Ahhh... the food is not cheese...it is "hardtack", a hard cracker that sailors would soak in rum. Pulling the whales from the bag while throwing the empty sea tokens back in simulates the slow devastation of the whale population. This is a damn fine game.
Originally called "ship's bisket" it was the staple for food onboard a ship at the time. It could stay usable for years. Basically, just very hard, dry and dense crackers. They were not eaten straight usually but used as an ingredient for other dishes(or dunked in a liquid such as coffee, tea or rum).
Tom, thanks for all the work that you and your team put into these videos. I was already sold on the theming of this game. Your enthusiasm made this a must buy for me.
Both the game and the expansion can be had for $60 MSRP (much less if you get it from CSI). If anything, you are not out a lot of cash if you buy the base game and decide it is not for you. Therefore, not sure that I mind the game being "split in half" which is Tom's major gripe. I (foollishly) skipped on the kickstarter and looking forward to picking this up since the walkthrough in this review has me excited. :)
So anyone who has tried it, how does this compare to Lords of Waterdeep? It sounds very similar, just that you are trading the quest mechanic for the mechanic of deciding how long to voyage. Is that the case? Or does this pack more depth I'm not seeing? Or alternately, more balanced (since the right quest or building ownership was a game clincher way too often in LoW)?
Looks interesting, will check it out. On the Whaling theme, whaling did happen, and that industry did help decimated the whale population, but that economy also built the beautiful new england coastal towns and drew in immigrant families. If playing with your family, make it a learning opportunity, read Moby Dick, visit the area's historical sites and research whaling today.
Tom, I'm not sure if it's just on my end, but the video quality looks really jerky now that you're using a higher frame-per-second rate. Anyone else notice this? It was much better before the switch.
People detest whaling? You know, it is a fishing industry, and while I agree that it must be subject to regulation so that we will be good stewards of that particular resource, I simply do not understand the outcry against it... You don't hear people screaming against gigging flounder, but that's a fishing industry, so what's the difference???
Thanks for the review Tom! At least - for people who read Moby Dick - can shoutout: "Call me Peter" / "There she blows!" and can quote a lot of Moby Dick. But indeed, I had, at first sight also the (wrong) impression of "hunting whales in a game!???". It is't justifed to the game ofc and the game use it as topic. but on the end, nobody of the players kill a whale with those tokens. Also it's a economic game, with an unusual topic, but better than the x-copy of every "selling goods" stuff.
Perhaps killing seals is more palatable?Each player gets a miniature cardboard club to whack tiny stuffed seals, how's that? OR life, death and intrigue on a southern plantation just before the CIVIL WAR? The slave owner with the most slaves wins! Finally, a game called, The Day Lincoln Was Shot, a board game set in Ford's Theater, Oh, so many tasteless themes to choose. What to do, what to do?
Hiding in cyber space, in the dark, feeling safe and brave, you allow your mouth to spew feces at strangers. Not one of your best thoughts. Just saying. Cretino.
Speaking of Lincoln getting shot, in Fall of 2020 (4 years after this review) there is a Kickstarter game about said trial-"Unforgiven: The Lincoln Assassination Trial" which "is a 2-player card and dice development game about passion and justice that revisits the 1865 trial of Mary Surratt, one of eight put on trial for conspiring to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln and other members of his cabinet." Not sure this is a tasteless theme. Like New Bedford, it's a historical theme.
it's a piece of American history. And I like that the game doesn't really glorify the whale hunting in any obvious way. The process is extremely abstracted and one could even make up something else. Maybe catching them for research and then letting them loose. I love animals and I am totally against the hunting or abuse of any specie, but the game feels very lighthearted and the mechanisms are really good. Don't let the Theme detract you from playing it.
Like Dennis Leary used to say in his act:"We need to boycott tuna until they figure out how to keep dolphins from getting caught in the net!""Wait, what about the tuna?""Oh, screw them. They taste good!";)
Haha, was thinking the same. He also said: "We should have an interview process for animals...Who are you?...I'm an otter....What do you do? I do cute human things with my hands....You are free to go....Who are you? A cow...GET IN THE TRUCK! You're not a cow you are a baseball glove." Lesson: We only want to save the cute ones.
George Morgan Oh, that is pure gold. But in all seriousness, I think the issue with whales is endangerment(?) Then again, humanity is kind of draining the oceans of all edible critters.
I understand its a major problem in many parts of the world, but I enjoy this theme becuase it allows me to reminisce of my breif and awful acting career in my 11th grade English live action "play" of Moby Dick lol.
In some cases, it would be subjective. But due to the nature of the mechanisms, it is much less so in this particular case. The Kickstarter came with a two player card variant that works a little better. Have you played or are you being confrontational for the sake of being confrontational?
I've played it three times in the last couple of days and I think it works wonderful with two players. I love player interaction but I think with more than three, the game could feel quite chaotic and some people would feel like they would just be buying the buildings that their opponents would interested and not necessarily one's that you'd like. The whaling also feels like it's more fun with less players because with a high count, if you don't get started with the hunting early on, there's a good chance you'll get left out of the good stuff. I would definitely like to play it with the full compliment at some point though. However, I love it with two players and I fully recommend it.
I feel like the entry fee should be higher than one coin. I wouldn't mind being blocked for my building for the duration of the round, for say... $2 But just getting one coin feels like a slap in the face. That's one of the reasons why I feel like playing with the full player count wouldn't be so much fun. I get this feeling that you'd be building the things that are other players are looking for the whole game.
Other games do this better, Caylus, Praetor, Keyflower, Lords of Waterdeep, and Le Harve. I would be surprised if Tom hasn't played any of these games, hence why it seems strange that he thinks this is intriguing.
Phillip Tran ( A ) its a realistic part of history and it is actually done in the game very well ( B ) they are cardboard pieces you are not actually whaling at any time ..really..( C ) I don't know how many people I run into who said they would not play this game because of the theme which is just stupid because they have no problem playing war games or games where you are killing and slaughtering people but Wales is where you draw the line??? ( D ) You shouldn't be offended at all if you truly do live in New Bedford it is a very large part of your towns history and an important one at that. If anything playing the game reminds you of that fact. It is done very tastefully beautiful artwork and a slight look back in time where the town is being built upon the resources of that time. ( E ) the next time you fire up Call of Duty keep telling yourself that it's only a video game and we will keep telling ourselves that this is only a board game nobody's actually getting hurt that's why they call them games. ( F ) I was just happy that somebody actually came out with a historical theme that had not been regurgitated for once. The bottom line is with any of these historical games you have to put yourself in the time and understand that people were at the mercy of any resource they could gather that would keep the town together. Nobody knew at that time that they would be hunting a creature to near extinction. What they did now is that they had families to feed and whaling was one of the main resources of the time. Not saying that it's right but the game tastefully captures this historical fact.
I played this game recently with the expansions and its, meh, just another generic worker placement in an over saturated category with a different slapped on theme. Gets boring very quick.
I'm always puzzled why designers (or producers?) choose so obscure themes to their games lately. Whales? I know that "Trading in the Mediterranean" is overused but I would prefer it to these weird themes. Please stop making these strange games. It's almost creepy.
The designers live/lived in the region of the the US that this took place. Whaling was an important step in the industrialization of our country. Oil powered it's progress. It's not weird, strange or creepy. It historic. One of the most iconic pieces of American literature was inspired by the whaling industry. Ever heard of Moby Dick ?
No way, this is a great theme! Just because the industry isn't relevant anymore doesn't mean it is weird. Read Moby Dick and tell me this theme is weird!
I'm always puzzled why people like you think they can decide what designers should do. This is what is truly creepy, but not using very original underused historical themes for boardgames.
The designer and publisher have both gone on record addressing the sensitivity of the theme and saying that they do not in any way condone whaling or how it was done, etc. And I have yet to hear anyone that has played the game say that it really made them feel like a whale hunter.
He is not deciding what designers should do, he is making a point that they find it off putting, which it is for some people. The theme of this game doesn't add anything to the experience, it is a very typical WP and not doing anything new.
Ahhh... the food is not cheese...it is "hardtack", a hard cracker that sailors would soak in rum. Pulling the whales from the bag while throwing the empty sea tokens back in simulates the slow devastation of the whale population. This is a damn fine game.
Originally called "ship's bisket" it was the staple for food onboard a ship at the time. It could stay usable for years. Basically, just very hard, dry and dense crackers. They were not eaten straight usually but used as an ingredient for other dishes(or dunked in a liquid such as coffee, tea or rum).
I fit my expansion in the base box. You can't toss it all in haphazardly, but it fits.
Yeah. It fits. Tight, though.
Agree - I was able to get it all in there.
But! Did you sleeve the cards?
Tom really has a hat for everything.
But does he have a wizarding hat?
He never got the letter.
It matches the Airlines game's colors right behind him. Did he do that on purpose? Did it come with the game?
Tom, thanks for all the work that you and your team put into these videos. I was already sold on the theming of this game. Your enthusiasm made this a must buy for me.
Already pre-ordered the game. Just pre-ordered the expansion because of this review. Thanks Tom!
Both the game and the expansion can be had for $60 MSRP (much less if you get it from CSI). If anything, you are not out a lot of cash if you buy the base game and decide it is not for you. Therefore, not sure that I mind the game being "split in half" which is Tom's major gripe.
I (foollishly) skipped on the kickstarter and looking forward to picking this up since the walkthrough in this review has me excited. :)
I got it for $40 yesterday through an online store on BGG. Also includes the white wale promo.
I very easily fit the expansion in the main box when I took out the useless insert. Did your copy and expansion come with different stuff?
Hey Tom, can you comment on the misprinted tiles found in the base game and expansion? Did it cause the process of playing the game more difficult ?
So anyone who has tried it, how does this compare to Lords of Waterdeep? It sounds very similar, just that you are trading the quest mechanic for the mechanic of deciding how long to voyage. Is that the case? Or does this pack more depth I'm not seeing? Or alternately, more balanced (since the right quest or building ownership was a game clincher way too often in LoW)?
Looks interesting, will check it out. On the Whaling theme, whaling did happen, and that industry did help decimated the whale population, but that economy also built the beautiful new england coastal towns and drew in immigrant families. If playing with your family, make it a learning opportunity, read Moby Dick, visit the area's historical sites and research whaling today.
Love Moby Dick! Both the Novel and both movies (didn't watched the third yet)
Tom, I'm not sure if it's just on my end, but the video quality looks really jerky now that you're using a higher frame-per-second rate. Anyone else notice this? It was much better before the switch.
Just drop the quality down and it should be fine on your monitor.
Ya. The video was making me nauseous. It was like it was on fast forward. Very disorienting
People detest whaling? You know, it is a fishing industry, and while I agree that it must be subject to regulation so that we will be good stewards of that particular resource, I simply do not understand the outcry against it... You don't hear people screaming against gigging flounder, but that's a fishing industry, so what's the difference???
Thanks for the review Tom! At least - for people who read Moby Dick - can shoutout: "Call me Peter" / "There she blows!" and can quote a lot of Moby Dick. But indeed, I had, at first sight also the (wrong) impression of "hunting whales in a game!???". It is't justifed to the game ofc and the game use it as topic. but on the end, nobody of the players kill a whale with those tokens. Also it's a economic game, with an unusual topic, but better than the x-copy of every "selling goods" stuff.
What next? A seal clubbing game? ...partially joking.
Perhaps killing seals is more palatable?Each player gets a miniature cardboard club to whack tiny stuffed seals, how's that? OR life, death and intrigue on a southern plantation just before the CIVIL WAR? The slave owner with the most slaves wins! Finally, a game called, The Day Lincoln Was Shot, a board game set in Ford's Theater, Oh, so many tasteless themes to choose. What to do, what to do?
Pick a different game? Just a thought. Idiot.
Hiding in cyber space, in the dark, feeling safe and brave, you allow your mouth to spew feces at strangers. Not one of your best thoughts. Just saying. Cretino.
That seal game sounds fun. Have you played 'Josef Mengele the Misunderstood Physician?' It's not bad simple resource management.
That second game already exists. It’s called Puerto Rico.
Speaking of Lincoln getting shot, in Fall of 2020 (4 years after this review) there is a Kickstarter game about said trial-"Unforgiven: The Lincoln Assassination Trial" which "is a 2-player card and dice development game about passion and justice that revisits the 1865 trial of Mary Surratt, one of eight put on trial for conspiring to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln and other members of his cabinet." Not sure this is a tasteless theme. Like New Bedford, it's a historical theme.
Killing whales....wow, what a theme! I'll give them this, at least it's not selling spices in the Mediterranean.
it's a piece of American history. And I like that the game doesn't really glorify the whale hunting in any obvious way. The process is extremely abstracted and one could even make up something else. Maybe catching them for research and then letting them loose. I love animals and I am totally against the hunting or abuse of any specie, but the game feels very lighthearted and the mechanisms are really good. Don't let the Theme detract you from playing it.
Looks fun, but yeah...whaling theme is ehh. If it could just been fishing, that would have been a must buy for me.
Like Dennis Leary used to say in his act:"We need to boycott tuna until they figure out how to keep dolphins from getting caught in the net!""Wait, what about the tuna?""Oh, screw them. They taste good!";)
Haha, was thinking the same. He also said: "We should have an interview process for animals...Who are you?...I'm an otter....What do you do? I do cute human things with my hands....You are free to go....Who are you? A cow...GET IN THE TRUCK! You're not a cow you are a baseball glove."
Lesson: We only want to save the cute ones.
Hahaha, that is true. #savethecuteanimals
Yeah I'd play it, but my gaming group would be like noooo the poor whales!
George Morgan Oh, that is pure gold. But in all seriousness, I think the issue with whales is endangerment(?) Then again, humanity is kind of draining the oceans of all edible critters.
I understand its a major problem in many parts of the world, but I enjoy this theme becuase it allows me to reminisce of my breif and awful acting career in my 11th grade English live action "play" of Moby Dick lol.
I love this game but I would add that it's not really that fun at 2 players.
I had a demo of this at Origins with me & the creator playing, & I loved it.
Fair enough. Nonetheless, it's better at higher player counts.
+TheGreatHamEl In your opinion of course. You make it sound like it's a global fact.
In some cases, it would be subjective. But due to the nature of the mechanisms, it is much less so in this particular case. The Kickstarter came with a two player card variant that works a little better. Have you played or are you being confrontational for the sake of being confrontational?
I've played it three times in the last couple of days and I think it works wonderful with two players. I love player interaction but I think with more than three, the game could feel quite chaotic and some people would feel like they would just be buying the buildings that their opponents would interested and not necessarily one's that you'd like. The whaling also feels like it's more fun with less players because with a high count, if you don't get started with the hunting early on, there's a good chance you'll get left out of the good stuff. I would definitely like to play it with the full compliment at some point though. However, I love it with two players and I fully recommend it.
Not really sure why Tom thinks it is intriguing to pay to use someones building, many other games have this mechanic.
I feel like the entry fee should be higher than one coin. I wouldn't mind being blocked for my building for the duration of the round, for say... $2 But just getting one coin feels like a slap in the face. That's one of the reasons why I feel like playing with the full player count wouldn't be so much fun. I get this feeling that you'd be building the things that are other players are looking for the whole game.
Other games do this better, Caylus, Praetor, Keyflower, Lords of Waterdeep, and Le Harve. I would be surprised if Tom hasn't played any of these games, hence why it seems strange that he thinks this is intriguing.
I live in New Bedford and I am highly offended by this.
Phillip Tran ( A ) its a realistic part of history and it is actually done in the game very well ( B ) they are cardboard pieces you are not actually whaling at any time ..really..( C ) I don't know how many people I run into who said they would not play this game because of the theme which is just stupid because they have no problem playing war games or games where you are killing and slaughtering people but Wales is where you draw the line??? ( D ) You shouldn't be offended at all if you truly do live in New Bedford it is a very large part of your towns history and an important one at that. If anything playing the game reminds you of that fact. It is done very tastefully beautiful artwork and a slight look back in time where the town is being built upon the resources of that time. ( E ) the next time you fire up Call of Duty keep telling yourself that it's only a video game and we will keep telling ourselves that this is only a board game nobody's actually getting hurt that's why they call them games. ( F ) I was just happy that somebody actually came out with a historical theme that had not been regurgitated for once. The bottom line is with any of these historical games you have to put yourself in the time and understand that people were at the mercy of any resource they could gather that would keep the town together. Nobody knew at that time that they would be hunting a creature to near extinction. What they did now is that they had families to feed and whaling was one of the main resources of the time. Not saying that it's right but the game tastefully captures this historical fact.
I played this game recently with the expansions and its, meh, just another generic worker placement in an over saturated category with a different slapped on theme. Gets boring very quick.
I'm always puzzled why designers (or producers?) choose so obscure themes to their games lately. Whales? I know that "Trading in the Mediterranean" is overused but I would prefer it to these weird themes. Please stop making these strange games. It's almost creepy.
The designers live/lived in the region of the the US that this took place. Whaling was an important step in the industrialization of our country. Oil powered it's progress.
It's not weird, strange or creepy. It historic.
One of the most iconic pieces of American literature was inspired by the whaling industry. Ever heard of Moby Dick ?
No way, this is a great theme!
Just because the industry isn't relevant anymore doesn't mean it is weird. Read Moby Dick and tell me this theme is weird!
I'm always puzzled why people like you think they can decide what designers should do. This is what is truly creepy, but not using very original underused historical themes for boardgames.
The designer and publisher have both gone on record addressing the sensitivity of the theme and saying that they do not in any way condone whaling or how it was done, etc. And I have yet to hear anyone that has played the game say that it really made them feel like a whale hunter.
He is not deciding what designers should do, he is making a point that they find it off putting, which it is for some people. The theme of this game doesn't add anything to the experience, it is a very typical WP and not doing anything new.