Journaling with Tweets: GameStorm Day 1

Dear Internet Diary, Thursday, March 20 was the first day of GameStorm 16, a local tabletop gaming convention. I had the privilege of attending with my family. I am excited to live tweet games as I play them—provided my internet connection doesn’t disappear or my phone battery doesn’t die.

My Little MVP plays Pitch Car which seems similar to Caveman Curling. pic.twitter.com/5rHO6qI6lq — Cathé Post (@GamerMom1_0) March 20, 2014

Pitch Car: Pitch Car gets players to flick their cars around the track. This game is simple with lots of room for strategy (as long as you can aim correctly) and seems to be a good family game. It gained my son’s attention for long enough that I looked it up on Amazon to purchase. Including shipping, the price would be well over $100 and far out of my price range for a game—even one that promises fun for my entire family.

Eggs and Empires has a very AEG Love Letter feel. #GS16 pic.twitter.com/WBv1HnZPlT — Cathé Post (@GamerMom1_0) March 20, 2014

Eggs and Empires: This game will be on Kickstarter soon. Eggs and Empires is a game that has your characters finding dragon eggs by bluffing with the value and ability their played card provides (much in the same vein as Love Letter lets players get a letter to the Princess). This game was quite interesting to play with a wide age range, since there is a bit of bluffing involved. My eight-year-old played and did well, despite grinning every time she played a good card.

@JaguarNinjaGirl Had a great time w/ Eggs and Empires-but she can’t bluff. #GS16 pic.twitter.com/3bJtCVVWqJ — Cathé Post (@GamerMom1_0) March 20, 2014

Most stressful barista game ever: Uptown Espresso w/ @jonathanhliu @erikwecks & @TimsMartini #GS16 pic.twitter.com/hHuQsoPdH7 — Cathé Post (@GamerMom1_0) March 20, 2014

UpTown Esspresso: This game is played as fast as baristas serving caffeinated goodness in a busy coffee shop. This is another game that will soon be on Kickstarter. The goal is to be the first to complete $50 worth of orders. Players do this by getting the right ingredients in the right places to match the orders. Considering how fast-paced it is, I can see some of the rules being for “expert players” when the game is Kickstarted. I also look forward to a peg board system of keeping track of scores, instead of tokens that are hard to count in the middle of a 15-second turn.

Match the ingredients to the order (like a grid) Interesting idea-but so stressful! #GS16 pic.twitter.com/uFLuATv8Kv — Cathé Post (@GamerMom1_0) March 20, 2014

The full game version of Bane being playtested @ #GS16 – but the social game stole the show! @Gamesicle pic.twitter.com/6VgqAcbezv — Cathé Post (@GamerMom1_0) March 24, 2014

Bane: Yet another game to look for on Kickstarter in the near future. This game is set up like Rock Paper Scissors, but instead it’s humans, werewolves, and vampires. There are also banes that allow you to win automatically, timing to take advantage of, and a couple of wild cards, which spice things up. I’ll share more about this game tomorrow.

Boy Who Cried Wolf w/ @JaguarNinjaGirl @jonathanhliu & @TimsMartini using @HokesGames pieces. #GS16 pic.twitter.com/bU84NHS3Uz — Cathé Post (@GamerMom1_0) March 24, 2014

The Boy Who Cried Wolf: Just one of the games that can be played with the Kickstarter rewards from the Emperor’s New Clothes. It’s a real game—not a ROOS. Sadly, dad and I were tired and ready to rest our brains before the kids were. We are all happy to come back tomorrow and play as many games as our brains can handle.