I know some people harp on Richard's videos because of the mistakes, but I think they miss the point or it just grates on them too much to see a wrong move - that's their problem, not Richards. The point is to give the audience a feel for game play (the tension, the decision process, turn flow, etc.), not to teach the game including every rule. That is one of the reasons I like his videos. It helps that we have similar tastes, so the final thoughts are more interesting/relevant for me, as well. Having said all that, I've watched a lot of his videos (not all, but a lot) and this one (runthrough + extended) seems to me to hold the record for the most mistakes. I may be wrong, but there WERE a lot. I have to imagine, for the folks that do get worked up about the mistakes, this review will push them over the edge. :) I know it was mentioned a couple of times on the Klingon channel (but not every time), it appears Richard NEVER took the points earned from the "round tiles" or whatever you call the tiles that get swapped out when you pass. We all make mistakes playing games (especially ones with SO many fiddly rules), so when Richard's runthroughs contain mistakes, it just adds to the realism. In this case, it was REALLY real :) I do think this review probably takes the Olympic Gold for Most Mistakes. Congratulations on the medal! I think.... I can't wait for your next review!
I couldn't agree more! I loved Terra Mystica but the new technology tracks make this so much more interesting for me. ALSO, that "dummy player" they added makes the 2p games SO much more interesting. Playing this with my girlfriend 2p is so much more interesting. Thanks for covering this game :)
Totally agree, awesome with 2, lots of replayability with all species and random layout, plus length is great from my point of view. Loving this game! Having not tried clans of Caledonia yet I can't compare...
Hey Richard. If you want more people to see the subtitles, you could mention every now and then that they can be controlled with keyboard shortcuts: "c" to toggle the subtitles (c for captions), "=" or "-" to change the text size (i.e. the plus or minus keys). That way, people can switch them on for your videos, and off for others. Decreasing the text size prevents the wordy parts from becoming a wall of text, which take over the whole screen and block the view of the video. Only goes for laptop/desktop people of course, and only when the video is full-screen or when the selection is already on the video. You can see more keyboard shortcuts by pressing "shift + /" (question-mark).
interesting, i had no idea about those shortcuts. although i probably wouldn't mention them anyway, as close to 70% of my audience watches on smartphones...
me too... i never watch vids on my phone, but it's amazing how common it's becoming. i should say though, a big percentage of that number might be ipads as well, which show up as mobile devices...
The cult tracks in Terra Mystica aren't just about racing to the top. You also get power but most importantly, the round tiles give you timed bonuses. You need to make a decision whether it's even worth starting to go up on a track, whether you can reach step 8 by the end the fourth round or not. What you're saying about how cutthroat the game is isn't really about TM or GP, it's about player count. With four players GP can get pretty cutthroat too depending on player style, endgame scoring etc etc, just like TM. I play a lot of TM with two players with house rules on a smaller board and it's pretty friendly usually. Then you say in TM/GP you only build to build more, that's not really true either. I understand that's your subjective feel but if you think about it you also build to go up on the tracks and upgrade yourself, to score cities, you build to score on the endgame scoring and so on. It's very intricate. Caledonias take this tile and pay 2 sheep and one whatever to score about 10-15 points is so much less intricate. Granted I know you don't play any game a lot, so that might be a reason why you say this because TM/GP is built for 100+ plays, but I think Caledonia is not.
How many times did you play the game? I'm only asking because TM is a deep game, it gets better and better as you start to appreciate every small decision. It gets less boring once you're into it. That's why it bothers me that Rahdo and you just flat out say it's boring. Something like "it's not for me" or something would be better or an explanation that while you see these details, you're still not into it because something.
Dániel Lányi Sorry, Dániel, but while I agree with your previous comment, where in the video did rahdo ever say that this game is "boring". He stated his opinion and told us why he prefers Clans of Caledonia. However, nowhere in this video did he ever say that Gaia Project was "boring".
You're right he specifically said boring (three times, at about 2:00, 2:30, 2:50) only about one of the central mechanisms not the whole game. Also, I don't think I indicated that Rahdo said it's boring, the context was rather the TheGreatHamEL's comment. I'm still bummed that Rahdo prefers the game that takes almost everything brilliant out of TM, and adds the dumbest euro-mechanism the pay this and that to gain points.
I played this for the first time today and really enjoyed it. So much that I've been browsing prices to see if I can justify purchasing it. I haven't played Terra Mystica, but I have played Clans of Caledonia a couple of times - this is definitely heavier than Clans. The technology track is very nice, but I do like the shorter time frame that Clans has and I prefer the Scottish theme. Would need to play both many more times before I could choose a favorite; Clans does also have better quality components, but the "poor" quality of GP's components is certainly overstated as the plastic pieces are very good nice. I do feel like I acquitted myself quite well for having never played TM - came in two points back from the lead to a player who has played a ton of TM. Third place was three points back and he had played TM several times and GP a couple. Fourth place was... I think we burnt his brain.
I had the chance to buy the terra mystica+fire&ice or the Gaia Project and finaly I 've got the Terra Mystica because of the wooden components. Those plastic pieces look cheaper than the wooden ones. In the future I will try to get Gaia too
I agree. Loved this game compared to Terra Mystica and think it's easier for beginners as well because it's easier to move around, so starting placement mistakes don't have quite as much impact and you dont feel like you've already lost the game after a few moves. Will you be keeping this or is Clans the only one for your shelf?
really, we found clans worked fine. but the market gameplay (buy low & sell high) is a bit less dynamic with only 2, so for that reason i suspect gaia is a stronger 2p game...
Bought the game because of this run through, played four games, came back to see your final thoughts, get told we had done the power charging wrong every game (that's how TM does it though right? Based on what your opponent builds? oh well!)
than terra mystica? i'd say they're comparable, but tbh you're better off asking someone wiht more expereince than me. if you post the question here: boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/220308/gaia-project/forums/0 you're sure to get a much more experienced answer :)
I haven't finished the final thoughts yet, so maybe my question will be answered there, but I was curious if you found this game ripe for AP? Seems like it could have the tendacy to be an AP trap.
Rahdo, my wife is my main gaming partner and we are very similar to you and Jen with carebear euro love, but I also have found love for asymmetrical games like Scythe and Root. Would Gaia Project be your top carebear euro with a pronounced asymmetry for player power/strategy? Or should I check out other stuff too?
Probably clans of Caledonia according to the end of your video(which I had not watched when I made the first comment lol)... Scythe is my number one game and I love Root so I would love some of that asymmetry and variability in a friendly euro that my wife(who will play Scythe with me but gets agitated at getting attacked) will love as much as I do
rahdo thanks! I think the farm/Scottish theme really suits us better, going to pick clans up in the next week or two and give it a go. Love your videos! You’re my go to for game reviews/run through especially since my wife and I seem to mirror you guys so closely
check 4sale.rahdo.com and let me know on boardgamegeek if you see any of interest. most of the stuff is already gone but there's a few left. note that shipping out of malta is expensive though!
It's a word play on 4X (the genre of games featuring exploration, expansion, exploitation, and extermination, with the classic example being civilization board and video games). Now, a new crop of games slowly come on that are similar to 4X, but they miss one X: the extermination aspect, and you can't attack and destroy your neighbours creations as a result. These games are gladly welcomed by Richard and all other gamers who lack the streak of aggression (playful or not so playful), or those who would like to involve a wider variety of people who aren't accustomed to and might not appreciate playful aggression in a board game setting. These gamers are happy that more and more 3X games crop up so that we have a wider variety of games catering to a wider audience.
i seriously considered it, but in the end opted for caledonia as it's a better fit for our tastes. turns out that's an inconsequential choice though, as i'm in the middle of trying to sell about a 1/3rd of my collection since we're going to be moving in a couple of months and are trying to cut costs of the move
rahdo I understand what you are saying. I own both gp and clans and find them both to be great . Gaia is definitely heavier IMO. Good luck trying to decide what games to get rid of that is always excruciatingly hard to decide on what games to part with
rahdo also out of curiosity if you don't mind me asking, how many games do you think you will end up getting rid of? (What does 1/3 end up being?) Just curious since your collection of games is so massively impressive.
Klingon channel was pretty busy this playthrough :) I was on the edge for this one and waiting for your thoughts on 2 player, now I am certain that I am gonna get this game ;)
It's a little hard for me to take your comparison to Terra Mystica seriously, because it's painfully obvious from the runthrough that you haven't played Terra Mystica at all. I wouldn't be surprised if you haven't touched it since your original TM runthrough. Otherwise a lot of the concepts you talked about would be much more familiar and they clearly weren't.
as always, i would suggest simply watching the runthrough and deciding for yourself if the game is worth picking up. my subjective opinion is besides the point.
rahdo i guess since is much easier to expand in GP then in TM the 10 tiles universe is a bit too Small for 5 players. also 100% a 5th player expansion with 2/3 additional sectors will be available for Next Essen
Richard, don‘t you think reading through the rules again right before the recording would lead to much less embarrassing results? Love(d) your videos but caught myself watching less and less because of all the goofs. The Klingon channel is a neat idea but also looks like a good excuse to not go over the rules again before recording.
i'm long past being embarrassed. i'm filming 4 or 5 games a week on average, and i'm prone to errors when i'm not under a lot of pressure. i do generally reread the rules right before filming, but when it's the 3rd or 4th game i've filmed that day, i'm still going to make mistakes. I make mistakes in runthroughs of games i've played dozens of times. i make mistakes in runthroughs of my favourite games of all time. if you watch less and less, there's not much i can do about that. the errors i make don't (i believe) impact the sole purpose of the videos: to give an impression of what the game feels like to play.
Lines42 Spoken like a person that has never had to create video content on complex material. How much did you pay for this video? Oh, nothing? Just be thankful he's creating free content because I don't think most RUclipsrs are getting rich off this.
Lawrence, maybe you want to look at peolple‘s channel before judging them? Among others I‘ve made official tutorials for Stonmeier, Kickstarter videos for VPG and tons of runthroughs myself. It‘s not that I have no clue of what I‘m talking about... PS: Richard is making a living if this
Lines42 you also have to keep in mind that Rahdo is playing for two people. I can only imagine that by doing so it can be very easy to slip up on some rules. Especially since he is trying to explain what he's doing WHILE trying to effectively play for two people.
I know some people harp on Richard's videos because of the mistakes, but I think they miss the point or it just grates on them too much to see a wrong move - that's their problem, not Richards. The point is to give the audience a feel for game play (the tension, the decision process, turn flow, etc.), not to teach the game including every rule. That is one of the reasons I like his videos. It helps that we have similar tastes, so the final thoughts are more interesting/relevant for me, as well.
Having said all that, I've watched a lot of his videos (not all, but a lot) and this one (runthrough + extended) seems to me to hold the record for the most mistakes. I may be wrong, but there WERE a lot. I have to imagine, for the folks that do get worked up about the mistakes, this review will push them over the edge. :) I know it was mentioned a couple of times on the Klingon channel (but not every time), it appears Richard NEVER took the points earned from the "round tiles" or whatever you call the tiles that get swapped out when you pass.
We all make mistakes playing games (especially ones with SO many fiddly rules), so when Richard's runthroughs contain mistakes, it just adds to the realism. In this case, it was REALLY real :)
I do think this review probably takes the Olympic Gold for Most Mistakes. Congratulations on the medal! I think....
I can't wait for your next review!
Azuk review
I couldn't agree more! I loved Terra Mystica but the new technology tracks make this so much more interesting for me. ALSO, that "dummy player" they added makes the 2p games SO much more interesting. Playing this with my girlfriend 2p is so much more interesting. Thanks for covering this game :)
I know you and Jen like two player, but the solo variant is also a huge advantage over TM. It's really well done.
yeah i should have mentioned that in the vid
Totally agree, awesome with 2, lots of replayability with all species and random layout, plus length is great from my point of view. Loving this game! Having not tried clans of Caledonia yet I can't compare...
Dear Rahdo. Yet again thank you for your video's. This was very helpful
Hey Richard. If you want more people to see the subtitles, you could mention every now and then that they can be controlled with keyboard shortcuts:
"c" to toggle the subtitles (c for captions),
"=" or "-" to change the text size (i.e. the plus or minus keys).
That way, people can switch them on for your videos, and off for others. Decreasing the text size prevents the wordy parts from becoming a wall of text, which take over the whole screen and block the view of the video. Only goes for laptop/desktop people of course, and only when the video is full-screen or when the selection is already on the video. You can see more keyboard shortcuts by pressing "shift + /" (question-mark).
interesting, i had no idea about those shortcuts. although i probably wouldn't mention them anyway, as close to 70% of my audience watches on smartphones...
Wow! I hadn't expected that a majority of people watch on their phones. That's a crazy fact, to me.
me too... i never watch vids on my phone, but it's amazing how common it's becoming.
i should say though, a big percentage of that number might be ipads as well, which show up as mobile devices...
The cult tracks in Terra Mystica aren't just about racing to the top. You also get power but most importantly, the round tiles give you timed bonuses. You need to make a decision whether it's even worth starting to go up on a track, whether you can reach step 8 by the end the fourth round or not.
What you're saying about how cutthroat the game is isn't really about TM or GP, it's about player count. With four players GP can get pretty cutthroat too depending on player style, endgame scoring etc etc, just like TM. I play a lot of TM with two players with house rules on a smaller board and it's pretty friendly usually.
Then you say in TM/GP you only build to build more, that's not really true either. I understand that's your subjective feel but if you think about it you also build to go up on the tracks and upgrade yourself, to score cities, you build to score on the endgame scoring and so on. It's very intricate. Caledonias take this tile and pay 2 sheep and one whatever to score about 10-15 points is so much less intricate. Granted I know you don't play any game a lot, so that might be a reason why you say this because TM/GP is built for 100+ plays, but I think Caledonia is not.
Dániel Lányi And it’s still boring af.
How many times did you play the game? I'm only asking because TM is a deep game, it gets better and better as you start to appreciate every small decision. It gets less boring once you're into it. That's why it bothers me that Rahdo and you just flat out say it's boring. Something like "it's not for me" or something would be better or an explanation that while you see these details, you're still not into it because something.
Dániel Lányi Sorry, Dániel, but while I agree with your previous comment, where in the video did rahdo ever say that this game is "boring". He stated his opinion and told us why he prefers Clans of Caledonia. However, nowhere in this video did he ever say that Gaia Project was "boring".
You're right he specifically said boring (three times, at about 2:00, 2:30, 2:50) only about one of the central mechanisms not the whole game. Also, I don't think I indicated that Rahdo said it's boring, the context was rather the TheGreatHamEL's comment. I'm still bummed that Rahdo prefers the game that takes almost everything brilliant out of TM, and adds the dumbest euro-mechanism the pay this and that to gain points.
Dude seriously thanks so much for this review.
I played this for the first time today and really enjoyed it. So much that I've been browsing prices to see if I can justify purchasing it. I haven't played Terra Mystica, but I have played Clans of Caledonia a couple of times - this is definitely heavier than Clans. The technology track is very nice, but I do like the shorter time frame that Clans has and I prefer the Scottish theme. Would need to play both many more times before I could choose a favorite; Clans does also have better quality components, but the "poor" quality of GP's components is certainly overstated as the plastic pieces are very good nice.
I do feel like I acquitted myself quite well for having never played TM - came in two points back from the lead to a player who has played a ton of TM. Third place was three points back and he had played TM several times and GP a couple. Fourth place was... I think we burnt his brain.
I had the chance to buy the terra mystica+fire&ice or the Gaia Project and finaly I 've got the Terra Mystica because of the wooden components. Those plastic pieces look cheaper than the wooden ones.
In the future I will try to get Gaia too
I agree. Loved this game compared to Terra Mystica and think it's easier for beginners as well because it's easier to move around, so starting placement mistakes don't have quite as much impact and you dont feel like you've already lost the game after a few moves. Will you be keeping this or is Clans the only one for your shelf?
Never played Terra Mystica but it seems I'd like this more.
Yeah Rahdo yeah! I love this as a brain burny puzzle, even as I suck at it! Thank you for the thoughts!
Would you opt for clans over Gaia even if you only play 2 player? I nearly only play 2 player and bgg seems to think clans is not really for 2?
really, we found clans worked fine. but the market gameplay (buy low & sell high) is a bit less dynamic with only 2, so for that reason i suspect gaia is a stronger 2p game...
Bought the game because of this run through, played four games, came back to see your final thoughts, get told we had done the power charging wrong every game (that's how TM does it though right? Based on what your opponent builds? oh well!)
nope i was doing it wrong... always watch with the klingon subtitles turned on! :)
Richard, so if Clans of Caledonia never existed, would this be a keeper?
probably yes
What's the brand of the sweater you're wearing? I used to have one that looked like that and I'd like to get a replacement.
Nordic Nomad is what the tag said, though i can't find a website for them via google
how long is gaia project? is it longer, shorter ?
than terra mystica? i'd say they're comparable, but tbh you're better off asking someone wiht more expereince than me. if you post the question here: boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/220308/gaia-project/forums/0 you're sure to get a much more experienced answer :)
I haven't finished the final thoughts yet, so maybe my question will be answered there, but I was curious if you found this game ripe for AP?
Seems like it could have the tendacy to be an AP trap.
it's certainly possible... it's a big old heavy game!
Rahdo, my wife is my main gaming partner and we are very similar to you and Jen with carebear euro love, but I also have found love for asymmetrical games like Scythe and Root. Would Gaia Project be your top carebear euro with a pronounced asymmetry for player power/strategy? Or should I check out other stuff too?
Probably clans of Caledonia according to the end of your video(which I had not watched when I made the first comment lol)... Scythe is my number one game and I love Root so I would love some of that asymmetry and variability in a friendly euro that my wife(who will play Scythe with me but gets agitated at getting attacked) will love as much as I do
yeah, i'm still no the fence between these two. honestly, i'd probably lean on whichever theme attracts more :)
rahdo thanks! I think the farm/Scottish theme really suits us better, going to pick clans up in the next week or two and give it a go. Love your videos! You’re my go to for game reviews/run through especially since my wife and I seem to mirror you guys so closely
Hey Rahdo, saw where you are selling some board games, are these open to the public?
check 4sale.rahdo.com and let me know on boardgamegeek if you see any of interest. most of the stuff is already gone but there's a few left. note that shipping out of malta is expensive though!
Great final thoughts! Does this feel like a 3X game? How does it fare compared to Pulsar 2849?
yeah, it's certainly 3x. we prefer pulsar becuase it's faster and not quite so heavy
Willem Smoor pardon my ignorance, what is a 3X game?
It's a word play on 4X (the genre of games featuring exploration, expansion, exploitation, and extermination, with the classic example being civilization board and video games). Now, a new crop of games slowly come on that are similar to 4X, but they miss one X: the extermination aspect, and you can't attack and destroy your neighbours creations as a result. These games are gladly welcomed by Richard and all other gamers who lack the streak of aggression (playful or not so playful), or those who would like to involve a wider variety of people who aren't accustomed to and might not appreciate playful aggression in a board game setting. These gamers are happy that more and more 3X games crop up so that we have a wider variety of games catering to a wider audience.
Willem Smoor ohh. Okay.
Thank you for such a clear concise answer. :)
Rhado is this a game you will be adding to your collection? Is it a bit to long and heavy for your and Jens taste?
i seriously considered it, but in the end opted for caledonia as it's a better fit for our tastes.
turns out that's an inconsequential choice though, as i'm in the middle of trying to sell about a 1/3rd of my collection since we're going to be moving in a couple of months and are trying to cut costs of the move
rahdo I understand what you are saying. I own both gp and clans and find them both to be great . Gaia is definitely heavier IMO. Good luck trying to decide what games to get rid of that is always excruciatingly hard to decide on what games to part with
rahdo do you find it painful/difficult to cut your game library down by that much?
I think I'd have a mighty difficult time doing that myself.
rahdo also out of curiosity if you don't mind me asking, how many games do you think you will end up getting rid of? (What does 1/3 end up being?) Just curious since your collection of games is so massively impressive.
So is this in your top ten 2018?
it's january!!!!
it's a 2017 game, and nope, not in my top10 for the year, but i can certainly see why it would be for others :)
compared with clans of caledonia?
lol. sorry. i jumped the gun on that question before i got to the end of the video. i was just so excited!
Klingon channel was pretty busy this playthrough :) I was on the edge for this one and waiting for your thoughts on 2 player, now I am certain that I am gonna get this game ;)
it was pretty busy on terra mystica as well, or any super heavy game really
Hey Rahdo :) Are going to do uptade video about your game collection for previous year? :) Cheers
thanks for reminding me, i totally forgot about that. will have to go on the list
although i might hold off a few months until after the move
rahdo when and where abouts geographically are you moving. I missed that update.
Good luck with the move.
It's a little hard for me to take your comparison to Terra Mystica seriously, because it's painfully obvious from the runthrough that you haven't played Terra Mystica at all. I wouldn't be surprised if you haven't touched it since your original TM runthrough. Otherwise a lot of the concepts you talked about would be much more familiar and they clearly weren't.
as always, i would suggest simply watching the runthrough and deciding for yourself if the game is worth picking up. my subjective opinion is besides the point.
2 player enhancements came with a price .... 5 players game option have been removed
interesting, i wonder why?
rahdo i guess since is much easier to expand in GP then in TM the 10 tiles universe is a bit too Small for 5 players. also 100% a 5th player expansion with 2/3 additional sectors will be available for Next Essen
um the art work for terra mystica is much better.
I played it yesterday, and besides recognizing it's a better game then Terra Mystica, I had way less fun playing it =/
But you didn't tell us why.
@@TheLuminousCleric I don't know what's the problem. It's just not nearly as fun to me for some reason =/
Richard, don‘t you think reading through the rules again right before the recording would lead to much less embarrassing results? Love(d) your videos but caught myself watching less and less because of all the goofs. The Klingon channel is a neat idea but also looks like a good excuse to not go over the rules again before recording.
i'm long past being embarrassed. i'm filming 4 or 5 games a week on average, and i'm prone to errors when i'm not under a lot of pressure. i do generally reread the rules right before filming, but when it's the 3rd or 4th game i've filmed that day, i'm still going to make mistakes. I make mistakes in runthroughs of games i've played dozens of times. i make mistakes in runthroughs of my favourite games of all time.
if you watch less and less, there's not much i can do about that. the errors i make don't (i believe) impact the sole purpose of the videos: to give an impression of what the game feels like to play.
Lines42 Spoken like a person that has never had to create video content on complex material. How much did you pay for this video? Oh, nothing? Just be thankful he's creating free content because I don't think most RUclipsrs are getting rich off this.
Richard, thanks for your answer. I guess I have to take it as the charme of your channel. Anyway keep going. I‘ll still visit every now and them.
Lawrence, maybe you want to look at peolple‘s channel before judging them? Among others I‘ve made official tutorials for Stonmeier, Kickstarter videos for VPG and tons of runthroughs myself. It‘s not that I have no clue of what I‘m talking about...
PS: Richard is making a living if this
Lines42 you also have to keep in mind that Rahdo is playing for two people. I can only imagine that by doing so it can be very easy to slip up on some rules. Especially since he is trying to explain what he's doing WHILE trying to effectively play for two people.