FryxGames News
“Expansions
What a year it has been! 2018 brought 2 new expansions for Terraforming Mars: Prelude and Colonies. Both have been very well received, but Prelude stands out as the most appreciated expansion of all, as it increases corporation customization and kickstarts the game, essentially jumping straight into the third generation.
With 4 expansions out, you might think we have time to relax, but no. We’re deep into the play-testing of the 5th expansion, which currently seems to be the only new content for TM in 2019. Although the same physical size as Venus and Colonies, Turmoil is by far the most advanced expansion, adding the most new game content and mechanisms of all. The theme is perhaps the most interesting part, but you will have to wait for the next newsletter to hear more about that.
In the shadow of Terraforming Mars, more new games are developing, and we have 2 big-box boardgames in the pipeline. One of them is Angels and Demons – Battle of the soul, designed by Daniel Fryxelius, author of Fleets – The Pleiad Conflict.
This is our first attempt at creating miniature games, and we swing for the fence! 100 angels and 100 demons engage in battle over a man’s soul. Despite its name, it has nothing to do with Dan Brown’s trilogy. In fact, Dan Brown’s books have nothing to do with angels and demons, so this game has a more descriptive name, even though it is the same name. Anyway, the game visualizes the spiritual dimension of the Judeo-Christian worldview, in which angels and demons interact.
Unlike most games, where you build up your forces over time, Angels and Demons turns things around. You start with all units on the board, and break down your opponent’s defenses over time, until there are so few units left that one player can control the center square – the human soul – and gain soul points. The first player to reach 10 soul points wins.
Apart from moving your troops on the board to defeat opposing units, you also fight to control resource areas. You use the resources to upgrade your leaders and your deck of cards, which includes tactic cards – powerful moves that give you various advantages.
So, when does the game arrive? We want to produce this game in 2020, probably via Kickstarter. Before that, we want beta-testers for it. If you are interested in beta-testing it, please visit our beta-tester page to let us know.
The other big-box game is Fate – Defenders of Grim Valley by Jonathan Fryxelius, author of Brawling Barons. It is a fully cooperative fantasy game, where players join forces to protect the unfortunate town of Grim Valley from the invading dragons, greenskins, and undead. Each player chooses one of 6 heroes, each with their own unique deck of cards and upgrade paths. Monsters are introduced on the game board, and the game begins.
Monsters move towards Grim Valley in a predictable pattern, and each monster that enters the town tears down one of 10 buildings. If all 10 buildings are destroyed, the players have collectively lost the game, and will probably want to try again. If Grim Valley still stands after the time is out, the players collectively win, and will still want to play again.
Fate is also a miniature game, including more than 100 miniatures, including the 6 unique heroes and the 10 city pieces. It remains to be seen when this game will be released, but we hope for 2020 / 2021, possibly as a Kickstarter. But before then, we need betatesters to help us finalize the product. If you are interested in beta-testing Fate, please go to our betatester page to let us know.”
