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Weekly Trash - Mall of Horror

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01 Jun 2008 15:38 #7355 by bfkiller
Almost two years ago, I was browsing through a games store, completely unfamiliar with every single box that I picked up. I had recently decided that I wanted to venture into hobby gaming for when I had friends over, but I really had no idea where to dive in (this was before I had discovered boardgamegeek or any other information resource). But I was determined to leave that store with something and my decision was going to have to be based 100% on how intrigued I was by the box.

After about half and hour, I spotted a box featuring a blood-soaked zombie snarling at me while his undead peers shambled towards the Monroeville Mall. The taglines read Survival is in the Betrayal and Will you survive in a shattered world?

It was Mall of Horror. My search was over.

I wanted to get into hobby gaming because I had been reminiscing about how much fun I had playing games in the past. I especially enjoyed a period in my mid-20s when me and four friends would regularly get drunk while playing Risk until 4:00AM. I never really had much interest in winning. I had more fun forging alliances and then screwing over my partner at inopportune times. So any game that tells me that betraying your friends is a key strategy for winning the game sounded like sweet, sweet heaven. Add to that I'm a big fan of Romero's zombie movies (well, before Land and Diary, at least) and this seemed like an ideal candidate for kick-starting my new hobby.

My excitement for the game only compounded once I cracked it open and checked out the pieces. Those great little zombie figures and blood-stained polaroids were leaps and bounds ahead of the production design of any game I'd seen (and are still probably the best I've encountered, even after all the FFG products I've played since then). I was intrigued by the voting wheels, the hidden dice rolls, and the ditzy blondes. I just hoped it would play as good as it looked.

And it does! I think it's an absolutely brilliant game for marrying the perfect mechanics to match the theme. The best zombie movies aren't just about killing zombies by destroying their brains in clever, gruesome ways; they're a statement on the tenuous devotion people have to each other and, if the social institutions that keep people in line were removed, all hell would break loose. To use a favourite quote from Johnny Caspar in Miller's Crossing, "You're back with anarchy... right back in the jungle." I think that negotiation and voting is a perfect representation of the circumstantial alliances and back-stabbing typical of zombie survival movies. Seen the Dawn of the Dead remake? Think of the power struggles between the mall security team and the rest of the survivors and how they became increasingly vulnerable to the zombie hordes. That's exactly what this game successfully recreates.

When Michael Barnes (and others, but he's the most vocal) address the differences between "Eurogames" and "Ameritrash," Michael is often accused of disparaging the type of strategy games that are typically made in Germany, to which Michael often responds by pointing out that he's referring more to a style of play(er) as opposed to a type of game. More than any other game I've played, Mall of Horror encourages the Ameritrash style of play: trashtalk, backstabbing, secret alliances, shotguns, zombies, blood, dice, threats... It's basically the polar opposite of humdrum, solitary, and quiet games like Princes of Florence and St. Petersburg, neither of which encourages social interaction or invokes any kind of narrative. There's nothing inherently wrong with either, but they're definitely aimed at distinct audiences who are looking for very different experiences when playing games. I can enjoy a game of Princes of Florence, but it's just not as comfortable a fit. These types of games often just lack that certain something that makes me want to come back for more.

Basically, they needs zombies.

To conclude, when people list off the quintessential Ameritrash games, the usual suspects such as Twilight Imperium, Space Hulk, and Dune are listed. I think Mall of Horror is a too often forgotten gem. I think it epitomizes what it means to be Ameritrash.

(And it's French. Heh.)

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02 Jun 2008 09:22 #7362 by Shellhead
Mall of Horror has been a huge hit with my regular gaming group, plus everybody else that I've gotten to try it. New players may be inclined to say that the game is heavily based on either luck or social manipulation. Those are definitely factors, but experienced players seem able to thrive under most circumstances. We have identified two major strategies, the Parking Lot strategy and the Security HQ strategy.

The Parking Lot strategy requires a player to commit heavily to controlling the parking lot, keeping at least two characters there for as long as possible. Often, two aggressive players will share control of the parking lot, voting for each other and sharing the loot. If zombies show up, those controlling players will sacrifice the other characters so they can continue looting cars. If all else fails, most of those cards that the controlling players are getting will help them deal with zombies one way or another. The biggest challenge of the Parking Lot strategy is that zombie attacks take a steady toll on the characters here, because this is the one location that can't be barricaded. And while the parking lot can never be shut down by a horde of zombies, the party is over when the cards run out.

The Security HQ strategy is one of knowledge as power. Knowing exactly where the zombies will arrive allows the holder of the Security Chief badge to usually stay one step ahead of the zombies, at least until they overrun the Security HQ. The weakness of the Security HQ strategy is that it's a small room that can only be defended for so long, even with the big guys to help barricade the doors. And due to a lack of card flow, ultimately the Security HQ strategy leaves only one course of action: run.

In the end, the experienced MoH player will learn to live without either strategy, because in the end game, there are few cards and no security cameras. It takes a certain instinct to know when to move and where to go, always keeping in mind the play order and how the other players tend to play.

There are only two faults that I find with Mall of Horror. First, the translation of the rule book could be better, as the odd wording makes a few of the rules unclear at first read. Second, the game is so much better with 5 or 6 players that it hardly seems worth playing with only 3, though that is an option. Otherwise, I give this game a 9 on the 10-point scale.

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02 Jun 2008 11:47 #7367 by Ken B.
This game has been a huge hit for us...I think we've played it 8-9 times so far. Quick playing time, lots of player screwage and backstabbing, the board constricts as more and more zombies overwhelm the board...it's awesome.

Great production too with plastic zombies, thick tiles and chits, and nice oversized cards for the truck.

It feels a little too abstract sometimes to be pure AT ("Why are we running around from place to place again? And why only one at a time?"), and Last Night on Earth outdoes it for pure AT-style zombie action, but Mall of Horror is an excellent game that shouldn't be missed.

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02 Jun 2008 13:36 #7372 by ChristopherMD
Another WT game I haven't played, but would like to sometime. *sigh*

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02 Jun 2008 14:10 #7376 by Shellhead
I always laugh at the white Homeboyz in this game.

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02 Jun 2008 15:09 #7380 by Michael Barnes
Well, I guess I'm alone in not really liking the game all that much.

It's OK. I really like that it's more of a "Romero" zombie setting in contrast to LNOE, which is more like a straight-to-video (or SciFi Channel original movie) version of the idea. I like that the zombie stuff is a sideshow for Humans Treating Each Other Poorly, and the graphic design is outrageously good. The polaroid cards are brilliant. There's some cool chrome rules, like the screaming women and the security cameras, and it definitely has theme-a-plenty.

However, I just don't think the game is all that great and after two or three plays the novelty of it just kind of wears away and all that's left is an average negotiation game. It just doesn't engage me for some reason, I never really care all that much if my people die, and in general it just doesn't feel like the stakes are ever high enough. RETTE SICH WERR KANN seems to evoke more desparation and nastiness than MALL OF HORROR with the folks I play with.

I don't know about you guys, but we've had a lot of ties too...not sure what that means.

I still think INTRIGE is one of the best games in this class...it's absolutely the dirtiest game I've ever played. If you guys like backstabbing, try stabbing somebody directly in the face after they've handed you a huge amount of money to get a good position. There's no voting, just "fuck you".

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02 Jun 2008 16:01 #7382 by Malloc
I would rather play lifeboats over this one anytime. Its the same basic idea but lifeboats focuses on the screwing of others and the negotiation much much more. The number of players in this one and the fact that a lot of vote are a foregone conclusion makes it less fun to me.

Its not a bad game, i do like it, the theme etc. but as far as negotiation games go it is in solid 2nd place.

-M

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02 Jun 2008 16:05 #7383 by Count Orlok
Michael Barnes wrote:

Well, I guess I'm alone in not really liking the game all that much.

It's OK. I really like that it's more of a "Romero" zombie setting in contrast to LNOE, which is more like a straight-to-video (or SciFi Channel original movie) version of the idea. I like that the zombie stuff is a sideshow for Humans Treating Each Other Poorly, and the graphic design is outrageously good. The polaroid cards are brilliant. There's some cool chrome rules, like the screaming women and the security cameras, and it definitely has theme-a-plenty.

However, I just don't think the game is all that great and after two or three plays the novelty of it just kind of wears away and all that's left is an average negotiation game. It just doesn't engage me for some reason, I never really care all that much if my people die, and in general it just doesn't feel like the stakes are ever high enough. RETTE SICH WERR KANN seems to evoke more desparation and nastiness than MALL OF HORROR with the folks I play with.

I don't know about you guys, but we've had a lot of ties too...not sure what that means.

I still think INTRIGE is one of the best games in this class...it's absolutely the dirtiest game I've ever played. If you guys like backstabbing, try stabbing somebody directly in the face after they've handed you a huge amount of money to get a good position. There's no voting, just "fuck you".


You pretty much summed up what I've thought about the game. The "two-strategies" as noted earlier in the thread, make the game extremely repetitive if playing with the same group of people, and the novelty wears off quickly. I thought it would be a lot more fun than it was, but I just ended up getting tired of it. It might help to have a better group of people (see my TI3 thread for more about them), but I still don't think there is enough to make the game a lasting "hit."

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02 Jun 2008 18:25 #7385 by Shellhead
I have to admit that there is some merit to the "repetitive" nature of the game. I have played about 50 games of Mall of Horror now, including at least 30 games with the same group. We've gotten to the point where we are excited to play if there is a new player or two, but otherwise it doesn't hit the table much anymore.

The last few times that I've played Mall of Horror, I've increased the challenge by trying to win without relying on a known strategy. Instead, I just try to play the social metagame and get lucky on guessing where to go. That's still good enough to for me to come in second or third in a full six-player game, despite people gunning for me as the game owner or as the guy who won too many games in the past.

Regarding Lifeboats... I played it only once. It's a very similar game but was too dry compared to Mall of Horror, due to a near-complete absence of chrome rules or cool-looking bits. I am truly stunned that anybody could prefer Lifeboats to Mall of Horror.

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02 Jun 2008 23:05 #7390 by Malloc
Shellhead wrote:

Regarding Lifeboats... I played it only once. It's a very similar game but was too dry compared to Mall of Horror, due to a near-complete absence of chrome rules or cool-looking bits. I am truly stunned that anybody could prefer Lifeboats to Mall of Horror.


I think this may be the people played with. Lifeboats, when I play (usually at the WBC) is with the same group of guys, and the game, or the fun, IS the history.

Still it is a once or twice a year deal for me and I am good with that.

MoH seemed like a lighter, gamier version, where the fun was in the theme, and thats cool too... but no one was making obtuse references to the last game when we played it again, and for me with these type of negotiation games, thats where the fun is.

-M

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03 Jun 2008 06:22 #7395 by Ken B.
Well, we still talk about stuff that happened in our Mall of Horror games...like the time I backstabbed my friend with a timely Hide card, or the time in a three player game I had the little girl searching the truck for weapons turn after turn, I used the grenades once I got them to immediate effect, then soon after fed the girl to the zombies. As a narrative goes, that's pretty fucked up.

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03 Jun 2008 10:29 #7405 by Shellhead
Exactly, Ken. The narrative in Lifeboat is swim, vote, swim, vote, etc, then finally score it all up based on who made it to shore. In Mall of Horror, the basic narrative is run, vote, run, vote, but then there is other stuff going on... barricading doors, pointing guns at each other, hiding, and even chopping up zombies with a chainsaw. Even the different locations have a little bit of personality compared to the very generic boats in Lifeboat. Having a character in the Security HQ gives you a shot at previewing the zombie attacks on security, while having a character in the Parking Lot gives you a chance to break into vehicles (and get cards).

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03 Jun 2008 10:46 #7407 by Ken B.
Yep. Preachin' to the choir, brutha.

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03 Jun 2008 18:26 #7415 by Rliyen
Ken B. wrote:

Well, we still talk about stuff that happened in our Mall of Horror games...like the time I backstabbed my friend with a timely Hide card, or the time in a three player game I had the little girl searching the truck for weapons turn after turn, I used the grenades once I got them to immediate effect, then soon after fed the girl to the zombies. As a narrative goes, that's pretty fucked up.


Two words: ACCEPTABLE LOSSES :lol:

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06 Jun 2008 14:19 #7497 by ChristopherMD
If anyone wants to take out the trash next week just say so. Otherwise I'll post something.

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