Chris Yi and Wendy Yi take a look at a pile of games. This time, Matt Leacock’s cooperative game changer, Pandemic, and its many offspring that have made quite an entire family of games. Then they even do a Top 10 ranking at the end.
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BGG Link: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/30549/pandemic
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I'm hoping for a Lord of the rings themed pandemic this year 🤞
Thanks for this, would love this series to continue with a deeper dive to other games and their expansions.
The On the Brink expansion gives just enough modular options to the original game to keep it at the top of the list for me. I've had almost all of these in my collection at some point or another, but now I'm just down to the original and Clone Wars.
I was a huge warcraft fan and was really looking forward to it. The designers definitely didn't do the final battle justice. Just completing a bigger quest wasn't really doing it for me. Looking out for variants to make it better. I also played the original pandemic and The Cure. I liked both of them ok. The Cure was definitely my favorite out of the three.
I like the short Ticket to Ride games (London, NY etc) as a teaching game. I feel it takes people about half way/three quarters through to "get it". With a 20-30 minute game, it's easy to play again, where I wouldn't necessarily want to play the full 60 minute game again. I haven't played the small pandemics but I imagine they're similar.
Star Wars > Rails.
Wendy knows.
this is my list —– : Iberia — Clone Wars — WOLTK — Reign of Cthulhu — Rising Tide – Cure – Fall of Rome – PAndemic
Super interesting video, guys. I really enjoy the clone wars, also. It's different enough that it doesn't replace pandemic, but still has the feel of pandemic, while still definitely feeling true to star wars. Very impressed.
Great duo and nice format!!
34:30 Thank you Wendy for describing my pain. I've done that too many times to count LOL
What are both your thoughts on the expansions?
what about the star wars one ? 🙁
I own the first edition of Pandemic, and I love wooden bits, but c'mon. The graphic design of the second edition is way better. It looks and feels like you're in the command center, staring at monitors, and trying to figure out how best to use your resources.
I have og and cthulu
Of the ones I've played, I would rank them Iberia as best, Rapid Response, base Pandemic, Cthulhu. Not the biggest fan of the system in general.
Is it a “Pandemic System” so Matt Leacock doesnt get royalties??? :-/
I like the outro!
For me the Hot Zones are my go to for solo. Super quick to set up and get through. It’s not a game that if you get pulled away from you have a hard time keeping up with what you were doing. A single person can control 4 characters super easy. I’m not a big solo player but for me Hot zone has a place perfect just for solo.
Fantastic video idea!
Love this compilation! Can't wait to see your take on the Legacy versions. More of these "Look at a Pile" vidz!
Is this going to be a new series with Chris & Wendy? I love it! More please!
I have Pandemic Iberia: since I live in Portugal, that game attracted me more than the base game — the good reviews also helped. I was fearing the hype and the threat of it selling out quickly, so I bought it from the US, paying about double the price because of the shipment costs. When I went to get it at the customs, someone made a mistake and applied taxes to the whole amount I paid, so in total I paid about 3 times the game’s value: it is my most expensive game ever. Despite this bad experience, it still is worth having this game.
(Some time after, it was being sold here in Portugal, but it was a version in Spanish; I prefer the original one.)
Wendy and Chris, thanks for the awesome video. I really liked the extra editing touch and work you put into it!
I've come to like Fall of Rome quite a bit (more than base Pandemic). I love the "landmine" mechanic. Dropping off 1 legion here and there in key areas of the map so they can kill the next barbarian placed there. I think, because of that (and the supply lines) the goal and/or tactics can be more obscure. I lost this one my first play too, Wendy.
For example: I have 3 Legions. Rather than taking all 3 into battle, I'll recruit 3 more to keep here in this city with a fort (which is now basically secure for the rest of the game) and then travel 3 spaces to trade cards with an ally, dropping off a Legion in each venerable city along the way.
Not saying you'll love the game now, but I think when I started viewing Legions as a resource rather than an army the game was much more fun for me, and winnable. (obviously the characters you play can greatly alter strategy as well, this is just painting with broad strokes here)
9:45 whoa, there are lots of them. I own ~100 games and played a bit more and I've never played any Cthulhu game at all O_o [also haven't played Agricola nor Catan and they are supposed to be starters and classic and cult or something]
Iberia is the best iteration by far.
My Favourites:
1. Iberia
2. Pandemic with Expansions
3. Rising Tide
4. Fall of Rome
5. The Cure with Expansion
6. Wrath of the Lich King
7. Reign of Cthulhu
Legacy's fit in as:
1.5: Season One
4.5: Season Zero
5.5: Season Two
Wrath and Reign are very disappointing titles, and are why I haven't been able to bring myself to try Clone Wars. I really hope we get more real-world Pandemics as the themed ones just don't feel like a good direction for the system to me (I do like other IP themed games, just not for Pandemic!)
I've not played the real time or short ones, not for me I think, though I'm down for trying hot zone if a friend got it.