"Small World" Warcraft strikes, the battle is more than just the future

At the Blizzard Carnival in 2019, Blizzard announced that it will join forces with the board game company A (Asmodee) to launch the board game "Small World of Warcraft World of Warcraft ". The news must be exciting for all Warcraft fans and board game players. However, it is expected that it will officially land in the North American and European markets this summer.

According to the setting, this board game will combine the grand world view of "World of Warcraft" and the gameplay mechanism of the board game "Little World". The background of Warcraft must not be said much, so what is "Little World" in the end Board game? Will it be fun to "mix and match" with Warcraft? Why not go to this "small world" to find out.

"Little World", a preliminary exploration of the gameplay

Speaking of "Little World", we have to mention a very classic board game "Vinci Finch" from 1999. This is a strategy game based on ancient European civilization. Players control chess pieces to fight each other and compete for territory. Ten years later, Philip, the designer of "vinci", reconstructed a fantasy background for it, modified some mechanics (such as adding dice), reset the art painting style, and got a more popular than the original. , "Small World" with higher evaluation.

The story of "Little World" takes place on a fictitious continent, where various races live, including dwarves, elves, undead, wizards, murlocs and so on. Because the living space is too small, the various races have launched a fierce battle for expansion and development and dominating the world. The content of the first version of

"Little World" game is very rich, including 14 races with different characteristics and 20 special abilities, but the game flow is very simple. At the beginning of each round, the player first selects a group from a combination of races and special abilities that are randomly placed on the left side of the board, and obtains the corresponding force. However, only the races and special abilities in the first row can be used for free.

Next, the player can launch a landing attack from the edge of the board. The success of the attack is determined by the number of enemy and enemy forces and different terrain. As long as the force is sufficient, the player can occupy this area, and then continue to launch adjacent areas based on this campaign. If the troops are insufficient, you can launch a final attack and expand your troops through support dice to achieve the goal of occupying a certain area. After all the offensive operations are completed, the player can rearrange the forces in the area they occupy and take the income from the occupied area, but at least one unit of force must be left in each area.

Then, the player has two choices: one is to continue to expand the territory; the other is to let his current race decline and lose racial characteristics and abilities, and then re-select a combination of race and special abilities to launch a landing attack, although it will lose the original acquisition Battle results, but you can keep an original race mark in the occupied area and get income. However, players can only have one declining race at a time, and if their current race declines again, the previous declining race will be completely removed from the territory.

After 8-10 rounds, the game is over and the player with the most coins wins. If the coins are the same, the player with the most race marks on the board wins. To put it simply, the gameplay of this game is to select a combination of race and special ability, launch an attack to occupy the area, and then choose to continue the attack or choose a new combination attack after decay. Repeatedly, until the end. Overall, the rhythm is bright, very easy to learn, and the game time can be controlled within an hour. The various combinations of multiple races, special abilities and terrains in the

game give the simple gameplay rich changes and strong tactics, giving players free tactical choices, and a high reopening rate. For example, troll races can build caves to increase defenses, vampires can transform enemy troops, and elves will not be killed; they have the ability to fly in any area that is not restricted by terrain, and have the ability to take extra money in the occupied area. Different landforms such as plains, hills, depressions, etc. will also have different effects on the attack results. The main test of the

game is the player's decision-making and resilience according to the actual situation. Which race and ability combination to choose, when to expand, and when to choose recession all need to be carefully considered. But inUnder the cloak of regional control, "Little World" is actually a game that scores points by "cars each other". The players are highly interactive and enjoyable to play! In addition to the excellent mechanism of

, the theme of the fantasy world, bright and bright colors, cute cartoon style, and exquisite and beautiful accessories are also its bonus items. It is precisely because of all aspects of excellence that "Little World" has won the Mi Places Choice Award, the 2010 American Game Magazine Best Game of the Year and many other awards.

"Small World", endless

Another ten years have passed, "Small World" has also continuously launched many expansions to continue the vitality of the game and maintain the freshness of the players. There are some extensions to

that simply increase the types and numbers of races and special abilities in the game, such as "Cursed", "Grand Dames of Small World", "Royal bonus" and "Be Not Afraid..." and so on.

also has some updates to the game’s mechanics and elements. For example, "Leaders of Small World" has been expanded to include a new gameplay for race leaders; "Necromancer Island" has been expanded to include players playing the role of a necromancer, as well as one-person confrontation Human gameplay; the expansion of "River World" will greatly change the map, adding ports, rivers, docks, and adding event cards in the expansion of "Tales and Legends".

Among them, 2011's "Little World: Dungeon" is not so much an expansion, as it is a new version that has never been experienced. In this version, there are 15 new races, 20 new special abilities, a new layout, new terrain and some special treasures, and it can be called an independent game.

's "Little World: Kingdom" launched in 2012 also allows players to make their own layouts through a unique puzzle design, including connecting the "Little World" first edition and the "Dungeon" layout together, further enhancing the richness of the strategy .

The many expansions of "Little World" have basically played the icing on the cake. The theme is rich and diverse, and the form is eclectic. I believe that the World of Warcraft, which is also a magic theme, can be "seamlessly" integrated into it.

"Little World of Warcraft", battle Azeroth

At present, the specific information about "Little World of Warcraft" is still not disclosed much, but it is reported that this work is the same as "Little World: Dungeon". It is an extension that can be played independently.

The gameplay it uses is still the classic selection combination and timely decline mechanism of "Little World". Players can use a total of 16 races and 20 special abilities of alliances and tribes to fight, and jointly compete for resources, artifacts and Azeroth Control of several important islands in China.

Blizzard is very strict in setting the roles and abilities of various races in the game, and strives to be authentic. However, the design of the map is not strict and must be done in accordance with the map shape of Azeroth in World of Warcraft. When players use familiar races, artifacts and teleportation points to start a brand new "Azeroth" battle on the desktop, there will be a different experience.

And this time, A China is likely to follow up the simplified Chinese version of "Little World of Warcraft", which also makes up for the regret that "Little World" did not have a Chinese version before.

"Little World" is undoubtedly a classic enough board game, with exquisite artwork, fast pace, rich strategies, and numerous expansions to ensure its vigorous vitality. After Warcraft, what classic IP will seamlessly integrate with this "small world"? Is it Lord of the Rings, Quanyou, Demon Hunter, or Vampire? Although the world is small, the future can be expected!