Running from the Band Wagon

“Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in.”

I often find myself getting hyped for new fads of gaming. The horrible game that I regret preordering? Still bought the DLC. That $300 board game? Played it once and it sits on my shelf gathering dust.

However, I sometimes look at a game that everyone recommends and I’m just not interested. Age of Sigmar? No, I have enough armies to half paint! X-Wing 2.0? AKA: $300 to keep playing with $500 worth of models I own. No, just no.

Occasionally this causes me to miss something great though. I recently discovered the board game Scythe.

I had often seen it at my local hobby shop, pulled it down, looked at the box, said “hmmm… might be fun,” and then put it back. I finally grabbed it during a sale, and discovered I had missed out on something uniquely enjoyable.

Looking back, there was plenty of info out on the internet to see that I probably would like the game. This got me thinking. Why do I gravitate toward some games and not others? The answer:

Information

Whether misinformation or accurate facts, information is what drives people to buy in or hold back. Ruminating on this brings me to what I would consider great advice for anyone looking into any new game.

Do research.

Dont just look up trailers and reviews from people with free promotional copies and nothing to lose by giving mediocre or good reviews.

Look up how to play a game, look up reviews by Joe Everyman who spent $300 for the game, and listen to the criticism he gives. You may find that you totally disagree, and you like the game. I’ve had a few of those, but normally I end up with some fancy new shelf decorations.

Go find new games, but do the research and get a good one!