Deadwood - In Stores Now Hot

So this apparently has nothing to do with the HBO series? That seems really weird to use that title.

Hmm...it's a Dust game...

But yeah...when I think of cowboy gangs and gunslingers, I think about them trying to take over businesses to make the most money, definitely.

"Quick and deadly twist on worker placement"...ooooooooookkkkkk...

Too bad - the HBO series would provide a cool setting, where players could play Hearst, Tolliver, Bullock the Sheriff, and of course, Al Swearengen. The table talk would be hilarious.

Looks a bit like Way out West. An old Martin Wallace title.

Yes and no. It is not as though Deadwood isn't an iconic wild west town, and given this is a game about a wild west town why not name it after that one. However the most common reference in people's minds when they think of Deadwood is the tv series, so many people will find it misleading (or be drawn to it because of it).

Aw man. I saw the box art that looks terrific. A++ Then I saw it was by Fantasy Flight...so I am think Ameritrash. AWESOME! And I'm thinking I'm finally going to own a Wild West game. Sweet.

Then I read about this "dangerous game of worker placement". And then I saw the less than inspiring board art. %$#&^% $^#%$@#. >:(

How do you go from building to building in the west and just because you win a `shootout, you suddenly own the building and all the money in it? Like Michael B. said, when I think cowboys, desperados and rustlers then I am also thinking about something more than just a economic game.

This has Euro written all over it. A waste.

When I think of cowboys, I think of cows.

funny thing is, we go by deadwood fairly regularly now...it reminds me more of Western Virginia / appalachia than the "West", just add casinos.

I thought the EXACT SAME THING, Michael.

I've got a print and play in development that's like "Gunslinger lite" because I haven't seen much in cowboy games of late...and now this is nothing like it. Color me relieved.

This sounds a lot like that Twilight Creations one, on it's face. The one Matt panned pretty heavily...I forget the name.

Deadlands, the Battle For Slaughter Gulch.

That's exactly what I thought when reading it - it sounds like Way out West but with a (proper) combat system added in. Doesn't sound deep enough to make me buy a worker-placement game - looks like just a fun Silver Line family-type game, nothing wrong with that and there will probably be a good market for it.

Sorry, I've already placed a worker on the "Feed Human Body to Wu's Pigs" action, so your only available choices are "Take Laudanum in Hotel," "Pass Gallstones," and "Sleep With Trixie."

That's the one, MSample.

I just wish that someone would make a highly produced, awesome cowboy shoot-em-up or Tannhauser-ish, scenario driven cowboy game complete with 3D plastic buildings and stagecoaches. The world needs a really good modern OK Corral game.

It has The Adventurers artwork on it so for the moment I'm giving it the benefit of the doubt. I'm not a big fan of worker placement though, and I'm curious to know how it plays out with the 8 black outlaw dice. It may be as simple as establishing position on the battlefield.

Can somebody explain to me the "Dust" business concept? It sounds like a game company but it publishes through other game companies.

S.

I played a prototype for the sequel to Cowboys, the Way of the Gun last summer. If you are looking for a good western shoot-out game, you should keep an eye out for this one. It's huge leap forward from Cowboys as far as detail, narrative, strategy and tactics. It was a long time ago and the prototype was still in the early stages, but if I remember correctly, you had a small hand of multipurpose cards that you could use to either modify your odds, or use for a special move or purpose.

I think the combat results were also card based, so you drew a card and rolled against the table on the card depending upon what you were attempting to do - so if you were attempting to run and duck down behind the water trough, you might succeed, or you might trip and fall into the trough, which would impact that cowboy's subsequent movement and action choice. It also included rules for fighting on horseback. I remember one of my cowboys trying to escape by running and mounting a horse to ride off, but he failed and ended up being dragged with his foot caught in the stirrup. Very cool ideas, but as I said, it was still in the early stages of development when I played it.

I want to buy C:WotG badly, but am waiting for this sequel. Reason is, I'm not sure if it's a new stand-alone game or an expansion to WotG. I don't want to buy into the system twice, but will pull the trigger on WotG if it's only a forthcoming expansion.

Any idea what it's status is in that regard?

Good words to hear, Shellie. I wasn't aware of it, and I really appreciate you turning my eyes toward Cowboys.

@Jeff White

I wouldn't buy C:WotG. It just isn't that good of a game. It's some dumb fun, but I don't think it's worth the price, especially considering the quality of the bits. The "sequel" is a total re-make of the game. I think the only thing they have in common is some of the artwork, pieces and the theme.

However, I'm not entirely sure what the status of the new Cowboy's game is. You may have to wait a long while for it. At the time I spoke the designer it was a stand alone game and NOT going to be an expansion. He was calling it the Cowboys "sequel." They hadn't decided on a name for it, or even if they were going to market it as a "Cowboys" game or not due the possibility that people would think it was expansion. They were considering calling it 'Injuns' or something like that, because it was going to include "Cowboys & Indians: type battles, but then there is is the whole PC problem with that.

Deadwood is like #2 on the Hot list over on TOS. I bet a lot of people are hoping for an HBO series tie in and are disappointed when they find they can't collect money from the Gem Saloon.

At first, I thought this was going to be about a reprint of Deadwood by Cheapass Games. That game pre-dated the cable tv show by a few years.

There's an early review of Deadwood, (the only one so far) on BGG that's not too complimentary.
Revolver is a Mark Chaplin western cardgame that does look interesting. It's a re-theme of his PNP game Aliens, This Time It's War that was picked up by White Goblin games and it looks like it might be fun.

His Aliens card game was pretty good. Revolver hasn't been reviewed yet but here's a preview.

Another thing people might try for the Cowboy fix is the Legends of the Old West Warhammer ruleset. Very awesome skirmish game. I have introduced the game and most boardgamers loved it. If GW made a boardgame out of it with say twenty figs and six buildings I think it would be a hit. Fun and depending on size, battles last from ten to forty minutes. THere is a campaign system that makes it interesting and I suspect if someone attached an RPG system to it it would be a fun combat system for an RPG.

Although unplayed, I think my favorite western game is a minis game called Gutshot.

Part of the charm is the great deal of character in the rules. Almost RPG-like.

The other is that the designers favor crazy double and quadruple-blind scenarios with a GM and several teams doing...stuff.

Frank, how does Gutshot compare to the previously most awesome Western game, Gunslinger?

The best western themed game I played was at GenCon SoCal years ago. It was TSR's Boot Hill, with two teams of four players. Each team had an identical map set up on either side of a partition. This meant you only saw what your team was doing until an enemy came into your character's view. At this point, the GM would place the opponent on your map until he left your view.

Boot Hill was very realistic in the fact that if you got shot, you likely died. The GM of this game had 3 characters created for each player. You started with a scrub and progressed to eventually better characters. Dying good gave you a better character, but also meant you were one step closer to elimination.

Man I would love to play that again. I am just too lazy to put the work in that the GM of that game did. Probably my best memory from the couple years I went to GC SoCal.

LOL, Boot Hill. Back when I was maybe 10 I played that with my best friend's older brother. What a game.

My buddy Shane got shot 4 times...2 in the face and 2 in the torso. He lived. But, he was 2 miles from Stanford Medical Center, and I don't think that place existed in Dry Gulch in the mid 1800s.... :)

I'll save people money on Legends of the Old West. Take the standard GW d6 system (especially the Lord of the Rings version) and slap on different names for the stats. I'd recommend the Rules with No Name or Gutshot! over LotOW.

Again: haven't played.

Gunslinger is kinda slow. It tends to take awhile to take someone down. But it does have the AMAZING action system.

Gutshot looks faster and like it would handle larger groups better. The other downside is that Gutshot is a book. That means you have to assemble your own minis and stuff.

It is also minis, but includes a grid system.

But when you read the scenarios, like one with 3 teams, but each player having SLIGHTLY different goals on each team.