Thinking about Jamaica

The snow has me thinking a lot about my spring break trip to Jamaica. Taking a stack of games isn't an option, so I'm thinking of card games that I can take.

I'm planning on taking Space Hulk: Death Angel, since I can play it solitaire. I'm also planning on taking Chrononauts or Early American Chrononauts and EcoFluxx, since they're easy to teach and fast to play.

I'm considering picking up a new card game or two prior to the trip. I'm especially intrigued by Fairy Tale by Z-Man Games. A couple of other Z-Man card games, Archeology and No Thanks also seem interesting and get good reviews at BoardGameGeek. Asmadi Game's Innovation is one of the hottest titles at BoardGameGeek. It may be a little too complex for relaxing in the sun, though.

I'll also bring a couple of decks of cards for traditional card games. I've been wanting to learn to play cribbage. If Gillian's parents are interested in joining in, I told Gillian that I'd teach them whist.

Aside from card games, I'll probably play some solitaire games at Wargameroom. If Al has some spare time, I'd like to try to connect online and play. There are a lot of good choices there.

Death Angel

Not much gaming going on -- too much work and too much bad weather.

I did have a chance to try out Fantasy Flight's Death Angel: The Card Game. The game allows for solo or cooperative play in the Warhammer 40k universe. The player(s) control space marines fighting their way through a ship filled with Genestealers. I had picked the game up the first week of January using a 50%-off coupon at Borders. With the coupon it was about $10.

I'll write a more complete review after I've had a chance to play a few more games, but it was tension-filled and fairly streamlined, which are the two most important factors in a solitaire game. Patrick was playing Wii while I was playing the game, and the tension must have been evident in my grumbling, since he kept asking "Dad, did you die?"

I haven't played Space Hulk (which is what the game is loosely based upon). I think Space Hulk looks like a cooler game (for any groups wanting a game with the sci-fi-dungeon craw theme). But it only supports two players, plus it's out of print and quite expensive (over $100) on the secondary market.

Death Angel: The Card Game also lacks the traitor mechanic, found, for example, in Shadows Over Camelot, Battlestar Galactica and Saboteur. Cooperative games without the traitor mechanic, such as Pandemic, run the risk of becoming group puzzles, where one player takes over, telling the others what to do during their turn -- and ruining the fun. The traitor mechanic not only keeps this from happening (since players are required to maintain a certain level of secrecy), but it adds a psychological demension that resembles poker.

So, while I had a good time with the game, I don't know that it's a must-have for most gamers.