Jess’s Fave Five Kickstarters of the Week 8/9/19

Jess: Friday is a fun day when you fill it with games. Let’s see which games caught my eye this week on Kickstarter.

Sleeping Gods

Ryan Laukat’s games are beautiful elegance made cardboard. I own basically every game he’s published and I have yet to really be disappointed with any of them. In his newest title Sleeping Gods, the players take on the roles of Captain Sofi Odessa and her crew as they try to find their way home after becoming lost in a mysterious sea.

Sleeping Gods continues Laukat’s style of integrating story and gameplay with a game atlas of connecting maps that the players will explore using a storybook. During the campaign, the choices you make will effect the story and change what you will have access to as you discover secrets, fight monsters, and try to protect your crew in these dangerous waters. I am super excited to add Sleeping Gods to my Laukat collection. You can learn more on the Kickstarter campaign page here.

Fiasco

Fiasco is a GM-less roleplaying game that’s been around since 2009 and is all about getting into trouble. You know, the kind of plans that seem epic, but go horribly, comedically awry? Bullypit Games is Kickstarting a new version of the game that proposes to be faster and easier to play by replacing all the dice and index cards with decks of cards. This new version will also let players mix and match the playsets making for exciting new settings.

I’ve never played Fiasco, but the the whole thing sounds fascinating; especially character creation. Players create characters by first playing relationship cards between themselves and another player. These connections will be further enhanced by cards indicating Needs, Locations, and Objects that will flesh out the story. With those aspects set, you can decide on who your character is based on the details they suggest. To learn more about Fiasco head on over to the Kickstarter page here.

Taxi Derby

Cabbies are those remarkable people who spend all day hanging out with strangers in traffic. I do not envy their job, but Taxi Derby makes it look a little bit more appealing. This push-your-luck, pick-up-and-deliver game has an interesting twist. Instead of being limited to how many spaces you can move, the speed limit is 4 spaces. If you are feeling daring you can move as many spaces as you want, but for each extra space there is a higher and higher chance that you’ll be pulled over by the patrol car.

Pick up passengers, speed around the board, and collect fares to make the most money you can before the end of the game.You’ll also get some end-of-game bonuses based on the types of fares you pick up and how well you avoided the cops. Get more info on Taxi Derby  by hailing a ride over to the Kickstarter page here.

HEXplore It: The Sands of Shurax

If you like hex tiles then boy-howdy do I have a game for you. HEXplore It is a cooperative adventure game system and The Sands of Shurax is the third title in the series. In the game players create custom heroes and work together to collect Platinum, Gold, Ravager Crystals, and Power Up cards which will help you in your fight against the Ravager, a terrible worm that threatens the desert.

The game uses a large modular map that changes each time you play offering up a lot of replayability. It looks like there is a ton to explore in The Sands of Shurax  and to help you out is creating a companion app for both Android and Apple users that will be available in Beta during the campaign. Learn more about The Sands of Shurax on the Kickstarter campaign here.

Fired Up

In an interesting twist on the Arena-theme, Fired-Up is a game about being a spectator. Instead of being one of the fighters, you’ll cheer on your favorites, influencing the action, and getting the highlight moments you crave.

Each turn you’ll roll your influence dice and assign them to fighters. You’re looking to score highlight cards by getting the fighters to take specific actions. If you manage to score the most highlight cards by the end of the game, you have had an awesome time at the arena and feel like a winner (because you won). I love the theme here and I’m always a sucker for anything with the Mico’s art. Excited too? Then head on over to the Kickstarter page  to get in on Fired Up!

What Kickstarters are you backing this week? Let me know in the comments below and Check back next week for more fun projects!