For Glory is a game of gladiatorial combat and deck building for 2 players. Players take on the role of gladiator school owners, or lanistas, in ancient Rome. The game utilizes a two-phase system for deck building and combat. During the Machinations Phase, players recruit gladiators, secure the support of influential patrons, increase their income, and train their gladiators in a multitude of tactics. When the crowd’s bloodlust becomes insatiable, the game shifts to the Arena Phase, during which players control their gladiators in various arenas to battle their opponents’ gladiators for glory. Each gladiator has a unique set of stats and a unique ability. Having the right synergies between gladiators often means the difference between death and glory. During arena battles, players also play tactic and reaction cards from their hand to support their gladiators, or turn the tides of battle. The first player to gain six glory by winning arena battles is the victor, and will be remembered for all time as the greatest lanista of Rome.
- Feels like busy work
- Repetitive deck building loop without variation
- Battles are lifeless and bloodless
- Uses entire rules page for simple conflict resolution
- Interrupts don't add meaningful decisions
- Both test groups wanted to quit
- Boring rather than bad
- Ancient Rome
- Gladiator combat
- Arena battles
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- Looking at some of the weird and wacky stuff that's out there that you might not have seen before
- I'd rather play a game that's so bad I can laugh at it than a game I just want to stop playing cuz I'm bored
- This is a ludicrous game for ludicrous people
- I can't think of many things more wholesome in terms of theme than a game like dogs
- Red Outpost is a really different take on the worker placement genre and for that reason alone I recommend checking it out
- I know entirely too many Union people and I think it's hilarious to play a game like this with people in the union movement
- Refreshing to see something other than Marvel and DC in this genre