Switch & Signal - Fun & Board Games w/ WEM

[@davidthompson7233]

Awesome - thanks, Eric. Glad you and your family are digging it! :)

[@stevegold8070]

Thank you for a very nice runtrough. This seem to me like a very good game, in my opinion. Will buy this asap.

[@whatboardgame]

We love this game too. So tense. Full of fun decisions. The dice rolling to move doesn’t bother me. It’s just a way to create a random factor you have to deal with. I see it less as we are trains moving and more as we are the overall train operator controlling the entire network.

[@WhiteOpsDude]

Did I somehow missed it or you didn't say anything about the character cards displayed on the top of the board? Anyway, I don't know how you're doing but you always show interesting games! Thanks for your work!

[@boardgamegeek]

I explained them after I finished going through example turns: Each is usable at most once per game. One character lets you re-roll a die; another lets you ignore movement on a transportation card for one color of trains; and the third lets you pass through a city without stopping. The other side of the game board has a North American map, with a harder set-up and three other special characters. -WEM

[@WhiteOpsDude]

@@boardgamegeek Thanks!

[@kurtdeneef9529]

I suppose this game has the English rules as well? Can only find reviews in German and there is German on the box as well :)

[@boardgamegeek]

No, the game has been released only in a German edition so far. (I've been studying German, and my wife knows it and I use translation apps.) -WEM

[@greygamervideo]

Looks like it would play better on a device, without a board upgrade for the physical version

[@harleygrattan2851]

This looks great 👍

[@pintarfacil8064]

Thank you ❤

[@irrevenant8724]

My inner pedant feels the need to point out that there have been 60 past monarchs in Britain alone. That's probably already more than there are games about succession to the dying king or queen. Even more so once you throw in all the other monarchies...

[@boardgamegeek]

I found a GeekList from 2004 that lists 24 games about royal succession (www.boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/2169), but nothing recent. I feel comfortable saying at least five hundred games have this type of setting. I just think designers could find new settings for that type of gameplay, say becoming the leader of a street gang or head cook in a restaurant. -WEM

[@irrevenant8724]

@@boardgamegeek Sure, agreed. And I'd probably buy that one about the restaurant. xD EDIT: Thanks for pointing me to that list. I've added a couple of items to it myself now...

[@ratguy69]

I like the idea of a co-op train game. But roll-to-move? I think I'll pass.

[@boardgamegeek]

It's all about the risk management! If you know exactly what's going to happen, you don't need to react to shifting circumstances. The game also has random factors in the action cards and the transportation cards that players draw, so perhaps the design is just not aligned with your tastes. -WEM

[@benjamincarter6095]

I hope reeducation camp consists of Age of Steam and 18XX. At least ticket to ride doesn't use dice.

[@boardgamegeek]

I think the dice (and the randomness of the transportation cards) are perfect for what the designer was trying to do: Challenge players to overcome the uncertainties of what can happen in order to get all the goods delivered in time. -WEM

[@benjamincarter6095]

@@boardgamegeek Agreed, just too much randomness for my taste.

[@larrye]

I was excited until I saw all that dice rolling. We all know from Catan that spaces 2 and 12 aren't likely while 6-8 are more likely. But dice for movements,... No thanks.