OzymandiasAV

The Julian Murdoch **HONORARY** iOS Board Game/Strategy Thread

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Considering the amount of iOS discussion that's come up on multiple episodes of Three Moves Ahead, it seems only fitting that we create an ongoing thread to discuss recent iOS strategy game news.

This is not meant to discourage separate threads for games, of course, but to provide a general catch-all for questions and chatter that might not fit so neatly into a dedicated thread.

Some useful links (and please feel free to suggest others):

Boardgamegeek's iOS Gaming Blog

Strategy Game articles at TouchArcade

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And, to get things going, it looks like Playdek's latest deck-builder, Nightfall, has hit the App Store for $4.99.

Here's a quick excerpt from the BoardGameGeek review: "To become good at Nightfall will take more work than something like Ascension but it cannot be denied that Nightfall is a polished and well designed iOS board game."

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I really liked Ascension on the iPad (at least I learned the game better that way than playing the physical game against experienced players). After a few games I can see some problems with the interface, but overall it's quite well done. Will definitely take a look at Nightfall some time.

I like Dominion more than either of these, but for some reason a digital version does not interest me a lot.

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I figure someone around here must have pulled the trigger on Battle Academy by now? http://itunes.apple.com/app/battle-academy/id499901136?mt=8

I'm really tempted but I rarely spend $20 on PC games nowadays and the lack of a demo is putting me off. Can anyone convince me that it is worth my time?

Also, does anyone have thoughts on Combat Mission: Touch? http://itunes.apple.com/app/combat-mission-touch/id496265964?mt=8

Frankly I would have bought CM:T already if it worked on first generation iPads :(

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I still play Ascension very frequently, even if just against the AI, but I don't like Nightfall as much. More than anything I don't think the game is explained very well and I just don't think there's as many interesting combinations of cards in that as in Ascension. Still waiting for the "soon" to be released Dominion, but in the mean time I'm sticking with Ascension.

I love it in those games how a great combo can really come together. Just yesterday I had a massive exile + draw combo in Ascension that left with me a depleted discard pile AND draw deck. I literally ran out of cards. I don't get that sense from Nightfall.

(Still, the developer of Ascension and Nightfall has put together these games rather decently so it gives me faint hope for their upcoming version of Agricola.)

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I really need to find room in my budget for an iPad...business expense, right?

I am playing a lot of Ascension, and will eventually get into Hero Academy I guess. But feel like some of these are constrained on my phone.

I like the Kairo games quite a bit - light sim strategy games - and have been dabbling a little bit with Ravenmark, a medieval tactical battle game. It's OK, but I haven't gotten very far.

Honestly, it's mostly been Ascension versus a few people and Draw Something (not a strategy game) versus one person.

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Speaking of Kairosoft, has anyone played their latest game, Epic Astro Story? I really enjoyed Game Dev Story but I'm sure not a small part of that was the theme. Consequently I've ignored all their other games as the theme didn't interest me, but this kind of mini version of Alpha Centauri concept intrigues me.

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I am playing a lot of Ascension, and will eventually get into Hero Academy I guess. But feel like some of these are constrained on my phone.

Wow, Ascension actually works on a phone? It sounds crazy. Even on the iPad I wish the cards were more legible.

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I've been playing some m/p Battle Academy, and while I still don't have a final opinion, it isn't grabbing me for a variety of reasons, the biggest bent that it uses a square grid instead of a hex grid, and I feel like this undermines a lot of the game mechanics which push it towards the "serious wargame" end of the spectrum. I also don't like the control scheme, which has led to more than a few mistaken moves. I really like what the game is trying to do, but so far it hasn't succeeded for me.

-Bruce

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Ascension is really wonderfully done. The artwork isn't great, but, as Troy says, each picture is distinctive enough that you'll quickly develop an association between a blob of colors and its gameplay effect. I've even managed to get the mostly non-gaming fiancee hooked on it. Two thumbs up.

Another group to check out are the Reiner Knizia games that have been ported over. My favorites are Samurai and Ra. Samurai is a perfect candidate for iOS and has a well done AI to go along with it. Ra should be one of the worst out there when playing against the computer with it's central bidding and bluffing mechanic. Despite that I can't get enough and it ends up filling a strategy solitaire role for me.

Next on my list are Titan and Neuroshima Hex thanks to TMA's recommendations. Bruce, you did a great job making me want to check out Titan despite making it clear that doing so on iOS is foolish for newcomers. Hopefully the new speed settings will make for a better experience.

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Next on my list are Titan and Neuroshima Hex thanks to TMA's recommendations.

Ooo oo! NHex was my ipad-as-boardgame-device gateway drug. It's a fabulous tactics game, very clean, and the ui is very satisfying. Oh, and the new armies expansion are worth it as well. Still playing it weekly.

Without any over-world strategy map or persistence mechanisms, it's stuck being a quick match game. Don't think they'd rev the digital past the RL game. My only real gripe with it is the leader board is pegged to all-time score totals.

It also makes me want the ancient pc game Chaos Overlords to get ported to the pad already.

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Next on my list are Titan and Neuroshima Hex thanks to TMA's recommendations. Bruce, you did a great job making me want to check out Titan despite making it clear that doing so on iOS is foolish for newcomers. Hopefully the new speed settings will make for a better experience.

I don't think Bruce gave Titan a fair shake personally, the tip system is great at telling you exactly what you need to know to play the game and learn it as you go. You won't win your first games against the AI, you probably won't win your first 10 actually, but it gives you the knowledge you need to play and learn from that point about the strategy. The latest update which adds the dice rolls and more explanatory tips is really great, I cannot recommend it enough, personally!

(Also, I want more players available for when the inevitable multiplayer patch hits!)

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Board Game Geek's iOS blog has posted a review of Fealty from Asmadi Games. $4.99 gets you a universal version of the app (with different information layouts for iPhone vs. iPad!) with local and online asynchronous multiplayer, as well as single-player play versus an AI.

Here's the BGG description for the original Fealty board game:

Fealty is a game of positioning and territory control. Each turn, all players add one piece to the game board, with increasing constraints on placement as time goes on. Some pieces have an effect when brought into play. At the end of the game, all pieces place influence in order of speed, claiming territory and blocking slower opposing pieces. The player who has maneuvered their pieces to place the most influence onto the board wins.

As far as the iOS presentation is concerned, the BGG iOS blog review feels that it keeps things as close to the actual board game play as possible, with a few minor enhancements here and there:

Fealty is in many ways an abstract game. Yes, it is themed and that theme does come forward in gameplay (the Farmer token influences fields for example) but the action on the board is displayed in an abstract way. Many abstract games will find ways to increase the theme and presentation on iOS, but Fealty does not choose to do this. Rather, the experience is very similar in look and feel to the table top game. This is not to say that the game does not feature many digital enhancements. For one you can place your piece and see how it will affect the board, this allows you to experiment quickly, something you cannot do in the physical game. When you go to place a piece, the app will highlight the available spots in which that piece can be placed. Knowing exactly where you can play and how it will affect the board is a great tool for new users.

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Sega just released Total War Battles for the iPhone/iPad. I'm excited to try it as I love the Total War games on PC and I'm very curious what concessions they made to bring it to the iOS platform. Downloading now, and I will try to play it the next days to post here some impressions.

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Next on my list are Titan and Neuroshima Hex thanks to TMA's recommendations.

If your interested in NH i'd really recommend you grab Neuroshima Hex Puzzle 1st.

It does a great job of teaching you the different that NH's units interact, so you can approach the full game without fear.Plus it's just a very enjoyable series of brain teasers in its own right. If i remember correctly Chris Remo mentioned something very similar has been done in the MTG duels of the planeswalker game's in the recent thumbs progresscast

Speaking of MTG. Are people looking forward to a iOS version of it? or has Ascension's smooth implementation and far less aggressive sales model won over hearts and minds?

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Speaking of MTG. Are people looking forward to a iOS version of it? or has Ascension's smooth implementation and far less aggressive sales model won over hearts and minds?

In a way. I love Duels of the Planeswalkers on 360, if the iOS version is a direct port and not a hobbled translation (it needs all the coop modes as well as online support) then I would be tempted to jump ship and play the 2013 on iOS.

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In a way. I love Duels of the Planeswalkers on 360, if the iOS version is a direct port and not a hobbled translation (it needs all the coop modes as well as online support) then I would be tempted to jump ship and play the 2013 on iOS.

I haven't played DotP on the 360, but if the iOS version get's people playing, then I'm in.

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Speaking of MTG. Are people looking forward to a iOS version of it? or has Ascension's smooth implementation and far less aggressive sales model won over hearts and minds?

I'd love to see some MtG on iOS, especially if it had a decent drafting mode. That's the one thing I really miss from my MtG days and Nightfall just doesn't seem to do it for me. I really want a deep drafting game. Until then Ascension will just have to do; I've read that the next expansion for it is pretty good, looking forward to that making it to iOS this summer hopefully.

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Board Game Geek's iOS blog has posted a review of Fealty from Asmadi Games. $4.99 gets you a universal version of the app (with different information layouts for iPhone vs. iPad!) with local and online asynchronous multiplayer, as well as single-player play versus an AI.

I played a beta version of the Fealty app at an indie developer night in Boston and it was pretty slick. Fealty is the kind of game that an iOS translation really improves. I particular I liked the fact that you could preview the effects of a move by shuffling around your virtual pieces. In the non-digital game it takes a lot of mental arithmetic to work out what the potential effects of each possible move could be, which leads to a lot of AP. That move previewing feature alone is enough to make me prefer the iOS version to the physical one.

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I'm super excited about M:TG for the iPad, but I strongly doubt we'll see a draft mode. It'll most likely stick close to the feature set of Duels of the Planeswalkers.

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Memorial? Am I dead?

Oh, you're not *actually* real-for-real dead. You're just dead to hardcore gamers. (This is the iOS thread, right?) ;)

Edited by OzymandiasAV

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Board Game Geek is reporting that Ludonaute has released an iPad version of Yggdrasil, their co-operative strategy board game for $5.99. The game description mentions support for 1-6 players, though there's no indication of whether that means local, asynchronous online play, or otherwise.

Also, Board Game Geek reports that Playdek has submitted Storm of Souls, the next expansion for Ascension, to Apple for App Store certification. Tom Chick wrote a very complimentary review for the board/card version of the expansion back in February...but Jonathan Liu at Wired wasn't convinced that the new set resolved the game's struggles with randomness and luck in its balance. Assuming that the expansion gets approved as expected, we should hopefully be seeing Storm of Souls as IAP for Ascension some time next week.

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