Game Info
Year
2024
Players
2
Age
13+
Playtime
30 min
Collection
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Description
A highly asymmetric 1v1 dueling card game where artists with art-medium-based superpowers race to inflict three damage via a reaction-chain combo system.
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All mentions
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 5
This page: 5
Sentiment:
pos 4 ·
mix 0 ·
neu 1 ·
neg 0
Showing 1–5 of 5
Video ecpUwJ8Btlc
The Cardboard Herald Top List at 15:52 sentiment: positive
video_pk 86525 · mention_pk 224085
Click to watch at 15:52 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
Positive
Pros
- Highly asymmetrical artist characters.
- Unique play styles.
- Very thematic.
- Grid-based.
- Came from under the radar (Packs Unplugged).
Cons
none
Thematic elements
- Artists compete with highly asymmetrical characters on a grid-based board.
- Battlefield
- Players move their artists around the board trying to damage the opposing artists.
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- asymmetrical gameplay — Highly asymmetrical artist characters with unique play styles.
- Card Duelling — It's a card dueling game.
- Grid Movement — Players are moving their artists around the board.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- you know that this is directly inspired by Shadow of the Colossus
- apart from the verticality it's just such a smart creative cool package where each hero is a combination of a character class and a couple hero cards shuffled together and kind of played as if it were a deck building game that you're not doing any addition to throughout the game itself
- it has such an amazing intuitive simple system for telegraphing what the oppositional behavior of this Leviathan that you're climbing is going to be and giving you time most of the time to react to it
- Ironwood is an asymmetrical hard driven tactical game with multi-use cards Ironclad and wood walkers have different decks different Victory conditions move around the board differently fantastic components and artwork
- Pagan fate of Rowan Oak which is an expandable asymmetrical deduction card game where one player plays as a witch the other player is playing as the Witch Hunter and the witch is playing cards to try to perform this Grand ritual whereas the Witch Hunter is trying to figure out who the witch is and then bring them to justice
- React the Arts of War this one was super under my radar until packs unplugged but this is a onev one grid-based card dueling game with these highly asymmetrical artist characters that are very unique in their play style very thematic you are moving your artists around the board trying to damage the other artists you're competing against so thematic and extremely
- River of gold if you had told me 5 years ago that they were going to be making a Euro set in rokuan the setting of my personal Obsession as a teenager and young adult I would have well I would have believed you but I would have flipped my lid and even still now I'm kind of in shock at how good of a game it pulled off in being especially under a younger Studio like office dog
- River of gold is an exceptional worker placement with a linear aspect as you navigate these boats down the river and progressively more and more buildings are constructed along the ways
- it has just the right blending of approachable economics and astounding capabilities that you can roll into and is magnificently produced with these beautiful gold reflective elements throughout the otherwise kind of watercolor esque board
- first up we have SEI I know this is on a lot of other people's lists but it has a fantastic solo mode it uses an automa where the automa uh will do somewhat of a random action but the actions will be more powerful than anything that you can do on your turn so it ends up being very competitive you can see here I just finished a solo game and the scores were pretty close actually within 10 points
- arcs it is difficult to talk about this game without getting into the Weeds about how beautifully the mechanics interact with each other in this game to create an epic space conflict but at the same time a game about making do with what few actions you have
- it's hard to imagine arcs not being in the top three of this list in what we have talked about as an absolute Bonkers of a year it's cunning inventive and original while still being all that much more approachable than many of Leader's prior works
- the depths to which you can explore the systems involved is really something
- the last recommendation on my list is I Napoleon designed by Ted racer uh and GMT games it's another card driven game what I like about this one is the historical aspect of it and how true to the life of Napoleon it is uh first you start by playing as uh Napoleon when he was a commander you move up to uh first console and then ultimately Emperor if you make that far and there's a ton of ways to lose um but you can go through his entire life it's a fantastic solo experience highly recommend it
- Harvest the number one game of 2024 the Box really does say it best a fantastically fun fur filled farming Affair that is tricky to say but the game is just that much fun too
- Harvest is an amazing game it is a knife fight in a hay bale your turns are so few that you cannot Dilly nor dally but the adorable theme makes something that should be an inherently stressful game into a cute little farming experience
- it has the deep deep complexity of trying to maximize your turns to give it legs to even the most astute of board gamers was some serious debate Among Us contributors on the channel as to whether Harvest should take the number one slot
- taking the raw elements that TMG had rightly gone with but bringing it to a more Modern Standard giving it both a visual overhaul but also giving at a tight mechanical system that is shockingly deep for how mechanically narrow it may seem at first to have this level of function in a farming game that is played in a mere four rounds only 12 placements for the entire game is the Pinnacle of refined game design
- making Harvest our 2024 game of the year
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video G2vhCG-iOBo
Review at 0:11 sentiment: positive
video_pk 79075 · mention_pk 192434
Click to watch at 0:11 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Central metaphor of competing art styles instead of typical fighting game themes feels fresh.
- Characters have dramatic asymmetry, making each playthrough feel deeper and more unique.
- The reaction system is very sharp.
- The use of art as a combat metaphor is neat.
Cons
- Requires a good degree of commitment to get the most out of it.
- Not easy to table at a gaming group due to its dueling nature and need for committed players.
Thematic elements
- Competing art styles
Comparison games
- Guilty Gear Strive
- Canvas
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- action programming — Actions and reactions are placed and then resolved in reverse order.
- Asymmetric powers — Each artist has their own unique style and rules.
- card management — Most, but not all characters will have action cards to manage.
- Set Collection — Over a number of turns, your goal is to have all three parts of it in sequence.
- Variable player powers — Each artist has a unique way of playing the game.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- G'day culture and welcome to React: The Arts of War in about 3 minutes.
- Instead of flailing fists and high kicks, you'll be fighting with paint, clay, and your own creativity.
- Dueling games like this aren't really my jam, but I decided to take a look at React because it did things a little different.
- The best thing about this game is the use of art as a combat metaphor.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video mm0ERECtrVk
Danielle Playthrough at 0:05 sentiment: positive
video_pk 76524 · mention_pk 184846
Click to watch at 0:05 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Unique, tense competitive mechanic with chain interactions
- Strong thematic flavor (murals, scales, dancing fish)
- Ascend/descend dynamic adds depth
- Engaging central objective around masterpieces and damage
Cons
- Rules complexity can be high for new players
- Token management and positioning can feel dense
Thematic elements
- Creative rivalry, area control, resource management
- Artistic competition on a modular board with murals, scales, and special tokens
- abstract, competitive
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Dancing fish as resources — Three dancing fish provide additional abilities; their frenzy tokens can deal damage when used.
- Deck management and exhaustion — Each player has a deck; drawing, playing, exhausting cards; deck depletion risks losing the game.
- End of turn sequencing — Resolution order and end-of-turn effects; multiple layers of effects resolve in a defined sequence.
- Intention and reaction chains — Blue intention cards are played with orange reaction cards; resolution proceeds in order from five down to one.
- Masterpiece progression and ascension — Players progress a masterpiece; upon completion they ascend their artist and gain new abilities; ascend can convert to frenzy tokens.
- Movement and jumps — Characters move using moves and jumps; some cards allow jumping over obstacles and affect other pieces; players can swap positions via reactions.
- Murals and power murals — Artists place murals in zones; some murals grant ongoing effects or trigger damage when moved into or out of zones.
- Scale tokens and zones — Moving characters places scale tokens; when a zone has three scales, the player may summon a dancing fish or deal damage to that zone.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- the point of this game is to deal three damage to your opponent and if they take three damage, you win
- Your masterpiece actually is like a puzzle
- I really like this game
- I think this is a competitive, fun, unique experience, especially with React Train working out the way it does in these games
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video wtv2vBjcIPo
Danielle Rules Teach at 19:42 sentiment: positive
video_pk 74118 · mention_pk 178334
Click to watch at 19:42 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Beautiful art and components (cards, acrylic standies) and functional bases for tokens
- No deck-building required; quick to start for TCG players
- Strong variety of characters with unique abilities
Cons
- Not solo-friendly
- Setup and rule depth may be intimidating for new players
Thematic elements
- Array
- Stage performance arena
- Competitive with thematic performance motif
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Beat tokens and turntables — DJ's mechanic uses turntables and 'beats' to activate actions; players place beat tokens on turntables.
- Combat: Damage Based — Damage to an opponent is tracked by flipping the opposing Masterpiece card to indicate damage.
- Damage tracking via Masterpiece flipping — Damage to an opponent is tracked by flipping the opposing Masterpiece card to indicate damage.
- deck-based hand management — Each artist has a deck; players draw from their deck each draw phase; hand limit of six action cards.
- Grid Movement — Characters move on a grid; movement is orthogonal only; jumping leaves scale tokens behind.
- Grid-based movement and positioning — Characters move on a grid; movement is orthogonal only; jumping leaves scale tokens behind.
- Intention and reaction chain — Players play intention cards first; opponents can play reaction cards in response, resolved in last-in-first-out order.
- Masterpiece placement — Players place Masterpiece cards on a shared Masterpiece board to progress toward a completed three-card Masterpiece set.
- Phase structure (Masterpiece, Draw, Main, End) — Turn structure comprises four phases with distinct actions.
- Resource costs and exhaustion — Some cards have costs; you can pay or exhaust the card to perform the action.
- Summons with health points — Summons have one Health Point and can be re-summoned; damage to summons vs Masterpiece.
- Variable Phase Order — Turn structure comprises four phases with distinct actions.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- not solo friendly
- as a TCG player this really would scratch the itch in terms of not needing to deck build just being ready to play a game that's also pretty tactical
- I think this is a little bit more interesting especially with the masterpieces and also the chain ... will mean some exciting gameplay
- I am just really loving just the art on the cards and all the components and the acrylic uh standies just really make a difference
- these bases are really neat like I know top down you can't see the art but they have a almost a function
- not wanting to deck build is a big plus for players who want a ready-to-play experience
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video pjOZWCZSVIQ
Meeple University Rules Teach at 0:04 sentiment: neutral
video_pk 64263 · mention_pk 157718
Click to watch at 0:04 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
neutral
Pros
none
Cons
none
Thematic elements
- artists creating Masterpieces and ascending to a stronger form
- in a field of combat, artists fighting against each other
- progressive Masterpiece construction and ascension
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Ascension and Entrants — Entrants progress their Masterpiece and ascend to stronger abilities on their entrance reference card.
- Combat: Damage Based — Damage to a Zone damages the standee in that zone; entrants or summons react to damage; friendly fire is possible.
- Damage and zones — Damage to a Zone damages the standee in that zone; entrants or summons react to damage; friendly fire is possible.
- Deck drawing and hand limit — Each player draws one card during the draw phase up to a maximum of six; if you must draw and cannot, you lose.
- End of turn refresh — End phase refreshes exhausted standees and resolves end-of-turn effects; cards return to discard or are refreshed as described.
- Engine Building: Triggered/Cascading — Intentions (blue text) and reactions (red text) form chains that are resolved from highest to lowest, with multiple chains per turn possible.
- Health tracking via Masterpiece — Masterpiece cards flipped to black and white track health; if all three are flipped, you lose.
- Masterpiece progression — Turn-based progress of a three-part Masterpiece across five slots; completion ascends the entrant's card.
- Movement and positioning — Standees move orthogonally between zones; only one standee per zone; jumping to an open space is possible.
- Reaction chains — Intentions (blue text) and reactions (red text) form chains that are resolved from highest to lowest, with multiple chains per turn possible.
- Summoning — Some actions allow summoning additional standees; only one standee per zone; summons fail if the target zone is occupied.
- Summons and tokens interactions — Tokens and standees interact with cards and other standees to create combos; different entrants have unique interactions.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- "in react players take on the roles of different artists fighting against each other in a field of combat"
- "The first player to hit their opponent three times or drain them of their deck of cards will win the game"
- "Masterpiece phase"
- "React is played in turns"
- "Friendly Fire is possible"
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
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Showing 1–5 of 5