Explore the 'Verse in Firefly: The Game

Disclosure: GeekDad received a testimonial copy of this game. Making investments with ourassociate web links assists us so we can write more things. Many thanks!

I was late to the celebration with Firefly-- by the time I viewed the TV program, it had actuallyalready been canceled, followers had actually rallied, and the followup flick Calmness had currentlybeen released. However, ultimately I overtook the rest of the globe and uncovered why everyoneenjoys Mal and also his team a lot. It's kind of like that with Firefly: The Video game, too. It waslaunched back in 2013 as well as currently has four expansions out, yet I didn't handle to play it tillsimply recently. But merely in instance you resemble me and also still wondering whether you 'dappreciate it, here's an evaluation to assist you decide.

At a look: Firefly is for 1 to 4 gamers, ages 13 and up, and also takes about 2 hours to play. (Aminimum of, that's just what the box claims. Actual playing time relies on just how much timeplayers take determining just what to do on their turns, as well as the particular circumstance youopt to play, so I have actually listened to of video games taking much longer.) The video game isn'textremely complicated, but due to the fact that of its length as well as the material, which is basedon the TELEVISION program, I assume the age rating is about right-- if you let your kids see the

program, then the video game's content is just as proper for them. Firefly retails for $49.99.

The Alliance Cruiser reached the orange Firefly-- bad news. (Plastic stegosaurus obtained fromTriassic Horror and isn't really included in the game.) Photo: Jonathan H. Liu

Intermission

Okay, usually I tell you regarding the parts, just how to play, and also then give you my decision on agame, however I believe it's worth making an additional remark below. If you're a follower of Firefly(or are at least acquainted with it), then the game will make sense to you. If not, then there are abunch of points that will simply seem strange, and also the game does not truly clarify factors.

For example, the reason there's a cardboard stegosaurus to mark the active player is because Clean(the pilot in the program) has some plastic dinosaurs that he plays with. The reason the "dissatisfied"symbols are an unusual blue sad face, apparently out of location as compared to the rest of theartwork, is due to the fact that they're from the Fruity Oaty Bars, likewise from the program.

If you've watched the show, then you'll currently have a natural anxiety of the Reavers. You don'teven require to recognize just what that red ship does in the game; you just know it misbehaves andyou should avoid it. Haven't viewed the show? The guidelines inform you exactly what occurs whenyou experience the red ship-- yet doesn't really detail exactly what Reavers are or why you ought toworry them.

Prior to I played Firefly, I would certainly listened to from a great deal of people that followers of theprogram often appreciate the game, as well as for folks that do not know the program it's simply apick-up-and-deliver game. I think the factor that's true is because the game rules do not detail theshow-- they assume you currently understand it. This isn't really a game that will certainly make anyperson into a follower of the collection; it's a video game created alreadying existing followers.

A huge board, some ships, as well as great deals and also bunches of cards. Picture: Jonathan H. Liu

Elements

1 video game board

4 Ship cards

6 plastic ship pawns (4 Firefly pawns, 1 Partnership Cruiser, 1 Reaver Cutter).

6 Story cards.

125 Supply cards (25 each in 5 decks).

125 Call cards (25 each in 5 decks).

80 Nav cards (40 each in 2 decks).

40 Misbehave Cards.

11 Establish Up Cards.

150 paper expenses.

167 Symbols (freight, travelers, gas, parts, annoyed markers, target tokens, 1 stegosaurus).

2 custom-made six-sided dice.

The parts are rather good-- you'll invest a great deal of time punching out all those 167 cardboard

tokens-- some of them are pretty little, as well as they really did not constantly different really easily.It is great, sturdy cardboard, however.

4 player ships, plus the Reaver Cutter and also Alliance Cruiser. (You'll would like to prevent thosetwo.) Image: Jonathan H. Liu

The dice are standard-sized six-sided dice, with a firefly symbol instead of the 6; they're etched andrepainted so the faces will not use off. The ships are made of a soft plastic (or perhaps it's a toughrubber?) with hard plastic stands-- there's an article on the stand that fits right into an opening inthe bottom of the ship. It looks thin, but sometimes when you grab the ship the base doesn't had it.

Fiat money! Image: Jonathan H. Liu

Fiat money. What can I state? When I opened the game as well as discovered it had paper currency,I seemed like I had gone back in time. Do not obtain me wrong-- the cash is really beautiful. Thecosts, in $ONE HUNDRED, $500, $1000, and also $2000 religions, are double-sided with the exact

same full-color art work on both sides, and also have that Chinese-sci-fi mash-up you 'd anticipatefrom the show. However it's fiat money, as well as you'll be managing it a lot.

The board is enormous, and nearly every little thing except the Nav decks as well as discard pilesare kept off the board, so you'll need a large table for this video game. I assume the board mighthave been smaller without impacting gameplay (the rooms are plenty big sufficient for great deals ofships each) however I think in a video game regarding taking a trip with space you desire thephysical board to reflect that. So I cannot fault the huge board, as well as I know lots of people willcertainly love it, however I had difficulty making area for the four players to have their ship boardsand also cards on the same table.

Tokens, Supply decks (and also discards) on one end of the board; Tale card, cash, Misbehave deck,as well as Call decks (and also discards) at the various other end. Images: Jonathan H. Liu

The cards use a whole lot of photos from the show, so you'll view a bunch of acquainted faces as wellas names. The pictures (for the card backs, as an example) are exceptional, appearing like tripposters for the different systems where you could stop to get products or operate. The art work onthe symbols is very marginal.

The rulebook isn't really great-- there are some misspellings and also grammar errors, and it doesn'tconstantly feel really well-organized-- however it acquires the work done. I did discover it practicalto print out a duplicate of the FAQ from Wind Force Nine's website as a supplement.

Just how to Play

The rulebook is offered as a PDF below.

The goal of the game depends upon which "tale" you play-- each story card discusses if there are anykind of distinctions in configuration as well as additionally tells you the numerous goals you'll shouldfulfill in order to gain the game.

The basic setup can be modified by the tale cards. You shuffle each of the Nav decks (PartnershipSpace as well as Perimeter Area) individually, putting the Partnership Cruiser card and the ReaverCutter card in their respective dispose of stacks. The Alliance Cruiser token starts in Londinium, aswell as the Reaver Cutter token beginnings up in the leading right corner of the board.

Players will pick from these seven leaders, with a mix of abilities as well as unique capacities. Photo:Jonathan H. Liu

The players have the chance to pick ships and also leaders. Everybody obtains a Firefly-class ship,yet only one of them is named Calmness, and just one gamer is going to be Mal. Work it out. Everyperson puts their ship on the board. Each player additionally obtains a basic drive core card, $3,000,6 Gas, and also 2 Components. Additionally, everybody acquires some beginning Jobs from theContacts decks-- generally one from each get in touch with. You could dispose of any kind of or everyone of these tasks, yet could simply sustain to three of them in your hand. The top three cards of

each Supply deck are exposed.

A 4-player video game underway. As you could see, there's not a great deal of additional table areaanywhere. Picture: Jonathan H. Liu

On your turn, you get two different activities, picking from the following: Fly, Purchase, Offer, andalso Work. Basically you'll fly around the board, getting as well as delivering things to meet variouscontracts-- yet the best goal of the video game depends upon the tale card you're utilizing. Forexample, in the "First Time in the Captain's Chair," suggested as the beginning story, you should be"Strong" with 2 get in touches with (by fulfilling contracts for them), have $6,000 accessible, thenhave the chance to Niska to settle your debt.

Whether you're flying via Alliance area or Border space, there's a chance you'll experience

something. Image: Jonathan H. Liu

Fly: You could Mosey by moving your ship one area, which does not make use of gas or risk any typeof occasions. Or you could use a Complete Burn-- invest a gas, as well as then relocate as for yourship's drive core will permit, however as you move you'll need to attract a Nav card for each andevery space you enter into (Partnership Area cards for heaven rooms, Boundary Area cards for thered areas.) Some cards allow you keep flying and some have occasions that you'll should solve-- insome cases disturbing your air travel.

Each of the Supply locations has its very own deck of cards made to appear like travel posters.Picture: Jonathan H. Liu

Purchase: If you're at a supply world, you could stop to hire team or buy devices, or give your staffcoast leave. You have the chance to "Take into consideration" 3 cards and also purchase up to 2 ofthem. The decks are a mix of team, devices, and ship upgrades. First use up to 3 cards from thediscard heap you wish to think about, then attract from the deck until you have a total of threecards. You may acquire up to two of those three cards by paying the cost to the financial institution.Anything you don't buy returns into the dispose of heap. For shore leave, rather than getting cards,you invest $100 each crew on your ship, and afterwards you can get rid of any disgruntled tokensfrom your crew.

My ship board shows some energetic tasks, ship upgrades, crew as well as devices, as well as thefactors I've obtained in my freight grip. Image: Jonathan H. Liu

Bargain: If you're in a sector with a get in touch with, you might try to do business with that said getin touch with. Once more, you think about 3 contracts, as well as might approve up to 2, yet keep inmind that you could only have 3 energetic works as well as 3 non-active tasks (in your hand) eachtime. There are numerous kinds of tasks, as well as each one shows how much cash it's worth,whether there are any sort of particular needs for handling the task, and exactly what's involved.Some works are lawful, some are prohibited-- and some are immoral. If you finish an immoral work,then any of your crew marked "Ethical" come to be discontented-- meanings that various othergamers could employ them far from you. Two dissatisfied tokens, as well as the crew jumps ship.

Jobs could be legal or illegal, with immoral variations of each. Illegal tasks pay much better, yet areriskier. Photo: Jonathan H. Liu

Work: Use the Job action to start a job, making it energetic, or to finish off a task. To begin a job, youdecide exactly what tools you have actually obtained for the work-- each crew member may onlycarry one gear, and anything that isn't really geared up does not give any type of rewards whileyou're on the job. You additionally have to confirm that you have the requirements needed-- forexample, adequate skill points as shown at work card. Then you do exactly what the card states-- forinstance, tons cargo or travelers from a certain location. (Of program, you'll should be in theappropriate area to do this!)

Misbehaving may call for choosing a strategy and making a skill roll-- or you could continue if youhave the ideal equipment or staff with you. Picture: Jonathan H. Liu

For prohibited tasks, you may have to misbehave: the work card reveals a variety of Misbehavecards, as well as you'll need to resolve that several in a solitary turn in order to accomplish thatcomponent of the task. Misbehave cards sometimes need a skill roll, as well as some might bemissed if you have the ideal team or devices.

If your Work activity completes a work, then you earn money for it from the banking. Finishing a jobmakes you "Solid" keeping that get in touch with-- you put the task card face-down on top of yourship board. Now it will show an incentive you get with that call, plus you may have the ability to sellthem items or contraband when you're in their neck of the woods. Nonetheless, if you obtain awarrant while functioning a job, you're no much longer solid with that contact and also you'll need tofulfill one more agreement to obtain back in their great graces.

The stegosaurus suggests it's my turn. The Amnon Duul card tucked at the top right implies Ifulfilled an agreement and I'm "solid" with Amnon. We're like besties now. Picture: Jonathan H. Liu

Ability rolls turn up both in the Nav decks and in some Misbehave cards. Typically, you'll roll asingle die, and after that include any of the ability symbol needed that you have on your staff and

also equipment cards. There are three abilities: Battle, Technology, as well as Discuss. The card willcertainly tell you the results of your roll, yet usually higher is better. If you roll the Firefly icon (the"6"), you count it as a 6 and roll once again, including the second lead to the total amount.

That covers a lot of the gameplay. There are a great deal of specifics in the cards that come up aswell as the various tale cards, but you take turns flying, purchasing, dealing, and also functioninguntil somebody gains the video game.

The Decision

I 'd been finding out about the Firefly ready some time as well as have been eager to try it, howeverI 'd been worried that it was simply one more so-so game dressed up with a licensed style. I'm happyto state that the motif meshes well with the gameplay, or even though just one of you reaches be Mal(and also it's not likely you'll assemble the original Firefly team on your ship), you do acquire a littlepreference of just what it resembles being in the 'knowledgeable that Joss Whedon created.

The folks which will delight in the game the most are the die-hard followers of the show, due to thefact that they're the ones which will obtain all the numerous references and also acknowledge thecharacters. However even if you do not bear in mind everything, you get a bunch of tips-- from thetitles of cards to quotes made use of as taste message. Sticking to the motif does indicate that it doesnot always feel completely balanced. For example, Stream Tam is a staff card that has a possibility ofproviding you 2 or perhaps three ability icons based on the roll of the die-- and also she's free. Why?Since in the program, she's smuggled aboard, she is extremely powerful, however alsounpredictable. But simply as a video game technician, the card seems subdued.

I have actually just played Firefly with people which currently like the show, so it's tough for me tounderstand just how much a non-fan would appreciate it. I do assume it's a strong video game thatwould stand well to various other comparable games even if it just weren't Firefly-themed, yet I'mdoubtful that folks who do not recognize anything about the show would study a lengthy gameconcerning a program they recognize nothing about. If you would certainly never ever seenSuperstar Expedition, you most likely wouldn't choose up Celebrity Expedition Catan.

The video game has a great mix of good luck, selections, as well as "take that," though in the basevideo game the capability to disrupt your opponents isn't really huge. You could work with awayannoyed team-- however just if you're in the very same room and you have the cash and the desire todo so. Chances are, you could employ team just as quickly elsewhere nearby as opposed to ferretingout the disgruntling leader. The largest thing you could do to various other gamers is send theReaver and Partnership ships after them, as well as also then there's a bunch of luck included inmaking that take place. There is, however, a Pirates and also Bounty Hunters expansion if you wouldlike to include in even more player interaction, but I haven't played that a person yet.

Because of the game length, I think of Firefly as even more of an occasion game-- I'll invite a couplefolks over specifically to play it, instead of attempting to get it to the table spontaneously on anormal game night. I do want it were something that could be shortened a little, yet that's actuallymy only considerable gripe about it. And also if you have actually obtained the moment for it, it isfun to hang around around the world of Firefly for a few hours at a time.

So, bottom line: If you don't have persistence for lengthy games or you have actually never ever seenthe show, you may want to keep flyin' on past this one. But if you're a gamer and you like the TVshow, Firefly is most definitely worth a try. You can choose up a duplicate at your regional gameshop, from Amazon, or directly from Gale Force 9.

Thanks to Gale Force Nine for providing an evaluation copy of the video game!

Regarding Jonathan H. Liu.

Jonathan H. Liu is a stay-at-home dad in Portland, Oregon, that enjoys to read, is constantly up for aparlor game, and has a little a Kickstarter routine.

Post navigation.

? Previous Following ?