When I was a teenager I would look up the rules of games to find interesting ones and introduce them to my friends, who were less inclined to gaming but would sometimes play. I needed a fast and fun game that we could play entirely held in our hands while we would wait hours in the line at Six Flags, and Love Letter seemed to fit the bill with the elements of bluffing and reading people and the simple choices. I suggested trying the game, but we were teenage dudes, they were not interested in trying a game called "love letter" featuring princesses.

I reskinned the game as "Glory To Arstotzka", themed around Papers Please. I opened up GIMP and designed a card template with images and symbols online I found related to the game. I copied all the mechanics & cards from the Love Letter deck with names and art replaced with characters from Papers Please, and I added flavor by changing the term referring to removing a player to "detain". I printed the cards out, put them in sleeves, and taught them the game.

They loved it.

Pasti actually made a game about board game art without mentioning Root or Dune. Incredible.

I never would've taken the time to learn Arcs if it looked like TI4. The often funny cartoonish style made the barrier of entry seem much easier to get through because of its artwork. My wife never would've bothered to learn and play Quacks without the updated "cozy" redesign.

Great video 😊 I would like to add that art certainly also help our brains to remember a gaming experience by providing anchor points with cultural and symbolic value, rather than just pure changes in the game state.

I don’t think I ever would’ve bought quacks if it wasn’t for the newer art style tbh. Art and presentation is everything when picking a new game from the shelf at a game store and the old art of quacks doesn’t give the vibe of “potion game” as much as it gives “merchant game”.

Even though they’re all holding potion bottles, over half the box art is the sky, buildings, and tents.

My game group in college once told me a story from before i met them. They got crazy drunk one night and wanted to play Coup but didnt have a copy on hand. They wrote the names of the cards on sticky notes and used q-tips as coins.

you are a gentleman and a scholar.  Thank YOU Big Pasti I always love your videos!

I wish you talked about Signal-to-Noise ratio with regards to game art, which is how much does the art contribute to the readability of the game. Compare the original version of Amun-Re to the 20th anniversary edition: the newer version has quite nice Vincent Dutrait artwork, but the huge amount of detail makes it difficult to actually read the relevant game elements. The original version is far more legible in this regard. Often the art of the game board has paler or pastel colors, so they can contrast with the tokens and player pieces that have much deeper colors, making the board easier to read.

This was great.  I'm reminded of two games with identical gameplay, by the same company: Gorus Maximus and Sea Change.  Gorus Maximus came first.  It has a theme of gladiators from different schools having 'bouts' in which one school is the 'preferred school,' but that can change in the middle of a bout.  I ran across it when someone suggested it for my geeklist on solo trick-taking games, since it has a solomode.  I took one look at the artwork and replied "That's not for me." It's very bloody, but in a cartoony way.  Limbs hacked off, blood spattering  everywhere,  etc. Some folks love the art and its dark humor.  But the person who listeded it suggested I take a look at Sea Change instead.

Apparently I wasn't the only one who was turned off, because the publishers made an alternative game, Sea Change, with exactly the same rules, but couched them in traditional trick-taking language: a 'preferred school' became a 'trump suit.'  And the artwork was completely different. It featured beautiful paintings of sea creatures.  The theme all but disappeared; the cards could have looked like Rook cards and it would have played the same.  But the artwork advertised "This is a relaxing, meditative game.  It will make you feel like you're looking at an aquarium.  If cartoony violence bothers you, come over here instead."  

Two games with exactly the same rules, but two completely different 'souls.'  One a dark but hilarious game where you let loose with your sword and go about hacking and maiming but in a cartoony way, the other a meditative game where you're looking at pretty fish, or maybe just an abstract game where you're focusing on game play while not being distracted by anything too far afield from the trick-taking.

Actually, many Euro games like Quacks of Quedlinburg were originally designed with families in mind. Catan was too, along with many others. The naming style at the time leaned toward whimsical, evocative, or alliterative compound titles, which had more appeal back then. Over time, the trend shifted toward simpler names. Euro studios were making business too. What has really changed is the audience (also German and American players have their differences).

I wouldn't have spent a second on PARKS if it wasn't for the use of the art and complementary design. The second edition on the other hand feels like if corporate wanted a version without art and creativity.

we play Skull using regular poker card, three black one red lol

Scyhe is why i stopped judging a game by it's art and volume of components. i'm glad you agree on the dissonance of the game, great video as always

Absolutely outstanding video. The best board game channel out there. Every video is phenominal. Thank You.

I specifically bought the older version of Quacks because of the art

Its funny that I just found this video. Im currently doing a personal project where I am replacing all the artwork in skull with my own anime style art!

In scythe the rules read “Show the art to the other players and read the thematic text out loud.”

Brother you are nailing the production, you have evolved.

Thank you for always going 'beyond the easy question'. That's what makes your channel one of the most interesting channels in boardgaming :)

This was the most poetic and fact based, precise boardgame video I have in my self.
Thanks Pasti!! This was a true highlight!