| Game Type: Board Game
Publisher: Twilight Creations Inc.
Game Design: Todd and Kerry Brietenstein
Art: Dave Aikins
Medium: Boxed Game Expansion
Price: $14.99
Reviewer: Mark Warren Once again I have the pleasure of reviewing a Twilight Creations product. I must say that I have been eagerly awaiting the release of the product. This month's review will be a double header! There is a bonus review at the end of the article! For starters though, let's take a look at Twilight Creations newest offering When Darkness Comes: The Horror Within. WDC:THW is an add-on product for the original game "When Darkness Comes: The Awakening."
The original "When Darkness Comes" is a board game for 1 to 6 players that has a streamlined RPG element to it. There are character sheets, statistics and dice as well as figures and counters. During play you take your generated or pre-made characters through various printed or custom scenarios and attempt to achieve stated goals to gain experience and advance, much like any RPG and/or board game. See our review for "When Darkness Comes."
Like "When Darkness Comes", this box is chock full of gaming goodness:
1. Scenario book with Rules updates
2. New Tiles (Hotel Lobby, 2x Woods Tiles, Cabin in the Woods)
3. Figures (Sci-Fi Kung Fu Expert and Monster)
4. Quick Reference Screen There are several new board sections; a Hotel Lobby, two woods tiles, and a cabin in the woods. Like the parent product, these are sturdy thick card and are drawn using a similar theme that makes them match up with the original set.
There are also two excellent new miniatures; a Sci-Fi martial artist and a generic monster that closely resembles the creature from the Pumpkin Head series. The Martial Artist is my favorite. This time around the casting technique was much cleaner. The details of the figures were also much clearer and there was very little flash. Honestly, these figures make an excellent addition to any cyber-punk or dark future related figure collection.
TCI has included a quick reference screen this time. I would complain that it is made of paper instead of card, but you can't have everything. It is a color illustrated tri-fold sheet that contains the most frequently accessed information. It is well laid out and actually quite handy after you become familiar with how it's laid out.
Now let's cut to the meat of the product, the scenario book. Since this is an add-on product, there is no need for a separate rule book. There are a couple of new rules; Line of sight and some combat updates. They are simply added to the first couple of pages of the scenario book. The line of sight rules tighten up the rules that determine when an encounter disc is turned over. I think this was a needed addition. It also keeps you from seeing too far ahead – a necessary addition to the rules in the new woods tiles. Much needed Ranged Combat rules have been added to the combat system. There is a short set of rules for ranged attacks and a chart for the most common weapons. In addition there is a rule that allows you to roll your Dodge in place of your Defense statistic to avoid damage. This makes the roguish characters a little more durable.
The scenarios themselves are similar to the original publication in quality, which is to say that they vary greatly in presentation though the overall quality has improved. The artwork we have come to expect is, as always, easy on the eye and suitable to the subject matter. Once again, nods to Dave Aikins for his smooth hand. There are five new scenarios and three more chapters in the campaign. As previously stated, they vary in quality, though even the worst of the lot is entertaining. They suffer from the same issue the original scenarios had: the introductions are a bit lengthy. That said the actual scenarios are short and to the point – and quite fun to play. Also like the original product, the campaign is the meat of the story. I've yet to play the campaign, I'm saving it till I get all the pieces so I can run it concurrently, but the story is an excellent read and the scenarios are inspiring.
If you've ever read any of my reviews, you know my stance on independent game companies. Support them with your buying power whenever you can. Twilight Creations is the model of game companies to come. They have taken a good idea and parlayed it into a fun product that nearly anyone can enjoy. All up and coming game publishers could take their example to heart. Good luck to Twilight Creations – keep the games coming. And for you dear reader, play the game, enjoy yourself, but watch your back… Playability: 4 of 5
Game Mechanics: 4 of 5
Setting: 4 of 5
Presentation: 4 or 5 Keep your eye out for the other upcoming expansions:
When Darkness Comes: Hell Unleashed – November 2002 and
When Darkness Comes: The Darkness before the Dawn – January 2003 Bonus Review!
How many times have you heard me say it: "Who doesn't like a bag-of-zombies"? I said it so many times that Twilight Creations finally took the hint and sent me a Bag-O-100! Glow-in-the-Dark no less! Since they were so kind, I decided to put them through their paces with my daughter Alyssa.
Contents: 100 Glow-in-the-Dark Zombies
The first test was usability. Aside from the obvious uses for a bag of 100 plastic Glow-in-the-Dark Zombies (and there must be hundreds), we decided to try some different things. I rounded up my two year old and her 1 minute attention span and got to work!
The first thing we did was test the portability of the Zombies. The plastic Zombies are very small and fit well into a plastic purse or a "Tea Party" tea cup, perfect for that trip to McDonalds or to the super market. I must warn you though, do not mix them with gummie bears. If you do, you will get distracted while watching the "Land Before Time" and bite down on one – no fun, zombies are yucky…
Portability: 5
Taste: 1.5
Next we tested their suitability for practical jokes. If you hand a two year old 100 plastic zombies, it is only a matter of time before one winds up in your cereal. You will also find them in your shoe, your pockets, in the toilet, in the dog's food bowl, and occasionally in a diaper (following which you will hope they were already there BEFORE the special delivery arrived…)
Practical Joke Perpetrator: 5
Practical Joke Recipient: 2
Last but certainly not least we must consider re-playability. As I mentioned before, the attention span of a two year old can be measured in seconds. Children are however very visual. If they see something they will remember it. With 100 zombies there is always a zombie in visual distance. The zombies soon become bosom buddies with the likes of Tarzan, The Lion King, and Barbie in her various incarnations. They can be seen chasing after Lilo and Stitch, riding on top of various dinosaurs and horsies, and serving as jewelry for stuffed animals. With enough zombies, they will eventually take over the toybox and insidiously integrate themselves into the very fabric of the playtime. Beware!
Re-playability: 4 (though they tend to eat the other toys)
Summary:
100 Plastic Zombies are, in my opinion, the "Barrel-of-Monkeys" of the new Millennia. They are very versatile. Be warned though, these Zombies have weak ankles and can only stand so much punishment before they are rendered useless. With proper care and maintenance, your Zombies can last you a life time – with zombies that should be a looooong time…
Overall Rating: 5!
Note: Zombies should not be given to small children or vice versa. Zombie could choke (or eat) small children. It should also be noted that they do not pass well through the digestive track.
Please support independent game publishers. They are the future of our hobby.
Mark Warren, 10/10/02 | |
