Do people really ask Tom not to bother making reviews of games he doesn't like? If anything it helps me determine what to avoid (so I could see publishers and designers might not like this series).
Agreed. Right now the video is only helpful for somebody who purposefully wants to find "bad games", it won't help a person to know if a game they want to buy is bad or not.
Loving the quicker format in this video, don’t get me wrong I love watching your other videos but this was brilliant for a quick watch while waiting for the missus. Keep up the great work
Excellent review video. This needs to be a series. I like Zee's in depth reviews but there are so many games you can't do them all. Its nice to not have to go in depth about every problem with a game or if it was just bland.
I also disaggree on Battalia. The core game is simple enough for gamers. The deck building rules are straight forward, the road building rules really simple and the Sun Dial has just two simple rules. Overall, the designer had great ideas and made a great and balanced game with optional modules and scenarios. There is just one ability that is surely unbalanced when two specific optional modules are combined.
I do not aggree on Battalia. It is a great game, the rules are straight forward and well written, not too complex. I am looking forward to the expansion. For the rest, a great video!
You need to do this more often. I've almost bought several of these games in the past. Now I know why they were on deep discount at my local shop. Thank you. Very useful short video.
Agreed, maybe rather than filming himself talking Tom could try putting a voice over footage of the game laid out on the table or some shots taken of the components.
This then destroys the point of the video by getting these out of the way quickly. When I capture B-roll of components for some of my videos I'll easily spend 3-5 hours getting shots on a few different things. The main reason why people don't like reviewing bad games is because it's a "waste of time", so why waste more time than this? Playing the game and making this video IMO was the perfect amount of time to "waste" on these titles.
I’m crying 😭😭😭 Approaching Dawn Witching Hour is my favourite co-op game. Once you get past rule book, it’s just Amazing! Especially the campaign, I always want to play it.
I see many people here feel as I do: that this should be a series. And even though these are negative reviews, I got interested The Witching Hour and will look into it. Too few people review bad games (for reasons already mentioned) so even bad exposure works for me in this regard. I also like that the games featured were listed in the description as it was very helpful.
The original Valiant Comics were some of the best comics produced in the mid/late 90's. So much better than Marvel and DC at the time. I would definitely checking some of them out. They've rebooted them, and currently have some pretty good series based on those characters (although they lost the licenses for some). Not nearly as good as the original ones, but still very solid. I had no idea they were making a game around them, too bad it sucked.
Wow, there seemed to be a lot of deck builders in this review. As my favorite mechanic, each new game you said was a new ache. I wanted to be like, "But maybe..." but I've gotten rid of too many deck builders to think that they're all good.
Brilliant series. I must admit that one of my guilty pleasures is seeing a Kickstarted game get a bad review and then running to the comments page to see all of the salty comments 😂
Extremely surprised about Battalia being listed. I can’t believe it! Not many rules or exceptions! No way. Very very smooth. The ambush-mechanic completely fixes any straightjacketing. The new expansion improves game speed and flow even further. Tom misunderstood it.
I think I like this type of bad reviews approach than a full-fledged bad review. In a full review it feels like a game can be unfairly picked on for 15 to 20 minutes, when it basically boils down to the game not appealing to the reviewer. There's also more opportunity to say something that will anger fans of the game watching the review. In a shorter span, specifics can be touched on to show why the game didn't work for the reviewer, but it still feels like you can like the game if you want, but if you were on the fence about it, maybe here's a couple reasons to help you make a decision. In short, it seemed nicer to these games. While I do agree with some of the games not being very good/smooth, they still don't deserve a royal bashing. Some games, on the other hand, are so bad and deserve the full treatment, following the hammer smashing the box, dumping it in the garbage and watching the garbage truck take it away. Great job! I look forward to more of these.
Great idea for a series. I wouldn't mind an extra minute or two for each game, and just do 5 per video. Show us the endless rules or iconography or whatever you didn't like. Also, if several of you played and nobody liked it, tell us who was involved in the not-liking. If Zee, Jason and you don't like something, that covers a wide variety of gamers.
I guess this highlights the difference between a bad board game and a bad video game. With a bad video game you can still enjoy it if only to make fun of how bad it is or to highlight certain parts of it, but with a board game you can't because all the players are in it together.
I like this concept. They aren’t worth the time a review of a decent game gets. I do like knowing which ones are duds so I’m aware when making purchasing decisions.
Bad GAME reviews, or Bad GAME REVIEWS? ;) ..... I kid! I love this format. In fact, I'd rather have this type of short "thoughts" video for a few games reviewed for quick consumption and have separate video as a deeper dive for when the review blurb piques my interest.
This was definitely entertaining, and a great way to get through the review copies. Some of those games did SOUND neat though, too bad they don’t hold up. I noticed many of them were because of too many rules/fiddliness.
please keep make reviews about bad games! Better to know what are bad games, lot of times I cant find any info about several games. I dont know is it so bad nobody plays it, or what. But if I see those in bad games list than I stop my research, and dont bother to buy and find out my own way.
Bardagi was the first boardgame I backed on Kickstarter and yeah, I ended up regretting it. It looked awesome, but ended up fiddly, hard to learn from the rulebook and I'm just happy to no longer have it. Hope the next person find some enjoyment out of it.
I like saving your time & our time, if you think the game is bad (maybe mention that these are games that seem < 4/10 or whatever your threshold of bad is). I also like skipping the rules and just getting to the review points as you did. Maybe you should add the date to the title, since I assume this will be a recurring video. I also agree with the comments to add the list of games to the description (which I see were added).
Tom I know it may not be fun for you guys to do negative rules but you save me from buying bad games my kids pick up. :). This happened last week on Rattle Battle loot something.
Is "Approaching Dawn: The Witching Hour" a bad game though? I've heard only nothing but good things about the game. I think maybe Tom is being a bit biased on this one. He doesn't really like games where you have to hurt your self to damage your opponent. This is why Arcadia Quest Inferno isn't his favorite Arcadia expansion, he's not the biggest fan of the damnation aspect or why he doesn't like the Warlock in Mage Wars, he's not a fan of bloodreaper. I'm guessing he probably hates the Warlock in Hearthstone too. I don't know "AD: The Witching Hour" seems interesting to me, it seems like co-op with a trick taking element added to it, and I like trick taking. You have to try to maximize the damage output you deal without leaving your allies in a risky position.
Maybe there are some game mechanisms that Tom just thinks are bad. So, no matter how the mechanism is executed the game is going to fail. So a shitty mechanism could just derail a game no matter how good the sum of the other parts are. Like if a game were a roll and move there is probably nothing that could be done to make that game good. Roll and move games are just crap you know. Like that game "The Labyrinth" I'm a big fan of the movie but it's a roll and move, so it's probably crap.
Hope City was good for some laughs but man was it rough and the production quality was low. It's the only game I got to sit in on with the Dice Tower crew. I did like the format of this video; however, I am thankful for the longer format of the typical reviews as they pack in a bit more detail which I find useful when considering a game for purchase.
I think a regular series like this would be good. Maybe 5 games you are not going to see reviewed. Then list 5 games and the reason for not a review (couldn’t figure out the rulebook, too long a time commitment, lack of interest, etc.)
What's stands out is that it seems like all of these games have pretty awesome artwork, judging by Tom's comments or the box cover. It's a shame that the artists would not be involved in some games that have good mechanics but poor artwork (of which there are a few).
For all ppl who wants this vid be searchable by game name.. go to bgg.. add this vid from your account on each game page.. done. Think Vasel wouldn't mind..
You don't like The Witching Hour? :( I was so hyped for this one and almost bought it at Essen but hoped for a German release sometime in the future. I played it at Essen and really thought that this was a great game. Now I am confused.
Note that he said he may be in the minority with his review. He said that because the game is generally getting good buzz. Research it more to see if you want it. Don't let a single review color your opinion too much. ;-)
i like this format. if a game is really bad, don't waste my time with a long rules explanation before telling me it's really bad. and don't waste your own time which could be spent promoting better games.
I have Valliant Universe and was a bit erm........ about getting it. The game concepts sounded interesting but risky. Haven’t played it yet, but not too disappointed Tom has given it a “meh” as it only cost 5 quid to buy brand new. This review Probably indicates why it was such a “bargain”. Do like the art work on the cards.
A lot of deckbuilding games on this list. Has deckbuilding perhaps gone too far at this point, or is it only just now reaching the point where it is mainstream enough to have bad games made with the mechanism?
I completely disagree on your comment about Battalia The Creation. The quality of the game is stunning, the gameplay is entertaining if you are into medium heavy games and the rules are quite intuitive once you get the basics. It's just that the rulebook goes into details about how players should manage some more complicated situations which actually is really helpful when they occur. And that's your only reason for calling the game "bad"? This is not a serious argument to put a game on this list.
I was wondering why no one was playing the valiant universe deckbuilder game. It sucks... that's why lol! I played it with a few of my friends 3 times and we were always confused trying to read the rules and understand can I hit the board or the character or both? BAD GAME, but I love valiant comics so I'll give it a try again with a new group of unsuspecting gamers lol
With how many people did you play Dungeon Hustle? How many times did you play it? Did you play it on easy, normal, or hard mode? Did you play as each of the four characters? Dungeon Hustle is far from boring. I've played it a handful of times and will play it many more. It's a pretty decent game-definitely not deserving of a "boring, garbage game" assessment. This is pretty darn fun with two players on hard mode.
More and more I'm seeing the comment that a game has too many rules or "too fiddly" or has too many symbols. One can imagine that the designer understands everything that is going on and thus doesn't see this problem. There's too little play testing and seriously addressing a new player's concerns and opinions.
Please DO keep doing bad game reviews. We don't know if it didn't get reviewed because it stunk or you just simply never got to play it.
Make this a series !!!!!!!!!
Do people really ask Tom not to bother making reviews of games he doesn't like? If anything it helps me determine what to avoid (so I could see publishers and designers might not like this series).
Can you list the games in the description? It would be nice if the video showed up when searching for reviews on one of these. Thanks.
Brian Myers agreed!
Yes, please add the names, and pictures of the games in the video
Agreed. C'mon man!
Yes! Because I have no idea what that 3d board dice ship game is called: dicejobnowarbitdicejarversuscicalon?
Agreed. Right now the video is only helpful for somebody who purposefully wants to find "bad games", it won't help a person to know if a game they want to buy is bad or not.
Loving the quicker format in this video, don’t get me wrong I love watching your other videos but this was brilliant for a quick watch while waiting for the missus. Keep up the great work
Excellent review video. This needs to be a series. I like Zee's in depth reviews but there are so many games you can't do them all. Its nice to not have to go in depth about every problem with a game or if it was just bland.
I also disaggree on Battalia. The core game is simple enough for gamers. The deck building rules are straight forward, the road building rules really simple and the Sun Dial has just two simple rules.
Overall, the designer had great ideas and made a great and balanced game with optional modules and scenarios. There is just one ability that is surely unbalanced when two specific optional modules are combined.
I do not aggree on Battalia. It is a great game, the rules are straight forward and well written, not too complex. I am looking forward to the expansion. For the rest, a great video!
You need to do this more often. I've almost bought several of these games in the past. Now I know why they were on deep discount at my local shop. Thank you. Very useful short video.
Love this format. Maybe you could include a picture of the components but it's a good way to review these games.
To chime in, this should definitely be a series!
liked the idea of this speed reviews, suggestion, try to show the components, maybe an screenshot of the back of the box, otherwise great idea
Agreed, maybe rather than filming himself talking Tom could try putting a voice over footage of the game laid out on the table or some shots taken of the components.
This then destroys the point of the video by getting these out of the way quickly. When I capture B-roll of components for some of my videos I'll easily spend 3-5 hours getting shots on a few different things.
The main reason why people don't like reviewing bad games is because it's a "waste of time", so why waste more time than this? Playing the game and making this video IMO was the perfect amount of time to "waste" on these titles.
Please make it into a series, very useful format.
This is an excellent video! I would love to see more of this!
Loved this. I hope you make this a series. Maybe in a weekly format, just like "Look Back"?
I’m crying 😭😭😭 Approaching Dawn Witching Hour is my favourite co-op game. Once you get past rule book, it’s just Amazing! Especially the campaign, I always want to play it.
Liked format. Even if they are bad games, I enjoyed seeing them.
This is a must add series...great job Tom!
Hmm Approaching Dawn: The Witching Hour is an 8.4 on BGG (only 70 reviews though)
Overall like this idea, but with so many games, you should include your rating for each. Or at least explain that these are 4 (?) or less.
Love this idea! Maybe even post this video in bgg for each game so people looking for reviews on them can see this.
What was that intro song? Sounded good!
I see many people here feel as I do: that this should be a series. And even though these are negative reviews, I got interested The Witching Hour and will look into it. Too few people review bad games (for reasons already mentioned) so even bad exposure works for me in this regard. I also like that the games featured were listed in the description as it was very helpful.
Great video. This should be a monthly series. Keep up the great work.
The original Valiant Comics were some of the best comics produced in the mid/late 90's. So much better than Marvel and DC at the time. I would definitely checking some of them out. They've rebooted them, and currently have some pretty good series based on those characters (although they lost the licenses for some). Not nearly as good as the original ones, but still very solid.
I had no idea they were making a game around them, too bad it sucked.
Wow, there seemed to be a lot of deck builders in this review. As my favorite mechanic, each new game you said was a new ache. I wanted to be like, "But maybe..." but I've gotten rid of too many deck builders to think that they're all good.
oh my goodness its an Ashens style board game video.
Next thing he'll be doing a component drop on his couch.
Any chance of a Mutant Crops review?
no
Never heard of any of these. You're a lucky man to be so blessed by so many obscurities.
Could you have the rating numbers added to these videos if this an ongoing serie?
i am surprised that rail raiders was not in these. Looking forward to that review :)
I agree with most people in the comments that this needs to be a series - kind of like the list of 'what not to buy'
Do more of these, but still do regular reviews. I like to see what the components and gameplay looks like.
great format, dont want to watch 15 min if you dislike a game
Yes, make this a series plz
I agree with everyone saying this needs to be a series. 11 games in 8 minutes good time spent even in bad games.
'In our culture, we have too many games being made'
THIS!
Love the cameo by Melody in the corner. :D :D :D
Don't think it was Melody, she isn't that short anymore.
Well its was obviously an adult on the floor handing Tom the games and the hairline looked like Melody. :)
Brilliant series.
I must admit that one of my guilty pleasures is seeing a Kickstarted game get a bad review and then running to the comments page to see all of the salty comments 😂
I really like this. Hope it also meant a lot less time used on the reviews for you guys.
Extremely surprised about Battalia being listed. I can’t believe it! Not many rules or exceptions! No way. Very very smooth. The ambush-mechanic completely fixes any straightjacketing. The new expansion improves game speed and flow even further. Tom misunderstood it.
I really like this idea. Like someone else said, links in the description would be nice.
Quick review of bad games was awesome!!! Great idea I give it 10 STARS!!!!!
Nice vid! Would have been nice if you showed some of the stuff in the box, even if it's just some pictures edited into the video or something
Has Queen made a good game since Fresco? Great idea for a series, Tom hope you do more
That's one way to clear a shelf.
3:44 Yeah, you were right the first time! It's Japanese. Although there is a lot of kanji (Chinese characters) on there
Great review idea Tom, glad I've never heard of these misfits!..
I think I like this type of bad reviews approach than a full-fledged bad review.
In a full review it feels like a game can be unfairly picked on for 15 to 20 minutes, when it basically boils down to the game not appealing to the reviewer. There's also more opportunity to say something that will anger fans of the game watching the review.
In a shorter span, specifics can be touched on to show why the game didn't work for the reviewer, but it still feels like you can like the game if you want, but if you were on the fence about it, maybe here's a couple reasons to help you make a decision.
In short, it seemed nicer to these games. While I do agree with some of the games not being very good/smooth, they still don't deserve a royal bashing. Some games, on the other hand, are so bad and deserve the full treatment, following the hammer smashing the box, dumping it in the garbage and watching the garbage truck take it away.
Great job! I look forward to more of these.
Great idea for a series. I wouldn't mind an extra minute or two for each game, and just do 5 per video. Show us the endless rules or iconography or whatever you didn't like. Also, if several of you played and nobody liked it, tell us who was involved in the not-liking. If Zee, Jason and you don't like something, that covers a wide variety of gamers.
Thanks for the heads up.
Thanks Tom!
I guess this highlights the difference between a bad board game and a bad video game. With a bad video game you can still enjoy it if only to make fun of how bad it is or to highlight certain parts of it, but with a board game you can't because all the players are in it together.
Useful video, thanks!
I like this concept. They aren’t worth the time a review of a decent game gets. I do like knowing which ones are duds so I’m aware when making purchasing decisions.
Great video 👾
So many Kickstarters...
love the music
Bad GAME reviews, or Bad GAME REVIEWS? ;) ..... I kid! I love this format. In fact, I'd rather have this type of short "thoughts" video for a few games reviewed for quick consumption and have separate video as a deeper dive for when the review blurb piques my interest.
This was definitely entertaining, and a great way to get through the review copies. Some of those games did SOUND neat though, too bad they don’t hold up. I noticed many of them were because of too many rules/fiddliness.
Do more of these, please. 😂
I loved this style!
Loved the video. 11 games to walk quickly by...
please keep make reviews about bad games! Better to know what are bad games, lot of times I cant find any info about several games. I dont know is it so bad nobody plays it, or what.
But if I see those in bad games list than I stop my research, and dont bother to buy and find out my own way.
More of this quick reviews please! Maybe better games could be in this format if the time doesn't allow a full review.
Bardagi was the first boardgame I backed on Kickstarter and yeah, I ended up regretting it. It looked awesome, but ended up fiddly, hard to learn from the rulebook and I'm just happy to no longer have it. Hope the next person find some enjoyment out of it.
I like saving your time & our time, if you think the game is bad (maybe mention that these are games that seem < 4/10 or whatever your threshold of bad is). I also like skipping the rules and just getting to the review points as you did. Maybe you should add the date to the title, since I assume this will be a recurring video. I also agree with the comments to add the list of games to the description (which I see were added).
I miss Munchkin from the list :)
Tom I know it may not be fun for you guys to do negative rules but you save me from buying bad games my kids pick up. :). This happened last week on Rattle Battle loot something.
we.want.more.
Is "Approaching Dawn: The Witching Hour" a bad game though? I've heard only nothing but good things about the game. I think maybe Tom is being a bit biased on this one. He doesn't really like games where you have to hurt your self to damage your opponent. This is why Arcadia Quest Inferno isn't his favorite Arcadia expansion, he's not the biggest fan of the damnation aspect or why he doesn't like the Warlock in Mage Wars, he's not a fan of bloodreaper. I'm guessing he probably hates the Warlock in Hearthstone too. I don't know "AD: The Witching Hour" seems interesting to me, it seems like co-op with a trick taking element added to it, and I like trick taking. You have to try to maximize the damage output you deal without leaving your allies in a risky position.
You know that every single review is biased. You tell everyone else what is your opinion on something that is the point.
Maybe there are some game mechanisms that Tom just thinks are bad. So, no matter how the mechanism is executed the game is going to fail. So a shitty mechanism could just derail a game no matter how good the sum of the other parts are. Like if a game were a roll and move there is probably nothing that could be done to make that game good. Roll and move games are just crap you know. Like that game "The Labyrinth" I'm a big fan of the movie but it's a roll and move, so it's probably crap.
Well, it's just his opinion though. That no reason for you not to like a game he gives a bad review to.
Hope City was good for some laughs but man was it rough and the production quality was low. It's the only game I got to sit in on with the Dice Tower crew.
I did like the format of this video; however, I am thankful for the longer format of the typical reviews as they pack in a bit more detail which I find useful when considering a game for purchase.
Nice video 👍
I think a regular series like this would be good. Maybe 5 games you are not going to see reviewed. Then list 5 games and the reason for not a review (couldn’t figure out the rulebook, too long a time commitment, lack of interest, etc.)
What's stands out is that it seems like all of these games have pretty awesome artwork, judging by Tom's comments or the box cover. It's a shame that the artists would not be involved in some games that have good mechanics but poor artwork (of which there are a few).
3:44 Based on that back cover, that is JAPANESE!
For all ppl who wants this vid be searchable by game name.. go to bgg.. add this vid from your account on each game page.. done. Think Vasel wouldn't mind..
Now... Can we please see a review of Rise to Nobility, Mare Nostrum Empires and Covil?
It's a good sign that none of those were in this set :)
I'm interested in Rise to Nobility for sure.
You don't like The Witching Hour? :( I was so hyped for this one and almost bought it at Essen but hoped for a German release sometime in the future. I played it at Essen and really thought that this was a great game. Now I am confused.
Note that he said he may be in the minority with his review. He said that because the game is generally getting good buzz. Research it more to see if you want it. Don't let a single review color your opinion too much. ;-)
Always remember, take your idol's opinion as divinely inspired. If your initial interpretation is different, you're wrong.
i like this format. if a game is really bad, don't waste my time with a long rules explanation before telling me it's really bad. and don't waste your own time which could be spent promoting better games.
Agreed with the rest of the comments, do more videos like these.
I have Valliant Universe and was a bit erm........ about getting it. The game concepts sounded interesting but risky. Haven’t played it yet, but not too disappointed Tom has given it a “meh” as it only cost 5 quid to buy brand new. This review Probably indicates why it was such a “bargain”. Do like the art work on the cards.
Valiant Universe - what do you expect? Catalyst to do something fun or new?
A lot of deckbuilding games on this list. Has deckbuilding perhaps gone too far at this point, or is it only just now reaching the point where it is mainstream enough to have bad games made with the mechanism?
Nice opening music, rock on mothalikkas
YES! THIS! No more silly game reviews videos with ratings under 5... Put them all in only list like this and lets all just make fun of them! lol
I completely disagree on your comment about Battalia The Creation. The quality of the game is stunning, the gameplay is entertaining if you are into medium heavy games and the rules are quite intuitive once you get the basics. It's just that the rulebook goes into details about how players should manage some more complicated situations which actually is really helpful when they occur. And that's your only reason for calling the game "bad"? This is not a serious argument to put a game on this list.
I was wondering why no one was playing the valiant universe deckbuilder game. It sucks... that's why lol! I played it with a few of my friends 3 times and we were always confused trying to read the rules and understand can I hit the board or the character or both? BAD GAME, but I love valiant comics so I'll give it a try again with a new group of unsuspecting gamers lol
That end music is boss, replace the intro music with that.
With how many people did you play Dungeon Hustle? How many times did you play it? Did you play it on easy, normal, or hard mode? Did you play as each of the four characters?
Dungeon Hustle is far from boring. I've played it a handful of times and will play it many more. It's a pretty decent game-definitely not deserving of a "boring, garbage game" assessment. This is pretty darn fun with two players on hard mode.
do more bad games reviews, its been a while since you dont do any of those comical ones
Dungeon havoc looks like a poor man's five-minute dungeon.
That’s a great innovation
Good job
It's japanese on the back of that box
Tough to be a designer in this market....
More and more I'm seeing the comment that a game has too many rules or "too fiddly" or has too many symbols. One can imagine that the designer understands everything that is going on and thus doesn't see this problem. There's too little play testing and seriously addressing a new player's concerns and opinions.
I love the idea of this as a "series", even just once per quarter.
I like this idea.
The worst game I think I've ever played was Colossal Cave.
I like this.