Playing ALL BGA Games. The RicardoRix - Ivardo Project.

[RicardoRix]

Quantum : RicardoRix win.
Really cool game. Dice take on the role of specialised ships to concur planets and combat the opponent.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44139024

P.I. : Ivardo win.
Yeah, really like this one too! The only downside is that the scoring mechanism doesn't translate too well for 2-players, and in general is very harsh for a player that doesn't quite get the rub of the green. Even so, brilliant logic / process of elimination game well worth a crack!
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44075666

Quarto : RicardoRix win.
A abstract 2 player game. 16 pieces, each piece has 4 attributes. There are 4 pairs of attributes altogether, round/square, tall/short, white/black, hole/solid. Put 4 in-a-line or (advanced, a 2x2 sqaure). Surprisingly addictive, very solid and clever game, that I keep coming back too.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44139050

[RicardoRix]

Quoridor : RicardoRix win.
Awesome 2 player strategic game. Place fences to block your opponents path and secure your own to victory. Love it although I'm not very good at it.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44139063

Pylos : Ivardo win.
2 player abstract game, placing balls in squares. IDK what this is, it's too dull for me to care.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44198022

Madeira : RicardoRix win.
Really overly complicated 'What's your game'. Better than Signorie but worse than Nippon. To be fair it is growing on me each game I play but still seems very awkward in the game play. I don't believe Ivardo likes this one. I would recommended it, but only the avid long complicated quirky rules buff gamer, maybe just the head scratcher you're looking for.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=43974788

Puerto Rico : RicardoRix win.
Well an all time legend in the board game world. Still one of the top games IMO, although I played this game in real-life enough for 2 life times. I recommend playing this with friends, because there is enough blocking available in the game to make you paranoid on BGA.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44198042

Race for the Galaxy : RicardoRix win.
Probably my all time favorite game. A stream lined version of Puerto Rico(!?). It's just crazy well balanced and plays real quick, there is a reason this is so popular on BGA.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44281482

[RicardoRix]

Roll for the Galaxy: RicardoRix win.
Dice role placement to discover worlds and developments. build more and produce/trade your goods.
Well if RACE for the galaxy is my favorite game then what about it's successor..? well in short - no. I have played it but there are a few glaring design issues. #1 The drafting of tiles and trying to define a strategy just doesn't work, the tiles play you, you don't play the tiles. In RL I guess you could add a house rule of drafting 2 tiles and picking 1 to keep each time. #2 the extra random dice in the 2 player is just wrong, why not at-least shake the dice before you choose. It is possible that this plays better as a multiplayer game, but I still think it lacks the flow, speed and enjoyment of the original.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44281494

Stir Fry Eighteen: Ivardo win.
Cool, cool game. Just 18 cards in the deck. Really simple Bluffing game works well competitively and as a party game. I recommended this little gem!
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44354410

Eminent Domain: RicardoRix win.
Deck building discover worlds and developments. build more and produce/trade your goods.
Sound familiar?? Well yes seems VERY like a cross between dominion / cloneWars (deck building) and RTFG (roles + the rest).
Yeah not originally too keen, I thought the role choice tied with the deck building was all wrong, however this might just be the twist that the game needs to make it different to the rest. After a few plays it's definitely growing on me, but I wish there were more it may for research cards, it almost feels like it was designed with 'expansions' already in mind which would erk me if I bought this in RL.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44281468

[RicardoRix]

Polis: Fight for Hegemony : Ivardo win.
Woah! What a game, this looks like a beast. From just 2 plays I can't really say a lot, but it almost has it all in a 2-player face off tactical strategic battle of territory kind of thing. If you like your board games heavy then this maybe the game for you. The theme and gameplay are awesome.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44198010

Reversi : RicardoRix win
Erm, it's an abstract 2 player flip the other players tokens over to your side. Mainly a territory game with some deeper strategies that are completely lost on me. For a similar style game I much prefer Go.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44281505

Russian Railroads : RicardoRix win
A popular game here on BGA and it's a difficult game to try and pin down. A worker placement with the most abstract upgrade and scoring routes. It's good fun, the gameplay is sound and certainly gets the unique tag, but on the whole it's not my cup of tea - still enjoy playing it none-the-less.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44281497

[RicardoRix]

Solo : Draw
The kids game where you pick up cards and people laugh in your face. Just don't play it, learn a better game.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44475561

Seasons : RicardoRix win
Another popular BGA game, but just not for me. It's far too drawn out and dull, very little happens and yet it looks so fantastic.
You draft 9 cards, then pick dice actions and play your cards which sometimes have effects like, gain 9 crystals, wooohooo!
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44475587

Spyrium : RicardoRix win
Another bore fest. It's reaallly dry and seems to trip you up with a whole lot of 'who gives a crap'.
A worker placement to fight over actions. Collect spyrium crystals, advance up residence tracks, build buildings and wait till the end so you can play a better game.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44475553

[RicardoRix]

Senet : RicardoRix win
Yeah really like this game. It's only the end which game be a bit random and just hope to get the right throw.
An ancient 2 player abstract. It's like backgammon where you both go in the same direction - awesome idea huh.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44475546

Sobek : Ivardo win
Collect sets and stuff, it's a bit whacky, it's not got a lot going for it apart from it 'looks' fun. If you want to play a simple 2-player set collecting game then I would recommend Jaipur any day of the week except Aprils fool day.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44475569

Stone Age : RicardoRix win
An awesome worker placement game. Upgrade, gather resource, spend resources on special civ cards and buy buildings for VP.
Ivardo does not like this game. It is a bit dry, but it serves as a perfect stripped down strategy worker placement game and so I think that's why it's so popular competitively on BGA.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44475592

[RicardoRix]

The Battle for Hill 218 : RicardoRix win
Awesome 2 player war game with cards. I really like this one, it's surprisingly simple mechanics but has just crazy addictive gameplay.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44626953

Signorie : RicardoRix win
My least favourite 'What's your game' game on BGA. The gameplay is just too abstract with a pretty dull theme, it just doesn't seem to gel well. I find most of the assignment tile actions too costly - what is the take an action to increase the dice threshold for 1 turn, what's that all about?? I think the game should be played with open gates which apparently is not the advanced version but does seemingly cut down the options of potential strategies, and the turn or so which should be the pinnacle of the game turns into a 'what can I do now to scrape a point from' turn. Meh!!
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44475581

Takenoko : RicardoRix win
Win various achievements with Pandas in the bamboo garden. Don't tickle your fancy? It seems quite abstract at first, but the gameplay is smooth and pleasant. I wasn't initially impressed but these kinds of games (like Origin) are growing on me.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44626926

[RicardoRix]

The Builders: Middle Ages : RicardoRix win.
A nice light game to construct buildings, first to 18 points triggers the last round.
This has a really nice balance, the gameplay is sound and tickles the mid size game itch, but the replay-ability is a bit naff. It is essentially basic maths and there is not much in the way of variability of strategies. I like it for what it is, if you want a straight-up efficiency of actions contest then this is your game!
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44626969

Tablut : RicardoRix win.
An ancient viking game. Sounds cool huh, something you might actually beat thor at!
Well it's really cool 2 player abstract game, I like it a lot, and in fact I used to own this as a child. It's asymmetric, really easy to pick up the rules and is medium weight brain burner. My only concern is that there looks to be a lot of repetitive move draw opportunities, personally I think it requires a rules for this situation.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44626913

Through the Ages : RicardoRix win.
Is this the behmoth game to conquer all the cool civ like games? Well it's BGA popularity certainly seems to show that. I am still getting to grips with it and I've played maybe 16 games (shameful). The ideas are a little lost on me, but I feel it's just maybe a bit of time before the penny drops and I become addicted like all the rest.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44702448

[RicardoRix]

The Boss : RicardoRix win.
Really nice bidding game with mild bluffing element. I like it a lot for what it is. It feels permanently tense. Probably best as a smaller filler party game with some good old bluffing banter. Equally plays quite well competitively, probably best with 2 to 3 players.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44626959

Tiki : Ivardo win.
A 2 player game played on 9 colourful tiles where you try to build 3 high tiki totem poles. This game is completely lost on me and I don't much like it, I have nothing more to say, I'm taking my ball home and I don't want to play.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44702748

Tash-Kalar : Ivardo win.
Yowser what a game! Looks cool, maybe the coolest game on the site. Gameplay - takes a few games to understand the possibilities and trying to put it all together. Unfortunately, for me at least is I suck BIG time! I think every turn I used a flare and still only scored 1 point.
You have to try and craft/move your different kind of pieces into certain formations that match your powerful cards. There are also achievements to score extra points but really you just want to make your opponent suffer by killing ALL their pieces and causing maximum disruption coz y'know - killing stuff is cool, especially when it's with demon fantasy creatures and magical spells!
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44702660

[RicardoRix]

Isaac
Well a very peculiar 2 player abstract game played in 2 phases. 1st playing all your pieces and then scoring pieces. I must admit after a few tried I am really not taken with the game, it's just a bit too weird, I am really yet to see how to put together a coherent strategy. Ivardo obviously didn't read the rules properly and scored his highest piece first - Doh!
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44758674

The Jelly Monster Lab
A memory party game with cartoon monsters. Does not really translate well on BGA. It's a fairly sound game, if you like that kind of thing.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44702690

Troyes
A fairly well stacked dice placement game. It's pretty strange and takes a while to get used to, but otherwise a very unique and likable game.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44702565

Twin Tin Bots:
A programming orders game played on a hex grid. Each player has 2 robots to collect diamonds and zap opponents robots causing mayhem. A really great fun game, plays really quick and easy.
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44702576

Takara Island
6 piles of 9 cards loaded with gold, monsters and coins. Mine, fight and uncover the treasures better than your opponents, hire the help of a few experts. Quite a likable game but lacks a bit of depth, otherwise a good crack!
https://en.boardgamearena.com/#!table?table=44702617