Petrie's Family Games

I went to a game developer forum tonight at Petrie's Family Games here in Colorado Springs.

I have to confess, I wasn't sure what to expect. It had been a while since I'd been to Petrie's and last time I visited they were in a small strip mall near Woodmen and Lexington. Their new store is much larger, with room to play games, more floor space for products, and a friendly and welcoming atmosphere just like before.

Petrie's Family Games
7681 N Union Blvd
Colorado Springs, CO 80920
(719) 522-1099

I'd personally like to thank Cameron for enabling my introduction of my kids to HeroClix. I hear a new sucking sound attached to my wallet. Apparently the Night Elf character from World of Thor is "darn near invulnerable" according to my middlest child.

We, my daughters and I, got to playtest some other games too.

A favorite and right up my alley was a game called Stockpile. One of the designers, a young man named Brett Sobol, was there and did a great job of introducing us to the game. I had a chance to pre-order it tonight, but since I'd just sank $50 into HeroClix, I didn't. I probably should have, I think my wife would like it a lot. I know I did.

You can find the details for Stockpile here: http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/161614/stockpile

I also played a game called Barnyard Legions designed by Andrew Meredith. It was shown to us tonight by a friend of the designer, and I feel remiss in saying that I do not have that gentleman's name. Barnyard Legions is a family card game, which while it says is ages 13 and up, I think is probably more like 10 and up. The game will be going to Kickstarter soon, and if you're looking for a family game that is quick and fun I recommend it. The artwork and gameplay are excellent.

You can find details on Barnyard Legions here: http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/173946/barnyard-legions

Did I take All or Nothing to be playtested by the experts? Of course I did. Cameron was kind enough to say he'd stock it in his store. I'd like to think that was self-serving on his part because he's a marketing genius who knows a future giant in the game world when he sees it. Yes, in fact, I think that must be it. Cameron is a visionary and sees where this is going.

We had six players so we played team play instead of solo, and it was pretty fun. I'd have liked to played it with these guys more. I did get a request to sell a deck tonight from a gentleman named Dustin, but I did what I think was the smart game designer thing. In return for playtesting reports, I gave Dustin a free deck. Hopefully by tonight, Easter evening, his entire family is begging him to get them a copy of the game. ;)

I think playtesting went well. The concept of the game went over well, with one suggestion from Brett Sobol for a rule that I think could certainly be added into the optional rules list once I run it past our design team and it passes muster with them.

What a great evening. I learned a lot, got to play great games, and support a local game store in the process. What can be better than that?