Forgotten Favorites Friday - (October 26, 2018)

My choice this week is a couple of card games that are probably mentioned here a lot more than I think but here goes:

Baseball Highlights: 2045 is THE deckbuilder I would bring with me on a deserted island. It's a game about baseball in the year 2045. Robots who smash home runs, cyborg pitchers with robotic arms, and simply gifted humans (called 'naturals') in the game, still compete to win the World Series. Each card is unique, and has a certain number and type of hit associated, a speed, a value, and possibly an ability. When you play a card, you place your 'hits', and your opponent has a chance to react. So if you plop down a robot who hits a single and a double, your opponent may throw down a natural who can cancel the double with their excellent fielding skills. You then get to advance your single to first base and then your opponent places their natural's hits down. You go back and forth until each of you has played six cards, then you use the value of your players to purchase free agents from an absolutely massive deck of players.

Trust me when I say you will never, ever see the same row of free agents twice. That's how many players there are, and they're all unique. Some players give you bonuses for being the home team, some players cancel all hits against certain types of players, some players don't have an ability at all and they just hit fuckin' dingers. There are a ton of things I didn't go in to here like pinch hitting, the different ballparks, and coaches all affecting the game but trust me, if any of the above sounds interesting to you do not hesitate to check it out.

Bottom of the 9th is another baseball game, strangely enough, but this is a card and dice based game. Thematically, the game takes place in the bottom of the ninth inning of a baseball game. There are three outs left. One player assumes the role of the pitcher, the other the batter. The players are all unique and have different strengths and weaknesses. The game has a bluffing mechanic with pitch tokens, where each player guesses which side the tokens will face (inside/outside, high/low). Guessing one gives you a bonus, guessing both gives you a power. You then roll dice to determine pitch type and speed, and the batter rolls a single die to determine their swing. You can modify the dice based on your bonuses or your power to try and get a base hit. If the batting team scores a run or the pitcher gets three outs, the game is over.

The game is endlessly replayable with the number of players that you can get in the expansions. Between the expansions there are over 70+ new characters, including players and support characters who can help you without actually taking part in the game. There is equipment that can help your players, there are tactics for a more advanced game. You really can't go wrong with this for a quick and easy two player experience.

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