Tuesday, June 17, 2025

I might be that guy now

In the board game community where I am frequently playing, the most played game is probably Dune: Imperium. I have played it a lot. And more often than not I played against that one guy who is really good at Dune, and nearly always wins. With time I got better, but from all the games I played against him, I only won twice. Dune is a game which ends when somebody reaches 10 points, but the winner is the one who has the most points at the end of that round. That guy usually managed explosive last turns, making 5+ points in that last turn and winning with 14+ points, when the second player had maybe 10 or 11.

Now that guy moved away, for a job opportunity in another city. And this board game evening, I was invited by some other people who wanted to play Dune: Imperium. And so I played with them. Playing against that guy had taught me a lot of things. So I built up my resources, and managed to make 6 points in the final turn, beating the second player with 15 to 10 points. And then I realized that *I* might have become "that guy" now, having inherited the title by him moving away.

I'm not sure I want to be that guy that always wins. I probably play less Dune in the future. Playing to win is fun, but winning because the better players aren't around anymore not so much.
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3 comments:

  1. Random_Phobosis18/6/25 03:23

    It's okay if the game has a suitable handicap. Since you modify video games to suit your tastes, you would know - and board games are much easier to tweak!

    I used to play against a really good local kicker player. I would almost always lose. He then moved away. I still play kicker with others. It occured to me that I've learned a lot, since I can take on two regular players alone, with my left hand only - and it's fun (and hilarious) for everybody!

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  2. Anonymous19/6/25 03:43

    Once again the student becomes the master, as the wheel of time continues to spin.

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  3. Yeebo19/6/25 05:03

    I have that problem with Talisman. I have been playing it since I was in middle school. It seems completely random, but much like Monopoly there are strategies that can vastly boost your odds of winning (though a little more complex than "try to go for these six properties"!).

    It's gotten to where I don't generally actually play to win. Instead I usually try something new that I know is suboptimal just to see what happens, and whether I can effectively deal with the situation I put myself in and remain in the running for a win. I am there strictly for the fun when I play now.

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