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Android box art

Android

Game ID: GID0024176
Game Info
Year
2008
Collection
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Description

From the publisher: Android is a board game of murder and conspiracy set in a dystopian future. Detectives travel between the city of New Angeles and moon colony Heinlein chasing down leads, calling in favors, and uncovering the sinister conspiracy beneath it all. The detectives must balance their pursuit of the murderer against their personal lives and their inner demons. Android’s innovative mechanics ensure that no two detectives play alike. Will you play as Louis Blaine, the crooked cop tormented by guilt and loss? Or will you take the role of Caprice Nisei, the psychic clone who struggles to retain her sanity while proving that she’s as human as anyone else? Whoever you choose to play, you’ve got just two weeks to solve the murder, uncover the conspiracy, and face your personal demons.

During a round, the players get action points to spend on various actions, like moving their detectives, following leads that appear on locations, solving their personal demons, or doing a location-specific action. In this way, the detectives try to advance on three different sectors: solving the murder, uncovering the conspiracy behind the murder, and finding their inner peace. To solve the murder, the detectives follow leads that appear on New Angeles and Heinlein, and find evidence that they plant on the suspect of their choice. The conspiracy puzzle is also solved by following leads, and may alter the way victory points are distributed at the end of the game. Finally, each detective has his/her own personal plots that are resolved gradually throughout the game. If the detective invests enough time in the plot, he/she will be awarded victory points; otherwise, he will suffer penalties.

The game ends when two in-game weeks (12 rounds) have passed. At that point, victory points are awarded based on the aforementioned sectors. The player with the most victory points is the winner.

Description

From the publisher: Android is a board game of murder and conspiracy set in a dystopian future. Detectives travel between the city of New Angeles and moon colony Heinlein chasing down leads, calling in favors, and uncovering the sinister conspiracy beneath it all. The detectives must balance their pursuit of the murderer against their personal lives and their inner demons. Android’s innovative mechanics ensure that no two detectives play alike. Will you play as Louis Blaine, the crooked cop tormented by guilt and loss? Or will you take the role of Caprice Nisei, the psychic clone who struggles to retain her sanity while proving that she’s as human as anyone else? Whoever you choose to play, you’ve got just two weeks to solve the murder, uncover the conspiracy, and face your personal demons.

During a round, the players get action points to spend on various actions, like moving their detectives, following leads that appear on locations, solving their personal demons, or doing a location-specific action. In this way, the detectives try to advance on three different sectors: solving the murder, uncovering the conspiracy behind the murder, and finding their inner peace. To solve the murder, the detectives follow leads that appear on New Angeles and Heinlein, and find evidence that they plant on the suspect of their choice. The conspiracy puzzle is also solved by following leads, and may alter the way victory points are distributed at the end of the game. Finally, each detective has his/her own personal plots that are resolved gradually throughout the game. If the detective invests enough time in the plot, he/she will be awarded victory points; otherwise, he will suffer penalties.

The game ends when two in-game weeks (12 rounds) have passed. At that point, victory points are awarded based on the aforementioned sectors. The player with the most victory points is the winner.

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All mentions
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 10
This page: 10
Sentiment: pos 4 · mix 1 · neu 0 · neg 1
Mentions per page
Showing 1–10 of 10
Video y00mXmBE_lw 3 Minute Board Games Top List at 9:27 sentiment: positive
video_pk 91370 · mention_pk 245190
3 Minute Board Games - Android video thumbnail
Click to watch at 9:27 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
Positive
Pros
  • Compelling question and unique twists on Cluedo
  • Rich cyberpunk noir setting
  • Multiple paths to victory
Cons
  • Can make the actual murder an afterthought
  • May feel overstretched with multiple objectives
Thematic elements
  • Investigate the crime, find the evidence, identify the killer
  • Cyberpunk Noir (inspired by Blade Runner)
  • Conspiracy
Comparison games
  • Cluedo
  • Blade Runner
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • Deduction — Investigate the crime, find the evidence, identify the killer structure.
  • Hidden Traitor (implied) — You're not all trying to find one killer you're each trying to incriminate and exonerate a completely different pair of suspects.
  • Multiple victory paths — Having multiple paths to victory that don't make you feel overstretched.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • I love everything about this game [Block by Block]
  • the concept is simple guess who but it's all brilliant women and you narrow down your opponent's identity using questions of accomplishment not appearance
  • obsession is a brilliantly designed worker placement game with a mechanics and theme of vintage English social climbing and flirtation tie together beautifully
  • in my experience obsession is best enjoyed with a few glasses of wine lots of smutty wordplay and accusing your table mates of being secret American cads in terribly over-the-top accents
  • thanks for sticking through to the end chums it has been a blast creating this paradigm shifting content for you and for the glory of the algorithm
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video tp2jAxu-IB0 3 Minute Board Games Top List at 16:53 sentiment: other
video_pk 91347 · mention_pk 245073
3 Minute Board Games - Android video thumbnail
Click to watch at 16:53 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
Admiringly Flawed
Pros
  • Does a lot well
  • Clear passion project
  • Engaging personal stories and conspiracy
Cons
  • Almost too much going on
  • Flaws are visible
Thematic elements
  • Investigation and conspiracy
  • Dystopian cyberpunk future
Comparison games
  • Android: Netrunner
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • Investigation — Core it's an investigation game about solving a murder.
  • Storytelling — Really about the personal stories of the characters and solving the conspiracy behind the murder.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
No quotes stored for this video.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video I8TPVspnycY Shelfside Top 10 List at 4:22
video_pk 91016 · mention_pk 243880
Shelfside - Android video thumbnail
Click to watch at 4:22 · YouTube ↗
Pros
none
Cons
none
Thematic elements
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Mechanics unknown.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • it's the game I compare every single semi coop to
  • I'm biased here because I like the show a lot
  • what a video guys what a video we're gonna do it again next year
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video fLyWF_NKFY4 Nights Around a Table Discussion at 10:37 sentiment: negative
video_pk 91025 · mention_pk 243950
Nights Around a Table - Android video thumbnail
Click to watch at 10:37 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
negative
Pros
none
Cons
  • Unpleasant theme.
  • Difficult to get rid of, even for free.
Thematic elements
  • Playing a sleazy landlord who bombs apartment buildings
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Mechanics unknown.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • For me to get rid of a game out of my collection I've got to dislike it pretty hard
  • I don't want to be punching down on people
  • this is the game that I think helped me understand that I don't really like real-time games all that much
  • I don't like games where people can't be policed
  • the immensely inexplicably popular and almost universally reviled flux
  • life is random ah they have a little bit of random your game is fine flux is way beyond beyond anything that I can handle
  • It's a drinking game is really what hex hex is and I don't drink that
  • I would much rather have you know one designer two designers work on one game with components that are made specific before that game that they want me to play than just sort of this grab bag of game components and ideas and concepts
  • Cyril helped me figure out that I don't really like tile placement games
  • they managed to take sherlocky subject matter and build the really schlocky game out of it that feels like a zombie movie but it feels sort of slapdash
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video I8TPVspnycY Shelfside Top 10 List at 26:10
video_pk 91016 · mention_pk 243897
Shelfside - Android video thumbnail
Click to watch at 26:10 · YouTube ↗
Pros
none
Cons
none
Thematic elements
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Mechanics unknown.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • it's the game I compare every single semi coop to
  • I'm biased here because I like the show a lot
  • what a video guys what a video we're gonna do it again next year
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video dyi6OBy828U 3 Minute Board Games Top List at 10:25 sentiment: positive
video_pk 90797 · mention_pk 242993
3 Minute Board Games - Android video thumbnail
Click to watch at 10:25 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
Highly Positive
Pros
  • Created the Android universe
  • Amazing scope and ambition
  • Excellent world-building
Cons
  • Not the tightest or best-designed game
Thematic elements
  • Conspiracy and investigation in a rich universe
  • Sci-fi/Cyberpunk
  • Epic story
Comparison games
  • Android: Netrunner
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • Storytelling — sweeping epic story about a conspiracy and an investigation
  • Worker Placement
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
No quotes stored for this video.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video bjkPPst52LU Watch It Played Playthrough
video_pk 68740 · mention_pk 165020
Pros
none
Cons
none
Thematic elements
none
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Mechanics unknown.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • well we are playing and you are watching so I guess it is kind of watch it played
  • I picked this up at Gen Con I was a little bit intimidated by the rule book to be honest so I've just sort of put on the shelf for a while
  • I realized we haven't taught the game so none of this will make a lot of sense
  • in an informal watch it played episode I've already made a mistake
  • again everyone gets to see me lose
  • we stole this idea from Joel Eddie of e3k mouse drive-through reviews who stole it from Scott Nicholson so we're just copying people left and right here
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video UIySi3BySqU 3 Minute Board Games Top List at 5:29 sentiment: mixed
video_pk 8691 · mention_pk 25591
3 Minute Board Games - Android video thumbnail
Click to watch at 5:29 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
mixed
Pros
  • most ambitious board game ever sold retail
  • fascinating characters
  • character study as board game
  • experimental design
Cons
  • arty and navel-gazing
Thematic elements
  • character-driven mystery
  • android universe crime investigation
  • narrative_character_study
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • character study — character-focused narrative
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • this is my list the video says the top 100 board games of all time but it really is just my top 100 board games of all time
  • three minute board games is an independent channel we dont take money from publishers and we do not do any form of paid content
  • Mosaic has the ambitious goal of being a civilization game that can be played in two to three hours and it very much succeeds at this goal
  • a game that does not need to be played with a traitor because the inherent selfish goals in this game created enough internal conflict
  • I love space racing games and space corp is the game that is most racy as far as space racers go
  • the term I use instead of gateway game is foundation game
  • Sentinels could easily be a forever game the kind of game you just play over and over and over and over again endlessly
  • Modern Art is a simple and brilliant and beautiful game and easily the best pure auction game Ive ever played
  • Black Orchestra models some very clever things about how conspiracy is run
  • when I asked the question hey what game should I play with my non-gamer friend who's interested in gaming but hasn't done much gaming I almost always answer Sentient Golem Edition
  • Arkham Horror is the game that really made board gaming my number one hobby
  • there are a few things more fun and rewarding in board gaming than organizing a fight in the arena
  • Twilight Struggle is one of the best head-to-head games out there
  • Santorini is the definition of an elegant design
  • Arkham Horror the card game absolutely should be for you it's a hundred percent for me and it is my number one game of 2023
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video --kWaNv_Wlc 3 Minute Board Games Top List at 2:47 sentiment: positive
video_pk 5448 · mention_pk 16232
3 Minute Board Games - Android video thumbnail
Click to watch at 2:47 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
  • Proper cyberpunk murder mystery
  • Grand conspiracy
  • Personal drama
  • Beautiful classic
Cons
  • Hasn't made it off the shelf this year
Thematic elements
  • Murder mystery with conspiracy
  • Cyberpunk future
  • Noir cyberpunk drama
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • Deduction — Murder mystery investigation
  • Storytelling — Personal drama overlaid on conspiracy
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • Do not adjust your set
  • This list is quite different to last year's and I think that mostly reflects what an absolute 2020 has been
  • My subjective opinion is biased skewed irrational and probably wrong
  • It is very political all war games are political
  • So say we all
  • What am I doing with my life
  • Squishy squishy squish squish squish
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video pLZtymyXO80 The Cardboard Herald Interview at 36:18 sentiment: positive
video_pk 4278 · mention_pk 12447
The Cardboard Herald - Android video thumbnail
Click to watch at 36:18 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
  • romanticized cyberpunk setting
  • rich mechanistic interplay
Cons
  • older design can feel chunky by modern standards
Thematic elements
  • personal stakes and societal pressures
  • Cyberpunk/near-future corporate intrigue
  • story-forward with dense rules
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
  • deck-building / hand management — players manage a deck to perform actions and advance their arc.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
  • the shortest review available on BoardGameGeek was 28 minutes long
  • I'm tired of long reviews I'm going to make them ten minutes or less scripted
  • no games for everyone
  • the secret is that I have boxes for each section
  • I'm an outsider and I'm actually okay with that
  • we always give some negatives on every game
  • bear cave
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
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