WiseOz is a social puzzle and gaming site, where you can participate in their long or short term games to win prizes.

They’re starting a new game on September 29, and all of the clues will be board game related. Entrance is free, although for $3 a month you can get clues a little earlier and some other on-site perks (not all of which I understood).

The prizes for this game include Eastfront from Columbia Games, Bananagrams from Charis Games, SET, Find It Games, Pacific Victory, and Rommel in the Desert.

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People Will Wait in Line for Something They Want

In the games industry preorder systems serve a variety of purposes. For companies producing niche games within a limited market, the opinions of customers voiced through preorders can help direct development efforts to the highest demand products. If payment is required up front, preorders can also help fund production. And preorder systems can be used to reward loyal customers with discounts or other benefits, while at the same time generating buzz for upcoming products. Also whether intentional or not, I’d be remiss in not pointing out that that the ability to preorder a game may result in a few extra sales, as sometimes it’s easier to punch that button for an order when you know that the money you spend may not be charged to your credit card for quite some time (I speak here from experience).

Of course the terms and conditions for preorders vary by program. Here are some examples:   Read the rest of this entry »

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Wizards of the Coast’s all around nice guy and everyman, Randy Buehler, has posted another update on D&D Insider:

When we do flip the switch at some point in October (exact date to be announced) here’s what we will be charging for a subscription to D&D Insider:

12 Months = $59.40 ($4.95 per month)
3 Months = $19.95 ($6.65 per month)
1 Month = $7.95 ($7.95 per month)

And here’s what you get if you are a subscriber:

• Access to the pages where PDFs of Dragon and Dungeon can be downloaded (including new articles three times per week and monthly full issue compilations).
• Access to the pages where Bonus Tools are launched (currently the Ability Generator and the Encounter Builder, soon to include a Monster Builder as well).
• Access to the D&D Compendium detail pages.

• Non-subscribers will be able to launch the Compendium, search for things, and see what results are returned. However, non-subscribers will not be able to click on the name of the rules element in order to see what it actually does. In other words, non-subscribers can see what things exist and what book they should go buy if they want to read more but don’t want a D&DI subscription.
• By the time we launch our subscription service, the Compendium will include content from all 4E books and magazines published through the end of September (including Adventurer’s Vault and FR Player’s Guide

But then it gets a bit weird:

After we launch our D&DI subscription service, the Character Builder will become our #1 priority. First up will be a public Beta test, then a commercial release, and then our development efforts will move onto the Character Visualizer.

So, you guys haven’t really been focusing on the stuff that you made a big deal about last year and then gave direct links to in your big launch???  And then…

The Beta version of the Character Builder will have full functionality, but it will only have rules content that covers level 1-3 characters. The same thing will be true of the free demo version of the Character Builder which will be available for folks to sample after the full version goes on sale: it will have everything you need to build a level 1, 2, or 3 character. We have not yet announced a release date for the full version of the Character Builder.

So, long story short, we still don’t have the character builder, we don’t know when we’ll get it, we aren’t sure how close we are and you’ll need to subscribe to D&D Insider to use it.  Am I the only one who’s a bit underwhelmed?

UPDATE: Stargazer in the comments has pointed out that I’m assuming you’ll need to be a D&D Insider subscriber to get Character Builder – Randy only indicates that it will be a closed product, but doesn’t say what will be required to gain access after launch.  Sigh.

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McDonalds has its Monopoly, Red Robin has its Buzzword, and now Arby’s is getting in the game with You Gotta Be Kidding, the new card game version of Would You Rather? from Zobmondo.

Starting in 2009, packs of You Gotta Be Kidding will be handed out with kid’s meals at Arby’s restaurants.

What is it about fast food and analog games? Family time? Too hard to get working video screens at the tables?

(source)

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The third expansion for the hybrid ccg/video game Eye of Judgment will be released next month. The expansion contains 100 new cards and lots of marketese claims of greatness.

I saw EoJ when it came out last year, and the thing looked ugly, expensive, noisy, and cumbersome. I predicted it wouldn’t last long. Comments on Kotaku regarding this new expansion tend to confirm my prediction. But someone has to be buying this if they’re releasing an expansion.

(source)

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ExtremeTech has a nice article up on modern board games, both offline and online.

Settlers of Catan, Arkham Horror, Ticket to Ride, Board Game Geek, 4e D&D, and Brettspielwelt are just a few of the mentions.

There’s nothing quite like listening to the hubbub of board game players trying to outdo the other players, or simply working together in co-op games to collectively win. Even then, however, those players will no doubt still turn to the Web for more information and to be part of a larger community of the hobby they love.

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