There is a board game, consisting primarily of these really awesome gears, and they aren't gears that are just painted on, but the gears are like really amazing core, fundamental aspects of the game.
So the designer of the game is looking at this game, and in his head is going through themes. There's a bajillion awesome steam punk themes, diesel punk themes, some kind of time, or clock theme. So many awesome different things that you could do with the theme in an amwesome game involving gears, and he LOOKS at those gears, long and hard, stares at them, and for the theme he just says
"Mayans"
Why? Why Mayans as the theme with a game about gears, MAYANS of all things, all the amazing steam punk possibilities, why Mayans?
The Brief and Frightening Reign of Phil - George Saunders
The hocus pocus about the end of the world last year, which was supposedly tied to the buffer overflow for the Mayan calendar in December, generated a ton of interest and free publicity. Lots of people were cashing in with books, games, pseudo-science TV shows, you name it. Tzolk'in coming out at that time was no accident.
I have no problem with the theme, as a matter of fact I quite like it aside from the fact that the calendar isn't a Mayan calendar but an Aztec calendar. Painted, which mine is and which many others have as well, makes the game look simply fantastic and the calendar marks time which moves the other gears and the workers place on them. It is quite a good and unique gaming experience.
I'm not saying it's a bad theme, it just seems weird. Like if Twilight Struggle had been themed as like dinosaurs vs samurai.
I wouldn't immediately say it's bad, just that it was weird.
I wasn't aware of the Maya calender thing, but I kind of hope that some day the game can mechanics can be integrated into something a bit more steam punky.
I'm not saying it's a bad theme, it just seems weird. Like if Twilight Struggle had been themed as like dinosaurs vs samurai.
It's not in the least "weird". The Mayans and their calendar actually existed - Dinosaurs vs Samurai never took place at all - that WOULD be weird - so that analogy seriously undermines the "weird" point.
BillyBabel wrote:
I wasn't aware of the Maya calender thing, but I kind of hope that some day the game can mechanics can be integrated into something a bit more steam punky.
Steampunk is fiction as well of course, like the Dinosaurs vs Samurai analogy.
So you would prefer a steampunk theme - that's fine (City of Iron looks promising I think?) - but calling an actual historical theme like the Mayans "weird", as opposed to a fictional steampunk theme is just -well - weird!
I'm not saying it's a bad theme, it just seems weird. Like if Twilight Struggle had been themed as like dinosaurs vs samurai.
I wouldn't immediately say it's bad, just that it was weird.
The cogs are an integral mechanic and 'theme' combined. The two aspects of the game are a perfect historical fit. I have to concur with the previous poster, calling a historical reality 'weird' (twice) whilst hankering after a world where everyone dresses like Victorians in welding goggles suggests that realities of life are a little out of kilter.
Why is the fictional world of Steam Punk especiallly synonymous with cog wheels? I think you are at risk of marginalising the clock-making theme gamers with such statements.
This is not the cat you're looking for - some other cat maybe?
tout passe, tout lasse, tout casse
Seghillian wrote:
So you would prefer a steampunk theme - that's fine (City of Iron looks promising I think?) - but calling an actual historical theme like the Mayans "weird", as opposed to a fictional steampunk theme is just -well - weird!
I'm not saying it's a bad theme, it just seems weird. Like if Twilight Struggle had been themed as like dinosaurs vs samurai.
I wouldn't immediately say it's bad, just that it was weird.
The cogs are an integral mechanic and 'theme' combined. The two aspects of the game are a perfect historical fit. I have to concur with the previous poster, calling a historical reality 'weird' (twice) whilst hankering after a world where everyone dresses like Victorians in welding goggles suggests that realities of life are a little out of kilter.
Why is the fictional world of Steam Punk especiallly synonymous with cog wheels? I think you are at risk of marginalising the clock-making theme gamers with such statements.
I can see that technology tracks would work but where would the temples fit with a steam punk theme?! Mayan theme seem perfect to me Google "Mayan calendar wheels images" to see where the idea for the cogs came from
Why? Why Mayans as the theme with a game about gears, MAYANS of all things, all the amazing steam punk possibilities, why Mayans?
Why not? I think you've got it wrong. Maybe they decided to make a game about the Mayans, and thought: we need to include the calendar, and someone thought "why not make a movable calendar instead of having to move everything by hand. Perhaps inspired by the rotating table in Artus...
I'm not saying it's a bad theme, it just seems weird. Like if Twilight Struggle had been themed as like dinosaurs vs samurai.
I wouldn't immediately say it's bad, just that it was weird.
I wasn't aware of the Maya calender thing, but I kind of hope that some day the game can mechanics can be integrated into something a bit more steam punky.
I would buy a Twilight Struggle with dinosaurs vs samurai.... sounds awesome.
Painting all these miniatures is starting to crimp my time...
Want something more befitting for cogs and gears, eh? Mind as well re-theme this game to Gears of War: the mechanism is in the title and the main logo.
Never go in against a Sicilian when DEATH is on the line!
You know what would be funny...
andyholt wrote:
Seghillian wrote:
So you would prefer a steampunk theme - that's fine (City of Iron looks promising I think?) - but calling an actual historical theme like the Mayans "weird", as opposed to a fictional steampunk theme is just -well - weird!
Steampunk is pretty lame anyway and consists of slapping as many gears and goggles on as many things as you can. At least something like cyberpunk has actual literary and social relevance (on top of having more variety).
Steampunk is pretty lame anyway and consists of slapping as many gears and goggles on as many things as you can. At least something like cyberpunk has actual literary and social relevance (on top of having more variety).
There is a board game, consisting primarily of these really awesome gears, and they aren't gears that are just painted on, but the gears are like really amazing core, fundamental aspects of the game.
So the designer of the game is looking at this game, and in his head is going through themes. There's a bajillion awesome steam punk themes, diesel punk themes, some kind of time, or clock theme. So many awesome different things that you could do with the theme in an amwesome game involving gears, and he LOOKS at those gears, long and hard, stares at them, and for the theme he just says
"Mayans"
Why? Why Mayans as the theme with a game about gears, MAYANS of all things, all the amazing steam punk possibilities, why Mayans?
I guess I need to answer this. I already talked about this issue, but it was a while ago, so here we go again...
1. I wanted to make a game with the mayan calendar, which always fascinated me! 2. I started thinking of the game looking at a mayan calendar and trying to figure out how to use it... 3. I came out with the first attempt of this mechanism and took a few months to study and build a gears prototype that was as closest as possible to the Tzolkin calendar who features a 13 days gear connected to a 20 months gear... this 2 gears were moving a giant crown gear with all the others inside.... 4.Well... My first prototype was much more complex then this and almost unpublishable... 5. In the end many things have been changed... the gears simplified... the calendar stylized (the use of the aztec wheel was a publisher mistake, I used the actual Mayan Tzolkin gear), so the game turned out to be what it is now... of course being the theme perfect for 2012 we worked hard to make it out in the year. 6. the mechanism itself not only uses the calendar gears but it also implement the concept of the elapsing time... the longest the workers stay on the gear the better is the job they do... each calendar cog = 1 day = 1 gear step = a longer job for the worker... 7. While designing the single actions I was imagining the mayan tribes burning the forest harbesting corn, cutting stone and building temples, following days marked on the calendar...
So nothing is farer from the truth then having a bunch of gears and find a theme to stick on
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