Innovative Upcoming Games

Hello and welcome to the September edition of the Gamescape Newsletter. Today, we will discuss many new things, from games to events. Then, we will cover some local conventions that we are attending. Let’s dive right in!

Small Learning Moment

Legacy games are a bridge between a role-playing game and a board game. They have the functions and mechanics of a board game, but they change and evolve as the story progresses, like a role-playing game. In many legacy games, you will unlock new components or be able to open envelopes with new rules as you progress through the game, meaning the game fundamentally changes in between sessions. Pandemic Legacy: Season 1, Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion, and Charterstone are all great examples of legacy games.

We are mentioning Legacy games this month because this store is its legacy. This year, we are celebrating Gamescape’s 39th birthday. Stay tuned for a special article on the store and its rich history.  

RPGs at RACs

Recently, we had one of our first large-scale RPG events. This has been our most requested event for the past few years, but we couldn’t provide it due to a lack of event space. Luckily, we have collaborated with RACCs as a community space to hold some of these events that require greater space. This event allows new and old players to try out one-shots, enables dedicated players to participate in campaigns, and even gives space for established parties. RPGs at RACCs will be held on the first Friday of every month, but look forward to more events held at RACCs.  

Local Conventions

We have been traveling to many different conventions, but we have some local cons to attend this month!

First, we have Pacificon 2024 in Santa Clara during Labor Day weekend. This past weekend, we attended Pacificon for the second time as vendors rather than attendees. Pacificon has options for all players, from those who love miniatures to roleplaying games to historical games and all kinds of board games. We had a great time seeing the community and sharing our favorite games!

Next, we have Kubla-Con Fall, also in Santa Clara, over Veterans Day weekend. Kubla-Con has grown so large that they needed another convention! This year, we are only attending Kubla-Con Fall and won’t be participating as vendors. This gives us more time to explore the convention, playtest new games and learn more about what the community is interested in to ensure that our stock reflects the desires of the board game community.

Upcoming Releases

Since attending many conventions, we’ve been lucky to have many new games up for prerelease or readily available in-store and on our web store!

Landmarks is a new party game from Floodgate Games. Landmarks are available now! Your party has become lost on an island, and communication with your campsite has been shoddy. Your walkie-talkies give way to one-word clues as to which direction you should head in, but be sure to avoid any traps or curses and, most importantly, pick up some treasure on the way out! Landmarks has strategies similar to Codenames, where you are trying to give simple hints to ensure the lost party moves into the right tile. Play either co-op or in team versus team for various play styles.

Next up is boop the Halls! the next holiday edition of boop now has a 3D board and moral choice. You can win by lining up three cats, just like the original boop, or you can be naughty and knock off three of your opponent's ornaments off the tree you are scampering around. boop the Halls! It is also a simple piece placement two-player game like its original, but it adds on these new strategies and a mind-bending 3D board for entirely new strategies. Stay tuned for when boop the Halls! becomes available.

Finally, Warcrow is the new fantasy miniatures skirmish game on the block. From the creators of well-loved Infinity, Corvus Belli has produced another fantastic game with beautiful miniatures. Choose a faction and choose a scenario to dive into. These various scenarios change the terrain, conditions and terms of success for each game, turning every playthrough into a new experience. Each faction is unique, and if you are struggling to pick, there is a personality quiz to show you where your alliances are at heart (I am of the dwarven Mounthaven). Take this quiz and stay tuned for when you can pick it up!

Thank you so much for tuning in to this edition of the Gamescape Newsletter. Please stay tuned for a full article coming out later this month celebrating the store's anniversary. Look forward to learning more about the store's history and what we are focusing on in the future!

If there is anything you’d like to see in upcoming newsletters, feel free to email newsletter@gamescapesf.com.