Oceans | Rahdo's Final Thoughts

[@NorthStarGames1]

Hi Rahdo! Thanks for the playthrough and final thoughts. I worked a bit on the solo variant, but ran out of time. I'll put it on my list. And the next print run will dedicate one side of the box to the title treatment. Many others have complained about the same thing.

[@rahdo]

awesome, thanks for that! im sure a lot of folks will be super stoked for solo in the future :)

[@deepbuzz]

There is just something so cute and endearing about the way you do these. It must be your enthusiasm.

[@Medsas]

Rahdo is so good at hyping up games 😁

[@pranksarecool1]

Just got an email from NSG they are doing a vote for the solo game and have you a shout out. “In Rahdo's "Final Thought" video for Oceans, he asked us to make a solo version of the game. I love this idea! “

[@thewanderer9371]

"Evolution" game where you intelligently design the creatures. :D

[@kushkoligaf]

Evolution is actually a very intelligent system, it just takes time. There is a reason why we often try to emulate evolution in programing and optimization. We use it to sometimes get brilliant solutions to problems we otherwise wouldn't think of. One might argue that intelligent design uses X to fix Y, but evolution goes through the whole alphabet (granted, it is not that systematic), and perhaps Z is a much better solution to Y than X.

[@JosephLachh]

lololol

[@JosephLachh]

Evolution, what a fun fictional idea.

[@JoshN614]

I really like the way that “to the right/left” now apply to either allies or enemies. And the deep water cards seem very neat! I might be trading my Evolution Climate for this, as it seems like it’d work better at small player counts

[@marcbennett9232]

interesting thoughts! I wonder if this could be rethemed to an economic production game where players are consuming resources and building products but are interdependent like real ecconomics

[@rahdo]

omg that is a fantastic idea and i now want to play that game so badly!!!!

[@marcbennett9232]

@@rahdo ive been dabbling in game design and now I have more ideas than time. I am going to make a note of this though. thanks for the inspiration.

[@JJ_TheGreat]

Yes, I would LOVE a game about/which incorporates principles of international trade. I really enjoy learning about the Heckscher-Olin Theorem in my International Economics class in university (college)! Rahdo, please look it up! It is good stuff!

[@grahamtastic83]

A definite purchase for me! Love the review!!!

[@jonathansaah9163]

I totally understand your OCD. 🤣

[@darren.mcauliffe]

Could be worse. No Pun Included complained about Heroes of Land Sea and Air's box being too big. "It's half an inch too big, so it doesn't fit on my shelf. Why?!"

[@vonwoolf9963]

I don't get why they did it to have a beautiful back. Does anybody look at it again after the first time?

[@xenothonstelnicki597]

Absolutely outstanding game. I wouldn't recommend doing this, but for super carebear mode, you could just treat all your species as wrapping around toward each other. So, if I leech left, it would target my rightmost species, etc. I don't know if that would scale reasonably, but there's my two cents. Game doesn't need it though, it's BRILLIANT.

[@rahdo]

that's a very interesting idea. but it would lose out on the notion of external events affecting you, which i do really like. i just don't want to be the affector :)

[@6Churches]

Can you play in teams of two - so that the aggression is still shared?

[@rahdo]

no official rules for that at themoment

[@matt759537]

love this game!!!! Just ordered climate because i enjoyed oceans so much. hope climate is just as good!

[@kushkoligaf]

It appears oceans has a bit more variety because of all those deep cards and the special events, but my group loves Climate. Its a really fun and engaging game that does an amazing job at simulating the evolution of species adapting to their surroundings. We also love telling little stories about our species when they get new traits or when their traits save/doom them. Like a huge carnivore having it's way with a certain species until that species evolved mud baths and the carnivore stopped eating them because he's a picky eater. The only downside we have had so far is when a player has a few really bad starting turns it can be very hard to stay competitive. But hey, such is life. :)

[@matt759537]

@@kushkoligaf that's sounds like some awesome stuff! I agree on the deep cards having some really fun variety. Played our first 6 player game tonight and was super close between us all (29,31,35,39,39,40) Was at first going for evolution just as itself which I nearly won a eBay auction for till last moment I lost and then I realized climate was a standalone game. (One time I felt happy to lose a close auction) Love the artwork they go with for these games too. By chance play with the wing expansion? If so is it worth getting maybe?

[@ilqrd.6608]

it isn’t

[@willmartin1773]

I dig Rahdo's expansion suggestion. Box thing too. ;-)

[@kerwe3447]

Maybe someone can get you a german box, they replaced one of the sides to be a "shelf appropriate" side. :D

[@chimster1234]

The text on the side? Thats a huge problem for me. I need to stack games on their side too. Im glad you pointed this out!

[@ramonosuke]

LOL Rahdo you're such a teddy bear, I love it :) I didn't even know this game was a thing, and know I must own it, for artwork alone. Also +1 for a solo mode!

[@Cronos804]

It only feels bad to hurt another player if they can not deal with it. You two should try to get used to that a littel more. You always hurt people in any competetive game.

[@rahdo]

you don't need to spike the track to have a competitive foot race. you can compete by simply doing your best rather than forcing others to do less than their best.

[@chimster1234]

@@rahdo agreed

[@Puddelito]

@@rahdo With some my homies we love to be able to hurt each other, its back and forth and FUN. With my Partner i dont like that at all. It just depends who you play with. To me tho friendly banter makes it more fun. And a game being mean kicks off that banter

[@Cronos804]

And can you somehow play this with the evolution base game ?

[@jefff.2052]

No, totally different game.

[@mattfikes9680]

They're not compatible, there's too many differences

[@boardgameschill3495]

Bought this because of your hype and it plays well at 2. 🖤

[@pjandy]

From my experience if your whole engine is dependent on one of your opponent’s species having or not having a specific trait, then you’ve made your engine more vulnerable than it needs to be (which is thematic!). I bet after playing a few more times it would be clearer how to develop a less fragile engine. You can still use particular traits like parasitic and bottom feeder to snag extra points off of your opponents without letting them control the top-of-the-food-chain species that your engine is centered around - remember, your apex predators can attack your own species, too!

[@lordoftheflings]

it seems like the kinds of games you prefer are multiplayer solitaire games with no direct competition or confrontation at all.

[@rahdo]

correct on the no confrontation part! :)

[@timstimbre9762]

´This game destroys evolution´. Oh dear, I better get a last game in :-p Really loving Oceans though, it's one you will always return to, because you want to dive into the deep some more. brilliant idea.

[@odevetu]

They should be able to make a big nice looking sticker for us to put on any side of the box instead of the text...

[@lordoftheflings]

This game makes a great pickup line. "Hey want to come to my place and play a game where we eat each other?"

[@remcovaniersel6186]

Nature is ruthless

[@jyoung10]

Funny, the first part of your final thoughts could almost have been copy and pasted to Dominant Species.

[@rahdo]

yeah, DS is a crazy awesome game, if you've got the teeth for it :)

[@jyoung10]

Rahdo - yeah, I’ve got the teeth. I wore braces as a kid, so they’re great. I floss every day! Now if I can just get more people with teeth it’d be great. ;-)

[@vonwoolf9963]

"I wanted her to keep eating me" Sorry, had to do it.

[@rahdo]

it was right there, i don't blame you! :)

[@chimster1234]

I was considering buying this yesterday when I saw it in the store. I wish the artwork was toned down just a bit because thats the first thing that threw me. It presents as a kids game even though it isnt.

[@Teremei]

Aw guy is just too sweet. Doesn't want to have his wife feel bad. My Dad is the totally opposite player.

[@neverlooz]

Up with RftG!!! Common are you serious?

[@rahdo]

is common here?! :)

[@neverlooz]

@@rahdoLol that was a dumb mistake. Come on be indulgent, english is not my first language. ;P

[@rahdo]

@@neverlooz i know, i was just teasing :)

[@ShatteredCiv]

a solo game? play video games -- there's a reason why I got rid of Warhammer Quest and Bloodbowl. Remember if you don't want an aggressive game, take out the predator cards.

[@rd2234]

Ironically, this game actually teaches Intelligent Design rather than Evolution.

[@kushkoligaf]

I think you are wrong about that. Intelligent design and evolution are actually very similar concepts. The only thing that is different is that evolution takes longer with more trial and error. You could say that changing traits on a species to counter something or make better use of something else is intelligent design, but if you consider it might take hundreds of thousands of years and thousands of generations with random mutations, where some mutations just end up being more prosperous, then evolution does the same thing. Its basically a matter of how much time you imagine passing between turns.

[@rd2234]

@@kushkoligaf The core of evolution theory is that the changes are random and unguided whereas the core of intelligent design theory is that the changes are deliberately made by an intelligent mind. During the game, players use their minds to intelligently and deliberately make changes and so this simulates intelligent design. If you want to simulate evolution, then randomly place cards on random species without any thought process and see what happens.

[@melwegman176]

I love your run-throughs but will continue to skip your Final Thoughts videos until you stop gushing over game unless there is conflict in the game.

[@rahdo]

faq.rahdo.com #7 :)

[@PedramV]

You call it a small complain, but weird or not, I wouldn't buy the game just because of that box.

[@chimster1234]

Same.

[@neverlooz]

This game should definitely been call Evolution : Oceans

[@rahdo]

folks would probably assume it's an expansion, and this is really very very different :)

[@tuhkathri9126]

Hmm. Sorry but its either 100% of the artwork by Catherine Hamilton or nothing. I'm the same way with comics and graphic novels. If it isnt done by the same artist I wont buy it. I need the artistic theme to be consistent throughout the product.