KICKSTARTER: Dreadball - The Futuristic Sports Game

I've decided to kick off my weekly Kickstarter spotlight a little bit out of left field.  I say that because I have never actually played a tabletop game in my life.  If it isn't on the console or PC, it's safe to say these hands of mine have never had the opportunity to give it a chance.  This can be blamed on the fact that the group of friends I had growing up didn't get into it or that it wasn't a super popular thing to do in the middle of Wisconsin during the 90's.  Either way, I've decided to make my first foray into it by backing DreadBall.

Dreadball is a "hyperkinetic sci-fi sports game of unparalleled speed and ferocity".  It pits two coaches against each other on a pitch that features really artfully designed miniatures.  The game features actual plays and the expected strategy that comes with most sporting events all while being decided by the mercy of the dice.




At the current moment, the lower donation tiers will get you a game with 2 unique teams (Trontek 29ers and Greenmoon Smackers). They have already announce other teams and expansion ideas, but those come with the higher donation tiers that seem like a great deal if they weren't out of my meager price range.

Now to the game itself, each game starts with both teams having 6 players on the field and 5 action counter.  There are Guards (who's only goal is to flatten everything in their way), Jacks (the utility men who can either take a defensive/guard approach or more offensive), and finally the strikers (are able to pick up the ball and either run with it or throw it).  The action counters are used each turn to perform things such as smash (guards) to performing striker abilities.  All of this is done in order to accomplish one goal, get the ball into your opponents "goal" as many times as you can.  In order to score you must have either a Jack or Striker in possession of the ball, entering the scoring zone.  This is just a small taste of what the game play actually offers, and it does seem like it will be a game with a relatively steep learning curve (the rule book is sure to be a short novel) but it seems like it will be worth the effort.


The game boards, featuring 6 players per side, and the ref.


Here we see 2 guards and 3 jacks for Red and 1 striker for blue, plus the ref up top.


These are a glimpse at another race altogether that has been introduced.

This looks like a perfect opportunity to jump into the tabletop gaming genre as it seems to blend some of the things I love the most, sports and sci-fi.  You can check the actual kickstarter page for more information and to see what the different rewards are for the different tiers (http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1744629938/dreadball-the-futuristic-sports-game). I hope that this brings a new game or possible new genre to your eyes and it's something that you consider. With 18 days remaining on their campaign, there is plenty of time to get in and you can have yourself a full set and ready to play when the game ships out in Q2 of 2013.