Flocked! is a competitive strategy game in which you aim to grow your herd of sheep while avoiding the attacks of animals, robbers, thugs, and sheep bandits.

 

Flocked! Stats:

Players: 2-4
Time: 20-75 minutes
Ages: 13+
By: Jason George
Suggested Retail Price: $35
Categories: Family, Strategy, Card, Survival, Backstabbing

How to Play Flocked!:

First, set-up the game by giving each player 2 starter cards: “Shears” and “Plain Staff”, 1 player info card, 1 sheep playboard, 1 white sheeple, 5 Flocked! point tokens, 80 silvers, and a starting hand of 5 cards. Then, put the wilderness playboard in the center of the table with the black sheeple marking the number of wild sheep there are. Lastly, you put out the banker coin tray, the draw deck, and the season cards depicting the number of rounds.

Beginning the game, each player starts with 25 sheep. Everyone rolls a die and the lowest roller goes first. There are 4 parts to a player’s turn: draw, play, trade, and discard cards. Also, you can play cards to find sheep, pasture sheep, defend against opponents’ attacks, attack opponents, and steal from opponents.

You can defend against other players’ attacks by using bonuses from weapons in front of you and adding them to your die roll. Also, you can give sheep away to gain Flocked! points. You can use these points to draw extra cards, double a horn of oil to heal your sheep, double a pasture card, and increase your defense against attacks.

You continue taking turns in a clockwise order. Rounds are depicted on the season cards as months numbered 1 through 12. “Market Season”, which occurs every 3 rounds, is the time to buy sheep. “Lambing Season”, which occurs every 5 rounds, is when your sheep multiply. At the beginning of the 6th and 12th round, “Shearing Season” occurs, which is when you get paid for shearing your sheep. In addition to this, at the end of every 3 rounds you have to pasture your sheep using pasture cards and pay for the food for your sheep and dog using coins.

The game ends when a player has 100 sheep in their herd!

Flocked! Review:

The first thing I noticed about Flocked! is the solid components and the tasteful artwork. The wooden sheeples were my favorite part. If you have heard of meeples, these are about 10 times cuter! Then, the artwork is in a cartoonist style, yet just realistic enough to make you feel like you are in the era.

There are 3 different modes of play that add variability in complexity and time. The first mode is “Little Shepherd Mode.” This mode takes out the monetary component of gameplay and adds “Gain Sheep” cards to the deck. As a result, this makes for easier, less complex gameplay and can be used during a family game night with children of varying ages. A game in “Little Shepherd Mode” takes about 20-40 minutes. Next, there is “Big Shepherd Mode.” This is the standard mode of gameplay and can be used in games between adult and teenage friends and family.  A game in this mode lasts about 35-75 minutes. Then, there is “Epic Mode” for those that are up for a greater challenge.

My favorite aspect of gameplay in Flocked! is the ability to backstab other players. There is quite a range of backstabbing, from stealing items or sheep to making sheep wander off or get eaten by animals. However, there is also a chance to defend yourself and avoid these attacks. This adds a very “Munchkin” feel to the game for me. Also, the game is balanced in the way that of the 3 cards you play on your turn, only 2 can be cards played against an opponent. This is beneficial, because you don’t want the attacks to feel relentless, even though they are fun!

If you are interested, you can support the Kickstarter by clicking here!

“Are you shepherd enough?”

Review By: Sarah Childs, Owner of Childs’ Play: Games & Geekery
www.childsplaygames.com

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The Greater Debate is a competitive, social game in which you give 30-second statements to defend your views on various topics.

Greater Debate Stats:

Players: 3-15

Time: 45 minutes

Ages: 10+

By: Castle Productions

Suggested Retail Price: $18

Categories: Debate, Family, Party, Card, Social

How to Play The Greater Debate:

Deal one of each of the A and B voting cards to each player. Randomly determine a starting player. That player will flip up a debate card from the draw deck. Then, they read the debate topic and choose a side to support. Next, they read the “Icebreaker” in the upper, left-hand corner. The “Icebreaker” will determine the opposing player in the debate. The opposing player has to support the other side of the debate even if they do not agree with it!

Both players have 30 seconds to present their argument. Then, players who did not participate use their A and B voting cards to vote for the better argument. Whichever debater gets more votes wins the debate card!

The first player to gain 5 debate cards is the winner!

The Greater Debate Review:

The original “Great Debate” is a skillful party game for 5 to 10 players. The new “The Greater Debate” is a stand-alone game that you can play with 3 to 15 players. This new player range makes “The Greater Debate” more appealing as a family game as well as for larger parties. Also, the new debate cards are original and have a huge variety of subject matter. In “The Greater Debate,” you also get a big box to carry the core set and expansions in, in addition to getting more voting cards and a whole new set of debate cards!

A distinct appeal of this game is the ability to vary your play experience by including different cards. The debate cards are marked with a green, yellow, or red circle in the top, right-hand corner. Red means that the debate on the card deals with a controversial  issue. Of course, green means just the opposite. Accordingly, yellow is somewhere in the middle. You can customize your game by choosing which colors you want to play with. For instance, in a friendly, family game you may just play with the green cards. In a hardcore game among friends, you may just play with red cards. Of course, you can always just play traditional style with all the cards mixed together.

You can also play with one of my favorite variant rules. After both debaters make their initial arguments, the starting debater may choose to bid a card (1 point) in order to make a 15-second rebuttal argument. Then, the opposing player may choose to pay and rebuttal and so on. Other players vote as normal when the rebuttals are finished. However, the winner of the debate gets all the bid cards plus the original debate card!

If you are interested, you can order a copy of the game and support Castle Productions at “The Greater Debate” Kickstarter Page!

Spread the news of this amazing, social game for families and friends alike!

Review By: Sarah Childs, Owner of Childs’ Play: Games & Geekery

The post “The Greater Debate” Review: A Social Game of Defending Your Views appeared first on Unfiltered Gamer.

Mangaka is a competitive drawing game in which you quickly draw frames of comics that reflect your assigned artist themes and trends that change from round to round.

Mangaka Stats:

Players: 1-8

Time: 30-60 minutes

Ages: 12+

By: Jason Bradley Thompson

Suggested Retail Price: $40

Categories: Drawing, Family, Party, Manga, Comics

How to Play Mangaka:

Deal 3 Theme Cards to each player. These Themes represent each player’s Obsessions as an artist. Players try to include these Themes in their comic each round in order to earn points called “Fame.”

There are 4 timed rounds of drawing in the game. Depending on the players’ chosen difficulty level, they may have 5-8 minutes to draw each round. Every round, the amount of time players have to draw stays the same, but the number of panels they have to draw increases.

After each round, players read aloud their comic, score Fame and draw Trend Cards. Trend Cards come into play after the first round. For each round, draw an increasing number of Trend Cards and  get rid of last round’s Trends. Trend Cards are drawn face-up and the player with the least Fame gets to choose one Trend to discard.

Fame is how you win the game! There are 4 ways to earn Fame each round.

#1. Include your Themes in your comic (1 Fame Token per Theme included- max 3)

#2. Use no more than 3 Word Balloons (2 Fame Tokens)

#3. Draw something in each panel (2 Fame Tokens)

#4. Include Trends in your comic (rounds 2-4 only; Fame Tokens vary)

You win by having the most Fame at the end of round 4!

Mangaka Review:

This is an easy game to have loads of fun with whether you are good at drawing or not! The game is balanced in such a way that it puts artists and stick figure stylists on an even playing field. If you are not laughing at the combinations of cards, you will be laughing at what comics are created from them.

You can control many variables in the game to set it up to your liking. It says 1-8 players, but you can play with more by putting inexperienced players in teams. Teams are also a way to include children younger than 12. You can put younger children in teams with adults. This makes Mangaka a fun family or party game inspiring creativity in all that play it. The time limit can be controlled by choosing to play 5, 6, or 8 minute rounds. In addition to that, there are variant rules for a “Marathon Game” or a “Solo Game.”

Theme Cards and Trend Cards make the game! When you receive your Theme Cards, you often have a challenging combination of entertaining elements to include in your comic. This aids in creating hilarious situations in your story that everyone can enjoy. Trend Cards add more ideas making the game increasingly challenging and entertaining. With 135 Theme Cards and 52 Trend Cards, there is no shortage of replay ability.

There are a few other notable features of the game. The game comes with 64 Comic Pages and a website where you can print off more pages for free. There is a Fame Meter inside the Rule book, so you can see how good of a Mangaka player you are according to your Fame score. Lastly, the game also features outstanding anime-style art on all of the cards!

If you are interested, you can visit www.childsplaygames.com and click on the “Item Request” tab to order your copy of Mangaka today for $40 with tax already included.

Review By: Sarah Childs, Owner of Childs’ Play: Games & Geekery

www.childsplaygames.com

Examples from Game:

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Strawberry Ninja Stats:

Players: 1-4 players

Time: 20 minutes

Ages: 8+

By: Strawberry Studio

Suggested Retail Price: $10

Categories: Card, Cooperative, Family, Puzzle

How to Play Strawberry Ninja:

Start the game by randomly selecting 10 Strawberry Field Cards to play with. Shuffle the single Strawberry Ninja Card in and place the cards facedown in a 4×3 grid with one empty space. Put the Kitty Pawn on any card to start. Shuffle the 4 Movement Cards together and put them in a deck face down. Place the Black Marker on #1 of the Round Marker Card.

On your turn, shift 2 cards 1 space in the grid in a slider puzzle fashion (always moving your shifting card into the empty space of the grid). Flip the second card you shift face-up and resolve any game text on that card. Next, flip over the top card of the Movement Deck and resolve the movement of the kitty. It is optional, but you may choose to pounce on the card under Kitty. Then, the end of one player’s turn signifies the end of the round and the Round Marker moves to the next number on the Round Tracker Card.

If you choose to have Kitty pounce on a card, 1 of 2 things can happen. If you pounce on Strawberry Ninja, you are halfway to winning! If you pounce on any other card, Strawberry Ninja got away and you are halfway to losing! Then, you shuffle all the cards, and reset the grid, Movement Deck and Round Tracker Card. Additionally, if you reach the 12th round on the Round Tracker Card, Kitty will automatically pounce! That is the “timer.”

You win by pouncing on Strawberry Ninja 2 times. You lose by pouncing on a card that is not Strawberry Ninja 2 times. In other words, it is best 2 out of 3 to win!

Strawberry Ninja Review:

The first thing I noticed about this game was the cartoon style, fantasy-based artwork. There was a lot of creativity put into the personification of inanimate foods and plants. If the card text does something negative to the player(s), the character on the card looks angry. All in all, the artwork is colorful, entertaining, and kid-friendly.

The game is very easy to learn and teach. The element of teamwork and ease of gameplay make it a great family and kid’s game. The use of some basic strategy techniques make it great for children and people new to gaming.

The fact that you only play with 10 out of 13 of the Strawberry Fields Cards per game adds some extra replay value to the game, which is nice. Also, on the Kickstarter, they have now unlocked 5 stretch goals which give you 5 unique Strawberry Field Cards. There are more to unlock, so even more variety is possible.

I playtested this game many times and with different numbers of people. I can confidently say that it works just as well as a 1-player game as it does as a 4-player game. You have the option of customizing your game by choosing which cards to use in the game. You can also make the game more challenging with a variant that gives you only 10 turns instead of 12 to pounce on Strawberry Ninja. With that said, you could easily make it as hard as you want by further shortening the number of turns.

This game is still on Kickstarter, but it’s already fully funded. If you are interested in ordering Strawberry Ninja and helping them get to their next stretch goal, please visit the Kickstarter!

Guest review by: Sarah Childs, Owner of Childs’ Play: Games & Geekery

The post “Strawberry Ninja” Review: Catch the Tastiest Ninja in the World! appeared first on Unfiltered Gamer.

Wrathborne Champions’ Stats:

Players: 2-4 players

Time: 30-180 minutes (Choose your own length)

Ages: 13+

By: Randover Games

Retail price: ~$50

Categories: Card, Cooperative, Boss Fight, Class, Weapon, Tabletop, Fantasy

How to Play Wrathborne Champions:

Start the game by selecting 1 class deck and 1 weapon deck. Each deck consists of 10 cards and 1 reference card. Put each reference card to the side. This leaves each player with 10 class cards and 10 weapon cards to shuffle together to make a unique 20 card deck.

Put out 1 of the 9 different Minion of Wrath miniboards, which depict the health and attack of each part of the minion. There are randomizer cards for each Minion of Wrath, so you can always choose randomly which one you will flight.

Each player draws 5 cards. The player who was last to select their weapon starts with the Wrath Token and goes first. The holder of the Wrath Token (as well as players to the right and left of that player) will be targeted by the Minion of Wrath during its turn.

On your turn, you may play a class card with a weapon card, just a fist attack class card, or just a weapon card on your turn. Then,resolve the attacks of your card(s) for damage to the Minion of Wrath. Some played cards cause you to flip over “Battle Deck” cards. This is the only random thing about the game play. These cards will cause negative or positive events.

After each player has taken their turn, the Minion of Wrath takes its turn. It makes its attacks, which are described on the miniboard of the minion. When a player is damaged, cards are removed from the player’s deck to make a death pile. Some cards have special abilities that activate when they are put in the death pile.  Likewise, when you are healed, you get to choose cards from your death pile to put back into your discard pile and back into your deck.
You win by beating the Minion of Wrath! After you beat the minion, your party gets to draw cards from the “Fabled Rewards” card pile to upgrade your characters and consequently add to your life total (card deck). You get another 5 cards back from your death pile as well to heal between battles. Then, you can choose to continue to play and fight another minion chosen by the randomizer deck!

Wrathborne Champions Review:

This game combines enticing artwork, solid components, supreme strategy, and teamwork, while still being very easy to learn and play.

First of all, choosing a class and weapon combination to make your deck creates many possibilities for a different deck every time you play! Each class and deck is thematic and has something special about it. For instance, the cleric has a lot of healing cards and the berserker deals high damage attacks, while doing damage to himself. I played with several different classes and really liked each one’s unique abilities. However, I chose the wand for my weapon every time, because I just really liked it’s weapon ability. However, other players did enjoy trying the other weapons.

There are 9 different Minions of Wrath. Each minion has 9 different sectors. Each sector has a specific ability or attack and stands for a specific body part or member of a horde making up that particular Minion of Wrath. Some sector abilities power up or protect other sectors of the minion, which adds more strategy when trying to decide which sectors you want to defeat first. Additionally, each Minion of Wrath has 6 different levels (or strengths) you can battle. For each ascending level, the minions health and attack powers increase. This adds re-play value and truly allows a “choose your own adventure” experience for the players. You can start at any level and you can stop at any level.

Play time is very much the player’s choice as well. You can just battle one Minion of Wrath and play for 20-30 minutes, you can battle 6 Minions of Wrath and play for roughly 3 hours, or anything in between! You can level up your characters in between battling minions and you can level up the next minion after each one you fight.

Let’s talk about the challenge. There are several ways to lose.Some cards (most really) that you play will require you to flip over a card from the “Battle Deck.” If that deck runs out, you lose. There are 56 cards in the “Battle Deck,” so it will last for quite a while. However, if you battle a minion that is equal or greater level than the current number of players you are playing with, you are facing a challenge. For instance, if you are 4 players facing a level 4 or 5 Minion of Wrath, that’s a challenge. You can also lose if all players in your party die at the hands of the Minion of Wrath. This means all of the deck cards have been placed in the death pile of each player. Again, this framework of getting to choose how long you want to battle and choose the levels of the minions you want to battle, really lets you be the master of your own destiny to a certain extent. It lets you decide how much you want to be challenged.

Don’t fear being the first to die in battle. Dying has never been so much fun! When you die, you flip over your class and weapon ability cards to reveal your “Last Stand” abilities. You still get to have a turn and you still get to do something to help the group. It might not be as cool as when you were alive, but it keeps you in the game! Also, other players can still heal you and get you back some cards or one class even has the ability to revive you and get you back 10 cards. You get to flip your ability cards back to the alive side and everything. After that, it’s your job to stay alive this time.

This game is still on Kickstarter, but it’s already fully funded. The pictures you see here are of the prototype that the makers gave me, but they are really stepping up the game for the complete version. No pun intended. They are having the graphics redone by a professional graphic designer. Each copy of the game ordered will come with a metal wrath token. Then, they are also upgrading the miniboards to core card stock material to improve their quality, so they will be thicker than the playing cards. They are also super close to unlocking their next stretch goal, which will allow them to supply fancy plastic inserts for the box. That would be very nice!

If you are interested, you can visit Child’s Play and click on the “Item Request” tab to reserve your copy of Wrathborne Champions. We are supporting the Kickstarter to get our copies, which are estimated to arrive between December 2017 and April 2018. You can also visit the Kickstarter page.

Guest review by: Sarah Childs, Owner of Childs’ Play: Games & Geekery

The post Wrathborne Champions Review: A Boss Fight in a Box appeared first on Unfiltered Gamer.