Monkey Arena Review

Monkeys have got to be one of the most universally appealing subjects for board or card games. Along with Pirates, monkeys are one of those things that instantly make any game appealing. Monkeys have been used as the theme for many games, and are sure to be featured in many more. The latest primate-related game to be released, Monkey Arena is a quick, simple game of battling simians for 2-8 players from 3AM Games.

Players choose a monkey (or more likely an ape - it's a common mistake to label such species as Gorilla, Orangutan and Chimpanzee as monkeys - they are actually apes!), and then a starting position within the arena (which seems to be located within a large interspecies cage at an undetermined zoo). During their turns, players move one space, then lay a card (which is usually an attack - with most attacks requiring monkeys to be adjacent but some, such as rocks and flinging poo, can be used up to 3 spaces away - but can be a health replenishing card such as a banana). Players then draw their hand size back up to the maximum number of cards and the next player takes his or her turn. Last monkey standing is the winner!

Play really is very simple in Monkey Arena - it takes just a minute or two to get acquainted with the rules and get going, which is great. It's very refreshing to have a game that can be played almost instantly, and that doesn't require several hours of studying the rules, then a further half an hour to explain the game to the other players. The unique combat system takes a little while to get used to, but is very well implemented. Basically, the attacking monkey rolls dice equal to its attack value (plus or minus any modifiers incurred by cards played), so if the monkey has 3 attack, 3 dice are rolled (if a card played says +1 to attack and a monkey has 3 attack, 4 dice are rolled). The defending monkey then rolls dice according to their defence value (using the same principles as the attack method). If the defender rolls any numbers that correspond to the attacker's dice roll, these numbers are ignored. Therefore, if the attacker rolls 3, 2, 4 and the defender rolls 1, 3, 4, the attacker's 3 and 4 are ignored as the defender also rolled a 3 and a 4. This leaves just the 2 that the attacker rolled, which incurs one point of damage on the defending monkey. If the defender had rolled 1, 5 and 6 in the above example, they would have incurred 3 damage as none of their numbers rolled match the numbers on the attacker's dice. When a monkey is down to zero health, they are out of the game.

Aesthetically Monkey Arena is very good, with the illustrations evoking a very anarchic, underground-comix style feel. Monkey Arena is good value for money too - the package includes 10 - yes, 10! - six sided dice as well as a nicely sturdy board, eight pawns, eight monkey cards and a 55 card deck. The game itself is full of nice little touches, with the cards themselves providing no end of amusement - the attack cards, such as 'fling poo', 'poke' and 'kick' are very funny indeed.

On the downside, the rules are slightly ambiguous and open to interpretation (although this is hardly Arkham Horror, which has far many more ambiguities - and given the complexity of that game the sheer number of ambiguities make it far more frustrating than the few to be found in a simple game such as Monkey Arena!). Also, the game does feature player elimination, which is something I usually hate in a game - but in the games I have played, those eliminated have been kept entertained by the spectacle of the remaining primate warriors. Also, as the game is pretty short - it doesn't usually last for longer than 30 minutes - the elimination is more acceptable than in something like, for example, Monopoly - which can drag on for hours.

In short, Monkey Arena is a fast, funny game with very amusing subject matter and a nicely varied group of apes and monkeys to choose from. Highly recommended for players looking for a light, funny game with a unique, dice based combat system. Did I mention that it features monkeys?

Summary

Presentation: Brilliantly illustrated cards in a compact and colourful box. 8.5/10

Clarity of Rules: The rules are very short and there are a few minor clarifications needed, but it's very easy to get up and running - it's a very simple game. 7.9/10

Game Length: The end of the game can sometimes drag on, and considering that players are eliminated one by one, this can turn out to be very boring for the players no longer involved. 6.1/10

Value: Lots of dice, a well made board and sturdy cards. Plain pawns instead of primates are the only letdown. 8.0/10

Overall: A light game of primate combat in a small box at a reasonable price. The player elimination and sometimes drawn out climax brings the final mark down somewhat, but this is still highly recommended for players looking for a little bit of anarchic fun in a board game. 7.2/10 (not an average)

Review by Jason M. Brown

Charlie Catino Interview - Avalon Hill

Avalon Hill has existed in one form or another since 1958. Created by Charles S. Roberts, Avalon Hill first specialised in war games, pioneering many of the characteristics still seen in the genre today. Branching out into different types of game in the 1970s and 1980s - including computer games for classic machines such as the Commodore VIC-20 - Avalon Hill became well known as a company that produced deep, involving 'gamers games'.

Nexus Ops is part of the range of 'new' Avalon Hill games. The Avalon Hill name and back catalogue has been owned by Hasbro since 1998, and since then the range has built up a reputation for high production values and aesthetically interesting games that occupy a middle ground between light German style games and more complex 'classic Avalon Hill' style games. Nexus Ops is the brainchild of Charlie Catino, a game developer at Wizards of the Coast (also owned by Hasbro).

Hi Charlie. Firstly, can you tell me a bit about yourself - how you got involved in designing games and what kind of interests you have outside of games, for example?

I grew up in a household that loved to play board games and card games. At an early age, I would modify games to make them play better. As a teen and into college, I played in numerous chess and bridge tournaments. In and after college, I really got into ‘gamers games’ – like Axis and Allies, Titan, Acquire, Cosmic Encounter, etc. Then I met Richard Garfield who was at the time creating Magic: The Gathering. I became one of his early playtesters and loved the game. Eventually that turned into a career in R&D at Wizards of the Coast as a game developer. Outside of games, I like to play sports – especially softball, golf, and bowling.

Who would you say are your main influences with regards to game designers?

I have a ton of respect for Richard Garfield, and I know I learned a lot from him about games. I also learned a lot interacting with Paul Randles (designer of Pirate’s Cove). Also, all the people here in WotC R&D have influenced me quite a bit in the 10+ years I have worked here.

What are your favourite games aside from your own designs or other Avalon Hill products? How often do you play games?

I have many favourite games. I mentioned the Avalon Hill games above, and I am also a big fan of Magic: The Gathering, Starcraft [the computer game], Settlers of Catan, the 18xx train games, and a lot of German board games. Since I now have a job and a family, I don’t get to play games as much as I used to, but I still find plenty of time to do so. One of the perks of working at WotC is that I do get to playtest, so part of my job is to play DuelMasters, Hecatomb, Magic, and the new Avalon Hill games.

Would you say that the Avalon Hill range has a ‘house style’ in terms of aesthetics and mechanics? If so, how do you see Nexus Ops fitting into that style, if at all?

Personally, when I think of Avalon Hill, I think of great games for real gamers. They didn’t seem to me to have any other unifying theme, but I thought that they were all deep games that were great no matter how many times you played them. That is what I have always loved most about Avalon Hill.

With Nexus Ops, which came first, the concept or the game mechanics?

The game mechanic definitely came first, as I was intending to create a ‘king of the hill’ battle game. I had turned it in with a different theme, but the Avalon Hill team wanted to add a science fiction theme to it, and I think they did an awesome job with that.

I have a funny story about the creation of the game. I was on a business trip in Japan, and was travelling the subway quite a bit visiting with our different partners. The trips were quite long, and all of a sudden the concept for the game came to me. I borrowed paper and pencil from a colleague, and quickly wrote up the concept and simple rules to the game. When I got home, I did quite a bit of spreadsheet calculations to figure out the correct costs and attack values for the various units and tested them in various combinations. I tried it out a little with my wife, and it seemed like a good design, so I submitted it to the R&D lead for Avalon Hill – Bill McQuillan. He liked the game enough to do it, and after many playtests he and I decided to add the victory point system of secret missions (before the object of the game was to try to control one of your opponent’s home hexes). He and the rest of his team came up with the theme of the game and were able to incorporate it into the game design quite well.

Who do you see as your main audience for Nexus Ops? Is it consciously aimed at a particular age group or certain type of player?

I hope that gamers like this game – I wanted to make a game that had a good amount of depth and replay value, but that was not excessively lengthy.

How has the response to Nexus Ops been so far?

Personally I have had many positive responses to the game, and I am very encouraged by the reactions of the players after they learned and played the game for the first time.

Nexus Ops seems to be designed to be able to support numerous expansions – different units, different sets of secret missions and energize cards, different terrain - is that something you are considering?

We don't have any specific plans for expansions at this time, but if the game sells well enough we will definitely consider the idea.

The presentation of Nexus Ops creates a real sense of an alien environment, which greatly adds to the feel of the game. Who was responsible for the overall look of the product? Was the graphic design something that was decided very early on, or was it something that evolved organically during the design process?

The Avalon Hill production team did a great job of creating a cool science fiction feel to the game and matching it to the mechanics. The overall look of the game came from the collaboration between art director Pete Whitley and graphic designer Scott Okumura. Both of them were involved in early playtests of the game, so their design and illustrations were able to evolve organically during the process.

The brightly coloured aliens are a very refreshing change from the normal plain plastic miniatures that are normally included with a game, which again brings a very otherworldly and unique feel to Nexus Ops. Was it decided from very early on that the aliens should have a strikingly different look?

As soon as we settled on the science fiction theme, the art director envisioned this different plastic treatment. His hope was that the bright translucent plastic would both stand out from other games on the market and also evoke an "alien" feel for the game. We're happy with the result.

Nexus Ops plays very much like a board game translation of a computer RTS game (the unit production, fast paced play etc) – was that a conscious design decision?

I like that type of game, so I am sure it unconsciously steered me in that direction a little. I have always liked games that balanced economic and military strategies.

Finally, do you have any games in the pipeline that you can tell us about? Is there anything that fans of Nexus Ops can look forward to?

I am afraid you don’t have clearance for that information! Seriously though, I can say that while I am not the designer of Avalon Hill’s next game – Vegas Showdown – I was a very avid playtester, am looking forward to its release, and want to let everyone know that it’s a fun game.

I'll be sure to look out for Vegas Showdown! Charlie, many thanks for your time.

Interview by Jason M Brown

Ben Shanks Interview - 3AM Games

3AM Games, a relatively new company, have recently released their first board game – Monkey Arena. Monkey Arena is a fast, fun game of warring primates for up to 8 players and will be reviewed next week. Ben Shanks is the designer of Monkey Arena as well as 3AM’s first card game, Robot Rampage: Rise of the Appliance.

Hi Ben. Firstly, can you tell me a bit about yourself - how you got involved in designing games and what kind of interests you have outside of games, for example?

I live in South Carolina with my wonderful wife and daughter. I am a technical buyer for a large corporation and a freelance game designer. I have been in school for the last several years working on my Computer Science degree. I originally got involved in game design because I have an aversion to boredom. Many of my first games (ones that will never see the light of day without a complete overhaul) were developed as entertainment while in class.

The thing that first got me involved in gaming was my love of Tolkien. I played a bunch of D&D growing up (usually as the GM) and really became a rabid gamer playing the Middle Earth CCG. Basically I have always made modifications to just about any game I played since I was a kid. My first fully fleshed out game was a chess variant played on multiple hex boards with a 3D aspect. Outside of gaming I have an addiction to Sci-fi, reading books and playing with my daughter. I do a bit of programming and learning graphic design on the side.

Can you tell me a bit about 3AM Games - when was the company started? What is the main focus of the company? Is there a certain style of game that 3AM is aiming to produce, a 'house style' of some kind?

3AM games now just over a year old. 3AM started out as a D20 game publisher. The owner of the company, Don Bessinger, writes and develops the World of Ordûn line. 3AM is adding a couple of other RPG lines to the schedule for 2006. The board game portion of 3AM is developing more toward the Family Strategy line starting with Nazca in the Winter/Spring of 06. We decided to cut our teeth on the less serious style of games, Monkey Arena and Robot Rampage, first. We are planning on releasing 3-4 board games a year varying between humorous and serious games. We want to keep all the games family friendly.

Who do you see as your main audience for your board and card games?

I tend to design games in threes. I make similarly themed games with completely different mechanics. I try to make the first playable with children and have enough strategy/tactics to keep parents entertained. The second game I try to make enjoyable for non-gamers: simple rules, close games, no elimination. The third game is gamer oriented generally with a Euro-game feel.

A chicken and egg question for you now - with regards to Monkey Arena specifically, which came first, the concept or the game mechanics? How much of a challenge was it to fit the theme to the mechanics or vice versa? How long did it take to finish the game, from concept to publication?

Monkey Arena was initially a pure card game of gladiatorial combat. I was meeting with my playtest group when I showed it off and we had a good time with it. We started bouncing ideas until I saw the light bulb appear above one of my tester's head. Usually this means that it is time for him to go off topic about whatever just occurred to him but...he suggested I should get rid of the Romans and replace them with Monkeys and so Monkey Arena was born. I spent the next few weeks trying to figure out what to do with the cards and rules. We spent the next few months playtesting it along with other games. The game was pretty much complete when 3AM saw it for the first time and it went directly into design at that point. The artist is local and the artwork was finished in about 2 weeks.

Speaking of the art, the presentation of the game is superb - the graphic design brings a real sense of anarchic fun to the proceedings. Who was responsible for the look of the product, and how hard was it to find someone who brought the right 'feel' to the game?

Charlie Schultz and Don were completely responsible for the look. My prototypes are generally clip art so they do little to influence look of the game. Don basically told Charlie to give it a bit of a mad look and I think she was completely successful. We were lucky since she is a local artist and had worked with Don on roleplaying projects in the past.

How has the response to Monkey Arena been so far? Have you demonstrated it at any conventions or trade shows?

We premiered the game at Origins. Our booth was slammed pretty much the entire weekend. We had a lot of fun and met many great people there. We're a new company and we are picking up pretty quickly. We are hitting small cons for the rest of the year but plan on hitting 2-3 of the larger cons in the states next year.

Monkey Arena seems to me to be a game that could support numerous expansions - extra monkeys, different sets of attacks/items/events, different arenas - is that something you are considering?

We have started play testing an expansion for the game. We plan on releasing is as a stand alone that can be merged with the original. My favourite monkey in the new set so far is the "Swarm of Finger Monkeys." We are working on giving a more 3D feel to the new game board.

Who would you say are your main influences with regards to game designers? Or are there specific games, not necessarily designers, that have influenced you? Do you have any influences outside of board/card games that you can identify? For instance, what are your interests outside of board/card games, and do these have any impact on your game designs?

I tend to like Euro games and RPGs. Themes generally interest me before mechanics. I like games with mechanics worked into a theme rather then a theme applied to the mechanics. I tend to like games with simple rules and tactical decisions. I usually turn to 2 places for inspiration. I record about 3-5 shows a week off the History International channel. Usually I get a few ideas a week from there, often distantly related to the show I watched. The other is random searching on the Internet especially on wikipedia.

What are your favourite games aside from your own designs or 3AM products?How often do you play games?

Some of my favourite games are Betrayal at House [on the Hill], Union Pacific, Web of Power, Puerto Rico, and Ticket to Ride. I usually get to play games 2 nights a week. I meet with my play test group every Monday. Wednesday night I meet with a group calling itself the Greenville Mafia.

Finally, do you have any games in the pipeline that you can tell us about? Is there anything that fans of your current games can look forward to?

The next game in production is Nazca. It's based on the Nazca Indians from ancient Peru. They drew giant lined pictographs in the desert that are still visible today. Players get to run a small village winning tiles that allow them to build the pictographs on the game board. The more complex the design the more points its worth. There are several other games in the pipeline but still in development so I can't release any details on them yet.

Ben, many thanks for your time.

Thanks for the opportunity!

Interview by Jason M. Brown

An Introduction To Board Gaming - Part 1 - German Games

For those of you who are new to the board gaming hobby, the sheer number and types of games can be rather bewildering. It's often easier to stick with what you know - Monopoly, Risk, Top Trumps etc - than to try something new that you might have heard little about. This article is the first in a planned series, in which I will attempt to get you up to speed on the different types of games that are available in order to help you make a more informed decision about what's right for you. To begin, we will look at German or German-style games, and what exactly that term means.

An Introduction to...

German Games

You will often hear references to German or German-style games on board game websites. Calling something a German-style game doesn't necessarily mean that it originates from Germany, but that the game has mechanics similar to those found in games that used to almost exclusively come from German game designers. As board games are an incredibly popular pastime in Germany, many of the world's most highly regarded game designers are German, and therefore the term has stuck regardless of where the game actually comes from. There are several defining characteristics of German-style games, as follows:

• No Player Elimination - This is probably the single most important characteristic of a German-style game. These games are played to a set number of points, and all players are always involved. This is directly opposite to many non-German games such as Monopoly in which player elimination is common. So why is this bad? Well, getting people together to play board games as a social 'event' is not exactly easy, and to then have several players sitting around doing nothing for the last few hours of the session isn't much fun for the players who have dropped out of the game - which means that those players are less likely to want to play again. The point being that everyone should be involved during the duration of a game - no one should have to sit and twiddle their thumbs while waiting for the rest of the group to finish.

• Short and Involving Gameplay - Another important characteristic that German-style games share is an easily definable goal that can be attained in a reasonable amount of time. Usually they are played to a set number of points (whereas in non-German games they are often 'Last Man Standing'). Also, the rules of these games allow more than just the player whose turn it is to be involved in some way - for example in The Settlers of Catan, which is widely regarded as one of the best German-style games available, each player on his or her turn rolls the dice to see which commodities are produced. Anyone who has a building on a tile matching the number rolled can collect commodities, even on someone else's turn. Catan is mostly a trading game - if you don't have the commodities you need, you are freely able to strike deals with other players as you see fit, so during trading on someone else's turn it is not uncommon for all players to be involved. Catan is played until someone reaches 10 victory points, which usually takes no more than 90-120 minutes. Contrast this with mammoth games of Monopoly which can often take many hours and still have no conclusion within reach.

• Minimal Luck and Many Choices - Many German-style games are based around player's skill rather than luck. As an extreme example of a game based entirely on luck, we have Snakes and Ladders. The players are entirely at the mercy of luck, with only the roll of the die to guide them. No decisions about where to move or how to get to where you need to be are able to be taken - rolling the die is the only meaningful interaction that the player has with the game - once the die is rolled, the number must be obeyed, and then if the player lands on a snake or a ladder, the appropriate actions must be taken. In German-style games, there are often many different paths that can be taken throughout the game, and different choices can often be made during every single turn. German-style games encourage the player to think for themselves rather than have dice do all the thinking for them.

• Simple, easily digestable rules - With all of the choice, interaction and strategy, it would be quite easy to think that German-style games would be too complex or hard to learn for anyone but the most dedicated gamer. Not so. Most German-style games are designed to be incredibly easy to learn, and they often have very short, clearly laid-out rules that can be learned and taught in a surprisingly short space of time. Filled with illustrated examples of play and turn summaries as well as many helpful reference materials (such as cards for each player with helpful summaries on), it is not at all difficult to understand and quickly grasp all the nuances in German-style games.

• High Production Values - German-style games are renowned for having very high production values - well designed, sturdy boards or colourful playing pieces are an example of the type of components that are included. German-style games are therefore seen to be very good value for money, as the components are well made and very resilient indeed.

• Credited Designer - Pretty much every single German-style game credits the game designer very prominently. Many designers of German-style games are very popular and enjoy a huge following, which leads to gamers choosing games based on who they are designed by rather than just looking at what the game is about. Reiner Knizia is probably the most famous and prolific of all German game designers, having designed over 200 published games.

So where to start with German-style games? It depends on what you are looking for. Let's run through a few now to give you a little help:

• The Settlers of Catan is a great family game of trading and resource management, playable by 3 or 4 players (or up to 6 with the expansion). Games typically last no more than 2 hours and are made exciting every step of the way with all players constantly involved in trading and production of resources. Every game is different to the last, as the board is randomly arranged each time, so the availability of different resources changes for every game played. This helps to keep the game feeling fresh even after several plays with the same group of people, and there is a luck element that helps to make the game less daunting for new players. There is a large range of Catan games, with some expansions that can be added to further enhance the main game as well as stand alone games such as Starship Catan and Candamir - The First Settlers that add to the main formula in order to provide different experiences for fans of the base game.

• Carcassonne is an excellent introduction to German-style games. Players take turns to draw a tile from one of several different stacks, and the idea of the game is to place these tiles to ones already laid and make cities, roads, closters and farms, placing your small wooden people in different places around the tiles in order to try and score more points than anyone else. Carcassonne is a game that works very well for two players, but can be played by up to five players. It often takes no more than 45 minutes to play, and scores are often very close which leads to very tense and exciting games! There are many expansions to Carcassonne which add interesting elements to the game and can be added either one at a time or all together to significantly affect the way that the main game is played. There are also quite a few stand alone games in the Carcassonne range, such as Carcassonne - Hunters and Gatherers, Carcassonne - The City, Carcassonne - The Castle, which all take the existing Carcassonne tile-laying formula and make it into a refreshing new game.

• Lord of the Rings by Reiner Knizia is a step up complexity-wise from the aforementioned two games, but once the rules are learned it is a very simple and interesting game. Non-confrontational, the players co-operate to beat the game itself. While player elimination is featured, it is not until just before the game comes to its natural end that a player is eliminated - and as the other players are co-operating anyway, those who are eliminate can still help out if they want! This game also has two expansions available - Friends and Foes (which adds extra boards and encounters) and Sauron, which allows the players to team up against another player who takes the role of Sauron himself. Highly recommended for fans of Lord of the Rings, this allows players to work together as a team, which is a very rare feature in games.

• Ticket to Ride is an excellent first choice, combining simple set collecting with varied strategic desicions to be made every turn. Players must collect different types of train cars and claim routes across the board, with longer routes worth more points.The rules are easy to digest and take no more than 3 minutes to learn, with games not usually lasting any longer than 45 minutes. For those after a very slightly deeper game, the stand alone Ticket to Ride: Europe is now also available.

This concludes the first 'An Introduction to Boardgaming' article. If you have any comments or suggestions, please feel free to leave them at the link below.

Author: Jason M. Brown

Nexus Ops Review

Nexus Ops is a fast paced game of exploration, mining and combat on an alien moon. Players are employees of unscrupulous Earth based corporations, enlisting strange extra-terrestrial creatures to help them battle each other over the moon's resources. The object of the game is to be the first player to reach 12 Victory Points, a goal that can be achieved through many different means.


The first thing you notice about Nexus Ops is how glowing and bright the plastic miniatures are. They're colourful, appealing, translucent plastic units that look unlike anything in recent memory - which helps to give it a refreshingly striking look. The board itself is randomly dealt out using cardboard hexes, much like The Settlers of Catan. A 3D cardboard piece called the Monolith is placed in the centre with the hexes surrounding it, and the players starting at equal distances from each other at opposite sides of the board (setup is slightly different depending on the number of players involved). Exploration tiles are placed face down on each hex, and each player is given their starting rubium (the game’s currency). In a nice piece of game balancing, the starting player begins the game with the least rubium - 8 total - with the next player getting three more (11), then player three getting another three (14 - still with me?) and finally the fourth player has 14 rubium to start.


Each turn goes as follows: The active player first purchases any units they require and can afford using their rubium, then plays any start of turn cards they may have. All of the active player's units are then moved if necessary (one space per turn unless specified otherwise in the unit description), then exploration tiles in occupied hexes are turned over and resolved (these usually give either mines, a unit, or both). Any battles as a result of sharing hexes are then resolved. Income from currently occupied and uncontested hexes containing rubium mines is then collected. Finally, the active player draws a secret mission card, and two energize cards if he/she controls the Monolith. The exploration, which happens mostly at the beginning of the game, keeps players moving to new areas, and eventually forcing them into confrontations over mines for the last few pieces of income.


Battles provide victory points for the winner – either a standard ‘won a battle’ 1 victory point card or the winner can play a secret mission card for more victory points instead, if the conditions on the victory point card have been fulfilled – and an energize card for the loser. Energize cards contain special powers for the player using them, such as removing certain units from play, adding to die rolls or moving units across the map. Battles are resolved in a specific order – the most powerful units, Rubium Dragons, roll first. Then Lava Leapers, then Rock Striders and so on down to the weakest unit, Humans. Rubium Dragons hit on a roll of 2+, Lava Leapers on 3+ and so on. When a hit is made, the defender chooses the unit to be killed and removes it from play. This continues until either all units have attacked once or all of one player’s units have been removed from the contested hex. As even the loser of a battle is able to gain a benefit from the battle, combat is encouraged to the point that there are very few points in the game where it is advisable to sit still and do nothing. This mechanic serves to keep the game fast paced and exciting, and is a fantastic idea that’s very well implemented. The randomness of dice-based combat (a pet hate for some serious gamers) is pretty exciting and the luck this brings to the game is offset by playing the game intelligently to the strengths of the units you use and the terrain you occupy.


Nexus Ops has the usual high production values that are to be expected from the Avalon Hill range - the presentation of the game is superb, from well designed cards, board pieces and miniatures to clearly laid out rules that have many illustrated examples of play. Each player also has a player aid which details the special movement and combat rules of each unit, as well as a turn summary. Nexus Ops is therefore an incredibly easy game to get into – with so much clear reference material to hand, it is very simple to learn, yet offers enough depth to hold interest over repeat plays. The glowing plastic creatures look superb, and give Nexus Ops a very noticeably bright look, which is a refreshing change from the usual dull coloured miniatures in other games.


The random board setup helps to keep the game feeling fresh even after playing multiple times. Despite the fact that upon first appearance this game looks highly derivative of The Settlers of Catan, in practice the game plays very differently. Whereas Catan is based purely on exploration and the production of different commodities, Nexus Ops focuses on providing just one commodity with which to buy combat-based units. There are several aspects of the game which keep it moving along nicely, with players who sit still and gather their forces finding that they are often left out of the running with regards to victory points and income – the exploration tiles and combat, for example. Games of combat, exploration and conquest usually encourage players to hold back and strengthen before moving in for the kill – Nexus Ops brazenly forces players into taking risks and continually moving around to new frontiers, and is all the more exciting, interesting and fast-paced for it.


Nexus Ops is a great game – it’s a fast, very enjoyable game of galactic conquest on a small scale – a typical game lasts around an hour to 90 minutes. It plays much like a turn-based, board game translation of a computer RTS (real time strategy) game - which is high praise indeed, given how much trouble board game companies have seemed to have when trying to translate the RTS experience into a more tangible, non-real time form. In short, Nexus Ops has all of the galactic conquest with none of the issues with game length, complexity or huge amount of components (and therefore lack of space to play the game!) that usually plague games of this ilk - simple enough for inexperienced players yet strategically interesting enough for those well versed in using military might to conquer alien moons.

Summary

Presentation: Brilliantly colourful miniatures and excellent production design throughout. Tough to fault, although the Monolith is a bit flimsy. 8.5/10

Clarity of Rules: Superbly illustrated, very clear rules. Lots of illustrated examples, very simple to learn. 9.6/10

Game Length: Plays incredibly fast with hardly any downtime at all. Most games take little over an hour to play, which is unprecedented for a game of this type and depth. 9.0/10

Value: Random board setup and secret missions keep the game fresh and replayable. 9.4/10

Overall: An excellent resource management/combat game, possibly the closest thing to a computer RTS game that it is currently possible to get in board game form. Great fun. 9.3/10 (not an average)