It's New Game Friday David Wiley (Cardboard Clash) is here to tell us about the new games.
Here’s what is new this week:
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Selfantasy
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The Maple Island Massacre
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Grimlore Case File #6: Evelyn Thorne
- Dangerous Space; Oliver, Repair Mission
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Power Creep: Chef, East ‘Burg 2092
https://www.pnparcade.com/collections/new-games
Selfantasy
The game unfolds in adventure booklets, where you roll a six-sided die to advance in the adventure, evolving your character by resolving Events and Combats. In a mixture of RPG, gamebook, and a small print and play game, the minimalist rules-lite system together with the narrative of the adventure works like a long table of encounters where the dice randomness leads your character through challenging plots under a major story. Every gameplay will be unique and bring a different experience, but your insight and choices you make as a player is what will make it special!
A neat system that you may want to keep your eyes upon, as there’s a ton of promise for future content if you enjoy the first adventure. That adventure has you seeking to uncover the dark mystery behind an infestation, bringing a cure to the village. With text to keep the narrative moving forward, combined with lots of options that can arise as you march forward through the adventure with your created characters, this has a lot of meat in there for a relatively small and easy-to-print package.
The Maple Island Massacre
This was supposed to be a night of fun - an abandoned island, no rules, and nothing but the stars above. Now it’s a nightmare. Your friends are gone, hunted down one by one by The Engineer, his scorched welder’s mask hiding his face and his machete dripping with blood. You’re the only one left. The old stories say he can’t be killed - not until his heart is destroyed. It’s hidden somewhere on this island, and only by burning it in the old furnace can you hope to end this nightmare. But time is running out - he’s coming for you.
An interesting little solo RPG to play, this one has you trying to survive long enough to weaken the Engineer and render him capable of being destroyed. If you ever enjoyed slasher horror movies, you’ll enjoy the vibe of this one, and regardless this game will provide at least a few fun runs through as you try to escape an early demise and, hopefully, hunt without too much bad luck - it is possible (though unlikely) that you might have to search all 20 locations to acquire that heart, but don’t let that impossibility be what keeps you from being a survivor on this island.
Grimlore Case File #6: Evelyn Thorne
Evelyn Thorne, a 28 year-old historian from Kingsport, is captivated by the occult history of colonial New England, particularly Arkham. Her fascination with ancient texts and hidden truths has earned her a reputation as an eccentric recluse. Armed with an obsidian talisman inherited from her grandmother, said to ward off evil, Evelyn is determined and analytical, yet unprepared for the horrors she will face. In Arkham, Evelyn uncovers a ledger referencing a forbidden codex hidden in the Witch House. She rents its infamous garret, once occupied by Mr. Gilman, only to find its twisted geometry warping her perception. Her quest for the codex transforms into a struggle for sanity, as malevolent forces awaken, drawn to her connection with the dimensional rift.
Evelyn might seem like someone who could struggle with the horrors ahead of her, especially with Revenants roaming around. And boy are they mean, making all challenges a +2 difficulty while at least one is still around. However, she has some things like an Amulet of the Void that she can bring about to help her on her adventure, and she’ll need everything she can get to overcome Keziar Mason, her big boss here, who causes Mythos Knowledge loss
Dangerous Space; Oliver, Repair Mission
Oliver likes to take a more considered approach to his dives. Slow and sure finds the prize…alive.
This one is going to be a tricky one for Oliver, at least in two of the rooms that he has to repair a leak in. His movement skill path isn’t much to write home about, but I suppose the good news is that just reduces his movement to a minimum of 1 so he can possibly just ignore the movement skill tree altogether and just go for attack and defense boosts. With some really nasty threats, particularly with that Ambushing Constrictor wandering about, you’re going to want to take them out as quickly as possible before they make you lose too much momentum.
Power Creep: Chef, East ‘Burg 2092
A small reprieve - the raiders having moved on - allowing the settlers to scavenge for the scraps left behind.
An interesting puzzle here in the ‘Burg, as the enemies are going to work hard to make you keep fewer good dice each round. Pray you don’t roll doubles! Of course, the Chef has a few things up his sleeve to help maximize your dice, starting with the ability to reroll all with a food once he gets the Kitchen blueprint unlocked. Plot your course, roll well, and see if you can overcome the threats lurking here in East ‘Burg this week.
https://www.pnparcade.com/collections/new-games
Game of the Week: Tussie-Mussie on sale for just $2!
Coming from an era full of fads such as using tear catchers to determine the length of mourning, Tussie-Mussie is based on the Victorian fad that assigned meanings to the flowers that friends and lovers exchanged. Famous authors such as William Shakespeare, Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, and Emily Bronte all utilized the meaning of flowers in their writings, and now you can experience the language of flowers in this game from Wingspan designer Elizabeth Hargrave and artist Beth Sobel.
With the approach of Valentine’s Day, it should come as no surprise that we’re offering up the great Tussie-Mussie as the game of the week. After all, flowers are usually associated with love, and this game will help you learn exactly which flowers to send along to your loved one to deliver the desired message - or what to send to your enemy. This clever game with an I Cut, You Choose mechanism is sure to delight your significant other with its brilliant gameplay and provide a nice way to spend the evening together. And even if you are alone, there is a great solo expansion for the game that is worth scooping up for fun with flowers.
Check out Game of the Week here: https://www.pnparcade.com/collections/game-of-the-week
Mysticana: Harbingers Expansion
Three horrific harbingers herald the crises to come. As a powerful seer, use your mystic visions to prepare against the ever-worsening perils.
Mysticana fans unite over this expansion, which spices up the solo scenario that comes in the base game through adding three Harbingers and three Visions to your game. Not only do you get to face threats like playing your first card below a certain Harbinger, or gain benefits like adding +1 to a card at the end of the round from a Vision, but you also play three rounds that get progressively more challenging. Still not enough for you? Well, this also comes with a way to play the scenario cooperatively, which should get the last of you excited for this little expansion.
Mysticana: Wild Magic Expansion
The wild magical energy permeating the world calls to each spellcaster differently, inspiring countless unique branches of arcane tradition. Each style’s adherents seek to prove their chosen methods superior both for casting ability and managing the unpredictable surges of magical power.
Turn your Mysticana collection up to 7 with this new expansion, which brings a new mode of gameplay, where you’re competing to make a better spell than your opponent - and you’ll be pulling off some of their cards as you capture cards depending on the card played in relation to what is out. If you don’t plan well, you may also cost yourself points, leading to a larger hurdle to overcome. Thankfully there are also some Style cards that can help give you an edge, should you choose to integrate them into the game. This is one of the most exciting expansions I’ve seen for the game, providing something both familiar and new at the same time.
Check out the new Button Shy releases here: https://www.pnparcade.com/collections/new-games
See you next week with more information on our newest print and play games!