If ya like the shirt and sweatshirt I’m wearing, you get 10% off site-wide at: intotheam.com/Shelfside Written review for Unmatched: Volume 1: www.shelfside.co/reviews-2023/unmatchedvol1-review
Something I really like about Unmatched is that all of the expansions are standalone, so this box isn't required. I wasn't really a fan of the characters especially after hearing about Medusa and King Arthur's balance, but I just skipped past it and had a great time with Cobble and Fog
Cobble & Fog is where we started with Unmatched; like you, we've had a great time with it. It's also so excellently thematic for its characters. The only other set in the collection is Buffy ('cause we're huge fans and just had to.)
We got both Jurassic Park sets mainly because it was a Jurassic Park themed mini game haha. We found the Ingen vs Raptors set was really well balanced and it's a 50-50 every time we play. It does fall into a trap many board games do where it's a lot of fun to discover the best strategies, and then loses a bit after you've mastered it. We still play it a ton because it occupies that mid-weight niche in our collection and it's really easy to introduce to new people!
Hey, great video. I saw my name on your big screenshot 😁. I'm big into unmatched. Volume 1 is unbalanced. King Arthur isn't as bad as people make him out to be. He has a very high learning curve. The large roster of fighters is where the replayability is. I play many many board games but this is my favorite. Learning the matchups and getting deep into it is so much fun. I'd be happy to play as Arthur vs your Medusa sometime and show you what he's made of.😉😁
I've played it recently on one night with friends (around 5 2v2 games), and it went surprisingly fun! At first i was kinda skeptical because of the theme (it is jarring, ngl), but it is just so incredibly easy to set up, cards artstyle is actually pretty pretty, heroes are distinct enough with different feels for the playstyle (even if it is condensed into "go face") so in the end i do count it as a "simple good fun with friends". In fact due to the deck structure and how each hero feels i find it kinda like "Red Dragon Inn" but with dudes on the board (can't really say if it's inferior to it due to us only playing the base box + dracula/holmes/jekyll/beowulf/red hood expansions, so i'm not sure that i can realistically compare it's heroes to RDI's later heroes, which are really wild compared to it's base set, but at least i do prefer RDI's coherency with it's theme). "balance" wise i actually did have a blast with Arthur (for example Dracula felt much weaker), but it does feel that he may need some tweaks, simple - on the numbers, especially the "you can empower this attack twice" card, more complex - allowing him to apply the abilities of the empowering cards and making excalibur uncounterable (solidifying it's role as a win-con), while not improving his draw at all thus making him a sort of "all-in" character and rebalancing him around it (although it maybe makes more sense for some kind of iaido-samurai character rather than a knight, but i digress).
Honestly, Exceed Fighting System does everything I wanted from Unmatched, fixing a lot of its issues for me. I bought Unmatched because I wanted a nice dueler, but it just fell flat. Exceed does similar mind-game cardplay, and movement spacing, but does so much cleaner than Unmatched does. It’s a bit more complex to start, but once you get the core systems down, it’s excellent. I would really love to see your opinion on it.
You are a Yennenga type player (Vol 2). Also Feints are powerful but limited, you have to save them for the right moment. And that will depend on what fighter you are facing.
Great fair and honest review. Thanks! Oh and just an just an FYI. I'm pretty sure Medusa was an archer based on Greek mythology. She's said to have carried a shield and bow.
well jeeez, I learned something today about Medusa then. Other than her shield/bow stuff, I found her gameplay to be pretty fair to what I was taught medusa was haha -Ashton
I don't think feints are overpowered. They are strong but you have to pick the right time to play them so you don't play it into a 6 value Excalibur or 6 value log from bigfoot. It actually adds a decently bit of strategy with benefits of knowing the other players deck and what cards are available to them
I see you named my favorite game Summoner Wars, Wonder how much you liked it. Would like to see your opinion/review on it. Probably more balanced/competitive. But games take around 1 hour.
A Similar style of game to this, that I think, based on what I've seen, has more interesting mechanics and depth to it, is Ivion. Has been one I've been meaning to try for a while now.
Unmatched has become my faviorite game the last year. I now own close to all sets released :) Tip for noobs is to buy cobble and fog first or maby a marvel set or battle of legends vol 2.
I love the feint cards especially when playing with/against unfamiliar characters. You have a solid defense and know at least a little of what to expect from your opponent. I think this game works really well and a good player plans around different abilities and cards. I don't follow the "rule" that King Arthur's ability can be canceled. It is not a card ability and cannot be canceled. (I disagree with the designers bgg comment). There is not any character that can have its unique ability canceled so why would that be the case with King Arthur?
That's a good houserule for KA, I was personally very shocked when I saw that thread. I still don't think that houserule makes KA strong enough though, but gets him to the right path. I think feint definitely has a lot more utility in the context of the expanded unmatched universe. Cheers! -Ashton
I personally love Unmatched. I have 5 boxes and with each new box I get, the more I enjoy the game. It is fun to explore new heroes and how to play againts or with them. I agree that balance is an issue, but I dont mind it because the heroes can be fun regardless. I would recommend getting anything after vol. 1 (not Buffy tho) because I feel that later sets just made the asymmetry even bigger (especially the Vol.2 and Marvel sets)
This game owes a dead of design to Star Wars: epic duels. That's probably a given, since this came from restoration games, but I thought I would mention it since it didn't come up in the video, and honestly, a lot of the good and not so good aspects of unmatched come from the game on which it was based. Epic duels is a great game, with like a dozen characters from the original and prequel trilogies, but it is also notoriously unbalanced. Having said that, there is a big online presence for this game, with fan decks that not only balance the originals, but also have created characters for just about anybody in the Star Wars universe you can imagine. That is probably the reason the theme feels disjointed to you, because originally all the characters were from the same IP, but since the numerous attempts to resurrect, this game have failed, and it doesn't look like restoration has been able to convince the Star Wars license to participate, they were stuck initially working with public domain characters until they could secure the use of other things.
When it comes to asymmetric/ skirmish games balance will always be an issue unfortunately. You are right with King Arthur though he is like a D tier when it comes to competitive gaming. There is something called the buffy tier (the buffy set) which is also the F tier, meaning that set is completely garbage compared to anything else lol. Though I only watch comp games on UA-cam, but play fairly casually so I enjoy the game a lot
About the feint: i feel like those cards are like necessary evil in this game. If they did not exist we would have characters that are broken and have absolutely no counterplay (Bruce Lee, Raptors, Bloody mary, daredevil etc)
As for alternatives to Unmatched, I'm going to throw out Smash Up as an suggestion. The deck smashing aspect of the game echos Unmatched's wacky mashup theme, resulting in matches like Kitty Cats & Dragons vs Ninjas & Grannies or Aliens & Disco Dancers vs Samurai & Killer Plants. Deck combinations all feel thoroughly unique, gameplay feels strategic, and balance is far less of an issue given the way factions can cover eachothers weaknesses.
I will say the criticism on the feint canceling arthurs boost, where you said you only found it online, is not fair. Go look at Arthurs power card. You even stopped on it at 14:23, it says it clearly on his card that gives him his boost power.
It's a little strange- we really thought it was the case you explain it as, but the designer on BGG said it to be interpreted as feint cancelling the boost, so I'm gonna take their word for it. Maybe this could be patched in the future or something, I'd be all up for it -Ashton
@@ShelfsideArthurs special cannot be canceled. Only one specific boost can be canceled and that card is showed above. In that case, you cancel second boost.
I've played >50 times and I have all the sets so I think I'm qualified to say that Unmatched is a great gaming system. I think the designers have improved since the base set, most of the cards shared in volume 1 with all characters like feint or momentous shift will have their amounts changed or a character specific version. For my partner and I it's a perfect length for a game of this complexity, the rounds are short enough it's fun to duel for a round or 2 after a long day when we don't have the brainpower for something more complex, like you said setup is so short it's very easy to fit into your day and it's our most played game. Plus with new sets coming out regularly it's easy to keep the novelty high by constantly playing new matchups. The designers intended to make each character overpowered in their own way so if every character is overpowered, no one is, and tournament wise most characters are between a 45-55% win rate which I think is perfect. Plus the art by Mondo is incredible. Shelfside tends to prefer more complex games and you guys really scrutinize things like balance so I understand why it bounced off for you but I love it and I think it definitely has a place for most board gamers. Addendum: feint is annoying but it can be pretty easy to bait out, also you mentioned boosting attacks but that only applies for Arthur? Bruce Lee is a lot of fun and Cobble and Fog is the best starter set
I have a few boxes and I find the replayability feels almost as high as a TCG. Unbalanced matchups are for sure a con for me, but I have enough variation that I don't mind revisiting them now and again.
I love your style of reviews. I had the same experience as you Ashton and ended up moving on from the game. The novelty wore off after a couple of plays. My main problem with it was one of your nitpicks: once the sidekicks are gone the loop of the game becomes so stale. Also, I don't know if there is so much room for mindgames? Like, the only information I have is what the hero can do but no indication at all of what my opponent may or may not have in hand. For us combat always felt somewhat random. Anyways, great video.
Correct, King Arthur and the Buffy fighters are weak. Try Vol 2 and Cobble and Fog for better play. Also some maps favor certain type of play more than others. In competition play you are allowed a mulligan. Please try again with different fighters and different maps, it makes a big difference.
@@Shelfside The strategies are deeper than they seem at first. Getting ahead by a few cards and running away so your opponent runs out of cards is a legal and common tactic. Certain fighters have cards that help them do that, your job is to not let that happen. If a run away like Sinbad attacks you on his second action its obvious his card will let him move "after attack". "IF" you have enough attack cards to hurt him with both your actions, play your Feint so he can't run off. "IF" you can't really hurt him much, do not waste your Feint and let run off. Save that Feint for when you can nail him. Get the Vol 2 box, or at least the Red Riding Hood and Beowulf set. More maps and fighters make it better. Also the digital version on Steam is working very well and they are getting ready to release more content on it.
Unmatched is my like #1 board game So hearing him not like it made me sad, he should have tried cobble and fog those characters are so so so much better as an introduction and are so fun and then a perfect 2nd set to buy is hells kitchen because all 3 characters break the rules in badass ways I think Unmatched is a minimum of 8/10
Great review, only thing I strongly disagree with is your opinion on the art. IMO the art design and art quality is high above other board games, but of course art is subjective.
I dont understand moving in a 1v1 battle. Because no matter what it feels like you will get next to them or in range of them. And chasing them around until your deck runs out isnt fun.
You just need to play more, specifically with other sets combined. Learn Arsenal format from competitive play. Feints are incredible cards, so figure out how to bait them out. Balance in the set is off for sure. For most balanced 1v1s, just do Sinbad vs Alice. I own all sets and so when we play we have 13+ maps and 35+ fighters to choose from. We mostly do Arsenal format. 1v1 is the only way to play competitively. The more fighters you have, the more balance you’ll get. Also, with the Arsenal format it auto balances your roster. Easily my favorite game. The more you play, the better it gets, with no end of that in sight.
@@Shelfside they actually introduce a couple of new types of cards, mainly ones that have 2 seperated abilities printed on them. That and I think they cut down on the amount of feints people get. Can’t remember though
I like the mechanics personally and I have bought a lot of it and in buying more I find there are certain strategies that will allow you to win against anyone example Bullseye can shoot five spaces away a Robinhood move two spaces after attacking very very strong against Medusa
I really love this game, easy to play, easy to learn, fun, cool looking, dinosaurs, just perfect for me, except that i dont have so many friends to play xd.
This game is quite similar to the Street Fighter Miniatures Game in a lot of ways (or at least, it seems that way from what I can tell) and a bit like Twisted Fables too. Personally I'm not a huge fan of character mashing like Unmatched does tho 😕
I thought it was just okay. There isn’t much to do here. Too many cards do more or less the same thing. It’s just kind of basic. I’d always play Summoner Wars instead.
You were too nice. I ripped this one as I found the game boring. Draw, move, draw, move, attack, repeat. I'd rather play Yomi as my 1 vs 1 fighter over this.
It's one of the highest rated games on bgg, so someone out there likes it. Though I will say with other sets, the characters get way more unique in their playstyles and it gets deep enough that there's actually professional leagues played online due to the amount of variety and tactics involved
@@TummyRubz I would never use a BGG rating as measurement of quality. I've been burned so many times by their rating (e.g. Wingspan, Ark Nova, Dead of Winter)
@@TummyRubz BGG ratings are mostly by fans, and games with small player bases are even more heavily skewed. It's unfortunate that that site is considered "the" resource for game ratings.
Retheme this game with anime art, Shonen Jump characters/minis, and I'm in. Goku vs. Ichigo vs. Luffy Vs. Naruto would take money out of my wallet at the speed of light.
@@Shelfside I'm glad you mentioned proxies and fanmade decks, I hadn't thought of those before. Sounds like you could use minis or figures of those SJ characters and then do just that, just might take a little printing and a custom board to fit the figures!
After hearing all the positive feedback for this game it was truly god awful. I'm glad to hear you trashed this one. No depth at all and the circles on the map are horrendous. After playing it for a games night I didn't think about once afterwards, there's just no gameplay there to make you think about how you would do things differently. Plus some of the characters I was interested in before playing like Bruce Lee are heinously expensive and i'm glad I didn't buy them before finding out how bad the game is. They already lost the license for Jurassic Park so you can't really just buy those off the shelf easy now.
If ya like the shirt and sweatshirt I’m wearing, you get 10% off site-wide at: intotheam.com/Shelfside
Written review for Unmatched: Volume 1: www.shelfside.co/reviews-2023/unmatchedvol1-review
Something I really like about Unmatched is that all of the expansions are standalone, so this box isn't required. I wasn't really a fan of the characters especially after hearing about Medusa and King Arthur's balance, but I just skipped past it and had a great time with Cobble and Fog
Cobble and Fog is legit my favorite expansion. I love every single character in the set. Get it while you can it's gonna be out of print!
Cobble & Fog is where we started with Unmatched; like you, we've had a great time with it. It's also so excellently thematic for its characters. The only other set in the collection is Buffy ('cause we're huge fans and just had to.)
@Brian Rowe I love the Buffy set! A lot people say the characters aren't good in the set but I disagree they can be good if you get the right hand.
We got both Jurassic Park sets mainly because it was a Jurassic Park themed mini game haha. We found the Ingen vs Raptors set was really well balanced and it's a 50-50 every time we play. It does fall into a trap many board games do where it's a lot of fun to discover the best strategies, and then loses a bit after you've mastered it. We still play it a ton because it occupies that mid-weight niche in our collection and it's really easy to introduce to new people!
That sounds real fun! I also saw this at the store, but wanted more characters. Cheers! -Ashton
Hey, great video. I saw my name on your big screenshot 😁. I'm big into unmatched. Volume 1 is unbalanced. King Arthur isn't as bad as people make him out to be. He has a very high learning curve. The large roster of fighters is where the replayability is. I play many many board games but this is my favorite. Learning the matchups and getting deep into it is so much fun. I'd be happy to play as Arthur vs your Medusa sometime and show you what he's made of.😉😁
I've played it recently on one night with friends (around 5 2v2 games), and it went surprisingly fun! At first i was kinda skeptical because of the theme (it is jarring, ngl), but it is just so incredibly easy to set up, cards artstyle is actually pretty pretty, heroes are distinct enough with different feels for the playstyle (even if it is condensed into "go face") so in the end i do count it as a "simple good fun with friends". In fact due to the deck structure and how each hero feels i find it kinda like "Red Dragon Inn" but with dudes on the board (can't really say if it's inferior to it due to us only playing the base box + dracula/holmes/jekyll/beowulf/red hood expansions, so i'm not sure that i can realistically compare it's heroes to RDI's later heroes, which are really wild compared to it's base set, but at least i do prefer RDI's coherency with it's theme).
"balance" wise i actually did have a blast with Arthur (for example Dracula felt much weaker), but it does feel that he may need some tweaks, simple - on the numbers, especially the "you can empower this attack twice" card, more complex - allowing him to apply the abilities of the empowering cards and making excalibur uncounterable (solidifying it's role as a win-con), while not improving his draw at all thus making him a sort of "all-in" character and rebalancing him around it (although it maybe makes more sense for some kind of iaido-samurai character rather than a knight, but i digress).
Honestly, Exceed Fighting System does everything I wanted from Unmatched, fixing a lot of its issues for me. I bought Unmatched because I wanted a nice dueler, but it just fell flat. Exceed does similar mind-game cardplay, and movement spacing, but does so much cleaner than Unmatched does. It’s a bit more complex to start, but once you get the core systems down, it’s excellent. I would really love to see your opinion on it.
Agreed! I'm stoked to see the guys playing it in the video. Crossing my fingers for a review :D
I've only played it twice, and its not my copy, but maybe one day haha -Ashton
@@Shelfside I noticed in the video you seem to be playing Season 2. I'd recommend starting with Season 3 (if you can get it) or Season 5.
@@victoriaspurling6620 gotcha. Yeah its my friend's copy, maybe I'll pick up a copy for a review -ashton
You are a Yennenga type player (Vol 2). Also Feints are powerful but limited, you have to save them for the right moment. And that will depend on what fighter you are facing.
Great fair and honest review. Thanks! Oh and just an just an FYI. I'm pretty sure Medusa was an archer based on Greek mythology. She's said to have carried a shield and bow.
well jeeez, I learned something today about Medusa then. Other than her shield/bow stuff, I found her gameplay to be pretty fair to what I was taught medusa was haha -Ashton
@@Shelfside in Dota she has a bow too. She has a special power to immobilize things though, which makes her more badass and true to the myth.
I don't think feints are overpowered. They are strong but you have to pick the right time to play them so you don't play it into a 6 value Excalibur or 6 value log from bigfoot. It actually adds a decently bit of strategy with benefits of knowing the other players deck and what cards are available to them
Feints are really good into characters with out/few strong values to punish them. But I do agree I like the mind game Feints add.
I see you named my favorite game Summoner Wars, Wonder how much you liked it. Would like to see your opinion/review on it. Probably more balanced/competitive. But games take around 1 hour.
Summoner wars 2nd edition better. 😁
Avatar checks out haha. I'll have to do a look one day, I've only played it online :) -Ashton
A Similar style of game to this, that I think, based on what I've seen, has more interesting mechanics and depth to it, is Ivion. Has been one I've been meaning to try for a while now.
It's more chess-like, but check out Legacy's Allure. Shelf side reviewed it.
Congrats on the sponsorship!
thank you! So stoked for stuff like this -Ashton
Unmatched has become my faviorite game the last year. I now own close to all sets released :) Tip for noobs is to buy cobble and fog first or maby a marvel set or battle of legends vol 2.
I love the feint cards especially when playing with/against unfamiliar characters. You have a solid defense and know at least a little of what to expect from your opponent. I think this game works really well and a good player plans around different abilities and cards. I don't follow the "rule" that King Arthur's ability can be canceled. It is not a card ability and cannot be canceled. (I disagree with the designers bgg comment). There is not any character that can have its unique ability canceled so why would that be the case with King Arthur?
That's a good houserule for KA, I was personally very shocked when I saw that thread. I still don't think that houserule makes KA strong enough though, but gets him to the right path. I think feint definitely has a lot more utility in the context of the expanded unmatched universe. Cheers! -Ashton
@Shelfside it's definitely a fair review for just the base set. The expanded sets and mixing characters is where the game really shines.
That intro was incredible lmao. Great work.
I was wondering if i should pick this up or not. Shelfside is my gospel on choosing games 😂
I personally love Unmatched. I have 5 boxes and with each new box I get, the more I enjoy the game. It is fun to explore new heroes and how to play againts or with them. I agree that balance is an issue, but I dont mind it because the heroes can be fun regardless. I would recommend getting anything after vol. 1 (not Buffy tho) because I feel that later sets just made the asymmetry even bigger (especially the Vol.2 and Marvel sets)
I love me some unbalanced games. Makes winning with the underdog more meaningful.
This game owes a dead of design to Star Wars: epic duels. That's probably a given, since this came from restoration games, but I thought I would mention it since it didn't come up in the video, and honestly, a lot of the good and not so good aspects of unmatched come from the game on which it was based.
Epic duels is a great game, with like a dozen characters from the original and prequel trilogies, but it is also notoriously unbalanced. Having said that, there is a big online presence for this game, with fan decks that not only balance the originals, but also have created characters for just about anybody in the Star Wars universe you can imagine.
That is probably the reason the theme feels disjointed to you, because originally all the characters were from the same IP, but since the numerous attempts to resurrect, this game have failed, and it doesn't look like restoration has been able to convince the Star Wars license to participate, they were stuck initially working with public domain characters until they could secure the use of other things.
Good history
When it comes to asymmetric/ skirmish games balance will always be an issue unfortunately. You are right with King Arthur though he is like a D tier when it comes to competitive gaming. There is something called the buffy tier (the buffy set) which is also the F tier, meaning that set is completely garbage compared to anything else lol. Though I only watch comp games on UA-cam, but play fairly casually so I enjoy the game a lot
haha that sounds hilarious, F tier eh?
But yeah KA was a HUGE topic of debate among our group for a long time bahaha -Ashton
I love this game I have pretty much most of the sets besides Bruce Lee and Deadpool!
About the feint: i feel like those cards are like necessary evil in this game. If they did not exist we would have characters that are broken and have absolutely no counterplay (Bruce Lee, Raptors, Bloody mary, daredevil etc)
As for alternatives to Unmatched, I'm going to throw out Smash Up as an suggestion. The deck smashing aspect of the game echos Unmatched's wacky mashup theme, resulting in matches like Kitty Cats & Dragons vs Ninjas & Grannies or Aliens & Disco Dancers vs Samurai & Killer Plants. Deck combinations all feel thoroughly unique, gameplay feels strategic, and balance is far less of an issue given the way factions can cover eachothers weaknesses.
I will say the criticism on the feint canceling arthurs boost, where you said you only found it online, is not fair. Go look at Arthurs power card. You even stopped on it at 14:23, it says it clearly on his card that gives him his boost power.
It's a little strange- we really thought it was the case you explain it as, but the designer on BGG said it to be interpreted as feint cancelling the boost, so I'm gonna take their word for it. Maybe this could be patched in the future or something, I'd be all up for it -Ashton
@@ShelfsideArthurs special cannot be canceled. Only one specific boost can be canceled and that card is showed above. In that case, you cancel second boost.
The Medusa intro killed me 🤣
This review perfectly captures my experience. I wanted to like it more than I could.
Game tells you about King Arthur's special power being susceptible to feint on his card - which makes total sense to me.
I've played >50 times and I have all the sets so I think I'm qualified to say that Unmatched is a great gaming system. I think the designers have improved since the base set, most of the cards shared in volume 1 with all characters like feint or momentous shift will have their amounts changed or a character specific version.
For my partner and I it's a perfect length for a game of this complexity, the rounds are short enough it's fun to duel for a round or 2 after a long day when we don't have the brainpower for something more complex, like you said setup is so short it's very easy to fit into your day and it's our most played game. Plus with new sets coming out regularly it's easy to keep the novelty high by constantly playing new matchups.
The designers intended to make each character overpowered in their own way so if every character is overpowered, no one is, and tournament wise most characters are between a 45-55% win rate which I think is perfect. Plus the art by Mondo is incredible.
Shelfside tends to prefer more complex games and you guys really scrutinize things like balance so I understand why it bounced off for you but I love it and I think it definitely has a place for most board gamers.
Addendum: feint is annoying but it can be pretty easy to bait out, also you mentioned boosting attacks but that only applies for Arthur? Bruce Lee is a lot of fun and Cobble and Fog is the best starter set
I have a few boxes and I find the replayability feels almost as high as a TCG. Unbalanced matchups are for sure a con for me, but I have enough variation that I don't mind revisiting them now and again.
I love your style of reviews. I had the same experience as you Ashton and ended up moving on from the game. The novelty wore off after a couple of plays. My main problem with it was one of your nitpicks: once the sidekicks are gone the loop of the game becomes so stale. Also, I don't know if there is so much room for mindgames? Like, the only information I have is what the hero can do but no indication at all of what my opponent may or may not have in hand. For us combat always felt somewhat random. Anyways, great video.
Great review. Could you do ark nova and great western trails second edition too. Love your videos
Ark Nova is a closer possibility! cheers! -Ashton
@@Shelfside wohooooo. Can't wait. Cheers 🥂
Correct, King Arthur and the Buffy fighters are weak. Try Vol 2 and Cobble and Fog for better play. Also some maps favor certain type of play more than others. In competition play you are allowed a mulligan. Please try again with different fighters and different maps, it makes a big difference.
Mulligan makes a lot of sense in competitive play. Will have to try more then it seems -Ashton
@@Shelfside The strategies are deeper than they seem at first. Getting ahead by a few cards and running away so your opponent runs out of cards is a legal and common tactic. Certain fighters have cards that help them do that, your job is to not let that happen. If a run away like Sinbad attacks you on his second action its obvious his card will let him move "after attack". "IF" you have enough attack cards to hurt him with both your actions, play your Feint so he can't run off. "IF" you can't really hurt him much, do not waste your Feint and let run off. Save that Feint for when you can nail him.
Get the Vol 2 box, or at least the Red Riding Hood and Beowulf set. More maps and fighters make it better. Also the digital version on Steam is working very well and they are getting ready to release more content on it.
@@robertthurman9866 hey thanks for all this info. I'll look into the Steam version to get more reps in! -Ashton
You are being overly critical. The game is just fun. The randomness mitigates some OP characters.
Unmatched is my like #1 board game
So hearing him not like it made me sad, he should have tried cobble and fog those characters are so so so much better as an introduction and are so fun and then a perfect 2nd set to buy is hells kitchen because all 3 characters break the rules in badass ways
I think Unmatched is a minimum of 8/10
I do think I would like the other characters more! I am thinking of buying unmatched on steam and seeing what my experience is :D -Ashton
Great review, only thing I strongly disagree with is your opinion on the art. IMO the art design and art quality is high above other board games, but of course art is subjective.
I dont understand moving in a 1v1 battle. Because no matter what it feels like you will get next to them or in range of them. And chasing them around until your deck runs out isnt fun.
Thats why you can boost your movement. It all depends on cards.
You just need to play more, specifically with other sets combined. Learn Arsenal format from competitive play. Feints are incredible cards, so figure out how to bait them out. Balance in the set is off for sure. For most balanced 1v1s, just do Sinbad vs Alice. I own all sets and so when we play we have 13+ maps and 35+ fighters to choose from. We mostly do Arsenal format.
1v1 is the only way to play competitively.
The more fighters you have, the more balance you’ll get. Also, with the Arsenal format it auto balances your roster.
Easily my favorite game. The more you play, the better it gets, with no end of that in sight.
It sounds like you may be better off playing the co-op version coming out on Kickstarter in March.
Ohh, that sounds pretty cool! Will note that -Ashton
The other core sets are solidly better.
Noted! Maybe I can check those out :) -Ashton
@@Shelfside they actually introduce a couple of new types of cards, mainly ones that have 2 seperated abilities printed on them. That and I think they cut down on the amount of feints people get. Can’t remember though
I like the mechanics personally and I have bought a lot of it and in buying more I find there are certain strategies that will allow you to win against anyone example Bullseye can shoot five spaces away a Robinhood move two spaces after attacking very very strong against Medusa
Super Fantasy Brawl killed this for me
I really love this game, easy to play, easy to learn, fun, cool looking, dinosaurs, just perfect for me, except that i dont have so many friends to play xd.
you can play online! there's a app on steam that has served me well -Ashton
This game is quite similar to the Street Fighter Miniatures Game in a lot of ways (or at least, it seems that way from what I can tell) and a bit like Twisted Fables too.
Personally I'm not a huge fan of character mashing like Unmatched does tho 😕
Valorant is a team-based shooter, not a MOBA.
You probably meant Vainglory.
Super fantasy brawl just looks like a better game than this. Idk if it is but i love it.
I thought it was just okay. There isn’t much to do here. Too many cards do more or less the same thing. It’s just kind of basic. I’d always play Summoner Wars instead.
I think I would buy this game if it had better art and graphic design.
I enjoyed this game for what it was but it was a little too simple, ranged hero’s are way easier to play, and the maps are ugly.
Online ballerina?
You were too nice. I ripped this one as I found the game boring. Draw, move, draw, move, attack, repeat. I'd rather play Yomi as my 1 vs 1 fighter over this.
It's one of the highest rated games on bgg, so someone out there likes it. Though I will say with other sets, the characters get way more unique in their playstyles and it gets deep enough that there's actually professional leagues played online due to the amount of variety and tactics involved
@@TummyRubz I would never use a BGG rating as measurement of quality. I've been burned so many times by their rating (e.g. Wingspan, Ark Nova, Dead of Winter)
hahaha. It did get a little stale fast, but the accessibility is mad impressive. Cheers mark! -Ashton
@@TummyRubz BGG ratings are mostly by fans, and games with small player bases are even more heavily skewed. It's unfortunate that that site is considered "the" resource for game ratings.
Retheme this game with anime art, Shonen Jump characters/minis, and I'm in. Goku vs. Ichigo vs. Luffy Vs. Naruto would take money out of my wallet at the speed of light.
Facts
-Daniel
@@Shelfside I'm glad you mentioned proxies and fanmade decks, I hadn't thought of those before. Sounds like you could use minis or figures of those SJ characters and then do just that, just might take a little printing and a custom board to fit the figures!
After hearing all the positive feedback for this game it was truly god awful. I'm glad to hear you trashed this one. No depth at all and the circles on the map are horrendous. After playing it for a games night I didn't think about once afterwards, there's just no gameplay there to make you think about how you would do things differently. Plus some of the characters I was interested in before playing like Bruce Lee are heinously expensive and i'm glad I didn't buy them before finding out how bad the game is. They already lost the license for Jurassic Park so you can't really just buy those off the shelf easy now.