Games of 2021 I'm curious about
One of these days I'm going to post a list of games that are expected to launch on Kickstarter next year, both here and in the 1PG. For this article, I selected a few that caught my attention. They are not 'my most anticipated', because I'm driven more by curiosity than enthusiasm. Call it Kickstarter fatigue or that I'm difficult to please but I'm not going crazy over any of them.
I'm eager to be surprised, however, and I change my mind relatively easily. It's still too soon anyway, many more games will appear as time goes by, so I'm sure I'll find something to be excited about. In any case, my choices for now are:
This expansion adds a cooperative campaign to the base game. Materia Prima is themed around alchemy and searching for the philosopher's stone. You gather resources, send out your homunculi to bring you things you need and, with the expansion added in, face the Inquisitors and state control. The artwork is in a hand-drawn, fairy tale-like style. I wish it didn't look so much like a children's game, but I can live with it. I think. If not, there is always Trismegistus.
Very little is known about this game. It is by the team behind Aeon Trespass: Odyssey. A co-op dungeon crawler in which you visit different territories (kingdoms) to kill monsters and gain loot. How does it play? Who knows. It has interesting minis (an egg-headed knight, a conquistador with a monkey, an armored dragon). And a 'living lure' hunter walking around with steaks hanging from his neck.
Might this be my first Chip Theory game? Solitaire campaign dice-driven play. It is not yet clear if this takes place in an arena like the other Hoplo games but most likely it does. Like others have said, will we see monsters of the ancient Greek mythology like hydras, medusae, cyclopes etc.? How replayable is the campaign? An important question this one, given that chips and mats are quite expensive.
An ambitious project promising an engaging narrative that is not on rails, and 'intelligent' enemies with different personalities. Combat will be dice-driven with the option of 'chatting' with the enemy and resolving matters through diplomacy. The artwork is certainly well-made and the minis look impressive. How good the gameplay is remains to be seen.
Honorable mentions
I lumped these two together, not because they are both by Finnish companies, but because they have storybooks. I've sworn off storybooks after Tainted Grail, so I only mention them because they otherwise seem pleasant. The animal characters in Lands of Galzyr have an interesting-looking wheel of stats. They move around the map having encounters that you will read about in the book, choose your own adventure-style.
Agemonia is closer to my tastes visually but, again, the storybook kills the deal. The gameplay has you explore various locations, read what happens when you interact with a spot, and resolve tests and combat by doing skill checks with your dice.
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Please let us know of your own most anticipated Kickstarters of 2021. What did I miss, what else might be worth looking into? I'm all eyes and ears.
I'm still interested in Stellaris but somewhat cautiously. Can a 4X game be a good solo experience?
As for the others, yes, I'd like to see them but mostly for window shopping. I'm afraid Sankokushin will be too expensive and I'm not sure if I will like the gameplay. Agemonia is a story game which is a no-go for me.
I've just realized that at the very beginning of the Sifting through thread, 2020 edition, you were saying that you were interested in... Agemonia and Sankokushin. Call it consistency!
You were also mentioning Stellaris, but not this year. What made you change your mind about it?
Nice preview. I'm definitely keeping an eye on Agemonia, as well as Sublime Dark, Quantum Shock, Florence, Darwin's Journey, Pingyao: First Chinese Banks, and the perpetually delayed One Deck Galaxy.
Also curious about Luna Maris, Paper Company, Exile (maybe 2021?), Thorngate Tower, and Followers.
I may have a minor addiction. Le sigh.
I honestly don't know much about Root solo mode. I have both the Clockwork expansion and the Riverfolk one (which contains the former solo mode, now abandoned), but never tried to play all by myself. It just... doesn't seem right. But if I want to at least try the latest expansion before backing the next one, I'll have to.
(Curiously, as much as I enjoy the game, and as much as I advocate for solo modes, Root is not a game I'm interested in solo.)
But, hey, it's a soloable game, so I guess it counts!
For Rhonin's Lore I discovered it while looking for the games released next year on KS to answer your post. Haven't heard about it…
Master of Sinanju: I'm with you and have skipped everything so far. We'll see about Hoplo.
Zerbique: Root doesn't strike me as solo-friendly, but you'll tell us when you try it.
I had never heard of Random Encounters or Rhonin's Lore, thanks!
I'll try to publish the KS list here and in the guild tomorrow.