Disappointing Delights
by Josh B
We've all been there - we buy a new game, filled with excitement to break into it, to get it to the table and experience this new delight. A few days later, our new game arrives and we immediately rip the packaging open and remove our brand new, shiny toy. Brimming with excitement, we remove the shrink wrap, liberating the box from its plastic prison, and gently open it, greedily inhaling the scent of new cardboard like an addict snorting ecstasy. After burrowing into the rules, devouring every detail, preparing ourselves for the big moment, we gather our group of friends, players and somewhat willing victims together, promising a memorable time of fun and folly. And then, we play. Expecting to feel that glorious sensation of joy and wonder that comes from a good game, we dive into our most recent treasure with bravado, and within a short time we emerge... disappointed. What went wrong? Did we botch the teach? Did we simply misunderstand an important aspect of the game? Surely, it must be something of the sort. From everything we read, from the videos we perused, we just know that we like this game. And so, filled with the knowledge that our previous experience's failure came from some unknown factor outside of the game itself, we throw ourselves wholeheartedly into another attempt... and find ourselves sorely disappointed once again.
The most memorable experience of this that I have comes from Once Upon a Time: The Storytelling Card Game. I first saw this game on Tabletop with Wil Wheaton many years ago. After this hilarious introduction to the game, I knew immediately that I had to buy it, and that I would absolutely love playing this hilarious game. After the first time playing it, I felt completely let down. My family's play of the game devolved from storytelling into my parents and siblings literally just laying down their cards and evolving our tale with "and the princess escaped from the tower. The ogre chased the princess. The ogre fought a knight." Honestly, the words to describe how sad this experience felt just utterly evade me. I, however, still expected to enjoy the game - I just decided that I would never play it with my family again. Over the next couple of years, I pulled out Once Upon a Time on multiple different occasions with multiple different groups, and every single time the game slowly deteriorated as the players lost their creativity with each passing turn. By the end, the game landed in the same place as it had on that first play - disappointment.
Yet another time where I found myself face-to-face with this emotional conundrum came about when I purchased Elysium as a game for my wife and myself to play together on quiet nights at home (pre-kids - there is no such thing as a quiet night any more). We opened it up, started setting the game up for the first play, and both found ourselves struggling to comprehend the rulebook - we ended up boxing the game back up, putting it back on the shelf to come back to later, and playing something else (most likely Splendor) instead. That game still rests on its shelf, unopened and unplayed in the six long years that have slipped quietly by since I took ownership of it. Every time I look at it, I feel a sense of disappointment and sadness, knowing that it never took the place that I wanted it to within my collection.
It is my supposition that every game (well, except Candy Land and Monopoly) has a setting and a group where it should be played and enjoyed. Even if something falls flat for me, it theoretically has a perfect group somewhere. The letdown comes when the game hits all the right chords, yet never quite creates the gaming melody that you want. Something feels just a little (or a lot) out of tune, and you cannot fix it no matter how many times you try. Disappointment can be a hard thing to cope with in gaming, as usually new games take a commitment of both time and finances to research, acquire and learn, and forfeiting that investment when a game fails to strike home can be painful.
The worst part of it all is the knowledge that it will happen again, and again, and again. We have chosen to partake in a pastime which consists of a constant, never-ending influx of new and exciting entries - which is a positive thing, as it leads to growth of the hobby and regular induction of new players. This also means, however, that more and more disappointing games will find their way to our tables, and we have to cope with that however we see fit. For players such as myself, the game finds itself shelved and awaiting the day when it has a shot at redemption. For some, it means a parting of the ways - disappointing games hit the sell pile and never receive another thought. I have only ever followed this route once in my life - selling Boss Monster: The Dungeon Building Card Game and Flames of War: The World War II Miniatures Game to my LGS in exchange for games I actually love.
To this day, Once Upon a Time sits upon my shelf, awaiting the day when the appropriate group arrives on my doorstep. I still believe that I will love this game - good stories delight me - yet I cannot seem to find others who can make that a reality. The ad-libbed stories evolving from the prompts provided seems to be outside of the reach of those I game with. Honestly, it may be out of reach for myself as well, yet I cannot help anticipating the next time I get to play this game. I still resolutely believe this game to be a delight, but I cannot say that I truly believe I will ever get the experience from it that I have sought all these years.
And so that leaves a very simple question: What games have you all played that you walked away from with that sinking feeling of regret and disappointment?
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