GAMA Trade Show 2011 Exhibitor Coverage–Part 1
GTS 2011 is over and now begins the detailed coverage of every vendor! I plan on posting 10-12 exhibitor entries per day to keep the length manageable. I expect the project takes about 10 days, with no posts on the weekends to give us a chance to get ready for the following week. We already chose the GTS 2011 “Best of Show” winner and there was really no argument amongst ourselves on this one. That announcement comes after we complete posting everything, so you see everything we saw and form your own opinion about our choice. These entries are in the order I visited them. Enough talk! On to the exhibitors!
Wyrd displayed some artwork from their new “Puppet Wars” skirmish game. This is a more “board game” experience, with a board coming with the game and is a sort of introduction to Malifaux. Rules are similar to base Malifaux, but simplified. That said, the synergies between the miniatures still makes for complex strategies. The miniatures are puppet versions of the standard Malifaux miniatures. Not quite sure what a Neverborn puppet will look like, but I am a little disturbed by the thought.
“Defenders of the Realms” expansions are in the offing with three new hero expansions and new “darkness spreads” cards in the next several months. “Pastiche,” the art creation board game released also. “Age of Steam: Time Traveller” had an odd combination of a train game and sci-fi. Sorry, no pictures for this booth. Had a technical glitch.
“Magician’s Kitchen” is a potion cooking children’s game using hidden magnets as obstacles. The magnets randomly reset every game, so it is never the same twice. Reminded me a bit of “The Magic Labyrinth.”
MERCS is a near future 28 mm miniature skirmish game. Five minis per side, with six non-painted miniature in each box. Currently there are four regional factions, the CCC, FCC, KemVar and the USRC. Movement is card/template based rather than using a ruler. Cards that come with the miniatures are very nicely done. Miniature sculpts looked good as well.
I also grabbed a scan of one of the miniature stat cards.
Base book is $34.99, with a set of 6 miniatures for $60.00 on the site.
The ” 7 Wonders” Leaders” and Dixit Odyssey expansions release in July.
Magical Imagination Games (No Website Yet)
MIG is a new family games company that has yet to release a game, so they had only prototypes on display at GTS. Their six games, “Magical Crystals,” “Striker,” “Wild Mountain Madness,” “Spadazzle,” Pirates Lagoon,” and “Bump N Run” all use similar components and formats. The boards are neoprene and roll up into tubes, with the tall, crystalline pieces at the center. There is no release date yet for these games, but I will let you know if I find out anything.
The venerable producer of plastic bits for a variety of war and board games had many items on display. I especially liked the “Iron Gates” for the Cthulhu board game. They also do great custom work ( I used them in the past). Regardless of what type of game you play, they cover everything from board and RPG games to miniatures. I especially enjoyed the mushroom cloud!
TIme Warp Publishing
“Uncle Lunker’s Bait Shop” is a track-based board game that uses a memory mechanic to determine whether or not you catch a fish. Plays in about 30 minutes and simple enough for children to play. Production quality was good and this game is the first of several outdoor-themed games (hunting was mentioned) using the “Uncle Lunker” theme.
Time Warp also had a new “surround and capture” tile game called “Hexapod.”
I want to take a moment to thank Gaming Paper for sponsoring Livingdice’s trip to GTS this year. Their financial support was invaluable to making the trip possible. If you are enjoying our coverage of GTS 2011, I encourage you to check out Gaming Paper for all your mapmaking needs.
Gaming Paper’s Megadungeon was on display and it was a BIG display. The entire back of the booth was the dungeon and it was still not the whole thing! It comes as 100 pages of double-sided maps, with one side “blank” rooms only and the other with marked-up terrain for the published adventure. Currently it is just the dungeon, but there is an adventure using the map scheduled for release later this year.
More to come tomorrow!
Trask, The Last Tyromancer
