I'm not saying that Slay the Spire: The Board Game is better than the original

[@GrimFun]

I have never played Slay The Spire. My girlfriend bought the board game because she likes the original. We play this game every week. Sometimes up to five times a week. This board game is super easy to learn. It's a lot of fun especially with multiple people. We've unlocked a lot. But we still have yet to beat the 4th.

[@NoPunIncluded]

I wish you many Envenoms in your runs

[@Zectifin]

I highly recommend the video game. Its still the king of deckbuilders.

[@Bad.Ju.Ju.]

You are lucky! You have an awesome girlfriend!!

[@Jovanny_pcpp]

I've never played the video game I bought the board game because people said the game was a good deckbuilder and I like deckbuilders The manual was extremely good at explaining literally everything Hearing efka say the exact opposite really surprised me

[@AlexingCei]

Definitely, I played it with my friend who's never played the digital version, and I've only played it for 8 hours or so. Rulebook explain everything quite well.

[@fy8798]

Locally, people here had the opposite experience - many people were confused by a lot of things the manual explained, but apparently not well enough to not confuse. Might be due to the translation though, I don't know. But it had comparatively many rules questions, more than some hypercomplicated big box games.

[@MrSpleenface]

@@fy8798 I wonder if people familiar with the digital game did some mental shortcutting and got confused later on.

[@AlasdairMacKinnon]

I'd played the video game once a while ago (so I wasn't familiar with the rules). I found the rule book a bit meh - it explained the basics, but I had a lot of questions that I ended up going to BGG to figure out. It didn't ruin the game, but the rulebook could have been better. I also thought the rulebook color scheme was awful, but that's really minor.

[@seandunham2693]

One small correction. The board game DOES have setup rules for starting at different acts.

[@coreblaster6809]

Indeed, it does. I haven't seen the video yet, but he missed that? How? Did he have an older version?

[@RenewedRS]

@@coreblaster6809 he didn't miss it -- he said that the opposite was true

[@coreblaster6809]

@@RenewedRS Which means he missed the rules that let you start in different acts

[@RenewedRS]

@@coreblaster6809 I know

[@coreblaster6809]

@@RenewedRS So he did miss it

[@drgnwrr13]

I’ve played a good amount of STS in video game form and probably watched other people play it even more than that (streamers). My family has only played 1 deck builder board game (Harry Potter Hogwarts Battle) so I wanted the STS board game, but wasn’t sure if my family would get into it. I got it anyway and have played through act 3 with sister and parents on separate play throughs. It took a couple combats for them to understand some things and occasionally they would ask how something worked even though they had used the card multiple times in earlier combats. But after finishing the game all of them were asking questions about what will happen next time or what it’s like to play as a different character. So I would 100% encourage everyone to try introducing people who don’t know the video game to the board game you might need to give a lot of instruction and sometimes it feels like you are playing all the characters at once. But it’s a good game to play even with new players and the excitement people get as they begin to understand their combos is super fun to watch.

[@NoPunIncluded]

Thanks for sharing your experiences, I enjoyed reading this.

[@willrfrench]

@@NoPunIncludedoh yea? Well I enjoyed watching this review!!

[@4_am]

Ive heard its great but its price! Ive hundreds of hours playing the video game, just just cant justify the cost.

[@godot1785]

thats really the only reason why i am never gonna buy this board game and everyone who defends that price is just a addicted moron

[@Noel_Maymes]

This plus the sheer size of that box… I just can’t justify buying this game by any metrics when I have the same digital game I can bring with to the loo, on vacation, while waiting at the doctors, or WHEREVER I go with the most effective and playerfriendly checkpoint/save state system there is. I got that digital version for the equivalent of one Kebab ( I love Kebab). The only thing that sells this is the fact that I could play it coop and do cool combos I can’t do in the game. While that sounds great, it doesn’t sound 120€ worth great for me. Especially since it would see the table once a year at best. I’m glad it’s a good implementation of the game and that they’ve done great work. That’s great and I hope more boardgames based on video games will see such faithful implementations and success (not you God Of War), but yeah, it’s a hard pass for me.

[@MrCianod]

I bought it with the Kickstarter, haven't had the courage to roll it out yet. It's got so so so many bits

[@ryanduffendack7208]

@@MrCianod It is a lot of bits, but when I played it fresh out of the box (although, after sleeving the cards) it took maybe 10 minutes to set up and another 10 to put away with two people. Granted, I've played it on TTS many times so that definitely helped with knowing how to set everything up.

[@tpa3437]

You missing out sadly. If you consider its better than a big % of other board games ( and unplayed expansive KS) and that a lot of games are now expensive, yeah its worth it. Setup really not bad.

[@fairyfish83]

I introduced this to a friend who never played StS before. I didn't explain the rules. I gave her the starter deck of a character she liked the look of, showed her the attack and defend icons, said "it's the same as Legendary but just draw 5" and started the first encounter. Everything else I explained as it came up. We went through to Act 3 and bullied Time Eater to death and she immediately downloaded the video game on her phone and hasn't put it down in weeks!

[@tuckerroveto1058]

Loved the video but disagree with the “it’s written for people who have played” statement. I’ve played a fair amount digitally but my wife never has. I set it up but she read thru the rules and was mostly good to go!! She is good at and enjoys deck building though. Love the game.

[@meathir4921]

I'm surprised Efka didn't talk about the KS structure itself. Look, I'm only looking to maybe buy the base game since uh... that's expensive. But I think this is probably the most sensible set of KS content I've seen. Rather than locking content (okay... the Claw pack. Claw is law), they locked stuff that card gamers that like blinging out would want. Playmats, higher rarities, alt arts, these are the things people who play card games would want to spend on a game outside of more content. They could've locked Ascensions behind it but they didn't. Shows a level of care. I guess Mega Crit's roots in Netrunner shone through a bit. Contention Games did a bloody good job.

[@MetodoCuboAzul]

Really sad about Claw Pack, the KS was not available for my country, but a publisher localized here without that add on. And we know claw is law, hoping they sell it as an extra…

[@srabbelier]

NPI really nails why the boardgame is such a good adaptation and where the fun lies. Really great game especially when playing with friends.

[@privatevendetta]

You dont have to start in act one in the boardgame.

[@mofire5674]

I'm proud to have spent a decent time contributing to playtesting and providing feedback before the game released. Glad to see it did so well, and amazing review!

[@NicD]

Other improvements in the board game: • Full knowledge, which to be fair is more of a strike against the video game, where it feels like half a player's improvement is learning about event outcomes and enemy behavior. • Everything being trackable; you're never blindsided from an unforeseen edge case, forgotten relic, or obscure trigger interaction. • Direct decision-making, like assigning energy to X-cost cards, choosing what cards to discard or exhaust, skipping the rest of forgone combats, taking back a hasty move, and especially everything to do with orbs.

[@metallsnubben]

THAT is true! The "next round" information is nice (and was basically the eureka moment that made the whole game) but why not expose "the whole script"! Although finding out what enemies do and carrying that info forward is a staple of videogames, but in the context of long roguelike runs maybe seeing an enemy for the first time is enough of a shock as a whole, without having future turns be obscured as well

[@KhristianBolano]

The videogame is still a Roguelike, learning what enemies do in the first place when first facing them is part of the early game experience

[@Bleuchz]

Between this, leviathan wilds and Arcs it could be the best year in the hobby for me, specifically.

[@mackenziejohnson5200]

Strongly agree

[@yosoyelrey7]

i haven't even played Arcs yet but I'd agree on that just for STS and Leviathan alone

[@jrbrinksmanship]

My group had never played the video game before (other than me) and we were all OBSESSED with the BG. I think it worked so well because they had me to Sherpa them along in one of their first deck builders and their absolute first rogue-like, but still, we played every week, doing run after run, until we unlocked and completed Act IV. Highly recommended.

[@gregorys9629]

"Only a hyper beam, boo" - That's literally one of my favourite cards!

[@benjaminsyttkus2499]

This. Why the Hyper Hate?

[@NoPunIncluded]

Extremely situational. Good early game, all downsides late game. Promotes niche strategies rather than strong ones. Much better rares available.

[@benjaminsyttkus2499]

@@NoPunIncluded If the extreme Situation is enemys you want dead then hyperbeam is your card. I'm not saying it is the the best rare Defect has in his Pool, but if i get it as a starting rare im happy. There are way worse cards to start with than a "Deal 5 (7) to a row Hyperbeam.

[@phillystevesteak6982]

​@@NoPunIncludedIt's really not that situational. It's extremely useful in 75% of engagements. Sometimes you may want to pass it the first draw, but it often ends up being that necessary finisher that you couldn't otherwise ammount to.

[@Deaoth]

It barely scales since defect doesn't typically play strength, and it shuts off orb decks which are generally easier to get off the ground. The comment above hit the nail on the head with their description, it's just a decent floor 1 pick that can't carry you and ends up being a curse in most decks once you get off the ground.

[@pixxelwizzard]

6:39 is so true. I have over 400 hours in the video game, so I'm no spring chicken. Last night in the board game, I had the choice between an elite or a regular enemy before the final boss in ACT II. I had full health. FULL HEALTH! And I chose the regular enemy because I was afraid. That would never, ever have happened in the video game. :P

[@mistymysticsailboat]

Did you just BOO hyperbeam? YOU TAKE THAT BACK RIGHT NOW

[@NoPunIncluded]

I really don't like hyperbeam

[@mistymysticsailboat]

@@NoPunIncludedBut it does so much damage...

[@benjaminsyttkus2499]

​@@NoPunIncludedNot liking on of the strongest cards, which on itself solves act 1 should be considered a crime😂

[@StuartHetzler]

patiently awaiting gloomhaven the board game the video game the boardgame

[@aaronstark5060]

Well we got the board game the video game, so we’re one step away.

[@devinburgess3091]

We have second edition Gloomhaven now, which incorporates some of the balance changes the video game added. Does that count? In this case, we are waiting for Gloomhaven: the board game the video game the board game the video game, now includes the new art of version #2

[@WadeAllen001]

I do personally think failing and having to start over in cooperative board games is almost always pretty intolerable. That's why when I play Gloomhaven if my group feels like we're about to all die we turn the difficulty down one notch so we never have to redo a scenario. So it's not a question of "will we succeed?" but a question of "what difficulty level will we succeed at?" Though I haven't played Slay the Spire the board game to know if I personally find losing a cooperative board game too annoying to bear. I would suspect it feels better because there's more randomness in the run, whereas in something like Gloomhaven you've got to just redo the exact same scenario.

[@Phoenix42.0]

Hyper beam is actually one of the best and most under rated cards in the video game, never played the board game though.

[@benjaminsyttkus2499]

It's still amazing in the boardgame.

[@Phoenix42.0]

@@benjaminsyttkus2499 Yeah I figured, he just clearly thinks it's a bad card in both games xD

[@benjaminsyttkus2499]

@@Phoenix42.0 To be fair, i really like my orbs too. But dealing a buttload of frontloaded AoE simply feels amazing. It's even better in the boardgame, where it's only negative effect is removing all your orbs.

[@Phoenix42.0]

@@benjaminsyttkus2499 Oh well the reason it's great in the video game is even if the downside was "to play this attack it has to kill every last enemy." It would still be amazing, you often just need the extra 26 damage to end the fight and the focus loss doesn't matter if they're dead

[@jonathanrussell6525]

Problem in the game is it’s niche/dead weight against bosses which sucks. If you’re focused on your orbs, using it early it’s going to be bad because you’re gonna be spamming now-weaker orbs. It can be a finisher later in a fight but it’s a wasted spot in your hand until then. It can clear chaff in certain fights but is awful in others. And if you’re not focusing on orbs you’re probably running a reprogram deck, in which case hyper beam is even stronger against groups but against tougher enemies you might be better off using two 1 energy cards instead because you’ll apply your strength twice instead of once. Though you could say this is more a fault of the game making AoE not good against act 3 or 4 bosses than a fault of the card itself.

[@allibeardsley]

I actually disagree with you about not playing the board game first... I played this first and loved it, and then got hooked on the video game. But the caution of it being a lot to learn is true... We had the help of a friend who had played the video game explain it to us, which saved us a lot of time.

[@MrPiotrV]

if you think act 1 elites are "easy" you're definitely not playing on ascension 20 :p also, hyperbeam is amazing

[@mtg3992]

Excellent and I think accurate review. I made a last-minute late pledge based entirely on the game's reputation. Once I got my shipping notice, I saw it was on sale on Steam and thought "might as well". I was immediately hooked. Once the KS arrived, I taught it to my wife and she was really enjoying it until . . . "WE HAVE TO START OVER AND CAN'T KEEP ANYTHING?!?!?". She was PISSED. However, she got over it and we won on our 3rd run, loves the game, and has accepted the whole reset thing. She's worried that since I play the online game so much I won't want to play the board game. False. I will absolutely say yes to getting this to the table at every opportunity for the foreseeable future.

[@dereklong9288]

Love the review, but I came to StS without having played the video game (or having even seen it) - it was the designer that pulled me in. And I love it! I didn't find the rules hard, honestly.

[@kampfkeks6619]

Just on the act 1 elites in the video game. They are very dangerous in later ascensions. They are very different damage races and test your deck for: aoe, bust damage and many hits vs big hits

[@abnerpinker7849]

I love how fluently you transitions between scenes while continuing your essay, i just imagine you putting the game on the background for a single line, great work!, it doesnt go unnoticed.

[@stumboz5566]

If this version of envenom was ethereal and 3 energy it might be more balanced for how busted it can be.

[@Shazirah_Kaur]

Thanks for presenting this as primarily a review first - including your critical points - informed by your own board game and video game journey; versus the opposite way. Gives me something I can share with friends so they have a healthy perspective on if the game is for them! (Not to say there isn't YT space to gush over a thing - just not as useful to me in trying to spread the hobby with friendos.) Appreciate the work, as usual!

[@stukaracing]

I played the TTS version of the board game and couldn't get over the fact that I was playing the digital adaptation of the board game adaptation of (essentially) a video game adaptation of a board game system. It was damn good too.

[@DanielBerke]

I finally got to play my copy (just through Act 1) with three of my regular board gaming group for the first time last week, and they enjoyed it. They're all quite experienced board gamers (which probably helps), but they all took to it readily. The Defect player got especially lucky and pulled an Electrodynamics in his first card reward, then had a blast raining lightning on all and sundry for the rest of the session, but the Silent and Ironclad players were having fun and doing well too. I can't speak to how it would work if no one in the group had played the video game, but if there's someone who has who can help explain the rules I think it's pretty easy for at least moderately-experienced players to pick up.

[@graywolf13x]

Just ordered the board game thanks for this review hopefully me and my girlfriend like this as much as we like the game thanks for this awesome review

[@scopaf1662]

To those who loved the videogame but are wary on the price here - the pricing is pretty standard fair for modern board game of this calibur. That isnt to say its not expensive - just saying that as someone who is usually more a videogame player who got into board games, this is exactly the price i expect.

[@Spoofsc]

Awesome review! Told me exactly why the game would not work with our group. Looks awesome though 👍

[@professorbiohazard4271]

How in the world is this guy the Peter Finch of board games and it's amazing

[@tylrkozelisky6252]

It’s a shame griftlands never caught on because I love it

[@erythrocebuspatas]

So that you are not lonely - played it! ;)

[@lizflaherty1374]

it was your video on sts that made me play it years ago. i thought u were wrong about combos being boring to watch, but ofc i put that down to a matter of taste. i love games like rune age for the combos. anyway i’ve been really been enjoying the board game adaptation and it feels kinda like a personal full circle inside a full circle to see you do a video on it.

[@zfighter3]

I was really confused by some of your comparisons and I have a thousand hours in the video game. I don't think you sold WHY it's worth setup each time when it takes no time to restart the video game. You seem to downplay the high points of the videogame with a nothing burger to me.

[@ShinakoX2]

Yeah, he really only focused on the mechanical balance changes, didn't he? But in the end, it all comes down to convenience + low price of the video game vs. co-op social experience of the board game.

[@Kednavikit]

I spot a Turing Machine board game, great pick!

[@CallipygianMoose]

Everything is so well done in this game. I honestly think deck-builders are some of the easiest games to teach. They almost always start off with limited simple options and then gradually add more complex cards and synergies. This is perfect for people who want to learn on the fly. I really hope when sts 2 comes out they back an expansion for this game to include the new character(s) and enemies.

[@bfg1637]

Sold. Well done sir. I feel like this fixes so much of this game I wanted it to be. main thing it being co-op. that's massive. Also you earned a sub buddy. Very well done video.

[@dalerancourt5693]

I really appreciate your in depth explanation of ZA NUMBAZ! 9:00

[@LordChipps420]

It’s also on game pass on Xbox if anyone is subscribed to that and want to try it. The videogame version, not the board game version, obviously. Though it wasn’t aware the board game was a thing! I might look into a purchase. Most of my friends and family don’t play, but if you can play solo, I’m in! I’ll try to talk my kids into it at some point

[@NoPunIncluded]

You can play solo, but I don't think this is where the game shines.

[@andrewharvey8523]

First time checking out the channel. Well written and produced. Really enjoyed the vid, will definitely be checking out more.

[@eveneveneveneven]

You mention to get the game on steam or switch. I should add that the game is also available on Android and iOS. Though it is a bit finicky, it is a fully working game which is so much easier to whip up on the bus, while waiting for your rice cooker to finish or during whatever short breaks you have in your life. Since it's turn based, it's no problem to quit at any time and pick up later. I have the game both on Steam, xbsx and Android, but my playtime on Android outweighs the other platforms probably by a factor of 100.

[@angrybirdboy985]

It's 2am, I promise I'll watch the video after I sleep

[@Ryusuta]

I love the Slay the Spire computer game, but one of its biggest weaknesses, is that your run is basically decided for you within the first few floors of it. This is especially true in the higher ascensions. The board game definitely feels like you have a lot more flexibility with what cards you take and both when and how you want to do your builds.

[@PedroPauloAntunesbcp]

That weird. The first friend to come over to play with me just bought the game for him on his phone. I think the game is very inclusive for people who experiencing StS for the first time.

[@lakemonster_5551]

Great review! Sounds like the designers put a lot of work and love into this adaptation and all of the rad new mechanics.

[@TheToolinator]

Hey I just wanted to say thanks for being genuinely charismatic and engaging with this video.

[@bryanwinston8820]

Efka this was a spot on review. I played the board game before ever playing the video game and I was very meh about it even though I love deck builders. However I've now played the video game A LOT and I can't wait to play the board game again.

[@AnoopVargheese]

I've seen plenty of board game streamers who've never played the video game trying this out and generally getting the gist of the rules, but they end up misunderstanding one or two effects. It's not so bad to be unplayable, but it did mess up some of their fun with the game. Overall, I agree that I wouldn't recommend buying the game if you've never played the video game before. At the very least, make sure at least one person in your group is familiar with the video game, and put them in charge of reading the rules and explaining it to the others. In my case, I had a great time playing the game with two friends who had never played the video game before, but that was because I already knew the video game and could understand the interlocking nature of all the rules and systems on the first read through the rules. I explained only the bare minimum of how to deal damage and block to my friends, and explained each of the other systems and mechanics to them as they played the game and those mechanics came up.

[@Dragnerful]

Game is lovely but I can't justify spending 100+ bucks over...5 that the videogame cost (that also comes with the infinite amount of free content that the community creates in the workshop...for free) when it really isnt that different other than the multiplayer aspect. But I guess I'm not the target and this is for tryhard StS fans that want to have everything related and people that don't play videogames and that's fine. Whatever medium you choose just play StS, is incredible.

[@CrabeVideos]

Glad to see your review! Been really enjoying my copy. I think if you have played StS the video game before it is not hard to onboard new players. I've introduced it to a couple of people with no knowledge of StS and they really enjoyed it. Regardless, if you are buying for yourself try the video game first.

[@toaofpi]

I need to play this more. ,but I have loved what I have played so far. I've played a bit with my wife, although I did make sure to introduce her to the digital version for a little bit first, so she didn't have too much trouble picking it up (I've played over 100 hours digitally, so I felt right at home) As far as physical adaptations of digital board games go, this is the one to beat. Thanks for the video!

[@stevekingswell9143]

Great analysis, and as a non-STS familiar, I will probably give this a miss, unless I get to play and become familiar either online or someone else's copy. - Cheers for the independence.

[@jkramer470]

i love both the video and the board game, my main issue with the game is the relic system, most being on a dice roll so it may never happen, where in the video game you know how to get your relic to trigger or can plan for it. or the relics not being as run defining, when i play with my group we skip as many fight as possible and skip every elite(except the burning), they are not impactful enough with how little health you have.

[@isitanos]

Some relics are EXTREMELY impactful. I my latest game the silent got the one that gives +1 damage to zero-cost attacks, making her shivs absolutely murderous. We hit every elite we could and are now walking all over the act 3 ones.

[@Timlagor]

Small numbers may feel more impactful to you but the main difference is that they are easier to calculate. Personally I find absurd number inflation (eg pokemon, FF) just annoying

[@Kihen9]

I just imagined the mental strain of playing this game solo as 4 characters xD (Awesome review, as always)

[@Trozomuro]

UHM, i think i know what im gonna do tomorrow.

[@Kihen9]

@@Trozomuro if you do, come back and tell us what happened!

[@Doodledobble]

New subscriber here. Homie, you are the most entertaining board game reviewer I’ve ever seen. I’m here for it, the whole schtick. 🤘

[@MemoryVague]

This review is very charmingly written and edited

[@NoPunIncluded]

Thanks! Appreciate it.

[@OneShotBruh]

Great review as always. I am a bit on the fence about buying this game as it looks great but a bit pricey for what it is, so this review will be of great help! On another note, since we are talking about videogames that were spawned from boardgames and were then (re-)adapted back into a boardgame, do you have any plans to review Europa Universalis: The Price of Power? I am quite a fan of the videogame it was adapted from and would like to see what your thoughts on it are :)

[@fáfnir-d3u]

this thumbnail is really good!

[@ShinakoX2]

If you enjoyed the video game then you'll enjoy the board game, it's a very faithful adaptation. But it's only really worth buying the board game if you have other people to play with. The board game is expensive, and the video game is a fraction of the cost. On the other hand since it's a very faithful adaptation someone who didn't like the video game won't find the board game to be any better.

[@bigsarge2085]

I'm not saying I love this channel (but I do).

[@Brannen666]

I love the game but I have Slay the spire at home and I don't need friends to enjoy it. (Which I do not have a home)

[@ryanahr2267]

Ugh, I hate being broke. I love the video game, but I hadn't even heard of this until you released this video. My main video to board conversion that I'm interested in is Dead Cells, which looks amazing. Guess I'll have to find a way to snag both at some point, then.

[@xilverknight155]

Tabletop simulator on steam has an official mod made by the devs of the board game. it's a free mod, but the base game is $20. it's mac compatible and runs on laptops. I know it's not physical, but definitely a good way to try it out if you're okay playing it digitally.

[@lukeerikdavis]

This is not the review I expected but I am delightfully surprised.

[@Darkii1smile]

What a lovely review! Thanks for your work 😊

[@JeffReedIsMe]

Great video! Also, I love that jacket. Where did you get it?

[@zacvancastle.]

Don't you have to start every board game you finished or you lost from the beginning? I mean, if you are playing a dungeon crawler like Descent, for example, you may just dismiss and start just the last room. But isn't the normal thing to start all over again? It sounds like you just needed to say something not so good about the game to "balance" a fully positive opinion

[@timmerdaswimmer]

This review is so, so good. Might be the best one I've seen yet. Well done!!

[@Fenix4kk]

is that the Spire RPG map in the back next to the Keith Haring one? :)

[@NoPunIncluded]

Yes

[@Fenix4kk]

@@NoPunIncluded awesome also: great video as always! :)

[@TheNardinho]

I'm looking forward to play the board game, the video game is awesome! Cheers from 🇧🇷

[@LittleNatsu]

How do you get your hands on this boardgame? I just see it at really high prices on ebay for over 300 dollars, would love to get my hands on this and play it but I can't seem to find it anywhere tbh maybe in stores in person?

[@Motif054]

My copy should be arriving soonish I cannot stop thinking about ittt

[@NoPunIncluded]

@@Motif054 hope it lives up to expectations!

[@Clayjar444]

You nailed it! By the way I introduced three different friends who had NOT played the original to the boardgame and all three loved it and ended up buying the videogame for themselves, so, that's that

[@alcovitch]

Ya no. The rules are pretty clear for the most part (i did have to go on BGG for a few situations) and I played the game YEARS ago and not for very long. It took me 5 mins to get set up and do a run. It's extremely easy on the basic rules and phases. This is for anyone who loves deck builders as this is one of the better ones.

[@abruwer08]

This is such a weird game to get (as with a lot of new board games lately) in that it only work for advanced gamers. I love the digital version, but no way would this work with the newbies in my group. I played it the other day and could play without almost no rules explanation what-so-ever, which is impressive. But it took the entire day and was pretty much brain dead afterwards.

[@benjaminsyttkus2499]

I've played this with experts in StS and also with newbies. Havent had a single disapointed player

[@abruwer08]

@@benjaminsyttkus2499 You and I have very different ideas about what it entails to be a new player then. smh.

[@MrHowtofall]

I’ve introduced multiple friends to STS through the board game. Many of them have gone on to buy the video game. I don’t think it’s fair to say STSBG is developed exclusively for players of the video game. I compare it to Arkham Horror, I’ve had games of Arkham go 2ish rounds and then we lose. I’ve also had games go 3 hours. If that is something someone is open to the STS is a great option

[@ardynizunia9709]

I'm just here to say, hyperbeam is an objectively very powerful card. You need to learn to use it right. Well, in the videogame at least. I can't speak to the balance of the board game. And also, the number changes make this board game seem terribly less balanced to me, because there is no range of liw damage options anymore. In Slay the Spire, the ranges of 1-6 damage MATTER. Reducing them all to 1 damage vastly dumbs it down and makes cards, like the envenom you mentioned, completely busted which is NOT a good thing like you seem to think. Busted stuffin StS should need rare combos or lots of work. This is just a single card being completely busted automatically, which is not good design. Cards that deal below 5 damage should've been excluded from the card game because of this. The coop aspect seems very cool and I'd definitely give the game a try if it wasn't so expensive, but I can't expect it to be better than the original regarding balace and well thought out design.

[@DragonFinlay]

Time to play the card game that started as a video game but was adapted into a physical card game, in Tabletop Simulator

[@FuzzyLogic0]

Well put. I love the game. I think it was made specifically for me. I need to remember what you say about other people not knowing the app.

[@jaykanta4326]

The board game is absolutely better than the video game. I have rarely found a board game that captures my interest like StS. The difficulty seems just right, well designed.

[@Tom-mb2ji]

I saw Ten-Bone Bowling on your shelf, so I looked it up, and now I want to see a play through. 🐕

[@NoPunIncluded]

Bessie is really scared of knocking things over so the game itself is stressful to her. She loves the toy that comes with it tho.

[@Tom-mb2ji]

@@NoPunIncluded Oh God, it sounds like this game rewards dogs who knock over things in your house with impunity.

[@Derfischlebtnoch]

That "kakaarr"-Sound at 2:00 min. So on point :D

[@MrAphilipe]

What's the marvel game he referenced in the intro?

[@ExtinctWolf83]

I disagree about the part of not introducing people to sts through the board game. As long as one person knows the original and can explain the game to everyone else, it is an exceptional experience which can bring more people to the game. Nobody I knew ever played it before, now everyone loves it and some have even bought the game on steam.

[@NoPunIncluded]

@@ExtinctWolf83 I think maybe I didn't make that part very clear. I do say: be cautious if your friends haven't played it and stay away if no one has. When I say cautious, I just mean, you might have a little trouble depending on how ready your players are for this kind of experience. Yours didn't - hooray.

[@iso2109]

I would love to buy it but the price tag is just off fhe scale. The German version is a 120€ and that is just ridiculous. So: nice game, but I'm going to stay with the digital version.

[@benjaminsyttkus2499]

120€ is a super fair price for the content you are recieving. Almost 900 cards, 450 Art-sleeves an a buttload of tokens and other Stuff are for 120€ is a super fair pricetag. Compare it to something like Dominion where you get around 300 cards per game and nothing else for about 40€.

[@iso2109]

The point is: as a husband/father the number 120 for ONE SINGLE game is outside my budget for a board game. I don't care at all if it is a fair price tag or not. If you can pay that much for a board game - good for you. I can't.

[@benjaminsyttkus2499]

@@iso2109 Im totally with you. 120€ is a high price, but my point it's not to high for what you get in the Box. Boardgames are getting more and more expensive.

[@arlasoft]

I'm not a board game player, or much of a regular gamer for that matter, the only game I play really is StS, so this was a one-off purchase which made it more justifiable. Even then, when you think about other forms of entertainment and how many hours of enjoyment this can potentially give you it's a solid investment. You could pay £12 for a cinema ticket, £35 for dinner, drinks and snacks, and that's it, one night, £40-50 gone. Go to a theme park, it's £50 before you even think about food and drink. One day, done, gone. I have played an act almost every evening since it arrived, after sitting at my computer all day programming for my day job or personal projects, it's a really relaxing change of pace to sit down with the board game and a glass of wine. As the review says it's like StS2, a familiar yet unique experience and challenge. I haven't even played it multiplayer yet because I don't really know anyone who's into board games or Sts enough to try it. Of course the counter-argument is you can often get the video game for under $10 and also get potentially hundreds or thousands of hours of entertainment, but that's really just a mark of how video games in general are such good value for money while a lot of other forms of entertainment aren't.

[@johnberry5296]

Excellent work as ever!

[@Simon-L-B]

What’s that vertical display board that’s holds rows of cards please?

[@NoPunIncluded]

There is no vertical display board, sorry.

[@ABIGPLAN]

I find myself in minority that doesn't appreciate the design choices that were made while adapting the game. I believe numbers reduction were varranted, but they went way too far with it, killing a lot of design space in the process and blowing certain strategies way too out of proportion (like strength). I also don't like that relics with perfectly transferrable to the board medium effects from the original were needlessly changed to accomodate the new die thing, in many cases not even having a similar effect.

[@fy8798]

I think you're on to something with the idea that the game is strictly aimed at Slay the Spire fans, with relatively little care for people new to it. I saw SO MANY QUESTIONS on things obvious to a player of the videogame among players of exclusively the board game. That is GOOD if you like Slay the Spire already, because you get something really cool, but perhaps frustrating if not. One thing though: You CAN skip act 1. There's rules for it. Which, admittedly, will likely work even less well for people not familiar with Slay the Spire, because the deck you end up with may be rather hard to evaluate.

[@BrotherCheng]

Just curious, what questions you had as a new player? I will admit I have played the video game before but I felt that the manual was very easy to understand. What wasn't clear?

[@mateomery1708]

Or is it?

[@NoPunIncluded]

it is.

[@MrPavarok]

Yeah, I'd absolutely agree. But I just couldn't get myself to back it at that price point. Especially because I know I'll just end up playing it myself a lot. Either way, glad this exists, maybe if they get tabletop exclusive expansions I might take the plunge, who knows!

[@sebastiang.5032]

Great review!

[@marxmeesterlijk]

I got into Slay The Spire, because my friends don't really enjoy playing Dominion with me all that much, since I get a bit try hard with card games. I feel like I would be back at square 0 with this. But I am amazed they managed to adapt is as well as they did. But does it let me Dead Branch + Corruption?

[@coolbeanz22]

They don't replicate any of the mechanics of cards/relics that spawn new cards like Dead Branch does. Corruption is unchanged (and still great), but Dead Branch is a relic that reads: "Once per combat: Draw 1 card for each card in your Exhaust pile." In other words, you won't get the same busted combo from the video game, but the synergy is still there, especially if you know your deck is loaded with skills.

[@Zilong09]

How is this for the retail edition, I wonder. Alot of reviewers play the deluxe edition. It shouldn't matter but for some reason this game has so much fiddle and having any slight quality of life upgrade the deluxe has maybe make or break the tabling of this game. It looks huge

[@NoPunIncluded]

I played with just the retail components and it was the same. I don't think metal coins or a neoprene playmat will make it less fiddly somehow magically.

[@Zilong09]

@@NoPunIncluded good to know!! My wife's biggest gripe is the fiddly. We played it on TTS and agree it's great.

[@AndrewSumner-x9w]

I wonder if they'll do a BG expansion after the VG sequel is released

[@isitanos]

The game is actually an expansion and modding paradise when you think about it. With the mandatory sleeves, a child could make paper cards and it would still work.

[@kobarsos82]

Not gonna lie... 12 sentries... no thanks... This prolongs a single run almost indefinitely. I don't want to think how long each run would be, even with just 3 players. Let's be honest, realistically its probably just a 2 player game. Most players will not have 12+ hours free on their sunday.

[@isitanos]

The storage is designed to so the game is easily savable between acts, and you get to define what's a "run". Don't try to do all three acts back-to-back if you don't have the time. There are mechanics to start at act II or III should you wish too.

[@renopdx]

Wow. I can't wait to play the computer adaptation!

[@isitanos]

Wait no more, there's already a boardgame mod for the video game.