Update on My Unplayed List of 2021

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 Update on My Unplayed List of 2021

Well y'all, we're halfway through 2022! So I thought it might be a good idea to revisit my Unplayed List of 2021 and see what I've played and what I've yet to play. I thought about putting this off until after CabinCon because I'm sure to cross more games off my list after that weekend, but I figure I'll be sharing those titles in the recap anyway, so, yeah.
Not really, but kind of. I'm hedging just a little bit, here.

  • Nemesis, by Awaken Realms
    • This one is coming out for CabinCon by special request. I'll be honest: I figured I'd get to this one at some point this year, but I hadn't thought to bring it to CabinCon. But then Josh was looking at buying it for that very purpose and so it was an easy add to the list.
  • Above and Below, by Red Raven Games
    • I've played this one and I like it! I can appreciate how it sometimes gets lost in the shuffle amongst its succeeding titles, Near and Far as well as Now or Never. But it's a different game than both of those and, in my opinion, worth keeping on my shelf. It's a little heavy on the tokens, so it feels like its footprint is a bit bigger than the game necessarily demands, but I also think that's a very picky criticism from me. Especially because it's not as though I've got any thoughts on how to reduce the footprint without negatively impacting the game. Overall, though, I really enjoy this game and I want to get it to the table more often!
  • Near and Far, by Red Raven Games
    • I've now played this one as well and, again, I'm a big fan! I got my butt kicked (by the buddy who introduces me to so many games and I've mentioned before - Chad. Who else?), but it was a lot of fun, and it was easy to see how I'd just played so cautiously that I was always a step behind him. I was so busy trying to prep for exploration that I wasn't getting enough tents off my board to ever really be a threat to him. But again: I really like the design! As much as I like Now or Never, I really dig the need to strike a balance between preparation and exploration as it is built into Near and Far. I had really kind of hyped myself up for this trilogy of games after reading about them as well as anxiously anticipating Sleeping Gods. But in my opinion, the Arzium Storybook Series (this trilogy of games) absolutely lived up to any hype I had in my brain about them. Lots of fun, engaging, well-designed, and pretty.
  • Watergate, by Frosted Games
    • Got this one to the table twice (once against Roger, once against Chad; I lost the former, won the latter, and randomly played as the reporters both times) and I like it! I don't love it, but that's because I generally don't love two player games. Armada is an exception, and Spirit Island just happens to play well at 2 players. Offhand, I can't think of any other games I love at 2 players, even if they're designed for 2. Anyway, none of that is to speak ill of the game, because I like it enough that I already bought copies of it as gifts for several of my friends who I think will enjoy it! The footprint is small, the game is easy enough to grasp once you're playing, and it is possible to win even if you're behind or start on the wrong foot. I can see why this game was rated so highly when it first came out and it's a good game when it's just you and one other person. Glad I finally played it!
  • Firefly: The Game, by Gale Force 9
    • No, I haven't played this one yet. I included it here on this list because I've been thinking about it lately. Roger has really pushed me to open this game, especially because a couple of our friends each have their own copies with some expansions and it's possible that, between all of us, we own everything for the game. Plus, I've now roped Roger into helping me with some of the design aspects on the pick up and deliver game that Chad and I are developing, and he really wants me to play Firefly so I've got one more pick up and deliver game under my belt. Especially a successful one like this.
  • Dominant Species, by GMT Games
    • Oh. Man. I really enjoy the hell out of this game. I won't lie: after reading the rules a couple of times and sort of playing it for a bit by myself to wrap my head around it, I wasn't so sure. I thought of it as action selection, but it's really more action programming, because players assign actions before any of them are taken. And so by the time the game rolls around to an action you've selected, it's perfectly possible that your action is not at all the thing you want to do because the board state has changed so much. But you're locked in and so need to figure something out. I had heard that this game can take awhile to play, too. So I wasn't so sure. But I played this at 2 players against Chad and then at 4 players at Geekway, and I just really dig it. I think it's so much fun, there's so much in there to do, and the actions are not quite as complex as they seem before playing. The game boasts depth, but it's not as difficult to play as it might appear. Again: I cannot recommend this one highly enough.
  • Dominant Species Marine, by GMT Games
    • To that end, I have not gotten Dominant Species Marine to the table yet. Feels counterintuitive given that I really like Dominant Species and given that I've heard Dominant Species Marine is even better and "fixed" what didn't work in its predecessor. So I knew that I wanted to play Dominant Species before Dominant Species Marine, figuring that I would probably like but not love DS, but then I'd be very happy with DSM. But I like DS so much that I was disappointed when I read the rules for DSM and saw that instead of action programming, it's actually action selection: when you place an action pawn next to an action in DSM, you're not reserving that action for later when it triggers - you take that action immediately. I don't want to jump to conclusions and honestly, I think I'll still enjoy this game! But given how much I like DS, I find myself not wanting the designer, Chad Jensen, to "fix" anything. That said, I also know DSM was published posthumously after we unfortunately lost Mr. Jensen and his wife and co-designer saw to it that DSM was released. I still really want to play this one, but I'm not in as much of a rush as I was before. It'll get played in 2022, it just hasn't gotten played yet.
      • It's also worth noting that DS still ranks higher than DSM on Boardgamegeek. It's been out for awhile now, and I kind of have to wonder if other players have come to some of the conclusions I've outlined above with enough time to play both. I suspect that the people who said and wrote that DSM fixed what was wrong with DS are just happier with action selection instead of action programming rather than leveling this as any sort of criticism at DS. In other words: was it just personal preference for game design as opposed to critical thought about the game design?
  • Oceans, by North Star Games
    • Packed and ready to go for CabinCon!
  • Sub Terra, by Inside the Box Board Games
    • Same as above!!
  • Rising Sun, by CMON
    • Same!!!
  • Almost Got 'Im, by Cryptozoic Entertainment
    • Same!!!!
  • Ecos: First Continent, by AEG
    • SAME!!!!!
I don't miss commercials, but I will admit that this one still tickles me, even if I never need to see it again.

I mention these last five because, much like Nemesis, I've reread the rules to each of these, I've laid them out on my table and played solo through a round or two to have a better handle on how the games move in order to better teach them, and they're locks. I'm more excited about Rising Sun and Ecos than I am about the other three, but part of that is because I've been painting Rising Sun minis for far too long to have not gotten it to the table, and part of that is because I think the other games will end up being *fine*, but nothing brilliant. If that sounds negative, I promise that it's not meant to be! Not every game is (or needs to be) brilliant!! But I continue to find that as I play more games and my time gets tighter, I am simply more drawn to games that I love rather than games I simply enjoy.

Chad has been in the process of ditching games he doesn't love for awhile now, ensuring that his shelf features either games that he loves and regularly wants to pull off the shelf or games that have yet to be played but show promise. It's a solid approach! I'm not entirely in that camp, as I also keep some games that I think make my collection more "well-rounded." That approach isn't for everyone or anything; y'all should do whatever you like with your game! But for me personally, I am starting to lean a little more toward ditching games from my shelf if someone needs to convince me to pull it off the shelf. So I may not even dislike the game I'm getting rid of, but it's just that I've got a game like it that I prefer or it's a game I just never really choose to play. To that end, I'm glad to be making headway through my unplayed list so I can decide what I'm keeping, what I'm selling, and what is novel and new to me.

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