tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post5288635825013407838..comments2024-02-12T05:31:05.189-08:00Comments on Illuminating Games: On RulesAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12654412977759874403noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post-27642575844708064002009-12-29T11:53:22.495-08:002009-12-29T11:53:22.495-08:00I may sound like a luddite, but the mainstream gam...I may sound like a luddite, but the mainstream games are a good example to follow, here. Non-hasbro games have surpassed the once once "Hollywood" production quality of the mainstream game makers, but the quality of the rule books of non-mainstream games still have a lot of catching up to do. Perhaps a good example of a mainstream mistake is House on Haunted Hill-however, for a complicated game, the rule book was fairly easy to use. The only problem was it was filled with mistakes. You want a game that at somepoint can run without the rule book-so the rules don't take you out of the gameplay experience. I say too many one-time rules that can't be explained on a card (part of the game) should be taken out of the game.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post-81558893208188949742009-05-15T12:33:00.000-07:002009-05-15T12:33:00.000-07:00Oh and I meant to say...Great to discover this blo...Oh and I meant to say...Great to discover this blog is still alive! I hadn't checked it in several months, so a nice discovery on a slow Friday.Steve Hopenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post-82664367573905547102009-05-15T12:32:00.000-07:002009-05-15T12:32:00.000-07:00Gah wrote a long post which I managed to delete. ...Gah wrote a long post which I managed to delete. Bottom line--I would happily play PuG sometime (it's very fun, somewhat more baroque than PoG and ultimately may not be as robust, but that's compensated for in my mind by the opportunity to discover the game on my own). I also have a game I've written which I'd love to show you sometime and hand you the (currently 18-page) rulebook to rewrite in a more streamlined style. I'm a completist by nature in rules writing (think Bowen Simmons) and I think in this internet age it makes more sense to make something shorter with an online FAQ for the nitpickers.Steve Hopenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post-29459336825703996102009-02-22T20:14:00.000-08:002009-02-22T20:14:00.000-08:00Chris, seen Fields of Fire yet? :)Chris, seen Fields of Fire yet? :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post-83347454903813668672009-02-17T10:14:00.000-08:002009-02-17T10:14:00.000-08:00I am in the process of finishing up the first draf...I am in the process of finishing up the first draft of the rules for a game I am working on. I have printed out this column and will be rewriting the rules tonight trying to abide my its' rules. Being an engineer writing does not come easily to me - Thanks for the pointers.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post-57939939731256465102009-02-09T09:58:00.000-08:002009-02-09T09:58:00.000-08:00Back into ASL, eh? Was it the Starter Kits that di...Back into ASL, eh? Was it the Starter Kits that did it?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post-42427282629732298492009-01-28T22:48:00.000-08:002009-01-28T22:48:00.000-08:00re: Pursuit of Glory, I really don't think the rul...re: Pursuit of Glory, I really don't think the rules are defensible on learning vs. referencing grounds. For Breakout: Normandy, I think that defense works; they are hard to read the first time through, but clear once you've made your way through them, in retrospect. Pursuit of Glory's rules are just plain murk. I would buy the reference thing if they had an index, or cross-references, or were written in a basically clear way. But they aren't. They're bloated, over-explained, and out-of-order.<BR/><BR/>Now, they're better than Empire of the Sun's rules, which are frequently incomprehensible, with critical rules in odd places, not cross-referenced, plus there is no index. But that's not saying much.<BR/><BR/>One thing they did get generally right for Pursuit though is the reference cards. The intro for people who have played Paths of Glory is a great way to give people a solid foundation to work with. I actually started with the rules rather than with that sheet, trusting the indicators in the margins which say "this is different from PoG" to help, but they're basically worthless since they flag entire sections where there is maybe only one small change. After going through the intro sheet I was motivated to actually give the game a chance.<BR/><BR/>The Pursuit of Glory rules are the second set of rules I've been really tempted to re-do, not just because they are so bad, but because making a major improvement in usability seems like it would be quite easy, and the game does look fairly interesting (the other game was Triumph of Chaos).Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12654412977759874403noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post-73108835707603603072009-01-28T22:31:00.000-08:002009-01-28T22:31:00.000-08:00re: Texas Glory, that play-a-card/draw-a-card thin...re: Texas Glory, that play-a-card/draw-a-card thing totally eluded me as well until I sat down to play, and then I struggled for a little bit to sort it out. In general, Columbia gets this right with brief overviews that generally capture the flow of the game in a column or less, followed by the full rules, which are generally pretty tight. But, that said, a lot of their recent games have had rules glitches, both in terms of errata and unclear situations (TG had some setup errata as well as the card drawing confusion, Athens & Sparta was not entirely clear on some of the army/navy interactions, and there was some confusion surrounding harassing a knight's charges in assaults in Crusader Rex). I've in been a huge fan of Columbia in the past, but some of their recent releases have been disappointing. I do really like how they do their rules though, the process just doesn't seem to have been as tight of late.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12654412977759874403noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post-23697564394295548882009-01-26T13:03:00.000-08:002009-01-26T13:03:00.000-08:00Having read your criticism of the Pursuit rulebook...Having read your criticism of the Pursuit rulebook, it's hard to disagree. Certainly, the rulebook is very long, is quite repetitive, and contains a lot of details which seem unnecessary, or could have been on the cards (although, not having played yet, I couldn't say for sure).<BR/><BR/>However, I do think they did a few things right. First of all, it does come with several play aids, including one which is intended to present all the major differences in the rules between Paths and Pursuit. I think that experienced Paths players could read this and probably play the game without major errors.<BR/><BR/>Secondly, the rules have a bold-text header for each rule. I think these headers will make it much easier to find a particular rule section when you are looking for it (which will probably happen fairly often, especially early on). Hopefully the extensive repetition in the rulebook will mean that, when you do look for a particular rule, you can find it, read it, and have all the information you need. Admittedly cross-references would probably have been better.<BR/><BR/>In other words, I really think they structured the rulebook as a comprehensive reference, and NOT as a teaching tool. Obviously this makes the game a huge hurdle for new players, which is bad. But if the rulebook actually succeeds as a reference, then maybe it's worth it. Time will tell if it does succeed.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post-34181875501462883022009-01-25T18:53:00.000-08:002009-01-25T18:53:00.000-08:00I generally agree with you on saying something onc...I generally agree with you on saying something once, but recently I found an instance where I'd contradict that. It was in Columbia's new Texas Glory game, and it involves playing and drawing cards. The ONLY place in the rules that drawing a new card each turn is mentioned is way at the end, right after reinforcements are discussed. From all the questions on CSW, the CG forums, and BGG, it is clear that that whole concept (play one card per turn, draw one card at end of turn) was unclear. It would've been fine to mention, first thing in the rules, a brief turn order that indicated this more clearly.<BR/><BR/>So I think there is room for judicious repetition, but obviously it can easily get out of hand.Calebhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01663710786403803593noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post-45082113236186275462009-01-19T17:45:00.000-08:002009-01-19T17:45:00.000-08:00Thanks for bringing this topic up. My gaming hobby...Thanks for bringing this topic up. My gaming hobby consists far more of reading rules than actually playing any of these games, and it's not all for lack of available opponents, or even time; most of the rule books are terribly edited, full of errors, and depressingly missing a crucial idea -- introducing a goal and a conflict, and introducing the kinds of decisions one will have to make along the way.<BR/><BR/>It's far easier to point to the good examples than figure out how to spot the bad ones. A few good ones come to mind: Silent War, Combat Commander, and OCS (though its length is challenging). A recent terrible, otherwise-sure-purchase-defeating example: Fields of Fire. One that just leaves me cold and disinterested: Panzer Grenadier.<BR/><BR/>Even with poor organization, poor writing skills, trying to cover a lackluster game, these developers should at least have pride enough in their work to hire a proofreader. Failing that, use a spell checker, and be aware of what it will miss. Mind the typography. Even though it's "just" a rule book for a game, it's still a book. Live up to the craft.<BR/><BR/>I sent about three pages worth of corrections to Mark Herman for Empire of the Sun, and, while he was grateful, he conceded that he doubted the rule book would ever be reprinted in a way that could benefit from the corrections.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post-55368292497392256602009-01-19T16:35:00.000-08:002009-01-19T16:35:00.000-08:00The rulebook to Confucius had me laughing a few we...The rulebook to Confucius had me laughing a few weeks ago. I was trying to find something, saw that there was an index, thought "hey, cool," and then read something like "Emperor Reward: 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16." Huh...well at least we can skip pages 3 and 14....Joe Golahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07660986477477676629noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post-6497400685608711702009-01-19T13:51:00.000-08:002009-01-19T13:51:00.000-08:00Ah, Collateral Attacks. Getting back into ASL a bi...Ah, Collateral Attacks. Getting back into ASL a bit myself these days, I almost tried to work those into the piece. That really was a terrific rules section. You're literally going along on the very first page of this huge rulebook, getting basic intro stuff, and then all of a sudden they whack you with this hugely convoluted and incomprehensible rule section covering all these obscure cases that you'll never need until much later. If ever.<BR/><BR/>There used to be a theory that the Collateral Attacks were actually consciously introduced at that point in order to make you take a personal morale check. If you're not going to be able to hack it, you might as well figure it out right away.<BR/><BR/>Alas, in the 2nd Edition ASL rulebook, Collateral Attacks have been moved to a more appropriate rules section (D something). They kept a cross-reference at the top of page 2, though.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12654412977759874403noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-914191259119493058.post-86372926503132661892009-01-19T13:41:00.000-08:002009-01-19T13:41:00.000-08:00Lovely article Chris.This reminds me of one of the...Lovely article Chris.<BR/><BR/>This reminds me of one of the greatest fubars in gaming history; Collateral Attacks on page A1 of the 1st Ed ASL Rulebook. You read about Collateral Attacks in the car park the day you bought the rules; Four chapters and 20 years later you still don't know what a Collateral Attack is!<BR/><BR/>BenAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com