Ever wanted to give feedback directly to game designers?
Interested in trying the latest board game concepts before they hit store shelves?
If so, participation in an "Unpub" event may be just what you're looking for!
Founded in 2010, The Unpublished Games Network, called Unpub, is a
growing community of game designers, publishers, players, retailers and
artists working towards the creation of new and unique table top games that
will keep people entertained for generations to come!
The latest main Unpub convention in January 2014 featured over 50
designers with their latest concepts.
An
Unpub “Mini” is chance to bring the Unpub experience to local venues and reach
out to gamers, giving them a chance to provide valuable feedback and
participate in the game design process. On June 21st, an Unpub Mini will be held at:
The event will run the duration of the store hours, from 11AM - 10PM.
Note that Game Parlor typically charges a $2 "table fee" that's good for all day to play in the store. However, if you participate in at least one playtest, the Unpub Mini designers will pay for your ticket!
Here are some of the games that will be featured at the Unpub Mini:
Boondoggle - Boondoggle used to be just nice folks and dirt roads. Then, the
money pours in. Small-time schemers and crooked dreamers bring their dirty
machines and dirtier deals. There’s room for you in this town. Designer - Mike Karg
East India Company - In the days of sail, opportunities emerged to bring exotic
goods from around the known world to domestic markets. Players preside over European
investment companies in 18th century global colonization and trade. Designer - Paul Owen
Escape Velocity - Forget the US and USSR -
this is the real space race and you're in the cockpit, trying to maneuver your
space ship to victory! Designer - Kiva Fecteau
Horrible Hex - An abstract tile laying and
shifting game that pits opponents against one another in an arena of foresight
and spatial geometry. Designer - Jonathan Moffat
Lords of Baseball - An economic simulation of owning a franchise, not playing 9 innings. Designer - Max Jamelli
Knot Dice - Games, puzzles, and art using 44
custom dice that connect edge-to-edge creating Celtic knot designs. Included is a cooperative
game, a real-time game, and several competitive dice-laying and dice-building
games. Designer - Matthew O'Malley
Post Position - An exciting horse racing game where you are literally invested in
the horses. At the end of the race horses will payout only to players who own
shares of those horses. Designer - Austin Smokowicz
Reactor Scram - In this co-op game, players work in a neglected reactor plant.
Some days are worse than others. But they all know that the
really bad day will come - when too many things break down at once. Players must try to survive that really bad day and get the
reactor plant in a safe condition before everything goes out of control... Designer - Paul Owen
Salvation Road – Cooperative game in which
the players try to survive in a post-apocalyptic world to reach “Salvation”. Players must survive the Marauders hunting them down at every turn
and the environment itself. Due to be published by Van Ryder Games in
late 2014. Designer - Michael Kelley
Santa’s Workshop – With the big night fast
approaching, which team of elves will best help Santa prepare? Build toys, collect coal for those on the
naughty list…and don’t forget to feed the reindeer! Designer - Keith Ferguson
The Last Bastion - With your garrison slaughtered, you and your
fellow citizens must defend your home of Bastion against the Barbarians. You aren't a trained soldier so you have to balance your time
between training and fighting. Designer - Peter Gousis
Trove - An asymmetrical fantasy adventure where players take on the roles of the
Knight, the Goblin Horde, the Cave, and the Dragon — each with unique pieces,
powers, and paths to victory! Designer - David Somerville
Great of you to organize this. Good on ya! Will there be a schedule, or is it all games as soon as there are enough players?
ReplyDeleteNo particular schedule...just playing the games as player fill in...
DeleteHailing from Blacksburg here! If I wanted to travel to this, how much can I expect to spend food-wise? Thanks for making this happen!
ReplyDeleteHi Ben - I'm a Hokie myself (class of '93 & '95) - happy to have you come up! There's an Italian place two doors down that sells pizza slices, subs, pasta, etc. I usually spend $7-$10 for a meal there, though some of their pasta dishes are in the $15 range. There's several other restaurants withing walking distance, including some fast food. So, I would say you can get away with $20 (maybe less) for the day on the low end. The Game Parlor sells drinks and snacks (candy bars, mostly) - though I've never bought them, so I'm not sure what they charge for that.
Delete