Bloodborne: The Board Game is NOT Genius

[@MrTomlette]

I was actually surprised at how good this game is. First play is like, ok, it's fine, but it almost feels bland. But then you start seeing how much depth there is in such a light, easy to setup system, and even things some reviewers complained (like the randomness of the tiles) is baked in as part of the mechanisms you have to learn to manipulate in order to win a scenario.

[@jean-nicolasgauthier5484]

Same for me. And they always complained about the 4 players games, but way better at 3 and way way way better at 2

[@cheesedanishable]

This is eric lang I feel, he's just a good designer and his ideas really shine at certain times in his games

[@RvLeshrac]

@@technoartfest8708 Absolutely. The game is *COMPLETELY* random. Literally the entire game is random, and you can easily lose a game before you've started because the deck is in the wrong order, or the tiles are in the wrong order.

[@McDudes]

Played it twice with 3 friends, first we couldnt even beat part 1 and played wrong most of that time, it took us like 6 hours too lol. Then we got to the boss at part 2 and that also took like 6 hours. But damn it was fun even though we couldn't beat a single campaign yet. But just learning the mechanics, how to best way manipulate tiles like you said as well as enemies and optimize for best possible outcome is really fun. And then it does feel like you can do really good specific builds for each character too which makes progression fun and rewarding as well. Also the quests are interesting and well narrated without being overtold.

[@Pots2Go]

As a longtime fan/player of the video game, and a longtime boardgame player, I would say this is one of the finer adaptations of a videogame to boardgame that exists. What it does right is it's a boardgame first. The hunter track is the biggest difference to the actual videogame and while I hated it at first, it gave the game the needed pressure on the player that keeps this from being a terrible slog that is the dark souls board game. While I disagree with your review, you are entertaining to watch. Good job.

[@daltonelza1290]

I like the way you present your feelings on it, but my game group loves it. We've already played 42 scenarios and are still actively enjoying it. We are about to start the last campaign box this Saturday.

[@thecommuterzombie]

I'm still unclear, is this game officially licensed?

[@cutthr0atjake]

Yes it is

[@thecommuterzombie]

@@cutthr0atjake you da MVP

[@WolfanTerror]

If it wasn't... pretty sure they would have been sued into oblivion lol

[@INF1NIT3D00M]

Honestly, as much as I love Bloodborne: The Board Game, I'd be remiss if I didn't tell people that 1: I'm a miniature painter, so the minis alone were what I was after; 2: I'm a huge Bloodborne videogame stan so I'm really biased and no one is less of a fan of the franchise for not liking the board game; and 3: When you buy the massive Kickstarter like this, you're pretty much automatically defensive of it. You had to justify it to yourself first, so when someone comes around and criticizes it, that can immediately put you on the defensive even when they're making really salient points. That's kind of how I feel here, even if he's repeating my own thoughts about the game back at me, I have to fight that primal urge to be like "B-but I love this thing, I spent all this money! It can't be *bad*, and I don't make *mistakes*!" even though he alleges neither of those things and I don't believe them either. This video is spot-on. This is a game I'd love to bring around to your house and play with you, dear reader. I'll show you what I painted, gush about the mechanics, we can laugh and strategize about what we're doing or what happens to us in the game. I.... just wouldn't recommend that you buy it for yourself at retail, though. The core box is really good, but it's like playing the very first section of the game, ending just *after* all the stuff everyone remembers and just *before* all the stuff that makes Bloodborne so captivating and unique. You could be playing a Van Helsing simulator, for all it matters to Bloodborne in the core box. If you've never played the video game, you might get a completely different impression of what Bloodborne *is* and what it covers from the core board game box. But then, the rest of the game being added on really *does* feel like it's added on; you're playing much shorter add-on scenarios to existing campaigns, or in the really big boxes one or two parallel campaigns that switch which line of quests you go on based on your choices. It's cool, but it feels like venturing into a DLC area rather than playing the next segment of a larger story (even though it *is* the next leg of the overall story). This is one of those All-Or-Nothing purchases, where you need to absolve yourself of any FOMO. The minis are fine, as an experienced modeler, but if you're not doing the cleanup and paint work, this product isn't really worth the exorbitant cost. This is the kind of thing you get if you're right in the middle of a *very* specific venn diagram of painting, bloodborne fandom, board game fan, and Lots of Disposable Income To Burn On Board Games.

[@xahpookx]

I think the base KS pledge is more than enough game. Definitely don't need an all in pledge taking up half my living room.

[@thecaptainslog9581]

Very good comment! I personally just picked up all the retail stuff, as the opportunity happened to arise and I am a massive bloodborne fan and painter as well, so I figured even if I didn't like the game, I'd still have lots of fun painting it. As the death may die pledges seem to be taking another month or two, I'll have something to do til then. I'm interested in whether I'll be missing all the KS exclusive stuff, but something like upper cathedral ward is just unjustifiable at the current price point...

[@jaydenklein1654]

For anyone coming to this now or in the future and you really dislike the hunt track, I'll tell you what my group did to make it less of a pain, but still a challenge. The only thing you change is you do not advance the track at the end of a round. Going to the hunter's dream for whatever reason will still move it but we found that little change has made it significantly better. Try it out if you like.

[@JAkob11Morastus]

Other option is to remove hunters dream from the game when it reaches the end. You cannot go back to heal/upgrade anymore and if you die, the death is permanent.

[@NinjaHawkins]

​@@JAkob11Morastus Ooh, I like this suggestion. Makes it like a "sudden death/overtime" situation. If you've tried both house rules, which do you prefer?

[@EkiRoa1]

I like this

[@RustedParadox]

I did a similar thing. Tracker only progresses when I die or enter the Hunter's dream, and can go backwards for every tile cleared, but cannot be moved back past a red circle on the tracker. It made the game easier, and then we put two mini-boss hunters in the mix and it was non-stop fun.

[@zetsun0]

If you feel the game is too easy (because of reasons you mentioned, like upgrade cards being strong, for example): * play with 4 players, no player ever has a full deck of 12 upgraded cards by the end of a campaign, there's simply not enough time to do so, the time tracker will end your run before you Bosses are not a long drawn out fight, on my first playthrough we killed the cleric beast in the last turn, which was a blood moon(reset), meaning we had to deal 24 damage that round, and we did, with the help of some consumables and rewards. What to do before the blood moon so that your damage on the boss isn't wasted? Kill other enemies for blood echoes and cash them in the dream, complete other insight missions for more rewards, get consumables. There are even some insight missions that directly affect boss mechanics and makes them easier. If you're only planning bossfights one or two rounds prior to a blood moon, you're doing it wrong. As to RNG, you have it in literally every board game, and I'd argue that bloodborne is on the fewer side of dice rolls throughout a campaign. As to narrative, I totally disagree. Soulsborne games are made so that environment and gameplay tell a large portion of the story. Obviously in a board game adaptation you're not going to have the same level of environment building, that would destroy replayability altogether, not to mention too many different and non reusable tiles. The fact that you can mix and match from any expansion and still get a cohesive experience is what makes it great. I think they did a pretty good job with what they had, although I agree that some more work could've been done in the tile system not to be so linear. (perhaps implement verticality and such)

[@estebanrodriguez5409]

I was half expecting for boss music to kick in and Hbomber guy entering through a wall... but death by rats also is a fitting ending

[@styfen]

If you ever want to offload all that plastic and cardboard to someone who paints minis professionally. I'm right over here!

[@andyscout]

Hmm, I've only done two campaigns so far and only one of them had you fight the boss in chapter 2. The other one mixed up chapter 2 by including a psuedo-boss fight against another hunter including a choose-your-own adventure decision on which side to side with. I personally disagree that the game becomes a pushover by chapter 2 and 3. Sure, I felt stronger by the end, but not so much so that I could fight easily. Especially when I know there's a race against time and with later chapters including extra fights or bosses. Maybe I'm just trying to justify spending $300 on bits of plastic but I think I like it as a whole. My biggest agreement is that the boss fights aren't quite as good as I'd hope, especially as mentioned with the "make them weaker" thing being a bit of a trap. I still think they're fairly serviceable though, and definitely can be tough at times.

[@RvLeshrac]

After playing, I agree with this. And one-handed solo, it is nearly impossible. I can't imagine any situation where it would become "Easy".

[@elfboy745]

After Efka's 3rd "its tricky", I expected him to do the Run D.M.C. rap song.

[@JohnnyMcNabb63]

A good game that takes up half of your Kallax and cost over $300. Think I will pass. Wish Kickstarter would stop with the endless expansions during the first run. Just do the core with maybe 1 expansion instead.

[@jellorelic]

Hard to drive the FOMO and sense of 'value' without piles and piles of "free" stuff.

[@denisloebner4882]

yeah when you see reviews you are already too late. The retail versions just cant compare with the kickstarter cores (especially in this case with the too limited pool of hunters). i think kickstarter was 90$ + shipping and the half-content-retail i just saw for 95 euro...

[@DireMcCann]

Reminds me of a SU&SD vid where they say “Stop buying expansions for games you haven’t played! The most fun you’ll have is the moment you place your pledge”… since then I think of that more and more…!

[@denisloebner4882]

@@DireMcCann in almost every case the corebox is by far the best deal anyways, often to such a degree that the dev even looses money on it (AW usually, Middara, i think Scythe also lost money on the corebox or maybe only the reprinting? cant remember).

[@xahpookx]

You know you can just back the base game right? No one is forcing you to buy expansions.

[@MrBlackGonzo1]

I bought the core box and played the first 3 chapters with my girlfriend. it's our first English language board game and second kickstarter after Tainted grail. Mechanical tinkering is really fun, but don't play with more than 2 people - it's better to think together and treat each task as a cooperative solitaire, instead of scrolling social media waiting for your own turn. I haven't played the original Bloodborn but compared to the previously mentioned tainted grail BBBG narratively disappoints expectations. Sure, an elaborate multithreaded storyline wasn't the designers' goal, but you could expect more. Finally, I would like to add that KS plastic is dusty on Kallax and it makes me sick just from the hassle of folding it. If you bought it, you probably will not regret it. If you are thinking about buying it, get the core box. Is a good, competent game of its kind.

[@CabinBoyProductions]

The thing I love about this channel is the reviews that start with something that seems completely unrelated to a board game but ties it all together

[@ignitedxblaze]

"I bought all of these.." - Also me trying to hide all the boxes like Ed trying to cover up in the show.

[@Jeepllama]

The combat in sleeping gods is very nice. Feels like an elegant system that (with some evolutions) could be used effectively in these IP games that are supposed to have difficult but rewarding combat encounters

[@Qurx28]

What I hate most is that they made so much of it kickstarter exclusive, so if you think you might want to have everything eventually, the only thing you can do is pre-order/kickstart everything. Else you'll miss out of multiple playable characters and campaigns. That is also the main reason I didn't get anything, I didn't want just a part and not being able to get more if I wanted to and I also didn't want to spend so much money on a game I wasn't sure I'd like or not.

[@VinegarAndSaltedFries]

Don’t worry I’m sure it’ll all be for sale on Miniature Market in a years time like every other “Kickstarter “ exclusive CMON has made.

[@zorinzorinzorin5243]

@@VinegarAndSaltedFries I guess not.

[@VinegarAndSaltedFries]

@@zorinzorinzorin5243 no it was available at miniature market.

[@Nick_Whiskey]

I hate the hunt track as a solo player. Thought it was choking me the entire time when the game could have just been a fun dungeon crawler. There should have been a better alternative than "run really fast through the tiles and ignore the combat otherwise everything resets including the boss as your in the middle of fighting it." If I wanted to Speedrun a game, I'd load up the video game and do an all bosses run in under four hours without the threat of a guillotine hanging over my neck. I LOVE Bloodborne. I love Eric Lang's work. The way the hunt track is implemented does not spark joy.

[@waltertav]

I backed the whole shebang, played the first mission, got intimidated by it all, and sold it for exactly the same amount I spent + Shipping. I hope the next guy who got it off me had a lot of fun with it and didn't just sell it for scalper prices. PS: I am an enormous fan of the videogame and have finished it with a bunch of different builds. One of the easiest playthroughs was with the Axe hunter :D

[@CompressionPolice]

First play of this game was such a slog trying to figure out all the edge cases that weren't properly discussed in the manual.

[@Haladras]

As someone who *hates* Gloomhaven, I loved this one. Gloomhaven has a ton of flaws: the fiddly, bland monster AI; scenario puzzles with half the pieces missing (if you think you’re done with a mission, open that next door); the art style is dreadful; the card system feels like complexity at the cost of depth; the legacy elements feel tacked on; the miniatures are in competition for the *worst* ever put into production. I honestly don’t get the love for it, and I’ve played the physical and digital versions. Worst of all, it suffers from a D&D approach to combat sometimes: walk up to target, hit them until they fall over. Space is never a consideration. This one on the other hand? The card system is a lot more dynamic than first meets the eye and is a breeze to explain, there are a lot of modular parts which add replayability, there are some genuinely interesting branching story paths, and the hunters feel quite unique. Best of all, it actually uses *space* in its fights. There are moves which knock you across the room, attacks you can use to throw enemies entire tiles away, and items to lure them toward you. It’s so much more vibrant and interesting than Gloomhaven’s turgid plodfests. Can’t disagree more here.

[@attmay82]

I will never really forgive the board game for taking known predictable set things in the video game and making them random. The solution would have been complicated but more faithful. I just now this instant thought of it. But if the boss had three decks and you pulled from the one that relates to the speed of your attack. That would be more true to form. And you'd very quickly learn how they play. And just having more information on the backs of the boss cards. Because so much of the game is watching the boss to see what telegraphed attack they're about to take. The video game is basically never actually random. It's just complex enough to seem random. And this board game removed so much of that complexity

[@ToddCarter]

The gameplay footage in the credits was way more engaging than I expected. The review was good, too. :)

[@nomorecontinues6564]

Well done, this video made me want to play this game and also never touch this game, at the same time. My head hurts now. I’m glad I have Dark Souls: The Card Game, because it has similar goals as this game, but I know I actually like playing it.

[@andyscout]

I actually like playing this game so YMMV. I haven't played Dark Souls TCG so I can't compare. I think Efka might have made a rules mistake, which is why he found chapters 2 and 3 to be easy outside boss fights. Namely, you don't get to use the ability on your cards until the attack happens, so if you get staggered, you won't draw that extra card you needed or heal that extra bit you were hoping to heal.

[@DamtheMan50]

@@andyscout Incorrect. If there is no timing (like After Attack), the effect happens immediately when you place the card into the slot. So Draw 1, you get it immediately during step 1 of combat, so you might just draw that Dodge you needed and be able to use the Dodge against the enemy attack, all in one attack sequence.

[@andyscout]

@@DamtheMan50 Double checked the rules and the step for playing a card makes no mention of resolving effects while the “resolve attacks” step does. However, this time I noticed the extra box that says you do those immediately. They really should have put that in the main bullet point and not off to the side... Guess I’ve been playing it wrong lol

[@wwhere]

Certainly remember Blood! "I live... again!"

[@nerdfatha]

Best game where you can kick zombie heads like soccer balls!

[@cowgba]

We must be the three people Efka mentioned who got the Blood reference hahaha

[@wwhere]

Anyway, just thinking now, if Efka was using Blood as bad compared to Bloodborne, he should have gone with Blood 2. Bloody mess that was indeed!

[@gabrielm.k.8094]

"I LIVE, AGAAAAAIN!" (Nice "blood"borne die, rinse, repeat crossover there)

[@samhagen1787]

The nature of the bosses are their attacks are meant to be memorized and deal with later, i.e. you'll probably never win the first time you encounter a boss (because of the new sets of attack cards it brings with) except you are very lucky with the card draw. Personally I'm okay with that. However there is a big bummer: when you lose a scenario you have to repeat THE ENTIRE CAMPAIGN AND STARTING FROM THE VERY BEGINNING.

[@Ed-1749]

Personally, the whole thing about you becoming stronger while the enemies stay the same was the biggest thing i noticed. They even had ways to fix this, but oddly were only used to make the early game harder. A few insight quests spawn enemies and have extra cards that give them extra moves and more hp. The NPC fights are also good at this, shame there's only 1 of them in long hunt chapter 3, and it's the objectively wrong choice to do

[@alfyb4512]

It’s depressing. There is so much potential here. Worst, because of the KS model, it is unlikely flaws will be corrected in further expansions. I have this massive mountain of cardboard and plastic, and I just wish I had a bit less and some post-production support and tweaking instead. .

[@CrabCrow]

One thing they did get right is that this board game is not for casual players. My board game group hates the hunter track with a passion because someone dies at least once every round and we always run out of track before we can finish a single mission. That combined with our terrible luck with drawing good tiles or upgrades means playing this game feels like pulling teeth. I just adapted the setting to a role playing game so I can use the minis but I don't think we'll ever play the base game again.

[@ChibiFlashify]

That sounds like a you problem honestly.

[@CrabCrow]

@@ChibiFlashify K

[@Ψυχήμίασμα]

You aren't playing strategically if a hunter dies at least once every round. That should only happen at the beginning of the game, if that.

[@CrabCrow]

@@Ψυχήμίασμα That's what I was getting at with my original comment. The moves you can do each turn are randomized by drawing from a deck, the upgrades you can buy are random, the tiles you draw are random. You can really only strategize with what the game randomly gives you and if you have bad luck (like my group) it becomes very difficult. I'm not trying to say the game can't be enjoyed, simply warning that it isn't for people looking to just play a gothic horror board game. Cthulu: Death may die has the same track but it's not random and a lot more fun.

[@Ψυχήμίασμα]

@@CrabCrow I wouldn't say Bloodborne is random. It seems so because early on, you don't know what the enemies will do and what you can do. But once you pick your hunters carefully, plan on where to move, etc. it becomes a great deal less random, and more like a game that rewards trying. There is a bit of a gambling aspect to it, sure, but like the videogame, you never know if facing a new type of enemy will just get you killed. The first time the Cleric Beast just jumped in front of me on that Great Bridge, and I turned and ran, only to realize the road back is blocked...... Never played Cthulhu death may die. What's it like?

[@michaellee6537]

One cannot survive on Glommhaven alone. Any other dungeon crawlers you would suggest? A medium weight one is something I would like to add to my collection.

[@ironwolf56]

I'm just concerned about the shockingly low number of expansions for it. Are we sure CMON put enough components in this line?

[@robertcassistre5527]

I just got this for my birthday and played through the first chapter of the long hunt. SO MUCH FUN

[@garathminis5108]

Gloomhaven? A 10 card puzzle game with a 45min setup and a Dc skin...

[@RobOngrui]

Expensive, overproduced, convoluted, tons of minis - that sums up CMON correctly. Still buying it.

[@Tjolmir]

I would buy it if it took way less space

[@VaultBoy13]

@@Tjolmir It'll take way less space if you consolidate the boxes. I would imagine like most CMON games you can get everything from the Kickstarter into 2 (and worst case 3) boxes.

[@andyscout]

@@VaultBoy13 I've got everything except enemy minis in the base box (made my own insert to fit it all). Then all normal minis standing in two boxes and all bosses and mini-bosses standing in a third box. So 4 boxes total but you could probably get it further combined if you wanted to bag minis. Went from taking up three full Kallax cubes to one and a half, which is acceptable for me.

[@Jorn2u]

You should try Dark Souls, the Card Game. The systems mirror those in the game really clever. And it avoids the plastic mini trap. Everything is captured in your card deck. From health, to attacks, to blocking etc. Very good adaptation imo. That said, the Knight character in this game is also by far the most boring, in contrast with the other 3.

[@tetedechien3]

I agree. The Dark Souls card game works well, and brings excitement in it's range of loot. I've not played the DS board game or the BB card game yet but I'd be willing to be the DS card game is the best of the bunch.

[@rorykurek643]

Can I just say that "Blade Runner of Excel sheets" is what I want on my future business cards?

[@Flegmoritz]

With the POK expansion the Winnu are great to play in TI4 :)

[@alfclarkclarkclark]

You’ve clearly never had Winnu warsuns on Mecatol Rex

[@JimmySquiky]

I honestly regret pledging for more than just the base game. I like the game but it's not worth taking 2 kallax square.

[@MrLiguinii]

That's the true unit of a boardgamer! Even ShloomHaven only takes only one.

[@Michael-gs3lw]

I think, if that's the case, you can sell expansion without too much issue? There is a lot of people that want or minies, or didn't get it at kickstarter time. So. Two birds one stone?

[@denisloebner4882]

you can probably sell the expansions with profit though :-D

[@christopherhogben7231]

Blood! Yes! "I live...agaaiiiiin...." Mad game.

[@patamonsvk]

Am i the only one exited about the Blood reference?? It was a amazing wacky FPS.

[@Jakedruidink]

My friends and I play the Bloodborne board game. We like it a lot. There are a few things we have house rules for, but only for us to make room for a 5th player.

[@Aquaria942]

Shocked that Hbomb didn't make some kind of physical cameo. Lot of references to the video though.

[@tdj65]

Great fair review. I feel you. It's so much stuff and it really could have used some more fine tuning. I feel like I take a bit of a cop out justifying my silly all in pledge, but I enjoy painting minis and getting 200+ minis of fairly good quality it's worth it. I also understand you guys review board games and not minis. Excellent review as always. Thanks!

[@TheChomoon]

First of all, I love your thoughts, even if I do not always agree. I found Bloodborne much more engaging than Shloomhaven (Snorehaven). I love how streamlined and slick the game is. I have just a few more boxes apart from the core game (enough to not get bored with playing the same hunters). I always play two players so the "going back to Hunter's Dream" never felt like an issue for me. I do agree that scenarios are a bit repetitive, bosses are a bit too unpredictable and the power/difficulty curve is not great. I do agree that graphic design is disappointing. Even with that I still can't wait for another game (we still have two campaigns to go, and I'm a bit worried about what will come after that). As for the "it could be better outside the KS" argument - it's a big "maybe". No game is "perfect" and no game is ever "finished", all games are released when they're "good enough", and some of them turn out to be "great, actually". I feel this game is better than "good enough". Also I'm the third person who knows the "Blood" game :)

[@nickhead784]

I'm curious if Efka played the Bloodborne card game? Also designed by Eric Lang.

[@yrrep27]

Yeah, that one's a great tabletop game in its own right, going beyond just being a vehicle to remind you of the video game.

[@ileopsoas88]

I would love a word on the chalice dungeon mode...I enjoy skimming through campaigns but after the first 3 there is really few differences between them...but chalice dungeons feel always like a challenge, tried it with 5 different gaming group, won only once but every time was a success

[@NoPunIncluded]

That makes a lot of sense, but I think that viewpoint requires buying into the game wholecloth.

[@liandel]

I own the game with all the expansions and came here to say that. And to me a great game is one where you have fun even when losing. Bloodborne, for me, has this element as i enjoy it, succeeding or not. Campaign is of course somewhat linear, although the deck building element and different hunters give a lot of replayability.

[@somedude15231]

Y'all know how licensed video games based on movies are like 99% kinda pretty bad? I feel like we have something similar going on with licensed board games based on video games. it's like a licensed bad trend based on another licensed bad trend. Meta.

[@ohtheforlanity3205]

The Resident Evil 2 game is great. Component quality is pretty poor, but the gameplay works well

[@somedude15231]

@@ohtheforlanity3205 hey that's why I said 99%. Every now and again a good one comes along, which is great.

[@artenjoyer9872]

Great analysis. This video summed up why this game was played every weekend for a month and then has been sitting on my shelf untouched for the last year. Love the theme and nostalgia of it all the same. Would kickstart again.

[@raffaelsteinmann7296]

Everyone knows that fighting conservatives is a waste of time.

[@emmaplaysgreen2849]

I genuinely laughed at loud at that! Then paused the video to come here and comment about it.

[@JoseMedia2421]

Never played that old doom looking game. But I played every thing back then?! How?! What kind of sorcery is this?!

[@Reaperman4711]

Hey, there's the script. Now you have me looking for those little table shelves...

[@aurelm]

I am still wondering whether i am more grateful that you made me get into jotl, or that you made me save time and money I would have wasted on etherfields and bloodborne. In any case, thank you!

[@RustedParadox]

I played Steamforged Dark Souls and that was SUCH a poor representation of the source material and had many "I missed, nothing happens" due to bad dice rolls. Bloodborne fits the soulsborne theme to a T, where every action and attack is a gample of timing, predicting enemy attacks/retaliations, and managing stamina via your hand and the hunter weapon. In fact CMON's card modifier on a weapon dash worked so well for a Soulsborne game, Steamforge straight up lifted it for their Elden Ring kickstarter. As a Bloodborne fan, I highly recommend this one, and disagree that Gloomhaven is a better dungeon crawler. Personally I'd rather a game that uses less components to efficiently have branching story element hack'n dodge, than Gloomhaven's overwhelming moving parts to simulate a rpg video game. If you purchase the Chalice Dungeon and the Hunter's Dream for minibosses, you'll be in for a great moonlit time. ❤

[@RadishTheFool]

I don't play the video game. I don't care about lavish kickstarters. But I always love to hear your thoughts and watch your visuals. Thank you, Efka and Elaine, for another great video. And since you mentioned getting into art a bit, and I've started my art journey several years ago, also from nothing, I will share fun tips in my comments. Have you discovered Drawfee yet? They do amazing videos where they combine drawing and improv comedy. I think you'd like them. Not only are they very funny and talented, but they're also a great bunch of sweet people. Good places to start are their playlists Most Popular and Speed Draws.

[@SheezyBites]

Since I'm not very creative almost every game I've started was based on a video-game (and one was based on star trek, which has video-games)... but that's the thing, while playing about with a system you start to see it's flaws and strengths until you realise that it doesn't match whatever you started with... yeah, I may have made a race game with items and drifting, but ultimately projectiles are less fun for this game than traps, and mario really only has banana peels and the timed bob-omb, so I need to change the game to have more and more interesting traps (which to be fair with Mario is a bit easier because there's a lot of games to pull from, so this is a bad example, but I'm sticking with it!). I know these people have contracts, but if they could take something as a jumping off point and then re-themed it to their own world it would have almost certainly made a game that's more cohesive and plays into the strengths of the system better. And yes, I know it's rich coming from someone who hasn't finished a game, and only has four he even thinks are good enough to continue working on, but 1. time and trust that it's ready for play testing are hard to come by, and 2. I can tell when most of my games aren't going to work out, and know not to make it and 20 expansions for a kick starter campaign as a result.

[@Ipazc]

A good board game idea, with a lot of time invested on how many plastic toys can we they fit on the KS campaing. Should be painfull to fell a good game mechanic be unecesary expanded until it feels repetitive.

[@Beppsta]

Now I really want to find Blood on the internet, install and re-live my 14 year old youth again.

[@NoPunIncluded]

The version that runs on modern PCs is called Blood: Fresh Supply

[@Beppsta]

@@NoPunIncluded thank you, found it for £7.19 on steam - complete bargain! Now to take a break painting the conservatives and download it.

[@Michael-gs3lw]

Played ~10 times and had a blast. Want to play more of it ^^ It's a perfectly valid review in my opinion. It's not the greatest game ever made, but it's good and the core of it is robust and enjoyable. I would just add a point that was not made in the video. It's "highly" replayable. (Even more so with the chalice dungeon expansion which is the only one reaaaaly useful. New interesting mode + 4 hunters) - Each mission have at least 3 side quests. You need to do at least 2 to be able to complete it. With the time limits, it's not easy to do the three. - Some of them have ramifications that extend on the other missions. Nothing much but it exist - The random tiles map make some run easy as hell, some tough as *****. (never lost a game only due to that. Tip: start by exploring and deal with the rest when you know what to expect. Don't overextend in one direction also) - Changing ennemies can really morph the mission in something else - Changing hunters switch things aside. So even if I replay the mission with other friends, it is, for now, always fresh. P.S: I had the same point of view on the hunter axe. And then, during a chalice dungeon, one of my buddy went into a freaking rampage with it. It was a sight to behold that no other weapons could have achieved.

[@IronSalamander8]

I love Blood! I just played it again recently after raising the difficulty slightly higher! Still not that far up yet, it's not an easy game.

[@kateanon8791]

Hello to one of the two other people who remember Blood!

[@svachalek]

I live… again! I flew to Monolith like 2 weeks before the game came out to pull some all nighters with a coworker and add TCP/IP (internet) support for it, which was still a new thing in games at the time. So we binged way too much of it in testing and it’s forever scarred on my brain. But despite it’s poor reviews and forgotten status it was pretty fun anyway!

[@primalcerebrate4398]

Efka, ačiū. I always enjoyed your reviews for not only evaluating the game's design, but also considering the context of its production and cultural impact (especially looking at the Colonialism video). Thank you for constantly offering an insight into the process of designing and producing board games and how they impact the final version, consumer behaviour, and the industry as a whole. It helps me appreciate this medium even more. On a personal note: How did you stick to making board game reviews over all those years? Did you always had a community backing you up? I'm trying to slowly steer my career into something that is worth the struggle and stress of being self-employed. However, staying motivated and believing it will turn out fine in the end and one will find a supporting community, while trying to juggle the expectations of people in one's current job and everyday human issues, is extremely exhausting. Sometimes to the point, where one just slips into auto-pilot mode and doesn't progress for weeks. TL;DR: How did you continue following your path while the rest of the world tries to swallow your time and energy? I'm looking forward to many years of your work, thank you again.

[@dago6410]

Wtf do you mean. Snyders watchmen is one of the best movies ever made (I hate superheroes movies btw)

[@wirormiror]

I was crazy enought to scan my tiles, photoshop them to remove the printing mesh and laminate them once they were 100% aligned recto verso. With an all-in pledge. So yeah, I'm invested in it, but I see the flaws. Good thing is, they do not impede my enjoyment of it so I'm happy about it (the components were my biggest gripe and removed the flimsy tiles and replaces the tokens with arbitrary metal ones with a fitting theme. But, there is so much room for improvement on that part. The game's great, but I ain't backing cmon again. First and final of them. Anyways I have enought solo gameplay for well over a year. Not counting my mini painting time which I will enjoy. Then again basing will take forever. Such a great mixed bag of feeling! I feel like a picked a party mix. Great chips but there's always those darn pretzels that take the fun away haha. edit for typo

[@tincano-beans2114]

Fuck you, I like the pretzels :)

[@wirormiror]

@@tincano-beans2114 your right to do so :)

[@jacksonburris5179]

That watchmen analogy is absolutely spot on lol

[@luminarious]

I guess for a lot of video game fans the card game (especially with the expansion) would be just the right amount of recognizable stuff? Eric M. Lang did solid work on that one as well.

[@RvLeshrac]

The card game is even worse. It abandons literally everything even remotely related to the game except a pasted-on theme, right down to the mandatory *THREE PLAYER MINIMUM*.

[@squallgoku777]

Yeah, I am in the camp of loving Bloodborne the Board Game and hated Gloomhaven. I don't even consider Gloomhaven a dungeon crawler; I think of it as a card puzzle game with everything else slapped on. Still, I enjoyed this video.

[@necogreendragon]

I am one of the three people that remembers Blood the video game. Along with many of it's build engine cousins.

[@mantistoboggan1503]

How tf did I get a notification for this *while watching* Bloodborne is Genius and Here's Why???

[@aalever]

I played Blood at uni! "Fresh victims for the ever-growing army of the undead!"

[@ruin8tion]

I missed backing it, but I am buying some of them as I find them because... I really want to paint those minis! The game is also good, so, that's a bonus for me. I am glad I didn't go all in, but I do wish I had supported the base game and at least Hunter's Dream and Upper Cathedral. Because. Minis!

[@RobertHovakimyan55]

I was on board until you smack talked the Winnu. Its a fun exercise in role playing a penguin where the penguin is an alien race and their egg is Mecatol Rex and flying is scoring more than 5 points. Maybe you have a point.

[@MarceloEid]

Great video ! Myazaki and all the people at From Software created those franchises...just clarifying ;)

[@Olvenskol]

So... still not sure if I should open up my KS all-in or not ;)

[@SamuraiMotoko]

So, after 2 years... Have there being a "patch"?

[@razorboy251]

I am so glad I canceled my Kickstarter before it concluded. It was getting seriously ridiculous and expensive and really played on my FOMO. "Oh, you want Byrgenwyrth? We just added that! Add another $60 to your pledge". As much as I love Bloodborne the video game, the kickstarter for the boardgame was a classic case of Kickstarter board game syndrom and everything terrible about it.

[@rb4551]

We need more of these reviews to expose CMON for the cow milking machine they became because this business model needs to change so that they can start pushing out high quality games instead of beefed up decent games. Master of the Universe is coming on KS "soon" from CMON and thats my childhood most loved series / toys and I know I will want to get most of it if not all of it (never backed a game from CMON before because I can see through how badly they abuse fomo and impulsive purchase and its gross to me) but I know it will be another disappointing game. So maybe I should skip it and try to hunt down minis online. Its just a shame.

[@VaultBoy13]

Everyone knows what they're getting with a CMON product. They know that the business model is about squeezing as much money from backers as possible, and then likely having little-to-no support for the game post release. The backers don't care. And, it's obviously wildly successful, so why would CMON change? Everyone is already voting with their dollar. Don't like bloated games that are a mish-mash of quality? Then, there's plenty of other alternatives. CMON is publishing an IP you're excited about? Then figure out how much you're willing to pay for that IP and decide whether you actually care about the layers of bloat they'll serve up as add-ons. Most of the add-ons are fanservice at best, so from a gameplay perspective they're often best skipped anyways.

[@rb4551]

@@VaultBoy13 I disagree that everyone knows what they are getting. There are new backers each campaign, not every backer is a repeat superbacker. Lots go by reviews so if they hear how the game is a bit half baked then they may think twice about investing a ps4 worth of money on the game. The other thing people need to start speaking out about, is how those "stretch goals" are not adding a ton of value to the product as people somehow still continue to believe. They pay every penny for those stretch goals. CMON is not just giving away a bunch of free content to people. Anyways, as their reputation start preceding them, the success of their campaigns will hopefully start suffering and that's when they will change their model. But that starts with these types of discussions and videos. I also disagree about the "layers of bloat". They are getting better and better at incorporating key characters in expansions making you feel bad if you take them or bad if you dont. Its basically the record industry all over again with a singer selling an album based on one hit song and 13 so so song, or the boxing industry with one main event and a card full of trash matches.

[@VaultBoy13]

@@rb4551 Let me rephrase it then. Everyone that watches an NPI video is aware of CMON and their practices without needing videos like these. If you're a hobby gamer, you're aware of what you're getting with a CMON Kickstarter. Gamers new to the hobby are a different problem, but they're also not going to be watching an NPI video. Looking at the latest NPI video for a CMON game may not even be useful. It's not like this is a bad review, and wasn't Project: Elite something they even liked?

[@VaultBoy13]

@@rb4551 And, while I agree that CMON aren't giving away stretch goals for free, their core pledge is usually more value than you get at retail. The Bloodborne Kickstarter was $90/100 + S/H for the core game ($88), a retail expansion ($64), plus KSE content that's a bit more content than the $64 expansion. It's hard to argue that these people got a bad deal.

[@VaultBoy13]

@@rb4551 I suppose "layer of bloat" is going to be based around your FOMO. Do you really want/need everything? When I look at their games, I see core games that look pretty complete surrounded by a lot of extra content. Even when an IP is involved like Marvel or Bloodborne, the issue is more an overabundance of content than anything. But, it's hard to argue that backers don't want that extra content. Outside of people that simply have an addiction or money management issues, no one is being harmed by being sold an OK game with a ridiculous amount of content. And, even with $300 Kickstarter campaigns, board gaming is still a cheap hobby. I also wouldn't call the add-ons one-hit songs on a 13 track album. They're more like when a band's album sounds almost exactly like the previous album. Then, with CMON, they do that 7 more times. It's formulaic content.

[@nerdfatha]

Another great Video! and don't forget about the Guns Akimbo power up on top of that first mausoleum. firing off that many flares is great fun!

[@LeeGinSing]

15:58 did I just trip balls?

[@brianf2878]

I've gone in on many CMON kickstarters (Zombicide Black Plague, Zombicide Green Horde, Zombicide Invader, Rising Sun, The Others, Massive Darkness, HATE) and more from other companies as well, including the entire Dark Souls boardgame. Funny how CMON keeps returning to the kickstarter well. How can you call it "kickstarting" a project when each project is raking in several million dollars? Aren't we started yet? Stop kicking it, CMON!

[@rnghwdbcs]

24:25 Winnu is actually quite fun after the expansion

[@airtonmbrasil]

Now this is a nice video, the pacing, the delivery, holy. And i am not familiar with the sous franchise, just knowing then by watching the essays. Also the blood reference is the cherry on top. I dont know why, but this is my favorite new video of yours. Excelent job. PS: Mathew Lee made a essay on dark souls? Where? I Need it

[@NoPunIncluded]

Here you go: kzbin.info/www/bejne/l2i3kGR-mtKliJY

[@joaovictorcunha9826]

Im looking at bgg for schollomhaven, im really interested now...

[@tbatrics]

I just don't know if this is for me. I loved dark souls tomb of giants, but this doesn't have a rhythm I'm into. Shame

[@yellowmeeplereads]

ooh nice Fargo-esque split screens

[@thumper8684]

Why has nobody made 'serial killer' the board game?

[@mzy115]

Cmon quaity standard. Cmon assembly line has delivered some many games in such short time and your only realisation is that, there is no much contents in them.

[@MerrillWhiteKalEl]

The game is ok. So glad I played a friends copy and did not buy it.

[@xHypnoHousex]

Glad I went with the card game instead, MUCH cheaper, quick setup, quick gameplay. With the expansion it's a really solid fun experience for any Bloodborne and tabletop fan

[@colelind9294]

I wish they had the Dark Souls licence as well.

[@eggius]

I remember Blood! You're welcome Eflka.

[@EHngelic]

Lol! I was just thinking of this game a couple days ago. Remembering the good ol' classic FPS days

[@tigerwalms]

What specifically was it you were not impressed about in the first scenario?

[@Phalanx167]

Wow, your thoughts almost completely mirrored my own when I finally got this game. It's a good game, but that just makes it so frustrating for how close it was to being a phenomenal game. Remove the randomized maps in favor or preset layouts; make the bosses run on the same deck as the monsters, or maybe a special boss deck that applies to all of them; give debs more time tweak some of the hunters and monsters; split the content over multiple Kickstarters to flesh out each campaign/game segment more and balance it better, and my god, this would have been a game I could hardly stop playing. I have had a great time with this game, especially after we house ruled to give each player one free death using the extraneous dolls from the extras box so we don't have to play the same campaign over and over if there are slip ups, but it just hurts inside knowing this game was so close to being something even better if only CMON had not been slavering at the scent of money and had narrowed the scope and given it another year of development. Really just reminded me all of Reichbusters again, another decent game with good moments that really needed another year of refinement, and slimming down. Such a shame how these big box games are treated by these companies despite no lack of resources or talent.

[@RvLeshrac]

They don't need preset maps; that would be arguably worse. What they *DID* need was a mechanism to stack the decks to ensure that players had a chance to progress before being locked out of a win.

[@MonsterPainter]

Brilliant thoughtful review.

[@timd4524]

They took the combat system from Magic Realm. Actually a great combat system. The farthest I'm going with Shloomhaven is JOTL.

[@SpoonyBard88]

Why? Just satisfied with the amount of content?

[@brutus_salazaar]

Nicely reviewed, a delicate balance of puncturing the heart of the game, but also letting it slowly drain out and whimper to a crawl. I think you summed it up well by saying "If you are already invested in Bloodborne - have some more, otherwise, perhaps, look for something more refined elsewhere". And yes, the Kickstarter tidal wave of plastic FOMO is strong often - where it makes it difficult to identify if it is hubris or actual greatness speaking in the options available

[@jean-nicolasgauthier5484]

Saying than Gloomhaven it's a better Dungeon Crawl it's like saying than Uno it's a better Deck Builder than Dominion

[@scottarmstrong8178]

You liked this a lot more than I expected. Glad you got some enjoyment from the purchase.

[@mahna_mahna]

I will never tire of hearing Efka say "oeuvre".

[@anonymouse8953]

Excellent review, thank you!

[@danielgaldamesorellana5871]

This review is hilarious