Top five things that help you getting into a new game

[sundancer 42976xp 3]

Sorry for the click-bait-y title but that’s what @warzan asked over on discord.

If you were getting into a new game can you list the top five things (information, videos, downloads etc) that would help you get into it?

Because I’m a connoisseur of forums I have opened this thread. That and because it makes reading up on it way more easy. Here are my Top 5 in no particular order:

1. local player/interest base. What good is a game if nobody wants to play?
2. short “how to play” videos made by the team that wrote the rules. Just look up the initial videos FFG did for X-Wing and SW:Legion. *Those* drew me in big time
3. If the game is miniature agnostic: a well made rulebook, preferably in my native language. If it is not miniatures agnostic: a nice core set with just enough in it for a two player game.
4. Introductory/Demo rules to get the hang of “how to play”. Free PDF goes a long way.
5. A theme/world that really interests me.

Bonus:

• Rules forum for quick clarifications until the next release of a FAQ/living rulebook
• “cheap” to play and “easy” to paint.

Enjoy!

[panzerkaput 33943xp 1]

Mine are

1. Does it interest me?

2. What is the system/mechanics like?

3. Is it fun?

4. How many figures are needed?

5. How accessible is it to get?

[kiranamida 5791xp 3]

I’ll take a stab at this. In no particular order:

1. A player base: Either one that already exists or enough interest from friends/local that one could be created. The rise of solo play games has maybe created a caveat to this but gaming is typically a social activity and having no one to play with isn’t fun.
2. A way to get an overview of how the game is played: Whether it’s a pdf of start rules, a play through video or a play through at an event (when we have those again). It really helps if I can see a game in action and get a feel for it before I commit to spending money on the rules. If I see it and like it, I am more likely to commit to putting money down on the product so I can get at the details and play it for myself.
3. Availability: This can be a few things, whether it’s making sure the rule books stay in print or providing a digital source that is kept available. Likewise it can also mean that there is an availability of miniatures either designed for the game or from an agnostic source. Miniature agnostic doesn’t mean much if they expect you to find a two-tailed, three-armed, seven-eyed ungulate or anything so specific before it gets to qualify for use on the table. It can come from many places but it is important that I can find what I need for the game with relative ease.
4. Understanding the scope of the game: If you’ve shown me what a turn looks like and I am interested, I next want to know what to expect a from a while game. Is this an hour long Skirmish? A weekend long real-time battle? If I am thinking about starting a game I want to know what kind of time I will need to play it because that will affect what opportunity I will have to play.
5. Modularity: Can I do something else with what I get? This is an easy win for a lot of historicals and a certain stripe of fantasy but knowing I can use the models elsewhere or perhaps use the same rules with a different set of minis (Saga, for example) is appealing because it means I am getting more bang for buck/time. Probably not often touted but this is why I like GW’s 40K. Knowing I can use the models in 40K, Kill Team, Wrath & Glory and still take them into agnostic Sci-Fi has informed a number of my purchases so this matters even with their dominance.

Interested to see what other have answered in the time it has taken me to type this.

[warzanKeymaster 31125xp 2]

Thanks @sundancer – good job mate 🙂

[wurzzelParticipant 2734xp 2]

After seeing the replies here and on discord, it turns out I’m easily pleased. I can only think of two things.

1. Does it look cool/fun, obviously that’s not very helpful as what I think is cool/fun is probably different from someone else
2. Can someone teach me how to play so I don’t have to read the rulebook? I don’t care how this is done, it could be through how to play videos or a personal demo at a club or event like a convention or open day.

[scribbs 14509xp 2]

I think most of mine have already been mentioned, although on reflection they are mostly barriers that would stop me being interested rather than things that would prompt me to try something new:

• Cost of entry, although this probably breaks down into monetary investment and time investment. How many models (and time to paint), how long does a game take, can I easy use currently owned figures?
• Theme and aesthetics. The bigger the draw and appeal, the more I can overlook a higher cost of entry.
• Are the game/associated products easily available?
• Is there any current (and local) players? A fairly important consideration if you actually want to play a game.
• Are the rules interesting, overly fiddly, just a reskin of something else, or is there something particularly fun about them?

[demonsub 12746xp 2]

An interesting subject.

1. Does it instil a sense of wonder in me, does it spark my imagination, do I want to explore the setting?

2. Could I get my friends to play, or more recently, can I play it solo? Will it be fun to play solo?

3. Does it have good mechanics? How simple or elegant are they? Can I easily adapt or change things I don’t like?

4. What are the miniatures like? Can I use other miniatures? What are the hobby implications that this game will get me to do?

5. Do the makers actually care about the product or is this a cash in? Is there a community? Is there excitement about this?

 

[kiranamida 5791xp 2]

I think @scribbs has a good point there. You could list things that are attractive about system for starting but perhaps the main thing is the lack of barriers, rather than the presence of a feature per say.
Tis often the case that a single barrier can put paid someone willingness to get into something, regardless of how many other merits it might have.

[limburger 21705xp 1]

1. is the theme / concept interesting and easy to explain ?
   [Gimme the elevator pitch … ]
2. Simple and consistent rules that match the fluff ?
   bonus points for solo and campaign options in the core rules
   [Can I learn to play and teach the game within minutes of opening the book ?]
3. Is the initial presentation by the creators fun to watch ?
   (nothing worse than a bored guy who expects you to understand stuff because he’s been gaming since he was a baby … )
   [Passion sells products]
4. is there a good two player start set that has all the stuff required to play a game
   (bonus points if it includes hints on how to procede )
   [How easy is it to get started if you never had a wargame ?]
5. Community : friendly and welcoming or elitist neckbeards who obsess about tournaments ?

Localized rules are cool … and they would be at 0, but the sad reality is that (a) it never happens and (b) if it happens it never appears to be applied to expansions. English speaking gamers don’t know how easy their life is in this hobby …

[zoidpinhead 12492xp 3]

1 First response = “Ooo shiny!!”

2-5 See above

I have to think it is cool or it isn’t even getting a second look.  Other factors posted above are all sensible and salient but this is the one that seals the deal.

[blinky465 17028xp 2]

1. does it look cool?

2. does it look like fun?

3. if nobody locally plays it, can you play solo rules?

4. have you earned enough brownie points from your loved one to cover the cost?

5…. maybe 4 should be one, 2 stays at two, 1 drops to three…..

[ced1106Participant 6224xp 2]

> Sorry for the click-bait-y title

I think it’s a worthwhile discussion, as I’ve seen a few new miniature wargames enter the market (eg. Song of Ice and Fire), and several discontinued (some small company had three different miniature sf wargames, one of them licensed?). And by “discontinued” I mean “gamers have sunk hundreds of dollars into games that no longer have any support so are unlikely to be played”. I’m not much of a miniatures wargamer, but I don’t think I bought a miniatures wargame requiring purchases of proprietary miniatures. (Don’t even get me started on the idea of painting an army for a new game only for it to disappear from shelves by the time I’ve finished painting…) I’m sure part of the rise of miniature skirmish games (and agnostic rulesets) was caused by gamer’s reluctance to be the only person they know of who would sink in a few hundred dollars into a new miniatures game (hello, Runebound).

> Introductory/Demo rules to get the hang of “how to play”. Free PDF goes a long way.

Yep, that’s a good one. Actually a free PDF rulebook helps! And, as Frostgrave and Rangers of Shadowdeep customers can tell you, just because you have a PDF, doesn’t mean you won’t sell a hardback. And, as Mantic will tell you, free PDFs drive miniature sales.

* Novel mechanics: Too many miniature games and dungeoncrawls use dice-based mechanics. Yes, I know *you* may be fine with dropping $50 on rulebooks and $200+ on proprietary miniatures, but I’m not. The only dice-based miniature wargame I bought recently was Dragon Rampart. I picked it up because it’s a well-regarded game on Lead Adventurers. On top of that, I bought it on sale and only to reach free shipping when I was buying a heavily discounted boardgame that I actually wanted. Meanwhile, Kobolds and Cobblestones, a poker-hand card resolution mechanic, ended up in my cart pretty quickly.

[hughsfamily 2923xp 1]

1) Something different or interesting which sounds like fun to play.

2) Well thought out Rules, they don’t have to be glossy but they do have to have an interesting and playable game mechanic.

3) Because we play at home, club and also OH runs a school club, we do look at new games from a variety of different perspectives, including length of gameplay.

4) Are there models available or convertible to play this game? Although we are quite happy to use proxy figures when initially starting out.

 

5)

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