The Best Board Games for Parties
Traditionally most board games worked best for smaller groups. But more and more awesome tabletop experiences are coming out that cleanly and elegantly scale up to 10 or even more players, giving everyone something to do, a specific role to play, keeping people moving and shouting, and just generally having a good time. Not all games are suited for a party atmosphere, however; it would be counterintuitive to break out the hours-long Terra Mystica for a friendly get-together.
If you’re seeking a good game to break out at your next party, these are the best board games for parties and large groups.
Wits and Wagers
Mega Man-Inspired Super Mighty Power Man Announced
A Mega Man-inspired 2D platformer called Super Mighty Power Man has been announced.
The game is being developed by independent studio Box Hedge Games and is coming first to Switch, 3DS, and PC before eventually being released for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Box Hedge Games is planning to launch a Kickstarter campaign for the game, but a launch date has yet to be announced.
Super Mighty Power Man is described as a 2D action platformer that takes inspirations from franchises like Castlevania, Contra, Duck Tales, and Shovel Knight, along with Mega Man.
Players take control of a boy named Corey who, with the help from his extraterrestrial dog Robby and a mysterious device called "The Power Grasp," must save the galaxy from the evil General Mok. "The Power Grasp" grants Corey the ability to merge with other lifeforms and become one of the many forms of Super Mighty Power Man.
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Overwatch Update Rebalances Ana and Mercy
Blizzard is rebalancing Ana and Mercy in the upcoming Overwatch update.
On PlayOverwatch.com, the Overwatch team has outlined updates coming to fan-favorite characters Ana and Mercy in the next patch, which is currently available on the Public Test region (PTR) on PC.
Ana will receive a buff, with Blizzard increasing her Biotic Rifle damage from 60 to 70. The team explained the reason for the change; "Ana has been outshined by other support heroes lately." the post said. "Boosting her damage will help her defend herself and make her more threatening to the enemy team."
Mercy, who was altered earlier this year as well, will also receive changes in the upcoming patch, revolving around her Resurrection mechanic. Resurrect, which originally was an instant cast ability, will now have a 1.75 second cast time. Mercy's movement speed will be reduced by 75 percent while she is casting, and the cast can be interrupted if Mercy is stunned, hacked, or knocked back during the cast.
PlayStation Plus Lineup for November 2017 Announced
November 2017's lineup of free PlayStation Plus games has been revealed.
Check out the full list of free games, courtesy of PlayStation Blog, as well as their platforms below:
- Worms Battlegrounds (PS4)
- Bound (PS4)
- R-Type Dimensions (PS3)
- Rag Doll Kung Fu: Fists of Plastic (PS3)
- Dungeon Punks (PS Vita, PS4)
- Broken Sword 5: The Serpents Curse Episodes 1 and 2 (PS Vita)
- Until Dawn: Rush of Blood (PS4) - bonus game available November 7-January 2.
Resogun Dev Abandons Shoot ‘Em Up Genre
Finnish studio Housemarque, maker of modern classic shoot 'em ups Resogun and Nex Machina, is moving away from developing arcade games due to poor sales.
Housemarque CEO and co-founder Ilari Kuittinen spoke about the decision to move away from the genre they love, regardless of their games' quality, in a letter to fans.
"Despite critical success and numerous awards, our games just haven’t sold in significant numbers," Kuittinen said. "While some of them have reached a massive audience due to free game offerings across various digital sales channels, this unfortunately doesn’t help pay for development, which gets costly for high production quality."
So the studio is abandoning its arcade shooter roots to move onto new genres.
EA Not Ready to Commit to Making More Switch Games
Following the release of FIFA 18 on Switch, Electronic Arts is not in any rush to bring additional software to Nintendo's platform.
EA chief financial officer Blake Jorgensen told the Wall Street Journal (via WSJ reporter Takashi Mochizuki on Twitter) the publisher plans to wait until the console has been on the market a full year before deciding whether to make more games for it.
According to Jorgensen, it's too early to judge the success of FIFA 18 on Nintendo Switch. As such, EA wants "to fully understand what the demand is" for the platform before committing more development resources to making new games for the platform.
9 Games Missing From Sony’s Paris Games Week Conference
Sony delivered on its promise of a major conference this year at its Paris Games Week Showcase. From updates on Spider-Man and God of War, to a brand-new game from Sucker Punch called Ghost of Tsushima, to a killer new Last of Us Part II trailer, we got to see some awesome games. However, there were some notable absences. Here are nine games that didn’t show up.
EA Says It Will Bring EA Access Subscriptions to Other Platforms
EA has revealed that it plans to expand its subscription services - like Xbox One's EA Access and PC's Origin Access - to "other platforms", although doesn't specify exactly what they'd be.
Speaking on an EA earnings call (as transcribed by Seeking Alpha), CEO Andrew Wilson discussed the success of the existing subscription services, before revealing its future plans:
"Our subscription services like EA Access and Origin Access are bringing more players from across our network to join in. Our subscription player base continues to grow. And you should expect us to continue driving this model to more platforms going forward."
The Walking Dead: Telltale Series Collection Announced
Telltale Games has announced The Walking Dead: The Telltale Series Collection, which includes all 19 episodes of the game series so far.
The $49.99 collection will be available on December 5 for PS4 and Xbox One digitally and physically across North America and Europe.
It features the most recent third season, A New Frontier, as well as visually enhanced versions of Season One, Season Two, 400 Days, and the three-part Michonne miniseries.