Top 10 Anticipated Games of 2023 Revisited- with Tom Vasel

[@ruffiansgaming17]

1:19 I love how the name of the game is written as “Th”

[@yamikaga]

Kickstarter/gamefound disappointments have taught me it's better to pay extra picking up an aftermarket copy than to back a bunch of games I don't even know I'll like by the time they start fulfilling.

[@ianw0ng]

safer to just back KS reprint of proven classics. the new ra, new burgundy, new cyclades, etc.

[@justins.4839]

2nd the “reprint with expansion” option as the best bet. I snagged dead reckoning this way. You can also get some games from the companies next project as an add on and just get that. My friend got dwellings of eldervale from the andromeda’s edge campaign and skipped andromedas edge.

[@chestersleezer8821]

Only had one bad Kickstarter and that was years ago. But yes knowing where to go to get a game is good since sometimes it is better to wait and see. But I only back 2-3 kickstarters and only from proven designers/producers. Just got my copy of Unsettle in this morning.

[@Ian-R-Wilz]

I have been more picky as to what I back and gravitate towards companies I know.

[@uplift-yourdailypickup6424]

@@ianw0ngthis is typically what I do

[@agrayday7816]

i really appreciate going back and revisiting, more content providers should do that, its very helpful.

[@lwoonlef7]

I love these kind of videos not everyone revisits the most anticipated games form the year before and reflects on them to their top 10, great video!

[@e-manr.486]

I really like this type of look back video. It helps contextualize what was really worth it from the previous year. Picking kickstarter is pretty similar to picking stocks at this point

[@VaultBoy13]

About half of the games didn't even get a release this year. It doesn't contextualize anything. You're trying to draw conclusions from missing data.

[@e-manr.486]

@VaultBoy13 i partially disagree. It was informative for those games that did come out and it helped to show how many games people back get delayed. If you know why the data is missing, that's still informative

[@kevinbhieey9188]

Tom pulled the words straight outta my head: So few of these ended up on ANYBODY'S Top Ten List. This should be a lesson for everyone who feels they've been underwhelmed by too many Kickstarter games. If the Dice Tower people - who've played a zillion games - are making less-than-stellar choices, then what hope to the rest of us have? My Kickstarter Etc purchases are mostly expansions now. I wait for DT to review the rest.

[@MattXMoylan]

Event he title card for 7th Citadel is not quite done yet...

[@IndianaGeologist]

Great video, Tom!!!

[@minimoose7890]

Do you ever wonder if highly-anticipating a game, having grand expectations for it, ends up subconsciously reducing our eventual rating of it and making it slightly more likely for a non-anticipated game to end up being enjoyed more?

[@hatedigi]

I never considered this before but I do believe you're onto something

[@dreadpirate907]

I think there could be something to this, but maybe more like when you dislike something you were anticipating that maybe taints your opinion even more than it would have otherwise. But the flip side might also be true, having some extra satisfaction or warm fuzzies when you end up liking a game you were anticipating. 🤔

[@markusbiewer2756]

When I introduce a new game to my wife, I tell her it is great because it does this and that, has beautiful artwork etc. When we finish the game, she is often disappointed because I was raving about it, and she expected more. I built up too much hype. Nowadays, I try to just say let's play this game, maybe you will like it. Seems to work better.

[@LindsayHastings-t4x]

Fun fact - Thunder Road Vendetta was on Tom's 10 most anticipated games of 2022

[@Phildiculous]

ok

[@BoardGameEmpire]

Age of Comics is our favorite of this list. Can't wait to get it to the table again.

[@diebaddiegames2462]

Revisted videos are always awesome. I wish everyone did them.

[@jacobmccue365]

Perhaps you discuss this in the initial video of top 10 anticipated games, but what are the criteria that make these games the most anticipated for you? Art, mechanics, something you heard or read about from others, etc.? Just curious what makes them anticipated and perhaps how that impacts the level of satisfaction or disappointment that follows. Thanks for the videos!

[@JosephFlemming]

Well Barnes and Noble liked Steam Up haha… I think it’s ok and am keeping it. It’s a simple game along the lines of Chai or Murano Light Masters. All three of these could use some more polish and refinement for sure but they’re relaxing easy games and I still enjoy them.

[@LeviathanW98]

How "soon" for the Distant Skies review? I can wait, but just curious.

[@lukeaitken384]

I'm still waiting on Tales to Amaze. Hopefully get it before the next unmatched expansion out in USA.

[@rossjaax]

I like this list, Tom. I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on why, despite your research and knowledge of the industry, your Top Ten games of 2023 were not anticipated. Is game development that opaque? Do publishers conceal their development efforts in the hope of launching surprises? I’d think publishers have the incentive to get the word out and hype their upcoming games. Must be too much noise to make sense of it. I’d like to hear your thoughts because I see a lot of predictive lists by reviewers and wonder what the assumptions and biases are that go into it.

[@farrellmcgeoghan7453]

I find Tom's comments on the Zoo Tycoon rulebook really interesting in how people view things differently. I've heard others complain about the rulebook too but I really didn't have a problem with it. It's not the best, granted but I found it functional. Completely get how you feel though, sounds like how I felt with the Coffee Traders rulebook - it was so awful it honestly dropped my opinion of the publisher for letting it ship out like that. Highlight was printing the "board" for the AI opponent on the AI opponent rulebook so you cannot play and check the rules.

[@pippen6606]

I completely agree with Tom here. I read the rulebook, watched a teaching video, read the rulebook again. We had to stop playing after like three turns. When I reread them again, we could finally play it. When you know how it works its actually a quite nice zoo managment game. Still, i'm done with it now. Cant imagine getting into it again after a hiatus.

[@texascpa]

I'll say it again, I still think the best DT videos are when Tom goes it alone.

[@kommodore6691]

They are refreshing sometimes because not 2hrs long, but Zee and Mike banter is best.

[@chestersleezer8821]

Sleeping Gods Distant Skies was under the Christmas Tree.

[@DanGrossDrums]

So will those 4 games that didn’t make it out carry over to the top 10 anticipated of 2024?

[@mrmaybe79]

This just made me realize I havent seen the team's Most Anticipated of 2024. Did those come out already?

[@thedicetower]

No, coming in a few weeks.

[@mrmaybe79]

​@@thedicetowerThanks for the reply! Looking forward to the lists!

[@CarlToonist]

Your 7th Citadel only shows "Th" as the title - just FYI

[@thomascocks9136]

Would you say you're anticipating the release of the title

[@CarlToonist]

@@thomascocks9136 I would like to see what they have done to update it... but I didn't buy the first one because it's outside my budget range

[@KingMePlease3]

Maybe we can stop hyping up Kickstarters in these anticipated top 10’s and focus more on the retail releases coming. Or do two lists…anticipated first half of year (include Kickstarters that are finished and scheduled to deliver instead of launch) and another list for 2nd half of year.

[@VaultBoy13]

Just do a Top 20 and talk about the 10 that were actually playable that year.

[@abastecki]

So what you're saying is...don't play anything on your 2024 anticipated list, got it!

[@draheim90]

Appreciate retrospectives but as you mentioned these are pretty anticlimactic when half the games didn’t even come out when expected.

[@amunt3r]

TL;DR - don't waste your time talking about games that haven't been released yet.

[@terry3733H]

design should be done before campaign starts. KS funding should help with production. Unconscious Mind looks very promising but glad I held off coz its KS updates show they just finished their rulebook…😑 KS risks should be shared between publishers and backers- exceptions aside, a completed game doesn’t need KS and a sketchy rulebook doesn’t deserve KS $

[@jjcc8379]

Way too many of the list delayed to 2024+ ? If they are receiving PPC now Jan 24, mass production and shipping might occur Q4 24. Such madness selling in KS a game when it's not even in a playable state is way too common now. Meanwhile, last year I recall a KS starting late March and receiving the game late October. Because at the time of the crowdfunding *the game was finished 100% and ready pay for the PPC. KS can be done right. But some get lost in development hell, manufacturing hell, or even shipping hell. Or just "chaos is our natural status" hell. I've never received KS on time from certain publishers.

[@kumanight]

I think you're talking about Encyclopedia. I really like how they ran their campaign; the game was already done and ready to print. Too bad the company went under.

[@VaultBoy13]

There's value in games being at different stages of development when crowdfunding. Not everyone is interested in it simply being a preorder system. Additionally, the amount of components and types of components will increase production times. The issue is less publishers missing dates and more that the dates were a lie to begin with. No one (realistically) expected Dark Quarter to be fulfilled this year.

[@Dragonnox]

@@kumanight I am glad they went under. Appalling business practices that they took the money from backers of Rallyman Dirt in order to produce Encyclopedia first, and then didn't pay the distributor to ship the games out, so Rallyman Dirt backers had to pay for shipping a second time. And, when they already knew they were in bankruptcy procedures, they launched Copan, knowing they would never produce it, they literally stole thousands of dollars from people, and yet people still say things like "too bad they went under." How bad does a company have to be before we hold them accountable?

[@DTeazee]

unconscious mind didnt even make it onto shelves....

[@diebaddiegames2462]

Hey, if you own a zoo, you're gonna shovel alot of sh!t.

[@SwedishWookie]

yeah Zoo tycoon was a let down, too long for what it did, to convoluted and too random with the supply/demand of animals