Inbetween Review

Game: Inbetween

Designer: Adam Kwapiński

Publisher: Board & Dice

Artist: Seweryn Borkowski, et al

Player Count: 2

Runtime: 30 - 60 minutes

Upsideville is the quintessential little US town (probably somewhere in Maine), it has all the staples you’d expect of a good town, a decent High School, a great drive-thru, and your atypical friendly neighbourhood police sheriff. Yes, living in Upsideville is pretty great. Or at least it used to be, there is something else there now too. The veneer of the American dream is being slowly scratched away, eroded by some indeterminate malevolent force. A darkness, a Creature if you will, is warping, twisting and turning that white picket fence into a dark splinter of its former self. It’s happening to the Townsfolk too.

[caption id="attachment_2619" width="3647"] Full box art, front and back. It's all about the flipside[/caption]

If that sounds like Stranger Things the board game you’d be 99% right, you’d be a hair’s breadth away from being IP infringing right. If you love that show and love board games look no further (put down the Stranger Things Monopoly and step well away from that Eggo monstrosity). If you’ve not heard of or had time to binge watch that show, then you’ll be glad to hear that no prior knowledge of it is needed to fully enjoy this game - you’ll just notice all the little nods to it while you play if you are familiar.

[caption id="attachment_2621" width="4032"] Thanks to having 2 icons, Maggie is almost Secure...[/caption]

So, Inbetween; it’s a game of good versus evil, of the Townsfolk of Upsideville rallying against an insidious menace that is trying to destroy the very fabric of reality. On the flipside of that, it is a game of a Creature from another plane of existence, that is trying to reach through and conquer ours, and in doing so, it will pollute and twist our world to fit its own. And that is the key point in this game, the flipside, the other version, the duality, it rings out in theme and mechanics. It is a game of direct conflict, take that style mechanics and is ultimately a tug of war, not just for the town on the whole, but for the people that make it.

[caption id="attachment_2624" width="4032"] Everybody is just going about their daily lives as if nothing is wrong.[/caption]

The game starts with ten of the townsfolk, five in each dimension; Town and Creature - this does not mean that those individuals are safe or lost, far from it, it is simply their starting state; an Inbetween (see what they did there?). A player’s turn is denoted by the Activity Marker, a wooden cylinder where the ends indicate the player’s turn, it moves and flips at the end of each player’s turn, and it is really important, as sometimes, sometimes you’ll play out of sequence, depending on how the game progresses. On your turn, you’ll play a card from your hand, and matching the symbol on that card allows you to shift the Safety Marker one space. Each Townsperson has four spaces, four levels of safety, from Alert to Secure, or Nervous to Devoured. Getting three characters secured or devoured is one of the possible victory conditions.

[caption id="attachment_2618" width="4032"] When there is something very much going on, it is just a matter of time[/caption]

Alternatively, you can clone the symbol type on the card and add that to any Character; so I can make Rodney both a Sheriff type and a Community type - making him far easier to secure in subsequent turns. This is a really interesting, and clever way of balancing out the character mix.

[caption id="attachment_2622" width="3904"] With two icons, there are now more opportunities to Secure Rodney[/caption]

Now, when the Activity Marker is on any character where the Safety Marker is anywhere but the top space, it will trigger the character's ability. And these are really quite special, forming a large part of any strategy, and it is here that the twist comes, and it is this twist that makes this game for me. Firstly, the player whose dimension the Activity Marker is in gets to increase their (potentially game-ending) Awareness - which also grants a terrific one-shot ability for use at the beginning of the player’s turn. After this, the Character ability kicks in - regardless of whose turn it is. The effects vary from character to character, but they are all very worthwhile, and many a game I spent my time struggling to keep Timmy Guarded (spots 2 or 3) just so I can use his ability.

The combination of Activity Marker movement and character ability require a degree of planning, of orchestration, ensuring you have the cards and energy to dish out some much-needed damage to your opponent, or that they manipulate the game state to your advantage. These manoeuvres have a sense of a plot twist, or a major beat in the story you are unravelling.

Something I particularly appreciate in this game is duality, it seeps through from the theme into the mechanics, forming two very different player roles and styles. All the cards have multiple abilities, all the character cards are dual sided. Inbetween is a duel between two forces that are equally, and reflectively matched, but are different, it tricks you into thinking it is a classic Tug-of-War game, but that implies a fundamental equality between the two sides. The fairness in this game stems from the differences between to two roles, not their similarities. There is a subtle asymmetry to Inbetween making the two roles noticeably different, and interesting.

[caption id="attachment_2626" width="3224"] A birds-eye view of the game[/caption]

Inbetween utilizes multiple Game End/Victory Conditions which is something I love in my board games as it opens up gaming strategy and variability. Not only does this make each game potentially very different, but in a tug of war game, this system can result in some fantastic surprises. Rather splendidly, these conditions all work in tandem for at least the first half of the game, and depending upon how the game progresses you will often have at least two of the three options remaining open as viable victory methods, and it is, as I can personally attest to, very easy to switch between strategies and have your ass kicked.

I really like the art in this game, it would have been all too easy (and dangerous) to duplicate the Stranger Things pencil style artwork, instead Board & Dice call upon Seweryn Borkowski and gang to produce something that reminds me a lot of Todd McFarlane’s Spawn series - which is no bad thing at all! And the box! It has to be one of my favourites on the shelf, mainly because of how different it is - no logos, no text, not even the game name. Front and back are full art - and I love it.

[caption id="attachment_2627" width="3740"] This box really stands out on the shelf by how different it is[/caption]

One thing I would like to see tweaked, however; is the abstraction of the components, blue, red, and purple cubes look at odds within the theme and art style, and the little counters are unnamed which when playing takes you out of the game, more so for the Creature: “I’m going to play this little cloud thing, and Terrify Jamey.” Maybe not all players use all the in-game terminology all the time, but its absence means that I can’t. A very simple thing, but the lack of names, in a game which is otherwise very on point with its theme, stands out.

[caption id="attachment_2623" width="3576"] The Tokens of no names...[/caption]

Every turn is valuable, with each action that you do something you are also not doing something else. There are interesting choices in this game, and as the game progresses those choices become weightier. It encapsulates the tug-of-war rather brilliantly, with an attitude of it is better to win the game rather than Secure/Devour that character. It is a game of pivoting possibilities, where your luck or your tactics can change quickly, and with dynamic effect, but the game never feels out of control. It is a game that can be a little tricky, or maybe finickity to teach, as each Phase has sub-sections to it, and cards and actions have multiple ‘moving’ parts, but it is a game I feel really rewards repeated plays. Inbetween it is one of my favourite two-player experiences, giving me everything I want in a game in a very small package.

Disclaimer:

This review was based on a full priced retail edition that I pre-ordered and paid for out of my own money from my own pocket.

7 Wonders Duel

Game Name:	7 Wonders Duel	Published Year:	2015
Game Publisher:	Repos Productions	Player Scale:	2
Game Designers:	Antoine Bauza & Bruno Cathala	Run Time:	30 – 60 mins

7 Wonders Duel takes you back three–thousand odd years or so, to once again rule over an empire in this tricky, thought provoking, and ultimately brilliant riff on its big brother; 7 Wonders. If you have never played 7 Wonders don’t panic, as these games are very different, yet are clearly related.  If you’ve played 7 Wonders, and, love it or hate it, this game is worth investigating.  A relatively small footprint, and gameplay under an hour it is great for couples, lunch breaks or just as a cracking head-to-head game that wraps up in under an hour.



After each selecting four of the available wonders each – yes that does mean there will be eight of them in total, but only seven can be built – and your starting coins, in turn, you will select one the available cards from the pyramid style display and add it to you civilisation, paying any costs associated and thus gain its benefits/resource.

There are three ages to the game, where each subsequent Age the range of resources changes and evolves, advancing your civilisation forward.  The game will come to a natural close at the end of the Third Age, where all points are calculated and a winner is declared.  Alternatively, victory can be achieved through a ‘Scientific’ channel – collecting six of the seven possible scientific icons, or via the ‘Military’ route, whereby you crush your opponent beneath sandal shod foot.  These latter two are much harder to achieve – but believe me, it feels really, really good when you do.

 

[caption id="attachment_1873" align="alignnone" width="4032"] Pyramid of the 1st Age[/caption]

 

A central feature of the game, and one that makes the game look very different from many, is the table layout of the cards for each of the Ages.  Not only does it look cool, and it is also pretty thematic but it provides a great assimilation of the drafting mechanic used in 7 Wonders, but for two players.  Which is far, far better than the two player mode that exists in that game.  From this very simple set-up, each player is beset by an array of choices and consequences, in a greater fashion that you would normally experience in a draft.  With about 50% open information – since roughly half of the cards are placed face down – the questions of what to take, what to leave behind, what to open, or leave for your opponent to open form your basic, yet difficult choices that must be made each turn.

[gallery ids="1875,1874" type="rectangular"]

When playing this game, there is a definite sense of flow, with the game’s pace charging ahead as the Ages fall, as your civilisation becomes more coherent and more structured, choices become more clear, but never simpler.  Ways and means of blocking your opponent become more recognisable, but ultimately more costly if they don’t also benefit you.  If you fall into the category of a “Classic Gamer”, one who likes strategically planning ahead, second guessing your opponent and basically planning your victory from four or five moves away, 7 Wonders Duel will be right up your street, with a nice flourish – in that every now and then, a revealed card scuppers even your best laid plan.  On the flip side of this though, if you are prone to Analysis Paralysis this game can, for those same reasons feel a little daunting at times.

 

[caption id="attachment_1880" align="alignnone" width="4032"] 8 of the 7 Wonders...erm...yeah, 8[/caption]

 

Players already familiar with 7 Wonders will feel right at home playing this game, coming armed to the table with an understanding of how the tableau and resource building works.  There is a significant change in the way Commerce, Science, and Military are handled, but not so much so to create a barrier.  New players to this cannon will quickly be able to make sense of the rule book, which provides plenty of examples plays for the more ‘complex’ rules.  The rulebook, isn’t the most concise, and looking for rule clarity and reminders isn’t always as straightforward as one would like – I always forget how many coins you start with during set up, and I also forget I have to go to page six to find out.  Of particular note is the iconography, particularly on some of the Science tokens, Guides and Wonders – once you know what they mean the symbols do “make sense” but that meaning doesn’t spring forth, so early games can become slowed while you look them up.



With an almost perfect and useful box insert, quality components including the nifty military tracker, Repos Productions have done exactly what you would expect of a major game distributor.  Unfortunately, they have even managed to make the card sizes irritating again – in 7 Wonders they are unnecessarily big, in Duel, too small – yes it helps keeps the footprint down, but if a standard poker card size had been used very little would have been lost.

There are no ‘Take That’ actions you can make in this game, no way you can directly stop or hamper your opponent, other than removing or limiting their options (a couple of the Wonders do allow you to destroy one of your opponents resources).  Military actions do provide a little back and forth, but never enough that you ever feel like you are focussing solely on that aspect of the game, and certainly not enough to spoil anyone's enjoyment.  All the player interaction happens above the table; one player out-smarting, out-manoeuvring and out-playing the other. The tit-for-tat of selecting the card you know you opponent needs soon becomes too costly, and so as the game progresses so too must a player’s ability to plan and strategize.



After a game of 7 Wonders Duel, I feel compelled to play it again, and again.  Throughout each game there is a palpable competition and conflict, and far more so than one would expect from such a small, compact box.  Some iconography feels obtuse, and the cards are a little too small for me to be able to comfortably shuffle, but really, these are the only bad points about the game...in fact, I wish I could play a multiplayer version of Duel, that wasn’t 7 Wonders.

It plays in under an hour, is a great two-player game with enough depth, strategy and variation to ensure each game will feel and play differently.  It also looks both interesting and beautiful on the table. 7 Wonders Duel, really does feel like it pits you head-to-head, in an all-out rivalry against your opponent in a way that many larger games just don’t seem to capture.  I strongly believe everybody needs a solid two-player game in their collection, and you can’t go far wrong with this game at all.

 

The Good:

Compelling game play

Great pacing

Strong competition

Thought provoking

Multiple paths to victory

 

The Bad:

Cards are too small for “man hands”

Icons can be very confusing

Rulebook is a little on the naff side

Can only be played two-player!

Don't just take my word for it though, check out what Meeple Like Us or Creaking Shelves have to say about this game.