Julian Murdoch
Massachusetts
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So, I had the opportunity to get a press copy, and I took it. I'll spare the unboxing, as I think pics already abound, but here are my first impressions after two sessions with a two overlapping groups.
Components:
Notably, the game has a prototype feel, quite intentionally. Surfaces are all matte (stickers wont come off, pencil/pen marks easily) and the unlocks are hidden under yellow/black striped under construction markers. It's clear that the game is going to be one you help build from the get go.
Unlike most versions of risk, each of the five factions has unique pieces appropriate to the factions theme. Giant bears, armored dune buggies, OGRE style tanks, mechas, etc.
The other notable thing is all then stickers. More on that ...
Setup:
Before the first game, you are asked to sign a pledge on the board which basically says you won't punch each other. As a long time fan of Risk 2210, I can say this is useful. It also gets you into the spirit of accepting that your going to be altering the game, making it unique.
Other first game setup includes picking a unique power for each faction (+1 unit here, a die modifier there) from a set of stickers, which are then permanently affixed to each faction. Unused powers are discarded. I took this seriously. We tore up then unused cards, and indeed, anything clearly leftover as we played. Honestly, this drove one of my players nuts, and was hysterical. We also split up the deck of territory cards among the players and let everyone modify a few territories to be extra valuable for resource turn-in, per the rules.
Each player also got a scar card - a stikcer with a battle modifier, that could be played prior to attack or defense.
Play:
The rules, which have been floating around everywhere, are mostly an even simpler version of the victory point version of Risk which premiered in Black Ops and which are now the core game. This is a good thing, new risk is far faster and more interesting than the "kill everyone" version we all played as kids. I won't recap the rules here, but we played game 1 in 30 minutes, game 2 in 45. In both cases the game ended with the elimination of the first player. So no one sat around waiting.
In the first two games, the notable coolness was the scar cards. On being attacked, I played a scar which gave me a +1 to my highest defense die, turning the tide in my favor, and forever making Brazil a stronghold. Two turns later, someone did the same thing in Western Africa, making the sealane there a pocket of defense.
Forever. I instituted a house rule that any time the board changed, thenplayer initialed the change and marked the game number on which it occurred. We also named things. That Africa/south america sealane is now forever called "the straits of inertia" and it's written in ink on the board.
Because game 1 ended with the wipeout of a faction, and nowhere to re-enter, we got to open one of the "locked" packets of stuff in the game for game 2. The winner also got to choose a reward (in the rules) and named South America "dr. Dave's apocalyptic," and sign the board. Those of us that survived were able to found (and name) cities, which make a territory count twice for figuring out new units each turn.
In game 2, we dealt with the effects of the unlock, which I will not spoil, but were super cool, and the winner of game one started with one less victory point (a bit of a catch up feature). He also fought like heck to control his named continent, which would have given him (and only him) an extra unit each turn.
He lost terribly.
Thoughts & Conclusions:
Just two games in, my pocket universe is weird. Europe is scarred with Ammo shortages, making it easy tontake and hard to defend. The straits of inertia make an unlikely fortress. Australia is strangely overpopulated and produces extrantroops. And, gloriously, there's a whole story I can tell about every little change on the board. And cool stuff I won't spoil happened along the way.
The next time I sit down to play, likely with a different group of friends, but maybe with an overlap, I'll be able to tell them a story. The story of world 10003 (the serial number stamped in the board), and how all the weirdness came to be. I'll be able to explain The strange city's named "Stan" and "Mackjing."
This game will drive some people crazy. Me? I embraced every chance to grab the sharpie, or peel off a sticker, or tear up a card. Do I want every game I own to be just like this? Hell no. But I'm very, very happy this one is.
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Markus M.
Finland
Helsinki
Uusimaa
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GWJrabbit wrote: I embraced every chance to grab the sharpie, or peel off a sticker, or tear up a card.
If I end up buying this game that's what I am going to do. It is, after all, the whole point of the game. A point which many people are already missing.
Thanks for the review!
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Alex Martinez
United States
Irving
Texas
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Can't wait for this one and neither can my friends. Your report only makes it sound all the cooler without throwing too many spoilers out there (and nothing I wouldn't have guessed). Great job.
Really looking forward to this one.
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Jake Waltier
United States
Seattle
Washington
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Thank you! This is exactly what I was hoping to hear about the game. I'm also glad you stickered things, tore up cards, and wrote on the board. I will do the same.
I'm looking forward to it arriving at my local game store. 
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John "Omega" Williams
United States
Michigan
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Great review/session report. Sounds like thought was put into trying to balance things here and there while leaving the game open for some really weird end results. The evolution of the board and factions looks to be able to go in so many directions.
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Pete Belli
United States
Florida
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Thanks for a superb review.
You definitely saved me a few bucks!
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EnderWizard
United States
Schenectady
New York
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Thanks for the review - I am now looking forward to this even more! I really don't understand the hate against the DIY aspect of creating the board as you play. That's the exact part that sounds awesome to me.
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Robert Borosak
Croatia
10000 Zagreb
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You had the opportunity to get a press copy, but if you bought your own game, will you tear cards too? Will you put stickers and write on board too? I am not convinced that I could do same thing with game I payed money for, no matter how bad game is.
I know that game is designed that way, but what after you played all locked packets? Can you play some more or you just throw away game? Cause board will look different but if you play with new people they will want their own story, not one that already was told and played by someone else.
All in all it just look like a game that you can have limited number of plays and after that you can only put it on your shelf.
I would like to try it for sure, if someone else buy a copy
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Chris Schenck
United States
Dayton
Ohio
GO BUCKS!
Stop touching me!
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boros wrote: but what after you played all locked packets? Can you play some more or you just throw away game?
I can't believe that people are still asking this question after it's been answered in many other threads.
It's been stated repeatedly by the designers that the game is perfectly playable after the packets are all opened. It just won't change anymore after that point. So basically it turns into a static game like every other game in your boardgame collection. The difference is that all of those other games in your collection never had a chance to be personalized before becoming static. This game does.
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George Husted
United States
Connecticut
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Good review. Thank you.
I will probably get this game to play with my kids. I can really see the value of having a unique game experience with them that is captured forever, like a photograph. I will treasure it and the stories it generates. It will most likely become one of my family treasures and it will be personal and close to me. The changes made to it will be permanent.
I will also likely purchase another copy and modify it to have a "reset" capability. This is one I would play with a more casual group of aquaintances/friends. I think it will be fun to see all the different ways the game can "evolve" with different players in the mix. Paths not tried in one game will be explored in another. The changes made will not be permanent.
I love this concept...as hard as it will be for me to mark a game and destroy some of the components. I love that it will be a "game snapshot" of my kids and me having fun and weaving a story together. I hate this concept because it goes against my grain and gets permanently marked and destroys some of the components so that they could never be used.
I understand this concept. I hope that the designers might consider a reset option (after market?) for this game for those that want to play it more casually and less personally...for those that want to explore the wonders of all the different paths for the game to unfold in instead of just one single path and for those that may be playing with aquaintances that pass through our lives but do not permanently remain.
This is a good review. It gave me a bit more info and helped shape my thoughts on this game a bit more firmly and gave me a peek at the fun we can look forward to. I can see this in my collection as a very personal and treasured "heirloom" that will be and old friend with scars and stories. I can also see this in my collection with game logs of all the different paths I have explored with aquaintances and friends and all the fun we have in our explorations.
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Post Script: I know some of you may not understand the reluctance some have expressed about permanently marking/altering the game. I'll give you a word picture to try to help.
Imagine your favorite book. It is a story that you love and there are passages you have committed to memory. Perhaps there is a photograph or illustration that you really like. Now, imagine taking a sharpie and blocking out paragraphs in that book and then ripping some of the pages out of the book and then putting some stickers all over some of the pages. You may even rip an entire few chapters out of the book (unused factions).
You may still like the book, but it won't feel the same...it won't be the same...
You could take this same analogy and apply it to your favorite movie being re-edited. Hence, the reluctance. I love Risk in all the forms I have played it (still haven't done Transformers, Star Wars, or Halo but have Narnia, Lord of the Rings, Balance of Power, Global Domination, Express, 2210, Onyx, etc.). It is like an old and much treasured novel in some ways. Now perhaps you understand?
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Karrde
United Kingdom
Portsmouth
Hampshire
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Good review, this sounds like you had amazing fun. I am jealous at how much of a good time it sounds like you had.
I'm really keen to give this a try but slightly worried that after we complete a campaign I'm going to have to buy another copy to start again (made worse if one person wins early).
I forsee a future where I have 5 sets of troops and no usable boards...
Is that the case?
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Jim McMahon
United States
West Springfield
Massachusetts
Lookee what he can do! He wants a job!
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Coldwarrior1984 wrote: I will probably get this game to play with my kids. I can really see the value of having a unique game experience with them that is captured forever, like a photograph. I will treasure it and the stories it generates. It will most likely become one of my family treasures and it will be personal and close to me. The changes made to it will be permanent. Yay!
Coldwarrior1984 wrote: I will also likely purchase another copy and modify it to have a "reset" capability. This is one I would play with a more casual group of aquaintances/friends. I think that I would treasure stories that my friends and I generated just as much as any family memories. Therefore, every copy that I get will be played as intended.
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Robert Borosak
Croatia
10000 Zagreb
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cbs42 wrote:
It's been stated repeatedly by the designers that the game is perfectly playable after the packets are all opened. It just won't change anymore after that point.
Playable yes, but if you going to play it with new players who didn't had chance to play your campaign will it be fun and interesting for them too? Or they will play just old same Risk?
And designers always speak all the best about their games that doesn't mean that game will be like that.
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Kevin H.
United States
Crescent City
California
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boros wrote: cbs42 wrote:
It's been stated repeatedly by the designers that the game is perfectly playable after the packets are all opened. It just won't change anymore after that point.
Playable yes, but if you going to play it with new players who didn't had chance to play your campaign will it be fun and interesting for them too? Or they will play just old same Risk?
None of the above. It will play like a heavily house-ruled version of Risk.
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Jim McMahon
United States
West Springfield
Massachusetts
Lookee what he can do! He wants a job!
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boros wrote: cbs42 wrote:
It's been stated repeatedly by the designers that the game is perfectly playable after the packets are all opened. It just won't change anymore after that point.
Playable yes, but if you going to play it with new players who didn't had chance to play your campaign will it be fun and interesting for them too? Or they will play just old same Risk?
You rate both Agricola and Le Havre 9.5. I'm guessing that means that you really love them and have fun playing them. Yet you didn't help develop either game into the (unchanging) state that they are right now.
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Ethan Van Vorst
United States
Spencer
North Carolina
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Great review! As something of a minor Risk fan I've been silently following conversations (and the subsequent arguments) that this game has been generating recently, and I can see both sides of the equation. A customized board game for one's specific group is just a beautiful idea, and revitalizing Risk's good name (good name I think, others will debate that
 ) is a wonderful thing. But the very idea of permanently destroying components just bothers me on some very deep level that I didn't even realize I had. I baby my boardgames like they were classic cars, even the bad ones. So to completely deface a game on purpose with no chance of going back would be a terrible struggle to overcome. I'd like to get this game someday though just to experience it. Who knows, might be the best version of Risk made to date.
I wonder if any of this version of Risk's designers are reading threads like this and cackling with glee over how much discomfort they're practically pouring onto many of us. 
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Yours Truly,
United States
Gainesville
Florida
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StealthDonut wrote: But the very idea of permanently destroying components just bothers me on some very deep level that I didn't even realize I had. I baby my boardgames like they were classic cars, even the bad ones. So to completely deface a game on purpose with no chance of going back would be a terrible struggle to overcome.
This game almost sounds like some kind of therapy experiment. 
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Mark Chaplin
United Kingdom
Nottingham
Ice-choked tower, Mondavia, Nanglangka.
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Okay, I'm now convinced. Will definitely be playing this version of Risk.
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Julian Murdoch
Massachusetts
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A few responses to the questions:
"Will I treat it the same when I buy it" -- yes, and I've pre-ordered two copies already. One to play, one to stash away for a rainy weekend with new players.
"You liked XXX and didn't have to modify it ..."
As I said in my score comment -- I really dig this concept, but I don't want every game to be like this, anymore than I want every game to be a deckbuilding game or a draft session of Magic the Gathering. I think this little corner of nerd-dom thrives on variety, and there's just nothing else like Legacy out there.
"Reluctance to mark"
Like I said, this drove one of our group CRAZY, and honestly, it was awesome forcing him to grab the ball point pen and write on things. The end game, as someone commented, will be like a heavily house-rulesed version of the objective-based Risk redesign, which is a good thing. I also don't know what's in the unlocks, but given their size, SOME of them have to be new unit types or dice or something, because they take up HALF the vac-tray underneath peel back tabs. Stoked to get there, but my point is, the end game will have SOMETHING way different than Risk still going on. Whether that endgame will be awesomely balanced and replayable, I have no idea. I'll tell y'all when I get there!
"Marketing scam/ripoff"
So, here's the thing. I own several versions of Risk. With the exception of one very old copy I had as a kid, I don't think I've played *any* of them 20 times. I've played 2210 perhaps a dozen or 15. In fact, in my whole collection (whcih isn't huge) I've played perhaps only 5-10 games more than 20 times. And I don't feel like those games I've only played a few times are ripoffs. I've played my copy of Twilight Struggle 4 times, and I love it to death. By the hour, thats 12 hours of gameplay or so for $60, and I think that's a pretty good deal. Less money per hour than I've happily paid for video games.
Remember that this game is coming from HASBRO. There are no booster packs for a seemingly static game here (a direction they could EASILY have gone, ala what WOTC did with Gamma World). My guess is that this game actually slid through the cracks somewhere, will get a fairly short print run (compared to a Walmart-sold Hasbro game), and it will be a miracle if it gets reprinted. Yes, some very small group of people (like me) will want to have more than one copy, because we really dig the experience. But to suggest that Hasbro somehow has built a nefarious marketing plan on the idea that you're going to buy a new copy every few months seems, well, kind of silly honestly. If it was coming straight from WOTC, maybe. But Hasbro?
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George Husted
United States
Connecticut
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So, the probability that Hasbro will do a limited print run and not do a reprint on a game that is not "reset" capable is supposed to entice us? Really?
I will likely get 2 copies for the above stated reasons...but I am even more convinced now that I will make one of those copies capable of a reset...since there aren't going to be any more after a short time.
(I might get 3...one to keep pristine and sell on ebay in about 5 years for stupid money.)
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Clint Herron
United States
Elkhart
Indiana
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I think I'm simultaneously horrified and strangely fascinated by the idea of writing on the board and tearing up unused game components.
Great review, thanks!!!
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Douglas Buel
United States
Orlando
Florida
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I'm really looking forward to this game.
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Julian Murdoch
Massachusetts
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Coldwarrior1984 wrote: So, the probability that Hasbro will do a limited print run and not do a reprint on a game that is not "reset" capable is supposed to entice us? Really?
I will likely get 2 copies for the above stated reasons...but I am even more convinced now that I will make one of those copies capable of a reset...since there aren't going to be any more after a short time.
(I might get 3...one to keep pristine and sell on ebay in about 5 years for stupid money.)
I'm just guessing, I've got no idea. Maybe it goes the way of many of the cooler games that came out of Hasbro over the years and shifts over to the Avalon Hill/WOTC imprint and gets reprinted that way.
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Yours Truly,
United States
Gainesville
Florida
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GWJrabbit wrote: Maybe it goes the way of many of the cooler games that came out of Hasbro over the years and shifts over to the Avalon Hill/WOTC imprint and gets reprinted that way.
Except that the Avalon Hill line is just Axis & Allies these days, haven't they abandoned everything else?
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Julian Murdoch
Massachusetts
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I thought 2210, House on the Hill, Godstorm and a few other things were still in print? Or are those just WOTC imprints now?
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