State of the Collection Part 6

Today we look at another game shelf, this one containing 14 games and several expansions to some of those games.

This is my Ticket to Ride, Gryphon Bookshelf Games and small box game shelf.
The small below one is used for prototype storage and sorting.

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.

• Flapjacks and Sasquatches - NP.  Haven't played. It was a door prize and I have no sense of urgency on this.

• Get Bit - 2.  I feel like the game is solved when it gets down to 3 players.  It's not too hard to look around and see what can happen.  Because of that, the game has limited replayability for me.  Maybe it would work better with a large group like 6+, but I don't always have that many around.  There's luck in what other people play, but one can argue it's all skill.  The game just confuses me and I'm not sure it's worth it for serious gamers.  Perhaps that's the issue at hand, this is meant to be a light game, yet everyone overthinks it.

• Jabberjay - 2.  This is essentially a blend of Resistance and Werewolf/Mafia.  There's elimination, but there's also card play and a small group interactive feel.  The problem for me is that if I want that game experience, I'm playing Resistance.  If I want the player elimination, I'm playing Werewolf.  It's kinda fallen in the middle of 2 games that I already don't get to play enough.  

• Shadows Over Camelot the Card Game - 2.  I want to like this game, but I just can't.  Memory games are rarely easy, but throwing in a traitor makes this game far too hard.  Also not being able to talk (sometimes) in a learning game is a big challenge that I wasn't prepared for.  It's not a bad game, it's just not a game for me.

• Ace of Spies - 3.  I have mixed feelings about this game after 1 play.  I like the ideas, but I'm not sure that the game is suited for my playstyle.  It's a bit too directly mean, and that can lead to a lot of wondering why me and not him.  Maybe it needs to be a 2 player game.  

• Colossal Arena - 3.  I like the variety in the game, and it feels like I have enough control to enjoy while still having enough randomness to keep it interesting.  What I've found is that this simply is not a game for 5 people.  You just don't have enough cards, and that's really a shame.  It may be one of the best 3 player games out there, which is a great thing in any game.

• Doctor Who the Card Game - 3.  The one time I played this game, we had a horrible distribution of cards that made the game take a very long time.  I want to play it more to see what a different setup will yield.  The mechanics are interesting even if they aren't thematic.  Doctor Who is a tricky theme to get right, and this tries to do it justice and passes.  It doesn't succeed entirely, but it doesn't fail. 

• Elder Sign - 3.  I like this game and I don't at the same time.  Maybe it depends on the time of day or the day of the week.  There's a lot to the game, I think it has a lot of interesting decisions, it makes players try to manage a situation that is essentially unmanageable.  Beating this game feels really good, and losing doesn't sting too much.  Still, something just doesn't sit right with the game.  It's not the theme.  I guess it's how lucky you really have to be with the dice in order to win.  There's not much grace, which is fine in a strategy game, but when it comes to luck, I want some flexibility.

• Gem Dealer - 3.  This is a card bidding game with some luck, but also a lot of tactical choices.  I don't want to play it often, but it is a game worth playing as a casual, change of pace game.

• High Society - 3.  High Society is an auction game where you lose if you spend the most money.  It's a clever twist that keeps players thoughtful about what they want and how much they're willing to pay.  It lacks high replay value, but it's good every so often.

• Space Hulk: Death Angel - 3.  Here's another co-op game that I like playing, but I don't get to the table enough.  It suffers a lot from overanalyzing and group think.  One player can essentially run the game, which isn't a shock since this has a solo mode.  It's a solid design outside of that.  I love combat, but hate the die at the same time.  I don't mind the hero elimination, but it sucks to be an eliminated player.  Luck plays a big factor here, but I still have a fun time with the game.  I need to play it again soon.

• Jaipur - 4.  This is a really good 2 player game.  There's a lot of back and forth, trying to stop your opponent while helping your own cause.  There's a little bit of luck, but most of the game comes down to making the right move at the right time and deciding how long you can hold out. Sometimes waiting for the bigger points is worth it, sometimes playing smaller points more often is the way to go.  Lots of different options and an intriguing game.

• Lost Cities - 4.  Great 2 player game.  I like everything in the game.  I'm not great at it, but I really enjoy the back and forth nature of card discarding, picking up, and trying to hurt your opponent just as much as help yourself.  It's light, it's quick, and it's really easy to play.  I don't get to play 2 player games often, so this doesn't get played much which is why it has the lower rating. 

• Fleet -5.  Fleet caught my eye last year with a BGG designer diary.  I knew the game would be balanced, but I had no idea how much I'd enjoy the game.  Now, I won't say the game is perfect, but I have enjoyed every play of it.  The expansion is currently up on Kickstarter, and I'm eagerly anticipating all the additions that it will add.  

• Roll Through the Ages - 5.  This is a civilization building dice game.  It takes around 15 minutes per player, so it can run long with 4, but it's still short compared to any other form of civ building.  There are times I wish the game had more going on, but its simplicity is a big part of its charm.

• Ticket to Ride (US w/1910, Europe w/1912, Nordic, India/Switzerland, and Alvin & Dexter) - 6.  There may come a point where I consolidate Ticket to Ride boxes, or even get rid of one expansion, but for the most part, everything in these boxes is worth keeping around.  Alvin and Dexter aren't amazing, but they do add a new set of strategies which is nice for a change every so often.  Ticket is one of those games where I can pull it out with anyone and they're going to have a reasonable to great time.

Just 2 more parts to go!