I keep my eyes open on what is going on in board game development. I follow YouTube channels, read newsletters, hang out on Boardgamegeek, etc., so that I am aware of what the games are that are currently considered to be very good. BGG actually has a hotness list, which shows the games that are most talked about. As I am writing this, number two on that hotness list is a game called Arcs, a sci-fi strategy game. There is a lot of buzz around it, although the Kickstarter is only now being delivered, and the game won't be available in retail before autumn. I am mentioning Arcs here, because there are two versions of it, and they differ a lot in the amount of commitment required.

The basic game of Arcs takes about 30 minutes per player. This makes it perfect for my Wednesday board game nights at the friendly local games store. I can bring the game, find 3 other players on the spot, set the game up, explain it, play it, and pack it up within the 3.5 hour window of that event. Then there is a campaign version of Arcs, which takes around 30 minutes per player per act, and there are 3 acts. The campaign game uses all the rules of the basic game, and adds additional layers of rules and components on top of it. It is highly recommended by the developers to first play several games of basic Arcs, and only try the campaign game with people who have a solid grasp of the basics. The campaign game looks really cool. But I ordered only the basic game, because I would probably never play the campaign. I would need a group that plays the basic game of Arcs with me one weekend, and is willing to come back the next weekend to play the campaign version; or better several weekends, to justify the purchase of the expensive campaign expansion. I can understand the enthusiastic reviewer on Shut Up & Sit Down saying that he has been playing Arcs up to 3 times per week for the past few months and still loves it. But who has a group with whom he can play the same game 3 times per week for several months? Getting a group together once per week is a challenge, and my current Agemonia group is pausing for 3 weeks due to some people being on summer holidays.

I have a lot of campaign games in my collection, and even more that I backed on Kickstarter in previous years and that I am now waiting to deliver. But these days, when I see another long campaign game advertised on Kickstarter or elsewhere, I walk right past it. All of the games I bought this year are games that can be played in an evening, without an ongoing commitment. It doesn't matter how "good" a board game is, if I can't get it onto the table.