Closing Fantasy: Moogle Bounty Mayhem is yet one more iteration of Closing Fantasy licensed board video games, this one pushed by cardplay. Within the board recreation sphere, licensed properties vary from all-time greats to harrowingly disappointing. A very good mental property doesn’t assure good board recreation design. Fortuitously for Sq. Enix followers, the builders chosen to work on the RPG titan’s flagship IP have performed it proper every time. Moogle Bounty Mayhem isn’t just one other notch within the belt for SE, however probably their best-designed board recreation on this franchise.
Moogle Bounty Mayhem takes place in Closing Fantasy XII’s world and follows the moogle bounty hunters of Clan Centurio. No epic narratives right here, simply art work and a palette akin to FFXII’s model. Basically a love letter to followers, Moogle Bounty Mayhem duties gamers with thwarting huge bads alongside the ever-present superboss, the holy dragon Yiazmat.
Over a sequence of six turns—that’s six complete card placements—gamers take turns in a two-to-four-player competitors to see who collects essentially the most factors. To gather factors, gamers should have essentially the most power when preventing an enemy that the opposite gamers are additionally vying for. In a two-player recreation, gamers pursue three enemies plus Yiazmat. In a three- or four-player recreation, you compete along with your neighbors over one monster, which modifications the sport barely. All gamers compete for Yiazmat, who has the most important level worth.
Initially, every participant selects a moogle bounty hunter chief with a singular deck and talent. The moogles are inclined to have single-use skills, resembling enjoying an additional card face down or selecting a card to exhaust, although some have just a few cash they’ll plop down on a card to extend the power worth. What really separates the leaders from each other is the decks.
All decks have related playing cards, resembling a strong lizard-monster bangaa or bonus-point-yielding, doglike nu mous, however the 4 distinctive moogle playing cards drive the characterization of every deck with some considerate cardplay choices. One moogle may prioritize aggressively exhausting enemy playing cards, whereas others favor deceptive different gamers by exhausting their very own playing cards for bonus factors later. Every deck has a helper card that lets gamers know what’s of their deck; thus, the really strategically-inclined participant can thoughtfully weigh their choices earlier than committing to a choice.
However how strategic is Moogle Bounty Mayhem, and simply how a lot ought to gamers chew on each play in a 15-minute romp of six cardplays? Nicely, that’s as much as you, as a result of whereas this is usually a nonsense filler recreation between multi-hour behemoths on recreation day, it additionally has the potential to be a satisfying battle of techniques for the extra discerning participant. That latter level makes Moogle Bounty Mayhem an much more tantalizing possibility within the board recreation house, during which shorter video games battle for strategic may. The depth of design and steadiness behind this small field of playing cards is stunning, making it a very distinctive title in comparison with the literal tens of 1000’s of video games on the market.
However that doesn’t make it laborious to play. Like many nice video games, Moogle Bounty Mayhem is “simple to be taught, laborious to grasp.” Now, don’t get me mistaken, this doesn’t stand as much as longer video games like By way of the Ages or Dominant Species, however the strategy-to-time ratio is spectacular. Whereas my household, pals, and I’ve performed a number of situations of Moogle Bounty Mayhem, we nonetheless discover ourselves making important errors at pivotal moments that form the course of the sport, and have additionally began to play some thoughts video games with each other as soon as we’ve realized how one another performs. These are hallmarks of a well-designed recreation, and I’m so glad it’s additionally accessible to our seven-year-old daughter.
As a household recreation, Moogle Bounty Mayhem checks all the bins. Don’t be dissuaded by its accessibility if you happen to’re a grizzled gamer in search of a critical recreation: bear in mind, that is simple to be taught, laborious to grasp. The visuals and ease of studying make this a implausible option to introduce extra critical gaming to an intellectually-inclined youngster or non-board gamer who loves the Closing Fantasy universe.
If I had been to make a criticism, I might see this being the type of recreation somebody would play as soon as and dismiss as informal, not value investing one’s time in. To be trustworthy, I type of felt the identical means after I first performed, however like most boards that appear simple and easy on their floor, repeated performs revealed depth decided by who one performs towards. Different points embody one or two playing cards that appear inherently weaker than the others from a strategic perspective, which accentuates the luck-based facet of enjoying with a deck of playing cards. That mentioned, every deck is small, and most video games will use greater than half the playing cards within the deck, which limits the luck issue.
The elements are normal grade playing cards and a few cardboard for Yiazmat: nothing flashy, however sufficient high quality artistry to thrill the senses. Whereas the worth tag is a bit steep contemplating what you’re getting ($51 USD as of this evaluate posting), SE followers could also be accustomed to the price of buying FF merchandise. Board recreation lovers harp on the significance of elements when making purchases, and though that’s certainly an element, what you’re actually getting here’s a piece of this universe with implausible recreation design.
Irrespective of your talent degree, Closing Fantasy: Moogle Bounty Mayhem entertains for a substantial period of time. This can undoubtedly be hitting our desk for years to return given its area of interest match with our household and pals, and I’m comforted to know that Sq. Enix is contracting competent designers to deal with their chief mental property with the care and adore it deserves. With Closing Fantasy VII Remake Boardgame: Materia Hunter and Chocobo’s Dungeon: The Board Recreation already underneath their belt, I can’t wait to see what they provide you with subsequent.
This text is predicated on a free copy of the board recreation supplied to RPGFan by the writer. This relationship by no means influenced the creator’s opinion, and no compensation was supplied in relation to protection. Be taught extra on our ethics & insurance policies web page. Moogle Bounty Mayhem is offered by way of the Sq. Enix Retailer.
