Top 10 Games that are Exceptions to the Rule 

Really appreciate Mike’s contribution to these videos. He’s a great addition to the group.

I’d love to see a *Top 10 Games for learning such n such mechanism perfectly* because there are several mechanism I’m unfamiliar with, but don’t know where to start to get my feet wet.

I’d like to see a negative version of this list. Like you always love games from this genre/designer but there is one exception you truly hate.

I love how at 2:10 it looks like Mike and Zee are looking at each other

This got a thumbs up as soon as I saw Mike was on the panel!

It's awesome seeing Tom using the Funko that I sent him!

One of the things that adds to the 'distancing,' is seeing the surroundings of where people actually live. Might I suggest that the names (hey, we know who they are) be smaller to show more on the camera screen. Thank you! :)

Now that you're doing online top 10s...maybe you can do one with Sam, Zee and Tom?

Re: Zee's apprehension of 9 Tiles Panic, the game is a great puzzle, and I think the "wacky" part of the theme works because you'll never confuse objectives in a round. "Oh, we were trying to connect roads to the most radishes. I connected to Onions!" FBI agents, aliens, hamburgers, and dogs are very visually unique.

Wiz-War is still one of my favorite mini skirmish games, followed closely by Adrenaline.

Root is basically a COIN game with a cute theme. I prefer COIN games because I prefer a historical theme with these kind of games, but it's definitely a war game.

Great stuff! Ty everyone! The whole thing ran really well.

I'm calling that Zee will have that submarine Oniverse game high on the list because it's a roll and move game that he really likes. [Rats! "That's Life" took the category.]

Zee found a way to put pandemic on this list with Thunderbirds, lol

I’m glad there’s finally some love for Pax Pamir 2e in the Dice Tower. The only thing I disagree with is the rule book for Pamir 2e is 10x better than all the other Pax games.

I think if you put up the faces more, it would be nice. A lot of people watch for the interpersonal dynamic and it loses a bit when we can't see the faces as much...

Impressed you guys still managed to have such great chemistry. Tough times, this was cheery.

"Come at me and bring your trains while at it" :D

There is a battle of battle ball in an old falling down, side of the road, dirt floor, closed junk store here in town.

Glad you're still doing these through isolation. If possible next time please keep your faces in full screen during the preamble to and reveal of each pick, as we're missing your reactions to each other's choices.

Woo for Pax Pamir 2e! So good :)

Verflixxt / That's Life is a great abstract roll-and-move. Love it.

The most popular real-time games like Escape: The Curse of the Temple, Fuse, Kitchen Rush, etc. are great. The games have to be simple in order for the real-time mechanism to work. I don't think it's gimmicky at all =S.

Really enjoyed this. Only negative was I'd have liked the guys to be just a little larger when their picks were on screen. Just a little. Otherwise, awesome. Ty all!

Nice list! :) Also ... almost (!) for every single instance of Mike saying: "I usually don't like category X except for the special instance of Y." I was like: "I usually like category X except for Y." Tastes can be so different. :D

You mentioned killer bunnies and I love it! It is one of my favourite games! I love the humour and the cards. I just need to find people to play it with as it is such a polarising game.

It's interesting how nobody complains about top 10s being too long now that everyone has nothing to do.

Isn't "Trying to find where the other guy is" Zee's favorite role in Captain Sonar?

If I’m not mistaken, Sprawlopolis has 816 different sets of rules you can play with. With 18 cards, you have 18 different ways to choose the 1st rule, 17 ways for the 2nd and 16 for the 3rd, which will give you 4896 sets. However, in each set the order of these rules doesn’t matter: since you’ll get 6 similar sets for each group of 3 cards, just divide 4896 by 6. I’m sure there is a formula for this, but my probability and statistics lessons are far in the past.

Alright... I'm ordering a copy of Sprawlopolis. I have been interested in that one for a while, but I keep hearing such glowing things about it, I can't wait any longer! lol :-) Not to mention, now is a good time to have another good solo game. ;-)

Good choice with Colosseum Tom! My #2 game!

Another great top 10 with much of the hatred resonating with myself. I thought Zee would choose Jamaica for the roll and move!

Deep Sea Adventure is a fun roll and move game. Still very random, but has a hefty push-your-luck factor and is quick and funny.

Gloomhaven makes semi-coop work for me

I miss Sam, but I also really like Mike!

While not a huge fan of Mansions of Madness I do love the Call of Cthulhu role-playing game that it is trying to emulate and I fully agree that it is about scale, about personalizing the experience, be inserting yourself through the character into the situation and getting to actually feel their haunting and harrowed experiences. Its what the source material intended for it to be and MoM is a good representation of that in board game form, and while I prefer the roleplaying I personally like the CCG if I'm going to play a board (card) game about the mythos.

Co2 Second Chance is Semi Co-op, Co-op, and can be played solo. While the co-op version seems to be the main way to play, the semi co-op side is great.

Did you ever get your battleball for the library? I have a little used one that i might be willing to part with.

Enjoyed this one :)

Have they done a top 10 roll and move list?

Tom started talking about Cthlulu games and I thought Mansions of Madness, because it's the same for me. And I LOOOOOVE MoM!

If there is ever a game I should dislike on paper it’s Cthulhu: Death May Die. The publisher, the designers, the setting, all things that should have sent me running, and yet it is a lot of fun. I have zero desire to own it, but I would be happy to play it again. It’s a surprisingly clean dumb game.

Great show guys! Mike didn't play up his grampa angle but it is funny how he is so cult of the new!

Zee. what about Legendary Encounters Aliens?

There are a couple of other semi coops (I thought dead of winter was what you were going to mention, mansions of Madness to some degree), but I agree. I hate semi coops particularly those games that decide that you arent playing the game right and everyone loses (ie CO2).

I thought Tom was going to say Magical Athlete instead of That's Life.

I’m with Tom. I love Killer Bunnies and I have no idea why. Goes against everything I like about modern games but for some reason it just works for me. Idk. Don’t @ me

Root is a Savage cut throat game that gets more vicious the more your group plays it. it always starts out nice but after a couple of games people are murdering each other as soon as possible.

My exception for semi co-op is Nemesis.

I like train games but I don't think I view them as narrowly as Mike. Sure, you've got your 18XX games (never had the chance to play) and Empire Builder (I own half the whole series by now), but you've also got String Railway, and Railroad Ink. Trains are a theme like how Cthulu is a theme; the actual games in the theme can vary significantly in gameplay genre.

Cost Express Sounds cool! But definitely would like to see better looking version of it.

I nearly spit my drink out at 13:30 x'D

I think Zee also liked Pyramid of Pengqueen for hidden movement.

Surprised that you (Tom) didnt say Magical Athlete as his roll and move game

I really think you should try adding the lists in the video description. I remember you said in one video that then no one would watch the actual video but I think it would have the opposite effect. Just try it once or twice and see the results. :)

I thought Tom's roll & move game might have been Careers because he's the only person I see online who mentions that game

My real-time exceptions are Sidereal Confluence and Bananagrams.

14:35 I was under the impression, his favorite game is Scythe...

Competitive Spreadsheeting with nice graphics is the backbone of SO MANY games..

Killer bunnies for the win! I 100% agree with tom here. Except it’s not really an exception since the most important part of the game is really gambling and push your luck which Tom loves. It just needs to be shorter.

51:20 I want a Top 10 Games that are Liquefied Pumpkin Pie

Tom knew Zee liked Wealth of Nations because he's put it on lists before :)

Semi coop Tom's no.3 and what about Battlestar Galactica or Shadows over Camelot ??

That's Life is awesome! It looks old and boring, but this is really a fun and brutal game!

Listening in the future? They’re going to be too busy fighting in the Thunderdome! 😁

the thunderbirds were supermarination IIRC

Does Tom not like Shadows Over Camelot anymore (semi co-op games)?

Did Mike’s fam finally make it down to Florida? Going through this quarantine stuff would stink without your family around.

Problem with chutulu theme is that it is not mysterious. Choolnes of chutulu is that you dont know what it is(plastic model looking at you)

This list should've been called guilty pleasures XD

1:04:00 I think this game works because it's essentially a trope of the very things Tom dislikes about these kinds of games.

In accordance with this list how much did your attitude mentally or state of mind have to do with pics, I find if I'm not in the "mood" for a game it is very difficult to enjoy

Yay, love to see HobbyWorld on these lists.

Battleball just turns into a game of eliminating each others players instead of actual strategic maneuvering and passing.

This is much better than the last top 10. Everyone 'bounces' off each other.

I like Mike more than I like Sam though it's close and there is absolutely no disrespect sent towards Sam with this comment, I just enjoy Mike's viewpoint and commentary

Battle Ball....Nice!!

I'm with Tom - Killer Bunnies is great fun. I too dislike the humour first/take that/etc games but this one is just a great game.

I wonder if Tom has ever tried the R.O.V.E.

Wildlands!!

Aren't Dead of Winter and Marvel Legendary considered semi-Cooperative games.

I wonder if Tom has read Lovecraft. I'm not just being a "have you even read the book?" snob, I promise. I only say this because one of the main aspects that games and other implementations seem to have the most trouble capturing from Lovecraft is the deeply intimate scale through which he tells cosmic horror. Lovecraft tells the story of an entire world secretly being overcome with madness, by having one guy slowly come to the realization via a very close story of human interactions. Often, a single situation is terrifying because it is happeneing right in front of the protagonist's face in intimate fashion, but has cosmic implications that blow your mind. Now I'm not 100% endorsing Lovecraft's work as it is dated in more ways than one. Specifically social attitudes and personal philosophy. No, he wasn't just a man "of his time." His views were bad even when he had them. They are just even more unappealing nowadays. So, when they make a rare appearance, it is more than a little off-putting. Also, the magazine-serial style of pop fiction which is the stylistic raw materials with which he crafted his masterpieces provides flavor at first, but can get tired after a while. Still, he left a very specific legacy that most adaptations are woefully inadequate in attempting to relate, and a large part of that has to do with his ability to distill indescribable cosmic peril into a tight, personal, human scale. It sounds like this game is one of the few to be able to tap into that to some degree. By the way, Arkham Horror Living Card Game also does this fairly well compared to most.

Are there games where the players choose the rules? Something where whatever the input parameter are, the player always ends up winning. Like where mistakes give you more points than logical options. I'm looking for such a game for someone with special needs.

How dare Mike use a four letter word! lol

TIL: Zee really likes football if given a chance.

He calls them 4”O” games :D

But Mike, have you tried Real-Time Assymetrical Economic Battle Train Simulator? 🤣

Wait - TMZ?

Damn it, I sold battle ball without ever playing it

Strawman fallacy when you argue Root is a wargame :)

Five player Smartphone in an hour? No!!!

Wait ... Tom doesn't like Cthulhu!?

What are they talking about?

Liquefied pumpkin pie :D

Tom's nr 10: "Killer Bunnies and the Quest for the Magic Carrot." Sounds like the title of a cheap adult movie.

solo games are the best.

Not only do I utterly despise Cutthroat Caverns, it’s one of the few games that I cannot even understand why anyone likes. All of the rules to which they think it’s an exception are why I hate it. I just don’t understand. It’s one of the few games that I can I say that I had no fun whatsoever while playing, even though I quite liked all of my fellow players. On the positive side, Xia did the impossible for me and made me love a roll-and-move game.

LMAO Zee’s No. 1 pick is yet another PANDEMIC game!! Haha

Semicooperative. I thought Tom liked Shadows over Camelot.

Would CO2 be a semi-coop?