Firefly Review - with Tom Vasel

[@douglasbaker9663]

@15:40- not passing around the dinosaur token? Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal, Tom Vasel!

[@tjdaroza492]

best comment!

[@Marinealver]

Love how GF9 takes Firefly's tongue in cheek approach to humor, such as labeling Jayne as "Public Relations".

[@danamoreland9811]

One of the things that you and several other reviewers missed is that this is not only a pick up and delivery game, it is very much a risk mitigation game. You can put together a crew and items that guarantee that you will pass every single possible misbehave task check. You can also run only legal jobs using only your leader and do very well depending on which scenario you choose to play. It is all about assuming the role of a firefly captain: find a crew, find a job, fly the 'verse.

[@Tellgryn]

Tom you need to do a new review of this game, as the expansions have given this game more depth and many more things to do.

[@toddevangelista]

Me: "Tom, pass me the dinosaur." Tom: "No, I'm not passing you a dinasaur." Me: "Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal."

[@lemiless]

Ton can just be like a leaf on the wind for what I'm concerned. Haha

[@theIdes3]

Because of the FireFly theme and with the proper scenario this is a great gateway game. Also the player token can come in real handy so players can use down time to strategize and browse the discard deck that can drastically reduce the game time and keep track of who's turn it is to move. Again one of the biggest challenge to new players is to keep them engaged during down time and reduce the dreaded analysis paralysis.

[@lemiless]

The game, over many, many plays, and granted I have every single expansion, has left me with such great stories!

[@Beery1962]

I suspect Tom hasn't played the game long enough to see that, as you play you develop a crew and a play style that reduces the level of chance that's in the game. So it becomes an issue of what types of job your crew is set up for more than what numbers you're rolling. Since the Pirates and Bounty Hunters expansion, player interaction is a much bigger part of the game. However, personally, I enjoy the game more without it, as I have never been much of a fan of competitive games where you try to ruin every other player's chance of winning. This game feels more like a co-op game, in that it's the players against the universe. For me, this game is the one I'm most likely to set up and play, and most of that has to do with the fact that it's an easy-to-learn system and it's a mellow and fun experience that doesn't pit players against each other.

[@ACriticalThought]

Great review, Tom. I appreciate how detailed your explanation of game's mixing of theme and mechanics was. Very interesting.

[@PranzosAPrat]

I like this game. To help mitigate the bad die rolls you have to build up your crew to give you the best chance at various rolls. Great components and theme. Its definitely in our gaming rotation.

[@jmiller8279]

Thank you for your honest review of the game. If I wasn't a Browncoat, owning the series on DVD, the Roleplaying game, and other related goods, I'd probably think twice about buying this game... and that's ok, but I honestly held off until I could see YOUR thoughts on it because I was curious. As it stands, I can see myself setting up some house rules to keep a single dice roll from knocking people out of the game... I'll just have to figure out how to implement them when the game's delivered!

[@RetroMaticGamer]

13:57 How was Firefly (the series) NOT a pick-up-and-deliver scenario? That's what the crew did - constantly looking for easy money, but kept getting screwed over. Firefly was by no means a high-adventure - at least not if the main characters ever got their way. But that's all I could disagree with. Still a great review, as always.

[@ShaneBrogan]

I've only played the game w/ two and really enjoyed it. I didn't mind how harsh the misbehave/reaver results were, space is a dangerous place to fly.

[@obamarosa]

I liked your review a lot. I can already tell I'm not the board game nerd that you are, as my gaming experience is limited to Monopoly, Settlers, and Munchkin. This is the newest game I've picked up, and I loved it from the very first play. I've played about 10 games now (25-35 hours) and I still really enjoy playing it. We're all Firefly fans, and we play quickly. Most turns don't last longer than 2-3 minutes. Usually something is on in the background, because most turns by other people don't require your attention for longer than 5 seconds.

[@robezenk]

Oh Tom...have you seen the custom Firefly DICE MASTERS set on TheReservePool?

[@Aranneas]

there actually is an rpg based on the setting, it's called Serenity (because they couldn't get the rights to license it as Firefly). I definitely recommend checking it out, while it's simplistic it's very fun and fast paced action that definitely captures the spirit of the show.

[@harpdevil]

Firefly had crazy antics and whatnot, but what I think really made it as a show was that it was about a group of people who had to reluctantly become a family just to deal with the harshness of life out in the 'verse. That doesn't seem particularly strong in this game either, but I'm sure I could bring it in myself with the way I play and choose to captain my Firefly.

[@dillionmcdyver7943]

Ultimately its a board game and if it was the 'TV show' it probably would be better as a card game or that other Firefly boardgame I saw yet as a board gamer. If given a choice about the 'antics' of the show and a great boardgame. I'd choose the great board game. If I want the 'drama' of a show I'd choose that card game version of this show. In other words, who cares it is 'the TV show' as a direct translation. Yes, for those reading there are 2 other firefly type games: a card game and another board game but one that is not so large. Seems a tighter game but ultimately this to me looks more interesting as I don't care if it is the 'TV show' directly. If you do then don't buy it and go by one of those others. My guess is if you were that big of a Firefly nut then you'd by all three anyways. Which means who cares if it is a direct TV show translation.

[@TristezaR]

Gotta be honest, regardless of what anyone thinks of it i'll prob still pick it up just to play it at least once. I love the firefly universe, and if it ends up just being another piece of merch then that's all it'll be.

[@wfp9378]

10 years on so GLAD I bought it. It oozes theme. Tom missed the boat on this one. Could it be better? Yes of course. Linking it with Firefly adventures would be awesome, however that would mean games take weeks.

[@steveg7000]

Correct, the jobs were just McGuffins. They weren't the heart of the show. As to how reflect the show's true spirit, ask yourself what the most popular genre of game at this moment? Instead of interchangeable, disposable characters, consider a co-op. Robinson Crusoe with the Firefly crew pooling their skills to overcome scenarios. That feels a lot more Firefly than competitive pick-up-and-deliver with "Hill People" and "Spacker" working for "Corbin".

[@hawkeye137137]

I don't agree with Tom's "game essentially being a pick up and deliver" complaint, because Firefly itself is all about picking up and delivering stuff most of the time. Illegal goods, farm animals, medicine, etc., in the tv show they are picking stuff from a guy and delivering to another %90 of the time. But yeah, with some flavor text or paragraph about the mission on cards could really enhance the game's theme I guess.

[@iasimov5960]

This was probably one of the best and most coherent reviews of Firefly the Game. It was consise and well-presented. However, one who was tepid toward the series should be ecpected to be tepid toward the game. I loved how almost every detail of the game harkened back to some detail in the series. That game players experience setbacks is very much like the series in which the crew had more botches than successes. I give the series a 10, the game an 8 and the review a 5.

[@Shatteredragon]

This review is spot on... for the core game (and the card expansion "Breaking Atmo"). However, I would love to see further reviews from you on the expansions for this game. The "Pirates & Bounty Hunters" expansion added a pvp style of play. Where pirates can attempt to board ships while on jobs. Requiring a boarding attempt, showdown with the crew, then capture when pvp is involved, giving both players a good chance to win. You need a job to even be allowed to pirate another ship, and anyone can take on a piracy job. Bounties require much the same, but players can attempt rescues of captured bounties to prevent their capture, claiming the bounty for themselves, or rescuing the person and adding them to their crew for free, or sending them home to their discard pile. The two ships and captains included (two different types of new ship), can be chosen as alternate player ships even if you're not doing piracy or bounty play. The "Blue Rim" expansion provided a huge increase in Reaver risk and appearance, as well as new board space, planets, items for supply worlds, jobs, and adds two new Reaver ships to further increase the threat. The new token system and cards make the Reavers something to fear once more. The addition of the other expansions were pretty much ships, "The Artful Dodger" is just a simple ship expansion that allows for a fifth player. The newer "JetWash" expansion included new story cards, a new ship, which is a newer class of Firefly, and Zoe as a leader. The "Esmerelda" expansion included a new ship, and a new "Story", and "Setup" card, that when used as options for play, together or apart, can be used for dramatically shorter games. The "Kalidasa" expansion will include another board, more systems, planets, and the Operatives ship which in addition to the Alliance tokens introduced in the "Blue Sun" expansion, and it's ability to travel anywhere makes the Alliance a much greater threat. This game has gone far beyond the review applied to the "core game", and should be given a new review, or at least the other expansions should be reviewed. I was disappointed to see only one Dice Tower expansion review done on the card expansion, "Breaking Atmo", which again, the review was spot on for. Though for thematic gamers, it did add to the game, and I found it was more one of those, if you're going to play the game often, you might as well for a little more variety. I think you should give this game another chance Tom, you might have prejudged it into non-existence without meaning to, it seems to fit right up your gaming alley with certain expansions added. The only complaints I hear anymore are that the game takes up a lot of space, and that there still isn't an option to play Alliance ships.

[@RoyceBanuelos]

Not going to lie, I love the game but I feel like Tom does a really good job of giving a fair review of the game. I feel as though there's more risk/reward aspect to it and the whole game is story driven given that you have to complete the goals which all have story elements to them. If you choose not to read the story elements it's a little more ho-hum but I know I've won before only completing 4 "jobs" in the game so it wasn't a lot of delivery type of stuff.

[@Aranneas]

essentially, the game doesn't leave enough room for complications to come into it. the individual jobs are too simple, either you succeed or you don't; there's no changing circumstances you have to adapt to, no quirky characters you need to convince or duel or seduce or gank. it's the right IDEA, but the TAKE on the idea is just too plain to really capture the spirit of the show.

[@osmium73]

I've only played Firefly once...and while I did enjoy the crew building/ship upgrading aspect. I did not enjoy flipping a card for each space moved on the board. I understand thematically why that's a good thing (unexpected things happen in the verse), but that is the mechanism that really bogs the game down in my opinion. There is no quick way to flip/resolve those cards and move your ship. You almost need a designated card flipper (perhaps the person who's turn it just was...)

[@otubrabnad]

To make the game more akin to the series preempt it in favor of other games, play it out of order, then quit playing when you're only 3/4 of the way done.

[@wordlyweko]

Thanks for the review Tom, have been hessitant about this one even more so now.

[@Astromags]

How can you hate this game and LOOOVE Xia: Legends of a Drift System? Everyting Xia does Firefly The Game did first and without roll to move.

[@johnrochester1419]

Exactly. Xia is lame

[@woosnext]

I miss some Chinese fluff... that's a crucial part of the Firefly universe and flavor.

[@destinymorna]

Oh wow, I remember Firefly. What a great show. Browncoats unite---#you can't stop the signal.

[@Wolfie64]

Yeah I was skeptical about this game since it was first announced. I already have MoV and Xia on the way, so I was really waiting for an honest and unbiased review to show up before I spent more on the same type of game. I think any board gamer that has played more than a few games can say this game isn't up to par, but I also think that not every firefly fan plays board games as much as others, and I think that is where the line is. If nothing else it's bring alot more people into board gaming.

[@dobrzpe]

this is coming back to gamefound shortly - was just seeing what it was about... FROM A 9 YEAR OLD VIDEO!! LOL! depending on it's price, looks like something right up my alley. thanks!

[@vincivader]

I liked the game, it helps being a huge fan of the show.

[@retroarcadefan]

Tom, Do you like any pick up and deliver game? How many have appeared in your top 100 games of all time lists?

[@MrJenssen]

Not flaming, just think they really botched it when it came to giving players the feel of taking part in the great events of the actual show. Firefly is a pretty cool show, and I don't think it would be that hard to make a decent board game representation. Like someone else mentioned, making a COOP game based on the show could work great. You could have different scenarios based on certain episodes, for example.

[@Cons2911]

I know nothing about this, just happened to find this when i was looking for board games. Seems very interesting and deep. How long would a game take (i know it varies but a ball park is fine)

[@ChaostotheVII]

I'd disagree on the point he makes about dice rolling. sure it can set you back if you make a poor roll. However thats where preperation comes into play. if you need to go somewhere to test strength, you need to prepare by hiring strong crew, or possibly even crew that allow you to retest the dice roll. rolling only screws you if you arent prepared (i.e. a bad captain)

[@Verbos1979]

Different gamers like different games. I personally really enjoy this game. However, I'm a Firefly fan and also a fairly serious board gamer.

[@neildouglas2365]

Yay! Seems like I have been waiting for this review forever!

[@barelyprotestant5365]

Wait...you think the dice-rolling in this is too harsh, but not Xia?

[@Draygarth]

I got this game cause I like the show but once you get over the theme it's pretty uneventful. It's really easy to become immune to most of the bad events. We've actually replaced this game with merchants and marauders at our game nights. It's similar but I just find it more eventful.

[@Madbonna1]

I really enjoy this game, it's way too long with 4 but 2 & 3 is a sweet spot, 2 (I use a variant for reaver/alliance movement in 2 player game we move their ships 2 spots instead of one to make it harder and move toward nearest firefly for fairness) This variant also makes it more thematic I find because let's face it in the show you run into reavers way more than you do in this game.

[@RoyAnderson]

I appreciate your review Tom, but I think you played with the wrong group (or maybe pick-up-and-deliver isn't your bag). This is a very fun game. One thing I don't understand is how you can say the turns take forever. There are literally only 2 things a player can do. That's it. No turn should ever take more than a minute.

[@HeadCannonPrime]

Played this game last night and I agree with Tom 100%. Players literally took their turn, then went out for a smoke and a chat and would pop back in to see if they were up yet. It was like playing 4 solo games where the only interaction was tossing chits and money across the table to the banker. Some form of piracy expansion is crucial if this ever gets played again. Otherwise its a big dull dud.

[@alexdoug2781]

Try the Pirates and mercenaries expansion, I haven't played it but it apparently allows pvp as well as giving you more choices of ships, jobs ect.

[@Mark-OutWest]

Yeah I like how star citadel referred to playing this game as a multiplayer version of solitaire.

[@talronen9673]

Review game of thrones 2nd edition and netrunner expansions

[@johnrochester1419]

He seems almost double minded on this review. It's a great game. Super fun. The theme drips off the pages.

[@PedroCarvalho-lb7qx]

In the show they use cubits right? Not dollars

[@dillionmcdyver7943]

They have a pack of Ships Dice but it appears each ship in the game comes with a dice (ie the main set has 4 ships and you get 4 dice. Why would someone want the Fire Fly: Ships Dice (comes with "one die for each ship in the game including expansions"?

[@Trueflights]

the main box comes with 4 ships and 2 generic colored dice. The add on pack comes with dice that match the colors of each ship so everyone gets their own matching die and you don't have to pass them around anymore. Honestly though, they are just normal D6's with firefly emblems on the 6. you could use any d6.

[@wroot_lt]

Well, at least first two reviews (by Chief and Ryan) made me into checking the show and i like it. Now it was more interesting to watch this review as i know more about the show and characters, but it didn't change much from the first impression. I'm not so much into pickup and delivery games, though i like space theme, but, could be too bland to me and not much interacting with other players.

[@NovaCyn]

14:12 i think he answers quite well... the story was pick-up-and-delivery, but that's not what the show was about. All the good stories are compressed to dice rolls.

[@steveg7000]

IMO it's pretty obvious that they're taking a very short-lived show and straining to stretch it across this game like it had a vast canon of established characters. All the leaders except Mal are nobodies (does anybody even know who Corbin is?). Many of the characters you hire for your (disposable) crew had maybe one or two lines, and some even have no name at all (Hill People, Med Staff, Interrogator). Firefly's a no-brainer choice for a cooperative game where you just play the Serenity crew.

[@thedicetower]

All right, no flame wars!

[@DeadInkPen41]

Have to agree with his Review entirely on this one. My group found the game to be extremely boring for how much this game is played by yourself in a group. Its basically a race to the goal game that left us not having a lot of fun due to pretty much non-existent player interactions. I am hoping they will fix that in a future expansion.

[@adityac90]

It's way different. Xia is a modular space exploration game.

[@Cyberplex]

Solo play and long...thanks for the warning tom. I love Spartacus so grateful for this review

[@nemanjachko]

What does it mean when they say that you have to select a team to solve your tasks? l use it everyone always because I always need it ...

[@osmium73]

Thematically, there are some similarities to Xia(pick-up & deliver is one aspect of Xia & jobs in Xia are completed using a die roll), but mechanically/graphically (and even thematically), Xia and Firefly are very different. I don't see any intellectual property issues at all...but that's just me.

[@nonamesareleftt]

It's really not as complex as it seems at first blush because it all fits thematically. If you land on Planet X you draw from the Planet X deck, etc. I'm a fan of the game, but then I

[@nonamesareleftt]

That would be impossible, as the Kickstarter for Xia came out after this game was developed. What you are trying to ask is "Wow, Xia looks like this game." /end grammar nerdery For Xia's sake, I hope they do not infringe on any of Gale Force's IP.

[@rustencel]

Well you must be playing with much different players than the about 18 different people I have played it with. There are times turns take around 2 minutes, but that is only when traveling and nothing happens. When shopping doing missions or cards come up that have text, see turns take a lot longer. In the 15 or so plays I have tried so far, I would say 5 minutes is more like the average for anyone not just traveling. I do like the game, but Xia is one think will replace it for me once out.

[@Trueflights]

Replying to a really old post, but as a huge fan of both Firefly and Xia, I've come to find that turns in Xia tend to take WAY longer than they do in Firefly. I always find it funny when people cite that reason as why they like one over the other. Both games are good in their own ways. I personally prefer Xia because there are so many more options to do (buying new ships, combat, exploration, and so on), on top of the things that you can do in either game (running cargo, doing mission, upgrading parts on your ship).

[@EATENG]

What? No component drop??

[@VorpalGreatSword]

Reavers: Depraved, ruthless space cannibals.

[@mikefrench882]

Firefly can go to St Albans(05:22), Where I come from. OMG OMG OMG OMG why did I ever move away?

[@steveg7000]

Doubtful. Games can be very similar, since the rules themselves are not subject to patent. Anyone cand design a pick-up/deliver game in a space setting.

[@MrJenssen]

You sound like a person who has never played a board game in your life. Is it that you think we expect the game to be holographic? Or to possess some sort of amazing virtual reality technology that transports us into the world of the show? A game like Battlestar Galactica perfectly captured the essence of the show it was based on. It was a game about the people, the paranoia, the desperation and the hope of mankind. And about fighting those damn Cylons. Not some "bring this box here" repetition.

[@MrJenssen]

Did you just stop the review there? Tom certainly did say that the delivery theme is the basis of the series, but that wasn't really what the series was ABOUT. That's not what made the series exciting (or good).

[@MrRetroGnome]

Heck no! I want Monty as my captain!

[@RetroMaticGamer]

I get that - Firefly wasn't about pick-up-and-deliver, just like Star Wars wasn't about galactic conquest. But it's so prevalent in the backdrop - so many episodes hook in their plot via a pick-up or delivery gone wrong. Even the movie starts as a snatch-and-grab gone wrong!

[@RetroMaticGamer]

Then I fail to see what else could be expected of a game. The stuff Firefly is "about" just doesn't work as a boardgame. Anyone picking this up instead of the RPG should probably expect that. So the comment seems unnecessary - perhaps even unfair. Then again, I could give a damn if Tom threw this game off his roof. I don't even like it myself. I just don't expect the unreasonable from cardboard and dice.

[@nonamesareleftt]

He doesn't like pick-up-and-deliver.

[@MrTroy2003]

Very fun game!!

[@JamesBarrett1981]

Love the tshirt!

[@Lestat21500]

Nice game but the amount of decks and stuff you have to use to play is a turn off. My wife will never play this with me.

[@lordevilthefirst]

XIA!

[@RetroMaticGamer]

Don't get me wrong, I get that, but really, how are you going to get a boardgame to reflect that? An RPG, sure, not a boardgame. Players getting this must understand that they're playing in the Firefly 'verse, but not in the Firefly spirit. Some will dig that, others will not, and that's fine. I still disagree, though, that pick-up-and-deliver is anti-Firefly. Freighting and smuggling provided many of the MacGuffins that kept our favorite crew a-misbehavin' together.

[@valoisian]

Wow.....this does look like Xia. Is there an intellectual property issue here?

[@embir82]

One of the worst gaming experiences I ever had - long, boring, repetitive game with almost no player interaction. Firefly is a truly horrible game.

[@Trueflights]

to each their own. It is one of the most fin games that I have ever played and it tends to hit the table at least once a week. We often have extra players who want to play the longer scenarios with more players to make the games last even longer. It gives you even more time to build up a good crew and come up with some great stories for your game.

[@Mark-OutWest]

I would be interested in hearing what your best gaming experiences were. Everyone likes different things.

[@ashtonkearns5024]

Dead game

[@ENTPDuelist]

This game is long, random and boring. For your top 10 list you should make top 10 reviews you've regretted and put this game at number 1. Flipping the cards every time you move is annoying and dumb. I really think you fell for this game just because of components and theme rather than the game itself.