What’s your game of choice, gentle readers? Wargames? RPGs? Charades? So many games and so little time. I’m thankful to be a _____gamer. By which I mean I’m the kind of gamer of whatever game I’m playing at the time. I don’t mean to suggest that I’m fickle in any way, I just like lots of different types of game (it says so in my bio). Depending on my current mood and circumstance I could happily play almost any game. To illustrate my point, I’ll use the current pop-culture monster of choice, the zombie.
OK, I’m at home, no-one’s about and I’ve got a gaming itch (no, it’s not an infectious disease). On goes the XBOX and I can start killing zombies in a video game. Left 4 Dead, Dead Island, Dead Rising (that’s a lot of dead), there are so many zombie games for so many genres I could write a post on this topic alone. I like the fact that I’m reliant on no-one but myself for fun, I can play whenever I want to and video games can be a more visceral experience due to the visuals and the connection via the controller.
Now I’m with some mates and we want to kill some zombies. How about a board game? Dead of Winter, Zombicide, Zombies!!!, there’s lots of these too. Relatively short set-up time, usually easier to deal with the rules within the confines of the game and a nice completeness to a box with all the goodies. A good way to spend time with friends.
So we’ve got some more time to play and we want something more cinematic: time for the wargame. Our expanded version of Zombicide, my 40k Traitor Guard army, you can squeeze them in anywhere really. A lovely board set up with painted minis always looks great and fires up the imagination, having the chance to think on a larger strategic scale and being able to be the bad guy in charge of an army of the undead are all great points of playing a wargame. It always makes you feel like you’ve had a productive day.
Away go the models and as it gets dark, out comes the RPG. It doesn’t matter what system you use or setting you play in, you can always work zombies into an RPG. You’ve got the characterisation, the chance to explore outside the artificial construct of any of the other game types and there’s nothing like the camaraderie you get from an intense roleplaying session. It’s the most story driven way to play and with a good GM you can affect more than just who “wins”.
Maybe you’ve had a few too many beers while hiding from the army of darkness so perhaps something lighter. An abstract or party game. Zombie Dice, Zombie Fluxx, Zombie Munchkin (again with all the zombies), there’s just too many to take it all in. These are all great for a laugh with some friends, something to play in the background or while you’re having a beer and chatting. Don’t look down on these little gems of gaming. They can be as much fun as anything considered more “worthy” in gaming terms.
So there you go, don’t let yourself get tied down to one type of game. If you think of yourself as a wargamer, why not try a little party game once you’ve put your minis away? And yes, you are allowed to play a game without zombies in it (if you must). Let me know what you think in the comments below and as always the best comment wins a prize. The chance to be resurrected as a brain eating zombie upon the event of your death (WARNING: The actual chance of being zombified is only around 0.005%).
Until next time gentle readers.
TheBattlehammer 