Wooden Cubes & Iron Soldiers: “Everybody hates Jesse Dean, with Special Guest: Jesse Dean!” Episode 10
“Everybody hates Jesse Dean, with Special Guest: Jesse Dean!”
Welcome back for our tenth episode of Wooden Cubes & Iron Soldiers!
In this episode we are joined by Board Game Blogger extraordinaire: Jesse Dean. Before diving in to talk about some of the recent discussion/kerfuffle/hornet’s nest/meta-critique on board game criticism and analysis… which is all Jesse’s fault, we briefly discuss some games we have recently played including Descent, Hemloch, Mage Wars, Quebec, and Le Havre.
During the show we also discuss some other recent blogs and articles on this subject. I have included them here for your reference:
Jesse Dean’s Blog - http://www.boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/9073/a-few-acres-of-snow-and-the-critical-silence-on-th
SuperflyCircus Pete’s Blog - http://superflycircus.blogspot.com/2012/07/consumerism-criticism-and-bernays.html
Michael Barnes’ Blog - http://www.nohighscores.com/2012/07/19/cracked-lcd-the-day-board-games-criticism-died/
Here is a link showing the average game weight over the years as well: http://cf.geekdo-images.com/images/pic1368180.png. I have included it here to back up a data point Jesse mentions briefly towards the end of the show.
~ Joel Eddy
Opinions and statements stated by “Wooden Cubes and Iron Soldiers” podcast are not to be considered as endorsed by 2D6.org. Visitors are urged to use their own discernment to draw their own conclusions.
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Excellent episode. Great interaction.
Thanks Andy. Glad you enjoyed it.
[...] In episode # 10, they interview Jesse Dean. Jesse is known amongst the board game blogosphere as a person who has spearheaded deeper criticism of games. In this episode, they talk about that, along with some recent games, such as Descent, Hemloch, Mage Wars, Quebec, and Le Havre. [...]
Very much enjoyed the interaction and back and forth in this episode. Thanks, keep up the good stuff!
Nice episode. I had 1 thing I wanted to respond about, it’s kind of tangential to the topic…
In discussing A Few Acres of Snow, and whether it deserved awards and whatnot, Lance mentioned that some people just agree not to play using the broken strategy, and doing so was referred to as a house rule.
It’s kind of moot for that game, as there’s some 2nd version now that allegedly addresses the Halifax Hammer or whatever, but the point is that I think there’s a big difference between making house rules that address concerns players have with a game, and players simply not following rules in some cases (but not in others). In other words, I don’t believe you can really just “agree not to play that way.” You can’t expect a player to not do a good move simply because it would be considered “cheap” – instead you’d have to make some hose rule which makes the “cheap” rule illegal. If it’s legal, then by definition a player can do it.
Lance’s other example, not playing with the Priestess in Talisman, IS a proper house rule – removing that character from the game disallows any player from using it, so nobody is faced with the opportunity to make a move which other players may consider “cheap” or unfair, but would help them win the game.
Among the many arguments about whether Halifax Hammer is really a problem or not I have seen mention of the phrase “just agree not to play that way” – and my whole point here is that you can’t really do that.
That’s a great point Seth.
However, I think you can choose to not look up the exact method for executing the Hammer strategy, and be safe from it’s infringement upon your gaming sessions for at least a few games. Once the cat is out of the bag though, you are correct, you can’t just put pandora back in the box.
Actually, I disagree. Not knowing about a broken strategy doesn’t make it less broken. I did not know about the Halifax Hammer when I played vs my friend who had only played once before (he didn’t know about it either). I ended up winning with, basically, the HH strategy. In retrospect, OF COURSE I was going to win that way.
That doesn’t make for a fair game.
I’m not saying it’s less broken. I’m just saying that you can have an enjoyable/fair set of sessions before someone uses it. My point is: “Ignorance is bliss”… for a little while.
Also, you can definitely beat the Hammer if the British player is not executing it 100% correctly.
The argument is a quagmire though. There are a few ways for Brits to win other than the Hammer.
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