Casual Game Crowdfunding: 3D Mountains and Miniature Trees | Casual Game Revolution

Casual Game Crowdfunding: 3D Mountains and Miniature Trees

Mountaineers

There are a lot of creative components this month on Kickstarter, as we have not one, but two games that use 3D boards, and a deck-builder that comes with miniature trees you are trying to attach leaves and branches too. 

Mountaineers

Mountaineers (Corey Wright) – The board for this game includes a 3D mountain. Need we say more? Your goal is to gain the largest number of climbing points in order to win. Each player starts the game with a character and four climbing routes. The climbing routes give goals to complete on the mountain in order to score points. Supply tokens are used as currency both to purchase gear and to help you climb. As they climb up the mountain, players leave route markers to show the paths they took. Weather can bring in adverse conditions, and there are over 120 combinations of mountains you can create for the game.

Stumped

Stumped (Outside In Games)Stumped is a deck-building game. Each player starts with a hand of five dirt cards. With dirt you purchase new cards. Some cards (such as water and sun together with dirt) will help you grow leaves, while others will defend your tree against your opponents' offensive cards. Your goal is to grow 10 leaves on your tree. Each player has an actual, miniature, 3D tree that they attach branches and leaves to.

Mars Open

Mars Open (Bellwether Games) – You are trying to flick your golf ball card over obstacles and towards the hole box. Your score is determined by the number of flicks it takes you. The winner is determined after nine rounds. The rulebook comes with suggestions on how to set up the obstacles for each round, starting with suggestions for beginner players and moving up to expert. But you can mix the obstacles together in any way you wish, creating your own custom courses.

Ravine

Ravine (Mathew Sisson) – In this cooperative, survival card game players are survivors of a plane crash, stranded on an island. Each survivor starts with six heart tokens and a wreckage card which includes useful items to help you make it through the nights on the island. At the start of the game you also roll three of your starting heart tokens, some of which may land facedown, so it’s possible that you won’t start the game with full health. During the game you can risk heart tokens to look for supplies on the island. For each heart you risk you collect one forage card, some of which may even replenish your used health tokens. Players can craft items during the day to help them survive the night. If you survive all the night cards, you win the game. If you ever have only one health point left, you draw a madness card, and if you lose all your health, you perish and lose the game.

Loot the Body

Loot the Body (Jason Bice) – In this dungeon crawler inspired card game, the dungeon is represented by a dungeon deck full of monsters, treasures, traps, and bosses. Each player starts with their own unique character that comes with its own deck of action cards. On each turn a card is revealed from the dungeon deck and players race to lay an action card face down on the table and grab a die, with the slowest player not getting a die and not being able to share in the loot that round. Monster cards come in different colors which affects which cards in your hand can actually damage them. Players then roll for initiative to see in what order their action cards are resolved. The loot you win during the game can be saved to add to your score at the end, or played to give you a helpful boost.

Holmes & Moriarty

Holmes and Moriarty (Escape Velocity Games) – In this asymmetric 2-player game, one person takes on the role of Sherlock Holmes, while the other is Professor Moriarty. The game is played over five rounds. Each round, both players are dealt seven cards. Each of you choose two cards to play which becomes a case, then you exchange hands to choose your next two cards for the next case. After doing this three times you move on to resolve the three cases. Based on the results of the cases, markers are placed on the scenario board. If Moriarty ever has three markers on the board in a straight line or diagonally, he wins. If Holmes ever creates a situation where it is impossible for Moriarty to ever get three in a row, then he wins.

Cryptids

Cryptids (Justin S Murphy) – Each player is dealt five cards. Players order their cards from one to five, with the cards in space one defending and attacking each other. The attacker rolls a die and adds the result to his creature's attack value, while your opponent does the same with her creature's defense. If the defender loses the creature can use its special survival ability to roll the die and see if the creature escapes or is added to their opponent's victory pile. If the defender succeeds in its defense, it attacks next. Once your creature in space one is defeated, you slide the creature from space two into that slot. The game continues until the entire deck is used.

Disclosure: unless otherwise noted, we have not seen or played any of the above games. Our assessment of each is based on the information given on the crowdfunding project page.