GenCon is fast approaching! Only 4 weeks to go! We take a look at the 5 games we want to fight the crowds for and get our sweaty hands on!

Black Angel

9 years. That’s how long it’s been since Troyes came out. The design team of Sébastien Dujardin, Xavier Georges and Alain Orban haven’t worked on anything together since. Until now. The hype for Black Angel is off the charts. The box art makes you drool. Just look at it. But what is the game about you may ask? Well…we aren’t sure. Something to do with aliens and rampant A.I? Who knows? Who cares!

From the publisher:

Humanity, through its irresponsible behaviour, has exhausted the natural resources of Earth, making it almost uninhabitable. In a burst of lucidity, pressed by the irreversible degradation of your planet, the great nations are forced to put aside their differences and share their knowledge in order to create the vastest spacecraft ever constructed. Thus, the Black Angel project is launched.

The Black Angel, the first intergalactic frigate in history, must transport the genetic heritage of humanity beyond known worlds, over a journey that is likely to last several thousand years. Her crew will be composed of only robots. Because no nation is willing to trust the creation of the AI (artificial intelligence) that will control this crew to any other nation, a compromise is found: The Black Angel will be co-managed by several AIs, and the utility of each decision will be evaluated in VP (Validation Process).

At the completion of this long and perilous voyage, when a new inhabitable planet has been reached, the AI that has earned the most VP will be entrusted with reawakening Humanity and overseeing its new start….

All the reports are in agreement: The Black Angel is approaching Spes, a planet with the highest probability for habitability by the human species. Take advantage of our approach to maintain the good relations you have gradually woven with the benevolent Alien species populating the galaxy, and watch out for the dreaded Ravagers, who would do anything to prevent you from reaching Spes.

Hopefully, we can fight our way through heaving throng of fellow gamers to get to the booth and snag a copy of this potentially amazing game.

Abomination

As you will all know by now Worker Placement games get our gaming juices flowing like no other. There’s something so satisfying as placing a worker and doing whatever you are allowed to do at that space on the board. Simple but oh so very good. Abomination caught our eye as it was: 1. A Worker Placement game. 2. It’s about building a monster. 3. One of the spaces on the board is to grave rob for body parts. How can you not like that!

From the publisher:

It’s been twenty years since Victor Frankenstein died on a ship in the Arctic, but his vengeful creature lives on, as does Robert Walton, the sea captain who vowed to kill the fiend before mercy stayed his hand. It’s now 1819, and a sinister darkness descends upon the city of Paris. A mysterious benefactor of gigantic stature has emerged in the scientific community, never showing his face, claiming to possess the late Frankenstein’s research. He sponsors a grand competition, offering an even grander prize: unlocking the mystery of mortality!

Renowned scientists from around the world come to take part: some drawn to solve this eternal riddle, others coerced against their will. But a certain captain comes as well, one deeply suspicious of the secretive patron, hoping to finally fulfil his vow.

Abomination: The Heir of Frankenstein is a competitive game of strategic monster building for 2-4 players, inspired by Mary Shelley’s classic novel of gothic horror. In the game, the creature demands your help to accomplish what his own creator would not: to bring to life an abomination like itself, a companion to end its miserable solitude. Through worker placement and careful management of decomposing resources, you’ll gather materials from the cemeteries and morgues around the city, conduct valuable research at the Academy of Science, hire less-than-reputable associates, and toil away in your lab — all in an effort to assemble a new form of life and infuse it with a “spark of being”. Do well, and the creature may reward you during one of its surprise visits; do poorly, and you may come to regret not putting forth more effort. Narrative elements come into play throughout the game, guided by your decisions, leading to potentially unsavoury outcomes.

The game ends when you succeed in bringing your creation to life or when the Captain kills the creature, whichever happens first. Then the player with the most points fulfils Frankenstein’s dark legacy, becoming his heir, for good or ill…

We want this so bad we would sell body parts to get it.

Die Hard

It took a while but we finally have a Die Hard board game. As no surprise to anybody, it’s a one-versus-many asymmetrical game. Welcome to the party pal! From what we’ve seen so far it looks….interesting. The game is a loose fit to the Die Hard movie and you would be forgiven in thinking it was an abstract game when you see the gameboard. But hey, who are we to judge. It’s Die Hard! Ho Ho Ho. Now I have a machine gun.

From the publisher:

Die Hard: The Nakatomi Heist Board Game uses one-versus-many, asymmetric gameplay to pit protagonist John McClane against others acting as thieves who are co-operating to foil the hero’s plan, which is to save the hostages in the iconic Nakatomi Plaza high-rise. Movie buffs and hobby game enthusiasts will appreciate the game’s distinct homage to the 1988 film, which packs rules and gameplay to the air vents with callbacks to Die Hard’s most memorable scenes, characters, and events.

Hopefully, they will release expansions to cover the events of Die Hard 2 and Die Hard with a Vengeance. Nobody wants anything to do with the later films now do they?

Machi Koro Legacy

Not the series you’d expect to get a Legacy treatment but this is looking good under the stewardship of Rob Daviau. After Worker Placement games we are suckers for Legacy games too. So this is a must for us.

From the publisher:

Machi Koro Legacy features the same gameplay as Machi Koro. You are still rolling dice, you are still collecting income, and you are still racing to build landmarks — but then you unlock the [censored] and you start earning a little extra income by [censored], and then you start to explore the [censored] and you have to make a choice between [censored] and [censored]. Even if you aren’t in contention to win a given game, you still have [censored] to set up exciting [censored] for the next one. And then the [paragraph deleted]…

Machi Koro Legacy features a ten-game series that tells a complete story set in the world of Machi Koro in which player choices create a unique gameplay experience.

We really can’t wait for this. In fact, we are so excited that our [paragraph deleted]…

Terror Below

Tremors is a classic movie. Terror Below is the board game version. We love it. We backed it on Kickstarter. We are collecting it at GenCon. No need to fight anybody for this one! From the art style to the premise, this is a win-win game.

From the publisher:

Terror Below is a game of government experiments gone wild in the Nevada desert. The faster you move, the more vibrations you make, attracting the attention of the vicious worms underground. Navigate the difficult terrain to collect valuable worm eggs and deliver them to locations around town to claim bounties. If you’re feeling lucky, collect items and weapons to go hunt ’em.

The goal of Terror Below is to be the first player to score 20 victory points (VP) by collecting worm eggs and delivering them to locations around town — or alternatively, by hunting down and killing those vicious worms.

During the game, your squad of unlikely heroes will visit locations around the small desert town to find bounties, scavenge for weapons, and try to survive as you distract the worms. Eventually, those worms will attack. If you are in their path of destruction, you better be prepared for a fight!

What are you guys and gals looking forward to at GenCon?

We’ll be back next week!