Board Game Reviews Ep #241: TOO MANY BONES: UNDERTOW
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29.12.2022
Chip Theory would be pretty good if they stopped making their entire games out of fucking neoprene for no reason. God damn it, it's so much more expensive for nothing.
Stanza is my favorite character 🙂 TMB is my most favorite game. And yeah, I am all in.
It's a great game. There are some big drawbacks though. It's a monster. You cant have one person reas the rule book and the teach it. Your playgroup has to read the rules and watch videos to get the hang of it. This game is hard. You could know every rule and still get your ass whipped so hard. This game is certainly not for everyone.
Usually games of this level of complexity and difficulty have starter/beginner configuration to ease you into it, does this game not have that?
I tried too many bones once where one player had a vague idea of the rules and everyone else was new. It was really overwhelming with complexity and rules to be read where each of us read our personalized character sheets and it mentioned all sorts of keywords and mechanics that we didn't yet understand. It then prompts you to pick between some very different upgrades where you have no idea how good items, skills and stats are. After an hour of so of looking rules up we got into our first combat encounter and we were absolutely crushed where the enemies went first and one shot a couple of our party members on the first turn.
We very likely misunderstood some rules, but it was just so much reading in order to figure out how to play. I'm not very motivated to try again.
Would have loved this as a kid instead of playing 8 player monopoly by myself
If you want low effort with adventure style gaming, try to track down Dungeon Degenerates. The rulebook is mostly fine, the art is bananas, and the overall gameplay vibe is a mix of old D&D and Runebound without the traversal bullshit. I’m really starting to get exasperated with games like this one & Mage Knight that just place this monolith of rules & edge cases between the player and an… ok game. I’ll say it: it’s fake depth. I want the * things* that happen in the game to be elaborate & weird but not the mechanisms that propel them.
These are like the board game equivalent of Capcom’s Steel Batallion, that had an overly elaborate 40-button controller for something that could have just been adapted to play like a normal game with a standard Xbox controller.
I get that some people like to do this and digest a rule set & print out aid sheets etc but, it’s niche. And the entire kickstarter industry seems to be acting like it’s what everyone wants (e.g. Oathsworn, Aeon Trespass).
man, board games suck!
For me, it did eventually click and then was pretty fun to play with friends. Most of the points I agree with though, and I am happy to be the expert to help people on their first time.
I have over 200 hrs played with TMB system. My favourite board game of all time. It is not for everyone, definitely a lifestyle game that needs time investment to have a good flow. Its hard to judge CTG games with a couple plays just like Cloudspire which is a MASSIVE beast but I do understand
I've only watched about 5 minutes of this video and I'm already overwhelmed with the amount of things you need to keep track of. I get how role playing can be fun, I love D&D and think this could be interesting for someone who has a big attention span, but this is way too overwhelming for me unfortunately. It's nice to see the comments saying the game is good, though! I hope you all have fun with it 🙂 Happy 2023!
I tried TMB with the same group so many times and… man, we just said it wasn't worth it after every session.
You should play spirit island
best. game. ever.
thanks for the review I was on the original design team and I said the same thing so I parted ways. I box of cookies is more fun to unbox and eat then trying to get into this game quickly.
How many Video Board Games have you reviewed so far? If Requests can be sent here, I think it’d be interesting to review Hi-ho Mother Goose.
Fuck with ur skits❤
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I have a great idea for ya! IF you can get your hands on one, PLEASE REVIEW TRUMP THE BOARD GAME! I used to have one and actually had fun with it!
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Where can I get this it looks awsome
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My favorite game. period.
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Hey quick question – how many bones are in the base game vs the expansion?
people really be watching this at super speed
Holidays are perfect for board games
Last
I got to give you props for reviewing this beast.
Looks like a lot of fun, I'll have to pick it up for family game night this week 😀
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Seems like it could be a fun game to be played on PC with a lot of this stuff automated/streamlined
King dragon sends his regards
maybe this game needs an app to avoid the slog.
It seems like the most consistent feedback for TMB is the fiddliness of the rules, which is unfortunate because of chip theory games high quality products. I was hoping this newer version would address that but I guess I'm still sitting on the fence for TMB. Thanks for the review!
I really like this game, but you're right, the rulebook is a nightmare.
I have a bone to pick with this review…
There were insufficient puns
Too many bones is an absolutely brilliant game that I respect and enjoy but it is not for me. It is just too hard to hit the table: if it was either more streamlined or simply shorter I think I'd have more success with it.
I'd fully concede, for example, that Massive Darkness 2 is not as solid a design but it hits almost all the same notes I was looking for from TMB and is infinitely more teachable as well as easily playable in an evening.
Sounds like you need to get yourself a Sage of Bitty Rules Queries: https://youtu.be/CxJt0oKpk5k?t=860
Too Many Bones is the definition of 'a game that's worth the effort.' Such a gem of a system with such staggering variability between the Gearlocs and the Tyrants.
The great game
Have any of you guys tried Tokaido? I've been seeing it a lot and would love for you to do a review on that.
I don't know how many times you've played it, but the first time you play a TMB game, it is 100% a slog. That said, if you play a few more times (solo or with the same person/people), it gets much easier. I know it is hard to play again if the first time was rough, but TMB is the epitome of a game that is, usually, worth the extra time.
22:20
But I like that thing. I like that thing! What the fu—I LIKE THAT THING! YOU KNOW, THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO EXIST THAT LIKE THAT THING; WE WILL NOT BE SILENCED YOU FUCKING SON OF A BITCH! I LIKE THAT THING!
…I like that thing…
Ah, not for me. I am way too forgetful for this kind of thing.
always helpful when a product's title serves as a succinct summary of its quality; This game costs Too Many Bones.
the foreground music is a little distracting