A lot in the box as well as some serious rule reading. I will wait for a play through before making any decision. Like the cards which someone has put time into creating. Thanks for the unboxing.
So far I tend to agree completely. I've made more progress with the rules and it's going smoothly. I jumped ahead as well to Line of Sight, because I'd heard those were a bit challenging, but I think once you wrap your head around some of the design concepts of the game (sectors are collections of terrain, and positioning is abstract), the LoS rules are easy to grok. So yeah, so far it's "easier than I expected". But ... I have a ways to go. :)
V is for Victory reminds me of Space Infantry. The card system with flow charts is similar. $120 is pretty pricey but probably worth it considering how much you get. Looking forward to your experience playing this game. I am happy that it does come with a robust solitaire mode. I had not heard of LnL before I played Space Infantry. Going to their website, I see a lot more games that would be fun to try.
I'm not familiar with Space Infantry, so I'll take you word on the comparisons. :) I'm very much looking forward to playing this. I've got 3 games to play before it, but I'm hopeful that I'll have some videos up by the end of the month. I'll be bringing more Lock 'n Load games to the channel in the upcoming months, too. :)
I had no difficulty with the rules until., I hit the fire procedure. Could be that by that point I was just feeling burdened by the mass of the rules, more than the complexity, but I definitely feel like people should know that there's a significant rules learning investment required. How they handle that is largely up to them. Some people will look at it and thing "Well it's light compared to ASL" lol. I will go back to it at some point. I still find it interesting, I just ran out of energy for learning and wanted to play a few games :).
While I don’t own it, I could see that with this game lol. I’m still torn over this one. While the artwork is ok, I like the terrain better than the units, I feel like I’d like it more with actual B&W photos. Having watched a few game play videos I can’t help but feel like there’s some bloat in here with the rules and the solo flow charts look a bit of a mess. Watching people stop a game to go through a dozen flow steps on multiple charts just seems like it pulls you out of the game. It also seems like they could’ve done without the action/dice cards. I’m assuming they just wanted to make it a card only experience, but it seems odd to have full size cards, when there’s already a ton to deal with, with so little info on them. A die with action symbols and a couple regular dice might’ve sufficed? As of now this is a game that if it was much cheaper I might’ve just auto grabbed, but seeing as it is quite pricey I’ll have to keep watching some videos to see if it grows on me.
Hello I wanted to add some context to the die symbols and the cards. The action deck is the timer and this also determines the die results. You may use actual dice I. Place of using the cards but you would need to discard one action card per die thrown. This mechanic is “similar” to Up Front where the action cards were the timer and the die results for actions. Thank you Sean
I'm very curious to see how it learns and plays. So far (1/3 of the way into the rules), it's been smooth sailing, but the meatier section of the rules is coming up. I too am curious about the solo bot execution. I also want to see the Line of Sight/Emergent Terrain mechanics in action. Regarding the dice/cards element, I think they've gone with cards for that as the card deck exhaustion also functions to end the turn. I don't have an issue with that at the moment but I want to play to see how it unfolds before saying too much.
@@ZillaBlitz I just feel like the game APPEARS more complex than I THOUGHT it would be. At least 50% of that and probably more is on me, not Lock and Load. I will give a more than fair chance because I really want to like it, but that is my initial reaction. I don't have to worry about making content about it so I can just say what I feel :). I get that you have to let things play out a little more.
Yeah, normally I like to keep unboxings to under 20 minutes, but there's just so much here, and I felt like it's important to see the extent and variety of the cards.
Great stuff Zilla. My biggest question was how "meaty" the solo mode is (since that's how I'd most often play) and happy to hear that it's a nicely fleshed out system. I love tactical games, so this was almost a sure-buy for me anyway but your vid likely clinched it. Components look awesome (which I'd expect from LnL) and the artwork as you said, is outstanding.
The depth of the solo system was something I wasn't aware of either, until I got a chance to look through the game. Probably worth noting that the design initially is 2-player, and then the solo AI was designed to play the 2-player game. This is a different design process than designing a solo game from the ground up, and it will mean a different sort of play experience with the solo engine. Not worse or better, mind you, just different. I'm very much looking forward to it. :)
@@ZillaBlitz Thanks Zilla. That actually sounds like a great way to do a solo mode for a two-player design. While you can never replicate a human player's decision making, you can certainly build something with a logic-based flowchart. Of course, as I am a computer programmer by trade I always appreciate a good flowchart (or three)!
@@HexedAndCountered Yes, this is the approach the two Enemy Action games have taken as well. And in this case, it's actually 8 flowcharts. :) With the understanding that some of them aren't used for every game.
@@ZillaBlitz Awesome, that really highlights a great design. Not everyone's going to love going through charts, but the more fleshed out the logic and decision-making is for the "bot" the better the experience is going to be. Definitely need to pick this one up!
Nice! Thanks for letting me know on the pronunciation. I generally try to look up words I don't know before recording, but I didn't know that one was there. Score! And yeah, there is a lot of stuff in the box. :)
The scope of this game, with the huge variety of units, environments, etc is impressive. Not sure why, but really interested to see you playthrough this one. Looking through the comments, that'll be happening at some point in the future.
Never played a card based game before, but wow even the box art is excellent. The contents look intriguing, please play a tutorial ASAP as I might consider to purchase this. Brilliant video/channel as usual cheers from England 🇬🇧
Thanks, Richard, glad you found it helpful. I will be brining this to the channel as soon as I can. But just as a heads up, I've got three games ahead of it in the queue, so it'll be a little while. :)
@@ZillaBlitz many thanks for the reply, I can't seemed to find a place to buy it over here...I can wait for the review of the game. Hopefully the 3 games ahead of it will be as interesting and your enthusiasm and passion for what you present makes all the games worth watching, carry on sir...
I can see some decision points here, for sure. While I haven't found the rules hard, there is a good bit of them, so it'll take a moderate commitment to learn. I'm encouraged by the systemic nature of the game, I mean, it's so deep. I can see almost an unlimited potential for designing your own scenarios, and if there are plans for future expansions, it becomes more enticing to make the learning leap. But I really want to get a sense for gameplay before saying too much! :)
@@ZillaBlitz it doesn’t seem hard, but yes that’s a lot of rules to digest. In my mind it seems like a lighter game that they tried to make deeper. If that makes sense. At times I look at it and think it I should grab it and then others I’m just sort of meh. I’ll have to see your play video on it
This look interesting for sure but the price is quite something. I hope you will do a play test soon just to give an idea of how the game really goes, that will definitely help me decide if I will go for this game
Hi Patrick - It'll be a bit as I have a few games in front of it in the queue, but I'm hopeful to have the next video up by the end of the month. It's going to take a bit to learn and get fluid with the gameplay too, although the learning is going quite well. :)
The only issue I have with the presentation is the font on the cards. Very hard to read... never understood why designers keep using such "typewriter" fonts for WW2/war...
In hand, I feel like the cards are easy to read because they are so big, and there isn't much text. I like the art style on these. In general, though, I'm not a fan of the typewriter fonts when they use a lot of text, so I definitely agree in principle. :)
That's a tricky call. I'm sure you could do with with determination, but I might recommend other starting points unless the topic and the tactical nature of this game really resonate with you. I'd almost suggest a three-game pathway to build up to this. If you do decide to get it, I'd be happy to help you learn to play. There is a Tabletop Simulator version and I could teach you there, once I get the game down myself. :)
Hi zilla how are you great video today I was watching this short about this thing to help people where they put a person in it and go down the stairs with it he said Hot grandma
I've heard good things about Up Front but that's the extent of my knowledge. I was looking to pick it up on Ebay a while back, but didn't find a seller/price combination that seemed attractive enough at the time. In general, I've found that while the nostalgia factor is high for the classic wargames, newer wargames have improved gameplay. I think at some point it sounds like a game that I'd want to explore, at the very least from a "playing iconic wargames" perspective. I know so little about it, to be honest, that I didn't think to compare it to this game.
Sure thing! So, I have 3 review/prototype games that I've committed to creating content for before this one. My plan is to learn and play this on the side while I create content for those games, then shift to creating some content for this one. I'd guess the end of the month?
I live in Canada 100 miles from Buffalo, New York. I pre-ordered this game months ago. Lock N Load says they started shipping this game to U.S. residents on September 3rd. Today is October 12th and I have yet to receive my copy of V is for Victory despite numerous requests to the firm's website. I am incredibly disappointed with the Customer Service at Lock N Load Publishing.
I know that our Canadian distributor are in possession of the games and are in the process of shipping them out. If you haven’t received your game by the end of the week please submit a support ticket to LnL and we can hunt it down. Thank you Sean
Thank you for your quick response to my Comment. If I don't receive this game by this Friday I will definitely submit another support ticket.@@seandruelinger1950
Meh, not my genre. Good review. I see a problem for the future of wargaming in the number of games being released as Solitaire. It's like no wargamers want to play with other wargamers (and having met a bunch, I can certainly see why: too many wargamers are curmudgeons!).
Hello Point Blank was designed as a 2 player game. The solo AI works as an opponent modifying how orders are issued slightly. The flowcharts model situations on the ground and makes decisions. I wanted to implement an AI rather than a card flip and react type mechanic. Thank you Sean
Thank you very much for the unboxing video! I truly appreciate it!
Sean
Sure thing, Sean! Thanks for stopping in and I'm looking forward to playing. :)
I was waiting for this unboxing. ¡Many thanks!
Sure thing! :)
A lot in the box as well as some serious rule reading. I will wait for a play through before making any decision. Like the cards which someone has put time into creating. Thanks for the unboxing.
The rules so far have been much smoother than the 90+ pages would indicate, but meaty portions up next. :) I really want to see how it plays, too. :)
@@ZillaBlitz The Players' Aid did a playthrough of it.
Which should suffice until we see yours! :)
I've been spot-watching some of the content out there, yes. It's helpful too as I start to explore the rules more. :)
The Nation's at War rules were also very lengthy, page wise, but in effect, they were a very quick and easy read.
So far I tend to agree completely. I've made more progress with the rules and it's going smoothly. I jumped ahead as well to Line of Sight, because I'd heard those were a bit challenging, but I think once you wrap your head around some of the design concepts of the game (sectors are collections of terrain, and positioning is abstract), the LoS rules are easy to grok. So yeah, so far it's "easier than I expected". But ... I have a ways to go. :)
Nice unboxing. I have this one and have watched several playthroughs by different presenters. Just need to get it to the table ....
Thanks! I'd be interested to hear how you find it when you get a chance to play.
V is for Victory reminds me of Space Infantry. The card system with flow charts is similar. $120 is pretty pricey but probably worth it considering how much you get. Looking forward to your experience playing this game. I am happy that it does come with a robust solitaire mode. I had not heard of LnL before I played Space Infantry. Going to their website, I see a lot more games that would be fun to try.
I'm not familiar with Space Infantry, so I'll take you word on the comparisons. :) I'm very much looking forward to playing this. I've got 3 games to play before it, but I'm hopeful that I'll have some videos up by the end of the month. I'll be bringing more Lock 'n Load games to the channel in the upcoming months, too. :)
I had no difficulty with the rules until., I hit the fire procedure. Could be that by that point I was just feeling burdened by the mass of the rules, more than the complexity, but I definitely feel like people should know that there's a significant rules learning investment required. How they handle that is largely up to them. Some people will look at it and thing "Well it's light compared to ASL" lol. I will go back to it at some point. I still find it interesting, I just ran out of energy for learning and wanted to play a few games :).
While I don’t own it, I could see that with this game lol. I’m still torn over this one. While the artwork is ok, I like the terrain better than the units, I feel like I’d like it more with actual B&W photos. Having watched a few game play videos I can’t help but feel like there’s some bloat in here with the rules and the solo flow charts look a bit of a mess. Watching people stop a game to go through a dozen flow steps on multiple charts just seems like it pulls you out of the game. It also seems like they could’ve done without the action/dice cards. I’m assuming they just wanted to make it a card only experience, but it seems odd to have full size cards, when there’s already a ton to deal with, with so little info on them. A die with action symbols and a couple regular dice might’ve sufficed? As of now this is a game that if it was much cheaper I might’ve just auto grabbed, but seeing as it is quite pricey I’ll have to keep watching some videos to see if it grows on me.
Hello
I wanted to add some context to the die symbols and the cards. The action deck is the timer and this also determines the die results. You may use actual dice I. Place of using the cards but you would need to discard one action card per die thrown. This mechanic is “similar” to Up Front where the action cards were the timer and the die results for actions.
Thank you
Sean
I'm very curious to see how it learns and plays. So far (1/3 of the way into the rules), it's been smooth sailing, but the meatier section of the rules is coming up. I too am curious about the solo bot execution. I also want to see the Line of Sight/Emergent Terrain mechanics in action. Regarding the dice/cards element, I think they've gone with cards for that as the card deck exhaustion also functions to end the turn. I don't have an issue with that at the moment but I want to play to see how it unfolds before saying too much.
@@ZillaBlitz I just feel like the game APPEARS more complex than I THOUGHT it would be. At least 50% of that and probably more is on me, not Lock and Load. I will give a more than fair chance because I really want to like it, but that is my initial reaction. I don't have to worry about making content about it so I can just say what I feel :). I get that you have to let things play out a little more.
@@ZillaBlitz There is also a lot of it that I find really intriguing. I don't want to come across as completely negative.
when all the cards came up I became interested :)
Yeah, normally I like to keep unboxings to under 20 minutes, but there's just so much here, and I felt like it's important to see the extent and variety of the cards.
The rule book for PB is on line and if you have Table Top Simulator you will also be able to play 2 scenarios
Good to know, thanks Sean! :)
I am really looking forward to this game. great unboxing.
Thanks! I'm looking forward to playing! :)
Great stuff Zilla. My biggest question was how "meaty" the solo mode is (since that's how I'd most often play) and happy to hear that it's a nicely fleshed out system. I love tactical games, so this was almost a sure-buy for me anyway but your vid likely clinched it. Components look awesome (which I'd expect from LnL) and the artwork as you said, is outstanding.
The depth of the solo system was something I wasn't aware of either, until I got a chance to look through the game. Probably worth noting that the design initially is 2-player, and then the solo AI was designed to play the 2-player game. This is a different design process than designing a solo game from the ground up, and it will mean a different sort of play experience with the solo engine. Not worse or better, mind you, just different. I'm very much looking forward to it. :)
@@ZillaBlitz Thanks Zilla. That actually sounds like a great way to do a solo mode for a two-player design. While you can never replicate a human player's decision making, you can certainly build something with a logic-based flowchart.
Of course, as I am a computer programmer by trade I always appreciate a good flowchart (or three)!
@@HexedAndCountered Yes, this is the approach the two Enemy Action games have taken as well. And in this case, it's actually 8 flowcharts. :) With the understanding that some of them aren't used for every game.
@@ZillaBlitz Awesome, that really highlights a great design. Not everyone's going to love going through charts, but the more fleshed out the logic and decision-making is for the "bot" the better the experience is going to be. Definitely need to pick this one up!
Since I'm a native french speaker, you said "Saint-Côme-Du-Mont" pretty right ;) A lot of work was put in that game it seems !
Nice! Thanks for letting me know on the pronunciation. I generally try to look up words I don't know before recording, but I didn't know that one was there. Score! And yeah, there is a lot of stuff in the box. :)
I'll keep my copy of Up Front
Sounds good!
So am I , 😂👍
The scope of this game, with the huge variety of units, environments, etc is impressive. Not sure why, but really interested to see you playthrough this one. Looking through the comments, that'll be happening at some point in the future.
I'm very curious to see how it plays out as well. I'm hopeful in a couple of weeks, can't wait! :)
Never played a card based game before, but wow even the box art is excellent. The contents look intriguing, please play a tutorial ASAP as I might consider to purchase this. Brilliant video/channel as usual cheers from England 🇬🇧
Thanks, Richard, glad you found it helpful. I will be brining this to the channel as soon as I can. But just as a heads up, I've got three games ahead of it in the queue, so it'll be a little while. :)
@@ZillaBlitz many thanks for the reply, I can't seemed to find a place to buy it over here...I can wait for the review of the game. Hopefully the 3 games ahead of it will be as interesting and your enthusiasm and passion for what you present makes all the games worth watching, carry on sir...
Hello
Second chance games services the uk and you should be able to get it from them.
Thank you
Sean
Nice video sir! Not sure yet if I’ll get into this one yet.
I can see some decision points here, for sure. While I haven't found the rules hard, there is a good bit of them, so it'll take a moderate commitment to learn. I'm encouraged by the systemic nature of the game, I mean, it's so deep. I can see almost an unlimited potential for designing your own scenarios, and if there are plans for future expansions, it becomes more enticing to make the learning leap.
But I really want to get a sense for gameplay before saying too much! :)
@@ZillaBlitz it doesn’t seem hard, but yes that’s a lot of rules to digest. In my mind it seems like a lighter game that they tried to make deeper. If that makes sense. At times I look at it and think it I should grab it and then others I’m just sort of meh. I’ll have to see your play video on it
Makes sense, for sure. I'm looking forward to seeing how it plays too. :)
This look interesting for sure but the price is quite something. I hope you will do a play test soon just to give an idea of how the game really goes, that will definitely help me decide if I will go for this game
Hi Patrick - It'll be a bit as I have a few games in front of it in the queue, but I'm hopeful to have the next video up by the end of the month. It's going to take a bit to learn and get fluid with the gameplay too, although the learning is going quite well. :)
Looks a bit complex compared to Combat Commander but easier than Fields of Fire. Thank you for the review.
That feels about right. I've started learning it this week, and it's easier than the rulebook would make it out to be. I'm making good progress. :)
The only issue I have with the presentation is the font on the cards. Very hard to read... never understood why designers keep using such "typewriter" fonts for WW2/war...
In hand, I feel like the cards are easy to read because they are so big, and there isn't much text. I like the art style on these. In general, though, I'm not a fan of the typewriter fonts when they use a lot of text, so I definitely agree in principle. :)
Another great unboxing as always mate. Looking at this would you say a newbie would get lost with so many parts?
That's a tricky call. I'm sure you could do with with determination, but I might recommend other starting points unless the topic and the tactical nature of this game really resonate with you. I'd almost suggest a three-game pathway to build up to this. If you do decide to get it, I'd be happy to help you learn to play. There is a Tabletop Simulator version and I could teach you there, once I get the game down myself. :)
Hi zilla how are you great video today I was watching this short about this thing to help people where they put a person in it and go down the stairs with it he said Hot grandma
It’s called escape pod bed sheets
That sounds interesting!
@@ZillaBlitz yes
What are the similarities with “Up Front” do you think ?
I've heard good things about Up Front but that's the extent of my knowledge. I was looking to pick it up on Ebay a while back, but didn't find a seller/price combination that seemed attractive enough at the time. In general, I've found that while the nostalgia factor is high for the classic wargames, newer wargames have improved gameplay. I think at some point it sounds like a game that I'd want to explore, at the very least from a "playing iconic wargames" perspective. I know so little about it, to be honest, that I didn't think to compare it to this game.
Ack!! Up Front is the king in this space. Never surpassed IMO.
@@ZillaBlitz Indeed. I even bought the upgraded cards from Wargames Vault as well. That is a better option for you.
Good to know, thank you! :)
I have a question - when are you playing it? 🙂
Sure thing! So, I have 3 review/prototype games that I've committed to creating content for before this one. My plan is to learn and play this on the side while I create content for those games, then shift to creating some content for this one. I'd guess the end of the month?
I live in Canada 100 miles from Buffalo, New York. I pre-ordered this game months ago. Lock N Load says they started shipping this game to U.S. residents on September 3rd. Today is October 12th and I have yet to receive my copy of V is for Victory despite numerous requests to the firm's website. I am incredibly disappointed with the Customer Service at Lock N Load Publishing.
Sorry to hear that, I hope your game arrives soon! :)
I know that our Canadian distributor are in possession of the games and are in the process of shipping them out. If you haven’t received your game by the end of the week please submit a support ticket to LnL and we can hunt it down.
Thank you
Sean
Thank you for your quick response to my Comment. If I don't receive this game by this Friday I will definitely submit another support ticket.@@seandruelinger1950
Meh, not my genre. Good review. I see a problem for the future of wargaming in the number of games being released as Solitaire. It's like no wargamers want to play with other wargamers (and having met a bunch, I can certainly see why: too many wargamers are curmudgeons!).
Thanks, Dane!
I think it’s the CoVID effect lagging. People will rebound.
The ratio of solitaire wargames to those requiring 2 or more players is what, 100 to 1, 1000 to 1? How exactly is that a ‘problem’?!!
Hello
Point Blank was designed as a 2 player game. The solo AI works as an opponent modifying how orders are issued slightly. The flowcharts model situations on the ground and makes decisions. I wanted to implement an AI rather than a card flip and react type mechanic.
Thank you
Sean
Nah u gotta try Up Front Zill , it's crap 👍😎