Quick Thoughts: Dark Tales, Flick ’em Up, Steampunk Rally, and Tumult Royale

Here are some brief thoughts on a few interesting games I’ve played once or twice so far.

Dark Tales

Dark Tales is a fantasy / fairy tale themed card game that revolves around card effects that vary largely based on what else is currently in play. Even the power of special tokens in the game and end game scoring differ from game to game based on randomly chosen setting cards. There’s a lot of luck based on the cards drawn, but the core mechanics are good and I had fun with this. Looking forward to trying it with more people and playing the expansions.

 

Flick ’em Up

The production value of this dexterity based game really shines, as a lot of effort was clearly put into both the aesthetic and producing quality components. The cowboy and bullet pieces are perfect. The cowboys readily fall over when directly hit, but hold their ground well when grazed or hit from the side. The two scenarios we played were largely tutorials, so I expect a lot more depth from the later ones. Amusing game that makes the most of its theme. As far as flicking games go I think I prefer Disc Duelers a little (even though I was better at this), but Flick ‘Em Up is still fun.

 

 

Steampunk Rally

Steampunk Rally is a neat little game that revolves around building and racing contraptions piloted by famous inventors. The track is variable and the mechanics solid. The best part for me is it really captures the feeling that you’re constantly fighting entropy trying to keep your machine going. This is a unique game that makes excellent use of its theme.

 

Tumult Royale

Tumult Royale is my favorite game of this bunch. The real time resource collection is done in a way I haven’t seen and works extremely well. Trying to get what you need while worrying about the total limits among all players each round adds a wonderful “press your luck” element, and the area control aspect is great too.

 

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Just a quick look at some games I’ve had the pleasure of trying. Hope to be back with more in the not too distant future. 🙂