the cards were and the different possibilities. I’m not saying that this TCG doesn’t have diverse techniques in the advanced game play (any game can), but the fact that their cards are already limited just kind of kills me inside.

Today, when I sit at home playing this game with my little sisters (who love it) I always think to myself about how this game really isn’t that noteworthy as a “good” TCG. My definition of a “good” game is one that beings something new to the table, and gives us a new way of thinking. I can play this game and think of every card like I do in Magic and still come out alright in the end. But Nintendo must be doing something right, or else the game would’ve been dead ages ago. I believe that to be solely on the content of the TCG itself. People adore these cute critters, so isn’t it obvious that they would want to play a game based on them? Back in the nineties, if anything had Pikachu’s face on it kids would buy fifty of it if they could. That’s what got the professional players of the game into it, the one’s who saw the Charizard card that went for hundreds, and the ancient Mew from the first movie.

In the end, Pokémon wasn’t a bad TCG; it just wasn’t “new”. We had seen Magic do pretty much everything in the game before it had even came out. But, I have to say that if the Pokémon TCG never existed then the trading card game community wouldn’t be what it is today. I can say that probably about more than half of today’s players got their start by trying to get the holographic cards from the first set, and for that I have to thank the Pokémon TCG.

-That TCG Blogger-

Got a question, comment, concern, or you just completely disagree with me?

Then Email me at Ecomicsinc@gmail.com (going to get a blog email account soon, I promise)

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Also, you can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/Ecomics21 (Might be changing that name soon too.)



Tomorrow: we have a special “Fail of Week: Pokémon Edition”, so stay tuned.

Pokémon Heart Gold and Soul Silver are to be released this Sunday, and as you may or may not know; I am extremely excited for this game. In such an excitement, I decided to host a week long celebration to the franchise and the upcoming release. I must forewarn though that this blog may become more video game than TCG in the next week, so be prepared. Now, you may be wondering “Why are you so excited about this game?” so I figured that I should give an in depth explanation about my experience with the game itself to celebrate the first day.

When I was oh but a wee lad of the youthful age of eight, this wonderful game known as Pocket Monsters had made its way into my viewing area. It all started when I was sick from school one day and was flipping through channels, I came across the original WB Kids channel (back when it was still called that) and I saw this new show. My mind was blown at the time: the cute creatures, the kids being in charge of their destiny, and the funny (for my age) script; it had all overwhelmed me. At that time, I knew I wanted to know more about this wonderful program; so I went to my local store only to find so much more. It was at that very time when I caught the contagious (but to my knowledge not fatal yet) disease known as Poké Fever; I had to have it all: games, collectibles, or videos. If it had the Pokémon label on it, I had to quest for it.

Through my youthful quest, I came across the Pokémon Trading Card Game. I first picked up a Pikachu card and had fallen in love, my parents at this time supported me through this venture and it was my first introduction into the trading card game universe. It was a joyous time for me, even though I only liked the cards for the pictures, those cards held a deep place in my heart for the next few years and helped me become who I am today.

As we all know, the one product that has kept the Pokémon franchise alive throughout its ten year and counting run is the video game series. We all remember traveling to Cinnabar Island to multiply our items or how we debated which one of our starter Pokémon was the best. This one game created grade school memories for many, including myself. To this day, many argue that the Gold and Silver versions were the best in the series. It added numerous new features to the game such as the clock, colorized the game from its black and white predecessor, and even went as far as to add on to the original one hundred and fifty one we knew and loved. These alone are what created the hype for the remakes coming out this Sunday. The greatest game on the original Game Boy is hoped to be the greatest remake (and game) for the Nintendo DS, and I am even inclined to agree by having this be the first game that I have ever pre-ordered.

If it hadn’t been for that card game, I wouldn’t be here with you today discussing dice, spells, and strategies. Kind of funny how that works isn’t it? How one small thing such as a TV show eventually turns into a love for a video game, which then turns into a love for the TCG based off of it and then turns into a complete love for all trading card games and board games. If you look back at what small thing you liked as a child, think about how if you stuck with it how if affected you today; and then on the other hand, if you gave it up, how that changed you. You might find the results to be astounding as I did.

-That TCG Blogger-

Got a question, comment, concern? Email me at Ecomicsinc@gmail.com

If you’re anything like me, then you enjoy a nice good zombie killing game, and if you enjoy it as much as I do; then you’ve probably already heard of “Zombies!!!” by Twilight Creations. Recently, they have just announced their ninth expansion (which is a lot for a board game), and I don’t believe that TC had released any official information on their website; but thanks to the use of Google, more is now known about this expansion. The set is called “Ashes to Ashes”, based on the ancient burial prayer, therefore they finally picked they finally picked the greatest location (in my opinion) for a “Zombies!!!” set. Yes, that’s right, get your dancing shoes on and play some Thriller, because we are going to the graveyard!

Not only that, but “Zombies!!! 9” adds a new type of zombie to the mix, and in my opinion its one of the creepiest things they could’ve done. Yup, zombie children; just when you thought it was easy slaying the undead, they add young children who just want to give you a hug of death. Now not much is known about what they do, but I’m assuming they’re going to be harder to hit just based on the fact that they are kids, adding a bit of an emotional side to the game. If they add no secondary effect with these characters I will be very disappointed, as with the clowns; but I’ll save that rant for another day. The game also adds a new effect to the cards called “automatic”, now I don’t know too much about this effect (since it hasn’t been revealed); but I’m assuming they’re making the cards like instants or they activate “automatically” when they are drawn. Personally, I would prefer the latter just so it adds that extra sense of chaos into an already chaotic game.

Along with all of this already amazing information, I also found four preview event cards for the set, and just wow. The first one I saw was very flavorful (which is always a good thing), “You’re gonna turn into one of those….things!” is a permanent that allows for the player to place a zombie on the space where any pawn just died; which is the first we’ve actually heard any reference to the disease itself, which is nice. Just when you thought there wasn’t enough weapon denial in the game already, “How do you kill a thing that’s already dead?” allows one to steal an opponents weapon in play, making that extra boost even more deadly. The last two cards they revealed are both “automatic”, and since I don’t know what automatic is yet, I can’t fully comment on the effect of the cards; but I must say that they are both excellent as regular events. “We have a little problem” adds zombies to every space in the cemetery; and I’m really hoping that it means every space on the map in order to cause true chaos in the game. Since the set is called “Ashes to ashes”, it is fairly obvious that a card be called “Dust to Dust”; and Twilight Creations doesn’t live down those expectations. The card resets every player’s heart and bullet tokens to three and this effect can go two ways: either by destroying that player who spends his/her time collecting tokens, or helping the player who is on their last heart and with no bullets. I personally enjoy cards like this that are multi-situational, and if the “automatic” effect does what I hope it does; the player won’t get to choose when it happens making the game even more chaotic.

Twilight Creations built the original game “Zombies!!!” with as much chaos as they could throw into it, such as event cards that can put a player from first to last, fair chances in battles against endless enemies, and even not knowing what the map will be till its drawn. Those ideas make the game what it is, amazing and fun. They took the whole idea of a zombie apocalypse and melted it down into a board game that truly lives out the experience. I believe that, just by the previews, “Zombies!!! 9: Ashes to ashes” has the potential to be the best set in the game. Throwing in more chaos, if the automatic feature works like I think, and a new concept, the zombie children this expansion will be the one to get.

Preview Score: 10/10

-That TCG Blogger-

Got a question, comment, concern? Email me at Ecomicsinc@gmail.com (going to make an official email for the blog soon).

Since the glory days of the internet struck, the TCG world has been fathomed over the use of tournament winning decks being posted online. This makes it so any nine year old kid with loads of money can become a pro without all of the work the normal player does. The question in being though, is that is net-decking is right or wrong? If you dive into any MTG forum you can quickly see the long debate and numerous opinions on the subject, but I’m not here to give you an opinion. I’m here to tell you what just might possibly be the answer everyone is looking for, that there is no answer and only different methods make net-decking right or wrong. “But wait, isn’t that just some extremely broad answer to the biggest question in gaming?” You might think so now, but if think about it, using a gun can either be good or evil, correct? The only difference that makes the item good or evil is how it is used against someone. This is the same with net-decking.

Most people in the gaming world fail to see the good with net-decking in today’s society. Someone who is partially new to Magic: the Gathering (meaning they have somewhat of a deck building ability and know the rules well) and wants to go further will study the main tournament decks, that is only natural. But to get the full experience of the deck itself, they need to either see or use it in an actual game. Thus, they might take the deck they “netted” to play against their friends or to a local FNM. This doesn’t mean they are just building it to win; they want to learn how to play the game better. This game isn’t like others; you can’t just jump in and hope to do well. A proper education of the mechanics is needed, and thanks to the internet the possibilities of teaching yourself are endless.

On the contrary though, there is a darker side to net-decking; and sadly to say that it mainly resides in the younger generation. When a thirteen year old picks up a game like magic, their first thought isn’t “Oh, I need to learn more about the game”, it is more than often, “Oh, this game is awesome, I need to crush everyone in it.” Thus, they go to the internet and noticing the accomplishments of the decks, they steal the idea for their own personal gain. Kids often try to impress their friends and older kids playing the game, so it is only obvious that they would try to do it in the fastest way possible and with minimum work.

It is fairly simple to identify the two different brands of net-deck players. The learning player will more than likely take more time analyzing and study their cards more (sometimes obviously). However, the theft will often just play cards quickly, not understanding the full concepts of what he is playing. If you can’t tell by watching, ask them “Where did you get the deck idea?” The learner will often reply honestly with who’s deck it is and where they found, also giving what they hope to learn. On the opposing side, the thief will reply with something pertaining to “It was my idea”, so they can look even cooler. Just be on the lookout for the two different kinds of players and take note that not all net-decking is evil.

-That TCG Blogger-

Got a question, comment, concern? Email me at Ecomicsinc@gmail.com

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No need to get excited, I’m still going to be blogging. The title is actually referring to the announcement that Blizzard has denied the renewal of Upper Deck’s contract to create the World of Warcraft Trading Card Game. I have never played the WoW TCG in my time, but I have played numerous games that have met an untimely doom due to similar conditions, and I can sympathize with the dedicated players of the community who worked so hard to see their game succeed. That is, in short, why the players played it; they wanted the game to be great. Now that the company discontinued it, they feel like they were metaphorically left on the street and need to find somewhere to go.

However, TCGs based on video games are never good ideas. Nine times out of ten the fan of the game will just overlook the cards when there’s a flashy screen to look at; this is especially true with an online game such as WoW. Not to mention the fact that even in an MMORPG, the material eventually becomes limited or just overused. Elves look the same no matter what they’re wearing or holding, same with Orcs, Zombies, and Minotaurs. That’s what has left Magic: the Gathering so successful, they are never subjective to one type of fantasy world and always add in new creature types to gaze over. In short though, World of Warcraft made an excellent video game; a trading card game though, not so much.

Can trading card games be successful in today’s society? We here everyday that a new game has been cancelled or the company has been disbanded. The biggest excuse that is thrown around is that Magic: the Gathering is the most successful TCG in the market and is preventing others from gaining profit. The only problem with that excuse is that MTG hasn’t stopped Yu-gi-oh (their court situation has though) or the Pokemon card game from their success. In my personal opinion, all of these companies are becoming lazy with their designs. If you take the time to think of the possibilities, you can create an amazing trading card game, which is probably what made the previous games successful in their prime.

But now, I want your opinion on the matter. What do you think about the WoW TCG being discontinued? Was it a mistake, or was it bound to happen from the previous days? Also, do you believe that a new TCG can be developed with powerhouses such as Magic in the market?

-That TCG Blogger-

Please post your opinion as a Re-blog.

Have a question, comment, concern? Email me at Ecomicsinc@gmail.com

What does slaying dragons, rolling dice, and shuffling a few cards actually teach you? If you don’t know, then think about this; a group (about a hundred) of high school students in Edmonton, Canada gathered together for a Junior Achievement Monopoly tournament. The organizers of Junior Achievement designed the tournament to not only gather these students to get to know each other, but to teach economics through the game itself (the group is based on business). Teaching, through a board game? Preposterous! But then I sat back and thought about it for a minute and began to realize just how much we really get from board games and never notice.

“What lessons are there to be taught from Monopoly?” I asked myself. There’s the obvious, such as conserving funds, probability of a dice roll, and knowing the other player’s inventory. What I didn’t realize right then, were the deeper lessons that normally are only taught through first hand experience: bartering with the opponents, observing facial expressions to predict future actions, and planning ahead for the future. Normally, human beings don’t come into course with actions such as these until they have already graduated high school, but every board/card game fanatic out there has already encountered, and probably mastered, these traits thanks to the games.

Of course though, after thinking these deeply (and being as skeptical as I am), I thought that Monopoly was probably designed to be somewhat of an educational game to begin with. Having to add and subtract money all the time seemed like a simple gimmick to teach children math, so I did the obvious and took it a step further and did some research with other games. Dungeons & Dragons (or any Table-Top RPG for that matter) has always been known for its difficult rules and diverse strategy. Just by glancing over the character customization, you can already see the lesson in decision making is imminent with the new player; and once you have your stats set the player needs to know their characters strengths and weaknesses in order to be successful. D&D was then added to the educational list after just a few seconds of thought.

The next subject on my research list was to take an educational look at the trading card game industry. Doing so, I took the most popular game, Magic: the Gathering, in the community and analyzed it. Choosing your deck allows you to practice decision making and even predict how those decisions affect you (your deck) in the future. Not to mention that in the actual game play, players are automatically forced to predict their opponents moves in order to be somewhat successful in the game. When you tap your mana, you also get an economics lesson on spending your currency wisely and making the right choice. So next time you’re planning to activate Wrath of God to clear out your opponent’s token filled field, think about the mana you could’ve saved by switching to Pyroclasm.

After looking through the complex games that make through way through the market, it seemed only one thing was left; the extremely simple games. The original board games of yester years still showed the indirect educational values as everything else had. Clue had deductive skills, Scrabble gave vocabulary, and even go-fish gave the reasoning lesson. After countless hours (and a lot of rambling), I’ve come to the conclusion that board and card games are the closest things to real world experience one can find without actually knowing so. Who knew that you could prepare for your future by rolling some dice and casting spells? Next time, you decide to draw a card or move your pawn, think to yourself “What am I learning through this?” you might even be shocked with what you come up with.

Source: http://www.edmontonjournal.com/life/Monopoly+good/2594162/story.html

-That TCG Blogger-

Got a question, comment, concern, or just want me to review something? Let me know at Ecomicsinc@gmail.com. Also feel free to Re Blog any article of mine.

About eight years ago, the video game company Square-Enix combined forces with the overly popular corporation Disney to create a game that surpassed everyone’s expectations. A few years later, after the game had revolutionized the RPG video game market, Square released yet another game relating to the best seller called Chain of Memories. The game’s battle system was based on using cards to attack foes in the game. Tomy, a game company in Japan, saw this game and was inspired to create a Trading Card Game based on the video game’s success. Thus, the Kingdom Hearts TCG was born.

The game had a pretty good run in Japan, Tomy supplied a decent Open Play system and seven sets (with lots of promo cards); however after the seventh set the Kingdom Hearts TCG ended. It is not publicly known in America why the game failed, I can only assume that it had to do with content lacking and the seventh set being an utter failure (you can view the translated versions athttp://www.thekingdomheartstcg.com/). Fast forward about a year and a company called Fantasy Flight Games (FFG) flew by and imported the game to American audiences. The only problem with it was that FFG never advertised the game or made an open play system for TCG fans to want to pour their money into it. After the fourth set was released, the company announced that they had disbanded their entire Trading Card Game department due to TCGs not being profitable due to games like Magic: the Gathering (I’ll save that rant for another day), and here we are today.

Before I continue on with the review, I would like to remind you that I am not expressing any opinions on the company, the video game, or the player base when conducting this review. I am only focused on giving an honest review on the game mechanics introduced in the game.

The Kingdom Hearts TCG is a game in which two players take on the roles of key bearers in the universe of the video game. The player either wins by reaching their “world count” (total level of worlds in play) to thirteen by playing world cards or reducing the opponents hit points to zero. Players battle in one of two ways, by attacking heartless cards on their current world that were set by the opponent, or challenging the opposing player to battle to decrease hit points. In order to raise their player cards attack, each player can use friend cards (which add other effects), attack cards, magic cards, or equipment cards (introduced in set 4). One of the defining features this game had though was the difference in draw phase, the player whose turn it was drew up to six cards and when their deck was empty they would just reshuffle their discard pile. This simple feature added a lot of strategy to what would’ve been a very boring game.

In short, this game was destined to fall, even with a company that didn’t advertise it. Sure, a game about a popular Square-Enix RPG should have easily made a quick buck in both Tomy and FFG’s eyes, but they failed to realize that not everyone is so simple minded to fall for such scams as this. Just take a look at the main rules, if both players just play world cards to win there is absolutely no player interactivity and that’s the basic foundation of any game. If you look even deeper than that though, you start to noticed how unbalanced the game is, the best deck at the game’s death was a healing stall deck. Sounds fun, doesn’t it? Sitting there as your opponent slowly creeps through to win as you can’t do anything against it.

If you’re a fan of Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy, or classic Disney movies you’ll enjoy this game; though you might be dissapointed at the lack of flavorful cards in the game. Pro TCG players should stay away from this game due to the lack of customization among decks, though if you find it on a bargain table at a con I suggest picking up a few packs if you’re looking for a game to play where you’re bored at your local card shop. The bargain table is the only place this game can be found anymore sadly now that the game was shut out by the company. There are a group of players dedicated to preserving this TCG, so if you are interested check out http://www.thekingdomheartstcg.com/.

Final Verdict: 6.5/10

Got a question, comment, concern? Email me at Ecomicsinc@gmail.com

The whole principle of a board game is simulating a fantasy experience, correct? By that logic, wouldn’t it make sense that a game that literally brings the cards in your deck to life would revolutionize the Trading Card Game world as we know it? Sony must have thought so, with the release of Eye of Judgement the player would use a webcam like object attached to the Playstation in order to bring their cards to life on the screen. Sony then did the obvious thing and advertised the game like crazy in order to get the word out, but how would gamers take this new development in the gaming industry or would it even be considered that? The average TCG Gamers looked at this game and simply laughed, the VG Gamers just brushed it aside not wanting to ever touch a card over their controller, and The Eye of Judgement is left to be a total disappointment. Was it just the player’s lack of appeal though or was the game a complete failure on all sides?

You play Magic: The Gathering on the weekends, at your local card shop, compete in pre-releases, and follow the pro-tour; wouldn’t you want your card game to be taken to the online world? The average person would think so, but if you take the time to sit down with a professional player, you will find that they live for the thrill of sitting face to face with their opponent. Being able to read your opponent’s facial expressions in order to figure out their play style is what makes a table top game so fun, taking away from that only leads to making the game a robotic sequence of turns rather than an exchange of emotions in battle. That’s what separates the great players from the mediocre ones, the ability to read your opponent and tell what cards they hold just by that (see previous blogs). The fact that Sony tried to add all these flashy graphics to an already great formula kills the whole idea of card games.

The Eye of Judgement being a Playstation only title obviously appeals to the gamer which at the time of its release; was limited in titles for the system. Once again though, the irony of it all sets in. Most video game junkies are just that, dedicated to the game and nothing else. When they see a card came such as this, they are automatically put off by the cardboard rectangles that they’ve never seen before. Rather than just getting into a new world, it is much easier to just play a shoot-em-up or another fantasy game that’s new to the market. It has become fairly obvious that the design crew behind the game did no market research in order to find what the fans truly wanted.

The fact that the marketing research was terrible, only leads one to wonder if its not just a coincidence that they skipped out on this. Meaning, that their game was probably looked over for a reason. One of the major complaints on this game from the people who played it was the fact that the light in the room had to be blinding in order for the game to successfully work. Considering that most would play this in a basement or at night after work, that could turn out to be a huge problem. The small community of players that play this competitively complained that you can just print off copies of the cards and the “eye” would read them as the actual cards, sounds pretty legit right? With a system that needed so much to work and was so simple to hack, its obvious that the game failed from the begin with.

-That TCG Blogger-

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You’re at the edge of you’re seat, the tides have turned in your favor. The units in your command are about to charge your opponents final defenses to their base. Then the unthinkable happens, those few minis you forgot about sitting near the back of the map charge forward and start taking out your rear defenses. Suddenly, their so-called final defenses move up and attack as well; you’re the one who is now being put to their final defense. This happens all too much in the war based board game, a player never strategizes and inevitably falls into the trap the other player sets up. For continuity’s sake, I will be referring to a very basic war-style game that I have created specifically for this tutorial. The game will be referred to simply as “Combat”, and be played on a 25x25 neutral map with 20 pawns on both corners. The battle system is also made simple, just each player rolling a die, if the attacking player gets a higher number then the other is destroyed, if the defending player gets a higher number they stay alive; pawns have to be adjacent in order to start combat and the have a movement of five on each (and yes, they can move then attack). Please keep that in mind for the following technique tutorial.

Now that you’re twenty pawns are set up in your corner, what do you do next? The first thing you want to do is to devise some sort of a strategy. In doing this, you want to know what you plan to do: lure them into a false sense of security, charge them head on, conqueror the most efficient way. In a scenario like this with neutral pawns that are able to take each other out with ease, the charge option is the least successful option however, next week I will discuss the strategy in customizable miniature games and talk about when that would be a reliable option. Anyway, the pawns are set and you decide to take them out as efficiently as possible (note how I did not say quickly). You’re probably wishing you were awake in history class the day you studied all of Napoleon’s war strategies, but never fear you don’t need to be a war buff to be successful in strategizing a combat scenario such as this. The greatest advantage you can have over your opponent is being able to watch the board and know what’s happening on all sides, and then being able to plan around that. Conquering the opponent involves taking out all of their units, so the most common ways of doing this (while still having a strategy) is trying to flank them by separating the units into small groups (usually of 3-4, depending on your total units, remember to consider these strategies differently with other games) or watching your opponent and reacting based on that (the “tic-tac-toe” method). Also be sure to note that these methods mentioned are easily recognized by a professional player and that you need to strategize on a more personal level.

Now you may be asking, “Okay, I know what I want to do, but how do I actually go about doing it?” That’s where a bit of knowledge of military strategy might come in handy (I would suggest maybe reading up on common terms and such), but once again never worry. Let’s start off with the flank as an example; the basic principle of the maneuver is to surround the opponent in order to take them out in a swift strike. You start in one corner of the map with twenty figures packed in there, so in order to flank the opposing force your first move should consist of the following: mentally separating your units into three or four groups, then sending each group in opposite directions toward the enemy (the one heading straight for the opposing force should move slower so it meets up with the others at the same time). That’s the basis of putting a military strategy on a board, you first figure out the meaning of the technique in real combat then use your figures speed and power to make it happen as you see fit. A plan is nothing unless you put it into action.

In the end, all of your plans are nothing unless you watch your enemy’s side of the field. Be prepared to have to suddenly change your game plan due to the fact that your opponent is doing something that completely counters your original plan. Any great miniature gamer could tell you that flexibility is a key source to being a better player. One thing that I forgot to mention, purposely, is to be aware of any effects your figures might have; I chose not to mention it this week so I could write more on this come next technique blog.

-That TCG Blogger-

Got a question, comment, concern, or just want to know more? Email me at Ecomicsinc@gmail.com

Read this article first please:

http://news.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?articleid=1233150

The details on the crime:

http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2010/02/15/crimesider/entry6209793.shtml

Now, lets just take a moment and think. The murderer, Amy Bishop killed her brother with a shotgun (which is being claimed by the defendant as an accident) and a board game caused her to want to do this? First of all, I’m not going to dispute whether or not she committed the crime and such, I’m just a bit concerned. Concerned by the fact that our law system is willing to easily take a stab at an innocent game just because they refuse to do the research on the game itself to see if it really would cause incidents like this to happen. The evidence is right there in the article, the murder weapon was a shotgun. If it were really a killing based off the famous board game wouldn’t it be something more medieval like a battle axe , sword, dagger, etc? Second of all, I’m going to point out the fact that the article itself isn’t a reliable source, no self respecting person would use the quote : “They even acted this crap out”, especially in a professional setting.

Why does it seem that Dungeons & Dragons gets attacked more than any other board game? Popular media tends to also attack this game by its portrayal of its fans in such a negative fashion, thus leading to the stereotype of “nerd”. Perhaps its because they can’t understand the game. The fact that you have to imagine yourself as someone else seems kinda of unreal, especially at the time of the game’s release and as many great creations they are first avoided by society until spread like a virus. With the whole idea of becoming someone else, the average person could come to believe that these role-players start to lose there sense of reality in doing so, especially when they happen to stumble upon a tournament center. What really irks me is that these investigators misjudge the players intelligence, all because they are playing a game. After all, we know that it is only a game.

This article got me thinking back to the whole Grand Theft Auto video game fiasco that happened a few years back. If you don’t remember (and I don’t see how one could forget), thousands of complaints were sent to Rockstar Games based on the violence, language, and sex in their games that younger children were witnessing and enacting. The main argument was that kids should not see this graphic material because they would in fact re-enact it in real life (the crimes, sex, and violence) and become menaces to society. Now, based on basic psychology teachings the most influential person in a young child’s life is their parents, this is for everyone at the beginning of their lives. The only reason one would be influenced to do things based on a video game is because they were neglected by their parents to begin with. The fact that that they were slaying dragons with their level twenty mage or hijacking a car in order to stop a drug war in a fantasy world matters not, it all comes down to the parents and how they were treated early on in life.

-That TCG Blogger-

Got a comment, question, concern? Email me at Ecomicsinc@gmail.com

Board game company, Fantasy Flight Games, recently announced that they were in production of a history war game on the ventures of Napoleon Bonaparte. To be honest, I am kind of excited for this board game. I have to admit up front that I have been betrayed by Fantasy Flight numerous times in the past, but I must say this game looks promising. I’m a sucker for European history and this game could looks like it could be just what the war game market needed. Just looking at the cover of the box you can tell that the design looks professional. Fantasy Flight Games may have screwed up a lot of things in the past, but I’m willing to give this game a shot.

-That TCG Blogger-

Preview Rating: 8/10

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“How did you know I was going to play Wrath of God, you must’ve cheated?!” the opponent yells. “I have a full field of creatures, you were sitting defenseless and you had a smirk on your face. The signs were all there for something big, so I had to hold a counter”, I reply in dignified confidence. The ability to tell what your opponent is going to play before they do is what separates the mediocre players from the gods of gaming. First of all, if you didn’t understand my anecdote up there, “Wrath of God” is a powerful, well-known spell in Magic: The Gathering that destroys every creature on the field and can be a pretty devastating trump card if used right and becomes a good example for reading the opponent. Anyway, be prepared for plenty of Magic references in the future since its an easily relatable game for most and well-known throughout the world. Now, about reading the opponent, there are a few key things you need to know. First of all, you need to know what kind of player your opponent is, you can tell this just by watching the cards/pawn and how they play them. You also need to know what is in play at ALL times, one moment of brain lapse and you have left yourself open to a direct attack. The most important thing, and probably the most difficult, to do is being able to know what your opponent is about to play.

What type of player is your opponent? I believe that Magic: the Gathering put it best when they created their three player archetypes: Timmy, Johnny, and Spike. The Johnny player is the player who sits there trying to pull off “the perfect combo”, the one that involves as few cards/moves as possible and guarantees victory. The Timmy player enjoys the thrill, they want to summon the coolest cards and crush you where you stand with the most powerful characters in the game. The most confusing player here is the Spike, he/she will sit there trying to playing the moves that would make any normal person question their intelligence. Though at the end of the day, the Spike tends to be able to lead their opponent into a false sense of security by this trick by pulling these useful cards together into a player crushing combo. When reading the opponent you need to ask yourself a few questions: What are they trying to do in the game? Are they trying to pull off a game winning combo, beat you into a pulp by playing the power strategy, or just trying to prove they’re better by means hidden. How are they going about doing it? By directly confronting you, indirectly waiting for the right moment, or doing it in a way you don’t yet understand. What do they want out of the game? To win by any means necessary, pull off an infinite combo (a combo that triggers an infinite amount of times), or proving their intellectual skill. If you wish to be able to read your opponent you need to be able to tell what kind of player they are, look for small coincidences based on the descriptions here and also note that they may be a combination of two, such as wanting to prove something by creating a powerful creature.

Ever had this problem happen to you? You’re playing a card game, and suddenly your opponent plays a card that targets the discard pile and you didn’t realize that the card you forced them to discard is now in play and now a major threat to your victory. The key to any game is being able to tell what’s in play at all times, just because something isn’t in the main battlefield doesn’t mean that it is no longer a threat to your game. Especially those who have ever played Yugi-oh know that cards like Monster Reborn and Call of the Haunted were able to combo with any discard card to bring out a powerful creature. Also, always note how many cards your opponent has in their hand, just because they are invisible to you, does not by any means rule them out as threats to your plan. There is not a single game that I know of, that has no instant based cards in the game so be wary of them. Just because you are able to attack them directly, doesn’t always mean you can come back alive from it.

The final key to this whole process is being able to know what’s in your opponents hand. If you know their player type and have been able to read their deck for at least two turns (sometimes even more), then it is simple to know what they are trying to do. First of all, you need to know every card available to the player. Luckily with Magic, there’s only around six sets that remain tournament legal at a time so keeping up isn’t that huge of a problem, its just taking the time to familiarize yourself. Sun Tzu said it best with “Know thy self, know thy enemy. A thousand battles, a thousand victories.” Simply meaning, you need to know what your enemy has in their deck (by understanding the possibilities of what they could have) as well as you know your own cards before you can expect to be successful. You then need to understand the situation, if you’re opponent is sitting there taking damage, then they obviously are planning something and you need to be prepared. On the contrary, if they are attacking you relentlessly, then you should know what to expect, more power heading your way. The player who can read deep into the depths of the others mind will always come out on top. Afterall, these games are based purely off of strategy.

The most key thing you need to know above all, is to know who you are. If you are unaware of what player you are, then you will automatically be going into the match blind and be at a loss. Also knowing what you are going to do in a game can allow you to possibly prevent your opponent from reading you, if you like leaving your opponent at a loss. Above everything I’ve said in this post though, have fun in your games. After all, they are only games.

Keep on Rollin’

-That TCG Blogger-

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