Add Spaceward Ho to that list, funny how such an old game can still be "fresh" after so long. But Eclipse isn't old, this is some pretty fresh poopy right here. A bit bummed that the manual isn't accessible during gameplay, I guess they have their reasons, maybe something in an update? I'm getting ahead of myself though cause I still gotta play this bad boy
How accessible would this game be to someone relatively new to both 4x games and board games of this nature? The videos make the game look ultra complex, but also like something I may wanna take the time to learn to play. Is familiarity with the physical version necessary?
This could be a deal breaker for folks like me who love board games but aren't very familiar with 4X universe of games.
The best boardgame of the year (with Agricola!) This game is a must-have for every boardgame lover (like me )
I have the physical boardgame and was a little worried about how all the information would be presented. Not worried now! Everything is clean and presented easily, with all info needed one touch away. Rules are explained very well in the tutorial without being lost in too much nuance. The theme and feel of the app captures the game almost precisely. Sound is effective. Great intro. This is a high quality boardgame in a high quality app. Most highly recommended.
Also I wouldn't be too worried about the manual during play. This is a game you may have to play a training game to 'get'. There is more nuance involved that the surprisingly simple-ish rules convey. I suggest reading strategy articles from boardgamegeek if you're not grasping it. Lots of material there.
Imperium Galactica, Weird Worlds, Ascendancy, Starbase Orion, Spaceward Ho!, Civ Rev, Distant Star, and quite a few more games I know I am leaving out, can't remember the names of. That may not seem like a lot but it is surely enough to say that it is a present genre on idevices. Plus, that's not even taking into account the action oriented space shooter X games that fall into the category as well. The 4X genre isn't that underrepresented, it just happens to be a niche genre period, and as such doesn't have amount of established time and the back catalogue (on idevices) to draw on in the "name game" as PC and other platforms, and even then there's not really an exhaustive list to make. People's lists would consist of he same games, Civ, MOO, etc, etc. on other platforms we are lucky to get a new 4 X game every couple of years... It's not like developers are turning these games out like hotcakes on any platform!
I wouldn't let that sway me. They designed this game originally to be an easy way for 4x players to get their fix. Just about everything is there but it's as streamlined as possible, if anything could ease you into it this might be it. If you played any "heavy" or complex boardgame you can handle this, it's probably in the (medium/heavy) range.
Love 4x and love boardgame adaptations, it doesnt get any more instabuy than this from me, cant wait to bash my head 'till I understand how to play somewhat efficiently.
The online experience so far has been functionally sound, but when I logged in to respond to a turn I did not receive any sort of log to tell me what my opponent had done on his turn.
So far I am very happy with this! It is ENT another great boardgame translation that gets everything pretty right on all accounts and provides a fun and fluid means of playing this game without having to deal with the hurdles of the physical game! Having played the board game I found the tutorial very sound and straight forward. I can say that you could use this tutorial in a way to teach a person how to play the physical version as well! All in all, color me very happy with my purchase!
I just watched the Dice Tower review of the physical boardgame to prepare and love how playing this digitally will save what looks like hours of setup/cleanup time for this game! I like how Tom summed this up as a Euro Economics game, in the style of say Puerto Rico, with a nifty space theme and combat. This sounds fun to me. I also like how Tom stated, while using the humans to start off learning how to play might be a good move, you aren't really seeing the game at full power until you play as the aliens whom each have their own twists to the standard rules. Lastly, he seemed to think the absolutely funnest part of the game was the customizing of the ships' components. Do you customize them toward offense, defense, speed, or just your own take on a well rounded stance? It's all up to you.
Your comment helped me inch forward a little. I'm really itching to buy it but will wait for more impressions. (I'm a Big Daddy Believer and have everything they've made, so I may end up getting it anyway).
The fact that it's a board game first is why you shouldn't worry too much here; digital-native 4X games tend to be a lot more complex and involve all manner of additional trivial and fiddly elements and rulings, largely because all the bookkeeping and calculations are intended to be handled by the computer right off the bat. Conversely, board games need to keep those mechanics manageable for human players, so they tend to be more straightforward, and even more so when they're digital. Eclipse trends towards the heavier side as board games go, but most of the heavy lifting and busywork found in the physical version is taken care of for you here, leaving you with more actual game time. A PDF of the official rulebook for Eclipse can be found here.
