Mass Effect Priority Hagalaz Review

[@asmalldent]

Are you going to review Rogue Angels when it is out? I want to know how it compares to this Mass Effect adaptation. I get the feeling you had some higher expectations on its delivery, like maybe it turned out a bit too boring or uneventful for you?

[@RoomandBoardReviews]

@@asmalldent I don't have plans for rogue angels right now but I wouldn't be opposed to it. I think Rogue angels will be supremely more robust than this, there really isn't any story here and rogue angels feels like they will try and make your story choices matter, there's just varying objectives here.

[@FPchie]

Nah, after watching multiple playthroughs online couldnt really see how it captures the spirit of ME, looks quite dull. Its like watching group of players working on excel sheets/flowcharts. Worse with solo. Also missing Jack and Miranda. Game map and player board look congested and mechanics is a chore to upkeep for such a small content IMO. If you want a nice map book with campaign, go for Jaws OTL. If you love the IP, play the video game. If you love the theme on tabletop, go for Rogue Angels. This IP could be adapted bigger and better if its on KS. Bet this game will be sold at half of retail price soon.

[@Revarine]

You seem to really enjoy it but the game has a 4.8 at BGG...any idea why is that low?

[@RoomandBoardReviews]

@@Revarine people are scared that they put pronouns on the character sheets so have been review bombing it because they can't set aside their own intolerance

[@odiedodieuk]

Modern day ideology is being inserted into the game that didn’t have it. If the game was infused with say Christian ideology then the other side would be just as cranky. Also the game designer tried to rally his troops to give it a positive review bombing first.

[@odiedodieuk]

@@RoomandBoardReviewsawww dang.

[@RoomandBoardReviews]

@@odiedodieuk incorrect on both the timeline and the request. Eric lang was responding to people in the tweet you're referencing, and his request was explicitly "hey if you have played the game please go give it a review" which is different than saying "hey everyone go rate this positively". Also pronouns are not anti religion. It is as simple as an e-signature to those who may not know the difference between a female and a male Krogan.

[@fy8798]

​@@odiedodieuk Basic English grammar is ideology? You people are weird. You've managed to come up with an even sillier controversy than the last time you were mad at mass effect for its, uh, "ideology". That controversy over the gay scenes in Mass Effect one was so silly even we in Europe heard about it. The fox news segment is legendary.

[@morgaknightgames]

I've been enjoying my copy. It's fun, not groundbreaking or amazing, but did a good job of emulating the game and the crew's various skills and powers. I know some people aren't thrilled about the dice, but I love random chance like that. I also appreciate a short campaign for once. 😂 Now, can it wait for a bit? I'm in the middle of some calibrations.

[@RoomandBoardReviews]

100% my feeling as well. A solid little romp.

[@morgaknightgames]

@@RoomandBoardReviews plus now I have a tiny Wrex and Garrus to decorate my desk. 🤣

[@fy8798]

I do like the book for the scenarios quite a lot. such a nice idea that is getting more popular lately. Even Frosthaven has it now. More games should do that over the 45235 map tiles that need its own storage solution. And admittedly, shorter campaign is also rather attractive these times, probably the only reason I am even *considering* it. Though I think the scenario maps I see here seem a bit bland - it does fit Mass Effect, but these scifi metal settings just are a slight bit boring. Too many campaign games. This one looks neat and for shorter bursts, so really nice you lead with it here. Already helps to not immediately go "I already have enough campaign games". Even if you're a monster for the Liara abuse.

[@chrisedwards6573]

The 'review bombing' is just people saying it's a bad game, and in their opinion, it is. Maybe Eric Lang shouldn't go out of his way to make people angry all the time. And yes, lots of people don't like the game because of the gameplay. That's not 'review bombing'. That's just Eric Lang throwing a fit because people doing like what he made, and then asking people to give it fake positive reviews because the game isn't doing as well as expected. I'll never trust you again.

[@VaultBoy13]

The review bombing were people rating it a "1" without having played the game, because the game lists pronouns on the character boards. Most of the accounts giving the game a "1" were new accounts with Mass Effect being the only game they've rated. Eric Lang called out the bad behavior which basically resulted in a call to action from the anti-pronoun crowd. I don't know whether you're uninformed or your cognitive dissonance simply prevents you from recognizing the actual situation. The standard deviation (SD) for Mass Effect (3.76) is really only comparable to games that are review bombed for reasons outside the gameplay. For example, Darkest Dungeon has a SD 3.18 due to the obvious issues with Mythic Games. By contrast Gloomhaven was review bombed (particularly, in relation to users meta-gaming BGG to put Brass in the #1 position), and the SD is only 1.74. By comparison, a normal game's SD is about 1.4 (+/0 .1). What the standard deviation tells us is that the Mass Effect has a high amount of outliers. There are two ways to interpret this. Either the gameplay is highly polarizing you either love it or you hate it or there are external factors impacting the data. There are certainly going to be people that are unhappy with the board game implementation of a video game franchise. You can see that aspect reflected in something like Bloodborne: The Card Game (SD 1.46). This is a valid 1-rating of Bloodborne: TCG: "Eric Lang took a largely single-player game of skill and turned it into a 3-5 player semi-cooperative game with backstabbing mechanics. An absolute abomination." Again, you can see that aspect reflected in XCOM: The Board Game (SD 1.50) where a 1-rating is legit: "Fiddly. The app tells you what to do. You do it. The dice hate you. The PC game is better. Most other board games are better. Unnecessary." You can chock it up to all the reviews are just "their opinion." But, they're politically driven reviews, because a subset of people have a problem with pronouns. Most of these people haven't played the game. Hell, they probably don't know anything about it beyond "pronouns." The review bombings are a result of how easy it is to manipulate BGG data. Anyone can make an account and review bomb a single game. Push that agenda through social media, and what we get is current Mass Effect rating.

[@RoomandBoardReviews]

Whoops, probably should continue to trust me since I'm able to see some things that you aren't! Thanks VaultBoy for the above explanation.

[@patriziopastore9895]

Thanks, waiting my copy... I hope that really give the feeling of Mass Effect.

[@RoomandBoardReviews]

@@patriziopastore9895 I wouldn't say it quite captures mass effect because of how robust the video game is, but it's nice to spend time with the characters and it's still fun

[@ezraclark7904]

I appreciate short branching campaigns, I would rather explore the possibilities over several runs rather than maybe someday see the ending of a big long linear campaign. Also much easier to onboard a new player

[@iTower_Prime]

Picking up our copy today. I love that you dont have to get all the minis at the crazy price they are asking ... i am sure in a year you can find them for pennies on the dollar if you really want them.

[@FunkyMink99]

Cant do the pronouns. Respectfully, its a modern ideology that takes me out of the immersion of the game. I wouldnt buy it if it had their politics, religion, or sexuality on the sheet either.

[@kavit6218]

Stop hiding behind the word ‘respectfully’. You probably felt the same the first time they introduced black people in a game. Now that’s exactly how your comment came through.

[@RoomandBoardReviews]

Mass Effect has had gender neutral pronouns for the Asari long before this game. So it's actually more immersion for real fans of the game. Asari are quoted as not ascribing to the Terran gender binary. They are mono-gender and don't use the term male or female, but will adopt it to make it easier for the Terran brains to understand. This is all cannon for a long time. Seems like the Asari are happy they have a Terran way of expressing themselves a bit better.

[@FunkyMink99]

@@RoomandBoardReviews Do you agree or disagree that displayed pro-nouns carry a political/ideological meaning? Lore note: Asari do ascribe to a sex. They, which by that I mean the people not an individual, are all female. A female Asari will take on a father role when an asari and *insert race* female mind meld/bang to produce an offspring. But, not once in the games did I come across a piece of lore or UI mentioning Laria's pro-nouns being she/they. Neither did the character insist I use her choice of pro-nouns. Regardless, the fact that any of the characters sheets show pro-nouns bothers me. It carries a charged political/ideological statement. I don't want to be thinking about politics while playing a board game. Side note: the fact that I have to clarify what "they" means in my reply is dumb and confusing.

[@kavit6218]

@@FunkyMink99 the only thing dumb and confusing is your comment & intolerant opinion.

[@zacharygroombridge6511]

Language changes over time. The distinction between calling someone Mis. Or Mrs. Or Ms. Was once incredibly important to properly addressing a person. Now it isn’t so much. Using pronouns isn’t political or religious. It’s just clear communication. It’s not ideological, it’s just courtesy and clarity.

[@boardgamegolfer3440]

Thanks Chris. I have a copy on my shelf right now. Looking forward to getting this in the next game session with my brother and niece!

[@RoomandBoardReviews]

Nice! I hope you all enjoy it :)

[@corenthian9426]

Great review. The game is on hold for me at GameNerdz while I wait to hit that free shipping threshold and now I want it even more since the first Mass Effect game is my favorite of the trilogy.

[@ReadyAimFire_]

No thanks, take your ideology out of games.