If you have been an avid reader of this blog it will not come as a surprise that Mr.AP and I LOVE board games. We love playing together, with friends, at cons, with our regular player group. We have played on trains, in a hotel bed, in a cafe while sipping coffee, everywhere! #boardgamesaresexy

There are quite a few types of games out there. An obvious differentiation is affordable vs. the one-that-might-brake-your-budget. Hive is definitely the affordable kind. But no matter the cost, if you do not play it it was money thrown out the window. That’s why we research every game we purchase no matter the cost because we want to make sure we make a good choice. But Hive just made us come to a grinding halt.

It is a far cry from our typical game as it is an abstract version of chess. As I never really warmed up to chess I never wanted to play Hive. But everyone kept recommending it as one of the best two player games out there. With all the buzz I could never make up my mind: will it become a good investment or not.

Looking through some print-and-play games (which do just what the name suggests: you download and print a pdf and play with your own dice, meeples, etc) it suddenly hit me: why not try out the game by drawing a trial version?

So I took me a pizza box, some scissors, two markers and set out to cut and draw and cut and draw and cut and draw….

Started with the bugs in the original Hive game to try the basic rules, concepts, to get a feel for the original taste of the game.

There are so many fan-version “expansions” to the original game I though why not? If I am at it, it could not hurt to spice up the game and see all it could do.

This is a typical game end result. One player surrounding the opponent.

 

So how did we like it? Well, having tried the game now we definitely know that Hive is not a game for us.

Hive is a strategy game. It has one single strategy, and that is to surround, i.e. obliterate your opponent. This we all knew. However, what we did not expect is that it will give us that uneasy feeling that player elimination games have. It is a game where one player wins, and the other LOOSES. It does offer you the ability to study the other’s strategy and grow, but as I said, it is ultimately one single goal you are aiming for. And when your victory comes at the cost of the other’s drowning, well… it just does not feel good. Call me a care-bear, but I did not like it.

We love games that have multiple avenues to explore. A sandbox if you will, where one day we might build a castle, the next the mote. And talking about building, a board game where you see in 3D the result of your efforts. Both of us love an engine builder, where you start out with A or B capabilities, and with your own choices and actions you turn that into C, D and even Z. That is when we hear the train’s cho-hooooo. Oh yeah!

Don’t get me wrong. Hive is a pretty good game. I see why people like it. It is just one that we will pass on. So, what will happen to the one I drew? I think I might keep it for the puzzle on the back. I think my nephew will like it.