Something else to mention about Nautilion is its unique dice. The dice faces are: 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 4. I love the asymmetry; it makes the high values feel more explosive but gives you a baseline expectation of how to plan for subsequent turns. Many game have custom dice, but I've rarely seen it incorporated with roll & move. I'd love to see a competitive game integrate some mechanic where you want low AND high numbers along a funky dice distribution like Nautilion. It's a little thinkier but still immediate and exciting.
I really do think you are one of the most underrated creators in the board game space! You have such an interesting perspective due to your inventor experience. Your mixed approach and analysis is really detailed and unique. I love your videos!!! You really know what you're talking about :) Thanks for making them! I saw a few of your games on the shelf in Chance & Counters in Cardiff, I’m looking forward to giving them a go!
My no 1 game of all time has roll and move (I think also the highest ranked roll and move game on Bgg), which is Xia Legends of a Drift System. Xia also has deliberate random luck stuff such as a fame point for rolling a 20, and plenty of other random dice rolls however aside from that 20 they are all choices - you decide whether to push your luck when you know you probably shouldn’t but after a while find yourself doing it anyway to lots of laughter if it fails or whoops if you succeed. Sometimes games like this have a massive decision space but the decisions are mainly push your luck ones that create a story - flying frog games are like that too. They’re not really strategy games but they are often great fun
Your channel is the best! I saw almost all of your videos. I designed some games and prepare to put some money in. My favorite party games are actualy dice games King of Tokyo with Cybertooth and Anubis expansion and Zombie dice Horde edition.
Thanks for the interesting look at roll and move. I have Deep Sea Adventures and Manila and Marrakech look interesting. Lots of options I had not considered thank you for having me reflect on these games.
These are my favorite videos of yours: talking about a game mechanic and great games as examples of that. Please make more like these. Wonderful job, Adam!
Thanks Ray! I'm glad you enjoy these videos about mechanisms. Unfortunately, they're the hardest ones to make - they require a lot of research, and shooting loads of footage. So they take ages. That's why you don't see them so often. I have to wait until I have enough time available! The good thing about them for me is that they often inspire me to create something new - I frequently come away from them thinking of different ways I could twist the formula into something different.
I absolutely understand. It is a joy to discover board games I've never heard of like Talisman and Spooky Stairs. Your video quality is as good as The Dice Tower. Seriously, you deserve more subs. BTW, have you thought about continuing your Tier List videos? Maybe ranking like 25 famous Roll and Move, Worker Placement, Push your Luck, etc. and see how they Rank. It's fun to hear you talk about games.
Thanks Adam! I've been looking at a suitable movement solution for my game having overhauled the combat mechanics that I'm really happy with. The problem is that in successfully changing combat I "broke" the rest of the game, in that it just doesn't flow any more, and I feel I've taken a massive step backwards! The movement or progression between combat phases is really challenging me atm.
It can be really disheartening when you make one change to a prototype and then something else breaks. I've often put a game on the shelf at that point and worked on something else. Usually the solution comes to you when you're not expecting it.
me and my girlfriend are designing one for kids with roll and move mechanic as a base then adding cards and events on the board to spice things up with choices. Thanks for the video! You really help out with getting the noggen going about game design =)
Roll and move i think is good within context and prevents analysis paralysis Ultimately i think roll and move is liked in proportion to how much you can cope with randomness or lack of control
I recently played the 2013 kinderspiel des jahres winner, Feuer Drachen, and was surprised to discover it has a roll and move mechanic. Each turn players roll two d6, and then choose which value they will move, and which value will be the number of rubies they put into the volcano (the more go in, the more that will be available later on, and the faster the end game trigger will occur). Each player has two dragons, so you end up with four options, not two.
The funkiest dice rolling mechanism I've encountered is Thief's Market's; players currently without any dice can either draft any number of dice from the central pool, or take another player's whole pile, but reroll 1 to the center. This continues until everyone's got a pile. It's Euro-y because it's secretly the Last Diminisher fair division method(thus a high degree of chance mitigation), yet grabbing someone's dice feels very take that-y(even after I'm aware it's for the sake of fair division). It's not exactly roll n move, but easily applicable to that(free game idea prompt for anyone btw)
I’ve wanted to check out Pyramid of PengQueen for some time. It feels like its a board game version of PacMan. Except you have several PacMans (PacMen?) competing for fruit, and one player controlling the ghost. No idea if that’s what it’s like to play, but that’s how it comes across. 😍😅
When I saw the title I immediately thought about Verflixxt and Nautilion, thinking I could recommend them to you. Of course you got there first! I think you're right - we're due for a creative revival of roll and move. Do you rate Marrakech? I've heard mostly good things. I prefer the previous Dixit-style box art over the latest edition.
I do rate Marrakech, though it’s very light. It’s a great game for families. The earlier edition had nice wooden coins, where the new edition has cardboard coins (though they’re really thick). Otherwise they’re very similar editions. On balance I’ve decided to hang on to the new edition because I like the board art a bit better.
I love roll-and-move games! I have many of the games on your list: Viva Topo, Marrakech, Nautillion, Manilla, Camel Up, and Long Shot the Dice Game. I wish That's Life/Verflixxt was easier to find in the US; I'd love to get a copy. Have you played Powerships/Powerboats? That's my favorite roll-and-move game. I'm also a fan of abstract strategy titles like Backgammon, Samsara, and Tatsu. Aside from the tactile joy of rolling dice, I think there is something inherently exciting in these random number generators. Your number COULD always come up, and modern games with more strategy and decision making tend to reward you more often than not. That is to say, when you have the tools (as you categorized in the video) to put yourself in good positions, it will feel like the dice are rolling in your favor more often.
Something else to mention about Nautilion is its unique dice. The dice faces are: 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 4. I love the asymmetry; it makes the high values feel more explosive but gives you a baseline expectation of how to plan for subsequent turns. Many game have custom dice, but I've rarely seen it incorporated with roll & move. I'd love to see a competitive game integrate some mechanic where you want low AND high numbers along a funky dice distribution like Nautilion. It's a little thinkier but still immediate and exciting.
Good point, and one I only glossed over in the video. Formula D and Pyramid of PengQueen both use roll & move with custom dice too.
I really do think you are one of the most underrated creators in the board game space! You have such an interesting perspective due to your inventor experience. Your mixed approach and analysis is really detailed and unique. I love your videos!!! You really know what you're talking about :) Thanks for making them! I saw a few of your games on the shelf in Chance & Counters in Cardiff, I’m looking forward to giving them a go!
Thanks Dave - that's great feedback. Glad you're enjoying the videos.
My no 1 game of all time has roll and move (I think also the highest ranked roll and move game on Bgg), which is Xia Legends of a Drift System. Xia also has deliberate random luck stuff such as a fame point for rolling a 20, and plenty of other random dice rolls however aside from that 20 they are all choices - you decide whether to push your luck when you know you probably shouldn’t but after a while find yourself doing it anyway to lots of laughter if it fails or whoops if you succeed.
Sometimes games like this have a massive decision space but the decisions are mainly push your luck ones that create a story - flying frog games are like that too. They’re not really strategy games but they are often great fun
Your channel is the best! I saw almost all of your videos. I designed some games and prepare to put some money in. My favorite party games are actualy dice games King of Tokyo with Cybertooth and Anubis expansion and Zombie dice Horde edition.
As an aspiring game designer, this has given me a lot to think about! Thanks Adam!
Thanks for watching Zack. Good luck with your designs.
Thanks for the interesting look at roll and move. I have Deep Sea Adventures and Manila and Marrakech look interesting. Lots of options I had not considered thank you for having me reflect on these games.
Thanks James - glad you enjoyed it.
I am currently designing a role and move board game as the first game I want to publish. This is exactly what I needed. You're the best! 🥰
Great! Good luck with it :)
These are my favorite videos of yours: talking about a game mechanic and great games as examples of that. Please make more like these. Wonderful job, Adam!
Thanks Ray! I'm glad you enjoy these videos about mechanisms. Unfortunately, they're the hardest ones to make - they require a lot of research, and shooting loads of footage. So they take ages. That's why you don't see them so often. I have to wait until I have enough time available!
The good thing about them for me is that they often inspire me to create something new - I frequently come away from them thinking of different ways I could twist the formula into something different.
I absolutely understand. It is a joy to discover board games I've never heard of like Talisman and Spooky Stairs. Your video quality is as good as The Dice Tower. Seriously, you deserve more subs.
BTW, have you thought about continuing your Tier List videos? Maybe ranking like 25 famous Roll and Move, Worker Placement, Push your Luck, etc. and see how they Rank. It's fun to hear you talk about games.
Thanks Adam! I've been looking at a suitable movement solution for my game having overhauled the combat mechanics that I'm really happy with. The problem is that in successfully changing combat I "broke" the rest of the game, in that it just doesn't flow any more, and I feel I've taken a massive step backwards! The movement or progression between combat phases is really challenging me atm.
It can be really disheartening when you make one change to a prototype and then something else breaks. I've often put a game on the shelf at that point and worked on something else. Usually the solution comes to you when you're not expecting it.
Appreciate your work, Adam! Awesome dive into this mechanism.
Thanks Jeremy. Much appreciated.
Excellent video, enjoyed it!
me and my girlfriend are designing one for kids with roll and move mechanic as a base then adding cards and events on the board to spice things up with choices. Thanks for the video! You really help out with getting the noggen going about game design =)
Awesome - I hope your design is going well.
I love your work, Adam
Much appreciated!
Roll and move i think is good within context and prevents analysis paralysis
Ultimately i think roll and move is liked in proportion to how much you can cope with randomness or lack of control
I recently played the 2013 kinderspiel des jahres winner, Feuer Drachen, and was surprised to discover it has a roll and move mechanic.
Each turn players roll two d6, and then choose which value they will move, and which value will be the number of rubies they put into the volcano (the more go in, the more that will be available later on, and the faster the end game trigger will occur).
Each player has two dragons, so you end up with four options, not two.
I've just looked this one up and watched a review - it looks really fun. I'll keep an eye out for it. Thanks.
The funkiest dice rolling mechanism I've encountered is Thief's Market's; players currently without any dice can either draft any number of dice from the central pool, or take another player's whole pile, but reroll 1 to the center. This continues until everyone's got a pile.
It's Euro-y because it's secretly the Last Diminisher fair division method(thus a high degree of chance mitigation), yet grabbing someone's dice feels very take that-y(even after I'm aware it's for the sake of fair division). It's not exactly roll n move, but easily applicable to that(free game idea prompt for anyone btw)
Awesome!
I’ve wanted to check out Pyramid of PengQueen for some time.
It feels like its a board game version of PacMan. Except you have several PacMans (PacMen?) competing for fruit, and one player controlling the ghost.
No idea if that’s what it’s like to play, but that’s how it comes across. 😍😅
I do see where you're coming from on this!
When I saw the title I immediately thought about Verflixxt and Nautilion, thinking I could recommend them to you. Of course you got there first!
I think you're right - we're due for a creative revival of roll and move.
Do you rate Marrakech? I've heard mostly good things. I prefer the previous Dixit-style box art over the latest edition.
I do rate Marrakech, though it’s very light. It’s a great game for families. The earlier edition had nice wooden coins, where the new edition has cardboard coins (though they’re really thick). Otherwise they’re very similar editions. On balance I’ve decided to hang on to the new edition because I like the board art a bit better.
@@AdaminWales ok. Would you like to sell me your old copy?
@@bruceknight3720 Sorry! I’ve already offered to gift it to a friend :)
P.S I have a copy of Verflixxt Kompakt, which comes with the "Worminater" pawn, which punishes people who hang at the back for too long!
Sounds good - I’ve read about a few differences between different editions of That’s Life and Verflixxt. Could do with a “big box” edition!! :)
I love roll-and-move games! I have many of the games on your list: Viva Topo, Marrakech, Nautillion, Manilla, Camel Up, and Long Shot the Dice Game. I wish That's Life/Verflixxt was easier to find in the US; I'd love to get a copy. Have you played Powerships/Powerboats? That's my favorite roll-and-move game. I'm also a fan of abstract strategy titles like Backgammon, Samsara, and Tatsu. Aside from the tactile joy of rolling dice, I think there is something inherently exciting in these random number generators. Your number COULD always come up, and modern games with more strategy and decision making tend to reward you more often than not. That is to say, when you have the tools (as you categorized in the video) to put yourself in good positions, it will feel like the dice are rolling in your favor more often.
I haven't played Powerships - I'll gave to look it up. I've always wanted to try Tatsu too.
Best experience is getting a roll and move published and sold. Snakes and ladders = worst
Which game did you get published? :)
@@AdaminWales Tropic Race
I think you don't understand what snakes and ladders is about
@@keithparker1346 I´m sure, If I had the capability to understand, I would have a fantastic time playing it.
@@Julebstube it's related to religion Buddhism or Hinduism and a path of life.just do some research