Author: Jim Zabek

Winter isn’t coming, it has arrived. The Landgrave of LongBladia is expecting tonight’s temperatures to fall into the low teens. Bitterly cold? I’m thinking we’re getting there.

To warm your hearts, if not your hearths, we’ve selected a few crowd-funded games to please the forward-looking gamer seeking to invest in a project with the hope of a grand return. Whether you consider this goal modest or grandiose, that is our mission the each GARPA column and we hope we live up to your expectation.

Digital Games

Approaching Infinity by Bob Saunders

$6,089 pledged of $5,000 goal ending December 11^th

“Roguelike” is a term that often gets batted about. It’s a genre well-loved and much aspired to by gamers and developers alike. Approaching Infinity is a Roguelike 2D retro game of space exploration. With procedurally generated environments the universe is infinitely scalable, which means that it literally has no end. As the player increases is power and reaches further into the virtual universe, the game scales with him – without end.

The funding goal has been met which means that the developer is now working on code for the Mac platform. The PC code is already a given, and a demo can be found here: http://ibol17.wordpress.com/2013/11/16/approaching-infinity-v0-0-6-is-live/. If you’re looking for a retro 2D space exploration game that can go on forever, Approaching Infinity is approaching the end of its funding time, so check it out before it ends. http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/181428952/approaching-infinity-a-space-adventure-roguelike

The 7th Guest 3: The Collector by Rob Landeros

$114,578 pledged of $435,000 goal ending December 8th

The chances of 7^th Guest 3 reaching a successful level of funding aren’t looking good right now but I included the game for sentimental reasons. If memory serves me correctly I played the original 7^th Guest on a brand-spanking-new “multimedia” PC with my wife not long after we were married. It was part of a short-lived attempt to game together. The game was fun but for some reason the two of us squinting at a 15” color monitor looking for clues wasn’t the formula for marital bliss. We’ve managed to do just fine together since then, but regrettably team-based 7^th Guest gaming wasn’t destined for a long shelf-life.

However, my fond memories remain and as such I present this to you, gentle reader, for your consideration. An adventure game which is to be updated to the latest graphical standards, your mission is to move through a very haunted house seeking clues and solving mysteries. Dark, spooky, and immersive if this game manages to reach a successful funding goal I’ll buy it simply to remind my wife of the fun we had together. If you’d like to find out more check out its Kickstarter page:  http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/roblanderos/the-7th-guest-3-the-collector

Rock Paper Scissors Lizard Spock Android Game by Jordan Gerber

$15.00 pledged of $8,500 goal ending January 3^rd

Pretty much everyone is familiar with the game Rock-Paper-Scissors, but most geeks around here will also be familiar with the spin off inspired by the TV series Big Bang Theory where two additional selections were added: lizard and Spock.

If playing Rock-Paper-Scissors-Lizard-Spock on your Android handheld device then Jordan Gerber has the thing for you. There’s not a lot to it. A five dollar pledge will net you a copy of the game. All he needs to do is convince enough people to get behind his game and the world will be playing this soon-to-be-classic. There are higher pledge levels than just $5 for folks who want to get in on some greater action. We’re hoping this manages to see the light of day. If you are too then check out the Kickstarter page: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/209846150/rock-paper-scissors-lizard-spock-android-game

Tabletop Games

Millennium Wars Advanced: States of Conflict by MCS Group

Pre-Order

States of Conflict is an operational level wargame which introduces a new gaming system based on, well, let’s let the publisher describe it: “MWA addresses the full spectrum of operations in modern conflict, including land, air, naval, logistics, information warfare, and special operations. MWA also deals with the impact of technology and doctrine on operational capabilities.” Sounds pretty cool, eh? States of Conflict will focus on the Arab-Israeli conflicts of the modern age, starting in 1948 and continuing through 1973. Players take on the role of factions, which can be either state or non-state actors. Each faction has a number of items which drive its ability: C4I, Initiative, a Political Index which measures internal support for conflict, and units which represent ground, air, special operations and unconventional forces.

The game is turn-based and governed by impulses. Players can choose from a variety of missions to play. The game will come with two boards, 1000 units, and ten faction sheets, amongst other material. I’ve gotta admit, I’m intrigued by this one. It’s definitely not a conventional wargame and it appears to bring some innovation to a complicated and interesting period of history. For more information check out the game’s product page: http://mcsgroup.org/MCScart/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=4&products_id=16

Fields of Fire Vol. II: “With The Old Breed” by GMT

P500

With the Old Breed places players in command of a platoon of Marines from the 5^th Regiment. A solitaire game, With the Old Breed allows players to fight battles starting with the Second World War and going through Vietnam. Being card-driven and diceless brings an interesting twist to the genre, and the player will work his way through two decks of cards: the action deck and the terrain deck. Missions can be linked together to form a campaign where the player will be able to shepherd his force (with replacements) through multiple missions based on historical action of the 5^th Marines.

The second release in the Fields of Fire series, With the Old Breed introduces a number of new features, including urban combat, amphibious operations, flamethrowers, fanatical Japanese, and more. If that doesn’t get your wargaming blood pumping it’s probably too cold and you need to toss another log on the fire. To check it out for more information or to get in on the P500 pre-orders here’s the link to the product page: http://www.gmtgames.com/p-432-fields-of-fire-vol-ii-with-the-old-breed.aspx

Snappy Stencils by TTCombat/Jason Beckerleg

£2,691 pledged of £1,000 goal ending January 1st

Being a minis gamer I’m always on the lookout for a new trick, technique, or tool to improve the look of my minis. Jason Bckerleg’s flash of genius is just the kind of thing I am constantly on the prowl for and I’ve gotta say, I wish I’d thought of it. Simple, convenient, and inexpensive, Snappy Stencils are simply that: stencils of cool shapes that you can use over and over. They’re constructed of HDF (yeah, I had to look that up too: http://europlywood.com/catalogue/hdf-boards/) which is a type of highly durable wood fiber, in this case 3mm thick.

The stencils come in 15 different designs, and various pledge levels allow backers to buy one, two, five, or all 15 stencils depending on the pledge level chosen. The designs range from flames, to hexes to dragon scales, which pretty much cover soup-to-nuts in terms of minis painting. Non-Brit backers will have to do some currency calculation to determine the specific cost of a backing level, but I personally think this is about as awesome a thing I’ve seen in a while. If you’ve got an airbrush or even a can of paint you’re going to be able to up your game using these stencils and I think I finally found the first project I have personally ever backed on Kickstarter! How’s that for cool?

And with that we shall draw this edition of GARPA to a close. See you in a fortnight!