Post by coyotejoker on Apr 23, 2007 15:04:03 GMT -5
Anima. Think of playing Final Fantasy with cards. Anime artwork, party building, and easy-to-understand mechanics. And like FF IV, almost too difficult.
The artwork is fantastic, the backstory is standard console anime RPG fare. The evil force Omega breaks from its ancient prison, and you or your opponent--as opposing adventuring parties--race to beat Omega first. But before taking on THAT monumental task, you must complete one of two missions, drawn at random at the beginning of the game. Missions are started and completed within certain areas drawn at random from an "area card" pile. (This is where the rules get a little shaky. You're told you must beat the mission you draw before moving onto the final battle, but I'll damned if it says anywhere in the rulebook on HOW to accomplish said mission. The card text gives you some kind of challenge, but doesn't tell you the mechanic for defeating said challenge. Being that this is one of the core objectives of the game, seems a little silly to leave that out.) While exploring these areas, you fight monsters, recruit new people into your adventure party, gain new skills/advantages, and other rewards. You're going to need them all.
The difficulty of the game is a bit absurd. In the first three rounds of the game (we played with only two players; you can have up to five) there were at least two lost turns and two character deaths. There are theoretically mechanics in place to ensure it doesn't get this bad, but well...these mechanics are a little shabby. So while the game can be fun, it's pretty safe to say that frustration levels are through the roof in the beginning (to the point where you ask yourself if you really want to keep playing, as it can feel much like slamming your head against a brick wall, repeatedly.)
On a scale of 1 to 10, I'd give Anima The Card Game a 5. Anima TCG is actually one of a three-part gaming system for Anima RPG from Fantasy Flight games. Currently available is Anima: TCG and Anima Tactics (a pewter miniatures game) Anima RPG (Yes, a tabletop RPG set in the same world as the miniatures and the card game) will be available later this summer. For more info, check
fantasyflightgames.com/anima.html
The artwork is fantastic, the backstory is standard console anime RPG fare. The evil force Omega breaks from its ancient prison, and you or your opponent--as opposing adventuring parties--race to beat Omega first. But before taking on THAT monumental task, you must complete one of two missions, drawn at random at the beginning of the game. Missions are started and completed within certain areas drawn at random from an "area card" pile. (This is where the rules get a little shaky. You're told you must beat the mission you draw before moving onto the final battle, but I'll damned if it says anywhere in the rulebook on HOW to accomplish said mission. The card text gives you some kind of challenge, but doesn't tell you the mechanic for defeating said challenge. Being that this is one of the core objectives of the game, seems a little silly to leave that out.) While exploring these areas, you fight monsters, recruit new people into your adventure party, gain new skills/advantages, and other rewards. You're going to need them all.
The difficulty of the game is a bit absurd. In the first three rounds of the game (we played with only two players; you can have up to five) there were at least two lost turns and two character deaths. There are theoretically mechanics in place to ensure it doesn't get this bad, but well...these mechanics are a little shabby. So while the game can be fun, it's pretty safe to say that frustration levels are through the roof in the beginning (to the point where you ask yourself if you really want to keep playing, as it can feel much like slamming your head against a brick wall, repeatedly.)
On a scale of 1 to 10, I'd give Anima The Card Game a 5. Anima TCG is actually one of a three-part gaming system for Anima RPG from Fantasy Flight games. Currently available is Anima: TCG and Anima Tactics (a pewter miniatures game) Anima RPG (Yes, a tabletop RPG set in the same world as the miniatures and the card game) will be available later this summer. For more info, check
fantasyflightgames.com/anima.html