Year In Review:
2020 Review
This Year Was… … :
Surreal… I know that there are people out there putting themselves at risk to save lives, some to put food on their tables and others to prevent the economy from coming to a total standstill, that there are people in these groups dying from the COVID-19 virus, whilst the rest of us live in a bubble, at first for two weeks, then months and soon it will be a year that I have been cut-off from the simple freedom of living without fear that each time I step out the door, I could bring this virus back home to my family.
Movies coming to life… No zombies so far (phew)
It never occurs to you that there exists something that humankind cannot overcome. We have been indoctrinated by movie culture that superbugs, fast spreading viruses & even poison carrying nanobots can all be defeated in the span of two hours or less. Our history in dealing with outbreaks of the past, has perhaps made us both vigilant and complacent at the same time, in the sense that we are equipped to handle the flood but never expected a continuous tsunami that has gripped the planet and refuses to let go of its hold, crippling airlines, sports, education, tourism and many other industries worldwide. Naturally, the fear was at its strongest in the beginning, when we least understood the nature of this virus.
And sparked the great global toilet paper rush of 2020, one wonders what’s wrong with using water?
If it was difficult to find the silver lining last year, I didn’t even know where to start this year. So many lives have been lost, the amount of pettiness, racism, bigotry, greed and stupidity against a faded & muted backdrop of sacrifice, poverty, unemployment and fear. I guess the single blip of light is the sudden announcement of vaccines (multiple) that are slowly becoming available and the subsequent flood of memes on having our politicians be the first to test them out.
Funny how we root for politicians like mini-messiahs during elections but willingly condemn to the firing squad at the first opportunity
It is also somewhat ironic that the very vaccine humanity has been putting their hopes on for the last 9 months, is now the most suspected drug, spawning its own plethora of conspiracy theories, fake news and then at the same time, endless reassurances that there will be enough for everyone? Only time will tell if humankind manages to survive its own pitfalls and beat back the virus as opposed to helping to propagate it.
Moving on to the land I call home… Things are not exactly any better around these here parts.
What a giant, flaming, pile of doo doo we’ve had here
So our new government didn’t last long, largely due to the same reasons of pettiness, racism, bigotry, greed and stupidity. Whilst we have yet to reach the levels of the Gotham City administration, the words "serving the public trust" have lost all meaning in our Parliament and are more of a joke to its fair citizens. In fact, it really has been made into a joke in the form of a Dragon Ball / Naruto / Bleach parody called "If Malaysia was Anime: Covidball Z".
If there was anything that sparked joy this year, this was it
The comic tells it all really, how we were tough & strict at the beginning, streets and public spaces were empty, non-essential industries were ordered to work from home, schools were closed and then we were hit by a combination of stupidity over greed for power as well as a true need to get production going again. There are a fair few inside jokes about our politicians, I swear the author laughs every morning when he opens the paper because material is just handed to him on a silver platter.
God save our nation from idiots in power
Just like the pandemic, the future of this small Southeast Asia nation is gloomy and uncertain. It seems to be incredibly bad juju that we had to be hit by both a global pandemic and the most unstable political period in our short 63 year history as a country, at the exact same time. But what is it really like for the man on the street? People lost jobs for sure, particularly those who were in tourism related industries, but some managed to find new jobs, others turned to self-employment. Food prices have not skyrocketed, my grocery bill remains largely the same and the initial scarcity of certain canned goods has waned. Online shopping has really taken the nation by storm, with some delivery hubs being tremendously overwhelmed during sales periods, so maybe there is a tiny upside.
I know people who just went to the hub to pick up their stuff on their own
Let’s bring the focus closer to home and take a look at how Padawan Minigeek is doing. Padawan Minigeek has had a tough year. She only managed to attend physical classes 3 months out of the year and she had to make new friends all over again because she was the only one separated from her clique when the class was split due to higher student numbers. It didn’t really come as a surprise when she started having meltdowns. It took a lot of prayer, a lot of talking and setting new daily rituals to assure her that she is loved, for her to get through the valley. If anything, this period has made me cognizant of the paradox that whilst Padawan Minigeek is growing up, she still needs her father to baby her on a regular basis. The school chose not to conduct formal examinations this year, opting to prepare a progress report by all subject teachers instead. She has made good progress in most areas but the mastery of other tongues appears to elude her, which will make the progression towards space faring Jedi Knight challenging. There’s no shame in joining the Jedi Service Corps, Padawan Minigeek has recently started to develop her interest in culinary skills (perhaps due to me binge watching Masterchef) and she’s doing pretty good so far.
Padawan Minigeek is my goofball and that’s A-okay with me
Padawan Babygeek is the anomaly of my life. He is a little boy (check), he still drinks milk twice a day (check), he still can’t turn on the lights without a chair (check), and yet he constantly reminds me of an old man with a bag full of weird idiosyncrasies. So apart from the burping, farting and loving old people food, we discovered that he also roots for the traditional bad guy (think Goliath & Scar), he loves going for walks, watches too much tv, can be found in unusual places and not remember why he was there, always needs to cut queue and is the first to complain that "It’s too loud". The fighting with Padawan Minigeek is an ongoing Romance of the Three Kingdoms saga, although recently they have signed non-aggression pacts for when they bond over their common love of Avatar: The Last Airbender (a genius suggestion on my part) & now Beyblade (a questionable suggestion on my part). A lot of the conflict actually stems from the fact that Padawan Babygeek is a hugger & Padawan Minigeek is not. And just like an old person, Padawan Babygeek is really just a big softie. He takes too many things to heart, gets upset too easily but loves you no matter who’s watching. He also never (I mean never) takes a bad picture, I keep telling my wife that we missed a lucrative opportunity.
Here he is, eating breakfast in the driveway, just because, no pandemic will slow him down
So how has the Jedi Mastery lessons been going? Not as well as I hoped but not as bad as I feared. Padawan Minigeek has unfortunately inherited a strong aversion to losing, so it has been really hard to get her back to the table. That plus the ongoing tensions between Padawan Minigeek and Padawan Babygeek have resulted in difficulty navigating diplomatic channels necessary to game together. When we can, Padawan Minigeek prefers Monopoly Deal these days, because she has an above .500 win rate playing this. Padawan Babygeek is a big Sushi Go Party! fan because well, it’s a really simple game to play. So my plays have kind of regressed to simpler games, with the ongoing pandemic, we only managed to have one meet-up in January and ever since then, I have limited my serious gaming to my brother, which is no big help since we only played once this year.
No, we didn’t really play Paladins of the West Kingdom, although it wasn’t difficult for them to match the colored meeples
So this is the year I became a true Master. The journey was hard, each step was arduous and the online learning was challenging, but I shall remain noncommittal about the destination, I’m smart enough to know that if I am stupid enough to declare an ending, someone somewhere will whisper "doctorate studies", then I’ll never get out of school. So next year, I will officially put the academic futures of students in my own hands, let’s pray I don’t screw that up. Despite the pandemic, work has still been busy throughout the year, the group is in six different industries now and work from home or not, there’s always a fire that needs putting out somewhere in the group. Every year has been a challenge, and I’m really blessed to be in an environment where I can just focus on the work and not worry about ancillary things like career progression, titles or bonuses, because those don’t exist in my chosen line of work (–.–'').
I posted this the day I submitted my last assignment
With all that out of the way let's talk about some boardgame statistics for 2020 using the very handy Board Game Stats app, with a side by side comparison to 2019:
2020 v 2019
So naturally my number of plays have declined but these are still great numbers, averaging 1.5 games a week. Gloomhaven has completely dropped off the map altogether and together with the complete stop of the SWAGamers meetups, it has put an inevitable halt to most of my serious gaming. Based on a cursory glance, easily half of my gaming in 2020 is attributable to the Padawans, so although I am a little bummed about not playing my heavy euros, I am still glad that they’re willing to indulge their old man in his favourite past time.
In the year of the pandemic, I made four new acquisitions, okay five new acquisitions but the fifth one is a cheap, comedic, satire, local card game about being the best Malaysian (go figure), so I wasn’t going to count it, but fine five new acquisitions, so that’s one more than 2019. However, I sold THREE boardgames this year, concluding at a net increase of +2, you just have to celebrate the small things these days. So let’s get into the details of what has changed in the collection:
Words to live by
Games From Last Year's Wishlist:
My two additions to the wishlist last year were very quickly added to the COLLECTION OF JOY in 2020. Barenpark went on sale right on the turn of the new year so there was no reason not to pull the trigger. Padawan Minigeek loved this one at first and quickly shot up our most played list, I even added the expansion secondhand this year as well although we have yet to try it. I caught wind that someone had access to Cartographers and it had just been nominated for a Kennerspiel des Jahres (it’s like the Oscars of the boardgaming community) AND it is really hard to find games from Thunderworks Games here in Malaysia so, *bang bang*, that was quickly added to the COLLECTION OF JOY as well.
Wishlists – keeping your FOMO at bay
There are quite a few additions to the wishlist this year, but most of these are very soft additions in the sense that I’m still waiting for more information or am merely interested but unlikely to dive in because of budgetary concerns. I won’t go into too much detail, instead I’ll just put a one liner on why I’m interested and the circumstances under which I would initiate a purchase.
This is more a list of games I am looking forward to in 2021 as opposed to a proper wishlist
Orleans: Trade & Intrigue is one of those "essential" expansions. I believe what people say but it is sadly out of print in this region and I am simply waiting for it to become available again.
A Feast for Odin is on its second year on the wishlist. I am an Uwe fan, I still love Le Havre, Ora et Labora, Glass Road and A Feast for Odin is supposed to be the masterpiece. I will only pick this up if I can get it at 15% off retail.
Aeon’s End is also on its second year on the wishlist. If I don’t get it at a discount in 2021, I will probably drop it and maybe look into another expansion.
Terraforming Mars: Prelude
Terraforming Mars: Prelude is new to the list, largely due to the acquisition of Terraforming Mars this year (spoilers) and is another "essential" expansion. And like Orleans: Trade & Intrigue sold out in this region as well. Waiting for stocks to become available.
ISS: Vanguard
ISS: Vanguard is from game developer Awaken Realms who are known for their grandiose & ground breaking board games that although not always well received, are always pushing the envelope of what a boardgame is capable of. ISS: Vanguard is a cooperative, legacy, space exploration game that takes the focus away from combat, trying to replicate the popular TV sci-fi series, Star Trek and previews indicate that they have largely succeeded. Whilst I am not a hardcore Trekkie, I have always enjoyed space movies, series and novels which is the reason it has piqued my interests. However, I am not sure that this fits the dynamic of my playgroup where problem solving skills are more akin to "How can we kill it?" and "Your problem is your problem, my problem is not my problem".
Draftosaurus
My interest in Draftosaurus is purely for Padawan Babygeek who like me, has an affinity with animals that extends to dinosaurs. Sadly it is still not available in this region, a friend of mine had to get her copy all the way from France, and truth be told I will only get it if it becomes available whilst Padawan Babygeek is still in this phase, otherwise I will pass on it because it is too simple for my tastes.
Frosthaven
We are big Gloomhaven fans so naturally there would be interest in its sequel Frosthaven. I chose not to take part in the Kickstarter largely because we hadn’t finished Gloomhaven yet but also because I knew it would definitely be available in retail later with little to no additional content. I’m disappointed that we couldn’t finish our Gloomhaven campaign in the meantime because of the pandemic but cest la vie.
Darwin’s Journey
Of all the ones on the wishlist, Darwin’s Journey is the least likely to join the COLLECTION OF JOY. I am interested because of designer Simone Luciani’s pedigree as well as the rave preview done by boardgame reviewer Jeremy Salinas but man does that game board look busy. I even watched through an entire two player playthrough and was not immediately gripped by the game. I’m waiting for the Kickstarter to launch in 2021 and see if there are any design changes, failing which I would probably see if I can get another game by the same designer, Marco Polo II: In the Service of the Khan instead.
Games Added To THE SHELF:
So apart from Cartographers & Barenpark (if you want my thoughts on these games why don’t you check out 2019?), what else did I acquire in 2020?
The Malaysian Dream
The Malaysian Dream
I was put in charge of the Boardgames Club at the school I’m involved with and because we only have 45 minutes (including interclass travelling time) for each session, I thought this game would be an excellent means for students to get to know one another across the different ages and still get a game done within the stipulated time period. The Malaysian Dream is a card game that pokes fun at the everyday lives of Malaysians and whilst it is a take that, luck fest, it is a great way for Malaysians strangers to break the ice. So far this has been the most played game at school and Padawan Minigeek is also a big fan (she really likes luck ridden games). Easily the best RM40.00 (USD9.00) that I have ever spent on a boardgame.
Terraforming Mars
Terraforming Mars
Being the space fanboy that I am, I have long held out on Terraforming Mars because it was universally panned by many boardgame reviewers, it is seriously very expensive and the components are sadly of pretty poor quality. And yet it is so beloved by the masses that when you Google "Terraforming Mars", you don’t get pictures of Mars, this is what shows up instead. The story about how I snagged a copy is pretty interesting. The designers had launched a Kickstarter for the big box version that comes with all the expansions, upgraded components and unnecessary miniatures that is basically the holy grail version of the game. The timing was such that I had to make a choice between that Kickstarter and the game which I will discuss next. After polling my play group, Terraforming Mars had garnered less votes and was cast by the wayside. Not three weeks later, someone put up a discounted used copy for sale and seeing it as divine providence, I am now the proud owner of Terraforming Mars AND the game that I will talk about next.
Terraforming Mars did not disappoint in both the good and the bad, as in it was exactly what I was expecting it to be based on the research that I had done. The game bears a strong resemblance to the Commander format in Magic: The Gathering where you start with a unique company (think SpaceX) and launch space projects that are all unique, trying to piece together a group of projects that best fits your company’s strengths in terraforming Mars by increasing the oxygen, temperature and water levels. Mimicking real life, there will be many projects that are one and done, accomplishing their purpose and then being cast aside whereas there will be projects that you will actively go back to in order to abuse the benefit it generates. The game length for two players feels somewhat overlong, because the targets you need to achieve to terraform Mars don’t change with the player count, as such each player needs to accomplish more when there are less players in the game. Still, this was very enjoyable, trying to find combinations of projects that work well together and increasing the capability of producing resources was an engaging experience, which is why the expansion Terraforming Mars: Prelude has jumped on to my wishlist and will likely also be added to the COLLECTION OF JOY.
Dwellings of Eldervale
Dwellings of Eldervale
There have been very few games that I have been as excited for as Dwellings of Eldervale. I have watched every video on this game on YouTube, carefully followed each and every update and comment, been more active on the Dwellings of Eldervale Facebook group than any other, diligently tracking fulfilment across the Asia region and even as I am typing this on Christmas eve, I am tracking my own copy of the game, which according to the tracking information has been collected from the fulfilment hub and is being transported to a sorting hub to then be delivered across two states to my doorstep. If I’m a space fanboy then I’m a fantasy fanatic and Dwellings of Eldervale is not only chock full of fantasy but is in talks for best game of the year, is probably the best hybrid game of the year and is definitely the most blinged out game of the year.
I have played one game with Padawan Minigeek & we had a grand old time. She enjoyed exploring new realms, challenging the monsters, building dwellings by attaching the little hats to her workers and of course, defeating THE KRAKEN! There is just so much to do in Dwellings of Eldervale and at the same time it feels so streamlined and simple even Padawan Minigeek did not have any trouble playing the game and the turns just went back and forth so seamlessly. She may not have known how to optimize her score but telling her about the importance of building dwellings was good enough that she got a more than decent score. On New Year's Eve, I played against both Padawan Minigeek and Babygeek and their rivalries unfortunately got the better of them where they kept trying to attack one another, ending the game with only one dwelling each resulting in pretty low scores. Ultimately Dwellings of Eldervale is not a fighting or combat game despite it being very fun to engage in fights, be it against the monsters or other Players.
The Padawans dropping the monster to hear them ROAR!
I have chosen to forgo the "Games NEW to me in 2020" section this year largely because of the lack of meetups which means all the new to me games are already covered in the section above.
Closing Thoughts On 2020:
The pandemic has affected us all, some less than others and I am thankful and grateful that my family belongs in that category. I won’t pretend to espouse my feelings for those who have endured loss during this season as it will sound hollow compared to the degree of loss you have suffered. My only wish is that all of us can approach the future with faith and not fear, it may not change our circumstances, it may not result in a better tomorrow, but it changes the way we experience the future and our lives. 2020 leaves me feeling thankful: for my job, my wife’s job, for the Padawans’ schools and teachers who pressed on into the unknown, for our health and our home. It is easy to take for granted what we have, and so I choose to savour the moments, the breakthroughs, the events and even the valleys, because at least we had the opportunity to go through them.
The Padawans continue to grow, like the bamboo plant they seemingly put on the inches every other month, making shopping for clothes and shoes somewhat of a challenge since I prefer to limit their forays into the great outdoors. Apart from cooking, Padawan Minigeek has learned how to play PC games, like Terraria and Stardew Valley. She’s not great at it but it is a start. Padawan Babygeek has also taken to reading, for a given value of "reading", he will craft his own story based on the pictures and "read" the story out loud which often makes for interesting listening. Me? I’ve taken to filling my spare time with doing boardgame fan art, tweaking my boardgame inserts and also doing boardgame rules summaries where I try to get a game’s rules into a single sheet of A4 paper. I’ve thought about sharing those on boardgamegeek but to be honest I don’t think they’re very good because they’re written in the manner which I would teach how a boardgame is played, something that comes with an individualistic style that is unique to everyone.
This is also the 10th anniversary of my annual Year In Review series, the first post being way back in 2011. The review has certainly evolved in terms of size and scope over time and is actually something I’m glad I started and still continue to do. If anything, this is what remains of a daily journaling habit of days past and allows me to take stock of the year, and now a whole decade, reminding me that although it feels like time just flew past me, it actually took many small steps to get to where I am today.
Padawan Minigeek has levelled up and can now teach boardgames to other Padawans
So what's next in 2021?
I don’t think anyone is making any grand plans for 2021 given the current climate. As expected, my plans for an Essen Spiel pilgrimage this year went up in smoke, my only comfort is that no flight tickets or hotel reservations were booked so there was no loss there but unfortunately, I personally think that this 2020 was the opportune year to make the trip, because I teach exam taking students and the timetable occurs exactly during Spiel time, thus it seems unlikely that I will be able to make the trip in the near future, pandemic notwithstanding.
I also don’t know if we will ever bring back SWAGamers meetups in this new normal. Bringing strangers together seems like too much of a risk. I am thinking of a fixed boardgame group that will probably meet at my house on a hopefully regular basis and that will be sufficient for the time being. A lot of my boardgaming is now captured on Instagram (justin_vuy) as opposed to being updated on the blog and I really have to think of what else to use the blog for given that Gloomhaven is on hiatus and as you can see, the last post was exactly a year ago when I did the review for 2019. I haven’t really come up with anything, but I will think on it and see what comes to mind.
And as is customary for me to end each year with an annual geek contribution, here's something geeky for your viewing pleasure:
Wishing a blessed 2021 to all my readers, may we take comfort in the fact that despite it all, we are still here. "It was sad music. But it waved its sadness like a battle flag. It said the universe had done all it could, but you were still alive." – Terry Pratchett
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