State of the Collection Part 3

Today we look at the next shelf down which is home to 11 games.

Ratings are out of 6.

1 - Ready to trade/sell

2 - Considering trading/selling, willing to give another chance

3 - Might trade/sell, not my favorite, but has a time and place to play. Perhaps is around more for others than myself.

4 - I like the game but there's something that stops me from liking it more.  Maybe I don't get to play it often enough, maybe there's a minor irritation with some rules or the way something works.  

5 - I enjoy the game. It works well in most situations. I would be hard pressed to let it go, but it could happen in the distant future.

6 - Love the game, keeping it, never letting it go.

• Mystery Express - 2.  This is essentially a gamer's version of clue.  It's a deduction game where you try to figure out 5 pieces of information.  The time mechanic is wonky in the way that you have to be quick about everything, while the rest of the game is about careful deduction and trying to maximize every action you take.  I like the game, but I'm one of the only ones around who does, so it's likely gone in the near future.

• Ad Astra - 3.  This is one of those games that lacks the wow factor.  The game is solid, and I really enjoyed my only play of it, but no one has even mentioned it since, and that's a sign that it was forgettable.  

• Ascending Empires - 3.  This is another combination of mechanics, this time flicking and empire building/research.  I enjoy the challenge of making everything work together and trying to figure out what to focus on and what to ignore.  This is another one of those games that no one has mentioned since the first times we played it, which is bad news.

• Fluxx (w/ Monty Python exp) - 3.  This isn't a gamer's game. There's all kinds of luck, chaos, randomness, and a distinct lack of player control, but the game is silly which makes it amusing every so often.  I'm rarely going to break it out, but when I do, I always seem to have fun with Fluxx.

• The Adventurers - 4.  This is a push your luck adventure game, much like Indian Jones.  Your goal is to get treasure and get out alive.  You're racing a boulder, and if it gets to the end before you, you're trapped inside forever.  I do like the game, but it's a little too lighthearted for the serious gamers and a little too serious for the lighthearted gamers.

• Seasons - 4.  Seasons is a solid card and dice drafting game.  The game is all about finding combos and doing your best with what you have.  There are enough ways to mess with other players that the game stays interesting each time.

• Star Trek Catan - 4.  This is essentially regular Catan, but the crew members give the game a great twist.  I haven't played this enough to fully judge the crew, but I like the added strategic options.

• Wits and Wagers (Normal, Family and Party) - 4.  I will always want to have some version of Wits and Wagers in my collection.  It's a trivia game for people who aren't trivia buffs.  Most questions are so obscure that no one will know the right answer, but that's ok.  W&W rewards being close and having a good sense of where the correct answer is.

• Battlestar Galactica (w/ Pegasus and Exodus exp) - 5.  The game is long, so it's hard to play often.  The game has a lot of rules that make the first time with new people even longer.  Despite those two things, BSG is a fantastic game for me, and one I try to play whenever the opportunity presents itself.

• Cosmic Encounter (w/ Cosmic Incursion, Conflict and Alliance expansions) - 6.  Cosmic is the game that made me love games.  I enjoy the challenge of the game as well as the player interaction.  This is one of those rare games that brings out different sides of players' personalities.  That alone is worth keeping Cosmic Encounter around.