Etherfields Review - Almost a Sleeper Hit

Support the Show: bit.ly/Support... / / shutupandsitdown
Buy This Game: bit.ly/SUSD-EF In US: amzn.to/3Qk31eq In UK: bit.ly/4aQvjoO
Visit SU&SD for more cardboard antics: bit.ly/3RgFytz
Etherfields Learn to Play guide: boardgamegeek....
Getting Started with Etherfields .pdf: boardgamegeek....
~FOLLOW US AROUND, WHY DON'T YOU~
Podcast: anchor.fm/susd
Twitter: / shutupshow
Instagram: / shut.up.and.sit.down
Twitch: / shutupandsitdown
TikTok: / shutupshow
Oh Christmas Tree by Kevin MacLeod incompetech.fi...

[@shutupandsitdown]

Hey all! Quinns here. I'd like to reply to the folks who pointed out that you can, in fact, skip Slumbers, and that there are rules for it in the manual. I also saw some people asking if I had unlocked the "Deliverance" mechanic that lets you permanently remove Slumbers from the game. Mea culpa: I did miss the rule about skipping encounters! I'm sure it was just one of several rules that I missed. However, on investigating my copy of the game I found that (a) only *some* Slumber encounters feature an option to skip them, and (b) the penalty you get for skipping combat encounters is *hellacious*. In the case of the first monster in the game, your deck permanently gains TWO flaw cards each time you skip it. So that's no good at all and it certainly doesn't change my review. As for Deliverance, I did indeed unlock this feature of the game. However, Deliverance is not the panacea that I, too, hoped it would be when I unlocked it. Deliverance gives you the option of fighting a lengthened, more painful battle with a creature to try and remove it from the game forever. However, this involves trying to pick the right Deliverance card from 5 options, and if you're wrong you might just make the battle harder, or, in one encounter, you permanently replace the monster encounter with an /even more powerful monster/. This happened to me. It was one of the moments that made me happy to write a review that was so negative.

[@maxmustermann9036]

the cynic I am writing anything negative makes me happy, way to go Quinns xD Thanks for the Disco Elysium recommendation!

[@photoben]

DE is ace, I’ve been playing it over the last British lockdown.

[@DireMcCann]

@ Max . I think his point was, he wasn’t having fun, the experience was cumbersome, and the outcome just made it more cumbersome. Mentioning that as a game reviewer is part of his role. I can see how he wrote it, it looks like he’s maliciously being negative for the sake of being negative. I know when I buy a big box game $100-plus, I look for positives to help me justify my purchase, while actively overlooking negatives. And I find myself defending the game in spite of my dissatisfaction. In the end, when my game group comes over, no matter how much conniving I do to get Nemesis to the table, we end up playing Sushi Go or Takenoko. Feedback from friends that have no financial stake in a game, helps me know the actual value of the game.

[@Ultr4l0f]

@@maxmustermann9036 Disco elysium is a unique game. Ive played games for over 30 years, and nothing like this one. Note that it might look like a regular RPG (like Baldurs Gate, Divinity OS etc) its more of a point and click adventure game with glourious dialogue and supreme diversity in how you play it. Its a game that embraces failing. You can, if you want, play as a permanently alcoholic as depressed looser... And be rewarded in game for acting "in character". Or maybe you are a racist asshole? The game wont penalize you for it. It will reward you for acting like a racist,of thats the choices youve made. Its also both very funny and very tragic. My only gripe is the ending. It goes from solid 5 out of 5,to having an ending thats more 4 out of 5. Had it stuck the landing it would have been The game of the decade for me

[@zacharyhancock9660]

On the topic of missed rules (because I also ran into "what the heck do I do to add a turn?") To Awaken Realms' credit, the index specifically has "Turn Add Turn" referencing pages 10,15. 10 explains where the card comes from and goes. 15 tells you you can spend hours to take extra turns!

[@coverchrg]

"My campaign started to feature more fudging than the books of a crooked accountant working at a failing fudge factory on double fudge Friday." Seriously the best quote ever!

[@Quatchisaurusrex]

Definitely a fan of Quinn's big box phase

[@technom22]

After the worm phase comes the box phase... what will be the next one?

[@wyburp7970]

@@technom22 If we considerer that there's a trend, I say after worm->box, there's death phase and then emo phase

[@danielpiotrowski4946]

Yes, but where's the reference pear? I'm lost without it. Yes there are bananas, but how am I supposed to know if those bananas are the same size as the bananas I have in my home?

[@Zizhou]

It's those little missing details that let you know the review was done in a dream.

[@charliedetweiler4298]

@@Zizhou Wait a sec... The reference pair is Quinn's totem, like DiCaprio's top in Inception

[@lucario719]

Reminder that Quinns finished Pathologic 1 before the better translation came out, but stopped playing this game.

[@TacticusPrime]

Wow, that is definitely saying something.

[@Rapi2]

Damn

[@lostmarble540]

You don't have to sleep in a cardboard box, Quinns, you can sleep in a bathtub or a large mixing bowl

[@DavidtheBard1]

21:14 My main takeaway from this review is that Quinns' tongue is much, much longer than I ever expected.

[@JayTohab]

👀

[@hermesnoel]

It’s like a hummingbird.

[@alwaysplaythegame]

Its how he gets all the ladies

[@antonudd849]

@@alwaysplaythegame it's a family show

[@iankniel]

The shot with the umbrella really drives-home the point, and is so satisfying to watch! 😂 Bravo! 👏👏

[@bobroxshard]

13:09 That is some choice umbrella usage.

[@fnord3125]

co-op board games need to be fun even when you're failing.

[@abefroman81]

Agreed. I just had a similar conversation with some of my friends the other day. I asked them, is a game being easy not fun? And the reasoning was, with so many cooperative games on the market, so many of them seem overly difficult. I realize this increases replayability, but that's only to a point. Losing is not fun. In the right circumstances, you can have fun and lose, but losing hours of progress is never, and will never be fun.

[@estebanrodriguez5409]

It's not about beign "FUN" when you lose, it's about beign INTERESTING. I get why some games are "you lose, start from zero"... but if you are in the middle of a story driven game... that's not interesting... that's not even thematicaly apropiate. It would be more interesting if it gave you a minor setback and maybe changed something along the path. Heck, there are games that use "failing" as the main progression system for the game. So when you lose, you get better. Then you go "I'll get it THIS time!"

[@GambitsEnd]

@@abefroman81 A game doesn't have to be easy to be fun, just not tedious. That's what ultimately killed this game for Quinns, it became tedious.

[@abefroman81]

@@GambitsEnd I wasn't saying that a game has to be easy to be fun but rather, if a game is easy, does that make it not fun? Take a video game for example of Diablo 3. For the better part of the game, you're thrown dozens of enemies that pose little danger to you, but the fun lies in using all the cool abilities and tools you acquire in laying waste to them. Bosses offer a more strategic approach sometimes, but other times they just require the right amount of endurance and health management. This is the kind of gameplay I'd like to see in some board games.

[@MrTomlette]

This game isn't that fun even when you're winning. For now, it's so "acceptable" for me, that in the days I can't get more than 3 players it's still better than another campaign game that I have around, less rules overhead, quite nice moment to moment gameplay, but if Quinns is right in how this is going to turn out... I don't know. The game was interesting in how it changed from dream to dream so far, so there's that. Hopefully Vasel and some reviews I've read online are right here. Hell, I love Arcadia Quest, and Quinns hates it, so...

[@xristosdomini7249]

"Or if you were looking for a surreal, one player adventure... it's 2020." I really hoped he would just stop talking at that point because it was a perfect line.

[@stravvman]

And I hoped he would suggest an actual board game.

[@xristosdomini7249]

@@stravvman -- cool...?

[@orignalDS]

Sounds like you invented a new badge, Quinns: "Shut up & Sit Down, categorically recommends...playing a video game instead"

[@Carighan]

Yeah for a board game reviewer, that might be the harshest criticism I've heard levelled at a board game yet. Damn. But to be fair I saw Etherfields as an early prototype a long time ago and while pretty, we recognized it was flimsy as fuck as far as the gameplay goes even back then.

[@gadrill4285]

@@Carighan Also to be fair, Disco Elysium is one of the best video games so there's that

[@reallyidrathernot.134]

"the the mural in a children's hospital, it looks fun, but it's not fooling anyone: this is a procedure." holy shit

[@ntheyeti]

That fake outro with the eastender music that you also put in the root review is now my ringtone

[@jmarcin]

It's so good.

[@luigiscazzari4724]

Will we ever have SUSD x EastEnders crossovers?

[@fullbleed24]

@@luigiscazzari4724 stream of the eastenders board game when?

[@conradhillman1491]

Great review! My wife and I are several hours into Etherfields and I have noticed the same pros and cons. The dreams are interesting and diversely themed but the first time I realized that the Dreamworld map and slumbers were essentially rinse and repeat I produced an audible groan.

[@SenseiSoul]

"Quickly run out of splace" - What's in your coffee Quinns? Cause it smells a lot like Blaseball... Excellent work, thank you for the review! Your discussion of how you'd started cheating to avoid losing progress and suffering through long, extended negative play experiences really hit home. I've been there for sure.

[@OddtwangofDork]

I believe Quinns did cover Blaseball for People Make Games recently, if you've not already seen it :)

[@paulbauman8005]

It honestly sounds like the experiences I've had with Tainted Grail as well...

[@AFriskyGamer]

I have never heard so much negativity early on in a SU&SD review. I figured this would be a unique video. Yes, yes it was. Thanks for being so open and honest about your thoughts on this game.

[@LeviStum]

"Are you laughing" he spontaneously asks as I'm genuinely laughing out loud.

[@aussiegecko1892]

I have never felt so directly talked to in a video than I was in that moment.

[@CmogVT]

@@aussiegecko1892 It felt like a true breaking of the 4th wall. I thought he could hear me for a second before realising that's absurd... right?

[@firebrain2991]

Quinns: "at just 75 pounds for the core box..." me: "wow that's a heavy box, must be a lot of cards" Quinns: "... plus shipping" me: "oh... money..."

[@egregius9314]

Yeah I actually went and thought to myself: 75 pounds? Shipping must be killing!

[@jonatanrullman]

Is this some kind of American joke that I'm too international standards to understand?

[@JR5745]

@@jonatanrullman maybe British?

[@Lantertronics]

I had the same reaction!

[@UnreasonableOpinions]

I mean, it IS a Kickstarter game - at the current rate of escalation one of them will have to hit that thirty kilos eventually.

[@bobsuruncle5456]

OHHHHH I LOVE THIS TIME OF THE DAY

[@benjaminlefkowitz9463]

Can disco elysium get the official su&sd rec- imagine the absurdity of that pear on its steam page

[@RulebooksForYou]

That's an awesome idea that should actually happen!

[@s2102226]

First time viewer here! I usually skip reviews to where I need them to be, aka spam that 15 sec podcast button, but this was funny, brutally honest and succinct! You sir, have earned a subscriber!

[@tomd2666]

Me: *quietly pushes my receipt for Return to Dark Tower behind the door.*

[@TheColoneloftruth]

I can only imagine that 0:15 is how anyone in my family feels internally when they see i've brought one of my newfangled board games to play

[@Shaku89]

Omg I'm drying :))))))))))

[@Jeepllama]

A game about dreams that ultimately disappoints....is this just “Kickstarter: The Game”

[@RulebooksForYou]

It didn't have to be that way. If I redo the rules, it will be a totally different game (experience).

[@scottcameron174]

Haha that's hilarious

[@Sporadicus1976]

I call those work dreams.

[@FaytTheXpert]

@@RulebooksForYou isnt it a bit to late change the rules if the game is already shipped XD

[@RulebooksForYou]

@@FaytTheXpert Printable or Shippable, and maybe 2nd Edition?

[@richie1771]

Thank you for doing a review of this kickstarter game, you just saved me €100! I hope in 2021 you guys do more kickstarter reviews, because I know a heck of a lot of people want to see your expert opinions of them!

[@HMJ66]

I feel like "Kickstarter game" should be its own genre at this point

[@Urek968]

For the big box games I understand that cause most of them are just bland rules and lots of miniatures and the illusion of content. But the thing is some Kickstarter games are incredible but you wont know unless you back it and play it. If you don't back it you will have to pay way more for it or not get it at all.

[@marrioman13]

@@Urek968 if you define the genre as the game style and not rigidly having actually been kickstarted, it'd be fine.

[@HMJ66]

@@marrioman13 yeah I definitely mean your archetypal big box high price tag lotsominis games, not just any game that's happened to be launched on kickstarter. Kind of an "all kickstarter games were funded by kickstarter, but not all games funded by kickstarter are kickstarter games" thing

[@samrutzick7687]

Not wrong.

[@Creshex8]

It’s the genre with graphic that never suck 😊

[@ValkyrieTiara]

This might be THE most savage review Ive ever seen out of SU&SD, and Ive been watching since they were on Penny Arcade. Also holy shit Quinns' tongue is REALLY LONG?!?

[@godlaydying]

...Ladies.

[@XOB89]

@@godlaydying Time to pop those upper shirt buttons again I presume.

[@davon1650]

Lol, I thought I was the only one who was startled by his tongue!

[@MichaelBabcock]

I feel like he's in a bad mood because of things not having to do with Etherfields. That whole review lacked the substance I've come to enjoy from his reviews and was unnecessarily negative about things he usually doesn't complain about.

[@aleksandrivanchenko6323]

@@trianglestri7487 Not sure I got the "compare to rpg", it was mostly compared to Arkham Horror LCG

[@Mark-OutWest]

You guys just have THE BEST reviews. You don't sugar coat anything. You truly help me decide if I'll like something or not. and I love you for it.

[@IsaacMyers1]

“Is An Car crash” -Quentin Smith

[@yukiminsan]

When people want to make a video game, but they have too many artist friends and not enough programmer friends, they usually take one of two paths: 1. watch some Unity tutorials and put up some walking simulators on Patreon 2. commission an artbook and repurpose it as a "board game" for Kickstarter

[@JettCYT]

Legitimately was looking for a review and couldn't believe in my suprise your video came up, keep up the great work guys

[@anjovimusic]

When kickstarter board game companies dream of the SUSD effect on their game, but it turns into a nightmare...

[@grandad1982]

Except you know they took nearly four million pounds on kickstarter so they woke up from the dream on thier new expensive mattress.

[@anjovimusic]

@@grandad1982 Yikes! Guess you can't have your feelings hurt that bad with numbers like that :0

[@liampeterson8299]

quinns likes making jokes about being alone because he's never alone

[@Quinns_Quest]

i'd like to report a murder

[@brogansmith1342]

Me, with a non-existent sleep schedule in quarantine: lmao I don't understand how the awakening system works irl.

[@2MeatyOwlLegs]

I feel you... What even is a healthy amount of sleep at a reasonable time?

[@metallsnubben]

Me at 3 AM reading this comment: haha no idea what you're talking about...

[@vasarat1]

@@2MeatyOwlLegs Go to sleep as close to 10:00 pm as you can.

[@2MeatyOwlLegs]

@@vasarat1 Well, easier said then done I'm afraid. I've tinnitus that keeps me from sleeping until I'm pretty much exhausted. I'm getting treatment but it is a very slow process. But thanks for the advice anyways.

[@cmsmithy1234]

Quinn’s that Rolodex reference is the oldest you’ve ever sounded 😂

[@fullbleed24]

This boy still dreams of working in an office I can tell

[@lautaroaguirre5474]

Rolodex was a card on Netrunner at the time he played it, I think that's one of the reasons the word is fresh in his mind.

[@tiskololroar]

The umbrella-bit caught me off guard. Laughed so loud my girlfriend woke up. Now I have to wait until morning to finish the video.

[@Chronocrits]

Just wanted to let you guys know that you’re awesome. My missus and I have been binge-watching your videos this month, and we’ve invested in 2 new board games due to your reviews. Eclipse, and Root. We’re big fans. Thank you.

[@ArtemiyNizovtsev]

Funnily enough, my partner and I have been having traumatic flashbacks to our time with Arkham Horror LCG while watching this video. Needless to say, we, uhh... didn't have the best time with it. But that was an awesome review, Quinns! It brought me a lot of cheer right when I was feeling down, so thank you for this.

[@voyager5333]

We're one year later, and I've played tens of hours of Etherfields, and I feel I have to share this feeling I got from my last game: This is simply the best, most rewarding game I've ever played. Every dream keeps surprising us. Every game is different and complex, and after completing a dream I always feel high for at least a day. There have been some different opinions on the slumbers, but I find them very much fun. You may be surprised but there are quite some goods slumbers (and fate cards) that help you. And the other ones also give you an opportunity to prepare your gems, progress cards, etc, before entering the dream. I feel so blessed to have this game in my collection. I feel this is truly a work of art. Something people that are not "in the hobby" might not even understand. I went all in on Kickstarter, so this was quite an investment, but I'm sooo glad I made that decision. My personal advice: If you ever get the chance to get a copy of this game, don't hesitate and grab it. You won't regret the experience of a lifetime.

[@BaronMalovane]

Eventually ran into similar issues with Tainted Grail and 7th Continent where the gameplay eventually felt like it impeded the fun of exploration and discovery.

[@schattelux1454]

exactly

[@henrywyrley-birch2917]

This is one of the best reviews you've done so far Quinns! It epitomised every bit of anxiety this game gives me when considering it's purchase. The umbrella extension and dodgy accountant bit were particular highlights!

I'm gonna laugh so hard if Quinns wears that same shirt for the next review.

[@carpemkarzi]

Great review as always...love and happy and safe holidays to all of SU&SD

[@hipiticlivi7400]

I don't like etherfields and I like gloomhaven, but the main criticism Quin has for Etherfields it can be applied to Gloomhaven too.

[@reudorrubin8439]

17:03 Love your jar of plastic bags, Quinn! Really ties the room together :p

[@LastGreatDen]

Ending absolutely killed me (as usual!)

[@Cergorach]

I think this comment is appropriate right here... Doing art and making stories on LSD is getting interesting results, writing rules on the other hand, isn't...

[@reedg6836]

I backed Etherfields right as I seriously got into playing board games. The themes and art fascinated me, and I had heard good things about Nemesis, so I was excited. Unfortunately, as I was waiting, I picked up Gloomhaven and soon started to realize that I had probably just picked up a better version of Etherfields. On the bright side, the miniatures still look gorgeous, and I can’t wait to see my player’s surprise when I slam one down in D&D.

[@MissFunnyBunneh]

nooooooo two different stories and game mechanics. Both are excellent games! Love both, just hate the fiddliness of both.

[@clemos1845]

wow - the art is amazing. feels like this could have been a realy good game with some more play testing

[@somerandomperson8282]

Yeah the art does seem pretty unique, at least I've never seen anything like it.

[@MyOwnNameWasTaken]

The art and card concepts looked so wondrous and unique... such a shame that it doesn't hold together.

[@koshgam]

9:33 Break down !_ ! You guys are the best!

[@kentsang6405]

This is a great review in so many ways. Thank you for the insight and content!

[@bibiwarmerdam9558]

I am so glad this review came out after i backed this kickstarter to the max. I have received the game and LOVE it. I want to play every day and the slumbers are a reflection on how well you are playing. If you play well, slumbers that are neutral or positive are added. Sometimes you might get punished for playing badly. The slumbers are those recurring dreams we sometimes have. And there is story in them. I think if you play like SU&SD is doing, you will never find joy in any game. I am so glad wave 2 is coming with 3 expansions.

[@rjkral]

The look, art and graphic design is so superb! But wow what a review. Fantastic film making (cue low lonely choir) and great points. Thanks for the honesty and info and saving us megabucks!

[@liberalshadow]

How about a xmas special where Quinns and Tom Vasel discuss their wildly opposing views on this game?

[@tigerpjm]

Tom Vassel also thought Tainted Grail was great and I curse him every time I look at that game taking up a LOT of room on my shelf based upon his review. So I'm willing to trust Quinn's advice when making the decision to not purchase Etherfields.

[@PrinceGastronome]

THANK YOU! I appreciate your honesty. So many people blindly praise companies based on production quality and not gameplay.

[@ryanb6074]

Had me going at the beginning. I've heard tons of mixed reviews on this, so I was really interested when SU&SD had a review on it. I've been digging story/campaign games so this piqued my interested and I almost backed it originally. I would probably end up playing this solo, and Quinns really nailed it with the "house ruling" everything because I probably would do the same. It seems like Awaken Realms could have had a hit here, but they just added way too much onto it. The dreams sound really cool, but everything else sounds very taxing. It also struck me as odd when Awaken Realms forced in minis on this game, when there are A) not enough minis included to represented all the creatures, and B) you may not even use all the minis. Definitely makes me hesitant to even look at ISS Vanguard with this many glaring errors in this story driven game.

[@TeChNoWC7]

The overworld phase really isn’t as bad as Quinns makes out and honestly it’s really good. It might get a little monotonous at times but not very often.

[@Jesentra]

The minis aren’t forced into Etherfields, they were an add on, and was explicitly advertised that they offer no game play elements. The core game comes with just tokens, if you prefer to go that route.

[@CrabQueen]

"I didn't feel like playing by the rules" is perhaps the most damning thing a board game reviewer can say

[@estebanrodriguez5409]

I don't know, some designers are pretty cool about that, "make it your own" and that kind of stuff... as a person that plays TTRPG a lot... yeaaaah sometimes the "rules as written" are garbage.

[@falconJB]

Not really, most games are better with a few house rule to customize them to your group.

[@TeChNoWC7]

I feel like it’s more a case of ‘you ruined the experience for yourself, the designers had little to do with that’

[@estebanrodriguez5409]

@@TeChNoWC7 what do you mean? "if the rules lead to uninteresting gameplay, it has a lot to with the designers" Random Encounters are one of those design choices that can be a hit or miss depending on how well implemented it is. If it only leads to combat... it's meant to attack your resources (specially if they don't drop anything when you killed them, or they give no xp). But if lead to different things, combat/parley/trade/information... then you ARE looking toward a better system... and you don't need to change a lot of rules!

[@andresmicalizzi5420]

I think recommending a videogame instead is way harsher... 😂 😂

[@Soulera805]

This review just made me buy the game without question even if he didn't like it! Thank you!

[@wgicos]

"Bloody neighbours with their Christmas cheer while I sleep in a box" That kind of sums up 2020.

[@donbooger]

I am about 30 hours in. I started skipping slumbers about 15 hours ago. I still enjoy the game though. I would recommend to Quinns and others starting that the game improves after 10 hours as the cards you purchase are more complex, situational and more powerful then the very very boring starter deck which you will be using for those first 10 hours. At my stage I have pretty much created my whole deck and the card play is more enjoyable then it was 30 hours ago. As far as the review, AR really really overdid the padding to unessesarily increase time played, they did the same in Tatinted Grail as well so its becoming a habit of AR to create a great game and pad it with fluff. The dreams are a 9 out of 10 from me, the slumbers which are sadly 66% of the game are 4 out of 10. I heavily recommend you start house ruling in ways to skip a third to a half of the slumbers. The more time you spend in the dreams and the less in slumbers the more you will like this game. At the moment we just start skipping slumbers with no penalty as soon as we want to, I dont think taking a penalty is a good idea that can certainly balloon into casual imortality. In one play we didnt have time for slumbers so skipped them all and started the dream on setup, skipping hours, it was great. Going forward we will probably just eliminate needing keys at all to open dreams, so you just head to the entrance and get started without doing key marathons to grab them while triggering 5 or so extra slumbers. I think you just need to see Slumbers for what they are, time sinks (I wouldnt even call them grinding as the reward for each one generally does not even undo the damage you take in one) and also ways to test your character progression and set up a few prepared cards for the dream. If you love grinding do the 5 to 10 per dream you are supposed to, if you don't do 2 or 3 then without guilt make a couple of keys appear with magic and set up the next dream to enjoy. So unlike Quinns I like the game but ultimately I would give the same recommendation, do not play the game under the rules given. For reference I gave Etherfields a 7 on BGG after my first 2 plays (8hours). I have since upgraded that to a 9 after 25 hours.

[@rainingsunny]

If you played with 1-2 others (so a 2-3p) game you may have had a different experience in terms of difficulty - it actually gets easier the more you play with (without too much more downtime as turns are simultaneous in a sense as there is no turn structure). The reason for this is that you get more actions per dream overall and other Dreamers (depending on their deck composition) make up for shortfalls in your hand draw turn to turn. So yes, I think that you should give it another try when you get get others around to share the experience with. It becomes vastly more enjoyable (at least for me so far).

[@johnpanagos5835]

Agree with you. Seems this game plays better with group than solo

[@alfyb4512]

From the video, I don’t think he played it true solo, it looked more like multi handed.

[@MrJdecoy]

I don't know what I like more from SUSD, watching a a decent review of a game I might actually buy or a snarky rebuff of a big box kickstarter that I would never think of purchasing if my life depended on it..

[@adampcrossmusic]

The latter is more likely to save you money :)

[@XOB89]

@@adampcrossmusic Haha, too true

[@hongcuong]

Hilarious as ever! I love the part where he said "except I would have a friend here...". LOL that part was so hilariously on-point! xD

[@BBBshow]

Amazing review. Im happy that you guys are honest and arent afraid to speak the truth And as always I laughed my ass off :)

[@Donmegamuffin]

This was a strange episode of Cool Ghosts...

[@seank2333]

Getting a little nervous about my plan to back ISS Vanguard. The theme appeals to me MUCH more than Etherfields, but afraid it might have some of the same issues. On the other hand, it will probably be hard to find if I don't back it. The FOMO is strong...

[@albertoburgassi]

I think the dice tower made a video playing it, it may clear you mind ;)

[@johnytwo]

@@albertoburgassi Quackalope too, I think

[@87paulsmith87]

I backed tainted grail, the theme really appealed to me. Unless Awaken Realms has learnt A LOT I'm going to pass. Perhaps just pass on the kickstarter and pick it up in a year or two if the reviews are decent.

[@daleburgess6223]

I'm so glad this review came out whilst the adverts for this game are still doing the rounds in my facebook feed. Love the minis and the artwork, but you've probably just saved me from a very shortsighted bout of retail therapy.

[@julieceasar8342]

If I may suggest. "If sonic was catatonic" as an alternate sentence

[@babylonsfall7]

When you woke up and there was the beep, I laughed so much !!! I’ve had a similar experience when I cheat with games; it usually snowballs to the sale bin.

[@richardsaunders9214]

I can't watch this until I play mine ... I just got it the other day! If it's terrible, I don't want to know. I have to at least a few plays out of it first ...

[@steven9766]

F

[@njatgu]

□ (for playstation)

[@TomRauhe]

Alt+F4

[@drizztcj]

If you like it, that's great! If you don't, that's a shame. A review is just someone else's opinion, after all.

[@Urek968]

Awaken Realms games hold their value so even if you hate it you should be able to sell it for more or at least what you got out of it.

[@Nove811]

I laughed when you closed the box and when you reopen and ask "are you laughing" killed me haha

[@kristelstatz3059]

I honestly don't care about this game one bit but Quinns, I just wanted to say your home looks lovely (well the small part we could see in the video anyway)

[@bertman4]

Some really fun edits in this review. Very entertaining.

[@Cpt_nice]

Very happy to see the return of the "He''ll be back next week" meme

[@BenJones-lj6tn]

you guys have put out excellent content all year and i really appreciate you all. keep it up, your videos make my days

[@AyyyyyyyyyLmao]

Loved this review! So poinient and expertly delivered. And yes I was laughing at the end, great catch Quinns ;)

[@simonstrasbourg1180]

Love the hand gestures at 7:24

[@BaneWilliams]

Oh my is this going to go down like a lead balloon, how dare you criticise a game like this Mr Smith! And it's content like this that makes me love SUSD. Keep going. I feel the same flavour of lack of interest because of poor design elements as I did in my playthrough through 7th Continent.

[@ouzei]

Love the umbrella moment at 13:10

[@munkey8486]

I really didn't like when at the end of the video I cackled maniacally, just for fun, at him closing the box on himself only for him to ask if I was laughing. Maybe I'm dreaming too...

[@vorpalCortex]

Great video. You deserve more money for saving me some :) Happy Christmas to you and the team!

[@chaosglory99]

As someone who didn’t Kickstart Etherfields and is playing it with a friend I would like to share some thoughts. We have played close to 20 hrs of game play. This game is a multiplayer must! Playing this solo would be like trying to play D&D solo. The game sticks heavily to the theme even if at sometimes it feels somewhat unbalanced. That being said just like D&D you will watch crazy saves and insane feats that are only amazing because those odds sometimes seems impossible. As you build your deck you can begin to change those odds. But the theme of being a Dreamer who doesn’t know what’s going on and can’t fully control the world around them remains (or at least has so far). It’s the theme I find so attractive as well as the art. I don’t think this review is fair. And hope to provide the proverbial “devil’s advocate” if ever so briefly

[@MissFunnyBunneh]

I totally agree with everything you said..

[@IvanSensei88]

One good thing about these board games is that... You can easily "mod" them. As in if you find certain rules of the game unappealing, you can simply introduce your own house rules and practically make the game a 2.0 version that's more fun for you to play.

[@equinox64]

I don’t see how that’s a “good” thing. I get your point, but at this price point you should NOT be making up house rules because the game is crap and you’re turning it into something merely decent to justify your purchase. A lot of KS campaigns are all about the bling, and not about the content. I just find it very disappointing that some great games don’t become big successes because they didn’t prepare 100 stretch goals. It’s starting to destroy the quality of the idea at this point.

[@IvanSensei88]

@@equinox64 Well, yeah I was talking about board games in general. The good thing about being able to modify any of these to suit your playing style not only allows you to even improve them, but also boost your creativity, not to mention giving it replay value as you can even create custom game modes for them etc. And also why not? Even good games tend to have quirks that become apparent the more you play it with your group. Which is why you might end up making some tweaks to either balance or improve the experience, or make changes so that you need to discover new winning strategies instead of everyone racing towards the surefire quirky one. The ability to improve and modify any board game without having to learn how to code and needing the game's source code to decompile is a big plus imo. That's why I say it's a good thing.

[@humbubba]

I agree about the basics being more of a procedure than involving any actual choice. I still like the game, but it definitely has its flaws. Btw I doubt you’ll read this, but you’re really cute 😊

[@gorsh7870]

Agree... Quinns is one of my few "persons I'd forget I'm a straight man with". :)

[@Vellzi]

5:30 was a sound effect from Theif? I've been playing a lot of that recently and the noise sounded really familiar

[@tumest]

Excellent review, reminds me miserably of my time with The Seventh Continent.

[@ChrisJD64]

7th continent is exactly the game I thought of when he started cheating. It's what we did the third time we failed the first curse in 7th Continent, and then the whole thing became pointless because we couldn't die anymore, half the mechanics became pointless and the game fell apart. We haven't reached that point with Etherfields yet, but I can't see us starting from scratch if we fail one dream.

[@marclarell]

Very enjoyable video as always. Even with all the valid criticism i am still looking forward to playing this. The shape of the board is not a concern to me and my wife since we are always playing board games facing each other. I think that the sideways arrangement of the board elements is the best compromise for this. Small additional note: The Index of the rule book seems to help a lot in some situations like unterstanding what "Add 1 Turn" exactly means.

[@Lines42]

Oh, boy. This reflects my experience with and thoughts about the game a hundred percent :-(

[@ErekLich]

Okay, I love the continuity nod to the last video :)

[@IslanKleinknecht]

Oohh, that stinger took me back.

[@DodgerB763]

@Shut up & Sit Down Having played this, do you have any thoughts on ISS Vanguard, same publishes?

[@Rayalda]

Oh my, the experience of laughing out loud at the end and then having Quinns suddenly open the box and go "you laughing?" was priceless! That totally made my day!

[@johndstrain6470]

Oh my....comments are as entertaining as the video itself!! Thank you Quinn and company! I suppose one can always resell it....

[@RuneLar]

Sounds like Quinns actually won Etherfields by waking up in the real world and not playing the game. Like waking up from a nightmare.

[@Jezza_One]

The only way to win is not to play.

[@Ristro44]

'Damn neighbours with their Christmas cheer while I sleep in the box'

[@JerreMuesli]

When the word "Kickstarter" is dropped, I brace myself

[@paveljakes244]

This Review is on rules 1.0? It will be great if SUnSD make review on rules 2.0. Cause this review is Awesome! :-)

[@deanogorman6335]

2.0 fixes everything

[@bentleyhunter9370]

Absolutely agree with the "kickstarter big box game" problem, however I do disagree with 7th continent being in that category (I also own and like Kingdom Death, but wouldn't defend it). Sure, 7th Continent could have easily been divided into smaller sets for different regions, but the lack of compromise is not (imo) comparable to the gluttony and over-indulgence of games like Etherfields and even Gloomhaven. The difference being that the content in 7th Continent is actually tight and streamlined despite how much there is, and the rules reflect that. Whether it is a good game is personal taste, like anything. I would say it perfectly captures the feel of old point and click adventure games in a way that manages to maintain engagement while letting the rules get out of your way, leaving puzzles and discoveries to enjoy at your leisure via the save system.

[@MichaelBabcock]

Except that my group is having a blast playing Gloomhaven.

[@alfyb4512]

I did not enjoy 7th Continent but your remarks are fair. After all, the first KS was just the core box and a few additional curses, a far cry from all the big box stuff that comes with an all-in on Etherfields.

[@andresmicalizzi5420]

Comparing Gloomhaven to Etherfields in the ammount of content seems absurd... GH is quite restrained... Yea almost a 1000 cards... But it al has meaning and usefulness and the rules are quite clear and simple... And the gameplay... Oh... The gameplay... It usually doesn't matter most scenarios are just "kill everything"... They're quite fun and different by mixing different classes and items

[@78raindance]

I also wondered why he mentioned 7th Continent here. I find its rules amazingly elegant. Very polished experience.

[@tjwoodman1173]

Hilarious review!!! I watched it on my TV and had to get on my phone just to leave a comment. The awakening bit and the end were the best. Always entertained by your reviews keep it up.