Welcome to Kickstart Monday! This is our weekly series featuring 2 or more crowdfunding projects that have caught our eye. We scour over platforms like Kickstarter and Gamefound to find projects that interest us. Check out this week’s picks:

Read on for our thoughts on the games…

Tales of the Arabian Nights 40th Anniversary edition

Our first game this week is Tales of the Arabian Nights 40th Anniversary edition on Gamefound from Play to Z.

Tales of the Arabian Nights is a game that is near and dear to my heart and has been a favorite of mine since I played my parent’s original copy from 1985 when I was a kid. Tales of the Arabian Nights is an epic storytelling game for 1 to 6 players that draws heavily from the Middle Eastern folktales in 1001 Nights. You’ll take on the role of a legendary hero like Aladdin, Sinbad or Scherezade in a journey that will take you to locations across the Middle East, Africa, Europe and Asia.

Each turn in the game you will travel across the map to a new location and have an encounter there. You’ll encounter a wide cast of characters like lovesick princes, powerful wizards and evil viziers as well as stranger beings like Efreet, ghouls and mer-people. 

In Tales of the Arabian Nights your fate is in your own hands, depending on what you encounter you’ll choose from a list of reactions to respond to the situation, for example you might choose to Aid the lovesick prince, Hire the powerful wizard and Attack the evil vizier. Once you’ve made your choice, your fate will be revealed by consulting the Book of Tales, a massive collection of narrative paragraphs something like a big choose your own adventure book, that will reveal the outcome of your choice and any rewards or consequences that come with it.

Your goal in the game is to collect both Story and Destiny points. You’ll decide at the beginning of the game on a combination of the two that adds up to twenty and this will be your personal formula for potentially winning the game. To earn these points though you’ll need to successfully navigate your encounters.

With a small set of skills to aid you and a bit of luck you may gain fortune and renown and your adventures but the world of the Arabian Nights can be a treacherous one. You could just as easily find yourself lost in the wilderness, imprisoned, or even driven mad by an unlucky encounter. Even when an ill fate befalls you though you may still be awarded Story or Destiny points for your experiences. If you can gather enough Story and Destiny points and return to Baghdad to share your epic tale you’ll be victorious and all will sing your praises!

Tales of the Arabian Nights is filled with magic, adventure, and wonder and is a truly unique board game and storytelling experience. 

This new version celebrates the 40th anniversary of the game and features new art, and gameplay changes and tweaks for a modern audience. This new version is available now on Gamefound as the Sultan’s Favor pledge for $100 which includes the limited deluxe edition exclusive to this campaign.

If you are a fan of storytelling and high adventure I suggest you take this opportunity to get your hands on this legendary board game. The Gamefound campaign for Tales of the Arabian Nights 40th anniversary edition runs until December 19, 2024, so get your pledge in before then!

Viking Route

Our next game this week features more mythological adventures but in a different and colder part of the world. We are looking at Viking Route from Ares Games on Kickstarter. 

Viking Route is a cooperative adventure game for 1 to 4 players set in the world of Norse mythology and featuring some unique mechanics using a compass and magnets. 

In Viking Route you’ll be choosing between two game modes either the Campaign mode where you play a series of scenarios on different game boards or Ragnarok mode where a unique scenario and rule combination is generated each time. The game is played on two boards: a 3d cardboard Viking ship known as a Drakkar, and a scenario board representing the seas where your ship is sailing. You’ll sail your ship by manipulating special magnetic game pieces that will affect a compass on the game board which in turn controls the direction your ship will sail. 

Each scenario you play has its own objective and win conditions such as mounting a rescue mission or hunting a kraken. Aboard the Drakkar you’ll work together to manage the sails, keep a lookout, adjust the tiller to steer and, store valuables in the hold, and even fire the ballista to fight off enemies. Each of the players will also have a unique Viking character with their own stats and special abilities. Let’s take a look a the pledge levels that are available for this campaign:

  • Viking Pledge – $55 – A retail copy of the game and selected stretch goals
  • Jarl Pledge – $65 – The Kickstarter version of Viking Route including Viking miniatures and all unlocked stretch goals. 

The campaign for Viking Route only runs until December 20, 2024, so make sure to set sail now to get your pledge in before then. 

Did we miss your favorite project?

Thank you for checking out this week’s Kickstart Monday! If you find these interesting or want some attention on a Kickstarter or other crowdfunded projects that you would like to read more about please share your thoughts with us via our social media or email.

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