The Hunger: Does Richard Garfield's New Game Replace Clank?

[@GettinJiggly]

Have a second printing on order, we can't wait to try it. Clank! made a few of our top lists this year.

[@TheGameBoyGeeks]

Cool!

[@rikhavok]

After 1 play, I liked this game. Clank! was definitely the inspiration for this game. It’s not the same game by any means, but if you are trying to keep a lean collection, I wouldn’t keep both. Don’t know how long it would stay in my collection but it’s a solid game. In my first play, I think I got very lucky, I made it over to the forest before I turned around to go back to the castle. None of the players actually made it all the way back, but we all made it back to the safe zone. I went with a deck builder strategy and ended the game with 4 vp mission cards and 34 cards (because no one else really went for cards), and I also got both public missions. I ended the game with 96 points. All in all, I have played both versions of Clank! and a few of the expansions. I like all of it. Don’t know how replayable any of them are. Hence the need for so many expansions. This game has that same problem. I don’t know if I’d want to play this game that many times. But I really enjoyed my play of it.

[@monkey2.092]

Reminds me of a mix between 'Clank'! and 'Deep sea adventure', where you also get slower the greedier you get. Looks like a great game with different strategies that can all win :)

[@crippledfoxgaming]

This sounds so much fun. I really enjoy your reviews. They also include explanations/tips/strategies and that really bring out parts of games that people (I) will miss. thanks, mate.

[@TheGameBoyGeeks]

Glad you enjoy my videos thanks for watching! Please give them a thumbs up and subscribe if you haven't :)

[@BillTheSpill]

This is the perfect review because even though you weren't bowled over, I can tell that this would be a better game for me than Clank. I have a 5 month old at home and the only games I can get to the table right now have to set up quick and play quick. This seems like a winner for my wife and I!

[@TheGameBoyGeeks]

Yes Billy my hope is always to give enough technical information and personal thoughts from different perspectives so that anyone watching can formulate whether the game might be for them or not!

[@Skorrigan]

A rhetorical question: How many deckbuilders does one need after playing 100 deckbuilders?

[@soyunbonus]

Actually, R.Garfield said on bgg that he didn't want to replace Clank, he wanted to make something different. Clank already exists and you can already buy it, so making a game too similar wouldn't be wise.

[@michaelblank9597]

Hi Dan. Thanks for the great insight on The Hunger. It is a game for me. Can't wait to get my hands on it. All the best from Germany.

[@TheHellboy4711]

Hoffen wir mal, dass Renegade Games auf der SPIEL sein werden und das Spiel dabei haben.

[@TheGameBoyGeeks]

I'm glad my video could help Michael!

[@jimgrant9081]

Great review, Dan. I hope to hear more people comment over time if the race to the forest is as viable a winning strategy as staying closer to home. Sounds like a fun game regardless.

[@TheGameBoyGeeks]

Thanks Jim!

[@Toadbabe]

Great review, thanks. We love Clank! and I’m interested in getting The Hunger. However, my wife likes big card combos and is turned off by a hand size of three and your deck getting weaker as you play. This happened somewhat in Dominion, but this game took it even farther. Can anyone comment on how fun the later turns are and are you able to get hands that let you draw cards for card combos.

[@Tr1pleOseveN]

Thank u Dan, been waiting a while for someone to put up a video of this game.....😁👍🏼

[@TheGameBoyGeeks]

Cool! It was just released at Gencon so videos should start popping up soon!

[@mikolajwitkowski8093]

This video has a really confusing structure.... When it actually starts it is great, but the beginning was strange.

[@TheGameBoyGeeks]

Just use the KZbin time index to select whether you want to first watch the one minute summary to save time and decide if the game is worth more of your time, or you can jump straight to the full review.

[@JustAGeekyDad]

Cant wait to get my copy!! for sure something I am gonna be playing at Halloween

[@benjaminmendenhall3104]

When I was at gen con this game got my eye and I like the art work too and thanks for the great video that you did

[@TheGameBoyGeeks]

Glad you enjoyed it Benjamin!

[@roosterchains]

I am excited to get my hands on the game, super interested to see if the rose is a viable strategy or not. I really like Clank but my only complaint is that is can really drag and a lot of time feels like you have been playing a 15 minutes longer than you need. So really want to see how this compare! Thanks for the great review.

[@TheGameBoyGeeks]

Let me know what you think of the rose strategy!

[@elpenguin]

I can imagine that for some this might be comparable to clank but personally as someone who is an avid deck builder fan, I was very disappointed. I think the theme and visuals sold me without playing it but I couldn’t even finish a singular game. A deck builder with minimal variance in card powers needs a much more robust non deck mechanic and this failed to deliver. A vast majority of the cards are pretty but just slightly varied stats with nothing special. For me this scratched zero itches that another game hasn’t done significantly better :(

[@deepdivemusicreactions]

top 10 hidden gems for horror/spooky/halloween games?

[@teestarbird4478]

Hunting stacks of cards of humans? Sounds like the other players are letting someone get all the humans. A lot of times the negative effect humans end up making it to the piles. I played with 4 players tonight and there was never a huge pile of cards in the 1 hunt spot.

[@INasseIR]

That’s really good to know. Cause the moment I heard him saying that people can get piles and win the game, was a deal breaker for me.

[@cjpeach11]

Agreed. Never did we have more than 2-3 in that spot, in which it was immediately taken, not left for late game. The idea of a "stack" piling up reeks of people not putting pressure on other players.

[@teestarbird4478]

@@INasseIR Yes, very enjoyable game. In the 3 games I've played, stacking cards wasn't an issue. EDIT: Also this was commented on as well, but the further out you go the more bonus points you get for hunting humans. So if you hang out in the mountains you get no bonus per human, plains you get +1 pt bonus, and forest you get +2.

[@ryanstrouse3045]

Glad to hear I wasn't the only one thinking the roses weren't worth it. Makes the game a lot more fun not trying to get them

[@TheGameBoyGeeks]

That makes two of us Ryan!

[@cjpeach11]

Of our plays as of this afternoon, the person who has rushed for one has won a little over 1/2 the time and likely because of them. One game I won by a lot, was also the game I rushed for the top Rose. Racing in this is a great strategy, and in this game, the real payoff is the pressure it puts on the other players.

[@darthrooster1]

This game fell very flat with my game group. Only one out of four liked it enough to even consider playing a few more times to give it a chance. It’s not staying in my collection. It’s always compared to Clank! We all love Clank! but this is a dud.

[@cjpeach11]

Answer? Yes. It's tighter round wise, you cannot have the game ruined by someone grabbing the lowest value item and going, and it's far better art wise.

[@TheGameBoyGeeks]

Thanks Chris! What did you think about someone doing the equivalent of what you mentioned (grabbing the lowest value and going out) and not going far, and just waiting to grab a huge stack or two of the 1 cost cards towards the end? This seemed like the easiest way to win.

[@cjpeach11]

@@TheGameBoyGeeks That was not my experience. Unlike Clank, the players "playing it safe" here seemed to be punished because they relied so heavily on the lower speed spots building up. In just the 3 we have played, the players who ventured out with a more balanced approach beat the 4 players playing it safe throughout those games. I would note too, Clank has a tendency to DRAG massively if someone isn't trying to break the game running in and out really fast. The Hunger is just long enough even at max player count. Playing it safe in The Hunger for us has seemed like a riskier way to play tbh. So much is dependent on what others players do/do not do, Also if you are good at things like Marvel Legendary, and sort of keeping track of whats in your deck, this game becomes great during the last 4-5 rounds as you know what's in, and about what you need to get back.

[@teestarbird4478]

@@cjpeach11 Agree.

[@SoloBoardGamingKnight]

Clank! In Space is still my favorite game to play with others and I use it to introduce newcomers to board games. It’s easy to teach and learn. This one sounds fun as well but I agree, knowing when the game will end removes the tension Clank! so expertly creates. Still, the premise is actually interesting and I like the way you have to leave before the dawn. In that way, it is thematic. Gameplay wise, Clank! wins.

[@danacoleman4007]

Well, I clicked because of the title. But I only needed to watch the first few seconds. I hate this theme.

[@Oncus2]

Core concept of the game requires you to clog your deck in a deckbuilder? That alone is why I'm staying away from this game.

[@Toadbabe]

Yes, it’s interesting that victory point cards clogging your deck was in the first deck builder Dominion and most subsequent deck builders minimized or eliminated this so it was surprising to see it in this game. On the other hand, Clank sometimes suffers from stale buyable cards that nobody wants and this game keeps the buyable cards fresh. Great review - I am still on the fence and it hurts that it doesn’t look like the rose strategy is worth it.