Blog Archives
Alone Time: Not Jackson’s Hobbit
Although it’s highlighted some pretty exciting adventure games, today Alone Time is going to outdo itself — and not only by talking about itself in the third person; rather, by introducing you to The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game from Fantasy Flight Games! More than being merely a great two-player game (and theoretically more, though more than two makes it as boggy as the Dead Marshes in late April — pardon me, Thrimidge by Shire reckoning), TLotR:TCG is also an absolutely fantastic solo game. What’s more, it’s so expansive that it blurs the line between game and hobby.
(Half) Alone Time: Sorrow of Salilth
The beleaguered city of Salilth.
First Light. We wake to cold and to sound of screams outside the gates of Salilth. Jewel of the cities of Lassadar, home of our citadel and one of the great centers of the Council of Wardens, is surrounded. It is the time we have feared would arrive — the Grayking is come. We Wardens have prepared as best we as are able but will it be enough? I seems we are to be the first to meet openly with he who was once our brightest promise.
With an intro like that, we know immediately we’re looking at another entry in the Shadows Upon Lassadar series by Todd Sanders. I talked about the first one a couple weeks back, and found it to be both an excellent example of solo boardgaming and completely free. Except for the price of ink and paper, of course. Oh, and scissors! You’ll need those too. As for the two questions that are undoubtedly hanging precariously from the edge of your tongue — whether Sorrow of Salilth is also free, and also wonderful — well, the answers lie below.
Alone Time: Decline and Fall of the Galactic Empire
Have you ever wanted to play a solo science fiction board game about running a galaxy-spanning super-empire that’s more Asimov than Herbert or Lucas? And carefully sheltering it from alien invaders, power-hungry usurpers, and squabbling offshoot empires? Or observing the rise of cults that worship your emperor as omniscient, sweeping galactic enlightenment movements, or the appearance of a future-predicting Institute?
And would you like that game to have tight, enjoyable, and logical rules?
Because if you answered yes to that last question, Struggle for the Galactic Empire is not for you. All that other stuff is in there though.
Alone Time: The Grayking is Risen
The land is corrupted. The silent Grayking, brooding upon his throne in the Tower of Ash, is a far-reaching shadow upon Lassadar. We feel his presence in each of our days. His servants grow bold, stealing into our cities, inhabiting the alleys and dark places of our streets. They jeer at us from our mirrors, shaming our reflections.
So begins the introduction to Shadows Upon Lassadar, an exciting solo fantasy quest game from Todd Sanders, in which you take on the role of a young magic adept assigned the unenviable task of locking the three barrier gates that will keep the mysterious and powerful Grayking out of Lassadar. If that sounds intriguing, the good news is that you can make it yourself right now, for free.
As in, right now. For free.
Introducing: Alone Time
The question I’m most often asked, once people recognize me as the editor-in-chief and lead writer of Space-Biff!, is “How’d you accomplish all that?” Maybe that’s irrelevant, though it’s still nice to hear. The second question is usually “You write about all these amazing board games. But what if I don’t have any friends to play with?”
For the man on the street, I have all sorts of answers. “Use BoardGameGeek’s Gamer Database to find gamers near you,” I sometimes say; or “Call up old friends and wean them into it with simple games,” or “Improve your hygiene.” But for those who have tried all and failed, or those who just have some extra time on their hands, or those who really don’t want friends anyway, we’re happy to present a new series all about the board games that you can play with exactly one person: yourself.
SPACE-BIFF! 