Board Game Arena

I love this game but I don't get it to the table as often as I'd like, especially not with the same group. So I barely get to use the shift system.

Please add it to this implementation

I really agree with this. Even if the whole system isn't implemented ( I get it's a ton of work) adding a couple modules to each side would be awesome. Especially to balance the game.

(BGA dev here.) A big question I have is, how do you balance it? I don't really know how to decide how many or which modules to make available in a given game. The game rules are also vague about it. Do you have suggestions? I get the sense you're meant to open a new random one each game, but it'd be hard to get the same sense of mystery here.

My suggestion is to simply implement them so that a group could choose to "campaign" together selecting the appropriate packs as needed.

They are there to balance the players. Let the players manage them!

If you're looking for suggestions on how to use shifts, I think you could input a number of shifts to take before a game, and have a screen that specifies who shifts and what shifts happen (or randomly).

For example, you could say you have a game with 5 shifts. You could then input how many times each faction shifts (2 shifts for Mind MGMT and 3 for rogue agents, for example), and allow you to specify shifts or input random shifts for each.

mithaler wrote: ↑10 June 2025, 18:24 (BGA dev here.) A big question I have is, how do you balance it? I don't really know how to decide how many or which modules to make available in a given game. The game rules are also vague about it. Do you have suggestions? I get the sense you're meant to open a new random one each game, but it'd be hard to get the same sense of mystery here.

For the first-play through, you should open one SHIFT for the looser in the next number.

100% this needs to be an option (maybe during game setup like picking expansions for other games) because as is. The recruiter basically cannot lose the "first game" setup unless they're extremely incompetent.

mithaler wrote: ↑10 June 2025, 18:24 (BGA dev here.) A big question I have is, how do you balance it? I don't really know how to decide how many or which modules to make available in a given game. The game rules are also vague about it. Do you have suggestions? I get the sense you're meant to open a new random one each game, but it'd be hard to get the same sense of mystery here.

I have the box version of the game, i agree it's much more fun with SHIFT system

The shift packages are strictly ordered, so having two dropdowns in the game setup would work well: Recruiter SHIFT™ level, and Rouge Agents SHIFT™ level. Maybe leave a note to adjust the levels appropriately to the karma of players (but personally, I'd just play with one group one figure out our own way to adjust it).
I know you can add and remove modules, but going for a full experience (14 mix'n'match options) seems excessive for an online version of the game? If someone is so into it, I think it's fair to ask them to buy a physical copy.

There’s another pressing reason to include at least part of the SHIFT system: Some of its content is permanent. When certain boxes are opened, they change the rules for all future games: Whether or not those games use any SHIFT modules. These revisions are like an extended tutorial. They gradually introduce players to the full rules.

For example (I’ll be vague here, to avoid spoilers): One of the early SHIFT boxes makes capturing more difficult. From that point on, the rogue agents need to fulfill an extra condition in order to catch the recruiter. This isn’t some optional variant that can be swapped out; It’s an upgrade for experienced players, that replaces the tutorial version. As fun as the BGA implementation is, the absence of that progression does sting. Even if most of the SHIFT system ends up being too complicated to include, I’d love to see at least a few of the advanced rules available.

Also waiting for SHIFT mode. May be added like campaign mode or like manually choice before game.