April 12, 2008

Ramblings

by Susan Rozmiarek

I guess I've been experiencing a bit of burnout writing about games. Every time I sit down to write, I feel like a third grader writing an essay. "I like Pandemic because it is a really fun game." It doesn't make for very interesting reading, that's for sure. I need to shake it and get busy on reviews as I've got a pile to do thanks to the prolific Mayfair publishing schedule. I've almost completed a review of Chicago Poker. (It was fun; I liked it. Review done :-)) Actually, it isn't a bad little game but it doesn't really stand out in a crowd. It's sort of a multiplayer Schotten Totten. I've recently played their newest release, Bacchus' Banquet, and kind of liked it as a sort of cousin to Bang! It has a neat central mechanism but I have a niggling concern that one of the assigned hidden victory goals is harder to achieve than the others. Obviously a few more plays are in order.

So far, nothing really excites me from the early reports out of the Gathering of Friends, which is going on right now. The hit of the show seems to be Stone Age but the descriptions just make it sound like a rehash of familiar mechanisms dressed up in a new theme. Yawn. A lot of the excitement seems to be coming from prototypes. From this side of the fence though, it's hard to get excited over a few teasers for games that may or may not be coming out months and months from now.

I continue to find more ways to waste time on the computer. I am now on Twitter (as SusanRoz) and Facebook. I am not sure if this makes me cooler or even more of a nerd. Perhaps I should ask my teenage son who always feels it is his duty to inform me in which direction I am heading. I need to fill out my profile on Facebook but I keep getting distracted looking at all the apps available. It all seems rather silly and yet here I've been, constantly fiddling with it for the past few days. However, let me just say this now - if this leads to a MySpace page complete with tacky wallpaper and an obnoxious soundtrack, just go ahead and shoot me!

Posted by Susan Rozmiarek at April 12, 2008 8:15 PM

Comments

I'm with you, Susan! I used to always be inspired to write a game review. Now, however, I find myself staring at the computer, and wishing I was doing something else. Thus, my production has slowed ... and I honestly don't mind. I still plan on writing reviews ... just not as much!

Posted by: Greg Schloesser on April 15, 2008 10:48 AM

When it stops being fun, it's probably time to stop or at least slow down. However, I enjoy reading what you write even if it is as simple as, "This is a really fun game." Because for me, most games are fun. But when someone says a game is *really* fun, I tend to give it a closer look.

Posted by: jacob on April 27, 2008 12:38 AM

If anyone is telling you that stone age was the darling of The Gatehring...give them _that_ look. Stone Age wasn't bad, but neither was it engaging.

WRT burn out.
I was one of those guys that translated rules back when there was no english edition. I certainly burned myself out pouring over the german/english dictionary and trying to get things right. That was over a decade ago and I only now find myself returning to the hobby with enthusiasm.
From what I've read you have a good sense of the culture and hobby, so please don't burn yourself out. Give yourself the freedom to be episodic. The rest will come.

Posted by: Ron on May 6, 2008 9:13 PM

Thanks for the comments, guys :-)

A little break has done me wonders. Now I just need to not overdo it.

Posted by: Susan on May 8, 2008 7:56 PM
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