I think he said the same thing about Slay the Spire and we've been having a blast playing that at 4 for a few runs now. My group always plays at 4 player count and is less concerned about added time as long as were having fun. However we did not enjoy Too Many Bones at 4 due to the map feeling too cramped and alpha damage killing all the enemies turn 1 trivialized things. So for this game wed be more curious to see if the Challenge and Strategy of the game is still fun at 4 rather than the length it might add.
There's a main story that's going on, but you get distracted by random side missions, then go 'oh, yeah. there's a main quest I should do'. I mean... yep... that's Elder Scrolls!
Yes, I'm not sure if we even are going to receive this before Jan 25. I haven't even received the TMB stuff that it was supposed to be shipped earlier. All because they kept open the pledge manager in August? I don't know, I was expecting more from this company.
~ 30 hrs and barely scratched the surface? Yeah, that sounds like an Elder Scrolls game. Gods knows how many hours I have in Oblivion & Skyrim over multiple years and computers and consoles. I'm really looking forward to experiencing this physically heavy beast.
Thanks Alex! I’ve been looking forward to your review!! I had the opportunity to play multiple times at GenCon and agree with what you said as far as the game being both amazing to play through and daunting at the same time. The main session we had was limited to three hours, and was played with four people. The session was one “scenario” which would be one of the three parts that Alex spoke of. We knew we had a limited time frame, so we charged ahead to get to the goal, reaching the final delve (dungeon) at about 2:45, but ultimately running out of time. It was definitely achievable to in 3 hours if we would have known what we were doing from the get go. The caveat there is that there are a bunch of things to do on the map, and side quests etc, so game time really depends on how focused you want to be. Kind of like Skyrim: Do I want to finish this quest or walk over to this random cave and see what’s inside. I’m thinking a normal session where everyone knew what they were doing, along with some exploration would be around 4-5 hours. There is a way to “save” the game that the Chip Theory team explained, where you can put your dice and character mat into a plastic shell (which comes with the base game) ensuring all your dice and pips stay in the correct spots. There would be other things (cards/map) but the character mat would be the most significant part.
I ran into a similar issue with TMB. EVERY single game of that always seemed to take twice or thrice as much time as they suggest. But honestly every CTG game is a masterpiece. Glad to see this joins the catalog. I feel like this will be one of those games that you just play through the first chapter and call it good. I honestly do the same thing with Hoplo.
TMB is probably the only game I’m willing to setup and play even if I know I don’t have time to finish it. A buddy of mine comes to visit me a couple of times a year and we play TMB every time(and he feels the same way about whether we actually finish it or not).
So interesting they went with Chip Theory for this. Makes sense in a way, but they are also such a specific experience of Tabletop gaming. The neoprene and the chips are not gonna jive for everyone. Obviously a ton of work went into it, but if you've ever played ESO or even Skyrim, this game wouldn't be good if it wasn't ridiculously overstuffed with too many options. That is the way of it.
I'm afraid many people will be disappointed with this one, TMB is not for everyone for many reasons, like the chips, neoprenes as you mentioned, and the gameplay.This is not an RPG or a dungeon crawler, so it's an odd choice. Maybe they selected them after the experience with Modiphius and the Skyrim board game, but I think Skyrim is closer to the RPG experience.
An Elder Scrolls review from an elder statesmen. Thanks! I do suffer from a lack of free time, and I’m also a mostly solo player, so I think I’ll pick up TMB instead. Just as soon as I get through this Oathsworn campaign.
Thanks for the review Alex... I just think your concerns around game length could have been fleshed out better. The game is already meant to be played in 3 session. Is your concern that the session are longer than advertise (at least while learning the rules) and saving mid campaign is not possible (I seem to recall CTG saying that you can technically save anytime as the storage solution is quite flexible in that regard, you would mostly need to take a picture of the map?). How does your concern compared to standard campaign games? Aren't most campaign length in the 50+ hours ? What makes you more concerned about Elder scrolled compared to those other campaign ? I was not even able to get through Gloomhaven jaws of the lion cause of the length of the campaign (and the need to play other games from time to time). The 3 arcs got me to jump on this one as it seems more manageable then any competitor on the market, but I could be wrong.
Yes, each campaign is 3 sessions, with each session taking 4-10 hours depending on the group size, familiarity with the game, quests chosen, party composition, etc. And yes, you can put the game away with the plastic clamshells that hold the player boards and dice and get it out later to finish a campaign. You could also technically "save" the game at any point of a session pack it up and return to it later. However, as with other games this size (gloomhaven, etc) the thought of putting everything away and getting it out again is daunting for most and if they are like me they will opt to just leave it on the table and finish an incomplete session the next evening, having the family eat dinner at the coffee table instead. Also not sure how having multiple "saved games" at the same time would work, so if you are playing through a campaign with one group and want to start another one with another group the "saving" would be more difficult. The biggest problem for me personally is WHEN can I play it? Without having a dedicated game table it is too much hassle and or impossible to set up, play and put away between two meals. If you play after dinner you better be prepared to stay up until the wee hours of the morning. For me the most realistic scenario of getting it played involves starting after breakfast or lunch, playing, taking a break to grab a sandwich or burger or something, then finishing and cleaning up just in time for dinner or bedtime. And finding 2 or 3 other people willing to commit to doing that with me 3 times to finish a campaign is nearly impossible. That being said, I do believe one of the differences between pre production and production copies will be box size and may change set up/tear down time. Also, it IS a fun game (to me at least) and I do prefer it to TMB...but enough for the extra hurdles? I don't know yet. Hope that helps answer your question.
@@bigd5773 Thanks for that detail response. I can definitely see how 3 sessions of 10 hours would be difficult to table. But nothing in the gameplay videos or the rulebook leads me to believe a session could last this long. It seems crazy to me. I sure hope I am not wrong about this though. I personally bought it to play at the cottage on the week-ends expecting to get through the entire campaign in 1 week-end. I am still quite intrigued but I admit, a bit worried about the session length
I think Mike from One Stop Co-Op Shop said each of his sessions were going 2-3hrs, so he thought 6-9h for one of the 3 chapter campaigns. That seems like a huge difference! Maybe that was just the intro tho? Not sure, but it’s worth watching his review.
@@philthephreak CTG also did a Q&A yesterday and adressed the session lenght. Seems like 3 hours is the norm but acknowledged that if you are a slow too many bone player, you should expect the same game. But this would be a player "issue" not a game issue. Nothing wrong with players taking their time obviously, but the game has a lot in place to keep playtime under control with the maximum days per session and the heavy fatigue mechanics. I am reassured a bit but I assume Alex is a more experienced gamer than I am, so I am still worried a little.
This seems gorgeous, both in production and in gameplay… unfortunately my budget (both money and time commitment) is dedicated to Arkham Horror LCG. I know they are different games, but have similarities in the fact that both have mini campaigns in which you level up different and asymmetric characters and the the time commitment seems to be the same. I thought ES would end up being shorter, but as you describe it seems to keep you occupied for more than the 8 scenarios of AH… if you’ve tried it, are they comparable?
I like the game and am looking forward to playing it. After watching the playthroughs to date (Canje, Rob, One Stop, CTG), there's a steep learning curve which would probably be largely mitigated by player reference cards with a game loop overview (perhaps flow chart?) and salient points (with rulebook page refs) to reduce the amount of rulebook referencing. Some people like the way the rulebook is structured and others find it confusing because they have to jump around sections. Likewise from what I've seen, the tutorial book requires alot of rulebook cross-referencing to learn the mechanics work. A tutorial should give an overview so players can learn the basics quickly with indepth rulebook references if you want/need more. While some players will staunchly keep to the expanding CTG ES universe, I suspect that there'll be alot of BGG fan development for this (beyond player assists) such as some will develop their own quest narratives, others will use the components for their own RPGs, and perhaps improved art for the main maps and settlements for better theme immersion.
As someone who loves Elder Scrolls video games (and has no problem with heavier board games), but can only afford one of these Elder Scrolls games, which one would you recommend overall?
Any sense of difficulty with different player counts? TMB was really hard with two, and pretty easy with four. Is this similar? My wife and I always two hand TMB (4 total characters) for that reason. Hoping it’s not the same here too.
The only thing I don't like after watching some streams is the round timer in Battles. Especially on delves/dungeons the time is way to limited and you are pretty much forced to run trough. And also make more defensive builds (especially solo) a pain. I think Canje also mentioned he doesn't like that Round Timer.
Interestingly enough it hasn't been an issue for me so far, but I will say that I have had a few times where it was close enough that I can understand it being an issue on delves.
I think without the counter in delves it would be too easy. It forces the team to make hard choices, hit hard and fast, maybe over-agro, or make a build to deal with fatigue and heal. Otherwise game length and or challenge level would suffer. Just my opinion.
This game sounds better if one has copious amounts of free time away from the responsibilities and distractions of the world. Probably perfect for those who are just retiring and enjoying their time in seclusion somewhere.
Yeah, this is going to be very tough to get to the table. The hobby is already saturated with life style games. I hope they are able to find a way to make it more accessible in an expansion.
I'm fortunate enough to have a dedicated game table. I can just leave it on the table for as long as I want. But! If I had time away from the world, that would be amazing too.
Sounds like less would be more here. I had this problem with Burncycle where some things should have been removed to make the game more accessible. I like CTG but nothing yet rivals TMB imho as TMB is easy to play even with my kids, just a pain to initially learn.😂
There seems to be some confusion around how the game is structured and how long each section/session/day/chapter (all terms were used) takes. 3 chapters = 1 entire campaign? Chapter 1 = ~8 hours? (if taking your time) Chapter 2= ~6 hours? Chapter 3= TBD? Playing chapters multiple times or with the various quest lines is how you’ve played for 25-30 hours? Hoping for some clarification here as time per play is a big deal to me, while total campaign time is less so.
The game comes with 5 maps of 5 different regions with their own quest books (gazetteer). There are 9 different guilds each with a different set of 3 quests for each map. So, for example, if you play Morrowind map and chose to do the Mage Guild quest (ie, session 1) then after you complete that (which takes 2.5-4 hours according to the box, but at least twice that on your first playthrough) you can have your party proceed to complete the second Mage Guild quest (ie the second session). So in total there are 9 "campaigns" of 3 quests each (for a total of 27 sessions) per map with a total of 5 maps leaving you with a total of 135 unique main quests (sessions) in the game. Hope that helps clarify. As for chapters, I assume that is the same as the "session" or "main quest". As for the length of game time, it will vary by player count, familiarity, guild quest, play style, and party composition, not by "session number" (although if playing with a new group, growing familiarity would make the later sessions go quicker).
@@bigd5773 this helps a lot! I also read somewhere that you start new characters after the 3 quests, or per campaign play. I wasn’t sure if characters carried over per campaign. I like that they reset, it’ll allow me to experience more builds and let me introduce the game to different people. This clarity has helped me a lot and now I can back with more certainty 😊
Being I'm not a board game reviewer, I own 10 games as that's all I have time to enjoy. Solo coop adventure games are my favorite. I own TMB Undertow, Make Knight, Shadows of Brimstone, Kings of Ruin in this category with Mage knight being my favorite. Also own Marvel Champions & Arkham Horror LCG and euros like Ark Nova, Dune, and Viticulture with Tuscany. After watching your excellent review, I'm glad I did not back this. Sounds like a good game, but their are plenty of those. 100 page rule book is a real turnoff. I was thinking of trading TMB for this or Hoplo Victurum. I'll keep TMB. Thanks Alex.
Maybe someday we'll get an RPG in a box experience based on the Elder Scrolls IP. This isn't. This is TMB in a campaign setting. Which is good, I like TMB and the Elder Scrolls. But to be honest, I'm going to use many components for my RPG games 😂
Swinginess worries me. If I lose to a bad roll in a risky game like Final Girl I'll have lost 20-30min at worst. Imagine I will be salty if I lose at the 8th hour of my ES campaign because some enemy randomly stole some important gear from me or the fight is designed to favor a specific build I happened not to have in my party
You have and gain many, MANY items through the campaign and lots of them are made to be used once. You could easily throw away a less important item on Steal. If you don't want to die, there are many talents that give you damage mitigation, prevention, healing, invisibility, escapes, wildcards etc. If you play like a glass cannon be prepared to be sweeped off the floor on a bad die. As for swinginess - there are many abilites that allow you to reroll (Bard ability), or even set a die to any side you want. It's about how you use the combos, and if you hate losing, there's always stealth archer ;)
Another thing - on this map in pqrticular (Morrowind), you can gain up to 3 items in addition to about up to 4 you can get out of the dungeon, up to TWO times, just in the story quests (a character can have up to 8 items, 4 equipped and 4 in inventory). So you REALLY are not starved for items.
As someone who got my hands on an early copy - it's fun, but it's A LOT. I'd like to play it more, but I can't imagine getting it to the table nearly enough. The game is 2.5-4 hours per the box, so you can imagine how long it actually takes. Playing with my kids you have played the video game, the game was too long (close to the 8 hours Alex mentions), and I'm not sure I'd be able to convince them to play it with me again.
Yes, IF you know what you are doing and everyone else does and you're playing 2 player, you can do it in 2.5 hours, not counting 30-45 minutes setup and tear down. Not ridiculous but not snappy. If you think of TMB as a 60 minute game then this will probably be a 2.5 hour game for you as well. As for my experience, playing the game after watching several playthrough and tutorial videos plus skimming the rulebook (not being GMed by a developer as many of the content producers are), it took me and two others 8-10 hours for the first session. If I were to play again with a new group I could probably get them down to 5 hours for a first play without making them feel "rushed". Others may have different experiences, your YMMV. But it seems like Alex had a somewhat similar experience to me as well.
@@nitro1048 2.5hrs per one day. So 6 to 8 hour campaign and that's assuming you've apparently mastered the game in two or three plays. Also all 9 guilds have different storylines and challenges
Did it remain interesting through your playtime? Do you think it's justified in being as long as it is? I'm kind of worried it will suffer feeling drawn out like Hoplomachus Victorum did (the criticisms in 20:00 of this video explain it well: ua-cam.com/video/V8H6nzQh3GU/v-deo.html
@Dratio I played the game multiple campaigns over a three week period...unless you're a turn and burn type of gamer, you'll likely enjoy spending a lot of time in this world.
@@MrGainify More so talking about the power fantasy and overall character growth experience... TMB doesn't really have a character arc for who you're playing. I never really feel like I get much stronger until much later in the game. In Mage Knight, the progression of your character is constant and you constantly feel like you're advancing, getting better, stronger, etc.
You can save between sessions yes. Organically you split an adventure into 3 with clear stopping points and ways to store it. If you want to stop between one of the three sessions then you may need to take pictures and it will be harder to save.
Sounds great if you're right, single, and have no kids. Though I don't qualify for any of the above criteria, I'm tempted. But half of Oathswirn, and all of Kings of Ruin and Mage Knight tell me not to. Maybe as a second hander in a couple of years.
As someone who has yet to start Oathsworn, i feel this. But the thing that drew me to this in spite of my inability to play those other big narrative games is that a campaign of this is *only* three sessions. As oppposed to Oathsworn's what...19? 21?
@@kentheinrichssen7527 I think you may have it wrong here. Alex said he has done 30 hours and barely scratched the surface. I've heard of others being 100 deep and still much to go (though not sure of the veracity of that). I would have got it in the absence of Oathsworn as it looks amazing, but having both as well the others mentioned (and work, 2 kids, my own game design and living in Australia making this a $300 purchase) held me back with little effort.
@@PaulMB40 I'm more saying with Oathsworn I need a committed group across 20(ish) sessions/game nights and with this I need a committed group for three. I am well aware I'm likely never seeing the depths of everything this game offers, but it is structured in a way that feels way less intimidating/requires way less commitment from me.
I just want to make sure I am understanding: A campaign is made up of 3 sessions/chapters and your first chapter of those 3 was 8hrs, your second was 6 hours? You also think that people may be able to get it down to 3 hours per chapter (of which there are 3 total per campaign) once they really know the rules, but are somewhat skeptical 2 hours is really possible. Is that correct or are you saying that a full campaign intended to be made up of 3 sessions/chapters was 8 and then 6 hours? As a secondary question, what player count were you playing? Thanks for a clarification Alex!
Yes! 3 sessions per campaign and as far as I've seen, if there's one VERY experienced player being a kind of "game master", that can be easily pushed down to 3 hours, if not less than 2 (depends on how much you fight, since fights are what lasts the longest - but are also the most fun). I say one game master, because for the ones not controling the game, it's actually not a very difficult game to learn, especially if you know Elder Scrolls, or DnD, or even similar RPG games. If at least one player knows how to play, it looked like a very smooth experience until now. If everyone knows it, there's actually a recent stream from Chip Theory Games where they talked, joked and answered questions, while playing the game, and everything together lasted a bit more than 3 hours (4-player game). Even the player count doesn't affect the game too much, as when playing the characters in combat, the gameplay is extremely seemless and moves rapidly from one player to another - like a few seconds to a minute per player (where you do lots of stuff, bbut if you do complicated combos and use many items, that could get longer). Combining player powers can also lead to powerful combos, where the fun lies, and with the rright moves you can explode opponents in moments. When upgrading and visiting cities, you do most of it at the same time and every man for himslef. When resolving encounters, it's (usually) 1 encounter and (usually) everybody participates, so if someone reads the encounter, you all decide and bam, to the rest step in a minute. I think it's a geniously designed game, a mix between DnD and Too Many Bones, and even if you're a very heavy gamer, having 3 noobs around you doing their own stuff, it's still going to be very fun and possible to play for everybody (because as said, it's not a heavy game for others if they don't want it to be - depending on which skills they choose). In terms of complexity it can get quite a bit more complex for the game master and for others - at least at the start - much, MUCH less complex than Too Many Bones. Mainly because TMB bombards you with entire skill tree and a tome of abilities, where here you just get up to (usually) maximum of 2 dice chosen among one skill tree (with at most 3 repeateble choices) Regarding sessions, one can last a few hours (like 2), or a long time (depending of course on which one you're playing and how you're playing it - you can take longer and do optional stuff, or even rush it, or you can play on easier difficulties, or harder. One session is basically what you do for the night, and is quite a nice complete experience regarding one map. If you want to continue the campaign, there are two more sessions you can play, with the final encounter being very special and playing a bit differently, all depending on which maps you played and which choices you made. The general feeling is that it takes about 10-12 hours combined when you know how to set up and clean, could be longer when you're learning it (and they hinted that there might be additional encounters or fun choices you could make to prolong or shorten the experience) (another thing they've said that after quite a few plays, you could easily set the game up in 10 minutes for full playthrough with 3 players - and considering the incredible insert they made I believe them 100%; look at how everything works on some livestreams).
The box claims 2 hours PLUS .5 per player. So 2 player (or one player two handed) is 3 hours according to the box. I have few games that are shorter playing than the box claims. If you decide to skip most of the fun stuff though, you could probably get through this game in less time.
21:30 Exactly this is why i haven’t backed this game. I know myself, I’ll keep it save and keep ‘rolling the same build’. That what puts TMB above this game for me: TMB forces you to do it different with a different gearlock. It gives you (at least for me) just enough tools and freedom to keep the game entertaining, without overloading you with build choices. TMB also gives you a quick fix, without the campaign feel. Easier to get to the table, and sooooo rewarding. Great review!
Oh, seems he means he combined his first 2 chapters/sessions and that took 8h. Playtime should be around 1h + 30min per player. So either he played with a full group or talked *a lot*. There are playthroughs of the game and most are around the predicted playtimes, with the delve/last part being a bit longer due to having unique elements depending on map.
your enthusiasm drives this - but its to long. Ended up skipping forward for 5sec constantly, as you IMO dwell to long with your point. But thx for the overview - looking forward to see a playthrough 🙂
@@BoardGameCo so far most stories board games have a couple branching paths and it usuuly seems once we get the mechanics down we could just let a bot do it or just skip the "board game part" and read the book. "Designed to be beaten" I guess is when we get bored. We start thinking why are we not just playing a Rpg with more agency, mothership/numenera or heck video games like balder gate.
Why they thought ignoring world building, strong quest stories and only offering up a super lackluster maps experience (I mean come on!) us beyond me. Elder Scrolls is such a fantastic IP but people that adore it adore it for the world, the lore and interesting quest. Why it has to be turned into a dungeon combo crawler? … Yuck
@@nickgiannini8860 Very light and mostly just a mashup of random references. As someone who has actually played this game at conventions I was very underwhelmed and I usually love CTG. Because of the game systems the skills and characters just feel bland compared to their other games.
A boardgame has more limits than these worlds in software. It sounds like either the aspects of The Elder Scrolls the publisher focused on are not what you would've selected, or this type of board game itself is not of interest. I am very excited to experience the world they've built within the ES universe, but it certainly won't be for everyone. Cheers.
You should stop calling these videos "reviews". For two reasons. 1: This is not even the copy your audience is going to recieve. A review should be about the end product. 2: Reviews should only be done after you "finish" the game like with videogames or maybe with boardgames after a set number of plays (like at least a 100). A game might seem brilliant the first couple of games but falls flat on the long run. Especially with games with a price tag like this one that's a very important point to score in a review. Why is the a general rule when reviewing video games and not with boardgames?
@@nitro1048 If went to the new 2.5 hour quentin tarantino movie before he finished editing the final product that is going to hit the cinema, then leave after 1 hour and 45 minutes and go home a shoot a review you would find that weird. I know tarantino movies are usually good but still I can only give a review of the entire finished product. Even with big videogame rpg's the general rule is you can only do a review after finishing the main quest or spend x amount of hours. Everything you post about a product before it is finished and before you finished it, is in general considered to be a "preview". I'm curious why this does not apply to boardgames when it does seem to apply making reviews for other subjects.
I understand where you're coming from. I also disagree. Fortunately I also made it very clear in my video what my experience was with the game so that you can decide for yourself.
@@BoardGameCo It's not just your channel or just this review. Sometimes an older game catches my interest and the only reviews I can find is off people who have played 4 scenarios of the prototype, 2 years before the game even shipped to customers. Maybe the community is to small, or the games eat up to much time to have the same standard for boardgame reviews, it was something I was noticing recently. Not sure why the term preview can't be used? It would make it more clear for the audience
@@nitro1048 I understand actually finishing the game or playing 50 games takes a lot of time, but why is that the standerd for other (media) reviews. It's ok to just call it the "super extentive very little is going to change, 99% of finished project and experience" - preview. Just started Oathsworn myself. And it's freaking amazing. But all new things are freaking amazing. Only after the whole campaign you can give a honest review in the entire game. Keeping up the same tension and immersion for 30 scenario's is really hard. In Gloomhave you kinda lose track of the story after a bunch of scenario's. All things I would like to see taken into consideration in the review of a game I'm paying 150-250 for.
@joostborst unfortunately if you want your board game reviewers to have played at least 100 times, there would be no longer be any board game reviews on UA-cam.
Summary:
Recommend 1-2P only. More will be way too long.
And, great game but if you can’t spare 6 hours then perhaps this game isn’t for you.
I think he said the same thing about Slay the Spire and we've been having a blast playing that at 4 for a few runs now. My group always plays at 4 player count and is less concerned about added time as long as were having fun.
However we did not enjoy Too Many Bones at 4 due to the map feeling too cramped and alpha damage killing all the enemies turn 1 trivialized things. So for this game wed be more curious to see if the Challenge and Strategy of the game is still fun at 4 rather than the length it might add.
There's a main story that's going on, but you get distracted by random side missions, then go 'oh, yeah. there's a main quest I should do'. I mean... yep... that's Elder Scrolls!
Your enthusiasm for the game has enhanced my anticipation of receiving my own copy… In a few months lol. Thanks for a thorough discussion.
Yes, I'm not sure if we even are going to receive this before Jan 25. I haven't even received the TMB stuff that it was supposed to be shipped earlier. All because they kept open the pledge manager in August? I don't know, I was expecting more from this company.
~ 30 hrs and barely scratched the surface? Yeah, that sounds like an Elder Scrolls game. Gods knows how many hours I have in Oblivion & Skyrim over multiple years and computers and consoles. I'm really looking forward to experiencing this physically heavy beast.
😂
Thanks Alex! I’ve been looking forward to your review!! I had the opportunity to play multiple times at GenCon and agree with what you said as far as the game being both amazing to play through and daunting at the same time.
The main session we had was limited to three hours, and was played with four people. The session was one “scenario” which would be one of the three parts that Alex spoke of. We knew we had a limited time frame, so we charged ahead to get to the goal, reaching the final delve (dungeon) at about 2:45, but ultimately running out of time. It was definitely achievable to in 3 hours if we would have known what we were doing from the get go.
The caveat there is that there are a bunch of things to do on the map, and side quests etc, so game time really depends on how focused you want to be. Kind of like Skyrim: Do I want to finish this quest or walk over to this random cave and see what’s inside.
I’m thinking a normal session where everyone knew what they were doing, along with some exploration would be around 4-5 hours.
There is a way to “save” the game that the Chip Theory team explained, where you can put your dice and character mat into a plastic shell (which comes with the base game) ensuring all your dice and pips stay in the correct spots. There would be other things (cards/map) but the character mat would be the most significant part.
Great video, thank you! The chapter markers seem off though, you might want to recheck those 👍
I ran into a similar issue with TMB. EVERY single game of that always seemed to take twice or thrice as much time as they suggest. But honestly every CTG game is a masterpiece. Glad to see this joins the catalog.
I feel like this will be one of those games that you just play through the first chapter and call it good. I honestly do the same thing with Hoplo.
Yep, a masterpiece for sure...and yes, I think most of my plays will be single chapter plays.
TMB is probably the only game I’m willing to setup and play even if I know I don’t have time to finish it. A buddy of mine comes to visit me a couple of times a year and we play TMB every time(and he feels the same way about whether we actually finish it or not).
So interesting they went with Chip Theory for this. Makes sense in a way, but they are also such a specific experience of Tabletop gaming. The neoprene and the chips are not gonna jive for everyone. Obviously a ton of work went into it, but if you've ever played ESO or even Skyrim, this game wouldn't be good if it wasn't ridiculously overstuffed with too many options. That is the way of it.
I'm afraid many people will be disappointed with this one, TMB is not for everyone for many reasons, like the chips, neoprenes as you mentioned, and the gameplay.This is not an RPG or a dungeon crawler, so it's an odd choice. Maybe they selected them after the experience with Modiphius and the Skyrim board game, but I think Skyrim is closer to the RPG experience.
Thanks I’m glad I backed this. And I added the little leather binders.
I didn’t get the expansion since it has a tons of content already.
Seems to be getting the best of CTG’s big hits so far.
Thanks for the review, Alex!
As far as the rules goes, would you say it’s on par with other big dungeon crawlers like Frosthaven or is it heavier than usual? Great review!!
Grabbing the popcorn!! Thanks for the review, Alex!
An Elder Scrolls review from an elder statesmen. Thanks! I do suffer from a lack of free time, and I’m also a mostly solo player, so I think I’ll pick up TMB instead. Just as soon as I get through this Oathsworn campaign.
Tmb is always worth it
Thank you so much for the review! So eager to get it!
Happy to help :)
Thanks for the review Alex... I just think your concerns around game length could have been fleshed out better. The game is already meant to be played in 3 session. Is your concern that the session are longer than advertise (at least while learning the rules) and saving mid campaign is not possible (I seem to recall CTG saying that you can technically save anytime as the storage solution is quite flexible in that regard, you would mostly need to take a picture of the map?). How does your concern compared to standard campaign games? Aren't most campaign length in the 50+ hours ? What makes you more concerned about Elder scrolled compared to those other campaign ?
I was not even able to get through Gloomhaven jaws of the lion cause of the length of the campaign (and the need to play other games from time to time). The 3 arcs got me to jump on this one as it seems more manageable then any competitor on the market, but I could be wrong.
Yes, each campaign is 3 sessions, with each session taking 4-10 hours depending on the group size, familiarity with the game, quests chosen, party composition, etc.
And yes, you can put the game away with the plastic clamshells that hold the player boards and dice and get it out later to finish a campaign. You could also technically "save" the game at any point of a session pack it up and return to it later. However, as with other games this size (gloomhaven, etc) the thought of putting everything away and getting it out again is daunting for most and if they are like me they will opt to just leave it on the table and finish an incomplete session the next evening, having the family eat dinner at the coffee table instead.
Also not sure how having multiple "saved games" at the same time would work, so if you are playing through a campaign with one group and want to start another one with another group the "saving" would be more difficult.
The biggest problem for me personally is WHEN can I play it? Without having a dedicated game table it is too much hassle and or impossible to set up, play and put away between two meals. If you play after dinner you better be prepared to stay up until the wee hours of the morning. For me the most realistic scenario of getting it played involves starting after breakfast or lunch, playing, taking a break to grab a sandwich or burger or something, then finishing and cleaning up just in time for dinner or bedtime. And finding 2 or 3 other people willing to commit to doing that with me 3 times to finish a campaign is nearly impossible.
That being said, I do believe one of the differences between pre production and production copies will be box size and may change set up/tear down time. Also, it IS a fun game (to me at least) and I do prefer it to TMB...but enough for the extra hurdles? I don't know yet.
Hope that helps answer your question.
@@bigd5773 Thanks for that detail response. I can definitely see how 3 sessions of 10 hours would be difficult to table. But nothing in the gameplay videos or the rulebook leads me to believe a session could last this long. It seems crazy to me. I sure hope I am not wrong about this though. I personally bought it to play at the cottage on the week-ends expecting to get through the entire campaign in 1 week-end. I am still quite intrigued but I admit, a bit worried about the session length
I think Mike from One Stop Co-Op Shop said each of his sessions were going 2-3hrs, so he thought 6-9h for one of the 3 chapter campaigns. That seems like a huge difference! Maybe that was just the intro tho? Not sure, but it’s worth watching his review.
@@philthephreak CTG also did a Q&A yesterday and adressed the session lenght. Seems like 3 hours is the norm but acknowledged that if you are a slow too many bone player, you should expect the same game. But this would be a player "issue" not a game issue. Nothing wrong with players taking their time obviously, but the game has a lot in place to keep playtime under control with the maximum days per session and the heavy fatigue mechanics. I am reassured a bit but I assume Alex is a more experienced gamer than I am, so I am still worried a little.
That helps. Maybe it really comes down to the optional side questing. Either way, I’m still super intrigued by this game!
This seems gorgeous, both in production and in gameplay… unfortunately my budget (both money and time commitment) is dedicated to Arkham Horror LCG.
I know they are different games, but have similarities in the fact that both have mini campaigns in which you level up different and asymmetric characters and the the time commitment seems to be the same. I thought ES would end up being shorter, but as you describe it seems to keep you occupied for more than the 8 scenarios of AH… if you’ve tried it, are they comparable?
I like the game and am looking forward to playing it. After watching the playthroughs to date (Canje, Rob, One Stop, CTG), there's a steep learning curve which would probably be largely mitigated by player reference cards with a game loop overview (perhaps flow chart?) and salient points (with rulebook page refs) to reduce the amount of rulebook referencing. Some people like the way the rulebook is structured and others find it confusing because they have to jump around sections. Likewise from what I've seen, the tutorial book requires alot of rulebook cross-referencing to learn the mechanics work. A tutorial should give an overview so players can learn the basics quickly with indepth rulebook references if you want/need more.
While some players will staunchly keep to the expanding CTG ES universe, I suspect that there'll be alot of BGG fan development for this (beyond player assists) such as some will develop their own quest narratives, others will use the components for their own RPGs, and perhaps improved art for the main maps and settlements for better theme immersion.
The tutorial book is really bad. Impossible to read because it keeps referencing the rule book and says what 2 people are doing.
To be honest with you, I backed this one because I like TMB and use the components for my real hardcore RPG games.
As someone who loves Elder Scrolls video games (and has no problem with heavier board games), but can only afford one of these Elder Scrolls games, which one would you recommend overall?
That V from Cyberpunk 2077 aiming straight at the box, from behind - love it :D
lol unintentional
Alex do you think the Deluxe Adventurer Inventory is a must (for playing solo up to 3-handed) ?
Alex, thank you so much for that review. Indeed, a Great game but not so easy to put on the table.
Happy to help!
Is there a save point? Otherwise i will sell this the moment it arrives
Any sense of difficulty with different player counts? TMB was really hard with two, and pretty easy with four. Is this similar? My wife and I always two hand TMB (4 total characters) for that reason. Hoping it’s not the same here too.
amazing content. Alex for Secretary of Fabrics.
The only thing I don't like after watching some streams is the round timer in Battles. Especially on delves/dungeons the time is way to limited and you are pretty much forced to run trough. And also make more defensive builds (especially solo) a pain. I think Canje also mentioned he doesn't like that Round Timer.
Interestingly enough it hasn't been an issue for me so far, but I will say that I have had a few times where it was close enough that I can understand it being an issue on delves.
I think without the counter in delves it would be too easy. It forces the team to make hard choices, hit hard and fast, maybe over-agro, or make a build to deal with fatigue and heal. Otherwise game length and or challenge level would suffer.
Just my opinion.
I flippin loved TMB. I can't wait for this one!!
This game sounds better if one has copious amounts of free time away from the responsibilities and distractions of the world. Probably perfect for those who are just retiring and enjoying their time in seclusion somewhere.
Yeah, this is going to be very tough to get to the table. The hobby is already saturated with life style games. I hope they are able to find a way to make it more accessible in an expansion.
I'm fortunate enough to have a dedicated game table. I can just leave it on the table for as long as I want. But! If I had time away from the world, that would be amazing too.
Sounds like less would be more here. I had this problem with Burncycle where some things should have been removed to make the game more accessible. I like CTG but nothing yet rivals TMB imho as TMB is easy to play even with my kids, just a pain to initially learn.😂
There seems to be some confusion around how the game is structured and how long each section/session/day/chapter (all terms were used) takes.
3 chapters = 1 entire campaign?
Chapter 1 = ~8 hours? (if taking your time)
Chapter 2= ~6 hours?
Chapter 3= TBD?
Playing chapters multiple times or with the various quest lines is how you’ve played for 25-30 hours?
Hoping for some clarification here as time per play is a big deal to me, while total campaign time is less so.
The game comes with 5 maps of 5 different regions with their own quest books (gazetteer). There are 9 different guilds each with a different set of 3 quests for each map. So, for example, if you play Morrowind map and chose to do the Mage Guild quest (ie, session 1) then after you complete that (which takes 2.5-4 hours according to the box, but at least twice that on your first playthrough) you can have your party proceed to complete the second Mage Guild quest (ie the second session).
So in total there are 9 "campaigns" of 3 quests each (for a total of 27 sessions) per map with a total of 5 maps leaving you with a total of 135 unique main quests (sessions) in the game.
Hope that helps clarify. As for chapters, I assume that is the same as the "session" or "main quest".
As for the length of game time, it will vary by player count, familiarity, guild quest, play style, and party composition, not by "session number" (although if playing with a new group, growing familiarity would make the later sessions go quicker).
@@bigd5773 this helps a lot! I also read somewhere that you start new characters after the 3 quests, or per campaign play. I wasn’t sure if characters carried over per campaign. I like that they reset, it’ll allow me to experience more builds and let me introduce the game to different people.
This clarity has helped me a lot and now I can back with more certainty 😊
Being I'm not a board game reviewer, I own 10 games as that's all I have time to enjoy. Solo coop adventure games are my favorite. I own TMB Undertow, Make Knight, Shadows of Brimstone, Kings of Ruin in this category with Mage knight being my favorite. Also own Marvel Champions & Arkham Horror LCG and euros like Ark Nova, Dune, and Viticulture with Tuscany. After watching your excellent review, I'm glad I did not back this. Sounds like a good game, but their are plenty of those. 100 page rule book is a real turnoff. I was thinking of trading TMB for this or Hoplo Victurum. I'll keep TMB. Thanks Alex.
Maybe someday we'll get an RPG in a box experience based on the Elder Scrolls IP. This isn't. This is TMB in a campaign setting. Which is good, I like TMB and the Elder Scrolls. But to be honest, I'm going to use many components for my RPG games 😂
Swinginess worries me. If I lose to a bad roll in a risky game like Final Girl I'll have lost 20-30min at worst. Imagine I will be salty if I lose at the 8th hour of my ES campaign because some enemy randomly stole some important gear from me or the fight is designed to favor a specific build I happened not to have in my party
Yup! If you watch one stop coop shops play through you can see this happen a few times both with a bad roll and a good roll.
You have and gain many, MANY items through the campaign and lots of them are made to be used once. You could easily throw away a less important item on Steal. If you don't want to die, there are many talents that give you damage mitigation, prevention, healing, invisibility, escapes, wildcards etc. If you play like a glass cannon be prepared to be sweeped off the floor on a bad die.
As for swinginess - there are many abilites that allow you to reroll (Bard ability), or even set a die to any side you want. It's about how you use the combos, and if you hate losing, there's always stealth archer ;)
Another thing - on this map in pqrticular (Morrowind), you can gain up to 3 items in addition to about up to 4 you can get out of the dungeon, up to TWO times, just in the story quests (a character can have up to 8 items, 4 equipped and 4 in inventory). So you REALLY are not starved for items.
I can’t wait for this game!!
As someone who got my hands on an early copy - it's fun, but it's A LOT.
I'd like to play it more, but I can't imagine getting it to the table nearly enough.
The game is 2.5-4 hours per the box, so you can imagine how long it actually takes.
Playing with my kids you have played the video game, the game was too long (close to the 8 hours Alex mentions), and I'm not sure I'd be able to convince them to play it with me again.
Yes, IF you know what you are doing and everyone else does and you're playing 2 player, you can do it in 2.5 hours, not counting 30-45 minutes setup and tear down. Not ridiculous but not snappy. If you think of TMB as a 60 minute game then this will probably be a 2.5 hour game for you as well.
As for my experience, playing the game after watching several playthrough and tutorial videos plus skimming the rulebook (not being GMed by a developer as many of the content producers are), it took me and two others 8-10 hours for the first session.
If I were to play again with a new group I could probably get them down to 5 hours for a first play without making them feel "rushed".
Others may have different experiences, your YMMV. But it seems like Alex had a somewhat similar experience to me as well.
@@nitro1048 2.5hrs per one day. So 6 to 8 hour campaign and that's assuming you've apparently mastered the game in two or three plays. Also all 9 guilds have different storylines and challenges
@@nitro1048 works for me. I played the game two weeks straight. I'm loving the game
Did it remain interesting through your playtime? Do you think it's justified in being as long as it is? I'm kind of worried it will suffer feeling drawn out like Hoplomachus Victorum did (the criticisms in 20:00 of this video explain it well: ua-cam.com/video/V8H6nzQh3GU/v-deo.html
@Dratio I played the game multiple campaigns over a three week period...unless you're a turn and burn type of gamer, you'll likely enjoy spending a lot of time in this world.
Yeah, this is such a masterpiece... My most anticipated board game of all time.
I don't think a good % of the backers don't know what they got themselves into lol
I think it's amazing...but curious to see who will love and who will get rid of without playing it.
Is it fun to play this game solo?
Yes! Better with friends in my opinion.
I want to play this but it's so inaccessible and hard to table. I'd need to be on a vacation to have the time to even learn it 😅
Oof 4-8 hrs per session? This is definitely not a game for me. 2hrs is the longest I want to play a game.
Nitro, I'm hoping it gets there...but I have a hard time seeing it based on my plays so far. Obviously every group will be different.
Wish I could find someone teach me and play some too many bones on TTS x.x
Too Many Bones or this game? If you only had room for one?
Seems like a big mashup between Too Many Bones and Mage Knight.
I don’t really see Mage Knight here. There is a lot of randomness in this that is not really in MK.
And any Elder Scrolls game, and DnD / Baldur's Gate.
@@MrGainify More so talking about the power fantasy and overall character growth experience...
TMB doesn't really have a character arc for who you're playing. I never really feel like I get much stronger until much later in the game. In Mage Knight, the progression of your character is constant and you constantly feel like you're advancing, getting better, stronger, etc.
Does this game have a save system like spirit fire or 7th citadel/continent?
You can save between sessions yes. Organically you split an adventure into 3 with clear stopping points and ways to store it. If you want to stop between one of the three sessions then you may need to take pictures and it will be harder to save.
Ok. That was my main question. Stopping between sessions is a non issue. I can leave the game on the table between Sat and Sun
haha, you just sold me this game - went and late pledged immediately
Enjoy it :)
Sounds great if you're right, single, and have no kids.
Though I don't qualify for any of the above criteria, I'm tempted. But half of Oathswirn, and all of Kings of Ruin and Mage Knight tell me not to.
Maybe as a second hander in a couple of years.
As someone who has yet to start Oathsworn, i feel this. But the thing that drew me to this in spite of my inability to play those other big narrative games is that a campaign of this is *only* three sessions. As oppposed to Oathsworn's what...19? 21?
@@kentheinrichssen7527 I think you may have it wrong here. Alex said he has done 30 hours and barely scratched the surface. I've heard of others being 100 deep and still much to go (though not sure of the veracity of that).
I would have got it in the absence of Oathsworn as it looks amazing, but having both as well the others mentioned (and work, 2 kids, my own game design and living in Australia making this a $300 purchase) held me back with little effort.
@@PaulMB40 I'm more saying with Oathsworn I need a committed group across 20(ish) sessions/game nights and with this I need a committed group for three. I am well aware I'm likely never seeing the depths of everything this game offers, but it is structured in a way that feels way less intimidating/requires way less commitment from me.
@kentheinrichssen7527 Gotcha. I play these games solo (dad-downtime) and because I got sick of game groups falling apart.
Did they say if this is all coming to retail?
You can get it from their website if thats what youre asking
@amiboye5216 that certainly works, but I was thinking brick and mortar or Amazon, etc.
I'm ready for a teach, cheers. 😉
Come on by!
Could you do a experienced review of the ttrpg called F.A.T.A.L
I just want to make sure I am understanding:
A campaign is made up of 3 sessions/chapters and your first chapter of those 3 was 8hrs, your second was 6 hours? You also think that people may be able to get it down to 3 hours per chapter (of which there are 3 total per campaign) once they really know the rules, but are somewhat skeptical 2 hours is really possible. Is that correct or are you saying that a full campaign intended to be made up of 3 sessions/chapters was 8 and then 6 hours? As a secondary question, what player count were you playing?
Thanks for a clarification Alex!
Yes! 3 sessions per campaign and as far as I've seen, if there's one VERY experienced player being a kind of "game master", that can be easily pushed down to 3 hours, if not less than 2 (depends on how much you fight, since fights are what lasts the longest - but are also the most fun). I say one game master, because for the ones not controling the game, it's actually not a very difficult game to learn, especially if you know Elder Scrolls, or DnD, or even similar RPG games. If at least one player knows how to play, it looked like a very smooth experience until now. If everyone knows it, there's actually a recent stream from Chip Theory Games where they talked, joked and answered questions, while playing the game, and everything together lasted a bit more than 3 hours (4-player game).
Even the player count doesn't affect the game too much, as when playing the characters in combat, the gameplay is extremely seemless and moves rapidly from one player to another - like a few seconds to a minute per player (where you do lots of stuff, bbut if you do complicated combos and use many items, that could get longer). Combining player powers can also lead to powerful combos, where the fun lies, and with the rright moves you can explode opponents in moments. When upgrading and visiting cities, you do most of it at the same time and every man for himslef. When resolving encounters, it's (usually) 1 encounter and (usually) everybody participates, so if someone reads the encounter, you all decide and bam, to the rest step in a minute.
I think it's a geniously designed game, a mix between DnD and Too Many Bones, and even if you're a very heavy gamer, having 3 noobs around you doing their own stuff, it's still going to be very fun and possible to play for everybody (because as said, it's not a heavy game for others if they don't want it to be - depending on which skills they choose). In terms of complexity it can get quite a bit more complex for the game master and for others - at least at the start - much, MUCH less complex than Too Many Bones. Mainly because TMB bombards you with entire skill tree and a tome of abilities, where here you just get up to (usually) maximum of 2 dice chosen among one skill tree (with at most 3 repeateble choices)
Regarding sessions, one can last a few hours (like 2), or a long time (depending of course on which one you're playing and how you're playing it - you can take longer and do optional stuff, or even rush it, or you can play on easier difficulties, or harder. One session is basically what you do for the night, and is quite a nice complete experience regarding one map. If you want to continue the campaign, there are two more sessions you can play, with the final encounter being very special and playing a bit differently, all depending on which maps you played and which choices you made. The general feeling is that it takes about 10-12 hours combined when you know how to set up and clean, could be longer when you're learning it (and they hinted that there might be additional encounters or fun choices you could make to prolong or shorten the experience) (another thing they've said that after quite a few plays, you could easily set the game up in 10 minutes for full playthrough with 3 players - and considering the incredible insert they made I believe them 100%; look at how everything works on some livestreams).
The box claims 2 hours PLUS .5 per player. So 2 player (or one player two handed) is 3 hours according to the box.
I have few games that are shorter playing than the box claims.
If you decide to skip most of the fun stuff though, you could probably get through this game in less time.
23:48 MAGA: Fight, Fight, Fight!
Does that box fit in a kallax? Otherwise I don't think I want it lol
You can always get a bigger kallax. Muhahaha
That wouldn't actually work.
(It's a good question though.)
I thought it would fit but I can't actually find confirmation so... 🤔
Pretty sure CTG confirmed this in the comments on the campaign and during some live streams...but I might have dreamt that...
Yeah the way the camera is, it looks way too big for a kallax lol
It does. They confirmed it.
21:30 Exactly this is why i haven’t backed this game. I know myself, I’ll keep it save and keep ‘rolling the same build’. That what puts TMB above this game for me: TMB forces you to do it different with a different gearlock. It gives you (at least for me) just enough tools and freedom to keep the game entertaining, without overloading you with build choices. TMB also gives you a quick fix, without the campaign feel. Easier to get to the table, and sooooo rewarding.
Great review!
Yes! Both are great, make no mistake, but there is a reason TMB edges this out to me
Hi Alex, thanks for this review. Quick question: best adventure game you've ever played? Even better than Agemonia? Thanks
Are you asking if this is the best one?
Is this worse to learn than Tanares? 😮
No actually :) Rulebook is very clean, just long
Sorry, the ESO main story quest is so good. The board game equivalent just is not as good. Why are you not playing the MMO game?
8 hours per Session? Wow...maybe i should cancel my pledge 😢
That's 3 sessions, 1 mini-campaign.
Oh, seems he means he combined his first 2 chapters/sessions and that took 8h. Playtime should be around 1h + 30min per player. So either he played with a full group or talked *a lot*.
There are playthroughs of the game and most are around the predicted playtimes, with the delve/last part being a bit longer due to having unique elements depending on map.
If I want to cancel my pledge, what would I have to do? Just removing all items from the pledge?
@@The_enraged_Crusader I guess you have to write CTG-Support. And I think you have to pay a 10% fee.
No, Alex said one of three chapters which comprises *a* game session. So it took 8 hours for a single session, not the entire mini-campaign.
A 90+ page rule book is frankly insane.
lol, it's like my third this month :)
your enthusiasm drives this - but its to long. Ended up skipping forward for 5sec constantly, as you IMO dwell to long with your point. But thx for the overview - looking forward to see a playthrough 🙂
For those hunting for his rating ua-cam.com/video/UBASdm_AouE/v-deo.html
Story books, yuk. Now adays if that's not manage by an app I got better stuff to do with my time.
Totally get that, for me it's always storybook first
@@BoardGameCo so far most stories board games have a couple branching paths and it usuuly seems once we get the mechanics down we could just let a bot do it or just skip the "board game part" and read the book. "Designed to be beaten" I guess is when we get bored. We start thinking why are we not just playing a Rpg with more agency, mothership/numenera or heck video games like balder gate.
Why they thought ignoring world building, strong quest stories and only offering up a super lackluster maps experience (I mean come
on!) us beyond me. Elder Scrolls is such a fantastic IP but people that adore it adore it for the world, the lore and interesting quest. Why it has to be turned into a dungeon combo crawler? … Yuck
Uh, those 6 ~50 page books on the left there are all world building and quest stories.
@@nickgiannini8860 Very light and mostly just a mashup of random references. As someone who has actually played this game at conventions I was very underwhelmed and I usually love CTG. Because of the game systems the skills and characters just feel bland compared to their other games.
@@nickgiannini8860 But it’s meaningless. All it does is trigger a dungeon to fight in, but the enemies are in some other constellation
A boardgame has more limits than these worlds in software. It sounds like either the aspects of The Elder Scrolls the publisher focused on are not what you would've selected, or this type of board game itself is not of interest. I am very excited to experience the world they've built within the ES universe, but it certainly won't be for everyone. Cheers.
A board game is better suited to creating your own stories by what happens compared to a video game.
You should stop calling these videos "reviews". For two reasons. 1: This is not even the copy your audience is going to recieve. A review should be about the end product.
2: Reviews should only be done after you "finish" the game like with videogames or maybe with boardgames after a set number of plays (like at least a 100). A game might seem brilliant the first couple of games but falls flat on the long run. Especially with games with a price tag like this one that's a very important point to score in a review.
Why is the a general rule when reviewing video games and not with boardgames?
@@nitro1048 If went to the new 2.5 hour quentin tarantino movie before he finished editing the final product that is going to hit the cinema, then leave after 1 hour and 45 minutes and go home a shoot a review you would find that weird. I know tarantino movies are usually good but still I can only give a review of the entire finished product.
Even with big videogame rpg's the general rule is you can only do a review after finishing the main quest or spend x amount of hours.
Everything you post about a product before it is finished and before you finished it, is in general considered to be a "preview".
I'm curious why this does not apply to boardgames when it does seem to apply making reviews for other subjects.
I understand where you're coming from. I also disagree. Fortunately I also made it very clear in my video what my experience was with the game so that you can decide for yourself.
@@BoardGameCo It's not just your channel or just this review. Sometimes an older game catches my interest and the only reviews I can find is off people who have played 4 scenarios of the prototype, 2 years before the game even shipped to customers.
Maybe the community is to small, or the games eat up to much time to have the same standard for boardgame reviews, it was something I was noticing recently.
Not sure why the term preview can't be used? It would make it more clear for the audience
@@nitro1048 I understand actually finishing the game or playing 50 games takes a lot of time, but why is that the standerd for other (media) reviews.
It's ok to just call it the "super extentive very little is going to change, 99% of finished project and experience" - preview.
Just started Oathsworn myself. And it's freaking amazing. But all new things are freaking amazing. Only after the whole campaign you can give a honest review in the entire game.
Keeping up the same tension and immersion for 30 scenario's is really hard.
In Gloomhave you kinda lose track of the story after a bunch of scenario's.
All things I would like to see taken into consideration in the review of a game I'm paying 150-250 for.
@joostborst unfortunately if you want your board game reviewers to have played at least 100 times, there would be no longer be any board game reviews on UA-cam.