The Arcs base game is excellent, but I think you will find the expansion, The Blighted Reach, as another posted noted, amazing. It employs the same core mechanism of the card play, but is almost a different game, that creates an evolving narrative over a three-part campaign. And for anyone who loves historical games, they definitely need to try Cole Wehrle's John Company, which at least until Arcs came along, I considered to be his best game. But Arcs just might turn out to be better.
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer John Company is interesting because it is set during Company Rule in India (1760s - 1858). A period of history not often explored in board games. That said, you do have to be aware you are very much playing as the bad guys, trying to oppress and exploit India.
@@adamclausing1944 Given his appreciation for some heavy history/war games, I think he would like it. Or at least appreciate Wehrle's pushing the boundaries of what a board game can be. Grant and Alexander, of the Players Aid, love John Co.
Thanks. If you like it, then I'll probably like it too ✌️ I love Pax Pamir 2nd ed. Root and Oath. Mr. Werle's designs are so interesting and a joy for people who like "mean" games.
None of the Cole Werhle games I played (Root and Oath) did it for me, despite my admiration for the unique mechanics and great art. Arcs was the game that clicked and I’m so glad I managed to snag a copy! Similarly to others in the comments section I’d highly recommend the campaign expansion. It adds a lot more complexity (albeit a little bloated at some points) and tells fantastic space opera stories in almost half the time of TI! Also the storage solution in the expansion box is something to be praised as well!
Arcs is a great game, but the expansion (The Blighted Reach) takes it to a whole new level. For me it's a serious contender for replacing TI4 as my favorite game. You should definitely play the base game a few times before trying it though, it adds a LOT of stuff so it's important to have a good grasp of the base game first. Also as much as I like the minis, I found that the ships tipped over too easily and didn't lie flat on their sides which could make it difficult to tell which ships were damaged.
That was one of the issues we had as well. I think I might but a cube next to them or something to denote damage. Maybe I'll check out the expansion - is that the campaign you are talking about?
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer Yes, The Blighted Reach expansion lets you play 3 linked games to create a sort of "campaign". It's like a game of TI4 you can break up into smaller chunks so you can play it without having to put aside an entire day (although you can play it that way as well).
Finally!! Love the game too - just can’t stand seeing my favourite reviewer score this game negatively - it’s great to see that TDG love it too! I really don’t get why it has to be a ten or a zero 🤷♂️
@@WinsingKompott I’ve only played it at four, which I thought was great. I imagine it would work well at any player count, but it strikes me as a “more the merrier” kind of game.
Well, I'm going to have to finally disagree on something that TDG has reviewed. Almost all of Cody's tastes are very similar to my own and his reviews usually solidify helping to make my game choosing decisions. However, I'm sad to say that this game just absolutely made me rage hate it (which I am known to do for only two out of the hundreds of games that I've played in my life). The hype for Arcs has been super high as being one, if not "THE", best game of 2024 and I do not see how this game is rating so well. The Arcs "galactic conflict" skin that I love in other games does not get me past the fact that the main trick-taking mechanic does not fit the theme and the bias that whoever holds the Initiative at the beginning of a Chapter essentially controls the flow of rounds within a Chapter, both in number of actions in a round but also dictating the scoring tokens. Initiative control is not a new concept in gaming, but it usually balances the "who goes first/first choice" mechanic. Arcs massively favors who starts the Chapter with the Initiative as it gives that player ultimately more actions they can perform in a round, and overall in the Chapter as other players are forced to mostly spend their single card/single action on reacting to the lead card player's multiple actions or spending more cards on their turn to take Initiative if they are unable to Surpass. They then end up having to waste their lead card multi-action turn reacting or changing strategy to fit the available scoring while the original Initiative player has extra cards to play late-Chapter giving them the ability to lead with a card with little to no penalty and playing more multi-action turn(s) while everyone else is out of cards to play. I'm not a care-bear player and not adverse to aggressive playstyles, but this game makes you have to play overly aggressive to make short-lived gains that will likely not pan out for scoring because of the lack of actions to fulfill whatever strategy you were trying to achieve that Chapter. Leader/Lore cards along with the right Guild/Vox cards and resource tokens help with some mitigation, but they mostly have penalties or limitations that restrict their worth in comparison to just being able to lead each round. But, my opinion of this game is just mine for others to read if they want. TDG is my fave review show and Cody does an excellent job with his work 😀
@@maysemk0 Thank you. I totally get why it’s not some people’s cup of tea, but I really have fun with this one. I don’t know that I have another game quite like it in my collection. Best of luck!
@TheDiscriminatingGamer you are doing great, I'm enjoying your reviews very much! Just saying how it is. I'm more into making games, but nobody other than my friends told me how they like my little card game in the Oathverse, Oath Rule, for instance 😂
Thanks!
Thank you very much. Most kind.
The Arcs base game is excellent, but I think you will find the expansion, The Blighted Reach, as another posted noted, amazing. It employs the same core mechanism of the card play, but is almost a different game, that creates an evolving narrative over a three-part campaign. And for anyone who loves historical games, they definitely need to try Cole Wehrle's John Company, which at least until Arcs came along, I considered to be his best game. But Arcs just might turn out to be better.
Thanks a ton. I appreciate your comments.
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer John Company is interesting because it is set during Company Rule in India (1760s - 1858). A period of history not often explored in board games. That said, you do have to be aware you are very much playing as the bad guys, trying to oppress and exploit India.
I would really love to see a DiscriminatingGamer review of John Company!
@@adamclausing1944 Given his appreciation for some heavy history/war games, I think he would like it. Or at least appreciate Wehrle's pushing the boundaries of what a board game can be. Grant and Alexander, of the Players Aid, love John Co.
@ Maybe somewhere down the road.
Thanks. If you like it, then I'll probably like it too ✌️ I love Pax Pamir 2nd ed. Root and Oath. Mr. Werle's designs are so interesting and a joy for people who like "mean" games.
@@Fontzig This one is a lot of fun. Thanks.
I always love your content. Thank you!
I really appreciate that. Thank you.
I always love the jokes! 🤣 (as well)
@@hdavies0 Thanks!
None of the Cole Werhle games I played (Root and Oath) did it for me, despite my admiration for the unique mechanics and great art. Arcs was the game that clicked and I’m so glad I managed to snag a copy! Similarly to others in the comments section I’d highly recommend the campaign expansion. It adds a lot more complexity (albeit a little bloated at some points) and tells fantastic space opera stories in almost half the time of TI! Also the storage solution in the expansion box is something to be praised as well!
Thanks!
😂 I found that humerus! 😂Best yet!!!
Plus I am looking forward to my copy arriving.
Great review. 🎉
Thanks. Glad you liked the video.
Arcs is a great game, but the expansion (The Blighted Reach) takes it to a whole new level. For me it's a serious contender for replacing TI4 as my favorite game. You should definitely play the base game a few times before trying it though, it adds a LOT of stuff so it's important to have a good grasp of the base game first.
Also as much as I like the minis, I found that the ships tipped over too easily and didn't lie flat on their sides which could make it difficult to tell which ships were damaged.
That was one of the issues we had as well. I think I might but a cube next to them or something to denote damage. Maybe I'll check out the expansion - is that the campaign you are talking about?
@@TheDiscriminatingGamer Yes, The Blighted Reach expansion lets you play 3 linked games to create a sort of "campaign". It's like a game of TI4 you can break up into smaller chunks so you can play it without having to put aside an entire day (although you can play it that way as well).
Finally!! Love the game too - just can’t stand seeing my favourite reviewer score this game negatively - it’s great to see that TDG love it too! I really don’t get why it has to be a ten or a zero 🤷♂️
@@Cortoenfeu Who is your favourite reviewer?
Have you played Root? If not, give it a shot... If you did, how would you compare them? Thanks and keep it up!
I have not played Root. I've heard nothing but good things about it. Maybe down the line. We'll see.
@@TheDiscriminatingGamerIt's based on Coin games. Give it a shot.
@ Yeah, I’ve head a lot about it and it sounds like something I would enjoy. Thanks.
Whats the good player count for this one?
@@WinsingKompott I’ve only played it at four, which I thought was great. I imagine it would work well at any player count, but it strikes me as a “more the merrier” kind of game.
Well, I'm going to have to finally disagree on something that TDG has reviewed. Almost all of Cody's tastes are very similar to my own and his reviews usually solidify helping to make my game choosing decisions.
However, I'm sad to say that this game just absolutely made me rage hate it (which I am known to do for only two out of the hundreds of games that I've played in my life). The hype for Arcs has been super high as being one, if not "THE", best game of 2024 and I do not see how this game is rating so well. The Arcs "galactic conflict" skin that I love in other games does not get me past the fact that the main trick-taking mechanic does not fit the theme and the bias that whoever holds the Initiative at the beginning of a Chapter essentially controls the flow of rounds within a Chapter, both in number of actions in a round but also dictating the scoring tokens. Initiative control is not a new concept in gaming, but it usually balances the "who goes first/first choice" mechanic. Arcs massively favors who starts the Chapter with the Initiative as it gives that player ultimately more actions they can perform in a round, and overall in the Chapter as other players are forced to mostly spend their single card/single action on reacting to the lead card player's multiple actions or spending more cards on their turn to take Initiative if they are unable to Surpass. They then end up having to waste their lead card multi-action turn reacting or changing strategy to fit the available scoring while the original Initiative player has extra cards to play late-Chapter giving them the ability to lead with a card with little to no penalty and playing more multi-action turn(s) while everyone else is out of cards to play. I'm not a care-bear player and not adverse to aggressive playstyles, but this game makes you have to play overly aggressive to make short-lived gains that will likely not pan out for scoring because of the lack of actions to fulfill whatever strategy you were trying to achieve that Chapter. Leader/Lore cards along with the right Guild/Vox cards and resource tokens help with some mitigation, but they mostly have penalties or limitations that restrict their worth in comparison to just being able to lead each round.
But, my opinion of this game is just mine for others to read if they want. TDG is my fave review show and Cody does an excellent job with his work 😀
@@maysemk0 Thank you. I totally get why it’s not some people’s cup of tea, but I really have fun with this one. I don’t know that I have another game quite like it in my collection. Best of luck!
Quite sloppy review, but that happens
@@JanusZudnik Could you please post one of your board game reviews so I can see how it’s done?
@TheDiscriminatingGamer you are doing great, I'm enjoying your reviews very much! Just saying how it is.
I'm more into making games, but nobody other than my friends told me how they like my little card game in the Oathverse, Oath Rule, for instance 😂
@@JanusZudnik It just seemed like a very unkind thing to say. I wish you the best with your design.