Games
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Bear with me a minute but I’m going to take an example from a video gaming experience to make a point about a board game. I used to play wrestling video games back in the day and I particularly enjoyed when you could take part in a whole season as you clawed your way up the ranks to the Championship Belt. The biggest beef I had, though, was having to sit through tedious simulated AI matches. After the first 5 or 6 matches I finally wised up and discovered I could turn that stupid feature off. I thought afterward, who would want to sit through whole matches you weren’t wrestling in?
Fast forward to me sitting down to play the latest entry in a small list of Professional wrestling board games: Face to the Mat the Pro Wrestling Simulation Board Game.
FttM gives participants the opportunity to create their own Pro wrestling world populated with real and fictional Pro wrestlers and witness the events as they unfold. Please note I said “participants” and “witness”.
FttM is for all intents and purposes a simulator.
FttM is primarily a solo activity where matches are played out by randomly drawing Fast Action Cards (FACs). A track is used to chart the wrestlers’ progress in a match. Points are scored if a wrestler’s card matches the skill listed on the FAC. The wrestler that scores enough points can attempt the pin or use his/ her finisher for the victory. There are also FACs or specific times that you’ll be required to roll some dice and look up an outcome on a results table. That’s the entire game in a nutshell.
There are no tactical or strategic avenues to pursue and many times the narration is so choppy and inconsistent that you no longer try to follow or even care about what’s happening in the ring. There are a variety of matches to try out like cage matches or battle royals but with the exception of consulting a different result chart the core mechanic is the same as the regular matches.
Their website sums up the game best. “YOU set the course for your federation, and then let the game do the rest – It's amazing to watch!!”
Why not just watch the real deal on TV then?
Unlike a large number of games, there are absolutely no decisions nor choices to be made here. None. There is no game here to be had and ultimately it’s not a fun experience.
Who would be the target audience for FttM? I’d say the same person who would sit and watch the AI go at each other in pro wrestling video games. That certainly doesn’t include me.
Please note: blogger did receive a review copy
edited by Keith
