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Seriously Board is a place to buy board games online in New Zealand, but it's more than that. We're also part of the New Zealand board game community and we play a lot.
Perhaps too much.
// January 20th, 2010 // Comments Off // Kiwiana, Site news
With the first month of 2010 already rapidly working its way past us, the SeriouslyBoard crew has put in some hard yards to upgrade the site – especially code monkey Craig!
But that isn’t all that’s going on, especially if you live in the North Island.
// December 16th, 2009 // 2 Comments » // General, Kiwiana
The central North Island town of Matamata has always held a special place in my heart, as that’s where my grandparents used to live many moons ago. Now, after more than two decades of absence, I get to visit on an almost monthly basis…to play board games!
(more…)
// October 10th, 2009 // 2 Comments » // Gaming news, Interview, Kiwiana, game design
If you’ve played any board game involving a world map, you’ve probably noticed it. If, like many Kiwi kids, you grew up with Risk, you’re bound to have seen it. If you’ve played Twilight Struggle or 2009 Spiel des Jahres nominee Pandemic, it can’t have gone unnoticed.
For the record, I’m referring to the country you call home – or, rather, the omission of it on board gaming maps. Of course, this brings with it some benefits. For starters, we’re not perceived as territory worth attacking by some megalomaniac with his army of plastic men, horses, and cannons. And our borders are obviously so tight that no fatal disease can affect us.
But isn’t it about time our existence was highlighted by a top quality Euro game? Wellingtonians Carl de Visser and Jarratt Gray have done just that – albeit metaphorically – with their new Z-Man Games title Endeavor.
Sure, New Zealand isn’t actually on the game board, but this is a title which is really turning heads amongst the international board gaming community, with it sitting comfortably inside the top 100 on BoardGameGeek.com’s rankings.
The Aotearoa-less - but exquisite - world map that is the Endeavor game board.
SeriouslyBoard sat down with Messrs de Visser and Gray just days before Endeavor’s New Zealand homecoming to have a chat about the game…
SeriouslyBoard: This has been your first published game, and Endeavor seems a fitting name for such a pioneering effort. Does the title hark back to Captain James Cook and his efforts to expand the British empire?
Jarratt Gray: Not exactly. Cook is certainly something that happened in the 18th Century, but his efforts aren’t really dealt with in Endeavor. The name comes more from the verb, and as such we didn’t mind the change in spelling from English to American with an American publisher publishing the game. The fact that Cook’s first ship was also the Endeavour was not lost on us, but the game isn’t about his voyages.
SeriouslyBoard: When and how did the idea of creating Endeavor first come to you?
Jarratt Gray: Carl and I were both independently working on projects and during lunch one time we decided to work on something together. Carl pitched some ideas about a game he wanted to make, I threw in my thoughts about what I wanted, we discussed some rudimentary design goals, and away we went.
Carl de Visser: A lot of the theme from my original ideas is there, but not much of the details. Originally, buildings were much more complex. I had the idea that you could build ministries, which would have other buildings attached. So for example, you would activate your war ministry, and it might have several attached buildings that allowed different attacks and other related actions, such as draws from an espionage deck.
SB: How long did the design and production of Endeavor take from initial concept to seeing it on a game store shelf?
JG: Well, I haven’t exactly seen it on a store shelf yet, but it has been about 3 and a half years.
CdV: It was about 2 years from initial idea to a prototype we felt comfortable submitting. After acceptance, there was still a reasonable amount of redesign and testing, but mostly from that point it was waiting. It looks like it could take between 6 and 12 months from acceptance to publishing, but we had a few delays related to marketing timing, foreign editions and printing.
SB: Which part of the design process took the longest?
CdV: That is something that is very hard to assess, because when the design process goes well it all seems so quick – and when not, it doesn’t. The longest feeling part for me was the gap between our first initial attempt at the game, and when we started looking at it again and breaking it down into the core mechanics we liked. Once we got past that part, everything seemed to flow.
JG: Publishing was delayed, so the game was released almost a year later than it should have been. Working with the second prototype and getting it to the final game probably took about a year, although it was submitted about three quarters of the way through that process. We added a fifth player and balanced the game to that after it was submitted. It was originally intended as a 3-4 player game, but Zev [from Z-Man Games] play tested the prototype on our 4 player board with 5 players so we thought it was worth expanding the game.
SB: What has been the most rewarding aspect of your Endeavor experience?
JG: Working with Carl. Ideas tend to develop slowly when you are working by yourself. You become more attached to them. With a team you sometimes fight for stuff but in doing so you get to really understand why you are fighting for them. You also get many more ideas to work with as well as well intentioned criticism.
CdV: Right now, the rewarding aspect is that we were right that we could do something as good or better than many of the games out there. We pretty much nailed our design goals with Endeavor, and the elements I am less happy with were elements outside of what we were trying to achieve.
Endeavor designers Carl de Visser and Jarratt Gray at Wellycon.
SB: One of the aspects of Endeavor that seems to appeal to so many gamers is that there are many paths to victory. How did you manage to achieve such a difficult balancing act?
CdV: Very early in the process, we came up with some rough stories of what a game could be like, and what different strategies could be employed, even before we had the mechanics that fleshed out. Both Jarratt and I tend to search for extreme strategies and exploits in games we play, so through play testing we tended to explore quite a lot of options. Rather than quash these, we tried to make them fit in with the game, and if they became too strong, strengthen up other known strategies rather than try to weaken the degenerative one.
JG: It’s really to do with the types of games that we like and something that was an original design goal. It was hard to balance at first in our original prototype, but as the second prototype took shape, the game itself seemed to balance itself. The engine is really the combination of the action mechanic with the token management of the scoring tracks. Once we had that working, balancing was relatively straight forward. We found that the mix of trade tokens was the thing that could easily sway one strategy over another, which means with a random set up, sometimes some strategies are more viable than others.
SB: What was the biggest learning curve you experienced between concept and completion? How would you incorporate it into a future design?
JG: Actually, concept was so long ago that I’m struggling to remember the steps I took to get something out of my head and onto paper. I have a few games right now that are in the concept phase that I just can’t figure out how to implement because I have sort of lost that skill.
CdV: It is amazing how many skills are involved in designing and developing a game. And I am amazed at those who self-publish, (and that is most other New Zealand designers), as that is a whole new set of skills to throw into the mix. And most of it is hard, too.
I think the bit where we really learnt a lot – and really were able to develop some skills from – that helped the design a lot was in play testing. I know for both of us, our self testing skills improved a great deal, as well as getting information of value from live and blind testing.
Another element we learnt a great deal from was about how game mechanics are structured. How some mechanics are more core and are harder to change than more peripheral mechanics, which can be messed with a lot more. During the design process, we discussed a lot of other games by a lot of other designers. And we really discussed the mechanics in some detail.
SB: Z-Man Games have done a stellar job with the production quality of Endeavor, but the big unknown was always going to be how the average punter took to the game. Did you ever imagine the game would generate such a positive response?
CdV: Yes, I absolutely imagined such a great response. My imagination has also covered bigger responses, as well as much worse responses, and disasters like some horrible flaw being discovered within five minutes of release. I guess I have an over active imagination!
JG: I think we were both pretty positive about the game we had created. I always expected the response would be positive. Most people that play tested it for us enjoyed it, so you kind of have an idea of what people will think about it.
SB: Do you have any plans for an Endeavor expansion?
JG: Yes, assuming the game sells and merits some expansions. Something that we wanted in the game but ended up taking out was Cook’s exploration of the Pacific, so we’d like to get that back in, as well as a few other ideas from the period.
CdV: There are probably more ideas that we can use.
SB: If you could offer just one tip for budding board game designers in Aotearoa, what would it be?
JG: I think it’s probably important to have a passion for the game you are making. If you don’t want to play it a hundred times, other people probably won’t either. I think the hardest thing is finding a community to test games with as much as possible. Having a nice prototype can really help get your game played at your local gaming group. And if some ideas in the game aren’t working, don’t be afraid to edit them out.
CdV: Don’t be afraid to design a lot of bad games first. Make sure you make your ideas concrete in some fashion. While you may think you have something solid in your head, it could turn out to be a lot weaker than you think when you try to make that idea real. Put stuff on paper, make notes, make prototypes. I just realised you said one tip!
SB: What do you do when you’re not playing or designing board games?
JG: I’m an Editor and Director, and I like roleplaying and playing video games.
CdV: I am a Systems Engineer in a systems integration team, which generally means making computers play nicely together. I also have two kids, aged 6 and 3. With what little time I have left, I use for hobbies.
SB: What’s next on the design front?
CdV: I have a lot of ideas, a few of them slightly developed. There is one design we have done a lot of talking about that I think we could do something good with. I have a couple of independent games that I have been working on, but the one that seems to shine, I really need help on to develop, so I’ll have to try get Jarratt interested in that one, also.
JG: I’ve got a couple of prototypes that need some work. I want to design something with Carl again. And we are both throwing around expansion ideas for Endeavor.
SB: Thank you for putting New Zealand on the board gaming map!
*****
Endeavor is due to arrive in New Zealand in the next few days. make sure you beat the crowds by purchasing your copy here!
Endeavor's box cover.
// September 2nd, 2009 // Comments Off // Gaming news, Kiwiana, Site news
As evidenced in our previous blog, both Angie and I are getting really excited about the forthcoming arrival of Endeavor. It has already reached one of those I-would-buy-it-now-if-it-was-in-New-Zealand sort of situations, especially as folk overseas are already receiving their copies.
At first, I wondered if my excitement was at least in part a result of patriotic parochialism, but I’m becoming more and more convinced that this is not the case. I really think that Endeavor is going to be a winner.
Whilst browsing boardgamegeek.com recently, I couldn’t help but notice that Endeavor is currently the third most wanted game among the many users who frequent that site. Third most wanted!
That puts it right up there with the first expansion to Pandemic, (which we’ll be stocking when it arrives in the country), and two titles by renowned designer Martin Wallace. A huge congratulations to Carl and Jarratt for making it happen!
We’re looking forward to interviewing them in the near future. In the meantime, have a look at the other games we stock, as well as a couple of new features to SeriouslyBoard…
Six Week Fix
If you’ve purchased a game from us recently, you’ll already know about the Six Week Fix. Put simply, if you buy a game from us, you’ll get a 6% discount off your next purchase, as long as you do so within six weeks. This is an ongoing promotion, because we reckon it’s a simple way of saying “thank you” each time you buy.
September Special
Having said that, we feel it’s about time we rewarded one of our fantastic customers with a better bonus, and we’re offering a $30 discount coupon in order to make that happen. The process is simple: for every game you purchase or pre-order during the month of September, you’ll go into the draw to win a $30 coupon that you can use the next time you make a purchase! And if Endeavor is one of your purchases, we’ll put you into the draw twice for that game alone.
We’ll announce the winner right here on the front page.
Until then…happy gaming!
// August 21st, 2009 // Comments Off // Gaming news, Kiwiana, Site news
It took us more than 14 hours of driving, but we managed to get to Wellington and back last weekend for the fantastic Wellycon convention. It was an honour to sponsor the event, and we loved putting faces to names and getting stuck into the gaming.
Giving away a copy of Le Havre and Stonewall was particularly enjoyable, too.
I’d like to offer a huge congratulations to Andrew Rae for his efforts in putting the event together! Top stuff, Andrew!
Anyone who attended Wellycon now has a special SeriouslyBoard discount that runs until the end of the month. This discount applies to our entire range, including our latest order:
We’ve also stocked up on Carcassonne and Thurn And Taxis, and we expect to have Small World and Ticket To Ride: Europe in stock in about a week.
But there was more to Wellycon than the usual line up of games. Local game designers Carl de Visser and Jarratt Gray unveiled a copy of their title Endeavor, which had jet setted itself into the country all the way from Germany just a few days before.
For those of you who aren’t quite up with the play, Endeavor is a highly anticipated release from Z-Man Games. Players take control of European powers, seeking to gain glory for their nation through exploration and colonisation of the known world. They are required to manage their industry, culture, finances and politics to gain the upper hand.
As one of these empires, what approach do you take? Will you occupy empty cities or openly attack another player to get what you want? Will you explore newly discovered regions of the world, or will you turn the planet on its head by abolishing slavery?
The options – and strategies – are numerous. The artwork is exquisite, the design is a great example of Kiwi ingenuity, and this medium weight game has all the feel, (both in components and in game play), of a top Euro game.
Designers Carl de Visser and Jarratt Gray with a copy of Endeavor at Wellycon.
Suffice to say, this is an exciting time for the New Zealand board gaming industry, which makes our next announcement even more exciting…
You can pre-order your copy of Endeavor from SeriouslyBoard for when they arrive in October, and you have two great options. For $90, you can have the standard game and all its trimmings. But for $110, you can have a copy autographed by the designers! Yep, Messrs de Visser and Gray will sign your copy!
This is a special offer that won’t last long!
Endeavor will surely take prime position in any proud Kiwi gamer’s home, so don’t delay!
// August 8th, 2009 // Comments Off // Gaming news, Kiwiana
The Wellycon 2009 logo.
So in the lead up to Wellycon 2009, I thought it might be helpful to discuss what you should expect at a board game convention and a few handy tips to help make the most out of the weekend.
While each board game convention is likely to be a bit different from the next, you should expect to walk in and see tables set up with various games being started up or under way. There is likely to be somewhere to register or sign in when you first arrive, and then you’re good to go!
Below are Angie’s top ten tips for surviving a game convention:
Happy gaming everyone!
// August 5th, 2009 // Comments Off // Gaming news, Kiwiana, Site news
Kiwis have always been an ingenious bunch.
A few weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to see (and touch!) the only remaining McLaren M8A Can-Am car. I say this because Bruce McLaren has always inspired me with his attitude of just digging in and getting it done despite a lack of support on a local level.
New Zealand-based board game designers face a similar challenge, with gaming being perceived as little more than a hobby in this country. We really hope that, over time, designing board games will be viewed as a legitimate way to get by financially – even if it’s only supplementary income.
It is for this reason, (among others), that we do our best to give these pioneers a helping hand, which leads me to introducing you to a couple of Kiwi games in our range…
Stonewall is a great game that has survived the test of time. We’re really excited to be giving away a copy of Stonewall at Wellycon later this month!
Another great product is Linwood, the exciting debut release from Garphill Games. A slick design and easy to learn game play makes it perfect for introducing non-gamers to the genre. Check out the great two player demo video below:
Make sure you get behind our Kiwi board game designers!
// July 29th, 2009 // Comments Off // Gaming news, Kiwiana, Site news
One of the things we love most about board games is the opportunity to trial out new games with new opponents. And there’s no better opportunity to do precisely that than at a board game convention.
And so it is with great pride that we announce, (drum roll, please!), that Seriously Board are sponsoring Wellycon 2009, to be held in Wellington on the weekend of the 15th and 16th of August!
This is the second appearance for this annual convention, the brain child of Wellington board gamer Andrew Rae, who has done a fantastic job of seeing a need and ‘making it happen’.
The inaugural convention in 2008 attracted 60 gamers from across the country, and early signs are that it will be even bigger in 2009, with a warm up event in late May drawing almost as many enthusiasts as last year’s major event.
There will be prizes on offer, including a brand new copy of BoardGameGeek top 10 title Le Havre, as well as the ever popular New Zealand game Stonewall. There will also be a special discount at Seriously Board for all Wellycon attendees, so even if you don’t win a prize on the day, you can still save some money afterwards.
There’s no need to register, either – just turn up and play!
The What: Wellycon 2009
The Where: St. Patrick’s College, Kilbirnie, Wellington
The When: August 15-16th, 2009 (Saturday 10am-10pm, Sunday 10am-4pm)
The Wallet: Only $5 per day, so don’t miss out!
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