Today my review of "Hollywood Blockbuster" ran in the Sunday edition of The Parkersburg News. I hope to repost the review to Board Game Geek this evening. The game by Uberplay and renowned game designer Reiner Knizia was a surprise hit for me and a game I had avoided reviewing for some time now. My initial impressions of the game were thankfully wrong, as I originally had pegged the game as being too complex. 

That seems strange to me now that I have played, because the game actually is rather simple but still has a lot of engaging strategy and decision making. When I first opened the game after receiving a review copy from Uberplay, I was a little intimidated. The game feels huge, from the large heavy box to the number of pieces included. Trying to read through the rules reminded me a little of a college textbook, and to be honest I think I was a little wary of Knizia as well,as he has a reputation for designing very math-heavy games (and I have always struggled with mathematics).

The game languished on my shelf for a while with a handful of other Uberplay games, but recently I decided to give it another try, mostly at the behest of a friend who is a bit of a movie buff. Once I was able to lay out the pieces on the board and get past some of the language of the rules, the beauty of "Hollywood Blockbuster" emerged, and I can say with confidence this game will hit the table again and again. There is a fair amount of replay value as players rotate which studios they represent, thereby giving them different sets of movies to play with. The bidding mechanic also is a lot of fun, and players will want to try different strategies (having more than one player going for the "Worst Movie" title can be pretty amusing).

I also will be posting some more information on some upcoming reviews and my plans for the convention season, including plans to create some audio interviews from Origins and Con on the Cob, kind of like a poor-man's podcast. 

Until then, have fun.

ME